Stunning Talent

'I can't be trash, right? How can an author be trash in his own world?!'

Li Chen felt his world shaking as his best effort couldn't even attract any stars. They all had different colors, according to the six elements but none even nudged.

In boundless space, there were billions of stars yet no one saw him as fit. Time trickled away, and his body outside his sea of consciousness began to tremble. 

Unknown to him, from a circular window, an ethereal beauty placed her chin on her palms, which were on the window sill. 

Xiu Ying couldn't curb her raging emotions even after fighting her top subordinates. Without a calm, clear mind, she couldn't cultivate so she washed up and went to her room.

However, the surge of star energy made her look out the window and it had been hours since then.

Dusk had arrived and the cloudless sky had turned orange yet Li Chen sat still. 'Doesn't his butt hurt from sitting on the hard ground for so long?' she thought, blinking twice.

Tiger Yi and Pig Yun, the fat man who wielded two cleavers, stood at the pavilion, staring at Li Chen.

They could see he was trying to gain the recognition of a star. "It's been hours. The highest time I've heard is three hours but he's been sitting there for six." Pig Yun sighed; he had already lost hope in Li Chen.

"He can still do it." Tiger Yi clenched his fist, unwilling for another person to be labeled as trash and despised by society.

Another hour passed.

Tiger Yi's eyes dimmed but at that moment, Xiu Ying's eyes twinkled and she flew from the window, her white robe fluttering as she soared like an immortal fairy. 

The moment she landed behind Li Chen, Xiu Ying opened her palm and channeled energy towards Li Chen's back. 

In his sea of consciousness, Li Chen felt a force propel him at an insane speed. When he stopped, Li Chen found himself in a pitch-black zone.

There was no star in sight! 

'I guess I'm impressive. Being ignored wasn't enough. The stars had to throw me away from their presence. Li Chen, you're incredible.'

Suddenly, a light twinkled beside him and went dim. He turned to his right and a light blinked at the left.

When he turned to the left, it blinked behind him. "Appear, you dam…!" 

Li Chen's words got stuck in his throat, his eyes grew so wide that they bulged, his heartbeat skyrocketed, and he sucked in air, or that's what his brain made him believe.

The dark space underwent a sudden transformation; bright golden stars and black stars emitting light appeared everywhere. 

Feeling a faint attraction from these unknown elements, he sat with crossed legs, seemingly in mid-air, and joined his hands.

His body glowed softly and a golden star lit up. It glowed brightly but Li Chen subconsciously kept going. 

The second star lit up and the third followed. The fourth became slow but while it was filling up, a black star lit up. Two others followed and it became equal with the golden star. 

After an unknown period of time, Li Chen left his sea of consciousness and opened his eyes. He found himself on a bed, tucked under a thick white quilt. 

[Uh…] He groaned and question marks appeared mid-air, like someone had typed them.

Clenching his right fist, his knuckles popped. He felt so much strength that he could easily punch a brick wall, and it would shatter under his might.

However, Li Chen wasn't willing to trust this exaggerated thought. 

He got up and faced the circular window. Feeling the warmth of the sun on his face, his eyes twinkled as he felt something change within him.

The door slid open, revealing Pi Yun. The fat man looked around the room but he couldn't see anyone. "Did he leave the room?" He asked, scratching his head. 

Suddenly, a man appeared, his hands outstretched while he faced the window. Pig Yun blinked twice; he was sure no one was there a second ago.

Did Li Chen master some sort of illusion technique?

"Hey, golden mask."

Li Chen turned, his golden mask reflecting the sunlight, causing Pig Yun to shield his eyes. 

[My name is not Golden Mask.]

"Not according to the mask that's stuck to your face. You know, since you don't have a nose or mouth, how do you breathe? Or eat?" 

Staring at Pig Yun's dumb face, Li Chen snorted, sat on his bed and wore his black Hanfu boots, which have white soles.

"You dare ignore this great one?!" Pig Yun glared at him, but even his eyes at the widest barely appeared. 

The sound of footsteps made him turn but it was too late as Tiger Yi smacked his head, causing Pig Yun to retreat.

"You finally woke up after troubling Miss," he chuckled.

[W…what?] Li Chen's voice bounced against the four walls of the room.

"We'll talk later; she's waiting for you. Hurry!" Tiger Yi gestured for him, and Li Chen ran through the wide corridors to the courtyard under Tiger Yi's lead.

To his shock, he was perfectly normal. It felt like he didn't even run. 

In the courtyard, Xiu Ying sat under a peach tree, staring at the beautiful sight of sunlight piercing through the gaps of the canopy. 

Turning her head, she saw Li Chen behind Tiger Yi. 

Her phoenix-shaped eyes narrowed as she scrutinized the tall, perfectly structured man garbed in a black robe. 

'He lit up ten stars and went from being a normal human to a peak mundane level cultivator in one night!' she gasped at her own thoughts. 

Although hailed as a heaven-class prodigy, Xiu Ying felt humbled by Li Chen's talent, but a thought sprouted in her heart.

'Luckily, he's mine.'

"Li Chen, get ready. We're going to a nearby town." She said that and she got to her feet.

[May I ask why?] Li Chen's deep voice rang. 

"Because I can't let a town under my protection be ravaged by a vengeful ghost." 

Watching the ruthless beauty elegantly walk away, Li Chen's eyes narrowed. 

"Come, I'll show you our weapon collection." Tiger Yi's voice rang from behind.