Li Chuan had many questions in his mind.
For example, why had Mu Ge already possessed abilities? And how many others at Fuyao Academy had awakened special abilities early on?
Li Chuan was well aware of Sheng Xin’s family background and influence, but he knew nothing about the power behind Mu Ge. Still, he believed it would not be weak.
And then, what exactly was “Tian Ren”? What were the Nine Laws of “Tian Ren”?
And then again…
In short, there were many questions, but for now, what mattered most to Li Chuan was eating.
He really was not full.
It was unbearable.
He did not have the enormous stomach of the dragon tribe. His stomach was the normal size of an average human. He had eaten far beyond its capacity in one sitting. Though he could digest it all, having his stomach bloated like a balloon was not comfortable.
He was so stuffed that he could neither stand nor sit, and even breathing was difficult.
The worst part was that even after being this full, he still felt hungry, with a violent hunger gnawing at him from inside.
If this kept up for too long, Li Chuan felt he might really end up eating people.
He rushed to the library. The Fuyao branch’s library was open 24 hours. Li Chuan registered his name, received a new student library card, and dashed inside.
Standing in the library filled with books, Li Chuan suddenly remembered something.
What was the name of that book? And who was the author?
He had been in such a hurry to eat that he had forgotten to ask.
At that moment, Mu Ge followed behind him and slowly said, “It’s called How to Survive on Five Yuan a Month After Being Reformed by Earth Dragon Marrow. The author is Nie Yuanqing.”
“This book title… is it really that straightforward?” Li Chuan asked.
Mu Ge replied, “Not just the title. The contents are straightforward too.”
Li Chuan used the library index to locate the book. He pulled out the book with the unusually long title and quickly flipped through it.
Li Chuan did not need to spend time reading. He only had to glance at each page once, and its contents would be imprinted deeply in his mind. When he needed to use the knowledge, he could just search through his memory like a computer and retrieve that specific page.
If he needed to thoroughly understand the meaning, he simply had to read the book once, close his eyes, and recall it like watching a slideshow. The entire content would then become clear to him.
Mu Ge watched as Li Chuan finished reading the 100-page book in just two minutes, and the corners of his eyes twitched.
“Do you always read like this?” Mu Ge asked.
While recalling the book’s contents, Li Chuan nodded in response, even amidst his intense focus.
Mu Ge said, “With learning abilities like yours, you’re bound to be cursed by the heavens. No wonder you got sick.”
Li Chuan had no time to respond. He was still processing the knowledge from the book.
The book was actually very easy to read. Nie Yuanqing had a very blunt writing style. His writing was not meticulous, more like a spontaneous oral account without any editing.
Nie Yuanqing described in detail all his experiences after injecting Earth Dragon Marrow: the burning pain, the joy of becoming stronger, the unbearable hunger, and the embarrassment of having no money.
He said he went mad from hunger too, since he would not eat people. When he encountered the Extreme Heat Wind, he thought, since he had high heat resistance, why not try eating the wind?
He rushed into the Extreme Heat Wind, opened his mouth, and inhaled the fiery wind with all his might. But only his outer body could withstand it. His lungs could not. His respiratory tract and lungs were instantly scorched, and the pain made him roll on the ground.
Nie Yuanqing wrote in the book, “At the time, I thought, if my lungs can’t handle this temperature, what about my skin? Doesn’t my skin have high resistance? I remember once reading a cultivation manual about opening all the pores. I can’t recall the title, just that it was one of the many books in the library. I tried opening all my pores and inhaling the hot wind into my body. After about ten minutes, I fainted. But when I woke up, I found that I was full.”
Li Chuan: “…”
He flipped to that page and showed it to Mu Ge. “Nie Yuanqing really wrote his book in such a vague way?”
Mu Ge nodded solemnly and explained, “There are 57 different books in the library about opening pores. Someone even read and practiced every single one of them, but none of them succeeded in absorbing the Extreme Heat Wind.”
“Nie Yuanqing also looked through all 57 books. He said he just couldn’t remember which one it was.”
Nie Yuanqing wrote three thousand words describing his vague memories about those books, filled with colloquial expressions that became harder and harder to follow the more he tried to explain.
Mu Ge said, “In the end, everyone could only conclude that Nie Yuanqing had exceptional talent. In a life-or-death moment, he comprehended a mysterious technique. You’d better give up.”
“I’ll read all 158 books first before giving up,” Li Chuan replied.
“Why 158? Wasn’t it 57?” Mu Ge asked.
Li Chuan flipped to the last page of the book, an appendix listing Nie Yuanqing’s borrowing records from the library. There were 101 entries.
Nie Yuanqing had also mentioned that many books he read were finished inside the library and thus had no borrowing record. The 101 listed books were only part of what he had actually read.
He compiled the list because it was all he could find from the borrowing records, and he hoped it could help others who wanted to learn the same technique.
“These 101 books have already been read by others,” Mu Ge reminded him.
Li Chuan nodded and said, “I still want to try reading them myself.”
“It’s already very late. Tomorrow at ten in the morning, you have to go to the training grounds and study Star Dust Technique with the instructor,” Mu Ge said.
Li Chuan asked, “Was that announced during the orientation assembly? Are there any important things to note?”
Mu Ge said, “Nothing special. Just that if you’ve already learned another technique, you don’t need to go.”
Li Chuan noticed that Mu Ge had said “you have to go” rather than “we have to go” and asked, “You’re not going, right?”
“No, I don’t need to study Star Dust Technique,” Mu Ge answered honestly.
At Fuyao Academy, those with special abilities had to conceal their strength, but in the Multiverse Realm, that was no longer necessary.
Li Chuan asked, “Is your ability to sense other people’s thoughts innate or acquired through cultivation?”
“Innate. And I can’t sense everyone’s thoughts. Only when someone’s thoughts are related to me can I perceive them. Back in the cafeteria, you had a smug sense of triumph, imagining stepping on me. It was obnoxious and very punch-worthy. That was completely different from how I used to see you.”
That was why Mu Ge had taken the initiative to talk to Li Chuan. The once aloof academic now seemed so worldly, it had caught Mu Ge off guard.
Li Chuan thought for a moment and asked, “You don’t need to study Star Dust Technique because you were born with your abilities, or because you studied another technique earlier?”
These things were no longer secret in the Multiverse Realm. Mu Ge did not hide anything and answered frankly, “The ruling families of the Five Major Districts of Huaxia all have exclusive cultivation methods. Their children begin training from a young age.
“But special abilities are not guaranteed. Even among the top families in the Five Districts, only about one percent awaken them.
