Chapter 407 - 404: Third Grade Bottleneck
Chapter 407: Chapter 404: Third Grade Bottleneck
"He’s dead?"
Everyone was stunned, doubtful of the news.
You Xin was ranked sixth on the Celestial Pride List. How could he have died so easily?
"Killed by Senior Brother Fang Han,"
the young man continued.
A deathly silence fell over the Dining Hall.
A moment later, someone voiced their skepticism.
"This news has to be fake, right? You Xin is sixth on the Celestial Pride List, and Senior Brother Fang is fifteenth. That’s a nine-rank difference. How could Senior Brother Fang possibly kill You Xin?"
"Exactly! Who would believe something like that?"
"It’s definitely just a rumor."
Everyone shook their heads. No one believed it.
"It’s true! I heard it from a senior brother in the Law Enforcement Hall with my own ears! Not only did Senior Brother Fang Han kill You Xin, but on his way back, he was ambushed by a Second-Grade Elder from the Netherworld Pavilion."
The young man grew anxious, his face flushing as he spoke.
"It was Elder Zhou Jin who arrived just in time to save Senior Brother Fang Han!"
At these words, the disbelief on everyone’s faces gradually turned to stunned suspicion.
"Ambushed by a Second-Grade Elder? The Netherworld Pavilion was so furious they sent a Second-Grade Elder after him? Could it be that You Xin was really killed by Senior Brother Fang Han?"
"But killing You Xin... how is that possible?"
"Let’s go! I’ll ask a contact at the Law Enforcement Hall!"
Someone stood up and strode quickly toward the exit.
The others exchanged glances and hurried after him.
...
The news spread quickly throughout the Sect.
At first, almost no one believed it.
They didn’t believe that number fifteen on the Celestial Pride List could kill number six, nor did they believe that You Xin, ranked sixth, could die so easily.
But as more and more people went to the Law Enforcement Hall and Tingyu Hall to make inquiries, and as the news from different channels began to corroborate one another—
disbelief gradually turned into shock.
"It’s true... You Xin is really dead. Killed by Senior Brother Fang Han."
"I heard You Xin’s name on the Celestial Pride List has already turned gray!"
"To think he could kill You Xin, who was sixth on the Celestial Pride List... just how strong is Senior Brother Fang Han now?"
On the Martial Arts Arena, in front of the Inheritance Hall, in the dormitories of the Twelve Courtyards—
everywhere Qingxuan Sect disciples gathered, they were discussing the same name.
Fang Han.
The young man who had joined the Sect just over two years ago, the prodigy who had fought his way from an ordinary disciple to fifteenth on the Celestial Pride List.
And now, even You Xin, sixth on the Celestial Pride List, had died by his sword.
"He’s too strong..."
one disciple murmured, his voice filled with an indescribable mix of emotions.
Another disciple was silent, their eyes shining with admiration.
Yet another clenched their fists, as if they had just witnessed a new realm of possibility.
Back in the Dining Hall, the disciples who had initially refused to believe the news now sat together, silent for a long time.
"So, you’re saying Senior Brother Fang Han was so badly injured yesterday because he was fighting You Xin?"
one disciple asked in a low voice.
"That must be it."
Another person nodded.
"He was sixth on the Celestial Pride List, after all. It’s only normal that Senior Brother Fang Han would be severely injured after killing him."
Everyone nodded in silent agreement.
...
Morning light filtered through the leaves of the bamboo grove in the courtyard, casting mottled shadows on the ground.
Fang Han stood in the courtyard, breathing in the fresh morning air.
After a night of rest and nourishment from a healing Holy Medicine like the Creation Pill, his internal injuries had significantly improved.
Although a dull ache remained, it wouldn’t worsen as long as he avoided strenuous movement.
The courtyard was quiet, with only the occasional birdsong drifting from a distance.
A spring breeze swept by, carrying the fresh scent of grass and trees, refreshing the spirit.
Just then, footsteps sounded from outside the courtyard gate, followed by Qiu Lan’s voice:
"Senior Brother, Senior Sister Yun Qianyue, Senior Brother Li Feng, and Senior Brother Xiao Chen are here to see you."
"Please let them in."
Fang Han was slightly taken aback before replying.
A moment later, three figures passed through the moon gate and into the courtyard.
Yun Qianyue walked in front. Today, she wore a pale cyan dress, her face still veiled with a light purple gauze that revealed only a pair of clear, cold eyes.
Those eyes fell upon Fang Han, scanning his shoulders and arms, clearly assessing his injuries.
Li Feng followed behind her, cradling his long saber, his expression as stern as ever.
Xiao Chen was last, a familiar, gentle smile on his face.
"Senior Brother Fang."
The three of them approached and clasped their hands in salute.
"What brings you all here?"
Fang Han nodded slightly, his gaze sweeping over their faces as a faint smile touched his lips.
"We heard you were injured, so we came to see how you are."
Xiao Chen was the first to speak.
Fang Han shook his head and gestured for the three to sit on the stone benches in the courtyard. Qiu Lan had already prepared tea and snacks; after serving them, she quietly withdrew.
"Just some superficial wounds. I’m fine now."
"That’s good to hear."
Yun Qianyue sat on the stone bench opposite Fang Han, her cool eyes betraying her concern.
"We heard... you killed You Xin, the sixth on the Celestial Pride List?"
Li Feng leaned his long saber against the stone table and asked.
His voice was low, still holding a trace of awe, even though some time had passed since he first heard the news.
"You could say it was a lucky kill."
Fang Han glanced at Li Feng and nodded slightly.
A brief silence fell over the courtyard.
Although they had already heard the news, hearing it confirmed by Fang Han himself still sent shockwaves through their hearts.
You Xin.
Ranked sixth on the Celestial Pride List.
The top disciple of the Netherworld Pavilion.
He was a figure they could only look up to, so far out of reach that even gazing from afar felt presumptuous.
And just like that, he was dead.
Killed by the sword of the person before them, someone who had joined the Sect in the same year they did.
Xiao Chen picked up his teacup and took a sip, as if trying to calm the turmoil in his heart with the simple action.
He set the cup down and looked at Fang Han, his eyes filled with an indescribable mix of emotions.
"In just over two years since joining the Sect, you’ve already grown to this extent..."
In just over two years, Fang Han had gone from an ordinary disciple to someone capable of killing the sixth-ranked on the Celestial Pride List. His rate of improvement was simply terrifying.
If the proof wasn’t right before his eyes, he would have found it hard to believe anyone could achieve such a feat.
Li Feng said nothing, simply picking up his teacup and downing it in one gulp.
He had always been a man of few words, and now he was at a complete loss for them. The shock he felt was no less than Xiao Chen’s.
Back in the Sub-Branch, his strength had once surpassed Fang Han’s. He never imagined the gap between them would become so vast.
"The gap between us is getting wider and wider."
Yun Qianyue gazed quietly at Fang Han, at the face that had grown calmer and more reserved than it was two years ago.
Her cool eyes held surprise, complexity, and a flicker of some other unreadable emotion.
"Don’t look at me like that. It was just a stroke of luck."
Feeling a bit uncomfortable under their stares, Fang Han gave a light cough.
"A stroke of luck?"
Xiao Chen couldn’t help but laugh, a sound tinged with both bitterness and acceptance.
"Senior Brother Fang, you’re being too modest. A lucky kill against the sixth on the Celestial Pride List? I’d love to have that kind of luck myself."
Fang Han shook his head but didn’t explain further.
He knew some things were difficult to explain, and didn’t need to be.
"Killing You Xin must have come at a great cost. Are you sure your injuries are fine?"
Yun Qianyue asked, her voice cool but with an underlying softness.
"I’m fine."
Fang Han met Yun Qianyue’s gaze and nodded slightly.
Yun Qianyue said no more, only letting out a soft "Mm."
Her cool eyes swept over Fang Han’s body once more.
Xiao Chen glanced from Fang Han to Yun Qianyue, the corners of his lips curling into an almost imperceptible smile.
A short while later, the three of them took their leave, and Fang Han stood to see them off.
"Focus on your recovery."
Yun Qianyue, walking last, let her gaze linger on Fang Han’s face for another instant. She spoke softly, then turned and walked away.
The hem of her pale cyan dress fluttered gently in the morning breeze, and she soon disappeared beyond the moon gate.
Fang Han murmured a soft acknowledgment as he watched her leave.
...
The effects of the Creation Pill were even better than Fang Han had expected.
In just a few short days, the injuries he had sustained from his battles with You Xin and Yin Wugou were already seventy to eighty percent healed.
In the early morning, Fang Han sat cross-legged in his Quiet Chamber, slowly concluding his cultivation session.
The aura around him was as placid as still water, while the Inner Qi surged ceaselessly through his meridians, even more vibrant and abundant than before his injuries.
He opened his eyes, a sharp glint of light flashing through them before vanishing.
Since his injuries had prevented him from practicing his Swordsmanship and Body Technique these past few days, he had devoted all his time to Inner Qi Cultivation.
Aside from necessary meals and rest, he spent nearly all his time circulating the Profound Wind Technique to cultivate his Inner Qi.
Under the effect of his 256x Root Bone Talent Amplification, his Cultivation was remarkably effective.
The Inner Qi within his Zhaohai Acupoint was growing at a visible rate.
He could clearly feel himself drawing closer and closer to the critical point of Perfection.
"Soon,"
Fang Han muttered to himself.
He rose, left the Quiet Chamber, ate the breakfast Qiu Lan had prepared, and then returned to the Quiet Chamber to sit cross-legged once more.
He took a Jade Bottle from his robes, tipped out two True Spirit Pills, and put them in his mouth.
The elixirs dissolved the moment they entered his mouth, transforming into two warm streams of Medicinal Power that surged into his limbs and bones.
SHHH—
Fang Han closed his eyes, and the Profound Wind Technique began to circulate slowly.
Inner Qi coursed through his meridians, absorbing and refining the pure Medicinal Power from the True Spirit Pills, converting it into his own Profound Wind Technique Inner Qi. It gathered in his Qi Sea before pouring into the Zhaohai Acupoint.
Time slipped by quietly amid his silent Cultivation.
Inside the Quiet Chamber, there was only the sound of Fang Han’s long, steady breaths and the faint, almost inaudible hum of Inner Qi flowing within his body.
Fang Han remained as still as an old monk in deep meditation, not moving a muscle.
Only the aura around him slowly intensified.
At a certain moment—
BZZZZ...
A slight tremor that only he could perceive emanated from within his Zhaohai Acupoint.
This acupoint, which had long been approaching Perfection, was now finally filled to the brim with Inner Qi, becoming flawless and complete.
The overflowing Inner Qi spontaneously surged toward the next acupoint—the Yintang Acupoint.
However, the instant the Inner Qi touched the Yintang Acupoint,
an invisible but incredibly tough barrier suddenly appeared, firmly blocking the rushing Inner Qi.
"Finally, Perfection. I’ve reached the bottleneck to the Third Grade..."
Fang Han opened his eyes and muttered under his breath.
Just now, his Cultivation had broken through to the Late-Stage Fourth Grade Limit, and he had hit the bottleneck between the Fourth and Third Grade.
The leap from Fourth Grade to Third Grade was the transition from the Middle Three Grades to the Upper Three Grades, a crucial step in the path of the Martial Dao.
Many people were trapped at this stage for years, decades, or even their entire lives, unable to advance a single step.
Even for geniuses, it was common to be stuck at this Realm for a year or two.
This was the case for You Xin, sixth on the Celestial Pride List, as well as Luo Yuntian, seventh on the list.
Both were held back by this bottleneck, unable to take that crucial step forward.
But he was confident that this bottleneck wouldn’t hold him back for long. After all, he now possessed a 256x Root Bone Amplification.