Starfall Nine Heavens

Over the next few days, Lin Fan lived a regular and fulfilling life.

During the day at Chenyuan Pavilion, when there wasn't much to do, Shi Yue would have him stay in the quiet room in the backyard. "Don't just stand there like an idiot when you're not doing anything. Practice your skills. I'm here in front." Shi Yue said this without even raising his head, his abacus clicking away.

Lin Fan responded, feeling much more at ease. He had thought that going to work would just be about running around, but he hadn't expected to have time to cultivate on his own.

The quiet room in the west backyard was small, paved with blue bricks, with a stick of sandalwood incense burning in the corner. Lin Fan sat cross-legged, closed his eyes, and circulated his Qi-guiding technique. This room seemed to have an indescribable tranquility, making it easier to calm down than the small cubicles at home.

Sensing spiritual energy is becoming increasingly easier. Initially, it took twenty minutes, then ten minutes, and now I can detect that slightly cool spiritual energy in just a moment with my eyes closed. The warm energy within my dantian is growing stronger day by day.

Han Feng occasionally slipped in, watching Lin Fan practice without disturbing him, just leaning against the door eating snacks. When Lin Fan opened his eyes, he grinned and said, "Not bad, not bad, you're getting quite the hang of it. But let me tell you, just sitting and practicing isn't enough."

"What do you mean?"

"As Sister Su Wan said, you can use a little of your mind to sense spiritual energy when you're walking, working, or talking to people. It might feel strange at first, but you'll get used to it gradually."

Lin Fan kept these words in mind. Later, while organizing goods in the warehouse, he tried to maintain that faint sense of touch while working. At first, it would always break down; he would forget it as soon as he focused on his work. After practicing for two days, he gradually managed to stabilize it for a short while.

Qin Mo passed by, glanced at him, and didn't say anything, but the corner of his mouth seemed to twitch slightly.

These small exchanges and daily busyness diluted the urgency brought about by cultivation, making his mindset increasingly stable.

Late night of the fifth day.

Lin Fan sat cross-legged on the bed as usual, closing his eyes to guide his spiritual energy. The spiritual energy in his dantian had already gathered into a small ball of warm air, much stronger than the initial coolness. He could even vaguely feel that the ball of air rose and fell slightly with his breathing, as if it had its own pulse.

If I accumulate some more tonight, I might be able to try opening my meridians tomorrow.

As he thought this, he guided the newly introduced spiritual energy into his dantian, and just then—

A sudden change has occurred!

The jade pendant on his chest suddenly became intensely hot without warning! It wasn't the previous warmth; it was scalding, as if something inside was burning. Then, a powerful and primal suction force emanated from the pendant, like a mouth that sucked away all the spiritual energy he had painstakingly accumulated in his dantian over the past few days!

"Well!"

Lin Fan groaned, his body going limp, as if all his strength had been drained away. He looked down in horror and saw the jade pendant emitting a hazy blue glow in the darkness, flickering as if it had come to life.

Lin Fan groaned, his body going limp, as if all his strength had been drained away. He looked down in surprise and saw the jade pendant emitting a hazy blue light in the darkness, flickering as if it had come to life.

Before he could even react, the dark gold scroll that had been sitting quietly on the bedside table started moving on its own.

With a "whoosh," the scroll unfurled on its own, hovering in front of him, less than a foot away. The dark gold patterns on the scroll seemed to come alive and light up, and streaks of pale gold light surged out from the scroll, intertwining and extending in the air, as if drawing something.

Lin Fan's heart pounded as he stared intently at the scene before him.

The golden light surging from the scroll transformed into a mysterious rune, which, before he could even react, "whooshed" into his brow!

"Ugh—!"

Lin Fan shuddered violently, as if struck on the head by a gentle bolt of lightning. It didn't hurt, but an endless flood of information poured in!

It wasn't words, it wasn't pictures, it was something more direct—his consciousness was dragged into an endless dark void.

There was no up or down, no near or far, no sound. He was like a speck of dust, thrown into the deathly silence before the birth of the universe.

Then, a light appeared in the distance.

The light wasn't large, but it was very clear. Suspended in the depths of darkness, it emitted a ghostly blue light, with a ring of extremely faint silvery-white filaments around it slowly rotating, brightening and dimming like breathing.

That was a star.

It wasn't drawn, it wasn't imagined, it's a real star, hanging there right there.

Lin Fan stared at it, feeling as if there was an invisible thread connecting them. It wasn't just seeing it with his eyes; he knew exactly where it was.

Immediately afterwards, his consciousness was pulled by a force and merged into that star.

He felt like he was about to explode.

Countless threads of light burst forth from his body, each extending into the unknowable depths of the void. He sensed his "body"—not flesh and blood, but a constantly moving galaxy woven from billions of threads of law. Each thread of light trembled, breathed, and breathed in and out the energy of the universe according to some ancient and unchanging rhythm.

He could feel the power within him at work—drawing spiritual energy from the void, swallowing the entire star field's spiritual energy tides like a whale, compressing, condensing, and refining it, transforming it into that deep blue starlight, and then flowing down a fixed trajectory with a roar. It was not a stream, but a river, an ocean, a torrent of power capable of crushing everything.

The feeling was so strange, I couldn't quite put my finger on it. It was like a drop of water merging into an ocean, so small it was invisible, yet I could truly feel the entire sea swaying within me.

Beyond the light of that star lies boundless darkness.

That darkness was not empty. Behind that star, across an immeasurable distance, lay a layer of grayish-white mist. The mist was so thick that nothing could be seen.

Lin Fan could clearly feel it. The presence behind the mist sent chills down his spine and made his heart pound. But it was too far away, so far that his consciousness couldn't reach it at all; he could only vaguely sense the oppressive force that made it hard to breathe.

He wanted to "see" more clearly, but the fog remained motionless. Like a wall, it separated the present from the future.

The next moment, Lin Fan's consciousness was gently pushed out.

Lin Fan suddenly opened his eyes, covered in sweat and panting heavily.

The scroll that had been floating before his eyes was gone. It turned into a faint golden light and melted into his brow, leaving only a small patch of dark golden gray on the table in front of him as proof that it had once been there.

Lin Fan sat in the darkness, stunned for a long time.

He looked down at the jade pendant, which had regained its warm, smooth feel, quiet and still, as if the moment before had just been his imagination. Then he looked at the clump of ash on the table, a complex mix of emotions welling up inside him.

"Star Mark," Lin Fan whispered, giving a name to the mark etched into his soul.

Then he touched his empty dantian. The spiritual energy he had accumulated over several days was completely gone.

He gave a wry smile. He recalled what Lu Xiuyuan had said—that cultivation techniques could only be practiced after the meridians were opened. The movement of the star he had just experienced within the Star Mark was something he couldn't touch in his current state. It was like a primary school student opening a cryptic book; he recognized each word, but couldn't understand it at all when they were put together.

Besides, there's fog behind that star, and behind that fog, something even more terrifying. He can't even touch the star in front of him right now; thinking about those things is too far off.

"Let's get the meridian opening sorted out first."

Lin Fan took a deep breath and sat cross-legged again.

He closed his eyes, and the Qi-guiding technique began to circulate again. The cool, refreshing spiritual energy was quickly captured and slowly guided into his empty dantian.

The night was deep outside the window, and moonlight streamed in through the thin curtains. Lin Fan's breathing gradually became steady, and the golden star mark deep between his brows glowed faintly in the darkness, like a seed that had just awakened.