I Didn't Tell You to Be a Maniac

Chen Feng saw that the branch president no longer objected.

The crowd in the square below also stopped questioning.

Finally, he let out a sigh of relief.

Just then—

A single round of applause suddenly broke out in the square.

Then came wave after wave of clapping.

At this moment, these people were genuinely impressed by Chen Feng.

In the past, whenever the Devouring Star Technique was mentioned,

their first thought was of draining others' life force to strengthen oneself.

Yet it had never occurred to them that there might be a less brutal method when slaughtering livestock.

Though the life force of poultry and livestock was minimal, sheer numbers could make up for it.

Moreover, it was said that the Devouring Star Technique couldn’t be used indefinitely.

Chen Feng’s earlier words echoed once more in their minds:

"Techniques are lifeless—people are the ones who wield them."

"Judging a technique by human actions is misguided."

"Learning the Devouring Star Technique doesn’t automatically make someone evil."

"Techniques are neither good nor evil—only people are."

At this moment,

as they recalled Chen Feng’s earlier words,

they realized how narrow-minded they had been.

The barrage of online comments underwent a complete transformation.

No more mockery, no more insults, no more skepticism.

"Master, I was being shallow earlier."

"Damn, we were the ones obsessed with draining people all along."

"No wonder we’re so far behind Chen Feng—this is the root of it."

"Truly a hero of Great Xia. Even when the whole world doubted him, he turned the tide."

"Talk about judging a hero with a petty mind—that was me."

"I supported you back at Kunlun Mountain, then doubted you just now. Turns out I wasn’t worthy."

...

At the headquarters of the Martial Arts Association in the Sacred Capital,

the president wiped away sweat he hadn’t even noticed forming.

He took a deep breath in, then exhaled heavily,

suddenly feeling much lighter.

"Hahaha…"

"What a line—'Techniques are lifeless, people are the ones who wield them.'"

"How did I never think of that before?"

"Assistant, gather everyone for a meeting in the conference room—now."

The president knew there was no stopping the spread of the Devouring Star Technique.

It had already gone viral—there was no containing it.

Even he had received multiple text messages about it.

Clearly, someone was deliberately spreading it.

Now, the only option was to quickly draft management policies for the technique.

Su Yan, watching the livestream, stared at the screen in stunned silence.

"As expected of my little master. Such a simple, almost cliché solution, and no one thought of it?"

A horrifying image flashed in her mind:

Chen Feng, the Midnight Butcher, surrounded by dead pigs, cows, chickens, ducks, sheep, and rats.

"Could my little master’s cultivation really come from draining livestock?"

Meanwhile, far away in the Western Continent,

Zhang Bowen, who had been in a gloomy mood, couldn’t help but laugh at Chen Feng’s antics.

"Worthy of the man Qianqian fell for."

"His way of thinking is just as unconventional as hers."

Xiao Ruohan watched the familiar man shine brilliantly once again before the crowd,

her emotions tangled in knots.

"If I hadn’t betrayed him back then…"

"Would I be feeling proud of him now too?"

At home, Jin Youxi and Liu Weiwei

clapped dumbfoundedly at their TV screen.

"I knew it—someone as kind-hearted as Master would never steal others’ life force."

"Those who doubted him are complete fools."

...

Jin Youxi kept showering praise.

"Mhm…"

Liu Weiwei nodded in agreement.

By the final segment of the press conference,

the screen was flooded with a blizzard of comments

and an unstoppable torrent of virtual gifts.

Thousands of "Carnival" effects flashed nonstop, overwhelming the display.

The Kunlun City branch president

found himself unable to bring the livestream to a close.

Glancing at the gift revenue data,

he mused to himself:

"This livestream will go down in Martial Arts Association history."

"A press conference raking in over ten million in gifts?"

"Who else could pull that off?"

"Even the president himself couldn’t match this level of hype."

Though the gifts were all for Chen Feng,

the branch president believed he deserved some credit too.

He was, without a doubt, the second most important figure in this livestream.

A smug grin spread across his face as he eyed the data.

Just then, a staff member reminded him:

"President, shouldn’t we end the livestream?"

The branch president frowned and scolded:

"Tsk, that’s the wrong attitude."

"Our mission at the Martial Arts Association is to serve the public."

"If I cut the stream, how will people send their gifts?"

"Don’t just think about clocking out. As a branch president, working overtime for the people of Great Xia is nothing."

He shot the staffer a look,

shaking his head in disappointment.

Every flashing gift on screen meant more funding for the association.

After the press conference ended,

the Kunlun City branch president awkwardly patted Chen Feng’s shoulder.

"If you knew this method all along, why didn’t you say so earlier?"

Chen Feng replied sheepishly:

"I improvised on the spot—it was a spur-of-the-moment idea."

The branch president had an assistant hand Chen Feng a card, saying:

"The Martial Arts Association is purchasing your millennium ganoderma."

"The price is fair market value—we won’t shortchange you."

Chen Feng accepted the bank card with a chuckle.

The thought of all those dinosaurs still lurking in Kunlun Mountain set his heart ablaze.

The money in the card didn’t excite him much—

after all, an entire mountain of treasures awaited him.

Slipping the card into his pocket, he said:

"Just pocket change. I trust the Martial Arts Association’s integrity."

Pocket change?

The branch president’s eye twitched.

That millennium ganoderma was exceedingly rare—

only Kunlun Mountain could produce fungi aged over a thousand years.

The four-kilogram specimen had just sold for over three million.

"Kids these days really don’t know humility."

Though the press conference was over,

the ripple effects of Chen Feng’s actions had only just begun.

The Martial Arts Association immediately issued warnings to the hordes of rebellious youths,

educating them on the Devouring Star Technique’s side effects.

Parents were cautioned that the technique should only serve as a supplementary skill—

overuse would actually hinder cultivation progress.

Most of the detained youths were released back to their families.

Their first act was flooding the internet with gratitude for their "savior," Chen Feng.

Meanwhile, self-proclaimed geniuses across the web began showcasing their own "innovative" uses for the technique.

Absurd videos featuring the Devouring Star Technique went viral overnight:

"This leech tried to suck my blood? Well, joke’s on you—evil laugh—"

"No mosquito coils tonight. They’ve been draining me for years—time to return the favor."

"Hyperactive husky wrecking the house? Just siphon off some energy with Devouring Star. Look how well-behaved he is now."

"Even the roaches in my home aren’t safe—I’m sucking them dry too."

"The Grandmaster said drain livestock, not turn yourselves into memes!"