After leaving the Martial Arts Arena, Zhao Letian returned to his private courtyard and immediately took out the two Mid-Grade Essence Stones that were not yet depleted to meditate and regulate his breath. Zhao Wuji dealt him quite a heavy blow, and despite taking the elixir given by his mother, there were still some injuries remaining in his body that needed more time to heal.
As the stars shifted, the night passed without incident.
Early the next morning, the rewards for the mid-year assessment were distributed. Zhao Letian received ten Mid-Grade Essence Stones, becoming the biggest beneficiary of the entire assessment.
After a night of meditation and breath regulation, Zhao Letian's remaining injuries were essentially healed, and moreover, his cultivation had progressed from just entering the Primordial Martial Seventh Realm to the minor achievement stage of the Primordial Martial Seventh Realm at an astonishing speed. However, those two Mid-Grade Essence Stones were finally depleted, turning into brittle white stones that crumbled into powder at his touch.
"Although cultivating with Primordial Stones is fast, their consumption rate is also high—it's not just ordinary martial artists who can't afford it, even the people from the four big families in Qingzhou City can't bear the cost. I need to be more economical with them from now on," Zhao Letian thought as he walked away from the Zhao Mansion, clutching the eleven Mid-Grade Essence Stones.
In the Martial Arts World, Primordial Stones are incredibly precious and in high demand. Many martial artists have very few Primordial Stones, and people in the Primordial Martial Realm like Zhao Letian usually only have a few dozen low-grade stones. To have a single Mid-Grade Essence Stone is to be considered wealthy. Even Zhao Letian, who is the pride of the Zhao Family, wouldn't have obtained ten Mid-Grade Essence Stones if not for the assessment. Thus, it's rare for anyone to constantly use Primordial Stones for cultivation; most save them for crucial moments when nearing a breakthrough, to increase their chances of success.
Although Zhao Letian now has eleven Mid-Grade Essence Stones, making him somewhat wealthy, if he continues to cultivate solely with them, they won't last long. Therefore, rather than using the stones for cultivation, he prefers to spend them on more important things to maximize his strength increment.
"After the fight with Shentu Yu, all my belongings were taken, including my personal sword and items like elixirs and essence stones. Before returning to the Galaxy Sect, I need to at least buy a weapon; after all, the competition within the Galaxy Sect is far more brutal than in the Zhao Family. Sometimes, disputes can escalate to life-and-death battles, and without a weapon for self-defense, it's hard to feel secure," Zhao Letian thought as he walked.
The Galaxy Sect is not like the Zhao Family; there, his mother cannot protect him, and all dangers he must face alone. Moreover, the higher-ups of the Galaxy Sect adopt a tacit approval and even encouraging attitude towards the ruthless competition among the Sect Disciples, especially the Outer Disciples. If you have the ability, you can bully others as long as you don't go too far; if you don't, you better diligently cultivate and avoid causing trouble. Otherwise, if you are bullied or even killed, no one will stand up for you.
Naturally, Zhao Letian isn't someone who seeks trouble, but he can't guarantee others won't provoke him, thus having a weapon for self-defense is essential.
"Look, isn't that the trash Zhao Letian?"
"Shh! Keep it down. Didn't you see yesterday's assessment? He took first place in the combat strength rankings. He's hardly trash now."
"Pfft! So what if he did? He was beaten so badly his cultivation plummeted. That's a fact. Even if he has some strength now, whether he can progress to the True Martial Realm is still questionable. His future looks bleak and grim. What's that, if not trash?"
While walking, several people in the distance suddenly gazed at Zhao Letian and began whispering among themselves.
Zhao Letian frowned, turned around to look, and saw that he did not recognize any of them. Moreover, before his gaze reached them, those people hurriedly scurried away. He could not help but smile wryly, shook his head, no longer paying them any mind, and continued walking outside of the Zhao Mansion—it was just a few nobodies, he really couldn't muster the enthusiasm to bother with them, nor did he have the time.
The results of yesterday's Zhao Family assessment have probably already spread throughout Qingzhou City by now. The fact that he, Zhao Letian, once again outshone everyone and topped the power rankings must also be known to all. However, just like those scumbags who ridiculed him earlier, there were likely still many people comforting themselves with his recent drop in cultivation level, believing that his martial foundation was damaged and he could not reach higher realms. In any case, given any slightest chance, those people would still treat him as trash, for only in this way could their insecure hearts find some balance and comfort.
Zhao Letian couldn't control what others thought; he had already done what he needed to do, showing them his talent and strength, especially to the members of the Zhao Family. If they were wise, they should continue to regard him as the pride and hope of the Zhao Family, treating him seriously. If so, should he achieve something in the future, it wouldn't be impossible to lend a hand to the Zhao Family members. Otherwise, if the Zhao Family members remained willfully ignorant and continued to insult him and his mother, then it wouldn't be long before he'd make them bitterly regret their actions.
After a short while, Zhao Letian left the Zhao Mansion and headed confidently to a bustling street in the middle of Qingzhou City. Content presented by *.
Many of the pedestrians he met recognized Zhao Letian and had heard about yesterday's Zhao Family assessment. Some even had witnessed the assessment themselves and were deeply impressed by Zhao Letian's formidable performance. As they saw him approaching, discussions filled with either envy or jealousy started, and whether they liked it or not, they had to admit one fact: if Zhao Letian truly rose to prominence, the future of Qingzhou City would undoubtedly change.
"Ten Thousand Treasure Tower!"
Unconcerned by the pedestrians' discussions, Zhao Letian quickly arrived in front of an ancient, majestic building and looked up at the plaque.
The Ten Thousand Treasure Tower was the largest shop in Qingzhou City, dealing in various essential items for Martial Artists and a wide range of rare and precious treasures. Here, Zhao Letian would definitely be able to buy the weapon he needed.
After watching from outside for a while, Zhao Letian stepped forward and entered, walking directly to the second floor.
He knew that the first floor of the Ten Thousand Treasure Tower mainly catered to those at the Primordial Martial Realm, selling some less expensive common items. The second floor, however, was open to those in the True Martial Realm and sold much more valuable goods. Zhao Letian wanted to purchase a sword of Spiritual Artifact Level, which could only be found on the second floor; they were not available on the first floor.
"Stop! Do you not know the rules of the Ten Thousand Treasure Tower? The second floor is open to seniors of the True Martial Realm. You, a mere individual at the Primordial Martial Realm, also want to go up? Truly overestimating yourself. Leave on your own, or force me to throw you out."
Unbeknownst to him, as soon as Zhao Letian stepped on the stairs to the second floor, a servant dressed in black suddenly let out a cold shout, stopping him in his tracks.