Su Jiu said nothing more.
She simply cast a layer of illusion silently behind the two of them.
The illusion wasn’t sophisticated—it merely bent the light, making the small corner behind the stone pillar even dimmer and more inconspicuous.
After finishing, she took a deep breath.
"Lie down."
"Close your eyes."
Su Ji complied without question.
He could sense the faint movements nearby.
"Junior Sister, just go ahead and do what you must."
"Shut up!"
Su Jiu’s voice was a mix of embarrassment and irritation.
Then, Su Ji felt a gentle yet unyielding force supporting him.
Unable to see Su Jiu’s actions, he could only imagine them based on sensation.
"I’m just reviewing my movement techniques to prepare for the possible battle ahead. Don’t overthink it."
"My clan’s secret movement technique is called [Heavenly Fox Mirage Step]. It emphasizes harmony between mind and body, movement guided by intent."
Su Jiu’s voice was soft, as if explaining to him—or perhaps convincing herself.
"The first stance is called ‘Treading Snow.’"
Her touch was light, carrying an odd rhythm, like a snowflake drifting down.
"The second stance, ‘Tracking Shadows.’"
This time, the sensation became elusive and unpredictable.
At times, it was like a dragonfly skimming water—barely touching before retreating.
Other times, it coiled like a serpent, lingering and winding.
"Junior Sister… this footwork… is quite profound…"
"Quiet!"
Su Jiu snapped, though her voice wavered slightly.
Only by breaking through would they have a chance to survive.
...
"The ninth stance."
"Hiss!"
...
"The tenth stance."
...
"The final stance—[Magpie Alights on Branch]!"
Su Ji felt a breeze brush past his face.
His vision dimmed slightly as a graceful shadow enveloped him.
Cracking his eyes open just a slit, he saw Su Jiu poised like a magpie landing on a branch.
She stood with her back to him, posture straight and proud.
Yet, Su Ji felt no weight at all—as if the one standing above him wasn’t a person, but a feather.
Effortless grace, light as a swallow.
This was the essence of [Magpie Alights on Branch].
Su Jiu’s heart tightened as she sensed something amiss.
With a light tap of her toes against Su Ji, she floated down like a startled swan, putting distance between them.
She quickly regained her usual aloof demeanor.
Expression unchanging, she flicked two fingers, wrapping the medicinal liquid Su Ji offered in a cocoon of spiritual energy.
Then, with a hook of her finger, she guided it into her mouth and swallowed.
...
Two and a half minutes passed...
Su Jiu glared at Su Ji with displeasure. "Why don’t I feel any signs of a breakthrough this time?"
Su Ji explained, "It’s a matter of probability. Didn’t you have a secret technique to enhance your fortune?"
Not feeling it was normal.
Because Su Ji hadn’t used any enhancements at all.
According to [Gazing Upon Fate], Su Jiu had failed in her previous attempt.
This was a question of probability.
Perhaps her condition had been too poor then.
Or maybe her luck had simply been terrible.
"Try again! This time, boost your fortune—it has to work!"
"Fine."
...
The magpie descended from the branch once more.
Su Jiu swallowed another dose of the medicinal liquid.
Meanwhile, Su Ji’s face turned as pale as paper, his lips dry.
"Junior Sister..."
Su Ji lifted his head weakly.
Su Jiu turned her face away, not daring to look at him.
"This matter… must never be mentioned to anyone!"
Her voice remained icy, but the faint blush at the tips of her ears betrayed her inner turmoil.
This time, she felt it.
The indomitable barrier of her cultivation realm shattered before this overwhelming force.
No wonder high-grade elixirs were priceless—there was a reason for it.
Eighth Layer of Foundation Establishment—broken!
A torrent of spiritual energy swirled around her, visible to the naked eye.
But it didn’t stop there.
The power continued surging relentlessly, pushing her cultivation higher and higher.
Ninth Layer of Foundation Establishment!
Peak of the Ninth Layer!
Only the thinnest veil remained between her and the legendary Great Perfection of Foundation Establishment.
Su Jiu gritted her teeth, channeling the raging energy with all her might.
Success or failure—it all came down to this!
"Break!"
She roared inwardly.
Crack!
An unprecedented sense of exhilaration flooded her entire being.
Her aura soared to its zenith in that moment.
Great Perfection of Foundation Establishment!
Achieved!
The instant she broke through, the ethereal voice from the arena rang out again, carrying a trace of barely perceptible surprise.
"Hm?"
"An illusion?"
...
transmigrates into the world as the sect master of the Heavenly Yan Sect, which is on the verge of being wiped out. He binds a system that grants him cultivation power based on the number of disciples he has: for each disciple, he automatically gains a year's worth of cultivation every single day! Take one disciple: every day he gains 1 year of cultivation power. While others struggle through a year of bitter training, he gets the same just by sleeping through a single night. Take ten disciples: every day he gains 10 years of cultivation power. Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, Nascent Soul—he breezes through all bottlenecks without lifting a finger. Take one hundred disciples: every day he gains 100 years of cultivation power. Even a Soul Transformation Venerable before him can’t survive a single blow. Take ten thousand disciples: every day he gains 10,000 years of cultivation power! With a wave of his hand, he topples empires. With a single step, he crushes the sacred grounds of the universe. ... While others fight tooth and nail for secret techniques, Lin Yan casually hands out Nascent Soul-level cultivation manuals as beginner textbooks. While others strain to find talented recruits, Lin Yan opens his doors to anyone—so long as they’re human. In just three short years, the Heavenly Yan Sect went from a backwater sect made up of three crumbling huts to a sacred land that every cultivator under heaven would kill to enter. ... One day, otherworldly demon gods invade, with a million demon soldiers pressing down upon the realm. Lin Yan, yawning, rises from his lounge chair and glances at the system panel: [Current Disciples: 1.28 million] [Daily Cultivation Increase: 1.28 million years] He waves his hand casually, and the countless demon soldiers are reduced to ashes in an instant. “So noisy… interrupting my fishing.”
【Prologue: The Beginning of It All – Use holy water to heal the saintess tainted by demonic energy, then converse with her.】 Shen Nian stared at his older sister sipping yogurt, lost in thought. So you’re telling me my sister is the saintess, and yogurt is the holy water? 【Main Quest 1: Brave Youth, Become an Adventurer! Reward: Rookie Adventurer Title.】 【Side Quest 1: Find the Adorable Kitty! Reward: 1000 Gold Coins.】 Shen Nian: "Wait, I’m a high school senior here—did some guy who got isekai’d accidentally bind his system to me?" Hold on, completing quests gives gold rewards? Titles even boost stats? Is this for real? (A lighthearted, absurd campus comedy—not a revenge power fantasy.)
tions: attribute allocation, analysis, proficiency, and simulation. Specializing in mechanical alchemy, from crafting sorcerous battle armor to handcrafting mechanical maidens, his mechanical legion conquers endless realms... Relying on his wits, he begins with a student-teacher romance, wins over a female director, enslaves a female assassin and a underworld queen, becoming the husband of a Grand Duchess... He enslaves the Goddess of Magic from the divine realm, developing his power simultaneously in both the Wizard World and the Realm of Gods...
. As long as he maintains the villain image and follows the plot to the grand finale, he can obtain generous rewards and return to the real world. So Gu Chen'an entered the role and began to act as a scumbag villain, but who would have expected that the female leads could hear his inner thoughts. Miss Su from the Su family was shocked: "I originally thought Gu Chen'an was a scumbag, but I didn't expect he turned out to be a gentleman! What? You said I have to call off the engagement? I definitely won't, I'll piss you off!" Bai Yuan Tian was dumbfounded: "Young Master Gu is usually unreasonable and a complete brat, but he actually calls me little sweetie in his heart? What, Young Master Gu even said he likes me?" As the female leads' images collapsed more and more, the plot also collapsed with it. Gu Chen'an looked at all this chaos. "Ladies, don't aggro me, if you keep this up the male lead really will stab me, I still need to survive to the grand finale!"
