The stars trembled, and the Rivers and Mountains Design rolled like turbulent waves, resembling a blazing bonfire, its immense pressure suppressing the imperial capital beneath the heavens.
That night, many were startled awake.
The Rivers and Mountains Design symbolized the Great Yu Dynasty's dominion over all realms—under the vast sky, every inch of land belonged to the sovereign.
Yet, to those with profound insight into the mysteries of the cosmos, the tremors in the design carried a faint trace of unease.
What... could this mean?
After this night, the already unfathomable depths of the imperial capital might stir with ripples.
And the one responsible for it all now stood atop the Step Cloud Tower.
Li Mo stared blankly at the golden page on the table.
"Damn it, was that commotion earlier... caused by this thing?"
"This shouldn't be..."
He muttered to himself.
It hadn't even been stamped with the Gilded Heavenly Seal—just the Silver Heavenly Seal. In the past, even the Gilded Heavenly Seal had never triggered such a phenomenon.
Yet the timing was far too coincidental.
Li Mo hurried to the table and picked up the golden page.
The sheet resembled gold leaf but was astonishingly heavy. Even the mighty "Little Tyrant of the Divine Hammer" found it cumbersome to hold.
Written upon it in bold characters:
"The Seventy-Two Transformations, Part One"
'This is the first chapter of the Seventy-Two Transformations, tempering the body. Mastering it can forge an Indestructible Dao Body or a Bodhi Crystal Golden Body, each with divine wonders—yet all must be attained through enduring tribulations.'
'This method is not for ordinary mortals. Without the proper foundation, countless calamities and karmic retributions will grind the practitioner to dust.'
"No wonder..."
Li Mo suddenly understood why the heavens had reacted so violently.
The emergence of the Seventy-Two Transformations made everything make sense.
This was the cultivation method of the True Lord Erlang, the Illustrious Sage—some even claimed it originated from the primordial deity Pangu.
In myths and legends, debates raged over whether Erlang Shen or Sun Wukong was stronger, and much of it hinged on this very art.
"Better stash it away."
"With such a commotion, who knows what might happen next."
Li Mo didn't rush to study it. Instead, he tucked the golden page into his system storage.
Even if the Jade Emperor himself came knocking, he wouldn't find a trace of it.
Then he lay down to sleep, not even entering his pocket dimension.
Sure enough.
In the dead of night, he sensed an overwhelming, majestic presence sweep over the Step Cloud Tower—a pressure so terrifying it felt like an ant staring up at a giant from its tiny mound.
But the presence vanished as quickly as it came.
The next morning.
Li Mo woke as usual, pretending nothing had happened—though he hadn't slept a wink.
He retrieved the golden page and activated his martial insights, striving to master it as quickly as possible.
Instantly, his 2,000-plus years of martial insights dwindled to 1,955.
[Fifty years of martial insights successfully infused.]
[Year 22: Over these years, you diligently summarized your learnings and finally grasped the true essence of the art.]
[Year 38: This method requires enduring tribulations to temper the body. It cannot be mastered through secluded study alone. You began researching each type of calamity in detail.]
[Year 50: You mastered the first method to invoke tribulations and forge the Indestructible Dao Body.]
[Seventy-Two Transformations: Beginner.]
Li Mo wiped the sweat from his brow. This was even harder to comprehend than swordsmanship.
But there was good news.
The Seventy-Two Transformations could be refined using the Divine Treasure Hundred Refinements, at least for the first chapter.
As for other methods...
Li Mo couldn't think of any yet.
But where there's a will, there's a way. Maybe the system's feedback would provide one.
"For now, I’ll stick to blacksmithing..."
Overwhelmed by the influx of information, Li Mo's head spun.
He pushed the door open and stepped out—just as Ying Bing descended the stairs. Their eyes met, both frozen like a pair of bewildered geese.
Well, Li Mo looked dumber.
Ying Bing averted her gaze, though her peripheral vision lingered on him.
"You... didn't sleep either?"
"Nope. Woke up from the ruckus outside."
Li Mo yawned, still groggy from the martial insights.
"Should’ve dual-cultivated last night."
"...I want breakfast."
"Sure, I'll go with you."
Ying Bing's face remained expressionless, though her heartbeat quickened slightly.
"!!"
Li Mo's pulse also raced, his body visibly stiffening.
Luckily, the "ice block" wasn't planning to cook.
"I want to watch."
"It's fine, wait in the hall. I’ll be quick."
"Take me with you."
Ying Bing lowered her eyes, her slender fingers lightly tugging at Li Mo's sleeve.
Call her aloof and domineering, yet here she was, softly pleading while gripping his clothes.
Call her gentle, yet she left no room for refusal.
Li Mo found himself utterly defenseless.
And so, with a heavy heart, he took her hand and led her to the kitchen.
The kitchen buzzed with activity.
"Huh? That prodigy ranked fourth on the Hidden Dragon List is here again?"
"Strange. They say a gentleman stays clear of the kitchen, yet he’s here every day. What’s the appeal?"
"Maybe it’s a hobby? His ingredients are rare even in the capital..."
"First time seeing a Hidden Dragon genius obsessed with cooking..."
Li Mo peeked into the kitchen.
Instantly, the cooks and helpers fell silent. One chef even mistook vinegar for soy sauce without realizing it.
Couldn’t blame him.
Amid the smoky bustle of the kitchen, an ethereal fairy had descended.
Li Mo ignored them and headed to his purchased cooking station, pulling out ingredients for breakfast.
Splash—
Ying Bing stood quietly, watching.
Watching the boy prepare the ingredients.
Watching him heat the oil.
The flames roared, their crimson glow illuminating his face. Ying Bing suddenly thought—calling him a "boy" no longer seemed fitting.
The stubborn face from her memories was reshaped by the firelight.
Now, his features bore the sharpening lines of maturity.
d intelligence to keep the plot moving, and sometimes even the protagonists are forced into absurdly dumb decisions. Why does the A-list celebrity heroine in urban romance novels ditch the top-tier movie star and become a lovestruck fool for a pockmarked male lead? Why do the leads in historical tragedy novels keep dancing between love and death, only for the blind healer to end up suffering the most? And Gu Wei never expected that after finally landing a villain role to stir up trouble, she’d pick the wrong gender! No choice now—she’ll just have to crush the protagonists as a girl!
spital. Good news: I've bound a system. Bad news: I'm still a baby. "Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river, do not bully the middle-aged for being poor — Divorce Comeback System." "Your marriage may have failed, but your luck in love has never run dry. Your childhood sweetheart, out of contact for twenty years, reappears. Her beauty remains, yet her eyes are brimming with tears." [Listen to the childhood sweetheart's sorrowful story.] Chen Zhi looked down at the diaper he was wearing, then at the little childhood sweetheart crying her heart out beside him, and fell into deep thought. Can anyone relate? I'm having a midlife crisis at an age where even rolling over is a struggle.
e bizarre and supernatural had descended. The previous emperor was a thoroughgoing tyrant; no longer satisfied with human women, he had set his sights on a stunningly beautiful supernatural entity. He met his end in his bedchamber, drained of all his vital essence. As the legitimate eldest son and crown prince, Wang Hao was thus hastily enthroned, becoming the young emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty. No sooner had he awakened the "Imperial Sign-In Intelligence System" than he was assassinated by a Son of Destiny—a classic villain's opening. The Great Zhou, ravaged by the former emperor's excesses, was in national decline. The great families within its borders harbored their own treacherous schemes, martial sects began to defy the imperial court's decrees, and border armies, their pay and provisions in arrears, grumbled incessantly against the central government. Fortunately, the central capital was still held secure by the half-million Imperial Guards and fifty thousand Imperial Forest Army who obeyed the court's orders, along with the royal family's hidden reserves of power, barely managing to suppress the realm. As the Great Zhou's finances worsened and supernatural activities grew ever more frequent, the court sat atop a volcano. Ambitious plotters everywhere dreamed of overthrowing the dynasty, and even some reclusive ancient powers emerged, attempting to sway the tides of the world. At the first grand court assembly, the civil and military officials nearly came to blows, fighting tooth and nail over the allocation of fifty million taels of silver from the summer tax revenues. The spectacle opened Wang Hao's eyes—the Great Zhou's bureaucracy was not only corrupt but also martially proficient, a cabinet of all-rounders. Some officials even had the audacity to suggest the emperor release funds from the imperial privy purse to address the emergency. Wang Hao suddenly felt weary. Let it all burn.
grated, and just when he finally managed to get into an elite academy, he discovered that he actually had a system, and the way to earn rewards was extremely ridiculous. So for the sake of rewards, he had no choice but to start acting ridiculous as well. Su Cheng: "It's nothing but system quests after all." But later, what confused Su Cheng was that while he was already quite ridiculous, he never expected those serious characters to gradually become ridiculous too. And the way they looked at him became increasingly strange... (This synopsis doesn't do it justice, please read the full story)
