White Deer Academy.

The Treasure Pavilion.

Inside the pavilion, light screens shimmered, identical to the interface on the Lingshu Profound Mirror, only much grander. Behind the main light screen stood a counter where an old deacon sat with his eyes closed, resting his mind. Figures flickered throughout the hall as people occasionally completed exchanges and departed.

Xiao Che stood before the massive light screen, his brow furrowed into a tight knot as he stared at a specific entry.

*Seven Star Steps*, 1,500 points.

A Xuan-grade Low-rank movement technique. It was exactly the kind of technique he needed to shore up his current weaknesses.

Balance: 1,565 points.

*Tsk.*

Xiao Che sucked in a breath through his teeth, the phantom pain of a toothache hitting him. If he exchanged everything for the *Seven Star Steps*, he would only have sixty-five points left. As for that debt of 1,150 points he owed Senior Sister Bai… how on earth was he supposed to pay that back? With his head?

*This is tricky.*

He paced back and forth within the Treasure Pavilion.

*My Wind Chasing Steps really can’t keep up anymore…*

Back in the Trial Tower, when he was besieged by ten Foundation Establishment ninth-layer puppets, his movement had felt sluggish at times. In a life-and-death battle, that slight stagnation could be a fatal flaw.

*Strength is the only hard truth. As for the debt… Senior Sister didn’t say I had to pay it back immediately anyway.*

He gritted his teeth and made his decision.

*I’ll get the Seven Star Steps first! Only by increasing my combat power can I earn more contribution points. The debt… I’ll just stall for a bit. Senior Sister shouldn’t… go as far as hanging me up on the Spiritual Network for public shaming, right?*

Taking a deep breath, he stopped hesitating and pressed his fingertip firmly against the screen.

“Confirm exchange: Xuan-grade Low-rank movement technique, *Seven Star Steps*.”

Behind the counter, the old deacon glanced at his Tianshu True Inheritance Token and nodded slightly. A beam of spiritual light shot out, landing on the counter and transforming into a cyan jade slip that shimmered with a faint, starlike glow.

“Inheritance jade slip. It can be read three times. Harmonize with your divine sense. Do not share it with outsiders,” the old deacon said succinctly.

“This disciple understands.”

Xiao Che took the jade slip solemnly. It felt slightly heavy in his hand. Almost simultaneously, 1,500 contribution points were deducted from his token. His balance instantly became: 65.

Looking at that pitiful two-digit number, Xiao Che’s heart twinged.

*Back to being a pauper overnight… and I’m still buried in debt.*

He tucked the jade slip and the True Inheritance Token into his robes. His chest felt heavy, but his heart felt empty.

*Whatever, I’m going back into seclusion! I’ll master these Seven Star Steps first.*

He walked out of the Treasure Pavilion and quickened his pace toward Tingzhu Pavilion. He needed to turn this investment into output as quickly as possible. This life of cultivating while in debt was something he couldn’t stand for a single moment.

*I’ll familiarize myself with the technique first, then toss it to the Heavenly Book for deduction and completion. I’ll get another custom-made, max-level movement technique for free…*

At that thought, the sting of losing his contribution points finally faded a little. In the long run, this deal was definitely not a loss.

***

Tingzhu Pavilion.

Quiet Room.

Xiao Che sat cross-legged, sinking his mind into the cyan jade slip.

*Seven Star Steps*, Xuan-grade Low-rank movement technique.

The core lay in channeling a sliver of starlight power, combined with special footwork, to shift and turn within a confined space. Its trajectory was unpredictable, as if one were stepping upon the seven stars, ever-changing and elusive. Once mastered to a high level, one’s explosive speed and evasion over short distances would be greatly enhanced, though the Qi consumption far exceeded that of Yellow-grade techniques.

*Channeling starlight power? The starting requirements aren’t low.*

He stood up to try. Following the positions of the seven stars recorded in the formula—Tianshu, Tianxuan, and the others—he paced continuously within the quiet room, sometimes lunging forward, sometimes cutting back.

For the first ten steps, his footing was floaty. He couldn’t sense the power of the stars at all. But after a hundred steps, he gradually caught a faint rhythm. It was the resonance created within his body by the trajectory of the seven stars.

Three hours later.

He suddenly lunged forward. As his sole hit the ground, the floor shimmered faintly with starlight. His figure pivoted sharply within a tiny radius. Though it was only a half-step shift, his speed was thirty percent faster than his previous *Wind Chasing Steps*.

Did it work?

Xiao Che’s heart leaped with a sliver of secret joy. It had only been three hours, and he had already made a breakthrough in an Xuan-grade technique. This talent… he was almost scaring himself.

However, his feet did not stop.

He knew that this kind of feeling was fleeting. If he stopped to rest now, the rhythm he had just captured might dissipate. To find it again, he would have to start from scratch. So, he gritted his teeth and continued to step according to the seven-star positions. One step, two steps, three steps… Every step was a deliberate repetition of that “starlight flash” sensation, attempting to lock that inspiration into place.

***

The next day.

As the morning light filtered through the window slats, Xiao Che slowly withdrew his stance. Fine beads of sweat covered his forehead.

After a sleepless night of repeated practice, he could now successfully take seven consecutive steps, each landing perfectly on a key node of the star trajectories. Although he was still far from the “unpredictable trajectory like linked stars” described in the manual, he could at least channel a sliver of starlight power.

He had reached the entry level.

*Good grief, reaching entry level in a Xuan-grade technique in a single night. If word of this got out, people would probably call me the Chosen One.*

Xiao Che rubbed his nose, his smile so wide he couldn’t close his mouth. Next… he sank his consciousness into the small purple jade book within his sea of consciousness.

Time to put the “cheat” to work.

He entered that grey, misty Sumeru space once more. Beside the purple jade book, the semi-transparent cyan cocoon still stood quietly, glowing with a clear light. The peerless figure within was faintly visible, her aura calm and deep.

The Azure Lotus Empress was still in deep slumber.

Xiao Che focused his mind and directed his consciousness toward the purple jade book. The book vibrated slightly, and a feedback message appeared:

*To deduce and complete a Xuan-grade technique, ten wisps of Hongmeng Qi are required.*

Xiao Che paused. *Ten wisps?*

He did the math. According to the previous conversion rate, one wisp of Hongmeng Qi required one thousand low-grade spirit stones. Ten wisps… that would be ten thousand.

*One wisp for Yellow-grade, ten for Xuan-grade. It fits the logic of tiered pricing.* He nodded, accepting the setting.

He glanced at the last remaining thousand spirit stones in his storage ring and shook his head. The gap was significant, but the direction was clear. His current priority was… making money!

*Let’s set a small goal first: a hundred thousand spirit stones!*

Xiao Che put away his spirit stones and withdrew from his sea of consciousness. He pulled out his True Inheritance Token and scanned it. The Lingshu Profound Mirror showed that at the third quarter of the Hour of the Dragon, there was a “Basic Sword Theory Essentials” course.

He casually opened the communication area. Two red-labeled hot posts were pinned at the top:

“[Dao Discussion Platform] Explosive! Tianshu Hall’s Feng Mohan has defeated the 97th and 88th-ranked experts on the Prodigy List in a single day! His sword points the way, and none can stand before him. He’s gone absolutely feral!”

Poster: Xuan Buyan.

“[Dao Discussion Platform] Shocking! Tianshu Hall’s Super-A Grade Xiao Che braved the Trial Tower at the first layer of Foundation Establishment, sweeping through everything in his path and reaching the 50th floor! (Attached: Image of the Tower Monument, the impact is maxed out!).”

Poster: Xuan Buyan.

*Great, I’m trending again. And it’s this Xuan Buyan again… Does he just squat here all day making posts?*

Xiao Che muttered to himself, feeling stuck between laughter and tears.

*Still, this Feng Mohan really does have some skill.*

He twitched the corner of his mouth and helplessly closed the light screen. It seemed that trying to keep a low profile was going to be impossible.

***

The second quarter of the Hour of the Dragon.

The Sword Academy.

The Hall of Sword Discussion.

*Whoa, look at this turnout.* The tiered hall, which could hold five or six hundred people, was nearly seventy percent full. There were both men and women, with auras ranging from Qi Condensation to Foundation Establishment.

It seemed the sword truly was the King of a Hundred Weapons. No matter where one went, sword cultivators were always the most numerous.

Xiao Che walked in, his white robes fluttering, his posture straight as a spear. With sword-like eyebrows and starry eyes, his profile looked exceptionally sharp in the morning light. Even with a neutral expression, he attracted the gaze of many.

“Shixiong Xiao, over here.”

A gentle voice drifted over.

Xiao Che turned his head and saw Mu Xinlan of the Water Moon Sect. She wore a water-blue dress that made her skin look as smooth as warm jade. Her eyes were like water, and her temperament was soft and graceful.

Xiao Che gave a silent *tsk* of appreciation in his heart.

*This level of beauty is easy on the eyes.*

He walked over and sat in the empty seat beside her.

***

NOTES

Session Glossary Updates (Memorized):

– 七星踏 = Seven Star Steps

– 萬寶閣 = Treasure Pavilion

– 靈樞玄鑒 = Lingshu Profound Mirror

– 聽竹軒 = Tingzhu Pavilion

– 鴻蒙之氣 = Hongmeng Qi (Primordial Qi)

– 封默寒 = Feng Mohan

– 沐心嵐 = Mu Xinlan

– 玄不言 = Xuan Buyan

Footnotes:

TN1: Tianshu, Tianxuan (天樞, 天璇): The first and second stars of the Big Dipper, often used in cultivation footwork based on the constellation.

Translator’s Note: FrenadroSteph, here. Xiao Che is finding out that the “pay-to-win” cost of his Heavenly Book scales up with the quality of the techniques. Time to start the grind for spirit stones!