The room was dimly lit, with only a few scattered points of light visible, as if all the surrounding illumination had been gathered and condensed into one star after another, forming a star map.

In this miniature starry sky, a powerful force flowed and surged, isolating the entire area from the outside world, creating a self-contained space. Sitting cross-legged on the bed, Jiang Baiyu was at the center of it all.

His eyes were tightly shut, and his consciousness had completely sunk into the star map, utterly captivated by the mysterious and splendid starry sky. His mind seemed to merge with it, indistinguishable from one another, with each breath resonating with the pulse of the universe.

The sect’s mental cultivation method, “Wen Xing Tu,” was being practiced by Jiang Baiyu for the first time on his own, successfully entering a meditative state. As the foundation of his existence, the sect’s mental cultivation method was particularly important; all skills were built upon it. After the game transformed into reality, some limitations disappeared, but it also meant increased uncertainty and risk.

Game characters would never go astray; the blue bar consumed for each skill remained mostly unchanged, a fixed value. The power of skills would fluctuate based on the output method, generally fixed within a certain range. Using the entire blue bar to unleash a skill was a phenomenon that only occurred after the skills became reality.

If escaping from the encirclement of assassins sent by the Chen family was Jiang Baiyu’s first breakthrough, then now he was about to break through his second barrier. Before the opening of the Immortal Ascension Academy, he needed to master the abilities of the Observation Pavilion, and this “mastery” was not the same as a player mastering a game character’s skills.

From the most basic methods of how to cultivate the sect’s mental techniques to the meaning and principles behind each skill, as a player, these were all just background settings. Now, Jiang Baiyu needed to become thoroughly familiar with them. Fortunately, the relevant knowledge had all been “instilled” into his mind, and he could extract it from his memory palace as long as he calmed down.

Jiang Baiyu chose to start with the “Wen Xing Tu” mental method, which was the foundation of the sect, the cornerstone of all skills. He had entered a meditative state many times in the game, but this was his first time in reality. He initially thought that an ordinary person who had never cultivated before would face some difficulties in truly entering the state, but to his surprise, the progress was incredibly smooth, as if a force was guiding him into the “meditative” state, almost like divine assistance.

But this was just the first step of the test. Jiang Baiyu was instantly captivated by the dazzling star map, and his mind unknowingly fell into it. Although he was a long-time player who had reached the maximum level, the mental method was at its strongest, which was incredibly stimulating for a beginner.

He felt like a mayfly that could only live for a day, suddenly seeing the future, enchanted by the endless time, and his mind sank deeper. Jiang Baiyu felt as if he had become the star map; the star map was him, indistinguishable from one another.

Due to his immersion, the star map began to materialize in reality, isolating the surroundings and becoming a self-contained entity. Mysterious forces surged, growing stronger, and more stars on the map lit up, crowding the space and showing a tendency to expand outward. Jiang Baiyu was completely unaware that his mind had already merged with the star map.

The small pouch hanging at his waist stirred, like a flower bud hiding a little flower spirit. What emerged from it was not a skull, nor any human bone, but a ball of spiritual light.

The star map was self-contained, isolated from the outside world. The seemingly narrow room actually held far more space than it appeared, with the brilliant and dazzling stars containing immense power, not merely visual beauty. This ball of spiritual light was one of only two existences in the entire space besides Jiang Baiyu.

Perhaps sensing the change, it crawled out from the small pouch. It paused for a moment, as if witnessing an incredible scene, then “looked” at Jiang Baiyu.

The creator of this scene had a calm expression, surrounded by floating star points, almost merging with the starry sky, seemingly completely unaware of the dangerous situation they were in.

The heart was breached, a precursor to going astray. The spiritual light slowly grew larger, taking on a human form, its features indistinct, composed entirely of spiritual light, with only a vague shadow visible through its outline.

The figure extended a finger and gently tapped Jiang Baiyu’s forehead, sending a wisp of consciousness into his sea of consciousness.

Jiang Baiyu’s sea of consciousness was also a starry sky, brilliant and mysterious, as if it contained the universe within. It was clear that the star map materialized in reality was only a part of what was presented in his sea of consciousness. Jiang Baiyu’s true consciousness was lost in this vast sea of stars, like a small boat drifting with the waves.

The wisp of consciousness that had intruded from the outside was more powerful, like a mini-universe invading a giant. Jiang Baiyu stared in shock at the giant of light before him, extending his finger to grasp its clothing, pulling him back from the sea of stars and returning him to his original position.

The consciousness that had been assimilated by the star map instantly separated, and in reality, Jiang Baiyu suddenly opened his eyes, the strange phenomena around him disappearing without a trace.

He felt a bit dazed, confusion written all over his face. Why had he been meditating and suddenly seen a giant of light?

The memories of being lost in the sea of stars left no trace, like a dream, but the final scene that woke him was deeply imprinted in his mind. That image, like a light-cutting montage, gave Jiang Baiyu a sense of déjà vu.

No matter how he thought about it, he couldn’t recall where this familiarity came from, and he was even more puzzled as to why he would see such phenomena while cultivating. Jiang Baiyu decisively gave up, deciding to set aside the things he couldn’t understand for now; practicing “Wen Xing Tu” was the most important thing.

He completely forgot the experience of having his mind taken away by the star map the moment he entered meditation and entered the meditative state again.

With the experience of the first time, his resistance was a little higher this time, and he managed to hold on for two or three seconds before losing control. Thus, the giant of light appeared again, pulling Jiang Baiyu’s true consciousness out from the sea of stars.

The experience of having his mind taken away still left no trace, like a dream. Jiang Baiyu pondered why he saw the giant of light again; could this be the true essence of “Wen Xing Tu”?

As soon as this thought emerged, he found it absurd. So, he entered meditation once more.

Each time he was lost in the sea of stars, it was the giant of light that woke him up. From the beginning, it had pulled him out with its finger, and each time he entered meditation, the giant’s size shrank a little, its movements becoming increasingly impatient and irritable.

When Jiang Baiyu finally adapted to the starry world presented by “Wen Xing Tu,” the giant of light had already shrunk to a size similar to his own. It appeared to be a slender youth with long hair tied in a ponytail, wearing a beautifully intricate outfit.

It should be a beautiful outfit; even if he could only see a vague outline, he could judge some things by feeling. A sense of familiarity surged in his heart, as if he had seen it somewhere before.

The figure extended a hand and slapped Jiang Baiyu’s face, waking him from his meditation.

In reality, Jiang Baiyu suddenly opened his eyes, the last impression being the slap on his face, which was indeed loud and crisp.

Perhaps this slap was too memorable, leaving a strong impact; Jiang Baiyu felt as if his cheek was really aching, as if he had been hit.

He raised his hand to touch it, wincing at the pain. He hurriedly looked in the mirror, and there was indeed a handprint on his cheek, the red mark clearly visible, indicating a significant amount of force had been used.

A sixth sense in the back of his mind urged him to immediately identify the suspect, and he widened his eyes in confusion.

Why did this ancestor slap him?

Jiang Baiyu reached into the small pouch to pull out the skull, ready to question it fiercely, but as soon as the skull met his gaze, the eye sockets lit up with red dots. The killing intent and resentment were palpable, as if he had been forced to work an extra month without overtime pay by a heartless boss, the pent-up frustration capable of sustaining ten evil sword immortals. Now, no one could remedy it; just a little provocation would send him into a frenzy.

The words of questioning surged to his throat but were swallowed back down. Jiang Baiyu suspected that if he were to be unwise, the skull might slap him again, throwing him off balance.

Now, putting the skull back seemed very deliberate. He forced a smile, racking his brain to finally come up with a question, cautiously and earnestly asking, “How long was I in meditation?”

The response was a long silence from the skull, the red light in its eyes seemingly brighter.

Oh no, it seemed like this was not something that could be resolved with just a slap!

Just as Jiang Baiyu was thinking of a way to remedy the situation, the skull finally reacted.

Skull: Hehe, a month.

Jiang Baiyu, understanding, said, “I didn’t realize I had been cultivating for so long; I’m really sorry.”

He took out some food from his backpack, eagerly laying it out, placing the skull respectfully in front of the food. “With the opening of the Immortal Ascension Academy approaching, I’ve been a bit anxious and scared; it wasn’t intentional to leave you out.”

“Just tell me what you want to eat, as long as I can do it…”

Skull: You.

The words Jiang Baiyu wanted to say got stuck in his throat, and he coughed violently.

“Cough, cough, cough, cough, this won’t do, really won’t do!”

Jiang Baiyu raised his hand to wipe the sweat, accidentally touching the handprint on his cheek, causing him to wince in pain.

He felt as if the skull was scrutinizing him, its “gaze” particularly sharp, emitting a venomous mockery: Cultivating for a month, almost going astray seventeen times, is this how the Observation Pavilion trains its disciples?

Jiang Baiyu: “Uh…”

He seemed to understand something.

Perhaps, maybe, it was his own reason; the initial strength of his soul did not match the strength of the “Wen Xing Tu” mental method. Facing such a high-level situation right from the start, his spirit was unstable.

So, he kept seeing the giant of light because this ancestor noticed something was off and was waking him up?

Jiang Baiyu suddenly felt guilty.

He really had been forced to work an extra month without overtime pay. No wonder the killing intent and resentment were so heavy.

Having pulled him out seventeen times, it was no wonder it had developed a taste for eating people.

One must say, ancestors are indeed ancestors; this level of patience is not something ordinary people can possess.

How should he smooth things over?

Jiang Baiyu lowered his head and softly said, “The inheritance of the Observation Pavilion… all depends on me…”

Leaving a blank space is quite magical; paired with the atmosphere and context, it can give people a lot of room for imagination.

Skull: …

Skull: Come here.

Jiang Baiyu was cautious, carefully moving closer.

Skull: Close your eyes.

Jiang Baiyu’s eyes widened, taking a sharp breath, terrified: “You don’t really want to eat me, do you?”

Skull: Hehe, shut up, useless!

He saw a wisp of spiritual light fly out from the skull, instantly transforming into a hazy human form, just like what he had seen during meditation, reaching out to him.

With a crisp sound, balance was restored.

After slapping him, the spiritual light flew back into the skull, as if it had spat at him invisibly, exuding an air of noble aloofness.

Jiang Baiyu covered his cheek and burst into tears.