Infinite Potential System

William and Yuming stayed to watch the rest of the competition. Lu Bingying unsurprisingly won first place, while one of the male disciples was a close second with a score of 91 points.

As promised, Elder Arthur brought out a red piece of rock shaped like a walnut and presented it to Lu Bingying. With his enhanced vision, William could make out a bright orange spiral that was only visible on one side of the rock.

That must be the Fire Root. William guessed. His expression became greedy when he felt the ambient Mana leaking off the rock and spreading throughout the room.

"Senior Yuming, I have something to do so I'll head out first if you don't mind."

"Well...alright." Yuming didn't really have a reason to keep William at the Alchemy Hall, since the contest was over. "Make sure you're here earlier tomorrow. You didn't get here until the first phase had already ended."

William nodded. He left his seat and started walking towards the exit of the stage.

Where is he going? Yuming was confused. He watched as William made a turn and headed towards Lu Bingying.

That idiot! What is he doing?!? You can't just walk up to Miss Bingying!

Lu Bingying was well known for brutally rejecting every man that approached her with romantic interest. She was a very serious person with no interest in romance, fully dedicated to her advancement in the Sect and improving her Cultivation.

One time a shameless asshole tried to hold her hand and she blasted him with fireballs until two Elders managed to calm her down. The boy ended up in the clinic for a whole month before he recovered.

Since then, the entire Sect learned to keep their distance from Lu Bingying and only admire her beauty from afar.

As expected, the moment Lu Bingying saw William approaching she adopted a defensive stance. "You...what do you want?"

William stopped moving when he sensed Lu Bingying's killing intent. What did I do to her? She's treating me like I stole her firstborn child.

"Are you selling that Root?" he asked.

"What?" Lu Bingying was caught off guard. She expected a cheesy pick-up line or a snotty remark, but he just wanted to buy the Fire Root?

"Uh it's not for sale." Lu Bingying said flatly.

"Really?"

"Yes, I need this." she turned around and started walking away.

William didn't know what to say. He was a bit stupid for thinking that Lu Bingying would just sell her hard-earned prize, but it was worth a shot anyway.

He looked back at Yuming, who was giving him the "are you an idiot" look. Without a doubt, a few other Inner Core Disciples had noticed the awkward exchange.

He looked at the Elders. Elder Arthur was staring directly at him with interest, while Elder Fuxi seemed ready to strangle William. How dare he try to purchase a prize right in front of the judges? Is he out of his mind?

William contemplated his options. After a while, he made the difficult decision to give up on the Root. Lu Bingying wasn't willing to sell to him, and even if he wanted to join the Alchemy competition he couldn't.

The competition had already started and he was supposed to be here working as Yuming's assistant.

He left the Alchemy Hall without another word, opting not to embarrass himself further.

He checked the time. It was almost one o'clock.

"Shit! The Ranking Challenge!" William was going to be late for his fight with Kevin, which was supposed to be in half an hour. He ran down the street and made a few quick turns until the battle Arena was in view.

"Phew, I made it." William looked at a nearby clock in front of the Ranking Board which read 1:25. The battle Arena was mostly empty, with only a few sparse disciples seated in the stands to watch the fight. It seemed William and Kevin weren't very popular.

Kevin was already present. His short blue hair and a t-shirt with the Water Element symbol told William all he needed to know about the guy.

Kevin sized up William and found him to have no Cultivation. "Are you a new student? This is a battle Arena, only those challenging the Ranking Board can come here."

William realized Kevin didn't recognize him. "I am William, here to challenge Kevin for position number 401."

Kevin nodded, "So that's how it is. Don't expect me to take it easy on you just because you're new. This is your last chance to forfeit the duel."

William shook his head. "I don't plan to give up."

Less than a minute before the battle was supposed to begin, an Elder showed up to be the referee. He silently watched the time tick until the clock read 1:30.

"Both Rankers are present, begin!"

William didn't wait for Kevin to make a move. He pushed his speed to the Foundation Establishment Realm, rushing forward and delivering a punch.

Kevin was surprised by the sudden movement increase and leaned to the side to dodge William's fist. He began channeling Mana into his palm, then launched a spray of water at William.

Looks like the Foundation Establishment Realm is too weak. William cursed. He raised his speed to the Core Formation Realm, kicking up plumes of dust as he ran at Kevin for another punch.

This time Kevin was completely unprepared. William was moving too fast for Kevin to keep track of, and the punch landed on his chest.

Kevin flew backwards by more than twenty meters then his body rolled across the ground. Kevin released a groan when he stopped rolling, then his body went limp as he passed out.

The Elder was surprised by William's speed, but he didn't have time to bother asking questions. He wrote a few notes on a slip, then raised his head to look at William. "You win, congratulations on your new ranking."

After updating William's rank on the Ranking Board, the Elder made a quick hand movement and disappeared with a gust of wind.

That was surprisingly simple. Too bad I can't challenge the top 100 yet.

William would have to climb the ranks 100 at a time, since the rules were that you could not challenge someone more than 100 ranks above you.

He didn't need to return to the Lecture Hall, since there was a Ranking Board present inside the Arena as well. Su Yanyu probably didn't mention it since only disciples on the Ranking Board could get to it, and at the time William had just joined the Sect.

Will approached the board and issued a new challenge for the disciple ranked 301st, not bothering to read their name. It didn't matter anyway, since William didn't know many disciples other than those from the new group.

With a roaring stomach and not much else to do, William decided to grab food from Wild Clover. He completely forgot about Kevin, who was still lying unconscious in the dirt. Eh, someone would get him...right?

That aside, the food at Wild Clover was delicious as usual. William ate a dozen Grass Shark Filets, counting for his 6th unique Spirit food towards his Gourmet Title.

On his last visit, the Title had upgraded from Uncommon to Rare, granting William a 25% increase in stamina and 3 Potential Points. His next milestone would be at 25 meals, which at this rate William could complete by the end of the month.

His money was dwindling though, as William had already spent almost a hundred Gold Coins on food alone. By the end of the month, William would be nearly broke.

I need to find work that doesn't involve the Alchemy Hall. William thought to himself. Not only did the Alchemy Hall over work their employees, but they also underpaid them. A company like that would never survive in William's other world.

William decided he would ask Elder Wen about it at the next lecture. Maybe he could request permission to leave the Sect early. After all, William was one of Elder Wen's favorite students. Maybe he would get a pass?

"Oh. Hi William, you're here too?" A voice called out as Will was paying his bill. He turned to see Tia Marie and Gunther walking together into the restaurant.

"Oh hi, are you two on a date?" he asked.

Tia blushed with anger. "We had the same assignment, so we decided to eat together, don't jump to conclusions!"

William shrugged, it definitely looked like a date. Tia was wearing a nice red dress that revealed the thick muscles on her arms, while Gunther was dressed in a suit embroidered with a purple phoenix, most likely his family crest.

Gunther decided to change the topic before William could say anything else. "Oh yeah, we are going to the Night Market again tonight, do you want to come with us? It will be just me, you, and Tia if you go though."