Life returned to normal after the auction. Wu Jian spent most of his time either training alone or with Hou Jingshu. He would sometimes spend time with Ding Hong and Yai Bazhu, and Xia Lin would occasionally join them.

No one really bothered him, but he was rather famous by this point. Everyone knew about his relationship with Hou Jingshu. He had expected people to make trouble for him, but that didn’t happen. No one accused him of being a toad lusting after swan meat. No one tried to bully him into breaking up with her. Other than a few nasty looks, nothing of note happened on that front.

He was surprised.

“It’s because of your strength,” Ding Hong said one day when they were having lunch. “Do you think anyone here is going to mess with someone who’s at the eighth subrealm of the Asura Realm? No one has a death wish.”

Only Hou Jingshu and Yu Qiang had a similar cultivation. The next strongest person was only at the fourth subrealm of the Asura Realm.

The cultivation world was ruled by strength. Those who had it could do whatever they wanted, and those who didn’t needed to be careful, lest they be trampled upon by the strong. Wu Jian had not forgotten this fact of life, but he hadn’t really considered how this applied to him.

Matters of his relationship with Hou Jingshu aside, Wu Jian rather enjoyed his school life. It was very… lax. While many students were required to take classes specified to their level, he didn’t have to attend any himself. That was because he was nearly as strong as many of the instructors.

Instructors at Shang Kingdom Imperial Academy were all peak Asura Realm cultivators. One of them was even half a step into the Human Limit Realm.

He had attended a few classes, but none of them had been able to help him. His cultivation was too esoteric for them to offer advice, they couldn’t beat him in a sparring match, and his physical prowess already exceeded what most of them were capable of. Wu Jian had even defeated the half a step Asura Realm cultivator with little trouble.

Like that, two weeks flew by, and before he knew it, the test to become an Inner Court Disciple had come.

Wu Jian woke up that morning as sunlight streamed in through a window somewhere to his left. He blinked as his eyes adjusted to the light. The ceiling overhead was beautifully decorated. It also wasn’t the ceiling to his room in the Outer Courtyard.

Someone’s arm had been thrown across his chest. He stroked the arm of the person sleeping next to him. Her warmth as she snuggled into his side was pleasant, as were the naked legs entwined with his own.

They didn’t sleep together every night, but he and Hou Jingshu did frequently visit each other for a midnight tryst. More often than not, Hou Jingshu was sneaking into his bedroom because it was easier, but he would occasionally come to her.

He did worry about how this would affect Hou Jingshu’s reputation. The way people viewed others was a kind of power all its own, and he didn’t want someone looking at their princess with anything less than absolute respect. He worried that some men and women might view her differently because they were obviously sexually active.

His concerns weren’t necessarily unfounded, as several people had looked at her differently. He’d even heard a few people talk about how they never realized Hou Jingshu was such a slut. They had done so within hearing distance of him, so he assumed they had been doing it on purpose. Those people would hopefully never talk poorly about her again after he’d beaten them black and blue. He didn’t know what he would do if they didn’t learn their lesson.

“Nnnnhhhh…”

The woman practically lying on top of him stirred. He looked down as Hou Jingshu’s eyes fluttered open, revealing her vibrant blue irises to him. She slid her hooked leg down his, eliciting a shiver from him, then nuzzled her face against his chest. It seemed like she was still asleep.

“Morning,” he said, kissing her forehead.

“Mmm. Morning,” Hou Jingshu mumbled as she closed her eyes. She opened them again seconds later. “What time is it?”

“Time to get up.”

“Uuugh. I really don’t want to.”

Wu Jian shook with mirth as he tried to contain his laugh. This was a side of Hou Jingshu that he had only seen recently since they rarely slept together when they were kids. The only time she ever slept in the same bed as him was when Wu Meiying dragged her to his room. She would let herself get pulled along because she didn’t want to be the only one left out.

While she didn’t want to get up, they did eventually crawl out of the bed. It was still early morning. The brisk air hit their skin. Hou Jingshu shivered as she sat on the bed without covers, watching as Wu Jian grabbed a bucket filled with water, which he had gotten last night.

“Stand up. I can’t wash you if you’re sitting on the bed.”

“Mmmm.”

Hou Jingshu stood up, and Wu Jian ran a wet cloth along her skin. He cleaned everywhere. Her arms, the underside of her arms, her torso, back, and chest. She bit her lip when he cleaned off her chest and the area between her thighs. He imagined she was still sensitive from last night.

In return, Hou Jingshu also washed off Wu Jian. This wasn’t the first time she had done this, and so she didn’t display the embarrassment she used to. It was a little disappointing. She had been so cute that first time she decided to help Wu Jian wash off. The way her face burned like a fire technique as she washed little Wu Jian had been so adorable that he’d ended up getting them dirty all over again.

“Today is the Inner Court Disciple Test,” Wu Jian said as they were getting dressed. He slid up his pants, then put his arms through the holes of his sleeveless training gi. The black gi with gold dragon and scale designs fit snugly against him as he tied it closed with a black and gold sash. The last articles he put on were his shoes and white wristbands.

“It is. Are you ready?”

Unlike Wu Jian, Hou Jingshu’s training gi had long sleeves and she didn’t wear a sash. The sleeves of her pink gi were poofy toward the end and enclosed by a hair of gold bands that kept them from sliding past her hands. The gi closed with seven small knots in the middle.

“Yes. This test won’t be that hard to pass.”

“So confident.”

“I think I have a reason to be.”

When she finished getting dressed Hou Jingshu sat down before her nightstand. Wu Jian went behind her, comb in hand, and began combing her long hair. He started at the bottom and worked his way up, untangling the knots in her hair. She’d no doubt acquired those from last night’s activities.

“What can I expect from this test?” asked Wu Jian.

“Hmmm. The test is divided into three parts. A test of your cultivation, a test of your martial prowess, and a test of how you do under duress.”

Hou Jingshu paused as Wu Jian began braiding her hair. He hadn’t been very good at this when he first started, but his hands were dexterous, and he had practiced for several days. He could now confidently weave her hair into a neat braid. His braiding still wasn’t perfect. However, Hou Jingshu had given it a passing grade.

“The first two tests are always the same. You’ll be tested at the testing stone. So long as you have reached the Asura Realm, you’ll pass. The second test is always a spar against one of the instructors.”

“I should pass those easily.”

“I’d be disappointed if you didn’t.”

Once her hair was braided, Wu Jian grabbed a pair of hairpins and slid them through the bun. These hairpins were not just decorations. They were makeshift weapons. If she ever lost her spear, she would remove these from her hair and use them to attack. Each one was a low-grade Earth Profound Spirit Weapon.

“All done,” he declared.

“Thank you.”

Hou Jingshu stood up and checked out her hair as Wu Jian slid his mask over his face.

They left her building together and walked to the site where the test would commence. There was an arena in the Outer Courtyard. It was only used for tests and exhibition matches, so Wu Jian had never seen the inside, but it looked like a giant oval with multiple levels from the outside. The architecture was typical of Shang Kingdom buildings. It had the sloped roofs with red tiles and dragon statues that demarcated this nation’s architecture.

There was already a large crowd gathered near the entrance. Not all of these people were here to take part. Most of them just wanted to witness the people taking the test.

When they caught sight of him and Hou Jingshu, the crowd parted for them to enter.

“It’s him.”

“Yeah. Jian Wu. I’ve seen him around before, but I never actually talked to him. You think he’s going to take part in the test?”

“Why wouldn’t he? Didn’t you hear? He’s already at the seventh subrealm of the Asura Realm.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. I was there when his cultivation was tested.”

“Well, shit. I heard the rumors, but I didn’t believe them. I guess he’s one of those once in a millennia geniuses. Life can be very unfair sometimes.”

Wu Jian was glad no one could see the look on his face. Did they really think he was born a genius? He came from a small clan in the boonies, was bullied for several years, and nearly died trying to get as strong as he was. He still remembered the early years when he would train his body to the breaking point to acquire even one more ounce of strength. These people knew nothing of the struggles he had overcome.

I guess I can’t really blame them. They didn’t see my struggles. Just the end result.

People looking in from the outside only saw one side of the picture. An orphan looking in through the glass window of a home might see a child sitting down to a warm meal every night, but that orphan would never know what else the child with parents went through. What if the child was being abused when no one was looking? What if they were being sexually assaulted by their parent? The orphan didn’t know that. All they saw was the child eating three square meals a day.

The grass always looks greener on the other side.

Wu Jian and Hou Jingshu entered the arena. He had to register before he could take part. He went up to the front, where an older gentleman sat behind a table. The older man looked up when a pair of shadows fell over him.

“Jian Wu… Your Highness. I see, you two came together,” he said. “Are you here to register for the test?”

“I am,” said Wu Jian.

“Well, I don’t suppose you’ll have much trouble passing. Give me a moment.” The old man dipped a quill into some ink, jotted down Wu Jian’s name, and handed him a medallion attached to a chain necklace. “Do not lose that medallion. You’ll need it for the test. Also, do not put it in your storage ring. It needs to be visible.”

“Understood.” Wu Jian hung the medallion around his neck.

He wasn’t the only one in line, so he and Hou Jingshu walked away from the desk. Only participants for the test were allowed into the waiting room. Everyone else could only watch from the arena seating. Hou Jingshu grabbed both of his hands and stared into his mask.

“I know you don’t need it, but good luck.”

“Thanks. I’ll see you when I’m finished.”

“Mmm.”

He squeezed her hands once, then let go. Hou Jingshu sighed as she turned around and walked up a stairway leading into the arena seats. Wu Jian watched her go, then entered a door that opened into a large chamber filled with almost one hundred people. He recognized a few of them, but most of them were people he didn’t know.

“Jian Wu,” someone called out to him.

He looked over to where Xia Lin was waving at him. She was alone, but that did not surprise him. Both Hong Ding and Yai Bazhu were only at the seventh and sixth subrealm respectively. It would be a while yet before they reached the Asura Realm.

“I didn’t realize you were going to take the test too,” he said upon reaching the young woman.

She stared at him. “You should have. I might not be able to compare to you, but I am at the Asura Realm.”

“Very true. That was my mistake.” Wu Jian shrugged.

Xia Lin had a hard time speaking to him at first, but once she realized he had no romantic interest in her, she became much easier to talk to. He thought it was because she wasn’t trying to impress him anymore. This actually raised his estimation of her. He might not have any interest in her as a romantic partner, but he didn’t mind being her friend.

Several moments passed and more people entered. There must have been at least five hundred by now.

Another set of doors on the other side opened and three people stepped in. Two of them were instructors for the Outer Courtyard, but one of them was a Core Disciple. It was Yu Qiang.

“Welcome, all of you. I would like you to follow me. The Inner Court Disciple Test is about to begin,” he declared, marking the beginning of the test.