[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-star-martial-era":3,"chapter-the-star-martial-era-the-star-martial-era-chapter-12":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","The Star Martial Era",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2274870,4448,"Chapter 12: Can It Be Solidified?","the-star-martial-era-chapter-12",12,"\u003Cp>A black shadow suddenly burst from the roadside, startling Xu Jin so badly he stumbled backward and immediately assumed the stance of the Five Stars Killing Fist.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Jin-ge, it’s me!” The shadow stepped forward and spoke.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By the starlight, Xu Jin recognized the figure: “Liu Ji?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Jin-ge, it’s me! Jin-ge, please help me too—I want to succeed at Star Pointing too!” Liu Ji pleaded urgently.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Huh? I’ve already told you all my experience with Star Pointing—honestly, not a single secret held back!” Xu Jin said sincerely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing Liu Ji’s desperate expression, Xu Jin roughly understood: over the past two days, Qian Xiaohu, Sha Youtian, and others had successively succeeded at Star Pointing, and Liu Ji—who had always sworn he was about to succeed—was now panicking.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Jin-ge, please help me! If I can’t point the star, I’m finished!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In his desperation, Liu Ji immediately dropped to his knees to beg, but Xu Jin quickly blocked him—this bow could not be accepted lightly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After thinking it over, Xu Jin carefully said, “Liu Ji, the senior brothers who’ve already succeeded at Star Pointing say taking Xingshen Pills might offer a slight advantage—you could buy a few and try.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Ji’s face contorted in anguish. “I already bought them—I’ve taken four already, and still haven’t succeeded!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That’s all I know. Keep pushing—you’ve still got several days left. You’ve worked so hard, you’ll succeed.” Xu Jin offered encouragement.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Jin-ge, I heard from Brother Luo and others that if you take one Xingshen Pill each morning and evening in the final days, your chance of success is very high—so please help me!” Liu Ji suddenly said.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Jin froze, then suddenly understood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This kid knew about Xingshen Pills, had already taken four, and now came to him—not to ask for advice, but to borrow silver.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Liu Ji, you know my situation—I have no spare funds. I want to help you, but I can’t.” Xu Jin said sincerely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Jin did have a few Xingshen Pills himself, but they were his cultivation resources, tied to his future and his family’s safety—he absolutely could not lend them out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If he had the means, Xu Jin would help others—but he would never be a fool who gave indiscriminately.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No, Jin-ge, if you want to help me, you can.” Liu Ji pressed urgently.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Jin frowned, confused.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The Tianhe Gang in the county seat has already announced: anyone who has succeeded at Star Pointing and is willing to vouch or guarantee someone else can borrow one hundred taels of silver without collateral.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Jin-ge, you’ve succeeded—you’re qualified. You just need to show up and vouch for me, and you’ll help me! Please!” Liu Ji pleaded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’ll repay you the moment I succeed at Star Pointing!” Liu Ji added again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Jin stared fixedly at Liu Ji, his expression suddenly turning cold.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fuck—he never imagined Liu Ji, his own dormmate, was this kind of scumbag.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Getting the Tianhe Gang to guarantee a loan? This wasn’t helping—he was selling Xu Jin out to help Liu Ji.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And why not ask Luo Geng, who taught you?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You think I’m an idiot? Get lost!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Jin turned on him, shoving Liu Ji hard enough to send him stumbling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Honestly, after just two days of refining his body, plus the Blood-Reviving and Foundation-Strengthening Pills, Xu Jin’s small frame was already growing strong at an alarming rate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Jin-ge, please!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Ji had been about to kneel again, but Xu Jin walked straight into the dorm without even glancing back—giving him no chance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Watching Xu Jin’s retreating back, Liu Ji slowly rose from his half-kneeling position, his face dark.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Jin-ge, Jin-ge, Liu Ji asked me to vouch for him to borrow silver—he said anyone who’s succeeded at Star Pointing can get one hundred taels from the Tianhe Gang just by signing a note. I was going to refuse, but he was about to kneel and beg, so I couldn’t say no.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You agreed?” Xu Jin, who had just lain down, shot upright at Qian Xiaohu’s words.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Not yet—I said I’d think about it tomorrow,” Qian Xiaohu stammered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’re thinking of saying yes?” Xu Jin raised an eyebrow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“He looks so pitiful...”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Pitiful?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Jin sneered. “Then think—what if he never succeeds at Star Pointing?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qian Xiaohu’s expression hardened. He opened his mouth to speak, but Xu Jin continued: “And do you really think the Tianhe Gang is lending you one hundred taels because you’re so charismatic? Because of your background? Your strength? Or because they’re doing you a favor? Or just for the interest?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Jin-ge, I understand—thank you for the warning,” Qian Xiaohu said, his face filled with gratitude.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Good—he’d given Qian Xiaohu all the advice he would. If the boy still didn’t listen, there was nothing more he could do.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only now did Xu Jin fully realize: Liu Ji wasn’t treating him as a fool—he was casting a wide net, hunting for fools. One successful trick was enough.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Someone like this? He must keep his distance—and if he ever had to deal with him, he must stay alert.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On June 14, morning practice was unchanged, but after lunch, Qian Xiaohu woke Xu Jin early and hurried him to the training hall outside the Dao Academy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After succeeding at Star Pointing, some content of the Star Martial Six Arts classes changed—they were now taught separately.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Star Martial Six Arts were: Killing, Tracking, Forging, Herbalism, Beast Taming, and Sea Exploration.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only the first four were currently offered, and among them, Killing and Tracking were now taught separately for those who had succeeded at Star Pointing versus those who hadn’t.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Jin and Qian Xiaohu arrived early, but over a dozen youths were already seated in the outer academy’s training hall. After finding seats, they waited about ten minutes before Instructor Cui Tianqi arrived.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Instructor Cui Tianqi had a full beard, an immensely muscular build, like a man-bear—intimidating at first glance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Jin counted: sixty-three people total.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Meaning, of the four hundred sixty students in this Star Pointing season, only sixty-three had succeeded—success rate under twenty percent—alarmingly low.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hmm, seven more have succeeded—good.” Instructor Cui Tianqi’s gaze swept over Xu Jin, slightly surprised. He still remembered the boy, delivered back by the county guards.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Especially that excuse: “Star Pointing hopeless, heart filled with sorrow”—he’d wanted to slap him then.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet he’d succeeded. “Since we have new members, today’s lesson will again cover the most basic Star Power application of the Five Stars Killing Fist—until the end of this season. Those who don’t wish to listen may leave.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this, Yue Daqi, sitting alone, rose and bowed to Cui Tianqi before leaving. Then Ren Xiaoxiang and Zhou Du, the second and third to succeed, also bowed and departed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only three left.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Good. Lu Xianbing, show these new junior brothers your Five Stars Killing Fist.” Instructor Cui said.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Xianbing was a tall, lanky youth with long limbs, a determined face, and a sturdy frame—clearly from a good family.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After bowing to the instructor and the youths, he stepped back, assumed the opening stance of the Five Stars Killing Fist—and in that instant, starlight flared beneath his clothes: on his neck, hands, and left ankle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Fourth Level!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Fourth Level of Canxia!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“So fast!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The youths gasped; Xu Jin and Qian Xiaohu stared in envy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A Canxia Fourth Level Star Warrior was highly sought after in the county seat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yin-Yang!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With a low cry, Lu Xianbing’s hands moved rapidly, forming a circular half-shield of starlight before him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As if to demonstrate, Instructor Cui casually picked up a long spear and thrust it at Lu Xianbing’s star shield—its speed fierce, whistling through the air.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Xianbing merely held the shield firm—and the spear was stopped dead, then fell to the ground.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then he moved again—raising ten thousand stones.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His fists and kicks struck in rapid succession; each blow, whether from fist or toe, was coated in starlight, which scattered upon impact.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His final strike: a punch directly at the green stone beside the training hall.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>BOOM!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Stone chips flew.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A fist-sized dent, an inch deep, was carved into the stone—several youths seated nearby recoiled in shock.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This is called Star Radiance. The star shield from the first technique, Yin-Yang, are all practical applications of the Five Stars Killing Fist—the most basic, lowest-tier star techniques—but they can only be activated through martial forms.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But don’t underestimate them as basic techniques. The most fundamental are the most important—and at critical moments, they’re vital.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>While the youths were still stunned by Lu Xianbing’s display, Instructor Cui began explaining.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Five Stars Killing Fist had four stages: Novice, Minor Mastery, Major Mastery, and Perfection.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These stages were defined by whether one could produce Star Radiance: only after completing a full three-move sequence could one generate Star Radiance or a star shield—that was Minor Mastery. Any single move producing Star Radiance was Major Mastery. Producing Star Radiance or a shield without any form, merely by raising a hand or stepping a foot—that was Perfection.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Minor Mastery was easy; Major Mastery was hard; Perfection was harder still!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Those with exceptional talent could reach Minor Mastery in three to five days, Major Mastery in two or three months—but to reach Perfection required two or three years of grueling practice.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Most people reached Minor Mastery in two or three months, Major Mastery in two or three years—but Perfection? Uncertain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If one could cultivate the Five Stars Killing Fist to Minor Mastery, not only would combat effectiveness skyrocket, but body refining speed would also increase dramatically. If one could master even one or two techniques to Minor Mastery, the time to break through to Canxia Fifth Level would be greatly reduced.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then Instructor Cui demonstrated the Five Stars Killing Fist himself—his every gesture produced star shields and star radiance at will, appearing anywhere he chose. Xu Jin was stunned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This guy wasn’t human—he was a walking mecha!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing the youths’ awestruck expressions, Big-Bearded Cui clearly enjoyed their awe and admiration. He explained many details of force manipulation, especially the timing and sequence of force in body refining—many youths were lost, but Xu Jin listened, entranced.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It matched everything he’d learned in the Star Lamp—many of his doubts suddenly cleared.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Many youths began practicing on the spot, asking Instructor Cui for corrections.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After listening for a while, Xu Jin simply sank his mind into the Star Lamp and began practicing inside it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Practicing live consumed Star Power; practicing before Canxia First Level couldn’t even produce basic star techniques like the star shield.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Inside the Star Lamp, Xu Jin had no fear of Star Power depletion—he could pour everything into it. When he hit a block or didn’t understand something, he’d step out, ask Cui Tianqi, then pretend to demonstrate a few moves before sinking back into the Star Lamp.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Time flew under these conditions, but Xu Jin’s progress was immense.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After more than an hour of repeated questions and practice, inside the Star Lamp, Xu Jin could now consistently produce a star shield when performing the Yin-Yang technique.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, only after completing the full three-move sequence—that meant he’d achieved Minor Mastery of the first technique, Yin-Yang, and was nearly there with the second, Rising Ten Thousand Stones.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That’s enough for today. If you have questions, you may come to me privately,” Big-Bearded Cui said, then left. Many youths, however, remained, practicing and pondering.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Another half-hour passed. Xu Jin felt he’d done enough—it was nearly mealtime—and prepared to leave.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he withdrew his mind from the Star Lamp and returned to the Candi Platform, he unconsciously glanced at the jade tablet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Suddenly, he noticed a new line of text on the Candi Platform’s jade tablet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【First-Level Candi Platform】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Master of the Dou: Xu Jin】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Blessed by the Stars: Bow once daily to gain a strand of starlight】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Star Lantern: One】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Items for Cultivation: Zero】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Star Art: Basic Star Shield, Can Be Solidified】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Can Be Upgraded】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Jin understood the Basic Star Shield star art, but what did “can be solidified” even mean?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Without thinking, Xu Jin no longer rushed to eat; he sank his spirit inward and studied again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",2019,"2026-06-19T23:56:29.689Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","9c1ed0932905dc307d77f9e14cf94cc9721fdf175a8488f6948a185c6c083237","the-star-martial-era-chapter-13","the-star-martial-era-chapter-11",1000,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-star-martial-era-cover.jpg"]