14: Chapter 14 I Also Want to Keep a Low Profile

Casually tossing the empty bottle into the trash can, the refined glass made a crisp sound as it hit the side of the bin. Li Wen slumped onto the hard wooden chair in his room, his entire body feeling as if his bones had scattered.

The cultivation of the Splitting Edge Golden Fiend Method for just one short hour yielded astonishing results, but it also nearly wrung out all the physical strength and energy in his Physical Body.

He remained slumped in the chair for a good four or five minutes before his rapid breathing gradually calmed down, and the feeling of soreness and weakness subsided slightly.

Only then did he have the mental focus to sink his consciousness into his Sea of Consciousness and open the information panel that others could not glimpse.

Four lines of brand-new messages were clearly displayed before his eyes:

【You Cultivated the Splitting Edge Golden Fiend Method for one hour, Splitting Edge Golden Fiend Method Experience + 10】

【Cultivation Technique: Splitting Edge Golden Fiend Method · Basic (Minor Achievement 30 → 40 / 100)】

【Your Physical Body Rank + 0.1】

【Realm: Unranked (6.1 → 6.2 Rank)】

Li Wen’s gaze lingered on the 【Physical Body Rank】 column for a long time.

The last time his Physical Body Rank had increased was the morning after his cultivation session the previous day. This time, it had actually risen immediately after he finished Cultivating.

This confirmed his previous speculation—his Physical Body was already on the cusp of breaking through to Rank 6.2. That hour of extreme focus and high intensity was just like the last straw that broke the camel's back, successfully shattering that invisible barrier.

"That means after a deep rest and physical adjustment tonight, my Physical Body Rank should increase significantly tomorrow morning..."

Li Wen calculated silently, "Jumping directly to Rank 6.3 might be unrealistic, but I will definitely be very close."

The principle behind strengthening the Physical Body is identical to muscle growth: it requires extreme stimulation followed by sufficient Qi and blood and energy replenishment to achieve rapid growth.

The effect brought by this single cultivation session was definitely equivalent to the total of five days of hard Cultivation without relying on potions in the past.

Considering his body urgently needed recovery, forcing himself to continue Cultivating would only be counterproductive, potentially even damaging his Foundation.

The path of martial arts emphasizes 'relaxation after tension,' a principle Li Wen deeply understood.

He pushed himself up using the back of the chair, his steps slightly unsteady as he walked toward the washroom.

After a full day of Cultivation, his clothes had been soaked through with sweat countless times—wet, then dry, then wet again—leaving obvious sweat stains.

He took off his sticky clothes and adjusted the water temperature to a comfortably warm level, letting the dense spray from the showerhead drench him from head to toe.

The fine curtain of water quickly enveloped him, then converged into clear, thin streams that snaked down his body, whose contours were becoming increasingly defined from exercise, washing away fatigue and filth.

...

The next morning.

The chill of the winter morning had not completely dissipated, but Li Wen had already opened his eyes precisely before his alarm clock rang.

His decision to sleep early the night before left his spirit exceptionally full and refreshed.

He bent his legs and executed a light flip, landing steadily and silently on the floor from the bed.

【Realm: Unranked (6.2 Rank)】

His gaze swept over the numbers on the panel; just as he expected, he hadn't immediately jumped to Rank 6.3 overnight.

However, the feeling that he was just one step away from a Breakthrough was even stronger now.

"Tonight, I will continue to take one qi and blood potion along with Cultivation, and by tomorrow morning... I will definitely reach Rank 6.3." He silently felt the Qi within him seemed more solidified, and the knuckles of his clenched fists were slightly white.

A moment later, he headed to the washroom.

"Dad?" As soon as he pulled open his room door, Li Wen was surprised to see his father, Li Hong, sitting upright on the old sofa in the living room, holding a steaming enamel mug.

"You’re up, A Wen." Li Hong turned around upon hearing the sound, a gentle smile on his face. "Go wash up quickly, I made your favorite corn potstickers."

"Oh, okay!" Li Wen suppressed the confusion in his heart—his father should have already left for work by this time. But the familiar scent of charring that filled his nostrils instantly shifted his attention.

He crossed the narrow hallway in three quick steps and rapidly finished washing up.

"Dad, are you taking a day off today?" Li Wen pulled out a chair next to the dining table and sat down, unable to help asking as he looked at the golden, enticing potstickers in his bowl.

"Yeah, the factory doesn't have much heavy work these few days, so the supervisor let a few of us old guys rest for a few days at home."

Li Hong nodded with a smile, his chopsticks never stopping, and he placed two more browned potstickers into Li Wen's bowl. "Eat more, martial training consumes a lot."

"That's great, you should rest a bit too." Li Wen didn't suspect anything, picked up a potsticker, and took a bite—crispy and fragrant. "Delicious! It tastes just like before!"

"Haha, eat more if you like it!" Li Hong's smile deepened, adding almost half a potsticker to his son's bowl with every bite.

"Dad, don't just keep putting them in my bowl, eat some yourself." Li Wen felt a warmth in his heart and quickly pushed his father's portion back toward him.

...

The warm breakfast time between father and son passed quickly. Nearly nine-tenths of the large plate of corn potstickers ended up in Li Wen's stomach.

"Dad, I'm heading to school now." Li Wen wiped the oil from the corner of his mouth with a tissue and grabbed his schoolbag from the sofa.

"Mm, be careful of the traffic on the way." Li Hong stood up to see him off at the door, his gaze following his son's retreating figure until he disappeared around the corner of the stairs.

Snap~

The front door closed again. After the light sound of the door meeting the frame, the room fell into a dead silence for a moment.

"Cough... Cough cough cough... Cough cough..." A muffled and violent coughing fit that could no longer be suppressed suddenly erupted, as if trying to expel everything from his chest.

Li Hong hunched over, tightly covering his mouth with his right hand, coughing so hard the veins on his forehead bulged.

There was no supervisor granting time off... It was his body, long squeezed dry by years of heavy labor, finally issuing its final warning and protest.

...

Qingshi No. 3 Middle School, Cultural Classroom of Grade 12, Class 21.

The morning chill was dispelled by the heat radiating from dozens of young bodies.

The Math teacher, wearing thick lenses, walked onto the podium holding a large stack of white test papers, chalk dust clinging to the cuffs of his dark coat.

"The final exam is officially the day after tomorrow," he said, placing the papers on the desk. His voice wasn't loud, but it cut through the faint discussions below.

"So, for these two consecutive Math classes this morning, we will take a practice run with last year's final exam paper. Everyone treat it as a warm-up, but you must take it seriously."

"Pay attention," he emphasized, his gaze sweeping across the classroom. "Write your own work; no whispering. I will grade and score these papers! You are all in Grade 12 now; you should know the rules."

The rustling sound of papers being passed out rose like a tide washing over the beach.

Soon, a test paper filled with formulas and problems was spread out before every student—The Final Math Exam Paper for the First Semester of Grade 12 at Qingshi No. 3 Middle School, Galactic Calendar Year 224.

"Finally, the class test is here..." Li Wen took the paper, his palm slightly warm. "I wonder how much scholar experience points I can earn this time?"

It had been a week since his last Scholar leveling up; his experience grinding had never stopped.

At the same time, he was also curious: how much would his academic scores improve now that he had re-sorted and mastered the knowledge points using the ability One Proof, Eternal Proof?

How far was he from his goal of breaking into the top ten in the class to win the scholarship? The thought flashed by like lightning. Li Wen cast aside distracting thoughts, gripped his pen, lowered his head, and began writing quickly on the paper.

The first half of the multiple-choice section went exceptionally smoothly. Relying on the solid Foundation brought by One Proof, Eternal Proof, he could determine the correct answer with almost no need for thought.

However, starting from the second-to-last question in the multiple-choice section, the difficulty suddenly spiked.

Li Wen frowned slightly. After trying several lines of reasoning without success, he decisively marked it and temporarily skipped it.

Next were the fill-in-the-blank questions. The beginning was equally smooth, but the last few difficult problems combining geometry and algebra stumped him again.

So... he turned his gaze to the calculation problems.

The first major problem, a classic function graph and extreme value question, was a freebie and easily solved.

The second tested the combination of sequences and inequalities; the difficulty was moderate. Li Wen spent some time and clearly wrote out the steps.

For the third major problem, a comprehensive analytical geometry question, Li Wen managed to solve the first sub-question.

When it came to the fourth and fifth major problems concerning solid geometry and derivative applications, the complex graphs and symbols on the paper seemed to mock him—he couldn't find a starting point, and even the first sub-question felt like looking through a fog.

"Jingle bells~~" The crisp sound of the class ending bell rang out like a savior.

The first period was over.

"If anyone needs the restroom, go quickly now. Everyone else can continue answering the questions," the Math teacher said after taking a sip of water.

Silence filled the classroom; no one got up. Over forty heads remained buried in their test papers, the rustling sound of pen tips scratching the paper becoming the sole melody.

Li Wen raised his head and subtly scanned his surroundings in a quick sweep.

The situation for those classmates pursuing the martial arts track was generally the same as his: simple questions were filled out completely, but they were stumped by the difficult problems, leaving large blank spaces on their papers.

For those who did write answers, they mostly just haphazardly stacked formulas, hoping to hit a scoring point.

In contrast, the classmates specializing in the written exams were proceeding methodically.

Especially his deskmate, Wei Wu—even though the guy always joked that academics were his 'side job,' he was undeniably the top Scholar in Grade 12, Class 21.

His paper was neat and flowing; at that moment, he had already finished everything except the second sub-question of the final, culminating big problem.

"I wish I could interact with you all as an ordinary person, but alas... my strength won't allow it," Li Wen's lips curved upward slightly.

"Activate—[Absolute Focus]!" The instant his will commanded it, an indescribable sense of clarity swept through his brain.

It was as if the noisy world had been muted by a silent button. The Math teacher, the figures of his classmates, the sunlight outside... all external information suddenly receded, becoming vague and meaningless, as if viewed through a thick sheet of frosted glass.

In his vision, only the white test paper covered in numbers and symbols remained, occupying the absolute core of his consciousness with unparalleled clarity.

He felt as if he could clearly 'see' the logical chains and knowledge nodes embedded within the problems, and his brain began to operate with unprecedented high efficiency and precision for analysis.

His pen tip reconnected with the thorny solid geometry problem he had been stuck on, his thoughts seeping into the core of the question like ice water.

..."Jingle-ling—"

As the bell signaling the end of the second morning period rang again, Li Wen, immersed in the ocean of test papers, snapped back to reality as if pulled by an invisible string.

"Hoo~~"

He exhaled a long, slow breath of stale air accumulated in his chest, and his taut nerves instantly relaxed.

His gaze focused on the test paper on the desk. The math paper, which had been mostly empty, was now completely covered in neat but slightly hurried handwriting.

Under the unreasonable speed crush of [Absolute Focus], all the difficult problems had been forcefully conquered.

"Alright, the test is over. Have the last person in each group please collect the papers." The Math teacher on the podium put down his thermos, his gaze habitually sweeping toward the students in the last row of each group.

"That was close, I finished just in time!"

"Ugh~ Wait, I forgot to write my name!"

The classroom instantly transformed from tense silence into a clamorous ocean, with sounds of relief and frustration intertwining.

"Holy crap! The Overachiever finished filling his paper?!" The student responsible for collecting papers in Li Wen's group walked up to his desk, his eyes sweeping over the densely written answer sheet, and he couldn't help but let out a low gasp of surprise.

This sound, in the noisy environment, was like a stone thrown into a calm lake, instantly creating ripples.

"God!" Another classmate next to him followed the gaze, also sucking in a cold breath, and blurted out.

As if triggering some peculiar signal, a group of repeat-test takers emerged:

"God!"

"God!"

"God!"

... A series of low but awe-filled monosyllabic words spread and echoed through the classroom at a visible speed, converging into a uniform wave of murmurs.

Several nearby students who were originally preparing to stand up were drawn over by the scene, crowding around Li Wen's desk, craning their necks, eagerly trying to get a look at the math paper being hailed as the 'God Paper.'

"Hurry up and collect them, don't waste time! You'll get to see them when they are handed back!" On the podium, the Math teacher, with a hint of helplessness but also a barely perceptible smile, tapped the desk and raised his voice.

This urging sound acted like a switch, instantly interrupting the brief scene of reverence, and the surrounding students quickly dispersed like startled birds.

The papers were quickly gathered and sent to the podium.

Perhaps the small commotion just now had drawn extra attention from the Math teacher, as he deliberately picked out the papers from Li Wen's group and placed them on top.

Then, he skillfully extracted Li Wen's copy and began flipping through it carefully while walking back to the office.

His tightly furrowed brow gradually smoothed out, and occasional flashes of surprise and appreciation crossed his eyes.

Thud!

About five minutes after the Math teacher left the classroom, a familiar panel notification box popped up in front of Li Wen without any warning:

"You have completed a Math test. Your problem-solving approach is clear, and the answer accuracy is high. Overall evaluation: Excellent!"

"Occupation: Scholar Lv3 (24 → 74 / 400) Experience Points + 50"

"So fast?" Looking at the displayed information, a flicker of surprise crossed Li Wen's mind.

He had originally thought that the settlement of experience points would have to wait until the papers were handed back, and the scores and rankings were finalized.

It now seemed that the mechanism for obtaining experience was quite intelligent; as long as the test paper was graded and an overall evaluation was reached, the experience points could be credited instantly.

This was undoubtedly a huge improvement in efficiency.

A full 50 scholar experience points instantly credited washed away the residual stinging sensation caused by the high-intensity operation of [Absolute Focus], and Li Wen's spirit was instantly invigorated.

"Just the score on the paper provides 50 experience points. When the final ranking is confirmed, I should probably receive a considerable additional income," Li Wen calculated quickly in his mind.

Based on experience from multiple previous tests, the 'Scholar' occupation experience was usually settled in two installments after every major exam: one based on the score of the test paper itself, and the other based on the relative ranking of the test score within the entire cohort.

Given the Math teacher's grading speed, the exam ranking would certainly be announced by tomorrow morning study hall or before the next Math class at the latest.

An ordinary classroom test could yield a total return of nearly 100 experience points, which was almost equivalent to the accumulation he gained from three or four days of intense study. This boost in efficiency made Li Wen's heart burn even hotter.

"This is just an ordinary quiz..." His eyes shone brightly,

"When it comes to midterm or final exams, especially the high-grade ones involving joint exams across several counties or cities, the scope and competitive intensity—the experience points will probably see an explosive surge!"

Just briefly imagining that scene made Li Wen's heartbeat involuntarily quicken a bit.

Powerful strength came from accumulation bit by bit, and 'experience points' were the most direct fuel propelling him forward in leaps and bounds.

Exams... He had never anticipated their arrival with such eagerness.

...Carrying beautiful expectations for the future, a morning that seemed short but was actually fulfilling flew by.

When the bell for the last class of the morning rang, the Scholar panel in front of Li Wen popped up with notification information again:

"scholar experience + 27"

"Occupation: Scholar Lv3 (74 → 101 / 400)"

Because the Math test occupied an hour and a half of study time, the actual time he spent on focused study this morning was only four and a half hours.

Even so, the experience bar was still steadily growing.

Calculating carefully, in less than two days, he had already advanced a quarter of the 400 points required for Lv3.

Efficiently shoving all the books and textbooks on his desk into the desk drawer, Li Wen strode directly toward the cafeteria without hesitation.

Time was pressing; every minute was precious.

After quickly finishing lunch, Li Wen did not return to the classroom or go to the Martial Arts Hall for his usual midday basic exercises.

His schedule needed a temporary adjustment—he went directly to the dedicated technique practice room on the top floor of the library.

The electronic calendar on the wall clearly displayed: January 8th.

And the date for the Martial Arts Final Exam was prominently marked as January 10th.

He only had two and a half days left.

His core goal was to practice the Top-tier Saber Technique—the Rainbow Light Saber Technique—to the Entry Realm before the exam.