Shackles of Humanity

Luo Kai settled in peacefully, working from sunrise to sunset. He had always enjoyed being close to nature, so he didn’t feel the slightest bit of discomfort. In fact, he found it quite pleasant.

Shangjing University upheld a ”pyramid” educational philosophy: selecting the elite from among the elite. The system was incredibly strict, employing an elimination system for those ranked last, similar to the way Tibetan mastiffs are bred. Every month, students underwent a series of assessments. If a student continuously ranked at the bottom, they faced the possibility of expulsion. New students would then be brought in to fill the vacancies. After all, countless people outside were desperately waiting for a chance to enroll.

Of course, the school also gave underperforming students a grace period, which was the very reason for Rufeng Valley’s existence. Around a dozen students lived in the valley, all sent here to perform hard labor as punishment for failing assessments or committing infractions. This punishment typically lasted for three to five months. If their performance showed no improvement during this time, they would truly be expelled.

Though the valley wasn’t large, it contained several hundred acres of rice paddies, along with an orchard and vegetable gardens on the hillside. Previously, the work wouldn’t have been so difficult, as there were always busy and slack seasons in farming. But ever since the Star Energy had swept past Earth a few days prior, the weeds had begun to grow with abnormal vigor. Weeds they cleared one day would be back by the next. They spent most of their time pulling weeds, leaving them with almost no time to attend classes. Every few days, an instructor from the school came to inspect. If they found any weeds, they would note a demerit in the students’ personal evaluations. As a result, the students here were miserable but could only grit their teeth and persevere, hoping to escape this sea of suffering as soon as possible.

Fortunately, Luo Kai had arrived. He was already an expert farmer, and he had also achieved a resonance with plants. All day, he would merge his frequency with the surrounding flora. With a mere thought, all the weed seeds would avoid the area. Furthermore, he had now discovered the use of the Zilan: it attracted the omnipresent Active Energy between Heaven and Earth to gather here. While the amount wasn’t large, it produced a significant change in young life forms like plants, causing them to grow even more lushly.

A few days later, the people in the valley noticed the changes in the fields. Not only were the weeds gone, but the rice plants had each grown as large as a shrub. The full, heavy grains drooped all the way to the ground. Everyone marveled at the sight, clicking their tongues in amazement. Unaware of the true cause, they muttered about the Bodhisattva’s blessing. They finally had time for Cultivation and attending lectures.

”Luo Kai, are you coming to class? Teacher You is holding a public lecture on Body Techniques today,” a short and stout young man, Xiaopang, called out as he rushed to Luo Kai’s small wooden cabin.

Luo Kai broke his frequency connection with the plants and opened his eyes. Shaking his head with a smile, he said, ”I’m not going. You guys go on ahead.”

Xiaopang hesitated, but said no more and turned to leave. ’This new guy is so weird,’ he thought. ’He never goes to class or practices his Body Techniques. He just spaces out all day. Sometimes he’ll just stand by the creek for an entire day. If someone didn’t call him for meals, he’d probably stand there until the end of time.’

...

Luo Kai stood up and walked out of the cabin. As the warm light of the morning sun shone down, he closed his eyes slightly. Water molecules from the air and the vibrant, thriving Active Energy of the plants were continuously absorbed through his skin, gradually transforming every one of his cells. A feeling of surging vitality welled up inside him. He felt as if he no longer needed to eat or drink; he could sustain his body’s functions just by absorbing the Energy between Heaven and Earth. This state was somewhat similar to the realm of Avoiding Grain from Daoist legends.

The Severing Blade, planted in the ground by the door, sensed its master and immediately began to hum in the wind. The blade vibrated with exceptional intensity as an invisible, malevolent aura radiated outward. It craved slaughter and yearned for Destruction.

Luo Kai sighed, leaning down to stroke it gently. Only then did the violently vibrating blade gradually grow still.

By now, he and the Severing Blade seemed to have established a miraculous connection. Man and blade could sense each other even when separated by thousands of meters. It was as if the Severing Blade had become a part of his body, an extension of his very bloodline. To be more precise, it was as if the Severing Blade had become his child. It would often emit frequencies at him that felt like a child throwing a tantrum. Just now, for instance, it had been complaining to him about how much it disliked its current dull and tedious life.

This phenomenon was miraculous, but there were real-world precedents. A chef immersed in the culinary arts or a butcher who regularly slaughtered dogs and cattle could distinguish their own knife from an identical one. The same was true for an electrician’s favorite wrench, or even a pendant an ordinary person wore for many years. When a person and an object spend a long time together, a mystical connection forms between them. If separated, a Treasure Sword might gather dust, a kitchen knife might lose its edge, and a tool might no longer feel right in the hand... unless it could find a new, compatible master.

In Pang Kun’s hands, the Severing Blade had been just a sharp Fierce Weapon. In Luo Kai’s hands, however, it had undergone a miraculous change. Its Spirituality was growing stronger and stronger, to the point of developing a sort of self-awareness. In comparison, though the jet-black Yao Yue Sword was an Energy Weapon, it was nothing more than a tool.

Luo Kai pulled his thoughts back to the present and left the cabin, strolling through the fields. Wherever he went, the waves of rice paddies gently rippled, as if vying with one another to send him frequencies of warmth and affection.

At the edge of the valley stood a brick dormitory where the students lived. Luo Kai had grown increasingly fond of peace and quiet, and most students who loved Body Techniques didn’t pay much mind to hygiene. The condition of the dorms was truly an eyesore; the words ”dirty and messy” didn’t even begin to describe it. That was why he didn’t live with them, having built a small wooden cabin for himself in the valley instead.

In front of the dormitory was a small training ground where two bare-chested young men were sparring and testing their moves. One of them, a young man with thick eyebrows and large eyes named Gan Zhi, was using a fighting technique similar to Muay Thai, a form of elbow and knee Combat Skills. As he dodged and weaved, his elbow strikes were like blades and his knees were like the wind. His assault was incredibly fierce—far stronger than what Luo Kai had seen Gu Cai use back at Pan Shi Sports School.

Sparring with Gan Zhi was a tall young man, nearly two meters in height. He had a powerful, stocky build and was using the Immovable Body technique to calmly counter the attacks.

Shangjing University was truly worthy of its name as a Holy Land for Body Technique Cultivators. These two were both fighting at a level above the Middle Stage. If they could break through their limitations and grasp the subtle uses of Spiritual Power, they could advance to become High-level Martial Artists. The fact that two people of their caliber had been relegated to Rufeng Valley spoke volumes about how fierce the competition at Shangjing University truly was.

Of course, their spar was beneath Luo Kai’s Dharma Eye. His own realm had gradually transcended ordinary Combat Skills, reaching a level where technique bordered on the Dao itself. With a mere wave of his hand or shift of his foot, he could stir the external Energy around him. Combined with the explosive power generated by his own qi and blood circulating at high speed, he could even hold his own in an all-out battle against a Body Master. His Cultivation Method was completely different from everyone else’s; there was nothing for him to learn from them. He could only rely on himself to feel his way forward. Thus, there was no need for him to attend any lectures. It would be a complete waste of time. He figured only an exchange between Body Masters might pique his interest.

In the end, the path of Body Techniques was a contest of Power and speed. Upon reaching the Body Master realm, one could crush opponents with pure Power alone, rendering simple techniques unnecessary. A battle between Body Masters, however, was on another level entirely. Beyond the Body Master realm, the focus shifted to methods of manipulating Energy—that is, the Dharma Gates governing how energies generate and counter one another. Water can extinguish fire, and fire can melt metal. But if one could transform the Power of Sharp Gold to mimic the subtlety of Soft Water, one could even counter the power of fire.