Daily update: three chapters.

  Today’s first update.

  “‘Yellow-Furred Rat’…?”

  Yun Che froze for a moment. The first person that came to his mind was the sharp-faced, weasel-eyed youth in yellow robes he had seen earlier that day. The nickname fit disturbingly well—but he wasn’t entirely sure if Zhang Hu was referring to the same person.

  “You haven’t figured it out yet?” Zhang Hu said bitterly. “It’s the guy in charge of assigning labor in the menial division. He’s only a provisional disciple himself, but rumor has it that years ago he got lucky and was taught a crude Qi-Guiding technique. That’s how he earned the right to wear yellow. He looks like a rat and acts like one too—always picking on people. Everyone calls him that.”

  Yun Che took a bite of his roasted sweet potato and said quietly, “I met him. He told me starting tomorrow, I have to fill ten vats of water every day. Otherwise, no food.”

  Zhang Hu’s eyes widened. He stared at Yun Che for a long moment before blurting out,

  “Brother… Did you dig up his ancestors’ graves or something? Do you two share a blood feud?”

  Yun Che shook his head. “No grievances. Why?”

  Zhang Hu looked at him with pity, like a man staring at someone already half-dead. He hesitated, then asked,

  “Yun Che… You don’t seriously think those water vats are about the size of the ones in your kitchen, do you?”

  He gestured roughly with his hands.

  Yun Che’s heart sank. A sense of dread crept in, but he nodded.

  Zhang Hu slapped his own forehead and let out a hollow laugh.

  “You must’ve offended that Yellow-Furred Rat badly. The vats he’s talking about are the Mysterious Ice Stone Vats behind the dining hall. Each one of them… is about the size of this entire room!”

  He shook his head helplessly.

  “Ten vats of water… Heavens above. Yun Che, you should keep these sweet potatoes for yourself. If you manage to get a single full meal within four or five days, I’d call that good fortune. You’re new here—any place in the back mountains where wild fruits can be gathered has long been claimed by veterans. You can’t just wander in. I… I’ll try my luck tomorrow and see if I can find my usual spots.”

  With that, he pushed the remaining sweet potatoes back toward Yun Che, sighed deeply, turned over, and soon began snoring again.

  A surge of anger flared in Yun Che’s chest, his teeth grinding together.

  But then the image of his parents’ relieved, hopeful faces flashed through his mind.

  He took several deep breaths, forcibly suppressing the rage and humiliation boiling within him. Clutching the bitterness in his heart, he lay down fully clothed. It took him a long time to drift into a restless sleep.

  Before dawn the next morning, Yun Che was already awake.

  Zhang Hu was still snoring thunderously.

  Yun Che changed into his coarse gray robe and hurried to the menial division.

  When he arrived, the eastern sky had just begun to pale. The yellow-robed youth pushed open the door, glanced at Yun Che sideways, and sneered,

  “At least you know to come early. Go inside, grab the buckets. Exit through the eastern side gate, and follow the mountain path down. There’s a place called the Chilly Gloom Pool in the ravine. Fetch water from there.”

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  With that, he ignored Yun Che completely and sat cross-legged on a bluestone slab, facing the rising sun. As he breathed in a slow rhythm, faint threads of pale, chilly mist spilled from his nose and mouth like tiny white serpents, curling with each breath.

  Yun Che couldn’t hide the envy in his eyes.

  So this… is cultivation.

  He entered the storage room and saw them immediately—ten massive gray-black vats made of Mysterious Ice Stone. Each required two or three men to encircle. The thick stone walls exuded a deep, chilling aura.

  He smiled bitterly, hoisted two shoulder-high wooden buckets, and headed out through the eastern gate.

  The mountain path was rugged. After nearly half an hour, he finally reached the Chilly Gloom Pool.

  Nestled in the shaded gap between two mountains, the pool’s water was crystal-clear and bone-chilling. Ancient trees surrounded it, and the sound of flowing water echoed softly. Under other circumstances, it might have been considered scenic.

  But Yun Che had no mind for beauty.

  He filled both buckets. The icy water sent a shiver through his body. Gritting his teeth, he lifted the heavy load and trudged uphill.

  By the time the sun had slanted westward, he had barely managed to fill one vat.

  If not for the cold sweet potatoes he had eaten at midday, he would have collapsed long before. Even now, his legs felt like lead, his arms were numb, and his shoulders burned raw from the yoke.

  After resting briefly, a thought stirred in his mind.

  Carrying half a bucket of water, he slipped behind a secluded rock. After carefully scanning his surroundings and confirming no one was watching, he retrieved the gray-white stone bead from the hidden pouch beneath his clothes and gently dropped it into the bucket.

  After a short while, he took it out, dried it, and hid it again. He scooped up a handful of water and drank.

  A familiar, faintly sweet coolness slid down his throat, quickly transforming into warm currents that spread throughout his limbs. The unbearable soreness in his muscles faded, as though soothed by a gentle hand.

  The effect was far weaker than consuming the dew condensed directly from the bead—but Yun Che was overjoyed.

  Clutching his chest, he reaffirmed his resolve: this bead must never be revealed.

  After slowly drinking the remaining “bead-infused” water, his exhaustion vanished. He felt even more energetic than he had that morning.

  Without hesitation, he returned to hauling water.

  By day’s end, he had filled one and a half vats.

  To avoid suspicion, he deliberately staggered back to his quarters, feigning utter exhaustion.

  That evening, Zhang Hu returned as well, his face worn and numb from years of labor. After a few words, he hesitated, blushed, and asked for two sweet potatoes. He devoured them and promptly fell asleep.

  A month passed in the blink of an eye.

  Through Zhang Hu, Yun Che learned more about life in the menial division. Zhang Hu’s task was chopping ironwood firewood,

  Provisional disciples were required to perform menial labor for ten years, and only if they could consistently meet daily quotas and never miss meals would they qualify—pending approval—to learn the most basic Qi-Guiding Art.

  Inner disciples, by contrast, lived in a completely different world. They had masters, no labor duties, private dwellings, and devoted all their time to cultivation.

  There was also a middle path—servants or apprentices to elders. They avoided ordinary labor and learned rudimentary techniques, but at the cost of lifelong dependence and limited prospects.

  From idle conversations, Yun Che gradually understood cultivation aptitude. The core lay in the Ruins Spirit Root. Everyone possessed some trace of it, but quantity and purity determined everything. Those with superior roots might cultivate in one year what others struggled to achieve in ten—or more.

  Throughout the month, Yun Che secretly drank water infused with the stone bead every day.

  His body quietly transformed. He grew sturdier and stronger, as though inexhaustible strength filled his limbs. From needing six days to barely complete ten vats, he now required only three.

  Yet to avoid drawing attention—especially from the Yellow-Furred Rat—he continued to rise before dawn and work at a steady, unremarkable pace.

  Others noticed his improvement but attributed it to diligence.

  No one knew that the true source of his strength lay hidden against his chest.

  That night, Yun Che lay on his wooden bed, Zhang Hu’s snores echoing beside him. His fingers brushed the stone bead unconsciously.

  Beneath its icy surface, a faint, indescribable pulse seemed to echo in rhythm with his heartbeat.

  The nights of the Xuan Frost Sect were cold.

  But beneath the frozen soil, something was quietly taking root.

  If you’ve ever endured in silence, you may understand Yun Che at this moment.

  Leave a comment and tell me which part resonated with you most. Follow for the next chapter—the real change is about to begin.