leaving Clark as the absolute last

After dinner, Bob arranged for everyone to return to their places of residence to rest, with formal cultivation practices beginning the next day.

Clark and a young boy were assigned to the same bamboo house, which was rather elegant. The house was simply furnished with a bed, two chairs, and a small medicinal herb garden in front of the house, surrounded by several old trees.

Despite the absence of lavish palaces, everything appeared serene and peaceful, offering a spiritual cleansing away from the mundane and noisy world.

The boy sharing the room with him was about sixteen years old, dark-skinned, sturdy-looking, and clearly from a poor family, evident from his tough living conditions.

This was apparent when the boy removed his outer clothing, revealing red underpants patched over and over.

"Are you also here for cultivation? Given your frail constitution, it must be tough forcing yourself into the path of immortality," the boy said, turning in his bed to face Clark. The wooden bed was spacious enough for two.

Clark wanted to retort, "You're only slightly better than me; what gives you the right to mock me!"

"You seem to have a strong psychological tolerance, facing ridicule from the entire Heavenly Sword Sect without a care, and still able to sleep, I'm somewhat impressed," the boy continued, seeing that Clark did not respond.

"Do you even know how to speak?" Clark, who was initially drowsy, nearly jumped up in frustration at the boy's words.

Unable to fall back asleep, Clark and the boy chatted sporadically. The boy, named Harry, was from the state of Chu and came from a family so poor they could hardly make ends meet, with seven siblings. Thus, he had left home at a young age to wander and, by a stroke of luck, joined the Heavenly Sword Sect.

"What exactly did you do during the test that shocked everyone?" the boy asked curiously, pushing Clark as he began to drift off again.

Seeing the boy's clear eyes, not seeming to mock him, Clark's face reddened slightly, "It was nothing, just a spur of the moment thing."

"They all say you're the waste of the waste, but I don't see it that way. Just the fact that you didn't die despite spitting so much blood makes me think you're not ordinary. When my grandfather died, he just coughed up a bit of blood and that was it," Harry mentioned, seeming to recall something as he spoke.

Facing away from Harry, Clark's eyes sparkled with a hint of brightness upon hearing the young boy's remark, his thoughts unknown.

After some conversation, Clark realized that Harry was a genuinely nice person, just not very pleasant in speech without any ill intentions.

As time reached deep into the night, Harry kept talking non-stop, chattering away like a chatterbox.

Until dawn broke, Harry continued without end, and Clark, with eyes bloodshot, could no longer withstand it. Seizing a moment when Harry was not pay attention to, Clark knocked him unconscious with an iron bucket over his head, finally enjoying some quiet.

Today was an important day. An elder from Tiger Peak was to lecture these novices on the path of cultivation. After performing emergency CPR on a deeply unconscious Harry, Clark and the now revived Harry hurried to Tiger Peak.

Tiger Peak, the main peak of the Heavenly Sword Sect, was overseen by an ageless old man with white hair and a youthful face. Seeing all the new disciples assembled, he motioned everyone to sit on meditation cushions and distributed a bound book to each, titled in golden letters: "Heavenly Dragon Technique."

The elder addressed the crowd, "Cultivation is about absorbing the stray spiritual energy from the universe, refining it into spiritual power within us. Through cultivating this spiritual power, we can probe into the laws and the great paths of this world, thus achieving a leap in life."

"The 'Heavenly Dragon Technique' starts by saying that cultivation is about seizing the creation of heaven and earth, refining the essence of the universe to nourish oneself. It will be continuous and unending, always extracting, so everyone must persist in daily cultivation."

The entire morning, the elder explained the basics of cultivation, gradually outlining the initial stages in everyone's minds. After his detailed explanations, he turned and left.

Following this, Clark began his official cultivation journey. Besides cultivating, daily chores such as fetching water and chopping wood were required.

Clark had read through the "Heavenly Dragon Technique" completely. It was the fundamental technique of the Heavenly Sword Sect, mainly involving sitting meditation to sense the stray spiritual energy around and refining it into spiritual power, which then circulated through the major meridians in the body.

Days passed, and Clark, forming hand signs for cultivation, continuously tried to feel the spiritual energy around him. Besides chopping wood, he spent nearly all his time cultivating but still could not sense any spiritual energy.

Over the following months, not to mention spiritual energy, he didn't sense anything at all. Stretching his limbs after getting up, he glanced at Harry, who was sleeping like a log next to him, and shook his head.

In the initial days, Harry talked incessantly every day. Not wanting to knock him out daily, Clark had to plead miserably until recently when Harry finally began to quiet down.

It was uncertain whether the iron bucket had left some aftereffects, but now Harry had become very sleepy.

Opening the window, a chilly mountain breeze carrying cool raindrops brushed across his face. Harry, seemingly feeling a chill, released a yellowish gas and fell back into deep sleep. In his own words, "It's raining today, perfect for rest, and if the sun's too strong, it's even more reason to ensure I get enough sleep."

Clark wanted to retort, "You're lying in bed all day long, and you still say you're not getting enough sleep?"

Among this batch of new disciples in the Heavenly Sword Sect, Adrian had sensed the existence of spiritual energy three days ago and even began trying to absorb it into his body, converting it into spiritual power. Zara, following closely in terms of cultivation speed, showed that their physical constitutions were indeed more suited for cultivation.

In contrast, none of the new disciples at Misty Peak had yet sensed any spiritual energy, which is why others often referred to it as a gathering place for the untalented. Clark hoped to stand out among this group, to be the first to sense the presence of spiritual energy. However, despite his diligent efforts, he achieved nothing.

As time flew by, a year had passed, and he still hadn't sensed anything. Clark began to doubt himself, wondering if perhaps he was not meant for the path of cultivation and that he might belong in the secular world instead.

During this year, almost all the new disciples at Misty Peak had gradually begun to feel the presence of spiritual energy. Nydia had visited twice, and seeing no progress in Clark's cultivation, she had to abandon the idea of probing his soul. She had thought Clark was somewhat inept, but she didn't expect him to be thoroughly so; not sensing spiritual energy even after a year was a complete disappointment.

In the entire Heavenly Sword Sect, only Harry and Clark had not sensed the energy. Although Clark was anxious, he found some comfort in seeing Harry, as both were tied for last place. Having someone share the embarrassment made the situation slightly more bearable.

However, one day, Harry, who was usually asleep like a log, suddenly mumbled as if in a dream, "Clark, I think I can feel the hidden spiritual energy in the air. They're like fairies, beckoning to me."

Fully awake, Harry began to meditate and indeed sensed the presence of spiritual energy, eventually breaking down in tears, "I always knew I, Harry, had extraordinary talent. It turns out I was right."

"Damn it!" Clark felt no joy, nearly smashing his bowl on Harry's head. He could accept anyone surpassing him, but not Harry, whom he knew thoroughly. This guy had never seriously cultivated; aside from daily chores, all he did was sleep.

In contrast, Clark himself had never relaxed a day in his cultivation efforts. Even while sleeping, he maintained his hand signs, nearly at the point of sleeping while sitting up.

"How utterly unfair," thought Clark. All his efforts had yielded no returns. Previously, he and Harry were jointly the last in the rankings, but now Harry had broken that balance, leaving Clark as the absolute last in the entire Heavenly Sword Sect.

…