Chapter Summaries

Shi Tiexin stood up to Liu Qigang’s contempt, then turned his anger into writing and pushed his Star progress to ninety-eight. Si Chongtian rejected Liu’s worldview and decided to change his position, while Shi resolved to rely on himself.

• Shi Tiexin answered Liu Qigang’s insult by saying his information had offset the humiliation and that his own worth would rise, then left with his head held high.
• Si Chongtian told Liu Qigang he had gone too far, but Liu argued that strength determined the rules and urged Si to grow powerful enough to change them.
• Old Wei ingratiated himself with Si Chongtian, who rejected his fawning and announced that he wanted to adjust his position.
• Shi Tiexin returned to Tumubao and wrote for three hours, channeling his anger into words and declaring that he had to become stronger.
• A Star flew in and brought Shi Tiexin’s progress to ninety-eight, one mark short of the limit, so he went to sleep and trained in his dreams.

Shi Tiexin began his shift expecting Liu Qigang to have set a trap for him, but found Si Chongtian had arranged to join his post instead. Si Chongtian transformed the guard station into a comfortable place to work, leaving Shi Tiexin impressed by his power and wondering if he had gained a benefactor.

• Shi Tiexin arrived at the meatpacking plant on time and rejected Old Wei’s offer to rest, suspecting he was trying to make him late.
• Shi Tiexin discovered that Si Chongtian had arranged to work alongside him at a newly added security post.
• Si Chongtian peppered Shi Tiexin with questions, but Shi warned him that chatting on camera could get him docked pay or fired.
• Si Chongtian called Old Zhong and arranged for workers to install tables, chairs, and sofas at the guard station.
• Shi Tiexin was impressed by Si Chongtian’s influence and thought of him as a benefactor who had come looking for him.

Shi Tiexin put Si Chongtian on guard duty while he practiced writing, then learned that the young master could endure hardship. When Si Chongtian asked about life at the Orphanage, Shi Tiexin shared the lesson it had taught him.

• Shi Tiexin told Si Chongtian to call him Old Tie and jokingly named him Little Si, which Si Chongtian took as Little Lion.
• Shi Tiexin urged Si Chongtian to take his security work seriously, and Si Chongtian began standing watch with strict discipline.
• Shi Tiexin practiced writing for four hours while Si Chongtian stood guard without moving or complaining.
• Shi Tiexin praised Si Chongtian's endurance and took his turn on duty, while Si Chongtian asked about life at the Orphanage.
• Shi Tiexin told Si Chongtian that the Orphanage had taught him how to balance survival and dignity.

Shi Tiexin explained to Si Chongtian how he balanced survival with dignity and why he was determined to build a safe home for his future child. Si Chongtian admired him, offered to help with his debt, and loudly praised his calligraphy just as someone entered the factory to challenge the claim.

• Shi Tiexin told Si Chongtian that enduring hardship without surrendering his dignity had shaped his resolve to give his child a safe home.
• Si Chongtian was deeply moved by Shi Tiexin's words and decided to call him Big Brother Tie.
• Si Chongtian offered to lend Shi Tiexin up to three million points, but Shi Tiexin said he owed only one thousand and wanted to repay it himself.
• Si Chongtian praised Shi Tiexin's handwriting as the best among young people he knew.
• A man entered the factory and challenged Si Chongtian's claim that Shi Tiexin was the top young hard-pen calligrapher.

Shi Tiexin secured a paid job writing business cards after a manager admired his calligraphy, then realized his handwriting might offer another way to make money. He returned to the Orphanage with writing supplies and considered making bootlegs.

• A bespectacled manager examined Shi Tiexin's practice sheets and offered him a private job writing business cards.
• Shi Tiexin agreed to produce an initial batch of four hundred cards, with the manager supplying the materials.
• Si Chongtian said Shi Tiexin's improved handwriting had made the unexpected opportunity possible, and Shi Tiexin recognized that his abilities could create new chances.
• Shi Tiexin returned to the Orphanage with blank paper cards and special ink, locked himself inside, and wondered whether making bootlegs would be profitable.

Shi Tiexin discovered that an unknown force prevented him from copying Auxiliary Cultivation Manuals, and he gave up on piracy as a way to make money. Tao Zhongming praised Shi Tiexin’s calligraphy and suggested he enter a competition.

• Shi Tiexin tried to write pirated mathematics manuals but could not make himself write the material.
• Shi Tiexin tried to copy the Thousand Character Classic, suffered a powerful mental backlash, and vomited.
• Shi Tiexin concluded that a powerful mechanism blocked individuals from making Auxiliary Cultivation Manuals and decided to pursue Liu Qigang’s company assets instead.
• Tao Zhongming inspected a business card written by Shi Tiexin and praised his calligraphy.
• Gou Danzi promoted Shi Tiexin’s talent to Tao Zhongming, who suggested Shi Tiexin enter a calligraphy competition.

Shi Tiexin was taken by Captain Chen to fill in on security duty at the Tumubao Provincial Examination after a guard was injured. Captain Chen hoped Shi Tiexin would mention him to Young Master Si, while Shi Tiexin prepared to take the assignment.

• Tao Zhongming told Shi Tiexin about Tumubao's Citizen Calligraphy Competition and its renowned Inner Solar System judges.
• Old Wei hurried Shi Tiexin out of the meat processing plant to meet Captain Chen, while Si Chongtian offered to hold down the fort and asked to stay with Shi Tiexin.
• Captain Chen asked how Shi Tiexin knew Young Master Si, but Shi Tiexin described them as ordinary friends who had met by chance.
• Captain Chen explained that a guard had been badly injured in a Secret Realm duel, leaving a vacancy for the Provincial Examination's security detail.
• Captain Chen assigned Shi Tiexin to the Provincial Examination for two hours, promised him thirty extra allowance points, and asked him to mention Captain Chen to Young Master Si.

Shi Tiexin looked forward to the rewards connected to the provincial examination without realizing how valuable the chance to observe it was for young examinees. At First Zhengxue Academy, students and observers gathered as the Star Engineering Federation Cadet School arrived, with He Chong asserting himself ahead of Gu.

• Shi Tiexin calculated that thirty Value Points, his business-card side job, and a waived uniform rental fee would help him make his first installment payment.
• Crowds gathered outside Tumubao First Zhengxue Academy, where security admitted examinees and permit holders to observe the provincial examination.
• Students from schools across Tumubao arrived, and onlookers discussed the strengths of the districts and contenders such as Shen Xingye and He Chong.
• The ten students from the Star Engineering Federation Cadet School arrived, with He Chong feeling confident after recently establishing his authority at school.
• He Chong let Gu defer to him, showed his identification, and swaggered through the academy gates first.

He Chong confronted Gong Tengfei at First Zhengxue Academy and continued plotting against Shi Tiexin, unaware that Shi Tiexin was nearby serving as a ceremonial guard. Shi Tiexin marveled at the provincial examination crowd before a short girl mistook him for an uncle and asked for directions.

• Gong Tengfei mocked He Chong, and the two exchanged insults before a security guard sent them away.
• Wang Jiaxu reminded He Chong's followers of Shi Tiexin's beating and proposed exploiting Shi Tiexin after the examination; He Chong approved.
• He Chong had arranged to keep Shi Tiexin from observing the examination and believed this would make him fail.
• Shi Tiexin stood among the ceremonial guards and surveyed the thousands of talented young examination participants.
• A short girl tugged at Shi Tiexin's clothes to ask for directions, and he told her he was too young to be an uncle.

Shi Tiexin escorted Shi Yuwei to the provincial examination and took his place in the model squad, where he discovered that the unusual examination was held in an arena. As City Lord Shen and the Scholar Union’s chief examiner arrived, Shi Tiexin remained on duty, curious about the powerful figures behind him.

• Shi Tiexin met the directionally challenged Shi Yuwei, who said she was from South City and had come to observe the provincial examination before taking her Minor Provincial Examination.
• Shi Yuwei ran off toward the venue, and Shi Tiexin realized her strength technique was impressive for an elementary school student.
• Shi Tiexin entered Tumubao First Main School through the staff passage and found examinees gathered on a raised circular platform inside an open-domed arena.
• He Chong ordered the Star Engineering Cadet School students to keep quiet and stand properly as they watched from the back of the stands.
• Shi Tiexin stood among the black-uniformed security guards as the stands announced City Lord Shen’s arrival, followed by the Scholar Union’s Sacrificial Wine Official, the chief examiner and a Domain Realm expert.
• City Lord Shen announced the start of the examination, prompting astonishment from the stands.

Shi Tiexin watched the Dragon Diagram Scholar open the Mind Heart Secret Realm, which created an individual examination space for every examinee. The examination began with each candidate facing a radiant figure, and Shi Tiexin saw that the figures and their opponents were already fighting.

• Shi Tiexin struggled to see the Dragon Diagram Scholar behind him as spectators identified him as a young scholar with Void Traces.
• The Dragon Diagram Scholar opened the Mind Heart Secret Realm, separating the examinees into individual spaces while allowing everyone to be observed at once.
• The examinees raised their Spirit, Energy, and Mind, and clusters of light manifested the six kinds of cultivation in the Six Fundamental Mind Arts.
• The Dragon Diagram Scholar announced the start of the examination, and radiant figures appeared before every examinee.
• The examinees and radiant figures charged into battle, and the short girl struck her opponent with a hook.

Shi Tiexin realized Fengming First High School’s exam tested candidates by having them fight Radiant Figures inside the Mind Heart Secret Realm, where Mind Arts determined their strength and secret realms reduced injuries afterward. After roughly fourteen hundred candidates passed the first round, the Dragon Diagram Scholar began a second round with brighter Radiant Figures.

• Shi Tiexin observed candidates fight Radiant Figures and recognized the battles as the exam’s practical test of the Six Fundamental Mind Arts.
• A candidate with weak Mind Arts was badly injured by his Radiant Figure and eliminated, but the secret realm reduced his injuries before the medical team carried him away.
• Roughly fourteen hundred of more than two thousand candidates defeated their Radiant Figures, while the fallen candidates were ordered off the platform.
• Shi Tiexin joined the guards escorting a struggling failed candidate and examined the secret realms gathering around the platform.
• The Dragon Diagram Scholar announced the second round, and fourteen hundred brighter Radiant Figures leaped toward the examinees.

Shi Tiexin escorted a failed candidate from the Mind Arts examination and learned how subject arrangement affected combat, along with the distinction between first-test passes and Bronze Ranking students. As the third round began, he recognized the fierce short girl still fighting as the older sister of the little road-lost girl, and possibly a member of one of his creditors' families.

• Shi Tiexin comforted a failed candidate and learned that candidates arranged their Six Fundamental Mind Arts across their bodies, creating different strengths and weaknesses.
• The failed candidate explained that he had passed the first test but failed the second, and that he would exceed the age limit before next year's exam.
• Shi Tiexin returned to his post for the Value Points and watched the remaining candidates prepare for the third round.
• The third round began with about five hundred Radiant Figures, and Shi Tiexin noticed a short girl fighting fiercely among the candidates.
• Shi Tiexin identified the short girl as likely being the older sister of the little road-lost girl and possibly part of one of his creditors' families.

Shi Tiexin watched the third examination test eliminate hundreds of examinees and saw Shi Yulei survive to the Golden Ranking sequence. The pairwise matches began, and Shi Yulei swiftly defeated her first opponent.

• He Chong's classmates asked him about the exam arena, but he urged them to watch because he had not fully understood it either.
• The third test ended with more than five hundred examinees knocked out, while Shi Yulei remained among the roughly sixty who advanced.
• The Dragon Diagram Scholar merged the remaining Secret Realms into thirty-two and announced a pairwise Golden Ranking sequence that would reward the top three with golden light.
• The matches began across twenty-nine Secret Realms, and Shi Yulei defeated the much taller woman opposite her in only a few moves.

Shi Tiexin watched the little shorty fight through successive Mind Heart Secret Realm duels, studying her power and tactics. After she swiftly defeated two opponents, she faced a towering man and began to overwhelm him with Serpent Style Fist.

• Shi Tiexin noticed the little shorty's Six-Colored Light recovering as she rested between duels.
• The little shorty shattered her forehead's light layer with a headbutt, then defeated her opponent with a throat strike.
• The little shorty entered another duel with her forehead still injured and faced a huge, powerful man.
• The little shorty evaded his attack and used Serpent Style Fist to coil around him, leaving him scrambling to keep up.

Shi Tiexin watched a short girl use deceptive Tiger Style and lethal Serpent Style techniques to fight her way into the semifinals, despite a broken arm. As she cautiously faced a tall, agile opponent with injured legs, a commotion from the other secret realm drew Shi Tiexin’s attention.

• The short girl killed a larger opponent with a Serpent Style strike to the throat, though her left arm broke in the exchange.
• The short girl disguised a Serpent Style attack as a Tiger Style charge and killed her next opponent with a kick to the throat.
• The short girl advanced to the semifinals, where Shi Tiexin recognized her tall, agile opponent as a dangerous counter whose legs were injured.
• The short girl and the man cautiously probed each other as they searched for openings.
• The audience suddenly cried out, and Shi Tiexin saw that the match in the other secret realm had ended.

Shi Tiexin watched the short girl defeat her semifinal opponent through a brutal, self-sacrificing fight, despite suffering devastating injuries. When Gao Shaoling told her to surrender, she charged at him instead, leaving the final battle about to begin.

• The spectators praised Gao Shaoling’s strength and reputation as Shi Tiexin watched him stand uninjured in the mystic realm.
• The short girl fought her opponent at close range, combining Serpent Style Fist with Tiger Style Fist and enduring repeated injuries.
• When her opponent trapped her right arm, the short girl broke it herself and used her left arm to slash his neck.
• Both fighters fell, but the short girl’s wound caused her opponent to lose the match; he emerged from the realm while she remained gravely injured inside.
• Gao Shaoling told the short girl to admit defeat, but she roared and charged at him.

Shi Tiexin watched Shi Yulei lose the provincial examination final to Gao Shaoling, but saw signs that her last attack had wounded him. After the rankings were announced and Shi Tiexin rallied the crowd to applaud Shi Yulei, he returned to his work and considered visiting a calligraphy competition.

• Shi Yulei launched a final airborne kick combo at Gao Shaoling, who counterattacked and knocked her down, though Shi Tiexin noticed a possible wound in Gao Shaoling's throat.
• The Mind Heart Secret Realm vanished, and the Dragon Diagram Scholar announced Gao Shaoling as champion and Shi Yulei as runner-up.
• Shi Tiexin cheered for Shi Yulei, prompting scattered applause from the crowd, while Zhuang Zhiqiang received third place.
• The provincial examination rankings appeared across Tumubao's dome, and Shi Tiexin resolved to one day earn a place on the list.
• The model team captain called Shi Tiexin back to work, and he remembered Deputy Director Tao Zhongming's mention of a Calligraphy Competition.

Shi Tiexin came to the Hundred Years of Mist Tumubao Calligraphy Competition hoping to win its 100,000-Value-Point first prize, but the formidable cultivators practicing in the park made him realize he needed more preparation. He practiced on business cards until his Basic Rhetoric reached profound mastery ninety-nine, then prepared to rely on Heavenly Gifted Golden Light.

• Shi Tiexin read the calligraphy competition notice and decided to practice more before registering to write on-site.
• Shi Tiexin went to the park and saw elderly calligraphers, including a grandpa whose brushwork revealed his Sharp Energy Realm strength.
• Shi Tiexin realized the park's elderly regulars were formidable cultivators and abandoned his hope of easily sweeping the competition.
• Shi Tiexin found a quiet spot and practiced writing on blank business cards while ignoring the bustle around him.
• Shi Tiexin reached profound mastery ninety-nine in Basic Rhetoric at three in the afternoon and prepared to use Heavenly Gifted Golden Light.

Shi Tiexin perfected Basic Rhetoric with Heavenly Gifted Golden Light and gained Sensitivity +1. He registered for the calligraphy competition, where his first brushstroke brought back the short man’s final move from the provincial examination.

• Shi Tiexin used Heavenly Gifted Golden Light to break through the barrier in Basic Rhetoric and reach perfection, activating Sensitivity +1.
• Shi Tiexin reviewed his progress in the other subjects and noted that his remaining Heavenly Gifted Golden Light could perfect only two more subjects.
• Shi Tiexin went to the Culture Office and registered for the calligraphy competition, then waited in line among many competitors.
• Shi Tiexin began writing a Thousand Character Classic with his cheap brush, and the short man’s final move from the provincial examination returned to his mind.