40: Chapter 40: The Account Arrives

January 13th, 9:00 AM, the third day of winter break.

In the bedroom, the warm winter sun spilled across the desk through the window.

Li Wen sat upright, his fingertip tracing the pages of a thick book titled "galactic common tongue (Basic Advanced Edition)." His brow was slightly furrowed, and his lips moved soundlessly as he struggled to pronounce a set of complex syllables.

Beside the book lay a report card, prominently displaying his final evaluations: five other subjects—Excellent; Foreign Language (galactic common tongue)—Good.

"Hiss... this set of prefix syllable rules is really a tongue-twister." Li Wen rubbed his throbbing temples.

Even with the thirty percent Comprehension Ability boost from Absolute Focus, learning this language remained an uphill battle, proving just how weak his original Foundation was.

This winter break, conquering the galactic common tongue to raise his total academic score—and thereby gain more scholar experience—had become his other core task alongside his Cultivation.

The mysterious origins of this new human common tongue, which had a one-hundred-percent adoption rate, were vaguely described in textbooks and classrooms.

It was no longer the English, Russian, or Japanese of the old era, but a language originating from a broader galactic civilization. Every human child was required to learn it from the moment they began to babble.

For Li Wen, it was both an exam requirement and perhaps a key to accessing a wider world in the future.

Just as he was immersed in the mental whirlpool brought by the obscure grammar, two crisp "ding-dong" notification sounds rang out abruptly, followed by the specific chime of the payment software on his phone indicating an arrival of funds.

Li Wen's spirits lifted, and he grabbed the phone from the desk almost instantly.

Unlocking it with his fingerprint, the screen lit up, and two text messages from Huanong Bank were clearly visible at the top:

[Huanong Bank]: On January 13th at 9:00 AM, 2,000.00 yuan for "Progress Award etc." was deposited into your account ending in 9409. Balance: 2,574.85 yuan. Payer: Qingshi County Treasury Centralized Payment Center.

[Huanong Bank]: On January 13th at 9:00 AM, 10,000.00 yuan for "second-class scholarship" was deposited into your account ending in 9409. Balance: 12,574.85 yuan. Payer: Qingshi County Treasury Centralized Payment Center.

"Whew..." Li Wen looked at the vivid "12,574.85" on the screen and let out a long, genuine sigh of relief, a heartfelt smile spreading across his face.

"Right on time! They said three to five days, and it arrived on the third!"

This twelve thousand yuan was the key to opening the high-speed channel for raising his Physical Body Rank.

Especially the one thousand for the Progress Award plus the extra one thousand for being in the top three of his class.

He was slightly surprised that his final overall ranking had actually broken into the top three of the class, earning him five hundred more than he had initially expected.

This meant he could take a full twenty-four level 1 qi and blood potions into his possession.

For an ordinary student, consuming twenty-four qi and blood potions in the thirty days of winter break was almost a fantasy.

The absorption rate of a normal person required an interval of about three days to digest one potion without damaging their Foundation.

For the vast majority of students in Class 21, ten potions a month was the limit. Those with slightly better talent and a solid Cultivation of the Basic Method could barely manage one every two days by giving it their all.

But Li Wen was different. He had Absolute Focus!

This ability could be used not only for learning and comprehending the Dao, but also during Basic Method Cultivation. It allowed him to use willpower far exceeding that of ordinary people to precisely squeeze and temper every ounce of his body's potential, completely absorbing and transforming the power of Qi and blood without a single bit of waste.

Ordinary Martial Artists found it difficult to maintain standard postures during the extreme exhaustion of the Late Stage of pole-standing exercises, but for him, under the enhancement of Absolute Focus, it was a daily trial he had to undergo.

Twenty-four potions in one winter break—this was the high-intensity plan he had tailored for himself.

"Time to tell Mom and Dad the good news." Li Wen quickly composed a concise message and sent it to his father, Li Hong, and his mother respectively.

He hadn't mentioned applying for the scholarship beforehand; his father had been under immense mental pressure since being laid off, and he didn't want to give his family false hope.

These past few days, his father had been busy attending memorial services for fellow workers who died in the Qingmu Project accident, leaving early and returning late, so there hadn't been a chance to speak in person.

After sending the messages, Li Wen picked up the "galactic common tongue" book again, his gaze becoming focused and sharp once more.

Time flowed by in his state of focus.

It wasn't until the 12:30 PM alarm rang on his phone that Li Wen put down the book and stretched languidly. Information timely surfaced in his mind:

[You have studied earnestly for six hours, scholar experience +36]

[Class: Scholar lv5 (200→236/1600)]

The sense of mental clarity brought by the Scholar Rank increase was still something he savored, but there was still a long way to go.

He briskly slung on his backpack, which was already stuffed with compressed energy bars and high-protein energy paste, and left home.

The bus bound for Kindling Hall traveled smoothly.

Familiar street scenes flashed past the window. Li Wen was closing his eyes to organize the difficult points of his Rainbow Light Saber Technique Cultivation for the afternoon when an abrupt voice suddenly broke the silence in the carriage.

"We interrupt with an emergency news bulletin. Citizens of Qingshi County, please take note: be sure to avoid Qingmu Road and its surrounding areas when traveling! The area has been temporarily cordoned off by the Security Bureau due to an emergency; the reopening time is yet to be determined... We apologize for any inconvenience!"

On the broadcast, the original advertisements were replaced by a serious announcement.

"Qingmu Road?" Li Wen opened his eyes. "Isn't that near the original site of the Qingmu Project? A massive collapse caused heavy casualties just two days ago... How long has it been? Another incident?"

A trace of doubt and unease flickered through his heart. That project involved too many people; his father had been one of them, and the death list from that catastrophe had kept the whole family somber for several days.

A few minutes later, the bus approached the outskirts of Qingmu Road. Looking through the window...

Outside the original accident site, a new ring of higher, blue temporary isolation steel plates had indeed been erected. Several uniformed security officers stood at the entrance, holding up conspicuous police tape, and no-entry signs were particularly striking.

Behind the steel plates, there seemed to be faint traces of smoke and dust. Some vehicles and pedestrians were being diverted far away.

"Looking at this setup, it's no small matter..." Li Wen frowned, but that was all.

He tried to take a few more looks to get more information, but other than the lockdown personnel and the steel plates, he couldn't see any further clues.

The bus soon passed by, and the cordoned-off area quickly vanished from his sight.

Strong curiosity was quickly diluted by reality—his father no longer worked there, and the place was far from home. Except for passing nearby on the way to Kindling Hall, it was in a completely different direction from his house.

The news said to go around it, so he wouldn't worry about it. His time was precious now and couldn't afford any distractions.

Cultivating, getting stronger, and making money to treat his father—this was his core battlefield.

"Kindling Hall, we have arrived!" the clear electronic prompt sounded.