Chapter 5: Demon Blade

“Gravity suit?”

Fang Xing winced inwardly.

In the interstellar age, adapting to varying gravity was a mandatory skill for warriors!

A gravity suit was a training aid that could easily adjust a warrior’s personal gravity.

Moreover, the gravity acted uniformly across the entire body, penetrating deep into cells—far more effective than any weighted training!

But the price was equally stunning…

“And there’s the B-rank martial art—Demon Blade—precondition for the A-rank ‘Ghost God Blade.’ Gu Yun is at most fourteen, already at peak First Stage, about to break into Second Stage, and has even begun mastering a B-rank martial art…”

“Compared to her, how do I feel like a waste?”

He sighed inwardly but didn’t slacken his grip, spinning his staff into a guard stance.

The next instant.

Whoosh!

A dark shadow flashed past, swift as a spirit cat; her wooden blade seemed infused with a demonic aura as it slashed through the air.

Crack!

Fang Xing felt a tremendous force surge through his arms—his wooden staff nearly flew from his grip, but he held on.

“I blocked it!”

“It’s not that I’m stronger than Liu Wei—it’s because she’s wearing a gravity suit! Her speed has slowed considerably, and her power too…”

He suddenly understood.

“Kill! Kill kill!”

Gu Yun’s face bore no trace of cuteness—only murderous intent. She unleashed Demon Blade again, her eyes bloodshot, as if she bore a blood feud with Fang Xing.

“Demon Blade… truly demonic. Such intense killing intent.”

Fang Xing felt like a tiny boat tossed in a raging storm, ready to capsize at any moment.

The B-rank martial art—Demon Blade—was inherently a demonic sword technique, containing hypnotic methods and mental cultivation designed to unlock a warrior’s full potential.

The negative emotions and psychological effects it brought were equally terrifying.

Without madness, there is no survival!

Supposedly, the A-rank ‘Ghost God Blade’ was even more horrifying!

After all, it was a terrifying art born in the era of humanity’s bloody war against alien races—capable of letting low-rank warriors face the servants of demons.

Suddenly, Fang Xing saw Gu Yun’s wooden blade strike—once, then again—two blade shadows merging into one, carrying double the force!

—Double Overlap Blade!

“No… I can’t block this.”

His staff flew from his hand as Gu Yun’s blade came down.

“Stop!”

In that instant, a deep voice rang out.

Gu Yun’s wooden blade halted inches from Fang Xing’s face, caught by a pale, jade-like hand.

“I couldn’t hold back in time… I failed again…”

Gu Yun seemed to snap out of a trance, gasping heavily as she stared at the middle-aged man suddenly appearing before her: “Dad…”

The middle-aged man stood over one-ninety, broad-shouldered; he merely shook his head: “Xiao Yun, don’t lose heart—you’ve improved much since last time… ‘Demon Blade’ was originally a pure demonic martial art, steeped in demonic essence. Practitioners inevitably leave behind rivers of blood and storms of death. But now its secrets have been unraveled: you must ‘gain the blade, then forget the blade’—defeat your enemy without killing, only then can you tame its demonic nature… Only at this level can you even attempt to learn the ‘Ghost God Blade.’ Otherwise, you risk madness, or worse—your qi and blood reverse, killing you instantly…”

After speaking, the man turned to Fang Xing and Liu Wei: “Thank you both. Today’s pay is doubled!”

“Thank you, boss!”

Hearing this, Liu Wei’s pain seemed to vanish—he immediately grinned.

…

Half an hour later.

Exiting Huizhong Jiangfu, Liu Wei fell silent, then finally cursed: “Fucking hell… if I’d known I was just a sparring dummy, I wouldn’t have come. Double pay barely covers medical bills… That guy looked like a professional, but he’s just as stingy.”

Fang Xing, however, replayed the man’s final words, shaking his head: “He actually gave us compensation—the secret to practicing Demon Blade… Natural families are better. This kind of direct, personal teaching is rare in schools—unless you catch Xia Long’s eye…”

“Damn, I get it now—that little bitch used us as tools. She’s practicing Demon Blade and can’t control it, so she needs living sacrifices to feed the blade. But once you do that, you’re plunged into the abyss. ‘Gain the blade, forget the blade’ means using your will to subdue the blade’s demonic nature—to defeat without killing, holding back. Only then is the blade truly mastered… Her dad hid in the shadows on purpose, watching, ready to stop her at the last second.”

Liu Wei wasn’t stupid.

Or rather, any bio-enhanced student in high school was basically elite—he frowned: “If Demon Blade is this hard, what about the A-rank ‘Ghost God Blade’?”

“But we really are just tools… at least we got paid.”

Fang Xing, with his golden finger to rely on, wasn’t too downcast—he smiled: “They paid us double!”

With this money, he could finally order the basic nano-protection suit.

“Hmph, we earned this with our injuries…” Liu Wei rubbed his shoulder, still grumbling: “I thought people living in Huizhong Jiangfu were all rich. Turns out they’re just middle-class…”

“‘Middle-class’ is a misnomer—do they even own property? ‘Middle-income group’ fits better…” Fang Xing retorted: “From how he arranged his daughter’s martial path, it’s clear this family isn’t wealthy…”

The truly wealthy just jumped straight into powered armor.

“Yeah, yeah—just middle-income, pretending to be rich…” Liu Wei laughed, his pain seeming to ease.

…

Xingfu Jiayuan Community.

“Already here?”

Fang Xing stared at the delivery at his door, scratching his head: “I just ordered this on the way…”

He carried the package inside, scanned his ID, and the box automatically opened, revealing a silver-white metal sphere inside.

Fang Xing pricked his fingertip, letting a drop of blood land on the sphere.

This wasn’t “blood oath”—it was letting the nano-suit memorize his DNA.

Ding!

After the soft chime, he followed the manual and pressed the sphere against his skin.

The silver-white sphere instantly “melted,” like liquid, spreading over his entire body.

“Hmm… lightweight, breathable…”

He moved—no resistance, negligible weight.

“Mask mode!”

At his command, a silver mask instantly formed over his face, with transparent film protecting his eyes.

“Full coverage protection… Color shift! Rose gold!”

At Fang Xing’s order, his nano-suit shifted colors rapidly, finally settling on pure white.

“At school, I don’t need to be this cautious…”

He thought for a moment, changing the suit into a white short-sleeve shirt, then lounged on the chair and picked up his holographic glasses: “Let’s play! Let’s play!”

Several hours later…

“Sigh… Guoran …”

Fang Xing lay on his bed, relaxed and satisfied: “I got sucked in again… Even after reincarnation, without my golden finger, I’d still be just a lazy fish…”

Accepting one’s mediocrity and weakness is also a test of growth.

Fang Xing knew clearly—he’d been a nine-to-five office drone, his history weak. Even if he’d been reborn in ancient times, he’d likely die from language barriers, disease, famine, or war.

In an alien world, it’d be worse—most of his modern knowledge and experience would be useless, especially in advanced technological worlds.

The only thing he could rely on was his golden finger.

Without it, he’d just accept fate passively.

“Lying around… is also wisdom.”

Fang Xing checked the time and forced himself to sleep—he had class tomorrow.

…

The next day.

Yucai High School.

The curvaceous Teacher Lan Fei spoke with a smooth, melodic voice: “…The demonic servants are divided into lower servants, upper servants, lower kin, and upper kin… Between upper kin and dominators lies another tier—the Demonic Offspring!”

“The Demonic Offspring’s corruption and power far exceed those of upper kin. Legends say the strongest Demonic Offspring possess power approaching that of lower dominators… But their birth conditions are extremely strict, their numbers rare—they’re not considered a true race…”

Fang Xing glanced beside him—empty.

Liu Wei was absent, injured—he’d taken a leave and was being treated at the school clinic.

“The school clinic’s healing pods can reattach severed limbs in seconds… and students get discounts. Liu Wei definitely wouldn’t pay for outside treatment…”

As he thought, Fang Xing took notes.

Suddenly, he lifted his head—he felt a gaze sweep over him.

“Her? Bai Lianyi?”

He saw a classmate with exquisite features, gazing at him thoughtfully.

Her skin was pale and smooth, like fine porcelain, radiating a delicate, refined aura. She wore a pure white training suit, with a black sash wrapped around her waist—adding a touch of crisp efficiency.

“So I wasn’t wrong back at Huizhong Jiangfu… She’s nervous now?”

As he pondered, class ended.

The environment shifted—soon, martial arts class would begin.

“Ah Xing, I’m back!”

Liu Wei ran over, his acne flushed and bouncy with energy.

Any student could skip academic classes—but no one would miss martial arts class.

A martial arts instructor like Xia Long would cost at least ten thousand star credits per hour as a private tutor outside!

“Feeling better?”

Fang Xing glanced sideways.

“Of course… full of vigor!” Liu Wei flexed his muscles.

The medical technology of the interstellar age truly lived up to its reputation; since his arm wasn’t broken, recovery was indeed swift.

“Master Xia has arrived!”

Fang Xing was about to say something when Xia Long entered the classroom; his gaze was like a tiger’s, sweeping the room, his voice ringing like a bell: “First, hold the stance! Then, practice the fists!”

“Yes!”

All students responded in unison, assuming the Great Dragon Stance with synchronized grace.

Fang Xing focused entirely, practicing the stance until he lost all sense of self and surroundings.

Suddenly, his spine felt as if whipped, like a kitten whose tail had been stepped on—every hair stood on end.

“Your stance is too rigid; pay attention to the third node along your spine…”

By his ear came Xia Long’s voice.

Fang Xing instinctively followed, feeling his skin tighten, his cultivation deepening another layer.

He snapped to attention and checked his attribute panel:

【Great Dragon Stance: 69/100 (Beginner)】

‘Finally, Master Xia gave me guidance again—there’s truly no comparison between having it and not having it…’