A Time of Change

"Ha!" A sharp cry accompanied the hum of a blade echoing through the cultivation room. Ever since he wrecked his wardrobe last time, now that he was cultivating the even more potent Thunder Yuan Saber, Su Yu didn't dare practice at home. He worried about demolishing the house, or splitting the floor and getting beaten up by the old man downstairs with fists the size of clay pots. The standard-issue military saber whistled through the air at blinding speed. Panting slightly, Su Yu sheathed his blade and frowned. Difficult! A Profound-rank martial technique was still a bit too early for him, too difficult. Even the first strike, Thunder Strike, normally required nine apertures working in concert for an origin-unifying slash. "I've got the stance down, but origin qi is the key!" Reflecting on the technique, Su Yu knew mastering the form of Thunder Strike was not hard. The crux was linking the apertures, erupting origin qi, focusing force into one, coating the blade in origin qi, and striking like thunder to kill an enemy in a single blow! After all, he had only opened eight apertures and could draw only on the origin qi within his own body, not that of the outside world. "I still can't unify the origin qi quickly and channel it all into the blade." Su Yu frowned. It had been three days. He had been practicing this single strike for three days. While that was not very long, even after studying the *Thunder Yuan Saber* several times a day, he still could not grasp the method of origin unification. That meant he hadn't even achieved entry level! To reach entry level, one had to at least be able to inject origin qi into the blade. Beyond that lay proficiency and speed—completing the injection in an instant. After three days, he had not even crossed the threshold, let alone figured out how to accelerate and inject origin qi in the blink of an eye. "Do I really have to reach the Kaiyuan Ninth Layer first?" Su Yu sighed. He certainly wanted to reach the ninth layer first, but during these three days, he had also cultivated with blood essence once, only to discover the results were far worse than before. Opening the final aperture was agonizingly slow. At this rate, it would probably take at least a month. Last time, reaching the Kaiyuan Eighth Layer had taken twenty days, so a month for the ninth layer was already optimistic. Furthermore, it required quite a bit of blood essence. Su Yu had only two drops of Ironwing Bird blood essence left, and he needed to save one just in case. "Linking eight apertures... how do I direct the origin qi where I want it to go?" Origin qi was stubborn; it didn't just flow wherever you wished. Instead of continuing his saber practice, Su Yu sat down to the side, drank a cup of water, and began to ponder. *The Ironwing Bird skill unlocked by the album, Tear, gathers origin qi onto the palm, making the hand exceedingly sharp to rip through an enemy's defenses.* *However, the album ran that for me; I wasn't controlling it myself.* *Now, injecting origin qi into a blade follows the same principle. The album uses the power of blood essence rather than external origin qi, which functions on the same principle as the origin qi stored in my own body...* Pained by the cost, Su Yu had a rough idea of how to quickly master the basics of the Thunder Yuan Saber. He could use blood essence to activate Tear again, observing how the origin qi gathered and circulated. No one knew a person's body better than themselves. No matter how clearly Liu Wenyan's willpower text illustrated it, nothing compared to experiencing it firsthand. "Time to spend money again!" Thirty thousand for a single drop of blood—was it worth it just to try once and observe? To many, it was undoubtedly worth it. As for Su Yu, he didn't mind spending money either. He wasn't stingy; he was simply tight on funds right now. "Forget it, I'll use a drop! If I can ambush and kill a Qianjun Realm enemy later, the merit points will earn it right back, and I'll master the Thunder Yuan Saber in the process. All in all, it's still a win." Su Yu hadn't used that feature since activating the martial technique at the academy last time. Back then, he was at the Kaiyuan Fourth Layer; now, he was at the Kaiyuan Eighth Layer. Without further hesitation, Su Yu pulled a vial from his pocket. He always carried the blood essence with him in case of unexpected events. Having made his decision, Su Yu wasted no time. He swallowed a drop of blood essence. This time, instead of activating the Yuan Absorption Art, he triggered the Tear skill. His objective was far clearer than before. At this moment, the sensation was also far more direct. A surge of power manifested out of thin air within his body. This was energy converted from blood essence, similar to origin qi, yet closer to the innate strength of humanity. This power revolved around his apertures and rapidly coalesced. Su Yu's right hand quickly began to swell. Su Yu did not unleash the strike; instead, he silently focused on absorbing that sensation. His arm throbbed with swelling pain, but he could endure it. He experienced the feeling of origin unification, discerning the secrets of origin qi circulation. One minute, two minutes... Because Su Yu held back the eruption, his right hand had visibly ballooned. His physical body wasn't strong enough. This was the explosive force of the Qianjun Seventh Layer; the condensed power of the blood essence was so immense that it felt on the verge of tearing his arm apart. Su Yu continued to observe, using himself as an experiment, turning his own body into a research subject—just as many Civilization Masters did. If Liu Wenyan and Bai Feng were to witness this, seeing Su Yu remain stone-faced while letting his arm swell to its limit, they would probably scold him while unable to suppress their praise. This spirit of inquiry already matched the mindset of a Civilization Master. Inquiry... The heavens and myriad realms held far too many unknowns. Countless brilliant civilizations converged, and though the human race was strong, it could not dominate the heavens. Only by searching high and low, sparing no effort to explore and pursue knowledge, could humanity rise more swiftly. Innumerable Civilization Masters had served as pioneers, experimenting with new cultivation arts, modifying the techniques of the myriad races, ingesting various natural treasures, and forcibly altering their mortal frames to adapt to foreign manuals and secrets... Generation after generation of Civilization Masters had perished in their research chambers. Yet their achievements were extraordinary. Humanity's rapid rise and growing strength following the Anping Calendar were deeply intertwined with Civilization Masters. The Quest Realm, the holy land of Civilization Masters. Named "Quest," its purpose was exploring the unknown. Today, Su Yu knew nothing of that place. He hadn't thought that far ahead; he merely wanted to understand how to grasp the basics of the Thunder Yuan Saber. Yet here a Kaiyuan Eighth Layer warrior ran a martial technique with energy far beyond his capacity solely to observe the secrets of origin qi circulation. That was a questing heart—though undoubtedly tinged with the reckless bravery of the ignorant. ... Five minutes later, the power faded. By this point, Su Yu's right hand was an eyesore, swollen like a pig's trotter. Su Yu gritted his teeth. It hurt, certainly, but the pain could not overshadow his joy. He felt as though he had caught onto a lead. "I overlooked something." "Unifying origin qi doesn't just require aperture coordination; it also needs the physical body itself to cooperate, including the meridians, muscles, and everything else." "I kept treating the apertures as the foundation, but that was actually... an error in perspective!" "The ultimate purpose of apertures is to serve the body's strength." "Apertures are engines, but they aren't the whole machine." At this moment, Su Yu arrived at a profound realization. Apertures were things that absorbed origin qi, like a car's engine. Origin qi was fuel, but the body itself was the car—the wheels, the steering wheel. He had only known how to burn fuel without knowing how to steer. It had nothing to do with his apertures; it was primarily poor physical coordination. "I was just a bad driver. All the hardware is there. Failing to gather origin qi into the blade was simply because this driver didn't know how to drive..." Su Yu understood. A hearty thrill washed over him, making him forget the throbbing pain in his right hand. His teachers had mentioned these concepts before. Yet without firsthand experience, arm-chair theorizing was empty talk. If you wanted to know how many hours it took to fill a swimming pool while water was draining and pouring in, calculating it a hundred times would never leave an impression as deep as testing it yourself. Of course, that assumed you had a pool at home and weren't afraid of a beating—then you could certainly try it. Those scattered thoughts flashed past. Su Yu could hardly wait to try the Thunder Yuan Saber again, only for the searing pain in his arm to finally register. "Not today. I'll try again tomorrow. In any case, I've grasped the method for entry level; what comes next is merely practice." Su Yu was delighted—not just because he had found the method, but because he had unlocked another function of the album. Viewed simply, the album could only absorb origin qi and unleash martial techniques. Yet he had now exploited that skill activation to reveal the secrets of origin qi circulation. It even encompassed the aperture secrets the Ironwing Bird race might employ the moment they unleashed the skill. *This was an Ironwing Bird, whose physical structure differs too much from humans, making it less obvious. But what if it were a god or demon technique?* *Wouldn't I be able to... see far more?* ... Su Yu returned home to read, waiting for the next day's practice. By now, it was already June 8. Seventeen days remained until the higher academy examinations. At the same time. Great Xia Civilization Academy. Inside a colossal hall. Wan Tiansheng had convened a meeting of the academy's senior leadership. At that moment, Wan Tiansheng said slowly, "Prefect Xia has entered seclusion, and Marquis Xia is serving as acting prefect! You should all know what transpired during this morning's ceremony... I advised Marquis Xia to withdraw our forces. On the All-Heavens Battlefield, the Longwu Guards will soon withdraw back to the Great Xia Prefecture." The moment he finished speaking, an elderly man with white hair stood up and angrily rebuked, "Wan Tiansheng, you and Marquis Xia are in cahoots, thick as thieves! The Great Xia Prefecture has campaigned across the heavens for years, yet never have we retreated on the eve of battle!" "You are traitors to humanity, traitors to the Great Xia Prefecture! By law, you should be executed!" Wan Tiansheng took no offense, remaining calm. "If we go by your logic, Elder, then the people of the Great Zhou Prefecture and the Daming Prefecture are all traitors! To forget war brings peril; to love war brings ruin!" "How can they be mentioned in the same breath?!" The old man raged, "Love war? If humans do not fight, the Human Realm will become the next All-Heavens Battlefield! If the Great Xia Prefecture does not fight, if the Great Zhou Prefecture does not fight, if every prefecture ceases fighting, how can the Human Realm survive?" "Wan Tiansheng, you are a sinner!" Wan Tiansheng swept his gaze over the assembly below. Many wore indignant expressions. During the ceremony, his proposal to withdraw troops and let the Tianyi God Race buy their lives with resources had already stirred widespread dissatisfaction against him. Wan Tiansheng sighed inwardly, though he was used to it. To love war brings ruin! Many recited those words, but how many truly understood them? Was the Great Xia Prefecture powerful? Extremely powerful! Yet the prefecture had waged war year after year, spending far more than it took in. With every campaign, the gains were meager; sustaining war through war was simply unfeasible. The Great Xia Prefecture had to support the Longwu Guards, the Demon Suppression Army, the Great Xia Prefecture Army, along with massive death compensations... Across the entire prefecture, everyone took pride in dying in battle! Yet dying in battle meant they lost their lives, while the prefecture lost money. Far too much of it! Over the years, nearly a million soldiers had fallen in battle, and that was just in the Great Xia Prefecture alone. Xia Longwu cherished his troops, so death compensations were enormous—hundreds of thousands of Anping coins per person, not to mention various other benefits. As a result, the people of the Great Xia Prefecture feared no death. Many elderly warriors, aiming to secure a future for their descendants, fought ferociously on the battlefield with absolute disregard for their lives. Did these people realize the Great Xia Prefecture was already dipping into the reserves left behind from the King of Great Xia's era? In all his years in office, Xia Longwu had nearly depleted the accumulated family wealth! Countless thoughts flashed through Wan Tiansheng's mind before he quickly regained his composure. "A sinner? Whether I, Wan Tiansheng, am guilty is not for you to decide! Furthermore... I merely offered advice. The order came from Marquis Xia." "Marquis Xia..." The elderly man's face shifted, followed by a torrent of curses: "He is a pig! Aside from raking in money, what else can he do?" "Ahem, ahem!" Wan Tiansheng interrupted, "Elder Yun, mind your words; let's not make veiled accusations..." "I'm not making veiled accusations, I'm cursing him to his face!" The old man fumed, "Even if he stood right before me, I'd point at his nose and curse him!" "The Xia Trading Company monopolizes the cultivation resources of the entire Great Xia Prefecture—isn't that enough profit? That pighead Xia still wants to rake in more, scraping it right off the All-Heavens Battlefield! He should be beheaded as a sacrifice to the heavens!" The solemn atmosphere of the meeting suddenly took an odd turn. Below, someone from the younger generation chimed in, "Principal, with Marquis Xia in charge of the prefecture, he won't slash our salaries and bonuses, will he?" "Principal, could you suggest to Marquis Xia that the Xia Trading Company lower its prices? Things in the Daming Prefecture are much cheaper than here." "Principal, how long will Marquis Xia be acting prefect? A few years ago when the prefect went to the All-Heavens Battlefield, Marquis Xia was acting prefect too. In the end... the academy even started charging for using the latrines! That was absurd!" "..." Everyone's attention shifted toward Marquis Xia. Wan Tiansheng let out a quiet breath of relief. This was a good development; Marquis Xia was meant to take the blame, after all. Naturally, Marquis Xia was not as worthless as they claimed. With the Great Xia Prefecture running a deficit, Xia Longwu didn't care about finances, focusing solely on cultivation and warfare. If Marquis Xia hadn't been raking in money, the treasury would have run dry five years ago. In Wan Tiansheng's view, Marquis Xia was far better suited to be prefect than Xia Longwu. That the Great Xia Prefecture stood firm was largely Marquis Xia's doing. Outsiders, of course, could never understand this. They only saw Marquis Xia as a trouble-making heir living off his father's fame. If his father hadn't been the King of Great Xia, he would have been ambushed and beaten to death in an alley long ago. Ignoring the chatter, Wan Tiansheng brushed off a few remarks and cut straight to the point: "Now that Marquis Xia is acting prefect, this year won't be easy for anyone. Marquis Xia spoke with me earlier: the treasury has no money, and we must cut costs!" "Therefore, this year's new student intake will be reduced by five hundred." "Additionally, within the academy... certain institutions will be spun off." "And one critical point: from this day forth, anyone over fifty without will manifestation who does not serve as an academy instructor will no longer receive academy stipends." The moment those final words fell, the entire hall erupted! "Out of the question!" "How could this be!" "Principal, you are betraying the entire academy!" an elderly man roared. "In the Great Xia Civilization Academy, there are a full twenty thousand students over fifty who haven't achieved manifestation, and barely five hundred serve as instructors! If you cancel stipends for the remaining twenty thousand, how are they supposed to survive?" A cold glint appeared in Wan Tiansheng's eyes. Bloated beyond measure! Over the past fifty years, the Great Xia Civilization Academy had grown immensely in strength, boasting countless experts. Yet internal issues had undeniably begun to fester, and they were numerous. A legion of aging students who failed to manifest their will was dragging the academy toward collapse. He knew this proposal would face opposition. Tens of thousands of people, each receiving an annual stipend exceeding a hundred thousand—stipends alone cost several billion! Of course, these veteran students were deeply intertwined with the academy. Some had descendants studying here, while others had former classmates and teachers among the faculty. Cutting their stipends would trigger a massive tremor. Yet cutting costs was an absolute necessity. He could tolerate it no longer. When Xia Longwu was present, his plans had repeatedly failed to pass because Xia Longwu felt these people had contributed greatly to the prefecture and their loyalty shouldn't be chilled. Yet if no one was willing to make hard choices, disaster would strike sooner or later. This was true for a single Great Xia Civilization Academy; across the entire Great Xia Prefecture, such expenses amounted to an astronomical figure! No matter how adept Marquis Xia was at raking in money, he couldn't plug such a deficit. Growing pains were inevitable. Even if they couldn't understand today, he hoped they would in the future. With everyone's interests at stake, Wan Tiansheng did not waver under their outcry. His voice, though calm, easily suppressed the clamor. "This is an official decree from the Great Xia Prefecture. If any of you are dissatisfied, go take it up with Marquis Xia!" "Furthermore, research funding will be cut by thirty percent! Useless research projects may be scrapped immediately. The Review Court must take responsibility and stop approving every research project submitted, wasting massive funds without any results!" "Like that Fire Swine research... how many years has it been going on? They are cannon fodder on the All-Heavens Battlefield; we've slaughtered millions of them, if not tens of millions! What is left to research?" Wan Tiansheng barked, "Nonsense! With that energy, couldn't you research something else?" "Also, if you're conducting research, focus on the research! Don't get distracted by nonsense!" With that, without waiting for the crowd to protest, Wan Tiansheng dropped another bombshell: "After careful consideration and discussions with Marquis Xia, the All-Races Training Academy... will be reopened!" The moment those words were spoken, all other news was drowned out. At this moment, even several powerful figures who had remained silent spoke up coldly: "The All-Races Training Academy? Principal, this proposal was rejected years ago! Back then, the prefect personally went to the All-Heavens Battlefield and eradicated several races. Now you want to restart it—do you truly believe the prefect will never emerge from seclusion?" Wan Tiansheng replied calmly, "Everyone, if we do not accept the myriad races, does that mean the academy is free of spies from the All-Races Sect?" "That is different!" Someone barked, "The All-Races Sect is the All-Races Sect; they are not the races themselves! What is the point of accepting the myriad races?" "To take their money." Wan Tiansheng said bluntly, "Rather than having them send spies from the All-Races Sect, we might as well admit them directly. First, they will be right under our noses, closely watched. "Second, we can charge exorbitant admission fees. "Third, it's not just money, but vast amounts of resources, including secret cultivation arts. If they wish to enter the Great Xia Civilization Academy, they must pay a steep price. "This will reduce the support and resources they funnel to the All-Races Sect, landing those assets in our hands instead. "Fourth, it shows our goodwill. As long as they are not staunch enemies, we can form alliances! "Humanity ranks among the top ten strongest races in the heavens; we are not prey anyone can bite. Cooperation may prove far more advantageous than hostility!" Wan Tiansheng continued, "We aren't the only ones doing this. The God Race and Demon Race employ similar measures, bribing smaller races. They even open minor secret realms and sacred grounds to nurture and strengthen them, turning them into vanguards against humanity!" "Within the armies of the gods and demons, experts from minor races are common. In every battle, the casualties on the human side are inevitably humans, while those dying for the gods and demons might simply be minor races, leaving their own core strength unharmed. "Since the myriad races can plant spies among humans and cultivate the All-Races Sect, we have opportunities as well. For example, regarding these enrolled students from the myriad races—bribery, brainwashing, coercion, inducement... there will always be ways to win them over!" "Years from now, these individuals might become the vanguard of humanity's counterattack!" Wan Tiansheng said solemnly, "I admit there are drawbacks, and quite a few at that. But consider whether the harm outweighs the benefits, or the benefits outweigh the harm! With proper supervision, it will be even better than before. At the very least, you won't have to worry about the person next to you secretly belonging to the All-Races Sect!" "With members of the myriad races coming in person, the followers of the All-Races Sect will dwindle significantly. We won't repeat past mistakes of expending vast resources only to train experts for the All-Races Sect!" "..." Having presided over the academy for so many years, Wan Tiansheng had plenty of supporters, and murmurs of discussion broke out across the room. In a corner, Bai Feng yawned, looking bored. None of this concerned him, nor was it his place to voice an opinion. A mere assistant researcher held no sway here. As he sat there bored, Liu Hong smiled beside him and said, "Bai Feng, with the student intake reduced this year, won't your prospective student get cut? Also, seems your martial uncle is among those losing their stipends..." Bai Feng looked at him like he was an idiot. "My martial uncle achieved manifestation. Didn't you know? Sorry to disappoint, but he isn't on the cut list." "Manifestation?" Liu Hong truly hadn't known. In the eyes of the Civilization Academy, that wasn't a major affair; manifestation merely meant reaching the Tengkong First Layer. Liu Hong let the matter drop and smiled. "With research funding slashed, the academy is leaning toward reform. Future assessments for people like us will likely become stricter..." "Say what you want to say directly. I'm too tired to guess." Liu Hong took a deep breath. "Open Elder Hong's research institute to me. I'll inject funding so we can research together, and I can even provide resources you lack so we can share the results! Bai Feng, if you and I keep fighting, both of us will end up wounded!" Liu Hong said earnestly, "Elder Hong's institute hasn't reported any results in years. If this continues, it will be shut down as soon as someone pushes for it!" "Get lost!" Bai Feng gave no face, cursing bluntly before pausing to consider. "Actually, it's not entirely out of the question..." Liu Hong beamed with delight! "Deliver a few Shanhai Realm god and demon corpses to me first, and we can discuss the details." Bai Feng said with a straight face, "Seriously. If you want to partner up, you have to bleed a little. After all, we've researched for so many years and are on the verge of results." "You..." Liu Hong cursed inwardly. *Do you take me for a fool?* Bai Feng sneered. *If you aren't one, who is?* Bai Feng ignored him further, glancing up at Wan Tiansheng while musing silently. The academy was likely headed for turbulence soon; whether that was good or bad remained to be seen. The prefect entering seclusion, Marquis Xia stepping in as acting prefect... Why did this feel like the harbinger of a massive upheaval? *Nothing bad will happen, right?* Bai Feng sighed inwardly, hoping things would go smoothly. And that kid Su Yu... who knew how his cultivation was coming along these days.