Chapter Summaries

Key plot points and events

• Yang Sheng spends two days helping Counselor Gao Peng, learning that Gao is overworked by both student affairs and his role in the Cultivation Method Research Room.
• When students bring incomplete applications for a cultivation-method debate competition, Yang Sheng steps in to review them. He identifies missing requirements, then creates a checklist that streamlines the process.
• After the student inquiries ease, Yang Sheng organizes Gao Peng’s neglected files. In the process, he finds Gao’s report on the Myriad Stars Supreme Origin Sacred Art—the higher-tier technique underlying Yang Sheng’s Star-Shattering Annihilation Fist.
• The report explains that the technique absorbs vast amounts of starlight and can rapidly strengthen its practitioners, but its growing Dao meaning of Fracture eventually overwhelms them, causing cultivation deviation and self-destruction.
• Yang Sheng realizes that the Martial God Soul within him can serve as the “guidance” the technique lacks, potentially preventing him from losing control.

Character developments and interactions

• Yang Sheng proves capable and considerate: he takes work off Gao Peng’s hands, assists fellow students, and carefully studies the research report. His discovery also gives him new confidence about the danger of his cultivation path.
• Gao Peng is shown as diligent and burdened, patiently helping students despite an overwhelming workload. He comes to trust Yang Sheng with the office’s student inquiries.
• Yang Sheng and Gao Peng develop a practical mentor-assistant relationship, with Yang Sheng learning by observing Gao’s work and then applying those lessons independently.
• Yang Sheng and the student applicants interact helpfully: he explains what they need to fix, earning their gratitude.

Significant themes

• Guidance and control: Great power can become destructive without a means to direct it; Yang Sheng believes his Martial God Soul provides that control.
• Diligence and service: Yang Sheng’s small acts of assistance reveal his reliability, while Gao Peng’s relentless work illustrates the costs of institutional overburdening.
• Knowledge through research: Gao Peng’s careful investigation fills gaps in what Yang Sheng had been told about his cultivation technique, showing the value of scholarly understanding alongside martial skill.

Chapter Summary: “Assessment”

Key Plot Points and Events

• After work, Gao Peng finds the debate competition materials Yang Sheng prepared and is impressed by their organization. He is even more surprised to discover that Yang Sheng has neatly arranged his previously chaotic desk by date and category. Gao Peng begins appreciating the value of having Yang Sheng as an assistant.
• Yang Sheng realizes that his previous access to cultivation techniques has expired. Since he now has the highest reading privileges in the Technique Library, he plans to study various techniques there, especially the complete Myriad Stars Supreme Origin Sacred Art.
• Aware that the Subtlety Realm is important for building a strong foundation, Yang Sheng decides not to rush his cultivation. He focuses on progressing steadily through Marrow-Washing and eventually sensing the Star Source.
• He spends the evening in the Advanced Training Room, using Marrow-Cleansing Liquid and receiving guidance from Xiao Qing. Her different understanding of acupoints accelerates his progress. After several days, Yang Sheng feels that his body has become more than twice as light, indicating major advancement.
• Returning to the dormitory, Yang Sheng shares barbecue and medicinal wine with his roommates. They discuss the upcoming class monitor election, with Yu Wenjie encouraging Yang Sheng to run. Yang Sheng remains cautious, believing that other talented students may be hiding their abilities and competing for the position.
• Wang Ju reveals that he overheard news about a large-scale school assessment exam scheduled in two days. Yang Sheng is surprised because he had not been informed and immediately seeks more information.
• Yang Sheng takes a scented sachet Meng Zhen intended to give to Lin Feixue and leaves to find Tian Tian, a beautiful and well-connected student from the Spearmanship Department.
• Unable to enter the girls’ dormitory, Yang Sheng uses the Dorm Supervisor’s phone to contact Tian Tian. She reacts noticeably upon hearing his name, changes clothes, fixes her hair, and hurries downstairs to meet him.
• The chapter ends with Yang Sheng asking Tian Tian about the upcoming assessment exam.

Character Developments

• Gao Peng begins to recognize Yang Sheng’s competence, diligence, and usefulness, becoming more satisfied with him as an assistant.
• Yang Sheng continues balancing discretion with ambition. He cultivates patiently, avoids revealing his full strength, and carefully gathers information about campus politics and the class monitor election.
• Yang Sheng’s roommates grow closer to him through his generosity and regular sharing of food. Their teasing also reveals their interest in class politics and romance.
• Tian Tian appears to have considerable influence and connections within the university. Her nervous preparation before meeting Yang Sheng suggests that she may have a personal or romantic interest in him.
• Meng Zhen is revealed to be pursuing Lin Feixue and becomes comically protective of the sachet he prepared for her.
• Yu Wenjie openly admires Lin Feixue and supports Yang Sheng’s potential candidacy for class monitor.

Significant Themes

• Diligence and steady progress: Yang Sheng prioritizes a strong foundation over rapid advancement, emphasizing patience in cultivation.
• Hidden ability and strategic restraint: He assumes that competitors may be concealing their true strength and therefore avoids revealing his own ambitions too early.
• Networking and influence: The class monitor position is linked to resources and connections, showing that success at the university depends on more than combat power.
• Practical competence: Yang Sheng’s organizational skills and reliability earn Gao Peng’s approval, demonstrating that small, useful actions can build trust.
• Youthful camaraderie and leisure: The dormitory scenes portray students enjoying a rare period of relaxation through food, card games, and playful rivalry.

Character Interactions

• Gao Peng evaluates Yang Sheng’s work and silently acknowledges his value.
• Yang Sheng jokes and exchanges banter with Meng Zhen, Yu Wenjie, and Wang Ju while learning about campus news.
• His roommates encourage him to run for class monitor, while Yang Sheng explains the political risks and competition involved.
• Yang Sheng playfully takes Meng Zhen’s sachet, provoking humorous jealousy over Lin Feixue.
• Yang Sheng approaches Tian Tian because of her likely connections and knowledge. Their final meeting carries an undertone of mutual curiosity, with Tian Tian displaying unusual nervousness before he asks her about the assessment.

Key plot points and events

• Yang Sheng asks Tian Tian about a rumored “benchmark exam.” She explains that the university is holding the China Martial Arts University Cup through the Stellar Martial Arts Match System the following day.
• The twice-yearly competition tests the system and rewards strong performers. Its first-place prize is a rare Marrow-Cleansing Pill, useful to martial artists in the Subtlety Realm.
• Yang Sheng and Tian Tian both decide to enter. Tian Tian hopes to advance from gold second stage toward diamond tier; Yang Sheng admits he is still silver ninth stage because he stopped competing after reaching silver.
• After their conversation, Yang Sheng returns to his dorm and tells Meng Zhen that the sachet he prepared helped him meet Tian Tian, though Tian Tian never actually received it. Meng Zhen takes this as encouragement for his plan to win over Lin Feixue.
• Yang Sheng shares news of the competition with his roommates and classmates, and asks Meng Zhen to inform the women’s dormitory. He argues that wider participation will make the contest fairer and harder to manipulate.
• Yang Sheng also contacts teacher Gao Peng, who admits he forgot to pass on the university’s notice. Gao reveals that this year’s event includes a new interclass team competition.
• Yang Sheng recognizes that the team event could help him earn a prize, build his classmates’ goodwill, and strengthen his prospects of becoming class representative.

Character developments

• Yang Sheng shows initiative and fairness by spreading the competition news rather than keeping it to himself. He also begins thinking strategically about leadership and his standing with classmates.
• Tian Tian is eager to compete and test her improved abilities, despite having fallen behind in system rankings during entrance-exam preparation.
• Meng Zhen remains romantically ambitious and misreads the sachet’s supposed success as proof that his approach will work with Lin Feixue.
• Gao Peng is busy and forgetful, but acknowledges Yang Sheng’s helpfulness and provides important information about the team event.

Significant themes

• Fair competition and access to information: Yang Sheng believes broad participation reduces the chance of unfair manipulation.
• Individual ambition and collective responsibility: The newly added team event shifts the competition’s focus from personal rankings to class cooperation.
• Initiative and opportunity: Yang Sheng turns an overlooked announcement into a chance to help his classmates and advance his own goals.

Character interactions

• Yang Sheng and Tian Tian share drinks and discuss the competition, their system rankings, and their reasons for entering.
• Yang Sheng humorously lets Meng Zhen believe the sachet reached Tian Tian, using the misunderstanding to encourage him.
• Yang Sheng rallies his roommates and classmates to prepare, then coordinates with Gao Peng, who urges the class to aim for a strong team result.

Plot points and events

• Yang Sheng arrives early at the Martial Arts Training Building with more than a hundred medicinal breakfasts, which he arranged and helped prepare from four in the morning. He paid for them himself, then gives the extras to students from other classes while promoting Fist Class Two.
• The university announces the Fourth China Martial Arts University Cup: an individual competition and a class free-for-all. Individual prizes include valuable cultivation items and cash; top classes earn titles, year-end assessment points, and cultivation resources.
• Fist Class Two registers first, using information Guan Qian collected. The registration display reveals that most of the class ranks in the Gold Tier, while Yang Sheng is listed at Silver Ninth Stage.

Character developments and interactions

• Yang Sheng demonstrates initiative, generosity, and organizational skill. His breakfast arrangements ensure his classmates are prepared and present, and his efforts also help build goodwill with students from other classes.
• Guan Qian, who sees Yang Sheng as her rival for class representative, initially believes his late arrival makes her look more responsible. Learning that he had risen at four to organize breakfast—and had also paid for an earlier class meal—leaves her impressed but discouraged. Yang Sheng later acknowledges her work by using her registration list.
• Meng Zhen and the class respond warmly to Yang Sheng, calling him “boss” and “Brother Yang.”
• Yu Wenjie recognizes that Yang Sheng’s efforts to gather the class give them an advantage in the group event.

Significant themes

• Leadership through service: Yang Sheng earns trust by taking practical, generous action rather than merely seeking a title.
• Competition and resources: The tournament’s rewards make class rankings consequential for both recognition and future cultivation.
• Appearances versus reality: Yang Sheng seems to have slept in, but his apparent tardiness follows an early morning spent preparing for everyone else.
• Teamwork and preparation: Fist Class Two’s strong turnout and prompt registration give it an early advantage in the class competition.

Plot points and events

• China Martial Arts University students discover Yang Sheng is listed as Silver Ninth Stage, an exceptionally low ranking by the university’s standards. Many assume he will be an easy opponent and vote for him.
• The Cup’s individual matches are arranged through student votes: everyone selects twenty opponents, with adjustments for unusually high or low vote totals. Class matches will use random pairings.
• Yang Sheng receives 320 votes, the most of anyone. By contrast, famed prodigy Yang Bing gets only three, largely because students fear his reputation.
• The students receive Photosensitive Wristbands and enter the university’s virtual combat system. Yang Sheng is quickly matched against a Gold Fourth Stage saber user who had threatened him.
• Yang Sheng effortlessly dodges the man’s first strike, then stops his next attack between two fingers, disarms him, and returns the weapon. He finishes the match with one punch, forcing his opponent offline.

Character developments and interactions

• Yang Sheng remains calm despite the attention and threats. Confident in his true ability, he treats the match as a chance to test his recent cultivation rather than a serious challenge.
• Han Tong warns classmates not to target Yang Sheng, remembering his overwhelming performance in the Preparatory Selection Tournament. They dismiss the warning, revealing how little they know about Yang Sheng.
• Yu Wenjie trusts Yang Sheng, recalling how Yang Sheng once dispelled his aura without showing his own. Meng Zhen, by contrast, fears the votes will damage Yang Sheng’s confidence and plans to cheer him up afterward.
• Tian Tian prevents classmates who know Yang Sheng’s strength from challenging him. She also selects Yang Bing as an opponent to prove herself after doubts about her tournament performance.
• Yang Bing is intrigued by Yang Sheng’s challenge and looks forward to fighting him, though he doubts he could guarantee a victory.
• Yang Sheng’s opponent begins boastfully, then becomes confused and increasingly aware of the vast gap between them. Despite realizing the danger, he attacks again to preserve his pride.

Significant themes

• Appearances versus reality: Yang Sheng’s low system ranking conceals his exceptional strength, while other students mistake a public statistic for the whole truth.
• Overconfidence and misjudgment: Many students seek Yang Sheng as a convenient win, and his first opponent assumes his near miss was luck.
• Martial pride and resolve: The saber user continues fighting even after realizing he is outmatched, unwilling to surrender his dignity.
• True mastery: Yang Sheng’s effortless control—especially catching and disarming the blade—shows the overwhelming difference between his Subtlety Realm skill and his opponent’s level.

Plot points and events

• After defeating a stronger opponent, Yang Sheng receives extra ranking progress and advances from Silver Ninth to Silver Eighth Stage. He uses the university cup’s local matchmaking to face much higher-ranked students and climb quickly.
• While Yang Sheng competes, the crowd focuses on a grudge match between Yang Bing and Wang Rui. Wang Rui has long wanted a rematch after Yang Bing beat him in a high-school tournament. Their hour-long duel ends in a draw: Yang Bing lands a decisive strike, but Wang Rui’s final saber blow takes Yang Bing’s head.
• Yang Sheng wins match after match, eventually taking the top spot on the leaderboard despite being silver-ranked among gold- and diamond-tier fighters. Spectators initially dismiss his victories as luck, but recordings reveal that his opponents make mistakes only against him. His subtle movement and control prevent them from landing effective attacks.
• In his twelfth match, Yang Sheng faces Ju Man, who attacks him after learning that Tian Tian may have a crush on him. He quickly knocks Ju Man out. By the end of the morning, he has won all twenty matches, reached Gold Seventh Stage, and established himself as the event’s clear leader.

Character developments and interactions

• Yang Sheng’s victories showcase his growth in the Subtlety Realm: rather than relying on forceful attacks, he uses exceptional restraint, precision, and control to exploit opponents’ openings.
• Yang Bing and Wang Rui prove closely matched. Their mutual determination and respect are evident in their exhausting, hard-fought draw.
• Ju Man’s admiration for Tian Tian turns into anger when she realizes Tian Tian may like Yang Sheng and that he does not necessarily return her feelings. Tian Tian, meanwhile, affectionately defends Yang Sheng after Ju Man is defeated, revealing her growing fondness for him.
• Observers—including Yu Wenjie and the event’s teachers—come to recognize that Yang Sheng’s apparent lack of action is actually a remarkably effective fighting style.

Significant themes

• Strength beyond rank: Yang Sheng’s performance shows that formal tier is not a reliable measure of actual ability.
• Control over force: His refined, restrained technique contrasts with the more visibly explosive styles of Yang Bing and Wang Rui.
• Misjudgment and perception: Spectators mistake Yang Sheng’s tactical control for luck until they examine the evidence.
• Crushes and loyalty: Ju Man’s protective indignation and Tian Tian’s gentle defense create a light comic subplot around one-sided affection.

Plot points and events

• Yang Sheng wins the individual competition despite being only Silver tier, leaving students and teachers stunned. A teacher suspects he has reached the Subtlety Realm. Tian Tian places second, and Liu Feng third; Yang Bing and Wang Rui finish outside the top ten after their draw.
• Yang Sheng receives the first-place prize, a Marrow-Cleansing Pill. Yang Bing and Wang Rui are content with their hard-fought match, since they had already assumed Yang Sheng would win.
• Before the class melee competition, Guan Qian distributes food and treats to build support for her campaign to become class representative. Her transparent, transactional approach wins little enthusiasm.
• Yang Sheng tells Guan Qian he wants to serve as representative for one year, then recommend her as his successor. She rejects the idea, insisting the election is still open.
• Fist Class Two overwhelms its first, understaffed opponent. With Yang Sheng leading the charge and targeting key fighters, the class advances to the final. Yang Bing’s class is eliminated in the third round after an exhausting earlier battle, while Tian Tian’s class falls in the fourth.
• Fist Class Two faces Staff Class One in the final. When Yang Sheng targets its strongest fighter, Sun Jiahao, Sun initially retreats in terror. He then appears to make a brave charge—only to slide on his knees to Yang Sheng and cling to his leg, greeting him like a close friend.

Character developments and interactions

• Yang Sheng proves formidable beyond his tier. He shifts from the cautious, controlled style of the individual matches to an aggressive leadership role in the team competition, breaking opponents’ formations and conserving his classmates’ energy. He remains focused on becoming class representative and views Guan Qian as a potential future ally, though he stops offering her a compromise after she refuses.
• Guan Qian feels threatened by Yang Sheng’s popularity and tries to win over classmates with gifts and organizational effort. Her ambition is clear, but her overt campaigning makes others wary. Her exchange with Yang Sheng exposes their competing claims to leadership.
• Tian Tian places highly and continues to support Yang Sheng; she is more pleased to watch him compete than upset by her class’s elimination. Ju Man reacts jealously to Tian Tian’s closeness to him.
• Yang Bing and Wang Rui show mutual respect: despite competing fiercely, they value the chance to test themselves against each other. Their class rivalry continues, with Yang Bing’s class winning their team rematch but later running out of stamina.
• Sun Jiahao, once an arrogant acquaintance from the Preparatory Class, reveals that he is terrified of facing Yang Sheng. His theatrical surrender surprises both teams and ends the chapter on a comic note.
• Meng Zhen voices concern about Sun Jiahao’s strength, but Yang Sheng remains calm.

Significant themes

• Ability versus rank: Yang Sheng’s results challenge assumptions based on cultivation tier.
• Leadership through action: His decisive fighting and support for classmates contrast with Guan Qian’s more transactional campaign.
• Competition and cooperation: Individual prowess matters, but class events depend on numbers, stamina, and teamwork.
• Institutional power and ambition: Class leadership offers access to resources and a pathway to the influential student council, giving the election real stakes.
• Comedy through reversal: Sun Jiahao’s apparent courage collapses into an absurdly affectionate surrender.

Key plot points and events

• Fist Class Two wins the China Martial Arts University Cup Class Competition, with Sun Jiahao’s performance helping secure the championship. Staff Class One finishes second.
• The victory earns Fist Class Two ten annual assessment points—important because a class’s ranking determines its share of university resources.
• At a celebration dinner, the students proudly toast the team’s success. Gao Peng praises them and announces that the class will vote democratically for its monitor the next day.

Character developments

• Yang Sheng’s fighting has won over the class: after twenty consecutive individual victories and a commanding showing in the team event, he has become its most influential figure.
• Gao Peng learns that Yang Sheng is secretly rated SS Rank, but Dean Shang Ming warns him not to appoint Yang Sheng directly. Shang wants Yang to compete for leadership and preserve his drive to fight.
• Guan Qian remains determined to run for class monitor, believing the role should go to someone who consistently serves classmates, even if Yang Sheng is more popular.
• Gao Peng begins to understand that Yang Sheng’s growing support may be part of a longer process of building leadership and unity.

Character interactions

• Yang Sheng arranges the celebratory meal, and Gao Peng agrees to reimburse it—insisting that Yang Sheng bring an invoice and not pay out of pocket.
• Classmates crowd around Yang Sheng to toast him and discuss his charisma and romantic attention, including Tian Tian’s pursuit of him and his rejection of her.
• Ju Man grudgingly acknowledges Yang Sheng’s ability and appeal in the ring, while still calling him shameless.
• Gao Peng’s announcement sets up a direct contest between Yang Sheng and Guan Qian for the class monitor position.

Significant themes

• Achievement and collective pride: The championship gives the class a shared identity and confidence.
• Merit, leadership, and competition: Shang believes Yang Sheng should earn authority through a contest rather than receive it because of his rank.
• Popularity versus service: Yang Sheng’s dramatic victories attract support, while Guan Qian argues that a monitor should be chosen for steady commitment to classmates.
• Status and resources: Assessment points link performance to future training opportunities, making success consequential beyond prestige.

Key plot points

• Counselor Gao Peng holds Fist Class Two’s delayed class-monitor election, allowing students to nominate themselves and give short speeches.
• Guan Qian speaks first. She highlights her earlier efforts to help classmates and promises to serve the class and assist teachers.
• Yang Sheng then gives a brief, practical platform: entering competitions, securing cultivation resources, and helping classmates access opportunities. He also frames university as a chance to prepare for serving humanity.
• The class votes overwhelmingly for Yang Sheng, 45 votes to Guan Qian’s 18. Gao announces him as monitor.

Character developments and interactions

• Yang Sheng remains relaxed throughout the election, refusing to rush forward. His confidence is supported by his reputation and his concrete promises.
• Guan Qian appears composed but is tense beneath the surface. Though her speech is polished and draws Gao’s approval, she seems to sense Yang Sheng’s advantage.
• Meng Zhen eagerly supports Yang Sheng, worrying that Guan Qian might retaliate against classmates who backed her rival. Yu Wenjie gently teases Meng Zhen for being more anxious than Yang.
• The boys largely rally behind Yang Sheng, while some girls support Guan Qian. After Yang Sheng’s speech, enthusiasm spreads across much of the class.

Significant themes

• Leadership and service: Guan Qian stresses her past helpfulness; Yang Sheng emphasizes tangible benefits and opportunities for the whole class.
• Merit, influence, and trust: Yang Sheng’s recent achievements and perceived ability to deliver results outweigh Guan Qian’s polished record of assistance.
• Opportunity and collective ambition: Yang Sheng connects the class’s university experience to advancement and service to Hua Nation, Earth, and humanity.

Plot points and events

• Yang Sheng wins the class representative election by a wide margin, drawing enthusiastic support from his classmates. Meng Zhen invites Lin Feixue out to celebrate.
• Guan Qian, who had hoped to win the position, leaves campus upset and ashamed after her defeat.
• Yang Sheng catches up with her and invites her to a cold drink shop to discuss the class officers. Misreading the invitation as a romantic advance, Guan Qian asks if he is trying to pursue her; Yang Sheng dismisses the idea.
• Yang Sheng again offers Guan Qian the deputy representative role. He promises to serve as representative for only one year, then personally recommend her as his successor.
• He argues that the position matters because it brings greater cultivation resources—and that Guan Qian’s real ambition is to reach the Star Realm, not settle for a teaching job back home.
• Yang Sheng promises to secure enough resources for the class to help its members pursue Stellar Martial Artist status. Guan Qian begins to believe he may mean it.

Character developments

• Yang Sheng shows confidence and leadership, but also a willingness to give Guan Qian another opportunity. He appears to view the representative position as a way to benefit the whole class, not just himself.
• Guan Qian moves from humiliation and disappointment toward renewed determination. She admits she wants to go to the Star Realm, despite doubts about her potential and her family’s expectations.
• Meng Zhen enthusiastically celebrates Yang Sheng’s victory and uses the occasion to invite Lin Feixue out.

Themes and interactions

• The chapter contrasts ambition with resignation: Guan Qian has imagined accepting an ordinary future, but Yang Sheng challenges her to pursue more.
• It emphasizes leadership as responsibility: Yang Sheng frames his role around securing resources and helping classmates advance.
• The conversation between Yang Sheng and Guan Qian shifts from awkward misunderstanding to candid discussion, with his blunt encouragement helping restore her confidence.

Plot points and events

• After winning the class-monitor election, Yang Sheng heads to China Martial Arts University’s Technique Library rather than returning to his dorm. His nightly marrow-washing is nearly complete—about 80 percent—so he is ready to sense Star Source power and study the Myriad Stars Supreme Origin Sacred Art.
• He passes Tranquil Heart Lake, a still lake formed by the legendary battle between Lian Zhantian and an alien creature, where students gather to cultivate.
• At the Technique Library, Yang Sheng learns how its nine floors are organized: techniques range from foundational works to A-rank, while the ninth floor is rumored to hold five S-rank arts. Most students’ access depends on their cultivation.
• A frustrated second-year student challenges Yang Sheng to try the eighth-floor gate, assuming a freshman cannot enter. The gate recognizes Yang Sheng’s highest reading privileges and admits him, leaving the upperclassman stunned.
• Yang Sheng locates the Myriad Stars Supreme Origin Sacred Art. Touching its display case transfers the technique’s contents into his mind.
• He discovers that the Star-Shattering Annihilation Fist is only one branch of the art’s first stage, Star-Shattering. The complete art has four stages—Star-Shattering, Star-Drawing, Star-Transformation, and Star-Formation—and explains how to draw Star Source power into the body and open Star Meridians.
• As Yang Sheng studies, earlier cultivation difficulties begin to make sense. His insights connect into a broader system, and a notification registers one point of Star Source power.

Character developments

• Yang Sheng remains focused despite his election victory, treating the monitor role as an early step rather than a final achievement. His special library privileges set him apart from ordinary first-years, and studying the complete sacred art deepens his understanding and progress.
• The second-year student shifts from smugly dismissing Yang Sheng to embarrassed frustration when the gate admits him.

Significant themes

• Discipline and ambition: Yang Sheng celebrates success but immediately returns to long-term goals.
• Knowledge and access: The library’s tiered restrictions reflect the university’s hierarchy, while Yang Sheng’s exceptional privileges give him access beyond his apparent standing.
• Understanding through completeness: The full sacred art clarifies the limitations of the partial techniques Yang Sheng previously learned and resolves obstacles in his cultivation.
• The legacy of power: Tranquil Heart Lake and the library’s storied techniques show how past battles and great practitioners shape the present.

Character interactions

• Yang Sheng exchanges a brief, teasing challenge with the second-year student, then silently disproves his assumptions by entering the restricted floor.
• The library attendant explains the access rules to the upperclassman and confirms Yang Sheng’s privileges, while keeping the man away from the gate machine after his boast that he would eat it if Yang Sheng got in.

Summary

The author reflects on a long, stop-start journey as a novelist. Beginning in university in 2018, they wrote an unsuccessful 320,000-character urban novel, then secured contracts for two later books with the help of editor Pointer. Both performed poorly; the second was ended early in 2020 so the author could focus on graduation and civil-service exams. After graduating, the author entered local government work and stopped writing for several years.
In 2023, after becoming familiar with their office duties and being inspired by a fantasy novel about a ship’s crew, the author began writing again and won a new contract. But heavier responsibilities after a promotion in 2024, alongside family life, left little time or confidence for writing. A friend’s reminder in 2026 that the author had once loved writing rekindled that interest. The author returned to reading and writing, developed a clearer plan for the novel than in the past, and now plans to update it steadily as it becomes paid.

Character and relationship developments

• The author moves from an inexperienced, hobbyist writer to someone balancing creative ambition with demanding public-sector work. Despite self-doubt and limited readership, they regain confidence and commit to completing the current story.
• Pointer, the editor who signed the author’s early novels, is remembered with gratitude; the author jokes that their books may have jinxed his departure from the company.
• The author’s friend provides the prompt that brings the author back to writing.

Themes

• Persistence and the enduring pull of creative work.
• The tension between artistic ambition, family, and career obligations.
• Growth through reading, practice, and learning from earlier failures.
• Modest success: the current novel’s readership is limited, but it surpasses the author’s previous results and has a clearer direction.