Waste?

Bzzzz!

The Communicator vibrated nonstop, messages popping up one after another.

Yu Feng steadied his mind, his gaze fixed on the light screen, unwilling to miss even the slightest detail.

A moment later, Yu Feng's gaze paused on several lines of text.

Ziying Calendar 5626, Cao Shaoyu and Li Qingshan met in the gym...

Ziying Calendar... underground arena... Li Qingshan rescued Cao Shaoyu...

...Cao Ya collected Crimson Blaze Fire Lotus and gave it to Li Qingshan...

...Li Qingshan destroyed a Meteor-Class Battleship and saved a Cao Family passenger Starship...

"Li Qingshan had dealings with the Cao Family long ago?"

Yu Feng frowned, uncertainty rising in his heart.

Li Qingshan was precisely the target he had been worried about from the start.

Though the Black Gold VIP's words, both overt and implied, had only targeted the Cao Family,

the information showed that Li Qingshan had long been deeply connected to the Cao Family, yet that person claimed he had merely heard Li Qingshan's name?

"No! Whatever his purpose is, all I need to do is target the Cao Family. The rest has nothing to do with me!"

Yu Feng abruptly shook his head and turned his gaze back to the light screen. The information that followed contained all of the Cao Family's movements over recent years.

As line after line of information entered his eyes, his previous doubts were gradually answered.

Clearly, the Chaotic Star Sea was targeting the Cao Family, and the fact that the Cao Family had held on for decades meant they were far from simple.

The Black Gold VIP was very likely a force behind the Chaotic Star Sea.

"At the right time, strike them when they're down with perfect justification."

Yu Feng's lips slowly curled upward. At last, he felt at ease.

This sort of thing was his specialty.

And his worries about Li Qingshan could be put to rest as well.

No matter how peerlessly talented Li Qingshan was, he was still only at the fourth tier. He was still far from being able to involve himself in a struggle at this level!

"Thinking too fast isn't always a good thing. It's easy to overthink."

Yu Feng gently rubbed his temples and laughed at himself, his gaze flicking toward the newest message on the light screen.

Li Qingshan had left the Violet Radiance Star Region and headed for the Frost Leaf Star Region.

"Off to earn fame again in such a hurry?"

His self-mockery turned into ridicule as Yu Feng shook his head with a sneer.

"Talent that isn't realized is ultimately just talent!"

"What a waste of time. He doesn't know what he's doing!"

Time passed day by day.

The vast intelligence network under the Coiling Dragon Auction House began operating. More and more news concerning the Crimson Rainbow Star Region and the Cao Family gathered in, and Yu Feng began to act.

He did not deliberately make things difficult for them, nor did he confront them head-on. He merely selected two cross-region companies under the auction house and sent them into the Crimson Rainbow Star Region.

Those two companies overlapped heavily with the Cao Family's business scope, so "friction" was naturally unavoidable.

Along with them came a message from the newly appointed resource zone manager.

The Heaven's Pride squad had completed its mission and scattered, setting off on their journeys to seek "opportunities."

And Li Qingshan was still traveling through one star region after another.

After reading the message, Yu Feng completely put his mind at ease and casually deleted it into the trash.

"For someone so greedy for empty fame, whether he can perfect his 'Dao' in his lifetime is unknown. Why would the Black Gold VIP even spare him a glance?"

Azure Dragon Calendar 8930, November 1st.

Crimson Rainbow Star Region, Dick Star System.

Bzz!

A long rift tore through the void, ripping open a circular hole as a silver-white Starship slowly emerged.

Inside the bridge, a young man sat cross-legged. He slowly opened his eyes and looked toward the stellar system beyond the window.

After a full three years, traveling through more than thirty star regions, he had finally returned to Dick Star once again.

"If you had been a little more capable, I wouldn't have had to come back so soon."

Li Qingshan sighed regretfully, recalling the last two defensive deployments where he had gained fewer than fifty thousand experience points.

It was precisely because the alien races had lowered their banners and muffled their drums too quickly that he had no choice but to end this "business trip" ahead of schedule.

As the Starship entered the stellar system, Li Qingshan rose and walked to the window, gazing at Dick Primary Star as it drew closer and closer.

With a thought, the panel appeared before him.

Li Qingshan

Realm: Inner Scene 827/1000

Cultivation Method: "Star River Cosmos Sutra" 827/1000 (Inner Scene), omitted

Martial Skill: "Polar Night Star Sword" 216,854/600,000 (sixth level), omitted

Secret Art: "Blood Ignition Sacred Art" (Perfected)

Function: Martial Dao Space Lv4 (27,432,631/100,000,000)

Available Time: 26,683,921 years, 112 days

Time Flow Rate: 1:

As he stared at the available time entry, the regret in his eyes faded, and the corners of his mouth slowly rose.

When he had set out, he had possessed only a little over seven million experience points and just over six million years of available time.

This "business trip" had brought him a full twenty million experience points and twenty million years of available time!

"26.6 million years can support 266 hours of ten-thousandfold starlight infusion. That means 266 hours at ten-thousandfold cultivation speed, equivalent to..."

Li Qingshan lowered his head to look at his Communicator, his fingers tapping across it.

Before long, the answer appeared on the screen.

303.65

"Three hundred years of arduous cultivation, continuously drawing in starlight without sleep or rest... that should be enough to speedrun the Outer Scene, right?"

Li Qingshan murmured softly, his smile widening.

Though he still could not be certain, this was already the limit of what he could achieve at present.

The rest would have to be left to time.

Once he broke through to the Outer Scene, the truth would naturally be revealed.

Bzzzz!

The Communicator vibrated, and a name appeared on the screen.

Noon Sun Dean - Fu Yang

With a tap of his finger, a projected light screen popped up.

In the image, Fu Yang looked tense as he anxiously asked,

"Have you arrived at Dick Star?"

Li Qingshan shook his head with a laugh.

"Don't worry, Dean. I'm already back."

"It's good that you're back, good that you're back!"

Fu Yang finally let out a breath of relief, a healthy glow appearing on his face.

"You have no idea how lively our Star Academy has been lately. Those people who came for 'advanced study' even wanted to go to your Dick Star and learn from its advanced experience..."

"Dean, please help me turn them away."

Li Qingshan interrupted, saying seriously,

"For the next six years of my term, I plan to enter seclusion. I don't have time to deal with them."

"I already turned them down." Fu Yang nodded with a smile.

"With miscellaneous matters settled, it's time to seize every moment for cultivation, especially for you."

"Inner Scene, Outer Scene—whether it's the accumulation of 'Dao' or constructing the prototype of a Dharma Form, both require the settling of years."

"Back then, Feng Boyong spent nine hundred years leaving the Crimson Rainbow Star Region and reaching the summit of the Heaven's Pride Tournament."

"I hope that five hundred years from now, you can make the name of our 'Crimson Rainbow' resound throughout the entire Horn Sector once more."

"Don't worry, Dean. You won't have to wait that long."

Li Qingshan replied with a light laugh and ended the call.

The light screen went dark. His gaze shifted beyond the window, where the azure planet slowly rotated.

The Starship had already docked in a distant orbit. A figure broke through the atmosphere and flew toward it.

It was Gao Nianren, whom he had not seen in three years.

Li Qingshan moved, instantly flying out of the ship and appearing before Gao Nianren.

"Dean!" Gao Nianren's face was full of excitement as he opened a projected light screen, bringing up a pile of documents.

"These past three years..."

Li Qingshan immediately felt a headache and interrupted him.

"No need to report to me. You're already a mature Vice Dean. You need to learn how to make decisions yourself!"

"Uh..." Gao Nianren paused slightly and asked hesitantly,

"Then, Dean, you...?"

"As the dean, my responsibility is naturally to enter seclusion and cultivate as soon as possible!"

Li Qingshan spoke solemnly, patting Gao Nianren on the shoulder.

"Only if I'm strong enough can I serve as your support and backing!"

As soon as his words fell, his figure vanished in an instant, disappearing without a trace.

Gao Nianren stared blankly at the documents filling the screen, frozen where he stood.