Seven Star Divine Curse

The old instructor's voice was somewhat hypnotic. Xian Wu dug his fingernails into his thigh to stay awake, writing down the parts he couldn't understand.

"The Soul Force range for a Bronze One Star Spirit Master is one hundred to one hundred ninety-nine. For a Bronze Two Star Spirit Master, it's two hundred to two hundred ninety-nine... For a Bronze Five Star Spirit Master, it's five hundred to nine hundred ninety-nine."

"Have you noticed? The Soul Force required to advance from Bronze Five Star to Silver One Star is five times what it takes to advance by one star."

"By convention, we call Spirit Masters with more than six hundred Soul Force Bronze Peak Spirit Masters."

"The same applies to the other major ranks. Spirit Masters whose Soul Force exceeds six times the amount required for the first star are called Peak Spirit Masters."

"There can be a huge difference in strength between Spirit Masters at the peak. Even if they're both Peak Spirit Masters, a fight between them could very well end in one being instantly defeated."

The old instructor droned on and on about a great deal of basic knowledge. It wasn't until class was over that he remembered he was supposed to teach the students how to cultivate their Soul Force.

"Sorry, sorry. I'm getting on in years and a little muddleheaded." The old instructor scratched his head and began copying the cultivation mantra onto the blackboard.

"At sunrise in the east, brilliant light shines. The Spirit God guards me; the gate of fortune stands in glory. Lu Cun supports benevolence, his radiance bright and strong. I take hold of the accomplished path, and mark out the great order..."

According to the old instructor, this was Sacred Orchid Academy's basic Soul Force cultivation method—the Seven Star Divine Curse.

Under the Demonic Beast Class teacher's resentful gaze, the old instructor gave an awkward laugh and told the students to try understanding it on their own first.

Tomorrow afternoon, he would officially explain the specific method for practicing the Seven Star Divine Curse.

Xian Wu rubbed his nose and grumbled inwardly: This old man sure can go on. He spent the whole class rambling about useless nonsense without saying a single thing that mattered.

After seeing off the kindly old instructor, the Demonic Beast Class teacher cleared his throat. "Quiet down. Class is starting."

In class, the teacher gave a detailed explanation of a Bronze Rank demonic beast called the "Horned Sheep," including its habits, its attack methods, and the valuable parts of its body.

"You need to be especially careful of the Horned Sheep's berserk state. If you see its eyes turn red, leave at once. Don't get caught up in a fight, or your life could be in danger."

"When a Bronze One Star Horned Sheep goes berserk, its strength is comparable to that of a Bronze Two Star demonic beast. It's extremely dangerous."

"However, you don't need to worry. A Horned Sheep's berserk state lasts only a short time. Once it passes, the beast will become weak. By then, even you students who haven't yet reached the Bronze Warrior level will be able to kill it."

"Despite this weakness, I still don't recommend that you go looking for trouble with Horned Sheep in the Trial Grounds just yet."

"First, Horned Sheep live in herds. Second, you can't outrun them. One careless mistake, and you'll be badly injured by their charges."

"Getting hurt isn't a big deal, but falling behind in your studies is. Don't forget, the bottom three students will be expelled."

"All right, that's it for today's lesson. Remember what I said: if you don't go looking for trouble, trouble won't come looking for you."

The two classes that followed, history and geography, were relatively boring. They covered various facts about the Dark Era.

During the Dark Era, humanity was attacked by countless demonic beasts. One empire after another fell, and humanity was nearly wiped out.

Only a handful of human settlements remained, barely scraping by.

The demonic beasts grew stronger, while humanity grew weaker. Unless a great hero arose to lead humanity in a counterattack against the beasts, it was only a matter of time before the human race went extinct.

The sun sank in the west, and the rosy clouds slowly faded.

At last, a full day of classes came to an end.

After a hearty dinner, Xian Wu and Zhu Jun Xiang went to the bathhouse.

As usual, there was hardly anyone left in the bathhouse, and the boiler had barely any hot water remaining.

They used the Demon Left Hand to heat two large buckets of water, then both splashed into the tubs.

"Big bro, you're amazing! You became class representative on your very first day. We'll be relying on you from now on." Zhu Jun Xiang flattered him. If I changed my name to Zhu Jun Wu, would I get to be class representative instead?

What made him even more envious was that his big bro had stood face-to-face with the Goddess Ning'er.

They say familiarity breeds affection.

Ah, I'd better change how I address her from now on. I can't call her the Goddess Ning'er—I should call her sister-in-law!

When Xian Wu didn't respond, Zhu Jun Xiang felt a little disappointed.

His big bro was great in every way, except for his strange personality.

As Zhu Jun Xiang scrubbed his back, he faintly heard a quiet muttering nearby.

"At sunrise in the east... brilliant light shines... the Spirit God guards me... the gate of fortune stands in glory..."

Zhu Jun Xiang understood. No wonder his big bro wasn't answering him—he was concentrating on memorizing the Seven Star Divine Curse.

As expected of his big bro. He didn't even forget to study while bathing. No wonder he'd become class representative.

He probably hadn't gone back to the dorm at noon because he'd found a quiet place to practice, right?

The road through the mountain of books is paved with diligence. I should learn from my big bro, too.

After enjoying a relaxing hot bath, Xian Wu and Zhu Jun Xiang left the bathhouse together.

The old man who stoked the boiler watched them leave with a bewildered look.

These youngsters sure are tough. They took that long to bathe in cold water.

Xian Wu didn't linger in the dorm. He tucked his student badge away and prepared to head to the Trial Grounds.

Students spent most of the day in class and had almost no time to hunt in the Trial Grounds, so the grounds stayed open at night as well.

"Xian Wu, where are you going so late? Don't tell me you're going on a date?" Zhang Ming asked, lying on his bed under the covers, chin propped in his hands and eyes wide.

"A date? That's right!" Xian Wu nodded. "A girl from the class next door asked me to go to the night market with her, so I won't be hanging out with you guys."

With that, Xian Wu gently closed the door.

Was he serious? Zhang Ming blinked his big, round eyes.

After showing his student badge to the guard, Xian Wu tucked a signal flare away and entered the Trial Grounds.

The bright moon cast its silvery light in every direction.

The forest was even darker at night than it was during the day.

Xian Wu bravely pressed on, using the faint moonlight to make his way deeper into the Trial Grounds.

Suddenly, the bushes nearby rustled.

Xian Wu immediately grew wary. He held his left hand protectively in front of himself and raised a stick in his right hand to flush out whatever was hiding there.

Several older students pushed through the bushes. They looked Xian Wu over, saw that he had nothing of value on him, and left in disappointment.

Xian Wu breathed a sigh of relief and continued deeper into the forest, hoping to find somewhere quiet to practice.

Along the way, he ran into several more groups of people.

There were a surprising number of people in the forest.

Xian Wu left the forest and came to a field of rocks. Strange crags jutted up everywhere, and the place was like a maze.

There didn't seem to be any demonic beasts roaring around here, either. It was quiet and secluded.

After going farther into the rocks, Xian Wu found a campfire, though it had gone out long ago.

He picked up some firewood someone had left nearby and piled it into the firepit. After gathering some dead grass for kindling, Xian Wu took out a fire starter and lit the campfire.

This must have been an abandoned campsite belonging to some student. But now it belonged to him.