[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-star-martial-era":3,"chapter-the-star-martial-era-the-star-martial-era-chapter-99":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},2274957,4448,"Chapter 99","the-star-martial-era-chapter-99",99,"\u003Cp>Under the night sky, Ning Yuchan wore a pale green long dress, her face veiled in green gauze; her upright posture revealed faint curves through the slightly loose fabric.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The iron crutch, which had previously marred her overall elegance, now blended almost invisibly into the darkness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This made Ning Yuchan appear even more graceful.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Jin’s gaze swept over her crutch and moved on instantly, daring not to linger.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He understood this.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Xu Jin was curious—what exactly had happened to Ning Yuchan’s leg?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After cultivators reach the seventh layer of Meal the Mist, their self-recovery becomes extremely strong; unless a limb is completely severed and rendered useless, no injury should fail to heal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even if a bone heals crooked, you can simply break it again and let it regrow properly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And Ning Yuchan was a Nascent Soul expert?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How could she remain permanently lame? This puzzled Xu Jin deeply.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But he dared not ask.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because Xu Jin knew well—if even a Nascent Soul expert like Ning Yuchan couldn’t heal her own leg, then even the Gao Jie-level Headmaster of the mountain couldn’t either.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So how could he possibly help?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If he couldn’t heal it, then he wouldn’t ask; asking would only stab her in the heart.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As his sister Jiang Er said, Ning Yuchan was still just a twenty-three-year-old girl.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Master, why are you here? You could’ve just called me.” Seeing Ning Yuchan arrive, Xu Jin quickly invited her inside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“So, can’t I come unless I have something to ask?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ning Yuchan’s tone was sharp, but Xu Jin laughed immediately, “How could that be? If I’d known you were coming, I’d have prepared fruits and snacks in advance.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Pathetic.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Suddenly, Ning Yuchan frowned. “Why does your courtyard smell so foul?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Uh…” Xu Jin was flustered—the stench from his recent Bone Cleansing and Marrow Purification hadn’t fully dissipated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before Xu Jin could explain, Ning Yuchan’s eyes widened sharply. “Did you just undergo Bone Cleansing and Marrow Purification? Was this your first time?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Jin nodded. “Yes. I tried swallowing two Tui Fan Pills at once and ended up undergoing Bone Cleansing and Marrow Purification.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The surprise in Ning Yuchan’s eyes mirrored exactly what Qi Shanye had shown earlier.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To achieve Bone Cleansing and Marrow Purification on the first try—what a cultivation talent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ning Yuchan remembered that she herself had achieved it after two days of cultivation and was called a genius among geniuses by the Headmaster—what did that make Xu Jin?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Here. These are top-grade Tui Fan Pills—six in total. Take them.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ning Yuchan suddenly tossed him a pill vial. “Once you’ve completed three Bone Cleansing and Marrow Purifications with regular Tui Fan Pills, take one pill each morning and evening for three days. That should let you reach a fourth or even fifth purification.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When you’ve used up all six top-grade Tui Fan Pills, come find me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then I’ll perform Star Infusion Body Refinement on you—it’ll let you achieve five or even six purifications. When you forge your Star Core, you’ll have a high chance of forming a top-grade Star Core,” Ning Yuchan said.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Jin was genuinely surprised.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qi Shanye had just told him this, but now Ning Yuchan had come, repeating the same thing—and she’d already prepared the top-grade Tui Fan Pills for him, even planning Star Infusion Body Refinement.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ning Yuchan truly treated him as her disciple.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She was genuinely kind to him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Jin wondered what he could ever do to repay her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Such a great favor—if he asked the price of the top-grade Tui Fan Pills and tried to repay with silver, it would be absurd, even ungrateful.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Since he couldn’t ask the price, he’d accept them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When he gained strength later, he’d find a way to repay her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then Ning Yuchan explained much about Star Core grades.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ordinary disciples of all Dao Academies, including many wandering cultivators, even if they could forge a Star Core, mostly formed lower-grade Star Cores.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only some of the middle and inner academy disciples at Jin Shan Dao Academy could forge mid-grade Star Cores.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But disciples who forged top-grade Star Cores were extremely rare.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At Jin Shan Dao Academy, at most one or two students per year forged a top-grade Star Core; some years, none did at all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It wasn’t just because of the top-grade Tui Fan Pills—even after six Bone Cleansing and Marrow Purifications, achieving a Pure Body, the chance of forging a top-grade Star Core was only fifty percent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The chance of forging an ultra-grade Star Core? One in ten thousand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jin Shan Dao Academy had never produced one; even in the national Dao Academy or major Star Palaces, an ultra-grade Star Core cultivator appeared only once every few years—or even decades.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The difference between forging a lower-grade, mid-grade, top-grade, or ultra-grade Star Core lay in the fundamental starting point.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This vast gap in starting point could not be compensated for before the Dou Dou realm; even after reaching Dou Dou, only slight improvement was possible.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If from forging the Star Core to the ninth level of Star Refinement, each advancement doubled your Star Power, then from forging to peak forging, then to ninth level Star Refinement, your total Star Power increased tenfold—this tenfold increase was based entirely on the initial Star Power contained within the forged Star Core.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If a lower-grade Star Core held five units of Star Power, then a mid-grade held ten, a top-grade held fifteen, and an ultra-grade held twenty.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By the time you reached peak forging, these four grades would become ten, twenty, thirty, and forty respectively.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By the ninth level of Star Refinement, they would become one hundred, two hundred, three hundred, and four hundred.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The gap would grow wider and wider, and could never be closed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After reaching Nascent Soul, the gap would be even greater.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was why, during the Thousand Leaves Island battle, Ning Yuchan could single-handedly crush and kill two Nascent Soul experts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was because when she forged her Star Core, she created a top-grade one, while those Bau Dou Shen Jiao cultists likely had lower-grade cores.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Cultivate hard. Use your time wisely. Complete all your refining before the Autumn Exam.” After explaining all this, Ning Yuchan left.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After Ning Yuchan departed, for some reason, Qi Shanye did not return.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Jin wasn’t anxious—he simply resumed cultivation, observing the changes after his first Bone Cleansing and Marrow Purification.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>First, his total Star Power increased by ten percent—a change he sensed clearly under the Ming Ji Star Pattern’s enhancement.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Second, the speed of Star Power circulation within his body had indeed increased, though not dramatically—most people would miss it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Xu Jin’s Ming Ji Star Pattern gave him extremely precise perception.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The speed of Star Power flow had increased by roughly five percent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If interpreted through knowledge from his past life, this was like increasing a bullet’s muzzle velocity—its lethality increased accordingly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Finally, he felt his internal organs were clearer and lighter, suggesting his physical foundation had strengthened.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These changes translated into concrete improvements.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The maximum range of his Star Arrow increased by another foot, reaching thirteen feet—about four meters and thirty centimeters—and its speed also improved.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With Qi Shanye absent, Xu Jin began practicing basic Star Arts: Star Rope, Star Mist, and the Concealment Star Pattern—all trained within the Star Lamp.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Deep in the night, Tian Zhang, meditating cross-legged in his quiet chamber, suddenly sighed and looked helplessly out the window.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Again!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Why haven’t you left yet? Are you addicted to staying in Jin Shan Prefecture?” Tian Zhang sighed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’d love to leave. Why don’t you ask Dong Zhao to help me? He’s the head of the Tian Yang Star Palace’s Yanzhou branch. With the branch’s great array, he’s sealed me within Yanzhou. If Dong Zhao attacks him for just fifteen minutes, forcing him to stop channeling the Star Device Ding Xing Pan, I can break out of Yanzhou and destroy the locking mechanism,” Qi Shanye said.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tian Zhang glanced at Qi Shanye and said nothing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Then what’s the point of talking? All these years of friendship—you’d ask me to die or become a prisoner?” Qi Shanye played the emotional card.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Fine. Get to the point.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tian Zhang knew his old friend too well—when he started playing emotions, he always wanted something.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Heh, nothing much—just a few bottles of pills.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What kind of pills?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Two bottles of top-grade Tui Fan Pills!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this, Tian Zhang’s eyes bulged. “Damn it, why not ask for two bottles of Ding Shen Jin Dan instead?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If you had them, I’d take them gladly.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I don’t have any!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“So you won’t give them?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“How can I give what I don’t have?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing Tian Zhang refuse so bluntly, Qi Shanye’s face darkened. “Fine. Don’t blame me for going too far! When you and your wife are doing the deed, I’ll suddenly appear and scare you both into lifelong impotence!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tian Zhang shot Qi Shanye a sidelong glance. “You? Scare me? I crawled out of mountains of corpses and seas of blood—do you think a ghostly shadow like you can scare me?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Why not try tonight? See if I’m still erect tomorrow!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qi Shanye didn’t get angry—he spoke softly, “I’d be stupid to scare you. I’d scare your eldest son and your second son—I guarantee it’d work.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You—!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tian Zhang exploded. “Qi, do you have no shame? I’ve noticed how you’ve changed!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Your face is thicker than a city wall.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now you’re going to scare the younger generation?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Can’t you even act like a human being?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Then give me the pills! In the past, I just had to gesture and someone would bring them—why would I come to you?” Qi Shanye retorted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But compared to your past self, I’m nothing—I gesture and no one gives me anything!” Tian Zhang sighed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Two bottles? Even if you took my life, I couldn’t get them.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“One bottle then!” Qi Shanye conceded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“One bottle?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tian Zhang’s eyes widened. “Then go ahead and scare my two sons into impotence! Do you even know how many Dao Merits it takes to exchange for one top-grade Tui Fan Pill?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Do you know how many merit points are needed to exchange for a single Superior Transformation Pill?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even at my rank, exchanging for one requires seven hundred merit points!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One bottle costs seven thousand merit points.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As Inspector of Jinshan County, I earn only twenty-four hundred merit points a year—you’re asking me to work three years for free!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Eight!” Qi Shanye conceded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Five. Five is the maximum.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Seven.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Five.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Six!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Five!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“At least six.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Five!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Fine, then I’ll just go scare your son instead—I’ll scare him daily, monthly, until he’s impotent and your daughter-in-law goes mad!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tian Zhang glared. “Then six it is!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing this, Qi Shanye finally exhaled in relief. Though the Superior Tui Fan Dan he provided didn’t surpass what that girl had, matching her was good enough.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With these Superior Tui Fan Dan as a foundation, Qi Shanye believed Xu Jin would surely complete six rounds of hair-and-bone purification.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even seven rare rounds of hair-and-bone purification might be possible.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the First-Level Combat Realm of Zhaixing Tower.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Jin looked at the starlight message flying toward him; when he saw the sender was [Drunk Moon Immortal], he skipped it entirely, not even reading the content.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That woman was cursing him again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Either “Base Great Sage” or “Cowardly Sage.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Luckily, sending one starlight message costs at least a hundred taels of silver—otherwise, Xu Jin could’ve flooded her with replies until she went catatonic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No need to fight over silver, right?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Overnight, Xu Jin’s rank dropped from seventy-fifth to ninety-seventh.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It must’ve been due to being overtaken in points.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Challenge]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this moment, the First-Level Combat Realm matched Xu Jin only with opponents within the top hundred.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Almost all top-hundred competitors were no weaklings—each had reached the peak of Meal-the-Mist Seventh Layer, and every one possessed extremely rich combat experience.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But seeing Drunk Moon Immortal’s rank, Xu Jin felt no hesitation. If that woman could fight her way to tenth place, why couldn’t he?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He won consecutively.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After seven straight victories, Xu Jin’s rank surged to eleventh in the First-Level Combat Realm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Jin chose to continue challenging.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Immediately, a line of text appeared before him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Top ten Combat Realm competitors cannot be surpassed by points alone—you must defeat any one of them to rise one rank.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[If the ranked opponent is offline and cannot respond, you may challenge a higher-ranked one.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[If a top-ten Combat Realm master fails to enter the realm for three consecutive days after being challenged, they automatically drop one rank.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Three rules appeared in succession.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It eliminated certain abuses.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For example, someone sneaking into the top ten and then refusing to log in to claim the starlight rewards.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The rule that dropping rank after three days offline prevented this.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But this rule made Xu Jin realize—he had to crush that woman.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Challenge]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[The First-Level Combat Realm’s tenth-ranked master, Drunk Moon Immortal, has accepted your challenge. Battle will begin shortly.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Terrain: Swamp Forest]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The moment Xu Jin appeared, Drunk Moon Immortal’s furious curses flew at him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I thought you were dead!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I sent you so many starlight messages—why didn’t you reply to even one?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Why didn’t you challenge me?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Why?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her voice, her expression—exactly like a scorned wife.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Jin looked at the furious Drunk Moon Immortal and said slowly, “I didn’t challenge you because I didn’t want to humiliate you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Impossible!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Don’t you remember our past battles?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Drunk Moon Immortal fell silent. Maybe that was true.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Against the Great Sage, she’d always lost more than won—winning one out of ten matches was already good.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Then why didn’t you reply to my starlight messages? How many did I send? Would replying kill you?” Drunk Moon Immortal yelled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The way she said it made Xu Jin feel oddly strange.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It felt like a girlfriend scolding her boyfriend for not replying to WeChat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I didn’t reply because I have a reason,” Xu Jin had planned to just attack and finish her off.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But remembering her starlight message bombardment, he decided to explain—just to avoid future harassment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, every time he entered Zhaixing Tower, he had to see a scolding message—and couldn’t afford to reply with his own, which was frustrating.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What reason?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’d really like to know—what reason makes you so busy you can’t even reply to a starlight message? Even the Emperor or the Star Palace Master isn’t this busy!” Drunk Moon Immortal snapped.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Jin looked up at Drunk Moon Immortal. “Is it possible… I can’t afford it?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Can’t afford it?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Drunk Moon Immortal froze. Simultaneously, Xu Jin shouted, “Time’s up—fight!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Instantly, Star-Stepping Technique exploded—he rushed forward and launched Star Arrow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Drunk Moon Immortal’s feet flashed with starlight; her body spun rapidly, successfully dodging Xu Jin’s Star Arrow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For over a dozen exchanges, both sides’ movement techniques were exquisite, each evading attacks from impossible angles.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Jin was slightly surprised.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She was the first opponent since he forged his Divine Soul Star to last more than ten seconds against him in the Combat Realm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Clearly, Drunk Moon Immortal had made tremendous progress recently.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Especially in Star-Stepping Technique—not just perfected, but mastered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She even used the same unconventional directional shifts Xu Jin had personally devised.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No wonder she reached the top ten.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But that was all she had.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Since finesse failed, use brute force.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The next instant, Xu Jin surged forward, closing to within five feet of Drunk Moon Immortal—before she could retreat, he unleashed a rapid series of Star Rings.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Each Star Ring sent her stumbling backward, destabilizing her stance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the third Star Ring, Xu Jin smashed a Star Ray into her chest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Instantly, Drunk Moon Immortal exploded!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Victory!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Great Sage, congratulations! You’ve entered the top ten of the First-Level Combat Realm. Enter the Combat Realm at least once every three days, or your rank will drop.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[If you maintain your current rank for seven days, you will be rewarded with three strands of starlight.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Immediately after, Xu Jin challenged the ninth-ranked Combat Realm master—she was online.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She accepted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No real suspense.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Victory in twelve seconds.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Challenge eighth-ranked—victory in fifteen seconds.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Challenge seventh-ranked—offline.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Through this string of challenges, Xu Jin now clearly understood his strength.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His gaze naturally turned to the top three in the First-Level Combat Realm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They were his targets.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[First place, First-Level Combat Realm: Treading the Star River]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Second place, First-Level Combat Realm: Moon Shadow]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Third place, First-Level Combat Realm: Not Much]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Top three.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even first place!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Break into first place, maintain it, and earn the reward—seven strands of starlight every seven days, one per day—that’s two hundred taels a day.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Daily salary: two hundred taels.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This is an extremely high salary—where else would you find it?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If Xu Jin dominates the leaderboard for a year, he’ll become a millionaire.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Jin had already decided: after securing a top-three rank in the First-Rank Combat Realm, he would dominate the leaderboard even longer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This is pure free money.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he pondered, suddenly several more Starlight messages flashed in.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Jin instinctively didn’t want to look.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had barely any close friends in Starlight Tower—just Ning Yuchan, Lu Xianbing, Wu Dong, the Head of the External Affairs Hall, Ceng Shuo, and the Drunken Moon Immortal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nine times out of ten, it was the Drunken Moon Immortal coming to scold him again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the next instant, Xu Jin saw his own Starlight Tower Starlight suddenly surge upward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Star Lord: Great Sage Equaling Heaven】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Starlight: 279 strands】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Jin’s eyes widened sharply—he clearly remembered he’d had only 139 strands before. How had he suddenly gained 140 more?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Did starlight just fall from the sky?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Possible?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Absolutely impossible.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If Starlight Tower had such a bug, it would’ve gone bankrupt long ago.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Jin immediately opened the Starlight messages he’d ignored moments ago—and the content made his eyes widen again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Star Lord Great Sage Equaling Heaven, Drunken Moon Immortal has gifted you 200 strands of Starlight】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Star Lord Great Sage Equaling Heaven, per Starlight Tower rules, direct Starlight transfer initiated. Starlight Tower deducts 30% tax. You received 200 strands gifted, actual received: 140 strands】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Now do you have Starlight? Sorry, I didn’t know you couldn’t afford to send Starlight messages. I apologize. — Drunken Moon Immortal】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For a moment, Xu Jin’s eyes bulged unnaturally wide.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Is there such an insane rich person?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Two hundred strands of Starlight—minimum value is twenty thousand taels of silver.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Twenty thousand taels of silver?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even Mr. Ma from his past life wouldn’t just give that away casually.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This woman, the Drunken Moon Immortal, just handed it out like candy—what kind of divine status does she have?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Where did she come from?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What shocked Xu Jin even more was Starlight Tower’s tax: it deducted 30% outright.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Damn it, this is just like Apple’s tax in his past life—why does it exist everywhere?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Can’t you get any blacker?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What annoyed Xu Jin further was that this gift was direct—no asking if he agreed or not.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But then again, how many fools would refuse free silver?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Jin seriously considered: if there were a 【Reject\u002FAccept】 option, how would he choose?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Answer: I don’t know.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because he wasn’t given the choice.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Why haven’t you replied to my Starlight message yet? Now you have Starlight! If you need more later, I’ll send you more. — Drunken Moon Immortal】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Jin: “.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This woman had completely thrown him off balance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Super-rich idiot ( )?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【What do you mean?】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Finally, Xu Jin squeezed out this one line, feeling slightly guilty for trying to trick her into giving more Starlight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Great Sage, no meaning at all. How about this: whenever you see my Starlight message, reply to me, okay? That’ll be your payment. Also, if you have time, come to Starlight Tower every day and spar with me three times—that’ll be payment too. Is that fine? — Drunken Moon Immortal】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Jin was even more bewildered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This woman changed her attitude too fast.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just moments ago, she called him “despicable Great Sage” and “cowardly Sage.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now she’s calling him “Great Sage” and calling it “payment.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What could Xu Jin do?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He’d already accepted the Starlight—could he refuse now?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At least the Drunken Moon Immortal was still useful for sparring.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Okay】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Jin replied two words.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The moment he sent them, the Drunken Moon Immortal sent a sparring challenge.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Jin was speechless, then silently accepted the challenge.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This felt like starting to live off a woman’s wealth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But immediately, Xu Jin blamed Starlight Tower.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If Starlight Tower had a “Reject” function for gifted Starlight, Xu Jin would never have ended up eating off someone else’s wealth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It’s all Starlight Tower’s fault!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Three matches in a row, Xu Jin successfully saw off the Drunken Moon Immortal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For the sake of the Starlight, he stretched each battle to two minutes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He gave the Drunken Moon Immortal a chance to improve, while also honing his own combat skills.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Opponents who could instantly unleash four Star Arts with Perfect Flying Star Step were still rare.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On July 18th, after morning cultivation, Xu Jin continued practicing the basic Star Arts—Star Mist and Star Rope—inside the Star Lamp.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then he directly trained with Lu Xianbing, refining the body movement he’d been pondering.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now, Xu Jin could activate Flying Star Step not just with his feet, but with his palms, elbows, even his buttocks, waist, and shoulders—anywhere his Star Power reached.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That body movement’s transition was utterly bizarre.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It had already surpassed the physical laws of his past life.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At noon, Xu Jin received a notice from the laborer: at the fourth watch of the afternoon, assemble at the Combat Hall for the monthly examination.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",3613,"2026-06-19T23:56:29.689Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","5519a820eabe5bbc7bc85ad3aecabb198d0598a58faeb081990601ade686c7aa","the-star-martial-era-chapter-100","the-star-martial-era-chapter-98",1000,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-star-martial-era-cover.jpg"]