The brother and sister chatted in the piano room until after eleven. It wasn’t until Yvonne Yang poked her head in and reminded them how late it was that they finally called it a night and each went back to their rooms.
Back in his room, Ian Song pulled up the system interface again, eyes instantly zeroing in on the Fame Points tab. He’d expected a boost, but the actual number still made his jaw drop: 234,890.
Over two hundred thirty thousand!
He took a deep breath to steady himself. With all the online hype, who knew how far his Fame Points might go?
"Meow-Meow, I want to spin the lottery!"
"All right!" Meow-Meow answered, blowing up the system interface. Ian, buzzing with anticipation, tapped the giant "Draw" button, secretly wondering what kind of prize would pop up this time.
He’d drawn six times already—two skills, four divine abilities. Statistically, something new should be coming up.
The lottery pointer spun slower and slower, until finally...
It stopped right in front of the green segment!
"The green segment!" Ian nearly jumped out of his seat with excitement.
Next, three golden characters—"Origin-Nurturing Scripture"—floated up from the green segment.
"Is this some kind of martial arts classic?" Ian wondered.
In the next instant, those three golden "Origin-Nurturing Scripture" characters melted into beams of light and shot straight into Ian’s forehead. He immediately slipped into a trance, sitting there with his eyes closed like a meditating monk.
About half an hour later, Ian finally let out a deep breath.
"Turns out the Origin-Nurturing Scripture really is a cultivation method, but not for martial arts—it's a true immortal technique."
So-called immortal cultivation is the process by which mortals train and transform, ultimately becoming beings known as immortals.
The Origin-Nurturing Scripture is just an ordinary immortal cultivation method—it only allows cultivation up to the late Golden Core stage.
The first two realms go by the same names as martial arts—Post-Heaven and Pre-Heaven—but the power gap is massive. Cultivators can draw on the world’s spiritual energy and refine it into their own strength.
Cultivators call this energy "true essence."
True essence is so much purer and denser than the inner strength or true qi martial artists can muster!
So, at the same realm, a cultivator's strength far surpasses that of a martial artist.
After Pre-Heaven comes Foundation Establishment, and only after that do you reach Golden Core!
Once you form a Golden Core, you're basically no longer a mere mortal—your lifespan can reach five hundred years.
"Host, you can spend Fame Points to instantly learn the Origin-Nurturing Scripture," Meow-Meow's voice sounded.
"How many Fame Points does it take?" Ian asked.
"To reach Post-Heaven Great Perfection, you'll need to spend 100,000 Fame Points," Meow-Meow replied.
"What about Pre-Heaven?" Ian pressed.
"One million."
Meow-Meow coldly tossed out the number, making Ian so mad he almost cursed the system for being a profiteer. He'd thought racking up over two hundred thousand Fame Points meant he could splurge, but the reality check came fast.
"Meow-Meow, push my Origin-Nurturing Scripture cultivation to Post-Heaven Great Perfection!"
"Understood, Host."
As soon as Meow-Meow finished speaking, Ian felt a flood of mysterious energy pour into his body. Explosive crackling erupted inside him, and a wave of indescribable pain hit—he nearly passed out.
Thirty minutes later, the system's transformation finally ended. Ian's clothes were soaked through with sweat—all because of the pain.
After resting in his chair for more than ten minutes, Ian finally recovered. With a thought, his consciousness sank into his dantian, where he discovered a fist-sized mass of milky-white energy. No doubt, this was true essence.
"Puff, puff!"
Ian channeled true essence and threw a punch.
A dull explosive sound rang out, and Ian even felt the air around him tremble.
Seeing the power of that punch, Ian couldn't help but be shocked. He was certain that if he hit a normal person with it, they'd be killed instantly. Same realm—Post-Heaven Great Perfection—but a cultivator at that level was more than three times stronger than a martial artist.
He called up the system interface again. The stats had changed a lot, and a new "Cultivation Method" tab had appeared:
Host: Ian Song
Level: 1
Physical Ability: 1,000 points
Mental Strength: 97 points
Skills: Martial Arts, Piano Master
Divine Abilities: Photographic Memory, Mastery Insight, Clairvoyant Vision, Radiance of Life
Cultivation Method: Origin-Nurturing Scripture (Post-Heaven Great Perfection)
Fame Points: 56,743
First, his physical ability doubled, rising from 500 to 1,000 points. That means, in pure physical terms, he's ten times stronger than an ordinary person.
Second, his mental strength also increased by 17 points, which surprised Ian.
Finally, there's the new Cultivation Method tab, and his Fame Points have gone up by over ten thousand in just these few dozen minutes.
Overall, Ian was pretty satisfied with all the stats.
Monday was a good day for Stephen Song. Today, the Organization Department would announce his new position, officially promoting him to director of the Xiang City Education Bureau—a jump from deputy division to full division rank.
As the saying goes, good things lift the spirit. He tidied his hair, dressed neatly, ate breakfast, and feeling refreshed, grabbed his briefcase and drove to work.
Xiang City Education Bureau office building.
As soon as Stephen Song stepped inside, the security guard bowed and greeted him, "Good morning, Director Song."
"Old Niu, thanks for your hard work," Stephen Song replied with a smile.
He made his way to the office, and everyone he met greeted him respectfully. Stephen wasn't particularly vain, but it still felt pretty good.
He'd been in the office for less than five minutes when there was a knock at the door.
"Come in."
A middle-aged man with a mostly bald head walked in, beaming, and said to Stephen Song, "Director, I'm here to report on work."
Stephen Song quickly waved him off, "Old Xing, you’re making me look bad! We’re both deputy directors—don’t act like you have to report to me."
Old Xing had once been his rival for the director’s seat, but Stephen had quietly won the mayor’s support and clinched the job. He’d expected Old Xing to hold a grudge, maybe even freeze him out, but the man had flipped sides so fast, Stephen almost wanted to ask, ‘Old Xing, where’s your dignity?’
Old Xing lowered himself even more, flattering, "Director, you're far too modest. It was only a matter of time anyway—I'm just here to offer my early congratulations!"
As the new director, Stephen Song's top priority was to stabilize the situation. Since Old Xing was reaching out, he saw no reason to refuse.
So Stephen welcomed Old Xing’s support with open arms, and the man left looking satisfied.
At ten o'clock in the morning, people from the Organization Department arrived.
Leading them was Zhong Changnian, the deputy minister of the city’s Organization Department, followed by three others—two young men and a middle-aged man.
Stephen Song had brought people down to greet them in advance. As soon as he saw Zhong Changnian, he hurried forward with a smile and offered a greeting.
To his surprise, Zhong Changnian was quite cold.
As the saying goes, 'It takes people to carry a fancy sedan chair.' Even as the deputy minister of the Organization Department, Zhong Changnian didn’t need to be so unfriendly—wasn’t this just slapping the new director in the face?
For a moment, Stephen Song felt a bit uncomfortable, but remembering that Zhong Changnian was from the Organization Department, he could only grit his teeth and endure it.
But when he entered the arranged venue, Stephen Song's expression suddenly changed—his nameplate on the podium had disappeared, replaced by a stranger's name.
Instantly, anger surged in his heart. He was just about to ask who had arranged the venue.
Unexpectedly, Zhong Changnian walked straight up to the podium, and the middle-aged man who'd come with him sat down in front of the unfamiliar nameplate. That seat was supposed to be Stephen Song's. Combined with Zhong Changnian's attitude, a sense of foreboding clouded Stephen's heart.