Evan Chu lingered for a while at the training grounds before returning to his own room—only here could he find a shred of dignity. No one mocked him here, no one looked down on him; all he had was Lily Lin’s attentive care.
"Second Young Master, did you go to the training grounds again today?" Lily Lin asked as Evan Chu entered. One look at his face made it clear he’d been ridiculed again.
Sitting at his desk, Evan Chu accepted the cup of tea Lily Lin poured for him and asked, "Lily, am I really just a waste? Why can’t I absorb star power even now? I can’t even compare to Ryan Chu? I used to call him trash all the time—thinking back, it’s almost laughable."
Lily Lin understood Evan Chu’s pain. To go from being a recognized genius to a ‘waste’ was hard to accept, but with reality staring them in the face, what choice did they have?
"Second Young Master, are you losing heart? That’s not like you. Bring out that fierce determination you had when you used to train—I believe it won’t be long before you surpass Third Young Master again." Lily Lin could only comfort him this way, not knowing how many times she’d said the same words before.
Evan Chu forced a bitter smile. "Thank you, Lily. I know exactly what’s going on with me, so there’s no need to comfort me. You can go—I’d like to be alone for a while."
Obediently, Lily Lin left the room, quietly closing the door behind her. "Second Young Master went from genius to waste—if it were me, I wouldn’t know how to face it either."
Evan Chu collapsed onto his bed, full of questions he couldn’t answer. Unknowingly, he drifted off to sleep, and when he woke, night had already fallen.
"I actually slept that long? That’s rare!" Evan Chu muttered to himself after getting up.
Seeing the meal Lily Lin had prepared on the desk, he didn’t hesitate—he wolfed it down. "Once I’m recharged, I refuse to believe I can’t absorb star power!"
It was already late, and heading up Flowing Cloud Mountain was out of the question. Evan Chu opened the window and, seeing the sky full of stars, smiled. "I can absorb star power right outside my room just as well."
He’d always heard that the higher you were, the better the effect when absorbing star power—the closer to the stars, the stronger the energy. That’s why Evan Chu used to climb to the very summit of Flowing Cloud Mountain every time.
Evan Chu picked a clear spot in the courtyard and sat down. The Chu Family’s Violet Nether Star Art began circulating through his body, and soon, faint starlight appeared on his skin, then entered his body and started flowing through his meridians.
This discovery made Evan Chu overjoyed—he hadn’t felt this sensation in so long. The long-lost star power was finally appearing in his body again, and he was so happy he almost cried out loud.
After an hour, Evan Chu’s body was covered in starlight, and the amount of star power he absorbed kept increasing. Everything seemed to be heading in a good direction.
Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through his mind, and all the star power in his body vanished without a trace, as if it had been instantly drained away.
The intense pain didn’t knock Evan Chu out, but he was deeply shocked. Why did all the star power he’d worked so hard to absorb suddenly disappear? Why did his mind feel such agony? These bizarre questions tormented him.
The pain quickly faded, but Evan Chu refused to give up. Before, he hadn’t been able to circulate star power through his body at all, but tonight he’d managed it. That was progress—even if the energy vanished again, it was still better than having nothing at all.
When star power appeared in his body again, Evan Chu felt no joy. He worried it would disappear just like before—and sure enough, it soon vanished without a trace.
He didn’t give up, continuing to absorb star power. By the third time it appeared in his body, it was already midnight. "Go ahead and disappear! Let’s see if you vanish every time!" Evan Chu shouted at the endless starry sky.
The star power disappeared again, but this time was different—the energy didn’t vanish completely. A tiny trace of star power remained in his body.
It was weak, but Evan Chu noticed it—so he kept absorbing more. Every time he reached a certain amount, it would be drained away, leaving just a little behind. He tried this several times, and each time it was the same.
A whole night wasn’t much time for absorbing star power. By the time Evan Chu was nearly out of energy again, dawn was already approaching.
"Looks like I really am a waste. No matter how much I absorb, it all disappears—like there’s a bottomless pit inside me. When will this ever end?" Evan Chu muttered to the ceiling after returning to his room and lying on his bed.
"Persist for three more days. After three days, you’ll be able to fully absorb star power!" A faint voice suddenly echoed in his mind, impossible to tell if it was male or female.
The voice startled Evan Chu so much he shot up from bed. "Who? Who’s talking?"
He looked around, but there wasn’t a soul in sight. Evan Chu lay back down, forcing a bitter smile. "I’m scaring myself now. The pressure must really be getting to me—imagining I could actually absorb star power completely."
"You’re not wrong—you really can absorb star power. Once you do, you’ll realize that the ‘waste’ they call you is actually a rare genius!" The strange voice echoed in his mind again.
This time, Evan Chu clearly heard it. The voice seemed to come from inside his own mind, and he couldn’t help but ask in shock, "Who are you? Why are you in my head?"
After a long while, the voice finally replied, "Me? I am the Sword Spirit of the world’s greatest expert—the omnipotent Sword Spirit!"
"Sword Spirit? What’s a Sword Spirit? I’ve never even heard of that!" Evan Chu found the title incredibly strange.
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"Heavens! You don’t even know about the almighty Sword Spirit? Just how backward is your world? Why did I have to pick you of all people!" The Sword Spirit’s voice in his mind started to roar, sounding terribly aggrieved.
"Hey, you still haven’t told me why you’re in my head—what exactly do you do? You’re not going to hurt me, are you?" The thought of something talking inside his mind made Evan Chu nervous.
After a while, the voice in his mind went silent, leaving Evan Chu disappointed. This whole thing felt like a dream, but it was undeniably real.
For three nights, Evan Chu desperately absorbed star power, and every time, the same thing happened.
Whenever the star power in his body reached a certain amount, it would vanish without a trace. He knew this strange phenomenon was definitely connected to the mysterious entity in his mind.
Absorbing star power at night and sleeping during the day—that’s how Evan Chu spent the last few days. One morning, as he was sleeping soundly, Lily Lin rushed in from outside.
Seeing Evan Chu still asleep, she anxiously called out, "Second Young Master, get up! The patriarch’s been waiting for you forever—how can you still be sleeping?"
Evan Chu was jolted awake by Lily Lin’s voice. Rubbing his eyes, he asked, "Lily, what’s going on? You look really anxious."
"Second Young Master, today is your engagement day with Third Young Miss Lin! How could you forget? The estate’s been decorated for days—you didn’t notice at all?" Lily Lin said, worried by Evan Chu’s indifferent attitude.
Absorbing star power at night and sleeping by day, Evan Chu had no time to pay attention to the estate’s preparations. Engagement wasn’t marriage, and now that he was branded a waste, being the patriarch’s son didn’t mean much.
After freshening up, Evan Chu slowly made his way toward the main hall of the Chu estate. Along the way, he was greeted by plenty of gossip—none of it pleasant to hear.
He was used to their words by now. When he arrived at the hall, it was already packed—the Chu Family’s most important figures were all present.
His father, Dominic Chu, sat in the very center of the hall. When Evan Chu entered, Dominic’s face showed a flash of anger.
"Lin Feng, you’ve really got a nerve—making everyone wait for you. Do you still think you’re the Chu Family’s genius? In my eyes, you’re nothing but a waste, a disgrace."
Dominic Chu’s voice was loud—everyone in the hall heard it clearly. Evan Chu’s heart twisted. Was this really the father he once knew?
They hadn’t seen each other for more than two months, and the first thing his father said was this kind of insult. If it had been anyone else, Evan might have shrugged it off, but coming from his own father, it felt like a knife to the heart.
He really wondered if he was even his father’s son anymore. Evan Chu felt a little dazed.
Just then, Dominic Chu’s voice rang out again. "Wretch, what are you standing there for? Today is your engagement day with Third Young Miss Lin—go greet the Lin Family elders!"
Evan Chu slowly walked to the front of the hall, finally taking a close look at the strangers seated there. He recognized all the Chu Family members, so the unfamiliar faces had to be from the Lin Family.
There were three men and two women: an elder, a middle-aged man, and a youth a few years older than Evan Chu. One woman wore a blue dress—she was stunningly beautiful, with an air of pride in her gaze.
The other was dressed in pink, with a curvaceous figure that could only be described as graceful. But her face was covered by a veil, hiding her true appearance.
Evan Chu suspected this woman must be the infamous Third Young Miss Lin—the one everyone said was monstrously ugly.
Just thinking about being engaged to her made him angry, but Dominic Chu’s words couldn’t be ignored. Evan could only grit his teeth and step forward. "Evan Chu greets Elder Lin, Uncle Lin!"
He merely gave a perfunctory smile to the three peers. In his heart, he’d already decided—no matter what, he would not agree to this marriage. Marrying an ugly woman would be worse than death.