63: Chapter 63 A man should be looked at with new eyes after three days' absence!

Early morning!

Golden sunlight poured through the window lattice, falling onto the floor to create fine, fragmented spots of light, dispersing the gloom of the room and illuminating the entire space.

His eyelashes trembled slightly, and Chen An opened his eyes, a glimmer of golden radiance seemingly flashing across the depths of his eyes before vanishing.

Breathing out a long sigh of turbid air, Chen An finally fully awakened. He turned to look out the window at the sky, then got up and began to wash up.

After washing up, Chen An changed into a clean white long robe and packed the useful items he needed into his storage bag.

A moment later, he had finished packing all the useful items. He then looked at the simple courtyard before him with a complex gaze, a trace of complicated emotions flashing in his eyes.

In this life, he had grown up in this very courtyard.

Unfortunately, after leaving today, he did not know if he would ever return here again!

Taking a deep breath, he took one last look at the furnishings in the room, then Chen An turned around resolutely and walked out.

...

Wurong County Academy, Martial Arts Plaza!

At this moment, the Martial Arts Plaza was already surrounded by an endless stream of lower-grade students.

Everyone's gaze was cast toward the Senior students in the center of the plaza who were carrying backpacks and standing tall. They all had straight backs, high spirits, and their brows were full of vigor.

The surrounding lower-grade students watched this scene, their eyes filled with intense envy and yearning. They were full of longing in their hearts, secretly hoping that they would soon achieve success in their Cultivate, so they too could be like these Seniors, walk out of the County Academy, and head toward a broader world of martial arts.

Chen An's expression was calm, and his footsteps were steady as he walked into the Martial Arts Plaza.

As soon as he appeared, he instantly attracted countless gazes from the entire venue that converged upon him.

The surrounding discussion paused slightly, and countless lower-grade students and Senior students waiting to depart subconsciously turned their heads, fixing their gazes upon him.

After all, this person was the runner-up of this Wurong County Martial Examination.

Although he ostensibly only had the cultivation of Condensing Qi Stage 6, he had achieved a battle record that shocked countless people.

Not only did he defeat Xiao Qiyuan, whose cultivation had reached the Perfection of Qi Condensation, face-to-face, but even the talented Zhou Shuyan of the Zhou Family had been forcibly blasted off the arena by a single punch from him.

"Brother Chen, good morning!"

To the shock of many, as soon as Chen An approached, Zhou Shuyan actually took the initiative to greet him with a smile, bowing to him with an extremely humble attitude, his smile even seeming somewhat sycophantic.

"Morning, Brother Zhou!"

Seeing Zhou Shuyan take the initiative to show goodwill, Chen An raised an eyebrow, then raised his hand and returned the salute calmly.

The surrounding students were dumbfounded; everyone remembered the scene of the two fighting on the Martial Examination arena, where Zhou Shuyan had been defeated by Chen An, losing significant face.

Everyone had expected the two to become strangers with a rift between them, but they had not expected Zhou Shuyan to put aside past grievances and take the initiative to step forward and chat, which was truly unexpected.

"Greetings, Brother Chen!"

At this moment, another person stepped up from behind Zhou Shuyan. When everyone looked, it turned out to be Xiao Qiyuan.

Like Zhou Shuyan, Xiao Qiyuan was also someone who had been defeated by Chen An three days ago.

Everyone had never expected that not only would Zhou Shuyan lower himself to show goodwill, but even the usually proud Xiao Qiyuan would be willing to set aside the embarrassment of his defeat and take the initiative to step forward and greet Chen An with a bow.

"Greetings, Brother Xiao!" Looking at Xiao Qiyuan, Chen An was not arrogant either, calmly bowing in return to him.

With Zhou Shuyan and Xiao Qiyuan taking the lead, the eyes of the other Senior students flickered slightly upon seeing this. They also took the Opportunity to restrain the prejudices and contempt they had previously held for Chen An in their hearts. No longer harboring a rift, they stepped forward one after another to greet Chen An, wanting to take the Opportunity to get to know this Martial Examination runner-up.

For a time, Chen An, who had originally entered the venue alone, instead became the most eye-catching focal point in the crowd, with everyone vying to befriend him.

Just as the students in the plaza gathered around, vying to befriend and chat with Chen An, this lively scene fell entirely into the eyes of the people on the high platform in the distance.

County Magistrate Zhang Xuanming, dean Fan Suiyun, and other high-level officials of the County Academy, such as Ancestor Zhou Tong and Head Elder Wei Linyuan, were all standing there. Their gazes overlooked the scene of the Martial Arts Plaza, taking in the sight of Chen An being surrounded and sought after by the crowd.

"This child not only possesses outstanding strength and handles matters with propriety, but he can also make former opponents and peers vie to befriend him. Given time, his future will be limitless!" County Magistrate Zhang Xuanming stood with his hands behind his back, watching Chen An calmly dealing with the students below, a trace of appreciation flashing in his eyes.

"What County Magistrate says is very true!"

dean Fan Suiyun nodded, a faint smile appearing on his face, then he sighed with a bit of regret: "This child not only has excellent Comprehension Ability, but his Heart-Nature is also calm and introverted, unflustered by glory or humiliation. If he devotes himself to Cultivate in the future, he will surely achieve great things."

"It is a pity that he was born with only a Mid-grade Martial Bone, limiting his Innate Foundation. Otherwise, with his Comprehension Ability and intelligence, his future achievements would certainly not stop here, and he might even have the hope of ranking among the top Prodigy of the Prefecture City."

"Brother Fan, this statement is incorrect!"

Ancestor Zhou Tong, who was to the side, shook his head. Looking at Chen An, a towering, majestic figure appeared in his mind, and a look of awe flashed in his eyes as he said, "Although a Martial Bone is Innate, as you and I both know, it is not unchangeable."

"The path of martial arts is inherently Heaven-Defying. There are countless rare treasures, Spirit Medicine, and opportunities for good fortune in the world. With little friend Chen An's opportunities and good fortune, perhaps one day he really will be able to break through his shackles and be reborn!"

As soon as Ancestor Zhou Tong's words fell, County Magistrate Zhang Xuanming and the others could not help but turn their heads, casting a somewhat strange look at him.

Instructor Fan Suiyun and the others had not forgotten that during the Martial Examination three days ago, Ancestor Zhou Tong had belittled Chen An's cultivation and Aptitude quite a bit, asserting that he would be unlikely to achieve anything great.

Now, only a few days later, Ancestor Zhou Tong's attitude had completely reversed. Not only did he no longer look down on him, but his evaluation of Chen An in his words was extremely high.

Such a huge contrast could not help but make Instructor Fan Suiyun and the others feel surprised.

"It seems that Senior Zhou holds Chen An in particularly high regard today, doesn't he?!"

County Magistrate Zhang Xuanming was sharp-minded and noticed how Ancestor Zhou Tong addressed Chen An. His eyes flickered, and his tone carried a hint of playfulness and probing.

"Hehe, as the saying goes, 'Three days apart, one should look at someone with new eyes'!"

Ancestor Zhou Tong naturally could not bring up that matter, so he thickened his skin and pretended to be profound, saying, "Previously, this old man's vision was narrow, and I underestimated little friend Chen An."

"In these last few days, this old man's cultivation has faintly improved, and I accidentally entered the state of communion between heaven and man, where I was able to glimpse the flow of Qi in the dark. In my view, little friend Chen An is surrounded by Luck, his Foundation is hidden, and in the future, he will certainly not be a creature of the pond!"

Hearing this rhetoric, the eyebrows of County Magistrate Zhang Xuanming, Instructor Fan Suiyun, and the others all twitched slightly.

They were all old foxes who had lived for more than half a lifetime; how could they truly believe his nonsense? It was clearly fabricated out of thin air, using the 'communion between heaven and man' to act mysterious and deceive people.

"Alright, the time is almost up, it is time for us to set off!" County Magistrate Zhang Xuanming spoke up at the right moment, breaking this subtle atmosphere.

Everyone knew deeply that this old fox, Ancestor Zhou Tong, was always slick and worldly-wise and would never reveal the truth, so they did not continue to dwell on this matter. Everyone gathered their thoughts and looked down at the students who were ready to go, preparing to set off and lead the team to the Prefecture City...