Chapter 9: Su Wuji

The little girl was so frightened that tears fell pattering down.

"What's the use of crying? Can crying make you immortal?" Liu Shi's tone was unusually harsh. "Remember this lesson—don't force your cultivation in the future. If you feel your meridians swelling and aching, that means they can no longer bear the strain.

So stop cultivating. Wait until your meridians recover naturally, then cultivate again. Understand?"

The little girl nodded seriously.

"Alright, off to the schoolhouse." Liu Shi sent the girl away, then said to her parent, "Take this wooden token. Go get her a medicinal bath packet."

"But didn't she force her cultivation?" the female cultivator parent asked timidly.

"So what if she forced it? She did complete her cultivation task within the allotted time. Completion earns a reward. That's the rule of the clan school. Go get her the packet."

The female cultivator parent nodded hurriedly. "Alright, alright."

Liu Shi quickly answered and sent off all the parents blocking the schoolhouse entrance.

After that, although more parents did bring their children, they didn't come all at once, so Liu Shi dealt with them swiftly.

Just as the schoolhouse was about to start class, a parent came running in a hurry, whispered something to Liu Shi. Liu Shi's expression began to sour, and that parent whispered a great deal more, until at last Liu Shi reluctantly agreed.

Seeing Liu Shi agree, that parent finally breathed a sigh of relief, then headed straight for the depths of the schoolhouse.

Seeing that parent leave, Liu Shi returned to the schoolhouse.

"Among the students in our class, there is a girl named Su Xuan who will take a one-year leave of absence due to illness. She will continue her studies next year with the next Wood Class."

"Liu Shi, what illness did she get?" Su Wuji suddenly asked. "It's not because she failed to cultivate her first wisp of magic power yesterday, so she was too embarrassed to come today, right? Pretending to be sick and taking a year off—is it because she can't face us?"

Liu Shi looked at him speechlessly: You're so young, yet your mouth is already this venomous—does your family know?

"Her parent said she's ill."

"Oh, oh, I get it now." Su Wuji said immediately.

Liu Shi: Get what, exactly?

"Alright, let's drop the matter of Su Xuan. Her parent has already gone to handle the leave for her. If you want to see her, you'll have to wait a year. And when she does come back, she'll be a year below you, and the schoolhouse is far away—you won't run into each other normally."

Liu Shi's words seemed aimed specifically at Su Wuji.

"Also, starting today, the Cultivation Common Sense class will be scheduled every morning. In the afternoon, you'll cultivate on your own; the time I'm responsible for guiding you is—

At that time I'll stay here, responsible for teaching the students who haven't yet cultivated their first wisp of magic power, and those who have cultivated their first wisp but haven't broken through to Qi Refining Layer One, how to cultivate. Students who've broken through to Qi Refining Layer One may go to the spare classroom next door to cultivate.

You may also go to the clan school's library to pick out books that interest you and read them.

Apart from going to choose books, attending class, or cultivating in the schoolhouse, you may not leave the schoolhouse at will.

Is that understood by all?"

"Understood." everyone replied in unison.

The Cultivation Common Sense textbook contained a great deal of knowledge—the book alone was at least a finger's width thick.

For children like Su Jin, learning it all and being able to withstand the examination was absolutely a daunting, monumental task.

A morning slipped by quickly.

In the afternoon, Su Jin ran to the clan school's library, picked out two books on planting, and returned to the spare classroom.

She planned to read more in addition to cultivating.

"Su Jin, how many wisps of magic power have you cultivated?" Su Wuji asked.

"Ten wisps."

"Didn't you cultivate when you went home last night?"

"I did cultivate, but unfortunately the one wisp of magic power I worked so hard to cultivate yesterday got eaten by the other ten wisps. So I'll have to start all over again later."

"Eaten? Why would it get eaten?" Su Wuji asked hurriedly.

"You actually don't know?" Su Jin gave him a strange look.

"What's so strange about that? I really don't know."

"Then didn't you ask your family?" Su Jin asked curiously. "If you'd asked them, wouldn't they have told you?"

"There's an instructor at the schoolhouse—asking the instructor about cultivation matters would be enough."

"Then go ask the instructor."

"Hey, hey, hey, we're all from the same clan. Since you already know, what's the harm in telling me?"

Su Jin looked at him speechlessly.

She then repeated to Su Wuji the explanation her eldest brother Su Jian had given her that morning.

In fact, not only Su Wuji—even Su Cheng was pricking up his little ears to eavesdrop.

And the two of them understood it after just one hearing.

"So that's how it is—we have to first nurture the magic power of Qi Refining Layer One up to the magic power of Qi Refining Layer Two before we can continue to break through?" Su Wuji was somewhat surprised. He thought, no wonder Grandfather told him not to be impatient, to cultivate slowly.

He had originally assumed Grandfather simply couldn't see how high his talent was. Turns out cultivating from Qi Refining Layer One to Qi Refining Layer Two wasn't that easy.

"I said I had cultivated thirteen wisps of magic power before bed last night, but when I checked this morning, it had become eleven." Su Cheng said.

"So you were listening too? You didn't ask your family either?" Su Jin asked curiously.

"My father, mother, grandfather, and grandmother all went out on sect missions. There's only a distant aunt left at home to look after me." Su Cheng said.

"My father and mother also went on missions, leaving only my eldest brother to look after me." Su Jin, hearing this, immediately felt the two of them had something in common—fellow sufferers.

"My father and mother both died in battle. I grew up with my grandfather, but recently Grandfather also went out on a mission. At home there's only servants looking after me. Asking them how to cultivate is no better than asking Liu Shi here at the schoolhouse." Su Wuji also shared his own family's situation.

Well then, they were all "left-behind children."

"Sigh, why is everyone so miserable." Su Jin said with feeling.

"My grandfather said that unless a sect cultivator is dead or grievously wounded beyond recovery, most of their time is spent either on missions or on the way to missions.

Only by doing missions for the sect can they obtain more resources and go further on the Dao.

Even after having children, they don't have the energy to take care of them. So we have to get used to this kind of life from a young age." Su Wuji said.

"I don't want to get used to it at all." Su Jin said.

"So am I," Su Cheng complained as well.

Su Wuji looked at them and smiled. "I share the same thought."

"By the way, guess how many more days until we welcome our fourth companion?"

Now, only the three of them remained in the entire academy, which was truly desolate and dull.

"I guess today. After all, three of us reached the first layer of Qi Condensation yesterday. Why shouldn't several more do so today?" Su Jin said.