"Junior Brother Li!"
A voice called out behind him, just as he was adjusting his belt. Turning around, he spotted a familiar figure standing near the stone path.
Li Feng turned to see Lin Yu, the handsome outer sect disciple, with a well defining and earnest face who had been loitering near his residence for the past few days.
The young man quickly caught up, his expression fill with curiosity. "I hope I'm not bothering you, but… I couldn't help noticing that Senior Sister Yue Lan has been visiting your place quite often lately."
Li Feng raised a brow, "Oh? You're keeping track of my guests ?", amused at how the conversation began. "Ah, I suppose word spreads quickly around the sect."
"No, I—just…" Lin Yu coughed, trying to act casual. "It's just rare to see someone like her interacting so much with anyone."
Li Feng gave a lazy smile, already guessing the situation. 'So this guy's one of her admirers, Not surprising.'
He put on a tired expression and sighed dramatically. "Senior Sister Yue Lan's breakthrough has been delayed due to impurities in her meridians. I've been helping her refine some pill. I suppose she's been staying a bit longer for... detailed assistance."
"Refining Pills?" Lin Yu's eyes widened. "You… you're an alchemist?"
"Mm." Li Feng smirked, as if it was no big deal. "A humble one. I only refined a few batches to help her stabilize."
Lin Yu looked stunned. He know that becoming an alchemist required immense talent, resources, and time. And seeing that this seemingly shabby-looking junior brother could do such a thing… no wonder even Yue Lan seek help from him.
They continued walking, Lin Yu still visibly processing the new information. He kept glancing sideways at Li Feng, clearly trying to gauge more.
Meanwhile, Li Feng was inwardly sighing.
'How long is this guy gonna keep following me…?' he thought while maintaining his usual lazy stride. I just want to buy a few ingredients in peace.
Lin Yu walked half a step behind him, clearly trying to act casual but failing miserably. He kept stealing glances at Li Feng, fidgeting like he had something to say.
As they made their way down the path, several younger disciples passed by and bowed politely to Lin Yu before quickly moving on, whispering among themselves. It seemed this guy had quite a bit of popularity in the outer sect.
Handsome, good reputation, decent cultivation… so he one of those popular guy type, Li Feng guessed as he scratched the side of his jaw absently.
Just then, after a moment of silence, Lin Yu leaned in slightly, lowering his voice.
"Junior Brother… I was wondering if… maybe you could put in a good word for me with Senior Sister Yue?"
Li Feng blinked, then turned to give him a long, weird look.
"…Why would you ask me that?"
Lin Yu coughed lightly, as if embarrassed. "Well, you see… since she's been visiting your place a lot lately, I thought maybe she… trusts you. At least a little."
Li Feng's expression twitched. He didn't know whether to laugh or cry. 'Trust me? Brother, if you knew what she was doing with her mouth every morning, you'd cough blood'
Still, he gave a weird smile. "Hmm… I mean, I can try. No promises though."
Lin Yu looked relieved. "That's more than enough. Thanks, Junior Brother. And you're… not like I expected."
"Oh?" Li Feng raised his brow.
"Well, you always looked kind of shabby," Lin Yu admitted with a sheepish chuckle. "But you're actually… pretty easy to talk to."
Li Feng laugh and righteously declared, "Senior Brother, I know I may look unremarkable in the sect but despite that, I truly love to help our seniors and juniors…"
He add inwardly
'…female only, of course'
Lin Yu looked confused for a second, then nodded seriously. "That's... surprisingly caring of you."
Li Feng smiled humbly. "It's just who I am."
Lin Yu patted his shoulder with a brotherly firmness. "That's the spirit, Junior Brother. Our Azure Moon Sect values honor and loyalty. Keep this up, and you might just rise through the ranks someday."
"Thank you for your encouragement, Senior Brother," Li Feng said, bowing respectfully, though inwardly, he was smirking.
'Heh. Rise through the ranks? Screw that, I'm already satisfied pushing your goddess under my body …'
The two of them shared a small laugh, and the tension eased slightly.
After a bit more casual chatting, Lin Yu finally said, "Alright, I won't bother you any longer. I'll leave you to your shopping now."
Li Feng gave a slight wave as Lin Yu turned to head in another direction.
Just then, as Li Feng passed the pill pavilion, a figure stepped into view, a familiar figure stood by the side of the entrance, arms crossed.
Fen Ziyan, alone.
Her posture was proud as ever, but today, her face was darker than usual. Her brows were furrowed in frustration, and a thin crack was forming in her usually unshakable confidence.
Even among the many disciples bustling about, Fen Ziyan stood out like a bright star fallen among the clouds.
She was dressed in her signature sect robe trimmed with silver, the fine fabric hugging her hourglass figure. Her long legs moved with a graceful rhythm, her proud bearing upright, almost regal. Her skin glowed under the sun, white as polished jade.
But it was her face that captured attention most—arrogant and cold, sharp-eyed with long lashes, her small red lips curled slightly in disdain. Her bright gaze swept over Li Feng like he were no more than passing ants on the road.
Li Feng's eyes instinctively lingered.
'Tsk… look at that peach and pair of explosive chest beneath her robe, he mused to himself. If Yue Lan is a perfect icy lotus, then this one… is a proud, fiery peacock just waiting for someone to pluck her'
Of course, he didn't say it out loud.
"Senior Sister Fen," Li Feng greeted her with a smooth, practiced grin.
Her gaze narrowed when she caught the blatant direction of his eyes. She was used to admiration—but his gaze… seem like it trying to strip her bare..
"What are you staring at?" she snapped, her voice frosty.
Li Feng didn't flinch. In fact, he smiled wider. "I hear you've been stuck at the 8th realm for some time. That must be… frustrating."
Fen Ziyan stiffened, her lips tightening. That was her sore spot. Despite using her noble family's connections and spend a lot of resource to ask for help from a sect elder, no one could pinpoint the cause of her bottleneck. She was praised as a genius… and yet, now she been stuck in this bottleneck for so long. Her father and everyone around her seemed to start showing their disappointment with her current progress.
"I don't need your pity," she coldly retort back.
"Oh, it's not pity," Li Feng replied lightly, his gaze openly drifting from her waist to her chest. "It's admiration. It saddens me, truly, to see someone as remarkable as you facing such a setback on the road to achieving the Dao."
Li Feng stepped in just half a pace closer, his voice dropping low, just enough for her to hear alone. "Actually, regarding that bottleneck… I might be able to help."
Just as she lifted her hand to push him back, Fen Ziyan blinked, her breath hitching slightly. she froze and Li Feng had leaned in slightly, his breath brushing against her neck inhaling her fragrance scent.
He smiled. "You can come find me at my place… if you ever require my assistance."
She quickly shoved him away, her voice raised in reflex. "Who needs your help?! You should know your place!"
Li Feng knew he'd planted the seed.
He offered a bow, lips curled in amusement. "Well then, Senior Sister. I have some stuff to buy. Do enjoy your day."
He grinned.
Fen Ziyan turned sharply and walked away, her stiff back and fluttering sleeves the only reply, but unseen by other, she bit her lower lip slightly, her expression unreadable.
___
A while later , Li Feng is just on his way back after buying his pill ingredients.
[Ding! Congratulation Host, Yue Lan has broken through to the 9th Stage of Qi Refinement. +200 Favor Points.]
[Yue Lan's karmic entanglement with host has deepens.]
Li Feng blinked.
Then a pleased grin tugged at his lips. She really broke through... heh, good senior sister.
He opened his system panel with a thought, eyes scanning the current tally.
[Total Favor Points: 713]
Not bad. From coaxing her into staying over, feeding her flawless pills, to helping her "cultivate" each morning and night... Every drop of effort was worth it.
He scrolled down to the dormant section of his Starforge Body system.
[Activate 1st Star – Cost: 100 Favor Points]
[Confirm Activation?]
I've been putting this off long enough, he thought and he plan to only activate one star and save the rest of favor point for emergency use.
"Let's see what this thing can do..."
He mentally confirmed, and a flash of burning heat surged through his dantian. A golden star lit up deep in his core, pulsing with strange rhythm ,faintly drawing power from the world around him. His breathing slowed, his perception subtly deepened, and a strange warmth flowed through his limbs.
[1st Star successfully activated]
[Congratulations, Host for unlocking a new Innate Divine Skill: Star Ignition]
[Star Ignition: When activated, each star in your body temporarily doubles in power.Duration: 5 minutes , Cool down: 1 hour]
[Remaining Favor Points: 613]
Li Feng exhaled slowly, clenching his fist and he could feel an incredible strength coursing through his hand.
He threw a casual punch into the air.
Boom—Even without spiritual energy, the wind cracked like a whip around his knuckles.
A grin returned to his face. "I feel like I could flatten any 4th stage cultivator with a single blow now…"
And this was only one star.
If one star is like this... I wonder what ten stars or hundred stars would feel like.
Not only that, but his body also seemed to be undergoing a small change as muscles began to form underneath all that fat, although it was hard to discern from the outside, and he still appeared as usual.
Goods new after goods new come so he plan to share this joy with his senior sister even more so he rush back to his resident.
He licked his lips, already picturing her soft heavenly body beneath him.
His heart beat faster with anticipation.