Wang Teng settled into a three-point routine.
Because he lived off-campus, his days were simple: he would leave home in the morning, report briefly to the classroom, then head straight to the library.
Aside from going to the school cafeteria at noon for lunch, he spent almost the entire day immersed in the library. In the afternoon, once the time came, he would return home.
With this rhythm, in just four days, he had completely brought the seven stars under control.
This speed was exactly as he had anticipated. He simply followed the cultivation plan he had laid out on the first day, step by step.
---
Night fell.
On the rooftop of the apartment building.
Pa! Pa! Pa! Pa!
Wang Teng sat cross-legged on a meditation mat, eyes closed. From time to time, his brow furrowed slightly.
In the sky near nightfall, faint, dull collision sounds echoed intermittently through the void.
The sound brought back some unpleasant imagery. Even though this was not the first time he had encountered it, it still affected him.
Under normal circumstances it would not have mattered, but now his meditation had been disrupted. His vigorous qi and blood were flowing downward uncontrollably.
His attention was dragged along with it. Once he forced his focus back, he could maintain calm within his spiritual world, but the absorption of magical energy became intermittent and uneven.
"It seems my resistance to this kind of desire is still limited."
"Damn it. It's barely dark and they've already started. Do these people really have nothing else in their heads…?"
Wang Teng let out a helpless sigh. He could hardly curse out loud—having needs was normal—but could they not wait a little longer?
"Judging from the sound, it seems to be coming from downstairs…"
"In that case, I'll give you all a free lesson in abstinence."
His gaze sharpened.
Within his spiritual world, the seven stars instantly returned to their nodes under his will. A strand of magical light connected them in an instant.
"Spirit Ripple — Pacification. Abstinence Mode!"
A flash of magical radiance flickered beside Wang Teng. With his complete mastery over the stars, he easily achieved one-thought star path construction.
A wave of tranquil, ethereal psychic magic spread outward and downward, enveloping the entire building within its range.
The echoing collision sounds in the void came to an abrupt halt.
At that moment, everything fell silent.
Even Wang Teng himself was immersed in that emptiness. The magic he had released was nearly identical to the serene state he was currently maintaining.
"The world is finally quiet."
Satisfied, he nodded slightly, then closed his eyes again and resumed meditation.
Mastering stars had benefited greatly from his powerful mental strength, but increasing his magical energy capacity through meditation was truly a matter of gradual accumulation. Mental strength played a much smaller role here.
Compared to directly absorbing magical resources, or cultivating within a magical energy–dense location to rapidly advance one's realm, absorbing energy bit by bit like this was insignificant.
---
"Brother Liu… dear brother, why aren't you moving?"
A woman leaned against the windowsill. Her eyes cleared briefly before turning hazy again as she turned her head to ask.
"I… I…"
Liu Xiao found it hard to say.
Just moments ago, he had been fully immersed, but suddenly an inexplicable sensation swept through him.
That surge vanished without a trace.
At this moment, not even a hint of that overpowering desire remained. It was as if cold water had been poured over his entire body—he felt incomparably clear-headed.
He glanced up at his girlfriend, who still seemed caught in the moment. How could he explain this? He couldn't possibly say he'd suddenly become useless.
"What, it's only been a few minutes and you're already done?"
After waiting a bit, she seemed to notice the change in herself as well, sobering up. Disbelief appeared on her face.
Seeing him flushed and lowering his head helplessly, her interest immediately disappeared.
"Forget it. Mood ruined. I'm going to shower."
Liu Xiao watched her walk away and scratched his head. He couldn't understand what had just happened either.
And it wasn't just the two of them—throughout the entire building that night, everyone experienced the same thing.
They had never encountered such a situation before.
Yet strangely enough, it didn't seem harmful. In fact, their minds felt calmer, even better than usual.
These details did not draw any special attention. Or rather, they lacked both the knowledge and the means to investigate it further.
---
"Hm?"
A beautiful woman pulling a suitcase suddenly stopped and lifted her gaze toward a distant direction.
"An anomaly the moment I arrive… Looks like this trip will yield results sooner than expected."
A glint of excitement flashed through her eyes as she pulled her suitcase toward the station exit.
---
Half a year passed quietly.
Bo City showed no change. The sun continued to rise and set. The busy remained busy, and the leisurely remained leisurely.
Wang Teng studied quietly at school. During this period, Xu Zhaoting had been particularly high-profile, having brought five stars under control, shocking the entire class.
At that moment, everyone turned their eyes toward him, wanting to know how the two frontrunners of the class were progressing.
Left with no choice, Wang Teng said he had only mastered four stars.
This immediately boosted Xu Zhaoting's already present arrogance, his face filled with the glow of victory.
Some others also looked at Wang Teng with burning eyes, eager to challenge the status of the class's second rare element user.
After all, mastering four stars was not far away at all. With a little more effort, surpassing him was entirely possible.
How could that not stir their competitive spirit?
Everyone usually cultivated in isolation, lacking comparison. Now the target had appeared.
First surpass this silent Psychic Element user, then surpass that arrogant Xu Zhaoting, and stride straight toward the peak of life.
The results of the end-of-term test further inflamed Class Seven's enthusiasm. Xu Zhaoting was too far ahead to touch for now.
Wang Teng instantly became their first small goal.
Wang Teng simply shrugged helplessly, signaling that they could do as they pleased—he had no interest whatsoever.
Over these six months, he had read through vast amounts of literature in the library, deepening his understanding of monsters significantly.
This increased his confidence regarding that matter as well.
However, putting distant plans aside for now, a more immediate problem troubled him.
His cultivation had reached Psychic Element Initial Tier Level Three, the peak of the Initial Tier. His mental strength had crossed the Second Realm and entered the Third Realm.
Unless he advanced his Psychic Element, there was nowhere left to cultivate. He was unwilling to forcibly use mental strength to fill the gap between Initial Tier and Intermediate Tier.
At Third Realm mental strength, his devouring range had expanded to a radius of thirty meters—three times the radius of the Second Realm.
This range was already quite impressive, whether in densely populated school areas or outside.
The growth speed of his mental strength far exceeded that of the Second Realm. If he used it to force a breakthrough and caused his mental strength level to drop, the loss would be enormous.
The resources he needed next were expensive: one Nebula Vein, one Spatial Guidance Stone, and one awakening.
He could afford the first, but buying it would leave him nearly broke. As for the Spatial Guidance Stone, it was rather rare.
Even if he went to Shanghai to awaken, he didn't know whether he could even reserve such a stone—and he would have to pay extra on top of that.