My System Runs on Trash Talk

Just enjoy the ride.

[Brothers, it's awesome! Explosive! The plot's exploding too. Don't read this academy arc—read the new academy arc!!]

Place to stash your brains.

Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy, Training Ground No. 7.

This damned place was like a giant ice cellar all year round. The metal walls gleamed with a cold light, and the air reeked of rust and sweat.

Ji Juechen stood bare-chested, sweat streaming down his taut back muscles and splashing into tiny droplets on the floor. The sword in his hand was the only thing his father had left him. It could not have been more ordinary, yet through practice, he had brought it close to Unity of Man and Sword.

Swish!

He completed the final strike, the sword tip as steady as if it had been welded in midair. He slowly exhaled a breath of stale air, feeling his Soul Power run a satisfying marathon through his meridians. It felt great.

Twelve years. Since gripping his first wooden sword, he had done only one thing every day: swing his sword, swing it again, then swing it some more. Others called him a Sword Fanatic, called him insane. He did not care. In his world, only the sound of a blade slicing through the air felt real.

Just then, the training ground doors opened with a creak, and an irritating voice buzzed in like a fly.

"Well, if it isn't our famous 'Sword Fanatic,' Ji Juechen. What's this? Still picking a fight with the air?"

Ji Juechen did not even raise his eyelids.

The newcomer was Xu Tianchen, a second-year senior. His family was wealthy, his martial soul was the Radiant Lion, and he always liked to lead a pack of lackeys around as though he were a lion patrolling his territory.

"Senior, you shouldn't say that. Student Ji is focused. He's our role model, haha!"

"A role model? More like an idiot! I heard he can barely even speak properly. He's a complete block of wood."

Expressionless, Ji Juechen picked up a towel, wiped away his sweat, and prepared to leave. Talking nonsense with this bunch of trash would only waste time he could spend practicing his sword.

"Stop!"

Xu Tianchen could not keep his face. What he hated most was Ji Juechen's dead expression, as though he were nothing but air.

"Ji Juechen, I'm talking to you! Are you deaf?" He stepped forward, the gunpowder in his voice thick enough to choke on. "Who the hell do you think you are? A poor brat relying on the Body Sect's pathetic tricks, and you dare put on airs at our Sun Moon Academy?"

Ji Juechen stopped wiping away his sweat.

He slowly turned around. Those dead-water eyes of his looked directly at Xu Tianchen for the first time. His gaze was calm, yet it made Xu Tianchen's heart jolt for no reason, as if a venomous snake had locked onto him.

"My sword," Ji Juechen said, his voice hoarse like sandpaper scraping together, "doesn't know you."

"You!" Xu Tianchen's face turned green with rage. He felt utterly humiliated. With a cold laugh, he flung his words like knives. "Fine, it doesn't know me! A lunatic who only knows how to wave a sword, an emotionless fighting machine! A boring blockhead like you deserves to be trapped in this shithole forever! You don't deserve to be a Soul Master at all!"

The instant Xu Tianchen finished speaking, a chime rang in Ji Juechen's mind, as if something had been struck open.

[Ding! Detected intense "contempt" emotion. Source: Xu Tianchen.]

[Emotion intensity: 85. Meets activation requirements.]

["Myriad Worlds Emotion Feedback System" binding... 10%... 50%... 100%!]

[Binding successful! Host: Ji Juechen. This system is dedicated to converting all Negative Emotions in the world into the foundation of the host's strength.]

[Beginner gift pack distributed. Open it?]

Ji Juechen's hand tightened sharply around the towel.

A system?

He had only seen such things in the oldest legends. They were toys possessed by gods, the ultimate cheat for mortals to defy fate and change their destinies!

A storm raged in his heart, but his face remained as cold as an iceberg. He could not even be bothered to acknowledge the furious Xu Tianchen. He merely muttered inwardly:

Open it.

[Ding! Beginner gift pack successfully opened!]

[Congratulations, Host, you have obtained:]

[1. Skill: Clear Sword Heart (Advanced)—your sword heart shines brighter, allowing you to barely see the flaws in others' moves.]

[2. Energy: Sword Intent Points x 1000.]

[3. Shop function unlocked.]

A cool Information Stream flooded into his mind in an instant. His already pure sword heart became like a polished mirror, suddenly clear and bright. He could even "see" the dust motes dancing in the air and "hear" Xu Tianchen's heart thumping wildly from anger.

The entire world suddenly looked different in his eyes.

"Blockhead! Have you gone mute?!" Seeing Ji Juechen ignore him, Xu Tianchen felt like a clown making a fool of himself. His rage surged, and the pressure of a Soul Emperor crashed down upon Ji Juechen.

Yet Ji Juechen merely watched him in silence.

At that moment, Xu Tianchen was no longer an untouchable senior in his eyes, but a living target riddled with openings. His steps were unsteady, his center of gravity unstable; his Soul Power was fierce, but his control was crude; and the exposed side of his ribs, revealed by his anger, was the softest piece of tofu on his body.

One strike was all it would take...

A cold glint flashed through Ji Juechen's eyes, but he suppressed it. Causing trouble now was not worth it. He needed to figure out this system first.

He withdrew his gaze, turned around, and prepared to leave.

"You dare walk away?!" Xu Tianchen felt ignored to the utmost, his clenched fists cracking.

Just then, a crisp, urgent voice came from the doorway.

"Ji Juechen!"

A girl in a pink dress rushed in like a gust of wind, carrying a food box in her hand, her pretty eyes filled with concern. It was Jing Ziyan, the "nuisance" who had made him her life's goal.

The moment Jing Ziyan entered, she sensed that something was wrong. She immediately stood in front of Ji Juechen like a mother hen protecting her chick, glaring angrily at Xu Tianchen. "Xu Tianchen! What are you trying to do?"

At the sight of Jing Ziyan, another log of jealousy was added to Xu Tianchen's flames of anger. He snorted coldly. "Jing Ziyan, I advise you to stay away from this blockhead. He doesn't understand what feelings are at all!"

With that, he shot Ji Juechen a vicious glare and left with his lackeys.

The crisis was temporarily over. Jing Ziyan finally let out a breath, then turned to Ji Juechen. Her eyes reddened, and her voice trembled with the edge of tears. "Ji Juechen, are you all right? Did he bully you? I stewed chicken soup for you. Hurry and drink it while it's hot..."

Ji Juechen looked at the girl worrying over him. His heart remained completely still. He only found her a little noisy.

Yet the system's voice in his mind rang out again like a diligent announcer.

[Ding! Detected "worry" emotion. Source: Jing Ziyan.]

[Emotion intensity: 75. Obtained Sword Intent Points +500.]

[Ding! Detected "love" emotion. Source: Jing Ziyan.]

[Emotion intensity: 90. Special emotion reward triggered...]

Ji Juechen's pupils suddenly contracted.