"Ye Chen! You trash! Are you dead or just pretending?"The shout thundered through the damp, manure filled air of the Spirit Beast Stables. Ye Chen tightened his grip on the rusted shovel, his knuckles turning white, but he did not turn around. He continued to shovel the glowing, blue dung of the Horses into the cart."I am talking to you, waste."A heavy boot slammed into Ye Chen’s lower back. The force was not enough to kill, but it was enough to send a malnourished youth explicitly sprawling into the filth he had just been cleaning.Laughter erupted from the doorway.Ye Chen grit his teeth, tasting the iron tang of blood in his mouth. He slowly pushed himself up, wiping the muck from his cheek. He looked at the intruder. It was Li Hu, a servant disciple who had barely reached the second stage of Body Tempering. Three years ago, a man like Li Hu would not have dared to breathe too loudly in Ye Chen’s presence."What do you want, Li Hu?" Ye Chen asked, his voice hoarse.Li Hu sneered

The silence in the stable was heavy, broken only by the dripping of water from the overturned bucket. Ye Chen stood amidst the wreckage, his chest heaving slightly not from exhaustion, but from the sheer thrill of the energy coursing through his veins."System," Ye Chen whispered, his voice trembling with a mix of excitement and cold determination. "Show me my status."[Affirmative.]A ripple of blue light distorted the air in front of him. The translucent screen expanded, resolving into a crisp, detailed table of data.| HOST STATUS | | Name: Ye Chen | | Race: Human (Chaos Bloodline Awakened) | | Cultivation: Body Tempering Stage 3 | | Experience Points: 0 / 500 | | System Points (SP): 50 | | Cultivation Technique: Chaos Body Tempering Art (God Tier) || ATTRIBUTES | | Strength: 12 (Normal Human: 5) | | Agility: 8 (Normal Human: 5) | | Defense: 10 (Normal Human: 5) | | Spirit: 25 (Normal Human: 5) || Perception 15 (Normal Human: 5) |Ye Chen swept his gaze over the numbers

The rushing stream masked Ye Chen’s breathing. He stood perfectly still, eyes locked onto the dense canopy. The Myriad Beast Forest was dark and alive with ancient malice.​"System, confirm the target," Ye Chen whispered.​A translucent blue screen flickered in his periphery. The mechanical voice echoed directly into his soul.​[Target identified: Grade 2 Wind Blade Wolf.][Cultivation Equivalent: Body Tempering Stage 5.][Warning: Target agility surpasses Host by thirty percent. Probability of evasion low. Direct physical confrontation highly unadvised. Utilize environmental advantages.]​"Thirty percent faster," Ye Chen breathed out slowly. "Then I cannot outrun it. Or punch what my eyes cannot catch."​High in the branches, two glowing yellow eyes blinked. A guttural growl shook the damp air.​"You rely on sheer speed," Ye Chen spoke aloud, stepping backward toward the muddy riverbank. "You think I am prey."​The wolf snarled. It launched from the tree, a terrifying blur of silver

"System," Ye Chen groaned into the absolute darkness, his voice rough with dust and dried blood. "Give me a full damage report. Do it now."​[Affirmative. Host sustained severe blunt force trauma from the geological collapse. Left fibula fractured. Minor internal bleeding detected in the lower abdomen. Healing protocols are currently initiating.]​"Use whatever energy is left from my previous beast hunts to fix my leg," Ye Chen commanded. He pushed himself up onto his elbows, wincing as sharp pain shot through his side. "Where exactly are we? I cannot see a single thing down here."​[We are located three miles beneath the Myriad Beast Forest. The ambient Qi here is highly toxic. It is the raw, unrefined discharge of the fractured subterranean Spirit Vein you learned about earlier.]​"So we fell directly into the poison source," Ye Chen said, coughing as the heavy, metallic tasting air filled his lungs. "Can my new defense stats handle this toxicity?"​[Your reinforced tissue will dela

The deafening strike of the great bronze gong still vibrated in the crisp mountain air. Ye Chen stood before the notice board in the empty entry plaza, his eyes fixed on the official declaration of his own execution. He lowered his hand to the hilt of his rusted sword.​The Grand Assessment was the singular event that separated the worthless from the elite in the Azure Cloud Sect. It was held within the sunken arena of the Outer Peak, a massive stone basin carved directly into the mountain rock by the founding ancestors. Thousands of disciples gathered there today to fight for resources, for elevated status, and for the rare chance to step into the Inner Sect.​Ye Chen turned away from the notice board and began walking toward the echoing cheers. His torn, blood stained gray robes flapped wildly in the wind.​Inside the arena, the atmosphere was electric. Elder Wang stood heavily on the elevated jade platform overlooking the central fighting stage. He wore his finest emerald robes, hi