1 Chapter 1.1: I am Long Wan!

"Urg.." I slowly grunted as I opened my eyes, the bright sunlight threatening to burn holes in my retinas. Slowly rising backwards I held my head as my consciousness began to reset. 'That's the last time I'm mixing vodka with sparkling baiju. Solani spiced rice baiju will be enough for me for a while..' I thought as I rubbed my throbbing headache away, which stubbornly refused to leave my skull. 'Dafaq? Solani spiced rice baiju?' My eyes widened. I didn't remember exactly how I knew what it was or when I tried it but I could clearly remember the soothing taste of that beverage, like a less viscous jaggermeister but more minty and easier to drink.

Snapping back to reality I noticed that I was looking at a pretty well crafted and mildy decorated wooden desk. Trailing downward I took a gaze at the bottom of my shirt and pants. I was dressed in some kind of traditional dark black Chinese outfit with bronze trims. They looked like props from a kung-fu movie. The only thing that was different from those was that the shirt buttons closed in the middle of the left breast as opposed to passing in front of the sternum.

I removed my gaze from the strange outfit and moved it up to find the fuckers who took advantage of me being wasted on booze to dress me up like some kind of Jackie Chan knockoff when my jaw dropped. I was in some kind of Chinese amphitheater being surrounded by kids around 11, maybe 12 years old. Fuck Solani baiju, or any kind of booze for that matter, I'm definitely keeping off that shit forever. What kind of retarded dream is this? I pinch myself hard and I grimace 'That fucking hurt like a bitch!'

Which meant that this was no dream. 'Where the blue moon fuck am I?!'

I surveyed my surroundings like a hamster in a hawk's nest. That's when I saw her.

A redhead woman was in the teacher's spot, and she was steel melting capital H hot. Long flowing hair that reached below her ass, legs that any man would kill to bury his face in between, and a dress (or were they stylish curtains?) that left very, ve-ry little to the imagination (Is that the string of her panties on the side of her hips!?). However her face, although gorgeous, was stuck in an absolutely disgusting mix of 'sharkweek bitchmode' and 'I'm holier than thou'. It was a face that could convince even a hormonal 14 year old teen boy that the bitch wasn't worth the hassle. So why did I have the nagging feeling that I knew her.

She was blabbering some things which I was in no state to understand even if I was paying attention to her words.

Suddenly miss Restingbitchface yelled "Scarlet Flaming Fox!" With that her body began radiating a flame-like aura that was almost tangible and her features took on more predatory tones, with fox ears growing where her human ones were, whilst a tail sprouted from her ass.

My eyes widened so much that they could've popped right out of their sockets if not for my brow falling onto them in a deep scowl. Of course I knew this queen cunt. Shen motherfucking Xiu. As a hardcore Tales of Demons and Gods fan I read the novel at least dozens of times, well part of it at least since the translation updates were painfully slow. By this time it was up to chapter 490 something or 500 something, by the time Nie Li was getting ready to return to the Tiny World from the Draconic Ruins Realm. Not to mention I also read the manhwa just as many times and put the animated series on play at least once a month whilst waiting for season 4. I like it that much so don't judge. Anyway , that is not important here or now.

What is important was that I was in Shen Xiu's fucking class, in the motherfucking Holy Orchid in-stink-turd, in Glory hole City, in the goddamn Tiny Dick World, in the universe of Tales of Dickmons and Gods!

Suddenly that earlier hangover returned with a vengeance and it took all my willpower not to scream to high heavens as I clutched my head in agony. Flashback after flashback filled my aching skull with different memories of a childhood I had but at the same time hadn't...

I remembered a new life, with a new name. My name was... is Long Wan (first name Night, family name Dragon). Kind of fitting considering my tall and fit-to-skinny build, long dark hair that reached between my shoulders, coal black eyes and pale complexion made me look like a dark serpentine dragon.

Regarding my history in this world, I was an orphan. My parents Long Bai and Xiao Xing, no not Xiao as in Winged Dragon family but a term used denote a beloved person (usually female or young). They were Silver ranked fighters in the hire of the Divine family and had died during a routine hunt of demon beasts outside the city while protecting a young noble main family member. For their sacrifice, the Divine family took it upon them to take care of my upbringing in the orphanage and to sponsor my enrollment in the institute. All in all I was as background as a side character can be.

I had just finished superficially processing most of these new memories when a new voice entered my ears.

"Teacher Shen Xiu, I have a question,"

No fucking way! It couldn't be...

I turned around and there I saw the mop of orange hair dressed in a burnt orange jacket and pants set. There was Nie Li. And if memory served well, he was getting ready to rip Shen Xiu a new one. This was also an opportunity I couldn't miss...

Shen Xiu coldly snorted, "What is it?"

"Teacher Shen Xiu says that Glory City is the only one that survived the Age of Darkness, that we are the only surviving humans. What proof do you have on this statement? May I ask if teacher ever went out of the St. Ancestral Mountains and visited the Endless Desert, the Toxic Forest, the Blood Moon Marsh, the Spirit Gulf, the Heavenly Luster Mountains, and the Northern Snow before?" Nie Li asked.

Just as I suspected, it's the novel timeline. I would've been fucked sideways by a demon beast with a spiked dick if this was his first life.

"What Heavenly Luster Mountain? What Northern Snow?" Shen Xiu frowned.

Shen Xiu snorted, "I've been in Glory City since birth, and have never been to those places."

Nie Li smiled faintly and said, "Since Teacher Shen Xiu never went to those places, how can you be so sure that we are the only human beings alive?"

Shen Xiu was clearly at a loss for words. Nie Li was ripping her credibility apart every time she parted her lips. Not to sound sexist but this bitch should just stick to only using her mouth to kiss Shen Hong's ass.

Seeing the students below discussing away, Shen Xiu's was extremely displeased and scoffed, "So what? How can you prove that we are not the last surviving human beings?"

"Proof?" Nie Li faintly smiled as he calmly said, "Let me tell Teacher Shen Xiu a story. There was once a frog in the depth of the well. Since his birth, he has always been in that well. Since the start he could only see a part of the sky, so he claimed that the sky is only as big as the hole of the well. But is the sky only the size of the hole? We could only say that the frog is ignorant."

Listening to what Nie Li just said, the students in the class couldn't help but laugh. And the saying, "a frog viewing the sky from the bottom of the well", is basically calling Teacher Shen Xiu a frog.

"Viewing the sky from the bottom of the well, what an appropriate description," a few girls said while giggling. If I remembered from the novel none of the commoner students liked Shen Xiu, and couldn't help look at Nie Li full of admiration, since Nie Li was the only one brave enough to openly insult a teacher in class.

"You…" Shen Xiu growled. This was my cue…

Often had I imagined what would I have done if I had reincarnated into the novel. My mind had played out dozens of what ifs. Most disadvantageous would've been to actually be Nie Li but without his experience, slightly better would've been to be Shen Fei or his little bro and so on. Right now I was in the best possible situation. A nobody who had the chance to befriend Nie Li

I raised my hand up high "Great teacher Shen! May I also humbly appeal to your wisdom?" I said very politely, swallowing my sarcasm and pride, together with a little puke that rose up from the sweetness of my voice.

Shen Xiu frowned curiously at me before motioning me to speak. It would seem that Nie Li knocked some wind out of her sail.

"Honourable teacher mentioned that commoners will never rise to mean anything." I paused a little for dramatic effect and to enjoy Shen Xiu impatient expression. "But wasn't the City Lord's father, the previous City Lord, Lord Ye Mo born a commoner? Isn't the great lord also the only Legend rank in the entire city?" I ended with a smirk.

Shen Xiu's rage boiled that she unconsciously drew on her Fox spirit such that her features became vicious and her eyes silted and red.

"You… In the hundreds of years of Glory City, Lord Ye Mo's the only one able to climb to the peak by relying on his own ability," said Shen Xiu, showing that she stuttered for the answer.

I acted surprised "But that doesn't change the circumstances of the lord's birth. I am really slow in the mind because teacher's great wisdom eludes me. I just don't understand how a commoner could rise to become a lord if teacher said that commoners will always be nobodies. Is teacher calling Lord Ye Mo a nobody? Or is teacher saying that effort can overcome circumstance? Teacher please explain to this dumb me!" I cupped my hands and bowed my head so that it was touching the table in an act that faked my humility and also hid my face, the later was because I couldn't hide my chuckles anymore.

What saddened me was that I couldn't see teacher Restingbitchface's bitch face but I caught Nie Li looking at me with equal amount of amusement and amazement. I playfully stuck out my tongue and saw him purse his lips to contain his laughter. However he couldn't hide the blueness in his face from lack of air. He was holding his breath to prevent the chuckles from escaping.

I returned to attention when I heard Shen Xiu growl, "You two, you think that anything like this could change the harsh reality? You only looked at Lord Ye Mo's glorious moment, but didn't look at how many people have failed. Not to mention being a Demon Spiritualist, even becoming a Fighter in itself is a difficult thing to achieve. Let's see what kind of talent you both have." Shen Xiu lowered her head and took a look at the parchment paper in her hands.

"Nie Li, right? You can be considered bloodline of an Aristocratic family.

Let's see: red soul realm, current soul force 5, strength 21. With your talent you can only reach Bronze rank Fighter in your entire life. Wanting to become a Demon Spiritualist is simply impossible. You're even inferior to some of the commoners. No wonder you dare to speak in this way. You are just trying to hide your own low self-esteem!

And you..." She turned to me before returning to her scroll " Hmph... not that much different. Long Wan: orange soul realm, soul force 11, strenght 18. You are someone who can be considered lucky to break into Silver rank fighter in their late 30. Useless trash belongs in the same pile afterall. Shen Xiu aggressively continued "With such talent, you won't be able to get any attention. Yet, you act so rampant and are rude to your elders!"

Everyone was surprised that even though both Nie Li and I were being ridiculed by Teacher Shen Xiu, we weren't showing any signs of embarrassment.

On the contrary, Nie Li's gaze was firmly locked onto Shen Xiu's and he said, "Teacher Shen Xiu, you feel that a person's soul realm decides a person's future, right? With that despicable character of yours, you'll only defend the gifted and mock the mediocre. And yet, you still speak a bunch of principles. You're just merely trying to cover your despicable character."

Hearing Nie Li's words, Shen Xiu's body quivered with anger. She had never met this kind of student. He actually dared to contradict her so badly. Nie Li's words directly hit the hidden thoughts within her heart, causing her to be enraged. She cursed uncontrollably, "Silence! Who do you think you are to discredit your teacher?!"

Nie Li curled his lips in disdain.

"I feel ashamed to have a teacher like you. I can guarantee that in this class, there will be a lot of commoners exceeding your imagination. They will have unimaginable achievements. Instead of coaching then patiently, you use harsh words to attack their self-confidence. You're not worthy to be a teacher! Although my talent is weak, so what? One day, I will become a Legend rank Demon Spiritualist like Lord Ye Mo and marry the most beautiful woman in Glory City!"

As he spoke, Nie Li's gaze fell on Ye Ziyun, who was sitting far away. His eyes shined with an absolute resolve.

When she saw Nie Li looking towards her, without knowing why, Ye Ziyun suddenly felt her heart speed up. Her cheeks were burning red. She had never thought that Nie Li would actually be so bold and say something like this in class. After meeting Nie Li's gaze, she knew his meaning was clear. Except, in her heart, she doesn't have any feelings for Nie Li. After hearing Nie Li's speech, she had an indescribable feeling within her.

Seeing Ye Ziyun's expression, Shen Yue's face turned a dull colour. Although he and Nie Li aren't of the same standard, he still felt a bit threatened by him.

"Hahaha! This is the funniest joke I've ever heard! A red soul realm actually said that he wants to become a Legend rank Demon Spiritualist like Lord Ye Mo. Even when Lord Ye Mo was younger, he was already tested and showed to have amazing talent. He had a cyan soul realm! You think success relies on luck alone? Ridiculous!" Shen Xu mocked mercilessly, "Rather than being a smart mouth here, why don't you start learning seriously?"

Nie Li's next words were powerful and resonating.

"I know your heart is full of contempt, but one day I will shut your mouth with hard facts. Aptitude cannot determine a person's achievement! We use the weak to defeat the strong, to overcome the heavens! We practitioners are already challenging the impossible by going against the way of the heavens!"

Nie Li's words couldn't stop causing the students in the class to feel their blood surging. Practicing was already going against the way of the heavens. If one did not oppose the heavens, how could they talk about practice?

Nie Li enunciated powerfully, "Without a continuously fighting heart, without the courage to turn the impossible possible, even possessing extraordinary talent would be useless. Since I, Nie Li, was born into this world, I shall challenge the impossible! Teacher Shen Xiu, how abo..."

It was my turn to intervene. Nie Li wanted to bet his time and status at the institute against Shen Xiu's but it wasn't the best moment for this. No, we needed some better witnesses for that and that opportunity will be in about a week.

I cup my hands and bowed before stating loudly "I thank teacher for her words of encouragement!" before turning to Nie Li " Classmate Nie! Please think of the time and place to challenge a teacher. Doing it in front of students is pointless." Please let him understand.

"I end my words but stand by them!" nodded Nie Li "Let the guilty suffer heavens retribution." he continued. Phew. I could tell he was slightly frustrated but understood the situation. Even if he challenged Xiu now, it would barely do any damage to her reputation. All I did was cool him down as he needed to wait for the right opportunity

Shen Xiu let out a haughty snort "Such rudeness to your teacher. Nie Li, for the next two months, you will stand at the back of the classroom and listen to the class! "

Shen Xiu's famous for being unreasonable. Nie Li looked contemptuously at Shen Xiu before he smirked and strolled to the back of the class.

Seeing Nie Li standing at the back, a few noble kids started to mockingly whisper.

"The future Legend rank Demon Spiritualist got punished standing!"

"Weren't you being egotistic a while ago?"

Shen Xiu turned to me as if I was a fly "Long Wan, since you know your wrongs, you can sit!" She dismissed me with a wave.

Bitch, in half a year I'll have you biting the pillow because of me going in dry. I will enjoy breaking you in.

I silently moved from my position to the back with Nie Li. There I put a hand on his shoulder and turned and pointed rudely at Shen Xiu.

"Teacher Shen, do not mistake my words as acknowledging wrongs. True my wrongs in the world are many, but my words today are none of them. I respect you as an elder and respect the institute of which you are a teacher. But you have yet to earn mine as a person like this fellow." I said before turning to the class "I Long Wan am an orphan with nothing to my name but the clothes on my back! However, this day I declare Nie Li my good brother and myself his if he will have me! And together we shall walk the Martial Dao together, even through the flaming sea or jagged mountains! " . .Gods. That was corny enough to feel the cob in my throat. Why did I say that? The plan was to appear as the class idiot. I was going to lay low as to not attract too much of the Sacred Family and be an enforcer in the shadows, working to further Nie Li's plans and getting a piece of the pie in return. Yet it all went to hell in a handbasket and I didn't even know why I did it… Wait! 'I' did it but the me from earth was never that outspoken. But now my consciousness didn't just take over, it just became more dominant. I could feel Long Wan's , the original one's consciousness had merged with my own and we became a mix of both. Luckily, we were two peas in a pod. We both had the same values and desires, and we both agreed that a man's word is to be a sacred unbreakable vow. However he was just a twelve year old kid while the me from Earth was a few months short of thirty. Those childish dreams and aspirations I had when I was young and suppressed as age came to me reignited with gusto.

I swallowed my embarrassment and peeked at Nie Li. The motherfucker was actually looking at me like I was bat shit insane but couldn't contain his amusement and happiness at having friends again. He finally shook his head with a smile and put his hand on my shoulder as a gesture of acceptance. Booyah baby! Call the devs because I got exploits.

Du Ze was silent for a moment. He gritted his teeth, then rose up and went to stand beside Nie Li and myself. We were punished for helping the commoners speak up, so naturally, he wants to stand together with us.

Seeing that Du Ze stood beside us at the back of the class, Shen Xiu's eyes darkened and hummed, "Since you also like standing, you can stand together with them."

Nie Li and Du Ze looked at each other before both turned to me. Their eyes flashed a sense of rapport as we lightly smiled at each other.

After Du Ze stood at the side of Nie Li, Lu Piao was submerged in his thoughts for a moment and then stood beside us.

Nie Li smiled as he asked, "Why are you here?"

Lu Piao shrugged, "Sitting down is pretty boring. I feel cooler standing, can't I?"

"Haha, that suits you!" Nie Li laughed. Lu Piao , good ol' goofy Piao. Although his mouth has no filter, he is very loyal. This punishment had nothing to do with Lu Piao, but he thought of Nie Li as a friend, and friends should share their fates together.

I silently stretched my fist out and he looked at it curiously before raising his face towards me with a raised eyebrow. At this moment I noticed that I was about half a head taller than both him and Nie Li. I wondered if Duan Jian ever had these kinds of realizations. Lu Piao on the other hand didn't take much to reset his brain (not that there was much to reset anyway) and bumped my outstretched fist with his own.

Successively, three other commoner kids stood up and stood by our side. Nie Li belonged to a noble family, but he took a risk to speak up for them. They were grateful for that, so they felt that they have to support Nie Li. At the same time I felt that my actions also inspired them a little more than in the original story. I could see that with these brothers by his side, Nie Li felt that it wasn't so bad to be punished and his mood turned exceptionally cheerful if that smile on his face told any truth.

Seeing this, Shen Xiu's facial expression turned ugly. She put on a cold face and continued her lecture. "After being tested, among the students in this class, Ye Ziyun, with a cyan soul realm, has a soul force of 86. Shen Yue and Xiao Ning'er both have a green soul realm, with a soul force of 78. They will soon reach 1-star Bronze rank. Congratulations to them!" Shen Xiu lightly said. Her gaze fell on Nie Li and myself for a moment and I knew what the bitch thought. However, she had no idea of the future I had planned for her . I had a lot of pent up frustration so just imagine what will happen when I get my hands on her the night her family is eliminated.

This wasn't goody good Earth anymore. No more protecting bitches who bark a lot but were weak as moist shit. By the time I deliver her back to glory city I will be at least Black Gold rank and a disciple of a righteous sect. Both myself and my future will be far too valuable to be lost over the rights of a criminal who is to be executed.

I also noticed how the students in the class all cried out in surprise following Shen Xiu's words. For them these three existences were like the full moon. Shining towards them but impossible to touch. I knew however their true potential and my plans involved all three. My glance flew towards Shen Yue who was glaring daggers at Nie Li. Storming my brain for an answer as to why, recollection hit me hard. Before Glory City was destroyed, Shen Yue and Ye Ziyun almost got married. In the eyes of their families, they had always been a perfect match. If Glory City wasn't destroyed, both of them would have definitely gotten married. Before they underwent the ceremony, Glory City was under the attack of the Snow Wind beasts and the Sacred Family betrayed Glory City by abandoning their post and fled. Shen Yue was a rotten kid but not necessarily incorrigible. You would be too if all your life you were told that the you are the greatest and all the rest are worms. Maybe I should attempt to steer him to our side a bit later.

Glancing to my side I could see that Nie Li was boiling with rage towards him. Can't blame the guy since he lost nearly everyone he once held dear. However he also failed to see the bit of good they did for him. Had they not abandoned the city Nie Li wouldn't have gotten to spend time with Ziyun, nor would he had the chance to find that superbook, err... oh yeah Temporal Demon something something book. I really hated having a crappy memory capacity on Earth.

Wait, memory? There were several moments in the novel that described that a high-ish soul force equaled incredible, if not eidetic memory. Even Nie Li's little cousin Xiao Yu could memorize a chapter from a complicated cultivation technique after only hearing it once and she had a soul force in the 30s (as a side note on that, my... Long Wan's talent really sucked to be beaten by an 8 year old, or was she 9?). This was a gold mine that could be exploited like crazy but I needed to get my soul force at least into the 50s which shouldn't really take long with Nie Li's cheats.

Speaking of said cheater, poor xiao Li (little Li) was given the cold shoulder by Zyiun. Judging by her expression she was definitely thinking we were some kind of weirdos. We were just some kids with no background or power yet we dared to stand out like this. The girl must definitely consider that we're a few cards short of a full deck. Can't say she wasn't pretty though. A little on the underdeveloped side compared to some other girls but she will definitely grow up to be worshiped by men and maybe some women too. She also has the status of being the daughter of Glory City's City Lord, as well as being the granddaughter of the Legend rank Demon Spiritualist, Ye Mo, and had a cyan soul realm. That information was not public knowledge but not necessarily hidden either.

What only I knew (for now at least) was that she was a late bloomer, in more ways than one. Her soul form was one of legends, the Ice Phoenix soul form. While it takes much more effort to cultivate at the beginning than ordinary forms, once she reached Black Gold rank the phoenix will hatch and she would be nearly unmatched, easily enough to keep up with Ning'er.

I tried to locate Ning'er in class but couldn't find anyone matching my memories of the said person when I saw a black haired girl. That's when I realized that the Ning'er I 'knew' and the original were different. The manhwa artist took some liberties with her appearance, steering away from the novel. Raking my brain, the novel description popped up in my mind. Ning'er had long black hair, high boots and wore some sort of dress or light skirt and the person I saw earlier fit that description perfectly, except for the boots since I couldn't see below her waist.

She was also slightly bent forward while clutching her side. Seems like her Arctic Affliction was acting up because that should be where one of her bruises is, with the other being on her foot. It pained my soul to see her like that. She was my favorite character in the novel, someone my heart went out to. Now she was real and so became my feelings for her. My logic immediately fought with my heart and, swallowing my impatience I turned to Nie Li who was already planning his future and inevitable fight with the Sage Emperor and the Deity rank demon beast generals. This was something that personally shouldn't involve me but in this world or the next my word is my law. I remember once giving my word to someone I hold dear and then didn't keep it. While I was a preschooler then and the subject of my word was more than trivial it hurt being called out. I then and there swore that I will never make any promises I don't intend to keep. Dancing around subjects became my specialty in order to avoid making deceitful promises.

Nie Li certainly didn't have any plan to share with us the future he wanted us to share. That was also something to correct. But how? Well, there is still time before Nie Li calls us into the library to share cultivation techniques and rope us in so the solution may come to me since then. Too many details to your plans mean too many things that can go wrong, and Murphy's Law is a cunt.

Anyway, before that my priority was Ning'er. In the next five to seven nights Nie Li will meet her in the hunting grounds and she will fall for him. No way and in hell no! I needed to squeeze the cure for her affliction which was two kinds of grasses, emperor striped grass and golden something, plus the Daoyin redirecting technique. I will definitely need those. "Arctic affliction..." I growled in frustration.

"What did you say?" Asked a curious Nie Li.

Shit, he heard me... Wait! This is a golden opportunity. "Sorry, I was just thinking out loud in frustration. " answered yours truly back with a goofy smile scratching the side of my head. "My... acquaintance has these symptoms and no doctor could find the root cause. But last night after scouring the medical archives I managed to find an old diagnosis that fit my acquaintance perfectly, however it said only 'Arctic affliction' and no course of cure..." My words continued with a frustrated frown on my face.

Nie Li for his part only nodded sagely and said "Are you sure it's Arctic affliction?" He questioned

"Yes. It matches the symptoms written there: Burning feet, painful night time chills and bruises." Came my answer. "Yes that sounds about right..." Responded Nie Li. Damn right it was right. "To cure the Arctic affliction one needs to consume medicine made by mixing Golden Striped Grass with Imperial Sky Grass for about a month or two. Best case, a few days and the person would be cured. But for the bruises, they need to be massaged the Daoyin redirecting technique..." Continued Nie Li. This was old information for me but it set up the perfect scenario.

"Daoyin redirecting technique? " excitement filled my voice. There are two ways to lie successfully: half truths or masking lies with other real emotions. My expertise lay in the later, rather than the former. "I have never heard of this technique before." I never heard about it, only read about it in the novel... "Do you know it?"

Nie Li smiled and nodded "Of course I know. After classes we can go see your friend..." He put a hand on my shoulder.

"Actually..." I continued with a strained voice. The whole purpose is to avoid contact between you two. However this was within my expectations "That person is only an acquaintance for now..." Half truths are best truths "And is also rather shy and distrusting of strangers..." Not really lying here, Ning'er wasn't exactly an extrovert at this point. "Can brother Li show me how to do it instead? I don't have much but I will some day repay you! "

"Of course I can show brother Wan!" He smiled " And don't speak about paying me back, it's really just a simple technique!" He dismissed. Holy yang cow, that really worked!

"Still I, Long Wan have to thank brother for this kindness." I cupped my hands in respect towards him. Perfect, phase one complete. The next step would be to get the Lightning Dragon cultivation from him, and I think I have just the plan…

"In the Fighter and Demon Spiritualist tests in two months time, I hope that there will be a few 1-star Bronze rank Demon Spiritualists. Both myself and the Holy Orchid Institute will feel proud of you!" Shen Xiu laughed.

Bronze, Silver, Gold, Black Gold, Legend, these five ranks are further broken down into 1 to 5 star levels, and thus obtaining a 1-star Bronze rank is considered the starting point.

Once a Fighter's strength or Demon Spiritualist's soul force reaches 100, they can be considered a 1-star Bronze rank. Entering the entry level is extremely difficult. Lots of people are unable to step into the entry level to become a real Fighter or Demon Spiritualist.

Hearing Shen Xiu's words, the students in the class started whispering to one another. In order to become a 1-star Bronze rank Fighter you must to be able to lift up a hundred kilogram rock, and break a coconut tree with a punch in order to reach 1-star Bronze rank. For these kids, it would simply be too difficult. Unless one has been consuming elixirs since birth they have little chance. As for becoming a Demon Spiritualist, one is required to refine a large amount of soul force within their body. This is a lot harder to accomplish compared to becoming a Fighter.

Soul realms can have one of the following seven colours: red, orange, yellow, green, cyan, azure and indigo. A normal human would have a red soul realm. According to the teachings found in Glory City it is nearly impossible for a red or orange soul realm to become a demon spiritualist. They would normally become a Fighter instead. As for people with yellow soul realms, they're more likely to train their soul force. The people with green or cyan soul realms are considered extraordinary talents. Finally azure and indigo are only spoken of in tales long passed.

The students in the class all looked at Ye Ziyun, Shen Yue and Xiao Ning'er. They envied them because they are the only ones that could become a 1-star Bronze rank in less than half a year. After becoming a 1-star Bronze rank, they can then enter into the official Fighter class or official Demon Spiritualist class. At that time, they won't be in the same class as them. Feeling the gaze of other students, Shen Yue proudly puffed his chest out. As a member of the Sacred Family, he's had all kinds of elixirs ever since he was young. It would be an easy thing to get his soul force to hit 100 in two months. He shall await the test in two months time.

Shen Yue looked at the elegant Ye Ziyun beside him. He probably thought that only he's worthy of her, and that Nie Li's nothing! Nie Li actually dared to belittle with Shen Yue's aunt and state that he will become a Legend rank. So egotistical and ignorant! Nie Li thought that it's easy to become a demon spiritualist? A red soul realm trash dared to make such an egotistical statement? Ha!

Ye Ziyun and Xiao Ning'er looked each other in the eyes. They both had superior origins, which was certainly not bad. Ye Ziyun always wanted to be friends with Xiao Ning'er, but Xiao Ning'er had always gave her the cold shoulder.

Shen Xiu looked towards Nie Li and myself with contempt in her eyes and spoke in a disdainful tone, "As for those who claim they can reach demon spiritualist so easily, I want to see to what extent they can actually reach!"

One's soul realm and physical condition determines a person's cultivation speed. For both Nie Li's and myself's situation, according to normal thinking, we would need at least two to five years to reach entry level. Even we become 1-star Bronze rank, becoming a Demon Spiritualist while having a red or orange soul realm is simply dreaming.

Nie Li did not put Shen Xiu's words to heart and neither did I. My… brother did so because of his cheats, whilst I ignored her because I knew the future, and thinking of that future made me so hard it threatened to rip my loincloth apart. "In two months I will probably be halfway to Silver rank demon spiritualist," whispered Nie Li as the side of his mouth upturned, showing a faint confident smile.

"I have a feeling you will be at the border of it…" I continued in the same volume. "What makes brother Wan so sure?" Nie Li voice sounded genuinely curious, with a slight tone of arrogance in it.

It was natural that he would be curious about me. In the novel Long Wan was such background that I didn't even know he/I existed. Here goes nothing "Earlier I sensed a strange surge of energy from your direction…" letting my voice linger a bit I saw his eyes widening "Brother Li, have you ever heard of a book called 'Tales of Demons and Gods'?" let's pray this works.

Crossing both his hands and furrowing his brows, Nie Li closed his eyes in contemplation "Can't say I have." he finally admitted. And I admit I would shit myself if he did… It was almost murder on me to craft my story like this but it was the only way.

Could I have gone to Nie Li and said 'Listen, I come from a world where your life is a novel and I have read it many times. I know about your previous life and want to help you. '? If I were in Nie Li's shoes I wouldn't trust myself as far as I could toss me. Maybe I was the Sage Emperor or one of his lackeys that came back in time with Nie Li. Better not risk it…

"It is a novel about a hero finding a particular artifact and growing up to be an existence to be both respected and feared…" my words were formed slowly as I crafted half-truths to make the story believable.

"Sounds very interesting." admitted one of the other boys. He rose first after Nie Li and I so he must be Du Ze.

Smiling, I continued recounting "It was written with Dao Intent" Dao intent to my knowledge is imprinting a portion of a person's will in a recording, whether that was a picture, words or carvings. My eyes also caught Nie Li's rising interest. Books written with Dao intent were very valuable repositories of knowledge "The artifact that the hero found was one of the two supreme artifacts in existence. All those touched by the artifact are destined for unimaginable greatness." Even Lu Piao couldn't stop but listen to my crafting "It was a book, whose name was… ummm what was it again? " I faked not knowing to avoid being too obvious "Ah yes, it was called the Temporal Demon Spirit Book!" I answered hammering my palm with my other fist.

"Eh?!" gurgled Lu Piao in disgust "A book?! Whoever heard of a supreme artifact book?" he spat out "It's definitely a fake story. A book could never be a supreme artifact!"

"Just because you would rather sleep than study doesn't make a book less valuable." I retorted sagely "But to satisfy you, the other supreme artifact is a sword, but I digress…".

Nie Li appeared to be stupefied "Temporal… Demon Spirit Book?" he said slowly, as if those words would leave him for another lover. My head moved in a nodding motion and I continued "The book I read had an array which contained a portion of the energy of the book. It was the same energy I felt from you. " I smiled looking away as if recalling but was actually hiding my face to prevent my lies being exposed "Come to think of it brother Li, why did I feel that from you?"

Got to hand it to the two hundred something year old man in a 12 year old's body, he recovered fast. Straightening his back he shrugged "I have no Idea brother Wan. Maybe you fell asleep in Shen Xiu's class and dreamed it?" he answered like a wiseguy.

Frowning I paused for a second before fisting my chest "Well, I've already crossed this bridge. Also I, Long Wan will never go back on my words!" Ah stop it me! Please, any more and I will have to make some nachos from all that corn.

"Do you still have that book?" asked a hopeful Nie LI.

That surprised me a little but my answered followed a sigh "I no longer have access to it. It was only permitted to me to read it at a place I once worked years ago to make ends meat. Orphans don't exactly live in luxury in Glory City. Though I was more fortunate than most that my parents had worked under and died for the Divine Family. As thanks for their loyalty the took care of my most basic needs as well as my tutelage at the institute. Unfortunately both my former employer and the book perished in a fire a few years ago…" Translation: When I was working retail on Earth I used to slack off and read the novel. It was my only solace during the short breaks before facing the demons called customers. Since then I have the conviction that people should have a mandatory service in retail of at least 6 months. Then I can guarantee we wouldn't have anymore assholes pushing shopping carts.

From hopeful Nie Li instantly took to looking like someone had kicked his puppy (to anyone who would kick a puppy: I really wish that your mothers swallowed you!). Houses in Glory City were made mostly of wood, fabric and paper so fires were common occurrence. Although they were quickly handled by the city guards and the people, casualties were still more than none and material losses were unavoidable.

"Nie Li, do you like Ye Ziyun?" Lu Piao asked looking at Nie Li. Lu Piao wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed but his instincts and empathy were second to none. Or maybe he wanted to stop talking about books…

"Yes!" Nie Li said truthfully, instantly lighting up.

Lu Piao stared into Nie Li's eyes, after a while he sighed, "Ye Ziyun's a beauty indeed. And seeing that you're my brother, I shall not fight with you. But as a brother, I have to warn you, Ye Ziyun's identity is too noble. She isn't someone we can match."

Although his family belongs to one of the twelve aristocratic families, Ye Ziyun's identity compared to him is simply astronomical.

"You two, can you be more realistic? Ye Ziyun's a super genius with a cyan soul realm! Soon she'll become a 1-star Bronze rank Demon Spiritualist. I estimate that in two months time she'll be able to enter the official Demon Spiritualist class. After entering the official Demon Spiritualist class, her cultivation will definitely soar. Whether she remembers you or not is still a problem. What I hate the most is your kind of noble offspring is constantly thinking of how to chase after girls, when you don't even know how to work hard and train!" Du Ze snorted, relentlessly.

A chuckle escaped my throat "Du Ze, you have a point but counting someone's talent by their soul realm color is amateurish at best." Du Ze frowned and looked at me hard. It was the way taught by the previous experts in the city's history so it was natural that I was stepping on some nerves. "The color of a soul realm is really like guessing a person's identity through a thick fog. The soul crystals used during the Holy Orchid institute testing are polluted by using it on too many people. Once a second person uses the same crystal it will form interference and the true nature of one's soul realm will be indistinguishable, with only the color and quantity of soul force being visible."

"Other than soul realm's type and the strength of the soul force, what else can be tested?" Lu Piao asked curiously. Even Du Ze's frown turned into a curious gaze.

"The attributes and form of the soul realm! Just like Long Wan said, in this world there are no crippled soul realms. Red, orange, yellow, green, cyan, azure, and indigo are the seven color types of soul realm. Each represents a person's unique personality and talents. Due to various reason, some soul realms are more easy to train, but that doesn't mean that red soul realms are crippled. If you find the right cultivation technique to train with, even with red soul realm, you can also unleash powerful strength. For those who grade the soul realm into different grades, in terms of soul force cultivation, they are a bunch of amateurs!" Nie Li faintly smiled as he answered. However, he never fully explained things and left things to be painfully deduced. That wasn't in my nature.

"Attributes, just as the name implies, are affinities to a specific nature. Just like demon beasts can be lightning natured, snow-wind natured, fire natured and so on, so can soul realms. This is very important because choosing a cultivation technique or merging with demon beasts that are contradicting to your nature will stunt your growth severely. In some cases even merging with a demon beast is impossible due to the opposition of it's element to your soul. For example an ice natured soul realm will nearly always reject a fire natured spirit."

Nie Li nodded in approval "There is a lot more to it but Long Wan summarized it perfectly."

"Oh." hummed Du Ze. "What about the other criteria?" he continued.

"You mean soul form. That is more difficult to explain. Whilst attributes are more external orientated, soul form is born with the self. In layman terms, it's a person's soul realm characteristics given form. You can consider it a person's talents." words flowed out of my mouth following me cupping my chin to rub my non-existent beard. Damn adolescent fluff, I miss my beard… "I realized after reading Tales of Demons and Gods that I had the ability to peek at a person's soul form and attributes."

"Really?!" asked Nie Li in sheer surprise.

"It's not something amazing. It takes an absurdly long time to map out a person's attributes, at least in the order of days. More if the person is a lot stronger..." I nodded "It's easier to use a demon crystal." pausing to let it sink in before continuing "However, since we were together in class so long I had the time to know how each of your attributes, and in some cases even soul forms."

"I bet mine looks amazing!" declared Lu Piao tucking his hands arrogantly behind his head.

"Can you please tell us how ours look like?" asked one of the boys. If Long Wan's memories served me well, then this was Wei Nan.

"Of course! We are all brothers here after all. I will share everything I know about it." Seeing the boys' surprised expressions before they smiled filled my heart with joy. So this was even more painful to continue "Unfortunately Zhang Ming, Zhu Xiangjun and Wei Nan were seated a bit too far from me so I could only vaguely see something which I suspect are linked to your attributes". The boys still smiled and nodded in understanding. It would appear that it was enough for them to know even that information.

"It's not like it's the only option. We can always get some unused soul crystals later to get the entire information." continued Nie Li saving the situation "Besides, cultivation is mostly dependent on attributes, the soul form is less impactful."

Turning to Du Ze I began "Yours looks like an endless burning field that touches a greyish clouded sky filled with lightning" . I really hoped this worked. It was more than likely I was just sprouting nonsense since the novel rarely detailed such

"Lightning Fire attribute, Heavenly Thundercloud form." interrupted Nie Li.

"Lightning Fire attribute, Heavenly Thundercloud form?" asked Lu Piao. You could see the steam coming out of his ears as his brain struggled to keep up with us.

Nie Li continued telling Du Ze "Once you find a suitable cultivation technique, any soul realm color can also reach legend rank! With a suitable cultivation technique, inscription pattern and a Heavenly Thunder Demon Beast for the Lightning Fire attribute, your achievements will be shocking. Comparatively, your power would drop if you practiced other things, not to mention your cultivation would progress a lot slower."

Hearing Nie Li's words, Du Ze showed a distress look on his face, saying "Unfortunately, the Lightning Fire cultivation techniques in Glory City are incomplete."

At this moment, Nie Li revealed a smile as though he had a card up his sleeve. He whispered loud enough only for us to hear "With me here, there is nothing to worry about. It's just Lightning Fire cultivation techniques, nothing too difficult for me. I know the top 69 strongest Lightning Fire cultivation techniques. In fact I have a lot more cultivation techniques for each of us. The fact that brother Wan can read our soul realms saved us a lot of time. After class, let's find a secluded place to cultivate."

Excellent. This was progressing a lot faster than expected. If I can keep Nie Li out of the hunting grounds then I can lessen the chances of him meeting Ning'er. "Let's meet at the library after class. We should be able to find ourselves a secluded spot there."

Nie Li nodded in agreement and so did the rest. Lu Piao however seemed to have a mild allergic reaction to books as he appeared to be less than enthusiastic. However his curiosity was always at the top "Long Wan, what about me?" he asked me curiously.

"Yours is like a spinning red sun. However the area around it is like a formless ever shifting unstable mass." I tried to picture Lu Piao's form and attributes as best as I could.

"Scarlet Sun form, Chaos attribute" hummed Nie Li.

Lu Piao puffed his chest "Ahahaha! That's good right?"

Nie Li frowned his brows for a moment digesting the information, "Scarlet Sun soul form is quite common, but Chaos attribute is surprisingly rare. There wouldn't be one Chaos attribute in hundreds of thousands of people."

"I read a bit about Chaos attribute. Supposedly under the right conditions seeding your soul realm with Chaos Qi will start a reaction causing your soul force to continuously surge on it's own, even in your sleep. You would only need to stabilize your cultivation every once in a while. It's a slacker's dream attribute" my comments flew at Lu Piao and Nie Li.

Du Ze put a hand on Lu Piao's shoulder, and he wasn't gentle either "Fits this lazy person like a glove…"

Before Lu Piao could retort, Nie Li cupped his chin and said "Sounds like the Holy Primal Chaos technique" He turned to Lu Piao "I will teach you that technique after class."

Holy Primal Chaos technique? Is it strong?" Lu Piao asked excitedly, as it sounded powerful from the name itself.

"Of course. As it doesn't require much practice, only the need to foster the Chaos Qi in your body, it suits you." Nie Li said, laughing, "It will depends on your luck as for training to the highest level."

Listening Nie Li's words, Lu Piao's eyes instantly shined. This piece of cultivation technique is too suitable for him. He chuckled as he said, "I don't need to practice to the highest level, I will be satisfied as long as I can reach 1-star silver rank demon spiritualist."

"That's impossible." came my reply causing Lu Piao sink down dejected "The Chaos energies won't stop swelling at 1-star silver rank demon spiritualist. Even Black-Gold Rank or Earthen Fate probably won't be the end…"

Immediately Lu Piao stood straight and smiled proudly. "Earthen Fate?" asked Du Ze

Crap! I slipped… "Ahem… I read that also in the Tales of Demons and Gods book. It's another name for Legend rank and is the top of the earthen fate cultivation. Supposedly, it is also the stepping stone into a realm called Heavenly Fate."

Du Ze's jaw fell loose "A realm higher than Legend…"

"What else did you learn from that book?" asked Nie Li. I could tell he was getting suspicious. This never happened in his previous life so there was no way this couldn't catch him off guard.

"It would take too long to tell. I read it over many months and didn't actually get to finish it. Also, I thought that book was nothing but a fictional view of reality. The only reason I even brought it up was because I thought I sensed that weird energy from you…"

Nie Li nodded with a smile and put his hand reassuringly on my shoulder "Okay then. I hope that brother Wan can share his knowledge with me in the future."

Relaxing a bit, I smiled and nodded. Don't worry Nie Li, I will share a lot with you and keep your rear away from a lot of trouble that shows up. You may be centuries old but your character type is the one that puts their foot in their mouth when their pride swells… "I'll start by telling you that your soul realm has no form or any distinguishing traits. It's as bland as I ever saw" He wanted me to share so I did.

"What does that mean?" Asked another one of the background trio, Zhang Ming if I remembered correctly.

Nie Li sighed "I suspected this. It means that my soul realm has no attributes or form. All soul realms are very powerful but my type is without a doubt the weakest of the strong..."

Du Ze and Lu Piao threw some pitying looks at Nie Li. Poor fools, if they only knew the advantages he possessed. Advantages that I will be more than happy to clarify. "That sounds really versatile. While you don't have any strengths to take advantage of, you also don't suffer any limitations. You can practice any technique with equal gain and also merge with any demon beast."

Nie Li nodded with a smile "It is also the formless soul realms are more predisposed to change. Practicing the right cultivation technique can attune one's talent to that cultivation to bring about explosive results. It will take effort to build the foundation but in the end one must not be afraid to grow slowly."

"Long Wan, what about us?" asked Wei Nan innocently. Thank heavens for secondary protagonists!

I glanced at each of them and answered "Zhang Ming's looks like his soul realm is covered in blinding, but at the same time soothing white light within a shell of red mist . Zhu Xiangjun's is made of red flames with shining golden cores. As for Wei Nan, I can see red winds constantly blowing around."

Nie Li was now resting his back against the wall and was contemplating with his eyes closed before answering "Holy, Sacred Flame and God attributes. I have a few powerful cultivation techniques for each attribute. We will change them later to suit your soul forms if needed and at least they will be leagues above anything the city can provide."

"Thank you Nie Li! Thank you Long Wei!" answered the trio in unison while cupping their hands.

I waved them off as sweat starting to form on my brow "I said we're brothers so you don't need to thank me. Thick or thin we need to stick together."

"What about you?" Asked a concerned Du Ze "What is your soul realm like?"

A bead of sweat formed on my head as I laughed it off "It doesn't work with mirrors and humans can't exactly detach their eyes and look at themselves..."

Du Ze looked away and became silent for a moment "Sorry Long Wan"

Smiling I shrugged it off but Nie Li interfered "Like mentioned before, we just need some soul crystals." He corrected with a smile.

Fuck! Fuck! FU~CK~! We were back to square one: soul crystals. Fate is a fucking bitch on her period that needs to be slapped silly. Time for phase 2!

"We will still need a lot of money..." I hummed using this frustration as a cover for my plan.

"How much do you need? I have a lot. I saved up two thousand demon spirit coins. If I can become a Demon Spiritualist, I can afford to spend it all." stated Lu Piao as he loosened his breath

"Unfortunately, two thousand won't be enough. I was thinking that if we had elixirs, we could progress even faster" I threw out.

"Elixirs that could enhance cultivation would cost tens of thousands of demon spirit coins." replied Wei Nan.

Nodding I continued "As a side note, I heard that Alchemy in Glory city has steadily declined and that most of the pills now in use are just leftovers from the Snow Wind era. If an alchemist were to rediscover those old superpills once can only assume they would become incredibly rich."

Suddenly we all heard a thud and turned back to see Nie Li crouching down holding the crown of his head. I can only imagine that he was contemplating with his head low and, hearing our conversation, raised his head too fast and hit it hard against the wall.

"Nie Li, are you alright?" I asked in genuine concern.

Said ginger recovered instantly and wrapped me into a hug "Long Wan I could kiss you!" He squeezed. His strength was slightly higher than mine so it was a bit uncomfortable. "If all works out, by this time next month we will be all filthy rich."

Excellent! Nie Li will directly join the alchemists association skipping the training ground and thus will not meet with Ning'er anymore.

Later, I will get the her that cultivation technique and finally phase three and the plan will be complete. It should be fairly easy to do but it's not good to rush things.