Among the few people paying attention to Zhong Ming, the most helpless was, without a doubt, Jiang Yue.
Yesterday, he had already sensed that Zhong Ming had a chance of receiving an A-level Rating.
And he, in turn, had chosen the course of action most beneficial to himself.
—He would have his sister befriend Zhong Ming, perhaps even arrange a marriage, and use that bond to form an alliance between the two of them on Longxi Peak.
Of course, this wasn't his primary objective.
Because of their previous transaction, he was still hoping to trade with Zhong Ming for the secret that would guarantee him an A-level Rating.
'Zhong Ming... he's probably comprehended something new again…'
Jiang Yue's strategy was sound, but unfortunately, Jiang Xiaoyu was unwilling... or rather, she didn't want to be the one to take the initiative.
"It's not even certain that Zhong Ming will get an A-level Rating... Besides, even if it's a marriage alliance, he should be the one to pursue me."
"..."
Those words made Jiang Yue sigh deeply.
'Dammit, I shouldn't have spoiled Yu so much in the past.'
The two of them were in different situations.
From a young age, Jiang Yue had been raised as the direct heir of his family; everything he learned and thought about was geared toward maximizing benefits.
Jiang Xiaoyu, on the other hand, had slightly inferior Talent and had been spoiled by Jiang Yue. As a result, she was never trained as a direct family successor and was allowed to act on her whims.
As such, she was a spoiled young lady who was even more willful and concerned with saving face.
At this moment, it wasn't that she particularly disliked Zhong Ming; she was just throwing a little tantrum and wanted him to pursue her.
This attitude made Jiang Yue extremely anxious and powerless.
'With Zhong Ming's single-minded focus on Cultivation, there's no way he'd go chasing after someone.'
'Besides, plenty of people have already taken notice of Zhong Ming. If we delay any longer, it'll be too late for everything!'
While Jiang Yue had a headache over this, on the other side, Liu Wanyu was also feeling deeply conflicted.
Her disposition was similar to Jiang Yue's, always seeking to maximize her own benefits.
But she wasn't sure if Zhong Ming could actually receive an A-level Rating.
What made her even more conflicted was this:
'Even if he gets an A-level Rating, will Zhong Ming, a commoner, really advance faster in his Cultivation than a disciple from a noble family with a B-level Rating?'
'...Forget it. I'll wait a little longer. There's no rush.'
...
Besides those two, the others who were still paying attention to Zhong Ming were Orchid and Yi Yunya.
They wanted to know what a commoner with a third-grade Spiritual Root like Zhong Ming was relying on that made him reject their recruitment offer.
Then, the two women saw Zhong Ming by the stream bank, Reading a book, practicing his sword, and drinking wine all at the same time.
Because his Reading skill had reached Minor Achievement, Zhong Ming already possessed a Scholarly Aura. This peculiar method of Cultivation added an air of unrestrained freedom to it.
However, this scene left Yi Yunya speechless.
"Wine, a book, and a sword... It looks quite free-spirited, but he doesn't actually think Senior Sister Mo Shuying will value these things and give him an A-level Rating, does he?"
Before she could finish, she added with a hint of disappointment, "I hope what he's relying on isn't something so superficial. Otherwise..."
Yi Yunya didn't say the rest, but Orchid already understood her young lady's meaning.
If this was all Zhong Ming was relying on, she wouldn't give him a second chance.
At the same time, Orchid... was also at a loss for words regarding Zhong Ming's behavior.
...
Zhong Ming, who had gotten drunk and passed out, naturally had no idea what others thought of him.
The fatigue from Cultivation, combined with drinking too much, led Zhong Ming to fall into a deep and satisfying sleep.
When he awoke, Zhong Ming discovered that it was already the morning of the next day.
Seeing this, Zhong Ming washed up, ate a little something, and then ran to their Cultivation area.
But as soon as he arrived at the Cultivation Dojo, Zhong Ming froze.
He was rendered speechless by a discovery: today, nearly every Cultivator was holding a book in their left hand and a sword in their right, with a pot of wine placed beside them.
"???"
"What's going on?"
The current situation left Zhong Ming completely bewildered.
When he asked Jiang Yue, the latter awkwardly hid his wine pot behind his back.
Then, after a cough, he explained the reason for the current situation.
"Ahem, Zhong, they're all imitating you."
"..." Zhong Ming replied, "Is that really necessary?"
Zhong Ming felt helpless as he said this.
What he didn't notice was that Dong Sea, who was standing behind him, looked like he wanted to say something but held back, his expression incredibly complicated.
—Zhong Ming had somewhat underestimated his own status among the ordinary disciples of Longxi Peak.
Admittedly, during this period, many people felt that Zhong Ming was overestimating himself.
But first of all, the one who had judged Zhong Ming was Yi Yunya, the most talented in their class.
Secondly, they had realized that Zhong Ming was aiming for an A-level Rating.
Even Jiang Yue, Liu Wanyu, and the other disciples from prominent families with second-grade Spiritual Roots weren't completely confident they could achieve that rating.
Under these circumstances, for a commoner with a third-grade Spiritual Root to set his sights so high naturally gave people the impression that he was getting ahead of himself.
But while an A-level Rating seemed out of reach, Zhong Ming was a sure bet for a B-level Rating.
This was a point acknowledged not only by Jiang Yue and Liu Wanyu, but by everyone else on Longxi Peak as well.
And for the ordinary disciples of Longxi Peak, they had never dreamed of an A-level Rating; a B-level was already their highest aspiration.
This point alone was enough to make them pay attention to Zhong Ming.
Of course, if it were only that, they might have paid attention to him, but they wouldn't have imitated his actions.
The reason nearly everyone was imitating him was that among all the disciples who were guaranteed a B-level Rating, only Zhong Ming was a commoner, and he had a third-grade Spiritual Root!
This resonated with many of the ordinary disciples, and more importantly, it gave them a glimmer of hope.
"Jiang Yue has a second-grade Spiritual Root and an excellent family background. He relies purely on Talent, so there's no way to learn from him. But Zhong Ming is different. He has a third-grade Spiritual Root, and so do I. If I imitate Zhong Ming's Cultivation method, can I speed up my own?"
"I heard that when Zhong Ming was studying the Mountain Stream Flowing Map, he had some kind of epiphany. That's why he earned Jiang Yue's high regard... This proves that Zhong Ming's comprehension is outstanding. A person like that wouldn't possibly do something useless. Reading, drinking, and practicing with his sword all at once—there must be a profound secret to it."
"I think so too..."
People can become fanatical when they are desperate.
In his previous life, just to score a few extra points on the college entrance exams, many people would pray to gods and buddhas, even in a godless society.
Now, the rating from the hundred-day assessment didn't just concern the future of these ordinary disciples; it was directly tied to their very lives.
In such a situation, having seen a sliver of hope, they naturally became even more frenzied.
"..."
After understanding everything, Zhong Ming felt a mix of helplessness and conflict.
'Should I warn them?'
After a moment of thought, Zhong Ming shook his head, deciding not to do something so pointless.
He understood human nature all too well.
'People only believe what they want to believe... If I warn them, they won't necessarily take my word for it. Instead, they'll probably think they've stumbled upon my secret.'
'My advice would be interpreted as me being afraid of them using my Cultivation method...'
Having thought it through to this point, Zhong Ming didn't want to waste any more time on the matter.
'Let them practice. When they get no results, they'll naturally give up.'
Having made his decision, Zhong Ming planned to ignore everything and start his own Cultivation.
However, just as he turned his head, he saw Mo Shuying standing before him with a dark expression.
"Er... Senior Sister, what brings you here?"
His words only made Mo Shuying's expression grow colder:
"Hmph, if I didn't come, were you just going to let Longxi Peak turn into a gathering of drunks?"
Clearly, Mo Shuying was very displeased with Zhong Ming for causing this whole mess.
And while Zhong Ming could ignore it, as the Senior Sister, her status was extremely high in the Peak Master's absence, and she was responsible for managing Longxi Peak. Therefore, she had to deal with this matter.
Understanding this, Zhong Ming could only change his mind.
—He certainly didn't want to offend the Senior Sister, who not only held high status but also controlled a portion of the resource allocation.
"Senior Sister, please wait a moment. I'll take care of it right now."
With that, Zhong Ming explained loudly to the surrounding crowd:
"Ahem, you've all probably heard the saying: 'Learn from me and live; imitate me and die.'"
"My disposition is a bit too serious, and since my Longxi Breathing Technique has reached the Second Realm, I need to comprehend the [Liveliness] of the Third Realm. That's why I hoped to use wine to make my temperament more wild and unrestrained."
"You haven't even reached the Second Realm yet. Your control over your internal Spiritual Qi is already lacking. Drinking too much will only hinder your progress."
"However, while drinking is a bad idea, you can all certainly spend more time with books."
After his explanation, Zhong Ming looked back at his Senior Sister.
This time, her expression had softened considerably.
"Don't let this sort of thing happen again." Having said that, she didn't leave immediately. Instead, she asked Zhong Ming, "To comprehend the Longxi Breathing Technique to the Second Realm so quickly, your comprehension is quite good... What grade was your Spiritual Root measured at?"
As Mo Shuying said this, she held a bit of expectation.
Evidently, as the Senior Sister of Longxi Peak, she hoped for more geniuses to appear among the disciples.
"Third-grade."
"...What a pity."
A common-grade Spiritual Root brought a look of clear disappointment to Mo Shuying's face, and she immediately abandoned some of the ideas she originally had.
However, she didn't leave right away. After a moment of contemplation, she took a book out of her Storage Ring.
"These are some Cultivation insights I've written down. Since you enjoy books, you should study this carefully."
"Thank you, Senior Sister."
"No need to thank me. Cultivating well is the greatest reward you can give me."
As she spoke, Mo Shuying walked over to Xue Yao's side and began giving her some private instruction.
...
After Zhong Ming's warning, some people believed him and tossed their wine pots aside, while others remained skeptical and continued to drink.
Zhong Ming paid them no mind, and Mo Shuying... also ignored them.
She only concerned herself with the bigger picture. If someone was determined to court disaster, she wouldn't intervene.
At the same time, Zhong Ming's speech had also revealed that he had cultivated his Basic Technique to the Second Realm.
This made Jiang Yue even more anxious.
"Yu, if you don't act now, it'll be too late."
Hearing this, Jiang Xiaoyu glanced at Zhong Ming, only to find that he had no intention of paying her any attention. She turned her head away with a pout and said unhappily:
"Hmph, if it's too late, then it's too late. It's not like I have to marry him."
"You..."
While Jiang Xiaoyu was being willful, on the other side, Liu Wanyu was also hesitating.
Like Mo Shuying, she too looked down on Zhong Ming's third-grade Spiritual Root.
—Among the ordinary disciples of Longxi Peak, a third-grade Spiritual Root was sufficient, but for a true prodigy, it was a bit too low.
This drawback was what kept Liu Wanyu from making up her mind.
On the other side, it was the same for the master-servant pair, Orchid and Yi Yunya.
"To cultivate the Longxi Breathing Technique to the Second Realm in such a short time, and to even think of using 'drinking' to indulge his temperament... Zhong Ming does have some talent," Yi Yunya commented.
"Should we recruit him?" asked Orchid.
Without the slightest hesitation, Yi Yunya shook her head. "I've already tried to recruit him, and my offer was very sincere and generous. A Profound-level Guest of the Golden Jade Tower... normally, that's not something someone with a third-grade Spiritual Root could ever qualify for."
"Unfortunately, his ambition is too great. As for an Earth-level Guest, I only have two slots, and for that level of guest, I only have the right to recommend. If I give him a slot and he fails the assessment, it would cause some trouble for me too..."
At this point, Yi Yunya said calmly:
"Let's wait until after the seven days are up. By then, the A-level Rating assessment will be over. Once he recognizes his own limitations, you can try to recruit him again. It will be ten times more effective than it is now."
Because of the flaw of his mediocre Spiritual Root, Liu Wanyu and Yi Yunya both chose to wait.
Unfortunately, they had forgotten one thing: time... was not entirely on their side.
Sometimes, a moment of hesitation leads to a lifetime of regret.