Zhang Yang’s idea was simple: while classes were light, he should spend more time engaging with the counselor.

The course load for the fourth year was indeed not heavy; the first semester had very few classes. Hu Xin and Gu Cheng had already established a good relationship with the counselor, and with some extra effort from himself, passing the required courses without failing shouldn't be an issue.

According to this year’s policy, they might start internships in the second semester of their senior year, which would be more convenient for them. With a bit of spending and good networking with the hospital instructors, they could secure internship certifications easily.

This way, they truly wouldn’t need to take a leave of absence and waste a whole year.

“I understand, Zhang Yang. We won’t take a leave. We’ll manage the business while continuing our studies!”

Gu Cheng nodded slightly; he had worked it out. Hu Xin, however, was still a bit hazy.

Zhang Yang smiled. It was good they understood. This would certainly impact their studies, but they never intended to become doctors for a living; all they needed was this diploma.

In that case, there was truly no need // The fastest text update from Fan Lou If they took a full leave, Zhang Yang even suspected they might not return to school. This year’s business would be busy, and next year’s would be even busier. By the time their business expanded, the thought of returning to school would likely have faded.

Taking a leave meant this outcome was highly probable.

Although the diploma itself wasn't essential, Zhang Yang didn't want them to have regrets. After all, a college life only concludes perfectly with graduation. If they truly couldn't graduate and obtain their diplomas because of their business, their university experience would be incomplete, and they would surely regret it later, leaving a lingering sense of incompleteness.

As long as they didn't jeopardize the business, they could absolutely finish their studies; they shouldn't be left with such a regret.

Long Feng left and didn't return until dinner time when he was called over.

He knew Zhang Yang was catching up with his classmates, so he went back to continue cultivating and absorbing the spiritual herbs he had previously consumed. After fully absorbing the medicinal power, he still had one more spiritual herb waiting to be taken.

Being able to consume two spiritual herbs consecutively was something Long Feng hadn’t even dared to dream about before.

This also made him marvel at Zhang Yang's immense wealth, yet at the same time, he felt even more gratified.

He was certainly not suffering under Zhang Yang. Two spiritual herbs—at his family estate, he wouldn't have dared to ask for even one. The Xuanyuan family didn't have fewer spiritual herbs than Zhang Yang, but because there were so many people, distribution was difficult, meaning they could only be used at critical moments.

Dinner was at the Triumph Tower. The first time Zhang Yang treated them there, Hu Xin had secretly sworn an oath that one day he too would treat everyone to a meal here.

He originally thought this dream would only come true after graduation, but unexpectedly, with Zhang Yang's help, this wish was realized so quickly.

Liang Yan was no longer at the Triumph Tower; this time, a new manager hosted them.

Having dined and spent money here many times, Zhang Yang was already a significant patron.

Liang Yan left because, last time, she provided the Xie family with information about the Thousand-Year Ginseng and received a substantial reward.

Although she failed to hook up with Xie Hui, the wealthy bachelor, she at least obtained what she wanted. Xie Hui gave her a large sum of money, and she used it to open a restaurant back in her hometown, finally becoming a proprietress herself.

Including Long Feng, there were seven of them in total. This time, they didn't request the large private room, opting instead for a standard medium room.

The large room was actually wasteful; they couldn't eat that much. Every time, they had to push themselves to order the more expensive dishes or wines. It was better to get a medium room and order the dishes they genuinely enjoyed.

There was another point: although Hu Xin was making money, he hadn't shed his old habit of being meticulous with expenses. Since he was treating this time, he chose the most suitable option.

The dinner was very enjoyable. At the table, Hu Xin and Gu Cheng still ate without regard for appearances, snatching at delicacies. Their mannerisms showed no hint that they were now business owners.

It was good that the two hadn't changed; Zhang Yang hoped they would always remain this way, as this was their truest selves.

Upon returning, Hu Xin and Xiao Dai and the others left.

They left Zhang Yang and Mi Xue alone. When they were together, Zhang Yang told her some amusing stories about hunting, but they were only about the events of the first day. He didn't mention the Golden Crown Python incident; he didn't want Mi Xue to worry or know about it.

They chatted for a long time before going to rest. Having been separated for so long, even just exchanging mundane words brought them both great happiness.

The next morning, Mi Xue went directly to the restaurant. As the main owner, she had dedicated herself entirely to the restaurant’s operations these past few days. Currently, everything at the restaurant was going well. Thanks to Huang Hai and the others looking after things, the establishment secured a large base of regular clientele from the start, operating at a profit every day.

After taking over the restaurant, Mi Xue realized just how substantial the profit margins were. If the business continued to develop at its current pace, she would become a millionaire—a genuine millionaire—in a very short time.

After Mi Xue left, Zhang Yang took the car out for a spin.

The Holy Maiden Flower and the Golden Crown Python’s vital essence both needed to be compounded into medicine. While school hadn't started yet, he could take this opportunity to prepare these two medicines first.

Zhang Yang possessed all the valuable auxiliary materials, thanks to the reserves from the Zhang family at Huatuo Residence, which helped him tremendously. At least he didn't have to bother acquiring these valuable herbs with years of cultivation, saving a great deal of effort.

He sent Long Feng to Yang Ling’s auto shop to retrieve his car while Zhang Yang returned home with peace of mind to compound the medicine.

Of these two medicines, the most crucial was the Saint Maiden Pill—a drug that allowed breakthroughs without impediment, making it especially vital for Inner Strength cultivators.

Generally speaking, the breakthroughs in Inner Strength cultivation fall into three major categories. The first is the transition from the beginner level to the intermediate level. Beginner Inner Strength techniques can sustain life and strengthen the body; Long Cheng falls into this category.

Strictly speaking, he is at the very beginning of the beginner level.

The ancestral Qi Gong heart method of the Zhang family is divided into four layers, the first layer of which belongs to the beginner level. Taking Long Cheng as an example, he is roughly equivalent to the initial stage of the first layer of the Zhang family's ancestral technique.

The initial stage of the first layer already possesses Inner Strength, making him slightly stronger than many ordinary people.

Cultivating the first layer is not difficult; as long as one practices diligently, one can almost always advance from the initial stage to the late stage. The real difficulty, the true barrier, lies in the breakthrough from the first layer to the second.

That is, the promotion from the beginner level to the intermediate level.

Beginner Inner Strength cultivators have relatively weak Inner Strength, and this strength can only be cultivated internally to enhance their own power; they cannot use the Inner Strength for other purposes. Like Zhang Yang using his Inner Strength to enter someone’s body to heal them—Long Cheng cannot do that.

Not to mention channeling Inner Strength into a weapon to elevate an ordinary blade to the level of a divine weapon.

These abilities are only demonstrated by practitioners of the second layer technique.

Those who master the second layer technique are already considered experts. Zhang Yang in his previous life was at the late stage of the second layer, which is the late intermediate stage. He is now even a step further, standing at the threshold of breaking into the third layer.

The distinction in techniques within Long Feng’s Xuanyuan family is similar to the Zhang family’s ancestral Qi Gong, also divided into these four tiers, though the techniques they practice and their names differ.

When Long Feng first met Zhang Yang, his strength was at the early stage of the second layer, while Zhang Yang was at the mid-to-late second layer, naturally making him somewhat stronger.

Now, as Zhang Yang is about to transition from the late second layer to the third, Long Feng is still in the early second layer, meaning the gap in their strength has widened considerably.

However, Long Feng is also close to advancing directly from the early second stage to the middle second stage. After the battle with the Golden Crown Python and consuming the spiritual herb, his Inner Strength has increased significantly. While there is still a gap compared to Zhang Yang, he is much stronger than before.

Long Feng has made great progress too.

Breaking through from the second layer to the third is the promotion from intermediate to advanced level. This breakthrough will be harder than the first, and many practitioners get stuck at this point for their entire lives without ever advancing further.

Zhang Yang is exactly at this juncture, but luckily, he has the Holy Maiden Flower. Once the Saint Maiden Pill is compounded, he has no worries regarding this breakthrough.

Practitioners of the third layer of the Zhang family technique possess Inner Strength that is even more formidable, allowing them to apply it to more areas, such as the skin, hair, or fingernails.

A third-layer Inner Strength master can be said to have weapons all over their body.

Because the Inner Strength can be directly applied to the body's surface, the physical defense of a third-layer master far surpasses that of a second-layer master. If Zhang Yang were to break through to the third layer, he wouldn't be knocked down halfway by a single strike from that giant python.

The third layer designates an advanced Inner Strength practitioner. Currently, the number of such practitioners in the country is very small.

The Five-Crowned Golden Crown Python they encountered earlier likely possessed strength around the early third layer; otherwise, it wouldn't have managed to put Zhang Yang in such a sorry state, ultimately requiring them to rely on movement techniques and terrain for a combined assault to make the python meet its end.

The final layer of the Zhang family technique, the fourth layer, falls into the realm of top-tier cultivators.

Top-tier cultivators can project their Inner Strength outside the body, killing without visible means—that is the hallmark of a supreme master. The elders of the Long family have masters at this level, and Zhang Yang's grandfather in his previous life also reached this realm.

It’s a pity his grandfather suffered Qi Deviation during his later cultivation and eventually passed away; otherwise, he could have lived to be at least a hundred years old.

Masters who can project Inner Strength generally have long lifespans.

It is rumored that above the fourth layer lies the legendary fifth layer. Upon breaking through the fourth layer, Inner Strength transforms into True Essence (Yuan Qi), achieving the Three Flowers Gathering at the Crown and the Five Qi Returning to the Origin—that person would be a terrestrial immortal, capable of almost anything.

Unfortunately, this remains merely a legend. From ancient times to the present, no such master has ever appeared.

At least in the Zhang family's lineage spanning over eighteen hundred years, there has never been a record of such a master emerging in any era.

Zhang Yang never considered the fifth layer. What he most desires now is to break through to the third layer as quickly as possible, reaching the realm of an advanced Inner Strength practitioner.

Once he reaches the third layer, he will possess a certain degree of self-preservation ability. Coupled with the assistance of Lightning and Shadowless, even a top-tier master capable of projecting Inner Strength would not find it easy to deal with him. At the very least, he could resist—though, at best, he could only resist or escape. Even if he breaks through, he shouldn't expect to defeat a fourth-layer top-tier master.

This is different from the fight they had with the Golden Crown Python. At that time, Zhang Yang had reached the late second layer, and Lightning's strength was also late second layer. With the help of the early second-layer Long Feng and a heaven-defying spiritual beast like Shadowless, the actual gap in strength between them and the python was not that large.

Furthermore, they had weapons and utilized the terrain to their advantage, finally succeeding in defeating and killing the Golden Crown Python.

Sixth update, six updates complete. It's very noisy outside, seriously affecting my typing speed.

This chapter primarily focuses on introducing the stratification of Inner Strength levels. It wasn't clearly explained before, which might have caused some confusion for friends, so I wrote a bit more here to make the division of Inner Strength clear.

After all, this is one of the protagonist's very powerful abilities, and if it's not clearly explained, friends might be even more confused later. There is a lot of introductory material, so I ask for your understanding. Also, this is just about abilities and serves the protagonist; it doesn't mean the protagonist will only focus on increasing these aspects later!