Energy Perception

Zhou Yi had read many books. Although he had never been to other Star Blocks, he knew that not even an S-class Star Block would have energy perception like what he had experienced last night.

And this was only the most ordinary D-Class Star Block.

Fearing that last night had been an illusion, Zhou Yi even circulated the Star Gathering Art to cultivate once more before opening his Star Brain.

His energy perception was still exceptionally high.

The higher one's energy perception, the easier cultivation became. One could achieve twice the result with half the effort, and star power would increase faster.

Zhou Yi left his room and tried cultivating elsewhere. The result was the same.

This wasn't scientific.

Zhou Yi lowered his eyes, his long lashes casting a small shadow beneath his lids. This was his habitual expression whenever he was thinking.

If Huadun could truly give people such high energy perception, it would have long since attracted the Interstellar Alliance's attention. It could not possibly still be this rundown school on the verge of shutting down, unable to even fill its enrollment quota.

There had to be something different between him and everyone else when they cultivated.

Right! The difference—

It was the Star Gathering Art!

The Star Gathering Art left behind by the Zhou family!

The Star Gathering Art could improve the quality of cultivation. In truth, it simply meant that when one immersed oneself in the art while cultivating, one's energy perception would become stronger.

But it should only become slightly stronger. It absolutely should not be this exaggerated.

Could it be that this place had enhanced the effects of the Star Gathering Art?

What Zhou Yi was now certain of was that whenever he cultivated with the Star Gathering Art inside Huadun, his energy perception seemed to be incredibly high!

But if that was the case, why had his ancestors remained so ordinary?

Even without the talent to become a Star Weaver, even with poor star patterns, shouldn't such high energy perception have allowed them to accomplish something?

Zhou Yi knew that although his father, Zhou Jiang, had attended Huadun, his grandfather had kept the matter of star patterns hidden from him.

But what about the other ancestors?

Huadun had been founded several centuries ago. Had none of the other ancestors discovered this?

Zhou Yi immediately called Zhou Jiang again.

This was already his third call today. It really was a little frequent.

But it was, after all, his daughter's first day away from home. He was surely having trouble adjusting. The easygoing Zhou parents did not think anything was wrong.

"Your grandfather, your great-grandfather, and the rest of our ancestors all went to C-class Star Blocks for school after awakening at the very least. The Zhou family still had some assets back then.

"By your grandfather's generation, the family had declined, and after we moved to D71 Star Block, I went to Huadun.

"I still remember the complicated look on your grandfather's face when I applied to Huadun...

"He must have been disappointed in his son. Not only did I fail to bring glory to the Zhou family or restore its former splendor, I even dragged it down."

As a man, it was impossible not to feel discouraged saying such things to his daughter.

Zhou Jiang was not an ambitious man, but admitting his own mediocrity in front of his daughter still made him rather sad.

"I always used to hear your grandfather and great-grandfather nagging that the Zhou family couldn't just end like this. I knew what they meant, but it's a pity I was useless...

"Daughter, don't put too much pressure on yourself. Star patterns and all that aren't important. Your dad isn't particularly capable himself. I only hope you can be happy."

After hanging up, Zhou Yi sighed.

He could now understand the feelings behind the letter left by the original owner's grandfather.

As descendants of a Star Weaver, they must have been unwilling to live such mediocre lives like ants on the lowest-class Star Block.

You had seen incomparably brilliant light, yet no matter how hard you tried, you could never reach it. What kind of gap and disappointment was that?

After looking up at the stars for too long, your neck would grow stiff, and it would become difficult to look straight at your own reality.

Huadun had a long history, and its ranking among the Interstellar Alliance's top hundred schools was also remarkably stable.

Every year, it ranked among the bottom ten. In recent years, it had even shown a faint tendency to decline further, practically reaching rock bottom.

Very few of the school's graduates entered the military each year. After all, talented children would not choose to study at Huadun from the start. Those who came here were mostly people with nowhere else to go, just passing their days.

What exactly could exist in a place like this that would improve energy perception?

The more Zhou Yi thought about it, the more alarmed he became. Perhaps this place truly held a great secret that only he could know.

Whether it was his growth-type star pattern or the Star Gathering Art, all the things that made him different from others were possessed by him alone in this small school called Huadun.

If anyone else could have known, this place would not have remained as peaceful as it was now.

The ability to infinitely improve energy perception—whether it was a regional resource or some treasure, once made known to the public, it would become a major event that prompted every faction to fight over it and stirred up a bloody storm.

It was not yet time for school to begin, so Zhou Yi decided to take advantage of everyone's absence and explore other parts of the Star Block.

At the school gates, the security guard watched the girl heading for the exit with extreme vigilance, staring at Zhou Yi to see whether he was trying to run away.

"Um... Huadun is actually pretty good. I heard the principal say that new teachers will be transferred here in the new term, bringing in fresh blood. Student, don't be in such a hurry to leave. Why not give it another chance?"

Seeing Zhou Yi's foot about to step outside, the man could no longer hold back.

Jobs were hard to find these days! Especially on such a godforsaken Star Block.

"Sir, I'm not leaving. I'm just going out for a walk. Is there anywhere fun nearby?"

Zhou Yi kindly reassured the panicked guard.

It was also a good chance to learn about the area from a local.

Upon hearing that the girl was not withdrawing from school and leaving, the guard's expression immediately relaxed.

"Fun places? No."

"Then what about famous places?"

"The most famous place is Huadun. D72 Star Block's only Battle Relic is preserved here as well."

The security guard said.

Zhou Yi's eyes instantly lit up. "Huadun has a Battle Relic too?"

Many Star Blocks had once suffered invasions by star beasts, leaving behind traces of battle. People would preserve those traces intact, using them as motivation to inspire future children to move forward.

Battle Relics covered vast areas, so even when preserved, only small sections of sufficient value and intensity could be kept.

Zhou Yi, who was still far removed from battles between mechs and star beasts, was naturally extremely interested in such things. Besides, he still had many unanswered questions, and perhaps they were hidden within that relic.

The security guard casually pointed Zhou Yi in a direction.

"That was an unprecedented battle in D72's history. It's locked up now, but after school starts, you'll have a chance to visit it."

When mentioning that battle, the security guard wore a rare look of seriousness.

"Thank you, sir. I'll still go out for a walk. When I return, I'll go to the library and read up on it properly."

He could not enter that place for now, but Zhou Yi was not disappointed. After politely thanking the guard, he still prepared to leave the school and take a look around.

He could visit the school library anytime. Since he was already out today, he might as well first see what the outside was really like.