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    Starry Sky Professional Directory 26

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    Chapter 26: Birthday (Please Collect!)
    2024-06-29

    Chapter 26: Birthday (Please Collect!)

    The blade’s light was fierce, icy, and carried a soul-stirring magic!

    B-grade martial art—Demon Blade!

    Fang Xing had no doubt that even if it was just a wooden sword, in Gu Yun’s hand, it possessed the power to cleave stone!

    ‘This girl’s gone mad!’

    ‘Full power, does she really want to kill me?’

    Fortunately, Fang Xing was no longer the same.

    Facing this strike, he twisted his waist, his feet like a swimming dragon, instantly shifting several meters to avoid the range of the blade’s light.

    Military Boxing Twelve Forms—Swimming Dragon Step!

    Then, he took a half-step forward, his fist like a giant axe splitting the heavens, carrying earth-shattering might!

    —Half-Step Crushing Fist!

    Gu Yun slightly turned the blade’s handle, her body following the sword.

    In the blink of an eye, she had exchanged several moves with Fang Xing.

    Within the arena, only the figures were visible, blade light and fist shadows intertwined, the forceful wind pressing down!

    Clang!

    Suddenly, a sound like a snapping bowstring echoed.

    Fang Xing’s fist struck the wooden sword’s blade, but his entire body retreated several steps.

    ‘Damn… B-grade martial arts are just amazing.’

    In his heart, he felt a bit helpless.

    In terms of realm, he and Gu Yun were both at the second stage of Muscle Refinement, considered even.

    But in terms of martial arts, there was a significant difference.

    Demon Blade was a B-grade martial art, while Military Boxing Twelve Forms was a common C-grade martial art!

    ‘With the same realm, the usefulness of martial arts becomes significant.’

    ‘The Federation’s martial arts are obviously much stronger than those of the other world…’

    Although he had collected many martial arts manuals like picking up trash, Fang Xing didn’t consider any of them worthwhile.

    After all, the strongest one among them, “Primordial Gang Qi,” was only B-grade, and was limited to innate martial artists, meaning those who had reached the third stage of the Martial Dao, Jadeite Level, before they could begin cultivation.

    But in the Federation, second-stage martial artists could already learn B-grade martial arts!

    Simplifying high-level martial arts so that lower-realm martial artists could learn them was a great innovation of the Federation’s Martial Dao!

    That’s why Fang Xing looked down upon the martial arts of the other world and wanted to learn a powerful technique back home.

    For example, if he could master a foundational level of an A-grade martial art… in the other world, that would definitely be the combat power of an innate warrior!

    “You… have cultivated Demon Blade to the point of complete mastery?”

    Fang Xing looked at Gu Yun, his expression serious.

    Their realms were about the same, but their martial arts skills differed greatly!

    In terms of proficiency, being able to use Demon Blade with complete mastery should be at the “expert” level!

    ‘This is hilarious, not only is my Military Boxing Twelve Forms inferior in rank, but my proficiency is also lower than hers. This is a true top-tier student entering university.’

    He inwardly grumbled, sighing at the cultivation Gu Renwang (Gu Yun’s father) had given his daughter, which must have involved a tremendous amount of effort.

    “Kill!”

    Gu Yun didn’t answer; her eyes were blood-red, and she suddenly slashed with her sword!

    Swish!

    The blade light was exceptionally beautiful, instantly splitting into seven, the blade shadows multiple, locking down all of Fang Xing’s escape routes!

    Fang Xing’s expression didn’t change, but a talisman secretly appeared in his right hand.

    —Golden Bell Cover Talisman!

    With the defensive power of this first-grade, mid-level talisman, even a Jadeite Level martial artist wouldn’t be able to break through the defense in a short time.

    Moreover, combined with several offensive talismans, he could immediately make Gu Yun regret her actions!

    This was Fang Xing’s trump card! Even if he used it, he could simply say he unintentionally bought it from the black market as a paranormal item, specially made in a retro style. Anyone with a normal mind would think that way, rather than suspecting time travel.

    But his eyes moved, and he forcibly held back, watching the wooden sword fall towards his forehead, stopping less than a centimeter from his eyebrows.

    Opposite him, Gu Yun’s expression was cold, like ten thousand years of ice, but her eyes were clear, like crystal.

    “Congratulations…”

    A smile appeared on Fang Xing’s face.

    If Gu Yun continued, he would definitely activate the talisman at the last moment.

    But at the critical moment, he decided to trust Gu Yun once, after all, he owed her father a favor from the last Evil God Cultist attack.

    The facts proved she didn’t disappoint him.

    “Mastering the demonic nature, you can now try to learn the A-grade martial art ‘Ghost God Blade’…”

    Fang Xing sighed: “And you still have several years to improve your cultivation. As long as you break through to the Jadeite Level in your senior year of high school, getting into university is a sure thing…”

    “Not several years, I’ll be a freshman next semester, senior!”

    Gu Yun said.

    “What? Your age?”

    Fang Xing was slightly surprised.

    “Special admission… besides, it’s only a year or two earlier. The principal also gave me a scholarship!” Gu Yun coldly said: “I can’t wait any longer, I need to go to the battlefield as soon as possible to avenge my father!”

    “It seems you’re planning to go to a military academy or join the army after graduation…”

    Fang Xing sighed, already understanding Gu Yun’s plans.

    “Actually, going to university is just to fulfill my father’s wishes…” Gu Yun only showed a trace of warmth in her eyes when mentioning her father, but it quickly turned cold: “Okay, I’ve already finished hiring you today, I’ll transfer the money to your account.”

    “It feels kind of strange, junior…”

    After being chased out of the villa, Fang Xing’s expression was a bit strange: “No matter what, we’ll be classmates in the future, why are you so impolite… at least invite me to stay for a cup of tea.”

    Gu Yun should be entering Yucai High School, becoming his freshman junior.

    After all, by next semester, he would be a sophomore.

    “Thinking about it, there are only two years left until the college entrance examination, how scary…”

    Fang Xing glanced at his own martial arts realm and pouted.

    Now, he had gone from a large gap to being slightly inferior to Gu Yun.

    After all, before, Gu Yun had to use the gravity suit to hold back; today, she fought without reservation, narrowly losing by one move.

    In a few months, he could probably surpass her and leave her far behind.

    “Although… surpassing a girl younger than me isn’t something to be proud of…”

    “I still need to learn an A-grade martial art as soon as possible…”

    Fang Xing sighed.

    Immediately, he recalled the information he had collected.

    “The school doesn’t teach many A-grade martial arts, the most widespread are only three: the first is ‘Ghost God Blade,’ known as a blade that leaves no ghost or god behind, but it is extremely difficult to learn; it’s best to start with ‘Demon Blade’…”

    “Besides that, there are ‘Crazy Eighteen Strikes’ and ‘Mad Demon Staff Technique’!”

    “The names sound terrifying, and they are. To withstand the mental pollution of alien Evil God Cultists in the first three realms, one must go mad!”

    “Or maybe… if I go mad first, you can’t drive me mad anymore. The person who created this martial art is a true logic genius!”

    “Among them, the most suitable for me is ‘Crazy Eighteen Strikes’… because it’s a follow-up to ‘Military Boxing Twelve Forms,’ both are fist and foot techniques.”

    “If I don’t want to learn those, there are also sword techniques and staff techniques…”

    “No way, I want to learn swordsmanship! A flying sword, flowing white robes, that’s the style of a sword immortal… wielding a blade or staff is too bloody and brutal, it’s unrefined and spoils the scenery…”

    Honestly, if he had a choice, Fang Xing definitely wouldn’t choose these three.

    Unfortunately… the school’s options are limited, only these three A-grade martial arts.

    Of course, there are many martial artists outside, and there are certainly A-grade sword techniques, but Fang Xing doesn’t have the money to hire a private instructor.

    What’s more… the other party may not teach as well as the school teachers.

    “Although Xia Long might not be as good as some top martial artists, at least the lower limit is high…”

    “It seems I’ll be learning ‘Crazy Eighteen Strikes’ next semester… my image, my style…”

    Thinking of this, Fang Xing felt heartbroken.

    Beep beep!

    Just as he was feeling heartbroken, his phone suddenly rang again.

    He took out his phone and saw a message, his expression becoming silent.

    The next day.

    July 17th.

    Sunset, the evening glow like blood.

    A barbecue stall.

    Fang Xing sat at the stall, with several bottles of drinks in front of him.

    Well, the Federation is very strict about alcoholic beverages. Underage drinking is prohibited, and shops won’t sell alcohol.

    Therefore, he could only drink juice and soda.

    ‘I’m so angry, minors aren’t allowed to gamble or go to red-light districts…’

    With a trace of resentment, Fang Xing fiercely bit into the grilled meat in front of him.

    It has to be said that in this era, shop owners who can open shops all have unique skills. This grilled meat is tender, has a good chewy texture, and is sprinkled with various spices. One bite, and the full-bodied juice almost overflows.

    The key is that the price is also cheap, no wonder the previous Fang Xing and Liu Wei, being poor, would find opportunities to come here for a treat.

    But for the current Fang Xing, the grilling skills and spices are good, but the quality of the meat is lacking.

    Although the shop owner uses high-quality meat, how can it compare to the all-natural, spirit-nurtured various exotic birds and beasts of the other world?

    ‘Well, I can buy some barbecue spices… when I go to the other world, I’ll grill some demon beast meat to try…’

    ‘Occasionally, there’s demon beast meat for sale in the market, and recently, due to the frequent appearance of demon beasts, there’s been a big price drop…’

    According to the news he heard from Ding Hongxiu, demon beast meat greatly replenishes Qi and blood, even better than low-grade Spirit Rice!

    Unfortunately, this depends on luck and can’t be obtained stably, but it’s still a favorite of many top martial artists and body cultivators.

    That’s right!

    Among cultivators, besides spell cultivators, there are also some esoteric body cultivators, whose physiques are said to be astonishing. When they reach a high level of cultivation, they can use their bare hands to block magical artifacts, and low-level spells can hardly harm them!

    ‘However… the prerequisite for becoming a body cultivator is still to have a spiritual root! Without a spiritual root, one can’t even sense or absorb the spiritual energy of heaven and earth to refine the body…’

    ‘Everything depends on this dead end of the spiritual root. Otherwise, the efficiency of utilizing resources in the other world could be increased by ten or even a hundred times!’

    Fang Xing took another sip of his drink and silently sighed in his heart.

    Not long after, a figure sat down in front of him, unceremoniously picking up a cup and drinking it down: “A Xing… happy birthday!”

    It was Liu Wei!

    “You came?”

    Fang Xing also picked up his cup and took a small sip.

    Although it was just a drink, it also gave him a slightly tipsy feeling.

    The Liu Wei sitting opposite him seemed like a different person.

    Although his appearance was still the same, his temperament was completely different, his clothes were almost bursting with muscles, like a bodybuilder.

    “I came…” Liu Wei didn’t know what to say, so he could only remain silent.

    “You shouldn’t… forget it.” Fang Xing grumbled, not wanting to play the wuxia style anymore: “We’re all classmates, I’m very happy that you came to celebrate my birthday.”

    Hearing this, the corner of Liu Wei’s mouth seemed to curl slightly, then quickly smoothed out.

    (End of Chapter)

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