My Path To The Supreme Peak

"Shen Yuan, kneel!"

The command rang across the Shen Clan's ancestral square.

Hundreds of disciples watched as a young man in bloodstained robes stood before the clan's assessment stele, his fists clenched at his sides.

He had been beaten five times.

His lips were split, his chest throbbed with every breath, and the blood dripping from his fingertips had already stained the stone beneath his feet.

Yet he remained standing.

"I said, kneel!"

Shen Hao stepped forward, his golden robes fluttering as spiritual energy gathered around his palm.

He was only seventeen, but he had already reached the fourth layer of Body Tempering. His talent had earned him the attention of the clan elders, and his father was one of the most influential figures in the Shen Clan.

Shen Yuan, on the other hand, was eighteen and still stuck at the first layer.

In the eyes of the clan, the difference between them was the difference between a soaring dragon and a crawling insect.

Shen Hao looked at the blood on Shen Yuan's clothes and sneered.

"You've wasted three years of the clan's resources. You've embarrassed our family, disgraced our ancestors, and now you dare to challenge me in front of everyone?"

Shen Yuan slowly raised his head. "You challenged me."

The square fell silent for a moment.

Then laughter erupted.

"Listen to him! He actually thinks he's in a position to argue!"

"Shen Yuan, have you finally gone mad?"

"Someone should drag him away before he embarrasses himself any further."

Shen Hao's expression darkened.

"You still have that filthy mouth?"

He struck.

A palm covered in pale spiritual energy slammed into Shen Yuan's chest.

The impact hurled Shen Yuan backward. He crashed against the assessment stele, and a sharp pain shot through his ribs.

For a moment, his vision blurred.

He could hear people laughing.

He could even hear an elder complaining about the damage to the training ground.

But no one asked whether he could stand.

Shen Yuan pressed his palm against the ground.

His arms trembled as he forced himself upright.

He had to stand.

If he fell now, Shen Hao would make certain he never heard the end of it.

More importantly, the clan would use this defeat as another excuse to strip away the last resources his branch possessed.

His father had disappeared three years ago while exploring an ancient ruin. Since then, the family's standing had collapsed, and the relatives who once greeted him with smiles had begun treating him like an unwanted burden.

He had no powerful backer.

No exceptional bloodline.

No master willing to take him as a disciple.

All he had was a broken cultivation path and the stubborn refusal to surrender.

Shen Yuan wiped the blood from his mouth.

"Again."

The laughter stopped.

Shen Hao stared at him. "What did you say?"

"Hit me again."

For a brief moment, Shen Hao looked as though he couldn't believe what he was hearing.

Then his lips curled.

"Fine. I'll make certain you remember today."

He rushed forward.

This time, Shen Yuan watched his feet.

He had noticed the same flaw during their previous exchanges. Shen Hao relied heavily on the strength of his right arm, leaving his left side exposed whenever he launched a full-powered strike.

It was the only opening Shen Yuan had found.

He waited until the final moment, shifted his body, and drove his fist toward Shen Hao's ribs.

The blow landed.

A sharp sound echoed across the square.

Shen Hao stumbled sideways.

Silence descended.

Shen Yuan's fist throbbed. His opponent's body was far tougher, and the impact had nearly broken his fingers.

But he had landed a hit.

For the first time that morning, Shen Hao had been forced to take a step back.

Shen Yuan raised his head.

"You're not as untouchable as you think."

Shen Hao's face turned crimson. "You dare!"

Spiritual energy exploded from his body.

Before Shen Yuan could evade, a palm struck him squarely in the chest.

He flew backward and slammed against the stele again.

This time, he couldn't get up immediately.

Pain flooded his body. His breath came in shallow gasps, and the world seemed to tilt around him.

Shen Hao approached and planted his foot beside Shen Yuan's hand.

"Remember your place."

He leaned closer.

"A piece of trash should be grateful when someone like me gives him a chance to crawl away."

Shen Yuan stared at the sky.

He wanted to stand.

He wanted to tear that arrogant smile from Shen Hao's face.

He wanted to show every person watching that they had been wrong about him.

But his body refused to obey.

A voice suddenly rang from the elders' platform.

"Enough."

The clan's First Elder rose from his seat.

His cold gaze settled on Shen Yuan.

"The assessment is over. Shen Yuan has failed to demonstrate meaningful progress for the third consecutive year."

He paused.

"His monthly cultivation allowance is revoked. If he fails to advance before the next clan examination, his branch will lose its remaining cultivation resources."

Shen Yuan's fingers dug into the stone.

The First Elder looked away as though the matter had already been settled.

"Remove him from the square."

Two guards stepped forward.

Shen Yuan forced himself to his feet before they could touch him.

"I can walk." He said.

He staggered past the watching disciples.

No one moved aside to help him.

And then, near the eastern gate of the square, he saw her; Luo Qingyu.

She stood beneath the shade of a pavilion, dressed in pale-blue robes embroidered with silver clouds. Her long black hair was secured with a jade hairpin, and her expression remained as composed as ever.

Beside her stood a young man in white robes! Gu Chen.

The eldest son of the powerful Gu Clan.

He had reached the seventh layer of Body Tempering and had already secured a recommendation from the Azure Cloud Sect.

Shen Yuan's steps slowed.

He had known Luo Qingyu since childhood. Their families had once been close, and he had spent years quietly believing that his feelings for her might one day be returned.

He had never told her.

Not because he lacked courage, but because he had wanted to become someone worthy of standing beside her first.

Now, after everything that had happened, he found himself hoping she might at least acknowledge him.

"Luo Qingyu," he called.

She turned.

Her gaze passed over his bloodstained clothes and bruised face.

"What is it, Shen Yuan?"

He swallowed the bitterness in his throat.

"Can we talk?"

"I'm busy."

"Just for a moment."

Gu Chen glanced at him with amusement. "Is this the famous Shen Clan genius I've heard so much about?"