Sword Qi Exam

Two months later, the Honey Spirit Tea shop in East Market, after renovations, reopened for business.

Following the Song Family incident, the shop gained fame in Tianque City, its reputation soaring, and business was even better than before.

At this time, Zhu Xing’er returned from Yinlan City with her caravan.

When she left, she had only a small group and six pack beasts carrying Su Qing’s gathered spirit herbs, armed with little more than courage and hope.

But upon her return, though travel-worn and exhausted, she brought back so many beast cores and hides that her storage bags couldn’t hold them all.

They were piled high on the pack beasts’ backs—except for the two pregnant ones, the other four were loaded to their limits, sagging under the weight.

During rest stops, the cargo had to be unloaded to let the beasts breathe.

In Tianque City, after several rounds of swift exchanges and transactions, the goods turned into heaps of shimmering spirit stones.

Counting them cramped their fingers, and they had to visit a spirit stone bank to exchange for high-denomination notes.

A month later, the Song Family’s herb shop in Tianque City quietly changed hands, replaced by **Spring Breeze Herb Chain—Flagship Store**.

Needless to say, this was a venture co-funded by Su Qing and Zhu Xing’er.

To raise the fifty thousand spirit stones to ransom their people from Sword Sect, the Song Family sold off city assets. Su Qing seized the chance, snagging the herb shop.

It primarily dealt in herbs, followed by pills, talismans, and artifact forging.

These relied on resources from Sword Sect’s Pill School, Talisman School, and Artifact School—highly profitable academies with mature commercial systems. With spirit stones and a budget, connecting with them wasn’t hard.

Regarding the shop’s name, Su Qing and Zhu Xing’er had a deep discussion.

Following the Song Family’s naming convention, it should’ve been “Su’s” or “Zhu’s.”

But as newcomers still finding their footing, using their names so boldly was too conspicuous, especially with the Song Family, freshly bled dry, likely plotting revenge.

At this early stage, it was better not to take risks.

So, Su Qing, inspired by her senior sisters’ teachings, proposed naming it “Wang’s Shop” to shift potential trouble to the sect leader, who was adept at handling it.

Great idea, but the man himself disagreed.

When Wang Quan heard “Wang’s Shop,” his usual gentle, approachable smile vanished, not even managing his fake one.

He wanted to ask: *Is this your genius idea, did Ling Yunxiao and her crew corrupt you, or both?*

Others at least caused trouble discreetly and informed him after.

She had the audacity to warn him beforehand: *Sect Leader, I’m borrowing your name to stir trouble.*

But seeing Su Qing’s sincere eyes, he chose another tack. “Using my surname requires a naming fee—ten thousand spirit stones upfront or an extra ten percent profit annually.”

“Forget it,” Su Qing switched gears fast. “I think Spring Breeze Herb Chain Flagship Store sounds great. Very grounded.”
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Wang Quan silently ground his teeth, then ground them again. Still unsatisfied, he tapped his fan on the desk, reminding her, “Don’t forget my thirty percent cut. Run it well—don’t go bankrupt.”

Su Qing understood—this was tacit approval. With his word, whether the shop bore his name or not was irrelevant.

She’d secured the biggest backer in Tianque City and the surrounding thirty-six cities: Sword Sect’s leader was her creditor!

Eyes shining, she apologized cheerfully, “Thank you, Sect Leader!”

Wang Quan snorted, fanning himself. Now she showed some respect.

These kids were tough to handle, but luckily, he was clever, with some strength and means.

“Thirty percent?” Zhu Xing’er propped her chin. “Your sect leader’s got a lion’s mouth, but tying to him for just thirty percent is a steal.”

Su Qing agreed. “Without his backing, we couldn’t touch the Song Family. With his name, things will be easier, and if we mess up, he’ll clean up.”

If the sect leader weren’t so shameless—er, wise and mighty—the Song Family wouldn’t have lost an arm, retreating to lick wounds, giving them an opening.

For just thirty percent, they’d gained a massive ally.

Of the remaining seventy percent, ten percent was reserved for the shop, the rest split evenly. But a new shop burns money, so Su Qing and Zhu Xing’er reinvested their shares until Spring Breeze stabilized.

“And after my persuasion—well, relentless pestering,” Su Qing said, “the sect leader agreed to supply us with herbs.”

“Just a fraction of a fraction, but for our scale, it’s enough,” she added. “Once we do well, I’ll ask for more.”

Wang Quan’s supply was mostly common herbs from Sword Sect’s fields—essential but low-margin, as customers judged a shop’s fairness by their prices.

The rare herbs, ten percent of the supply, came from the back mountain.

But Wang Quan said that was the limit. If Su Qing wanted more, she’d have to trade with the back mountain herself.

That was her edge.

He clearly knew about her entrance exam connection with the Wolf King.

But her current strength was lacking. Little Wolf Moon had said she’d need to reach Foundation Establishment before being invited to the back mountain.

It all circled back to the core issue: she needed strength.

Without stumbling into her third-year seniors’ return, their support, and the sect leader’s backing, reclaiming Honey Spirit Tea would’ve taken ages, let alone opening a herb shop on the Song Family’s ruins.

Strength was her foundation. She had to train harder.

Zhu Xing’er patted her shoulder. “Don’t rush. Single-source supply isn’t ideal. I’ll gather more herbs on my trade routes. Don’t carry too much.”

“As for cultivation—” Zhu Xing’er grinned, pulling out a long jade box and placing it before Su Qing. “Open it.”

Seeing Zhu Xing’er’s barely contained pride, Su Qing knew it was something good.

But when she opened it, her breath caught.

Three round objects—beast cores.

Beast cores weren’t rare; Zhu Xing’er brought back bags from Yinlan City. But those were from low-tier beasts, suitable for Qi Refining disciples.

These were Foundation Establishment beast cores: two wood-attribute, one metal-attribute, matching Su Qing’s dual spiritual roots. The metal core was from a mid-stage Foundation Establishment beast.

Su Qing froze, then looked at Zhu Xing’er’s smug grin. “Xing’er, you went all out. These aren’t ordinary. How’d you get them?”

“Remember the ten Nine Heavens Spirit Grasses you gave me?” Zhu Xing’er said excitedly. “At Yinlan City’s Demon Pass, a cultivator’s son was gravely injured, needing them to break through to Foundation Establishment and rebuild his body. I negotiated and traded the ten grasses for these three cores.”

Su Qing frowned. “Those ten grasses weren’t worth three Foundation Establishment cores.”

Zhu Xing’er smirked. “Rare things have value, and with my silver tongue, what can’t I swing?”

Seeing her pride, Su Qing felt moved yet worried. She praised Zhu Xing’er until she glowed, eager to rush back to Yinlan City for more cores.

Then Su Qing voiced her concern. “Be careful. Some cultivators don’t value mortal lives. A wrong word, and they might kill on the spot.”

Zhu Xing’er nodded. “I know. Don’t worry. Once I’m less busy and settled, I’ll try cultivating. Just a few Qi Refining layers will do for my travels. You’ll have to be my teacher then.”

Su Qing agreed instantly.

Zhu Xing’er grinned. “There’s more good news today.”

She pulled a letter from her robe, placing it on the jade box. “From Xiu Fu.”

Su Qing gripped the light letter, feeling “homecoming nerves” for the first time.

Her heart raced, too unsteady to open and read it on the spot.

Tucking the warm letter into her robe, she said, “I’ll read it back home.”

Zhu Xing’er understood. When they reunited, she’d wanted to jump for joy. “Read it later. It’ll make you happy for a while.”

Back home, Su Qing completed her daily body and sword training. With the Sword Qi Exam nearing, many students who hadn’t mastered sword qi or had unstable qi were frantically swinging swords day and night, cramming for the test.

Su Qing, having grasped sword qi in her Dragon Boat Secret Realm duel with Li Jian, was unfazed.

Man Qing Sword was in top form, with a hearty appetite. After devouring two hundred jin of second-tier top-grade Qintai ore, it refused the remaining hundred jin, drooling over third-tier low-grade White Ash ore.

Like a Beast School student mixing vegetables into meat, Su Qing refined White Ash ore into Qintai ore, coaxing Man Qing Sword to eat reluctantly.

To the eye, Man Qing Sword looked unchanged despite the ores. But as its master, Su Qing sensed a quantitative shift within, though the qualitative leap hadn’t arrived.

After her tasks, her restless heart calmed.

She bathed, donned sleepwear, sat under lamplight, and carefully opened the letter.

**Dear Friend**

Xiu Fu’s elegant yet vigorous handwriting leaped into view.

Su Qing realized belatedly: Xiu Fu had learned to write.

Of course—she was a healer now, needing to write prescriptions.

The letter was short, not written in one go. The ink’s varying shades suggested interruptions, some strokes hurried, others calm. It was clearly written in haste.

At the beast tide frontline, where lives were consumed, Xiu Fu, as a healer, had little time for letters. Su Qing could picture her starting, only to be interrupted by wounded patients.

The paper was modest, carrying a bitter medicinal scent that wafted as it unfolded.
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**Xing’er says you’re doing well, with challenges but undaunted by your wisdom and strength. I believe it, knowing you’re that kind of person, never living poorly. But I need to hear it from you to rest easy.**

**Are you doing well?**

**It’s been over six years since we parted. It feels long, yet I always recall our farewell. You said no matter what path I take, I have a chance to start anew.**

**Thank you—that gave me great courage.**

**I think of it often and cry often. It’s why I strive to be such a person.**

**For mortals, it’s bold to say, but for patients, a healer is just that. I feel it deeply.**

**If you’re struggling, want to leave Sword Sect, or need a break, come find me. My place is simple, but I have a room, bedding, and a pair of chopsticks. We can start anew together.**

**Wishing you well. From now, I’ll look forward to meeting you when the beast tide ends.**

Su Qing sat long under the lamp, stirred only by a cold breeze. She folded the letter carefully, tucking it away, then grabbed Man Qing Sword and stepped out.

The moonlight was clear and bright.

Tonight, she felt she could swing her sword ten thousand times.

The next day was the Sword Qi Exam.

Unlike sword techniques, sword qi couldn’t be forced or crammed effectively. Most knew beforehand if they’d pass.

Still, passing and daring to take the exam were different. Even if failure was certain, showing up was a form of courage.

The exam was set for 7 AM. Senior Sister Qin Zhen, as usual, was the examiner, unable to escape the duty.

But when she wearily greeted everyone—“Bad news, it’s me again”—she noticed something odd.

About three hundred people were missing, all from Body School.

What happened? Were they like last year’s Pill School, poisoned en masse, lying down watching hallucinations? Or the Artifact School two years ago, angering the artifact spirit Xiao Shi, getting locked in the forging hall to craft endlessly?

As she pondered, someone in the crowd muttered, “Body School must be scared, skipping the exam!”
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With her cultivation, Qin Zhen spotted him despite his efforts to blend in. An Array School student.

She understood. “What did Array School do now?”

Under her stern gaze—mostly because her hand rested on her sword—he stammered, deflecting, “Well, it’s just that Array School finished a minor assessment, and someone had to test the formations…”

Su Qing was thinking the same.

“How did a perfectly good Mistrack Formation drop from the sky, trapping us on the way to the exam?”
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She didn’t need to think—it was definitely Array School’s doing.