BTTH: Death Letter From The Future

It was night.

Chen Guan sat cross-legged on the bed, feeling the abundant energy within his body. Satisfied, he opened his eyes. From his storage ring, he retrieved a completely emerald-green pill, about the size of a dragon's eye, exuding a rich medicinal fragrance. The aroma alone was enough to show that this pill was no ordinary item.

"A Tier 4 pill, the Qi Gathering Pill. Sister Yao Ye is really generous. If I fail this breakthrough, I'd be too ashamed to face her."

Ordinary people at the ninth level of Dou Disciple had a fairly high failure rate when attempting to break through to a Dou-Practitioner . If they failed, their strength would drop to the eighth level of Dou Disciple.

But the Qi Gathering Pill in Chen Guan's hand could perfectly avoid that risk.

The Qi Gathering Pill, a Tier 4 pill, guarantees that those at the ninth level of Dou Disciple will successfully condense a Dou Qi Vortex. So far, there had been no failures!

The phrase "100% success rate" was enough to make countless people at the Dou Disciple stage drool and dream about it, driving its value higher and higher.

Chen Guan clearly remembered that in the original novel, Nalan Yanran gave a Qi Gathering Pill as compensation when she went to the Xiao family to annul her engagement, causing quite a stir.

It was no exaggeration to say that in any auction house, the price for a Qi Gathering Pill would not be less than 100,000 gold coins.

In comparison, the low-grade storage ring he had seemed somewhat inferior.

Both of these items were simply gifts from Yao Ye when they first met two weeks ago.

This... freeloading life is truly sweet!

With a self-mocking chuckle, Chen Guan kept the favor in his heart, put aside all distractions, adjusted his condition to the best, and swallowed the Qi Gathering Pill in one gulp. He then skillfully formed the hand seal to absorb Dou Qi.

The Qi Gathering Pill melted instantly in his mouth, and a vast medicinal power quickly spread through his body, coursing through his meridians until it all gathered at his dantian.

At this moment, his dantian was like a jar filled to its limit. Just as the surging Dou Qi was about to overflow, Chen Guan acted quickly, focusing all his mental (soul) power into his dantian, repeatedly compressing, squeezing, and solidifying the Dou Qi—again and again, without tiring.

The Dou Qi that had been on the verge of spilling over slowly decreased in quantity, but its quality steadily improved. This was a process of transforming quantity into quality.

Finally, after countless repetitions, the mass of Dou Qi in his body formed into a milky-white Vortex, spinning continuously.

The Dou Qi Vortex was complete!

Nine-year-old Chen Guan had successfully advanced to a Dou-Practitioner , taking a solid step forward!

After achieving Dou-Practitioner status, Chen Guan could feel the surging power within him. Fighting ten or eight versions of his former self would be no problem.

Besides, he could now sense his body from the inside, clearly seeing his internal state.

Suppressing the urge to spar with Zhao Gang, Chen Guan forced himself to calm down and began practicing the cultivation technique he had long memorized, the spiritual art. After several cycles, he felt no pressure whatsoever.

"As expected, it makes sense that only after reaching Dou-Practitioner rank do people in the Dou Qi Continent begin practicing cultivation techniques. My body's strength has increased significantly. In the future, I should also train my physique more often. A strong body is a big advantage in combat."

Overall, Chen Guan was very pleased.

After washing up again, Chen Guan changed into a set of light blue clothes. He felt that after breaking through to Dou-Practitioner , he had grown a few centimeters taller, and his body had become more slender, making him look around fourteen or fifteen years old, with less childishness in his appearance.

When good things happen, one's spirit naturally lifts. Unusually, Chen Guan didn't return to training immediately but instead opened the door to the martial arts field, letting the night breeze relax his body and mind.

Perhaps because the half-yearly exam was approaching, even though it was nighttime, many people were still practicing in the martial arts field, trying to sharpen their skills at the last moment. A sense of urgency filled the air.

Chen Guan was quite well-known among his peers. Many people were shocked to see him out of his room—this "study king" actually walked out!

Unbelievable!

Curious though they were, none of the onlookers had much of a relationship with him, so they didn't approach. A polite nod was enough of a greeting.

Chen Guan didn't mind them either, leisurely strolling around the martial arts field. It was almost funny that, for the past five years, this group of people never had to worry about food or drink, yet their activity area was confined to this training zone. Life had become rather monotonous.

Apart from Chen Guan, everyone else had probably already explored every corner. Now, he was the only one left taking his time to really look around.

He wandered until he reached the entrance of the training ground, where he was about to turn back when he noticed a little girl sitting on the doorstep. She looked about seven or eight years old, resting her chin on her hands, puffing up her cheeks like a little angry pufferfish.

Judging by her attire and the indifferent attitude of the gate guards behind her, the little girl's identity was obvious.

There was a high chance that she was the princess he had never met.

As Chen Guan unintentionally revealed a slight smile while observing her, the little girl noticed him.

"Hey, you! Were you laughing at this princess?"

"Cough, no, you saw wrong."

"You're lying! I clearly saw you smiling at me. Come here. This princess is in a bad mood. Tell me a joke, and I'll forgive you."

Chen Guan was in a good mood. Though this little pufferfish couldn't do anything to him since he was backed by Yao Ye, he still walked over and sat down beside her.

At this moment, he didn't even realize that perhaps due to the favor the royal family had shown him, or because he had started calling Yao Ye "sister," he unconsciously treated this little princess with some fondness, like a younger sister.

To have come to this point, it had to be said—the royal family had succeeded.

The little pufferfish didn't mind his somewhat rude behavior of sitting beside her and asked, "Hey, what's your name?"

"Chu Yuxun," the boy blurted out.

"What an awkward name. Now tell me a joke. If it makes this princess happy, I'll forget about what happened. If not—"

"What if you're not happy?"

"Then you'll have to tell ten jokes. No, keep going until I'm happy."

Chen Guan couldn't help but laugh. What a terrifying punishment—almost scared him to death. So scary!

"Alright, you're the boss. But before that, you have to tell me why you're unhappy so I can pick the right joke and avoid hitting a nerve."

The little pufferfish, Yao Yue, lowered the hand that had been propping up her left cheek and looked at him, a bit skeptical. Her cheeks were now uneven, enough to drive anyone with OCD mad.

"You want me to tell you why I'm unhappy just so you can tell a joke?"

"Of course. Just like diagnosing an illness, you have to tell me the cause of your unhappiness so I can prescribe the right joke to cheer you up, right?"

"That kind of makes sense. Actually, it's not a big deal. I went to the Alchemist Guild today, and Grandpa Fa Ma asked me to memorize the principles of alchemy. He said if I didn't make any mistakes, he'd accept me as his apprentice. I practiced at home and could recite everything perfectly. But when I got to the guild, I failed twice in a row. And before I left, I had even told my sister and grandpa I'd succeed. Now, how am I supposed to go back and face them?"

This small issue, which seemed like a big deal to her, left her pouting and troubled. The thoughts of a child were so simple, it was almost unbelievable.

Chen Guan became momentarily dazed. It wasn't that he was stumped by the little pufferfish's dilemma; it was that her mention of that enviable profession caught his attention.

An alchemist!

(End of Chapter)