Chapter 2629 — The Opportunity for a Breakthrough

"This... Wei Zhao is my leader. There's no harm in him seeing us, is there?" Bai Weituo explained with a placating smile.

He Meiyue knitted her brows slightly and said nothing more, though a flicker of regret passed through her eyes.

"Let's go, into the woods." Bai Weituo took He Meiyue by the hand and made to lead her toward the trees, but she shook her head.

"Never mind. I'm tired—let's go back to the dormitory and turn in early..." He Meiyue said, a note of weariness in her voice.

"Fine, then we'll head back!" Bai Weituo was utterly compliant with He Meiyue's every wish, and the two of them set off together in the direction of the campus dormitory buildings.

After seeing Guan Xin home, Wei Zhao returned to his own house. The young miss and Xiaoshu had already gone to bed, and Wang Xinyan had turned in even earlier. Her condition puzzled Wei Zhao somewhat; she seemed to want more and more sleep lately, as though no amount of rest could satisfy her. Normally Xiaoshu and the others went to bed around ten and rose a little after six, but Wang Xinyan usually fell asleep at seven or eight, right after dinner, and she still took a nap at midday.

This strange ailment was something Wei Zhao had never encountered before. Yet every examination pointed to the same conclusion: Wang Xinyan's body was simply too frail. The medicinal drafts he brewed for her brought some relief, but the effect seemed minimal.

Shaking his head, Wei Zhao took a shower first, then went into the bedroom. Finding Wang Xinyan already fast asleep, he did not disturb her; he simply climbed into bed, lay down beside her, and wrapped his arms around her from behind.

In her sleep, Wang Xinyan seemed to sense his presence. She stirred slightly and nestled closer into his embrace—and that small movement, harmless as it seemed, made Wei Zhao's hand brush unavoidably against the softness of her chest. What a feel!

He might have let the mistake stand, but that was not the sort of man Wei Zhao was. Reluctantly, he shifted his hand elsewhere and entered the jade pendant's space.

"Whew..." Wei Zhao let out a breath and resumed his cultivation.

Today's battle with Xiaoyi, fought on the edge of life and death, had given him a glimpse of the opportunity for a breakthrough. He had not lingered long at the peak of the mid-Earth rank, yet this time he had once again sensed the prelude to advancement.

Still, the time had been short. Wei Zhao had not broken through on the spot during the fight—and thank goodness he hadn't. Had he broken through then, he would have arrived even a moment later to save Han Jingyi, and it would all have been too late. Even if he had become a Heaven-rank expert, his regret would have been beyond remedy.

So he felt no sorrow at failing to break through in that battle. He had already grasped the opportunity; the breakthrough was only a matter of time. Given one more suitable chance, Wei Zhao would advance to the late Earth rank.

Peak mid-Earth rank or late Earth rank—Wei Zhao did not much care anymore. As things stood, with his current martial arts he could effortlessly annihilate an ordinary early Heaven-rank fighter. Even as a late Earth-rank expert, all he could do was annihilate a mid-Heaven-rank one.

That was no great difference in meaning. What Wei Zhao truly hoped for now was to cultivate his Xuanyuan Dragon-Taming Art to the full mastery of the second level! Then not only could he refine the jade pendant's space, but he could also open the stone gate of the cave. Wei Zhao was now full of anticipation for the third level of the Xuanyuan Dragon-Taming Art hidden within that cave.

The second level of the Xuanyuan Dragon-Taming Art seemed but a single step from full mastery, yet despite days of unremitting effort, Wei Zhao had still not reached that summit—which taught him that what looked like a short distance was in truth anything but.

Just as he had already sensed the opportunity to break through to the late Earth rank, yet his inner art gave no such sign—it left him somewhat helpless, though he knew such things could not be hurried.

"Old Jiao, how's that ghostly thing doing?" Wei Zhao turned and asked Jiao Yazi.

During the daytime, Wei Zhao could hardly keep constant watch over the jade pendant's space; it was Jiao Yazi who had been monitoring the situation inside all along.

"There it is—still in the same spot. It hasn't moved once since it came in," Jiao Yazi said.

"Oh..." Wei Zhao nodded. Since entering, the ghostly thing had fallen into a dormant state; no calling could rouse it, and it did not interfere with his cultivation. If he did not think of it, he could simply ignore it altogether.

Since it made no sound or movement, Wei Zhao could not be bothered with it. The point was, bothering with it was useless anyway: this particular lord could not be invited out, nor reasoned with. There was nothing to do but let it be, allowing it to lodge here for the time being.

As for Guan Xin, the moment she stepped back into the White Leader's villa, she was greeted by the knowing, smiling looks of the White Leader and his wife. Her face flushed at once. "I... we ran into Bai Weituo, so we were delayed a little..."

"Ha ha, we didn't even ask. Why bring it up?" the White Leader laughed. "I'm glad you spent a little more time with Wei Zhao. No need to use that boy Bai Weituo as an excuse! What's he doing coming here this late at night instead of staying in his dormitory?"

"I... I really did see Bai Weituo..." Guan Xin said helplessly. "He and..."

"All right, all right, enough of that." The White Leader waved his hand, clearly uninterested in such matters. "Han Jingyi has already sent over Patriarch Zhang Liju's notes on the alchemist's craft. Have a look at them in a bit..."

"Yes, all right..." Guan Xin nodded, feeling torn. She did not know whether to tell the White Leader that she had already broken through to the early Mystic rank. By rights she did not want to hide it, but did this count as Wei Zhao's secret?

Wei Zhao had never said whether she might tell the White Leader, so Guan Xin could only hold her tongue for now. When the time came she would find some excuse—say she had broken through on her own—and once she had asked Wei Zhao and confirmed it was all right to speak, she would tell him then.

With that thought, Guan Xin hurried back to her room to read Zhang Liju's notes on alchemy, while the White Leader and his wife went upstairs, chuckling, to rest...

The night passed without a word. Early the next morning, Wei Zhao rose betimes, prepared breakfast, and then made his way to Han Jingyi's villa.

To his surprise, Han Jingyi was also up early. When Wei Zhao arrived, she was sitting in the living room fiddling with her tablet—evidently she had already retrieved it from Wang Xinyan. It was lucky that she had dropped it on the ground back then; had Xiao Shiyi picked it up, the secret would have leaked with it!

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