Chapter 1: The Sovereign's Awakening in the Dust
The air in the Grade E dormitory of the Celestial Sage Academy was not merely still; it was stagnant, heavy with the scent of rotting parchment, damp stone, and the suffocating musk of forgotten dreams. This corner of the academy was a graveyard for ambition. While the golden spires of the Grade A pavilions basked in the pure, crystalline Qi of the mountain peak, the Grade E block sat at the very base, shrouded in the perpetual shadow of the cliffs and the literal filth of the academy's runoff.
In the center of a room that had seen better centuries, sitting upon a chair that groaned under the slightest shift of weight, was a young man.
Tian Mo.
His features were carved with a precision that defied the squalor surrounding him. His brow was broad, his jawline as sharp as a master-forged blade, and his hair—blacker than the void—fell in a disciplined cascade over his shoulders. But it was his eyes that held the true weight. They were not the eyes of a twenty-year-old assistant teacher; they were abyssal, reflecting a depth of wisdom and a chilling coldness that suggested he had witnessed the birth and death of stars.
Tian Mo did not move. He didn't even seem to breathe. For the last three hours, he had been assimilating the fragmented memories of the "original" owner of this body—a pathetic, weak-willed instructor who had been bullied into taking the "Trash Class" of nine students that no one else wanted.
Suddenly, a faint, rhythmic thrum echoed in his mind. It wasn't a sound, but a vibration of the soul.
[Ding! Connection Established.]
[Initializing: The Divine Library of the Eternal Heaven.]
[Host Identity Confirmed: Tian Mo.]
[Scanning Environment... Status: Abysmal.]
Tian Mo's long eyelashes fluttered. A thin, translucent screen, invisible to the world but etched into his very consciousness, flickered into existence.
"So," Tian Mo's voice was a low, melodic baritone, cutting through the silence of the room like a cello's bow across a string. "Transmigration. A library that sees the truth of all things. And a life that hangs by a thread."
His gaze shifted to the desk in front of him. There, resting on a layer of thick dust, was a scroll bound in cheap, fraying hemp. It was his Temporary Teaching Permit. A bright, mocking crimson stamp sat at the bottom—the seal of the Supreme Teacher Pavilion's local branch.
In exactly sixty minutes, that permit would expire.
According to the laws of the Hung Kingdom, an assistant teacher who failed to produce a single "Cultivation Breakthrough" among their students within the first semester was not only fired but stripped of their Qi and exiled. In this world, being a "Mortal" without Qi was a death sentence.
Tian Mo reached out. His fingers, long and elegant, brushed the rough surface of the scroll.
[Ding! Scanning Object: Temporary Teaching Permit.]
[Compiling Book of Flaws...]
Within a heartbeat, a virtual book flew off a shelf in his mind and opened.
> Item: Temporary Permit (Rank: Mortal - Trash)
> Total Flaws: 74
> * Material Flaw: Crafted from low-grade bamboo pulp, prone to spiritual decay.
> * Ink Flaw: Mixed with cheap lampblack; the seal's Qi-resonance is fading, making it easily forged.
> * Authority Flaw: Signed by a 1-Star Master Teacher with a destabilized Dantian, causing the seal to lack true 'Command Intent'.
> ...
> * Systematic Flaw: The expiration timer is set 4 minutes early due to a calibration error in the Academy's central clock.
>
Tian Mo's lips curled into a faint, predatory smile. "Even the paper that dictates my fate is flawed. This world... it is a canvas of errors waiting to be corrected."
The Gathering of the Outcasts
Tian Mo stood up. The movement was slow, deliberate, and possessed a grace that felt alien to the dilapidated room. He walked toward the window. Outside, in a courtyard paved with cracked stones and overgrown with weeds, stood nine youths.
They were the "Grade E" batch.
In the eyes of the Celestial Sage Academy, they were the dregs. Some were from fallen noble houses, others were orphans with "clogged meridians," and one or two were simply considered "stupid" because they couldn't grasp the convoluted teaching methods of the arrogant 1-Star teachers in the upper blocks.
Tian Mo's eyes locked onto the first student standing near the front—a boy with a hunched back and a face twisted in a perpetual scowl of self-loathing.
[Scanning Subject: Lu Feng.]
[Potential: Average (Currently suppressed).]
[State: Despair, Spiritual Malnutrition.]
[Compiling 'Book of Lu Feng'...]
> Subject: Lu Feng (Mortal Foundation - Qi Sensing Stage)
> Core Flaws: 129
> * Physical Flaw: The "Hunched Back" is not a deformity but a result of the 'Iron Shell Technique' practiced incorrectly, causing Qi to stagnate in the 4th vertebrae.
> * Cultivation Flaw: Attempting to sense Qi through the lungs rather than the pores, leading to 90% energy loss.
> * Psychological Flaw: Believes he is a failure because his previous teacher told him his meridians were 'narrower than a needle'.
>
Tian Mo looked at the others. A girl with trembling hands (hidden nerve damage), a tall boy with vacant eyes (misaligned soul-pulse), and others—each a tragedy of misunderstood talent.
"They aren't trash," Tian Mo whispered, his voice carrying an icy weight. "They are simply masterpieces that have been handled by blind artists."
The Shadow of the Golden Spire
Just as Tian Mo prepared to step out, the heavy oak doors of the Grade E hall burst open with a resounding CRACK.
The dust in the room swirled violently as a surge of arrogant, sharp Qi flooded the space. Three figures entered. At the front was a man in his late twenties, dressed in flowing robes of azure silk embroidered with silver thread—the mark of an Official Senior Teacher of Grade A.
His name was Teacher Wang, a man whose pride was as vast as his talent was mediocre. Behind him were two disciples from the Grade A block, their noses wrinkled in disgust at the smell of the dormitory.
"Tian Mo," Wang barked, his voice laced with the condescension of a man addressing a cockroach. "I see you are still here, clinging to this rotting carcass of a career. I hope you've spent your morning packing. The carriage for the exiles leaves at noon."
Tian Mo didn't turn around immediately. He kept his gaze on the students outside.
"The sun hasn't reached its zenith yet, Teacher Wang," Tian Mo said calmly. "The permit is still active."
Wang laughed, a harsh, grating sound. "Active? You have nine students who haven't sensed a single wisp of Qi in three years! Do you expect a miracle in sixty minutes? I am here on behalf of the Dean to ensure you don't 'misplace' any academy property—though, looking at this dump, there is nothing worth stealing."
One of the Grade A students, a boy named Zhao, stepped forward, kicking a pile of old books. "Teacher, why even speak to him? He's an 'Assistant' who couldn't even pass the 0-Star Apprentice exam three times. He's lower than the servants who clean our toilets."
Tian Mo finally turned.
The air in the room seemed to drop five degrees. Teacher Wang, who had been smiling, felt a sudden, inexplicable shiver run down his spine. He looked into Tian Mo's eyes and for a split second, he felt like he was looking into a bottomless pit.
"Teacher Wang," Tian Mo said, his voice dropping to a whisper that echoed with the authority of an ancient Sovereign. "You speak of miracles. But you don't even recognize the flaws in your own 'Blue-Wave Cultivation'."
Wang froze. "What did you say?"
"Your breathing is shallow," Tian Mo continued, stepping forward. With every step, the floorboards stopped creaking, as if even the wood was afraid to make a sound. "Every time you circulate your Qi to your Dantian, you feel a sharp, stinging pain in your left kidney. You believe it's 'Over-exertion'. In reality, it is a Vessel Leak caused by your greed in absorbing unrefined Spirit Stones."
Wang's face went pale. His secret! How could this trash know? He had been hiding that pain for months, fearing the Academy would demote him.
"You... you are talking nonsense!" Wang stammered, his Qi flaring up in a defensive, chaotic aura.
[Ding! Scanning Teacher Wang...]
[Compiling 'Book of Teacher Wang'...]
[Flaw Detected: The 'Blue-Wave' strike has a 0.3-second delay in the pivot.]
Tian Mo didn't stop. He walked right into Wang's personal space, ignoring the flaring Qi that would have knocked the "old" Tian Mo unconscious.
"In ten minutes," Tian Mo whispered into Wang's ear, "your Qi will stagnate in your meridians. You will lose the ability to speak for an hour. If you don't leave now and cultivate the 'Lower-Calm' method, your cultivation will drop by a whole fold."
"You—!" Wang raised his hand to strike, but suddenly, his face turned purple. His throat constricted. He tried to scream, but only a dry, wheezing sound came out.
His disciples gasped. "Teacher! What's wrong?"
Wang clutched his throat, his eyes wide with terror. Everything Tian Mo said was happening. The logic was undeniable. The fear was absolute. Without another word, Wang turned and bolted out of the hall, followed by his confused and terrified disciples.
Tian Mo watched them go, his expression unchanging. That was a Small Face-Slap. A mere appetizer.
The Sovereign's First Lesson
Tian Mo stepped out into the courtyard. The nine students looked up, their eyes filled with a mixture of curiosity and the usual apathy of the defeated.
Lu Feng, the boy with the hunched back, spat on the ground. "Come to give us a farewell speech, Teacher? Don't bother. We know the drill. We're trash, you're fired, and the world goes on."
Tian Mo looked at them. He didn't use a loud voice, but his words carried a strange, resonant power—the Priceless Advice halo beginning to stir within his soul, even without an official rank.
"The world calls you trash," Tian Mo began, walking through the rows of students. "Because the world is blind. You, Lu Feng... stand up straight."
"I can't!" Lu Feng snapped. "It's a deformity!"
"It is a blockage," Tian Mo countered. "Your 'Iron Shell' technique is a masterpiece, but you've been practicing it upside down. Your Qi isn't supposed to protect your skin; it's supposed to reinforce your marrow."
Tian Mo reached out and tapped a very specific point on Lu Feng's 4th vertebrae.
Ting.
It was a light touch, but to Lu Feng, it felt like a lightning bolt had struck his spine. A deafening pop echoed in the courtyard.
Lu Feng screamed, his body jerking. But as the pain faded, a surge of warmth—hotter than anything he had ever felt—began to flow through his back. His spine straightened. The hunch vanished.
The other eight students stood frozen.
"Lu Feng," Tian Mo said, his eyes glowing with a faint, golden light. "Sit. Breathe through your soles. The Qi of the earth is waiting for you."
Lu Feng didn't hesitate. He sat. Within seconds, a swirl of dust began to circle him. The thin, pathetic Qi of the Grade E block began to rush toward him as if he were a vacuum.
[Ding! Student Lu Feng is experiencing an Epiphany.]
[Learning Speed: 10,000x.]
Tian Mo turned to the other eight. "Who is next? I have forty-five minutes left. That is enough time to turn this academy upside down."
For the first time in their lives, the nine outcasts didn't see a teacher. They saw a God. And for the first time, Tian Mo felt the Divine Library thrum with a new type of energy.
Supreme Teacher Points: 10 (Accumulating...)
The journey of 1,700 chapters had just taken its first, slow, and meticulously logical step.
[To be continued...]