Lu Yuan raised the wine gourd in his hand and took a shallow sip. He didn't take much; what else could he do? Once you entered the Heavenly Prison, it wasn't easy to leave. This wine had been painstakingly acquired from his Martial Uncle Chu Fei, so he naturally had to savor it, taking only small sips.

Boredom.

Inadvertently, one found oneself idle.

After reaching the early stage of the Great Perfection of the tenth level of Qi Refining, he found himself with nothing to do. There were other prisoners on the second level, certainly, but they had all sparred with him. At first, a few could put up a fight, but after he honed his experience against them, they became increasingly inadequate opponents.

Now, how to put it? He had two objectives for coming to the Heavenly Prison: first, to temper his magic power until it reached the Great Perfection of the tenth level of Qi Refining; second, to spar with the prisoners to gain combat experience. Both goals had been met, and his mission was considered complete.

Originally, he had intended to take a look around the third level of the Heavenly Prison, but Chu Fei had flatly rejected the idea.

"You are now at the tenth level of Qi Refining, which is good. However, the tenth level of Qi Refining is an abyss apart from the first level of Body Tempering—controlling energy to leave the ground. If you go to the third level now, I guarantee those prisoners will tear you apart," Chu Fei said, hands clasped behind his back, leaving no room for discussion.

Body Tempering, and Qi Refining, were separated by a chasm.

This suggestion was directly vetoed by Chu Fei. Lu Yuan understood that Martial Uncle Chu Fei was protecting him. It seemed the gap between the Qi Refining stage and the Body Tempering stage was indeed vast. This meant that staying on the second level of the Heavenly Prison was becoming dull, and since he couldn't go to the third level, remaining imprisoned held little interest. Fine, this period of arduous training would conclude here.

Lu Yuan raised the wine gourd and took another shallow sip. "That's right. This cultivation journey should probably end now."

Hearing this, the few prisoners stirred with excitement.

These prisoners immediately relayed the words, and the message instantly swept through the entire prison. They were ecstatic!

When Lu Yuan first arrived, they had been thrilled—Li Yuanbai's disciple had delivered himself to them. Their goal was to maim or kill Lu Yuan. Of course, they weren't in a rush to kill him; maiming him first would serve as retribution for their deep-seated hatred toward Li Yuanbai.

Their dreams were beautiful at first, but they shattered swiftly. Lu Yuan made his move. As the saying goes, an expert's first move reveals their skill. Lu Yuan subdued Zi Shu, Chou Niu, Yin Xu, and Ben Lei with his opening strike, utterly extinguishing their intent and thoughts of injuring or killing him.

Then, their nightmare began.

After Lu Yuan entered, he insisted on practicing his swordplay daily, and each session resulted in a prisoner suffering injury. The most tragic among them was Chou Niu; because Chou Niu’s Crippled Sword Technique had some redeeming qualities, he had suffered the most injuries among all the inmates on the second level.

Now, hearing Lu Yuan mention practicing his swordplay, they were all terrified.

Lu Yuan had become their nightmare.

They silently lamented in their hearts, Is it necessary to make imprisonment so miserable just by being here?

Before, they thought being perpetually confined was agonizing. Now, looking back, that previous time seemed like a life blessed by immortals. Their current existence was a true nightmare. Being randomly chosen by Lu Yuan to spar, only to be severely wounded, was unbearable.

We only wished to serve our time quietly and peacefully.

So, when they heard Lu Yuan say his cultivation was ending, the prisoners were overcome with excitement and gratitude.

Lu Yuan finishing his cultivation meant he would leave soon!

If he left, wouldn't this nightmare finally cease?

The prisoners secretly passed along Lu Yuan’s statement. Everyone who heard it first displayed disbelief, then faces lit up with overwhelming joy. Countless inmates were weeping, thinking, Finally, after all this time, is this nightmare truly over? This is cause for celebration!

Lu Yuan seemed to suddenly realize something. "Oh, looking at your expressions, you seem quite reluctant to see me go. Many of you are even shedding tears. How about this: I won't leave."

Upon hearing this, the prisoners nearly died of anguish. They desperately wanted to cry out, "Don't go!" begging him to leave immediately.

But they dared not utter a sound to tell Lu Yuan "Don't go."

They were genuinely terrified of Lu Yuan and feared attracting his attention.

They feared Li Yuanbai, but they feared Lu Yuan just as much.

This fear wasn't derived from his status as Li Yuanbai's disciple, but from Lu Yuan himself.

When Lu Yuan first arrived, he had declared he would become their nightmare, and the prisoners had laughed aloud, none believing him. Now, it had become reality.

...

Though he said that, it was merely a gesture to startle the prisoners before his departure. Lu Yuan still left the second level of the Heavenly Prison. There was no further purpose in remaining, and improvement was unlikely there. He had to depart. Lu Yuan stretched his limbs, walked unhurriedly, and soon found himself on the first level of the Heavenly Prison. There, Ling Yuzhu sat cross-legged on the ground, deep in meditation, seemingly trying to restore her vitality.

Hearing footsteps approach, Ling Yuzhu opened her eyes. "Ah, Sixth Junior Brother, is it not yet time for dinner?" Ling Yuzhu assumed Lu Yuan was rushing for a meal.

Lu Yuan inwardly groaned at the thought—in the eyes of his beautiful Third Senior Sister, he was simply someone obsessed with food. He shrugged. "Uh, my training is finished. There’s nothing worthwhile on the second level anymore. I’ve sparred with those inmates until there’s no real progress to be gained from them."

Hearing this, Ling Yuzhu nodded. Sixth Junior Brother’s sword skills were exquisite; he navigated the second level with ease and simplicity. Now, while she was still struggling hard on the first level, Sixth Junior Brother already felt the second level offered no further growth for his power, marking the end of his training.

The gap between them was significant.

He proceeded forward and conferred with Martial Uncle Chu Fei, who also nodded. Chu Fei had witnessed Lu Yuan's progress. Concluding the arduous training now was indeed normal, and he naturally allowed Lu Yuan to leave.

This period inside the Heavenly Prison lasted about a month. Although the prison was never dark, constantly illuminated by thousand-year lamps, the light of the lamps was naturally less comfortable than sunlight. Stepping out of the prison gate, Lu Yuan took deep, satisfying breaths.

The wind of the natural world—so liberating!

The light of nature—so gentle!

The clouds in the sky—so free!

Lu Yuan walked with his hands behind his back, treading the soil of the wilderness, feeling the stark difference between the outside world and the prison. The distant mountains, the wind, the mist—everything was so naturally arrayed. He truly couldn't get accustomed to life inside the prison; the unconstrained freedom outside was what felt comfortable, a deep, bone-soothing ease.

After leaving the Heavenly Prison, he headed briskly toward Changchun Residence.

——————

The Hall of Neutrality and Harmony.

Beneath the long plaque inscribed with the characters for "Harmony," Master Yuanyuan was reviewing the official documents in his hands. Although most of these documents had already been filtered by Ye Yangrong, who presented only the most crucial matters, the affairs of the North Peak were numerous nonetheless. Master Yuanyuan scanned the papers. "Yuan Ling seems to have become active again lately."

"He has annexed another mid-tier cultivation sect," Ye Yangrong reported. "The power under his command is growing steadily."

"A truly troublesome opponent," Master Yuanyuan frowned. This junior brother, possessing talent so immense it was a rarity once in a millennium, was a significant headache for him.

Ye Yangrong continued, "Martial Brother Chu Fei just delivered a message: Lu Yuan, who was training in the Heavenly Prison, has emerged."

"It's only been about a month since he went in," Master Yuanyuan frowned slightly. "When I spoke to Martial Brother Chu, I suggested he let Lu Yuan cultivate inside for a considerably longer period."

Ye Yangrong smiled. "Martial Brother Chu had no choice. Lu Yuan has already reached the tenth level of Qi Refining, and furthermore, all the prisoners on the second level have been thoroughly intimidated by him, fearing him to their very core. Lu Yuan can no longer make significant progress by remaining there."

"So quickly?" Master Yuanyuan was surprised. He had assumed the prison would allow Lu Yuan to train for half a year, or at least three to four months, not realizing the training would be concluded in just one month.

"Martial Brother Chu said Lu Yuan requested entry to the third level of the Heavenly Prison, but he refused, considering Lu Yuan's safety," Ye Yangrong explained.

Master Yuanyuan nodded. "He refused correctly. Although Lu Yuan has now achieved complete comprehension of Sword Intent, the tenth level of Qi Refining is still far below the first level of Body Tempering. Sending him to the third level would be far too perilous, especially since he is Junior Brother Li’s apprentice, which only increases that danger."

"Lu Yuan has performed admirably this time," Master Yuanyuan said, a smile touching his lips. "It seems with Yun Yi, Yun Ping, and Lu Yuan present for the upcoming Five Peaks Competition, our North Peak's results won't be dead last." Master Yuanyuan adhered to the Doctrine of the Mean; he didn't aspire to first place in the competition but certainly did not wish to finish last.

Ye Yangrong inquired, "Then, Senior Brother, should we ask Senior Brother Li to urge Lu Yuan to put in more effort?"

"No need. When nurturing talent, one must respect their innate nature. Lu Yuan's nature leans toward the leisurely. Allowing him to be diligent occasionally is fine, but forcing constant diligence might extinguish his inherent potential," Master Yuanyuan said, shaking his head. This was his method for cultivating the next generation: tailoring the training to their character.

"Right, while we focus on Yun Yi, Yun Ping, and Lu Yuan, we must also spare attention for Ling Yuzhu, Fang Dan, Sima Bo, An Zhi, Ye Fei, Ye Fang, and Ye Yuan—these seven. They are all core disciples. Every one of them must mature; that is my expectation for them."

(This is the third update. I'm exhausted. Please shower me with subscriptions and monthly votes! The new book monthly vote ranking is crucial for a new title, so I must repeatedly ask for votes. A miserable life. Also, the demand for 12,000 words is terrifying; let's try to keep it lower.)V