Ashes Of Heaven Book 1 : Solar Calamity

Three days after his first lesson from the Crimson Snow sect, Han Xuhan finally managed to achieve something noteworthy by cooping himself up inside his hut and cultivating crazily, no matter how boring it was.

Just as he had said, he skipped his daily assignments, the fines for which had been paid in advance, a punishment that would render any other normal disciple bankrupt within half a month.

But being a "tycoon" with loaned money, Han Xuhan didn't give a damn about these expenses. If he didn't manage to reach the second layer of the physique transformation realm within the first month, his future would be doomed anyway.

But it seemed that the constant fear and tension had really stirred his mind and made it more resolute, a trait that he didn't have originally.

All in all, he cultivated maniacally and on the third night of his seclusion, Xuhan suddenly felt that the qi gathering and cycling had lost its effect on him.

It was the cultivation technique for reaching the zeroth layer of the physique transformation realm. After re-examining the scroll, he understood that the technique had lost effect because he had officially reached the peak of the zeroth layer of the physique transformation realm. The technique had already imprinted itself on his imaginary cultivation base.

In other words, he was ready to break into the actual cultivation realm, the first layer of Physique Transformation!

Setting aside the scroll Mu Ran had given him, Xuhan took out the second scroll from his table, the skeletal monarch.

This was the other cultivation method Mu Ran had "recommended" to him, one which he planned to use as a supplementary technique mixed with the Spiritual Bones Manual to see if he could create something new altogether.

Despite sounding far-fetched, Xuhan felt an uncontrollable urge to make this work. In his previous life, he had read the stories of countless awesome techniques in xianxia novels, many of which seemed to be compatible with each other. Yet those dumb protagonists never even bothered to do any research, relying on sheer overpowered plot armor to overcome all obstacles. Where was the fun in that?

He, Han Xuhan, had working brain cells. Even if it was a risky move, he couldn't bear to see such a valuable chance of using his creativity go to waste. Why would he let go of such an opportunity to experiment with magical techniques and create something brand new?

"A lego-nerd like me shall never give up a single chance to build something new with the materials in hand..."

Feeling nostalgic about his lego set in his previous life, which he had been forced to hide from his young cousins for decades, Han Xuhan started examining the skeletal monarch technique with great interest.

The skeletal monarch was much more complicated than he had thought. The author must have used some high-level techniques related to space or illusions to make thousands of words fit into the foot-wide scroll. Because the words were still readable somehow despite their puzzling size.

The handwriting, on the other hand, was simply ugly.

Why couldn't the author use a technique to at least improve his writing instead of using those esoteric techniques related to space?

What's more, he didn't understand many of the research terms, the diagrams were mind-boggling, the qi cycle had to be repeated not only inside his own meridians but also inside the bones of the skeletons he summoned, leading to a lengthy and time-consuming cultivation session the further he cultivated.

The principles behind the summoning were very vague, seemingly intentionally. But Xuhan didn't care. As long as it worked, he would be fine with it.

After he finished studying the whole scroll, Han Xuhan felt his head hurt.

He still had to worry about the one-month deadline. But since he planned to use the spiritual bones on the summoned skeletons' bodies, Xuhan had to cultivate this one first and summon a skeleton minion.

"Never thought I'd say something so abominable, but I am really starting to miss my physics and chemistry books..."

The future cultivation sessions would only be more and more complicated, from what he had gathered so far. Compared to the horrors he might face in the future, Han Xuhan would take on college-level physics any day.

Sighing despondently, he started absorbing qi again to start cultivating the skeletal monarch technique.

According to Mu Ran, once he had reached the peak of the zeroth layer, he could officially start cultivating any technique and break into the first layer with enough time and dedication.

While Xuhan certainly didn't lack dedication, he was definitely short on time.

Four weeks, two layers to surpass, no cheats to rely on either.

As time passed, Han Xuhan grew more and more familiar with the technique. Yet instead of feeling relief, Xuhan was starting to lose his nerve as his understanding of the technique deepened.

That evening, he stopped cycling his qi and began scribbling down a large amount of numbers on a piece of paper.

After ten minutes of careful calculation where Han Xuhan mapped out his overall growth chart based on each qi cycling session for the next twenty-seven days, his face became darker than ever.

Numbers didn't lie.

With his current capabilities, even if he improved the effectiveness of each cultivation session by more than 30%, it'd take him five weeks to reach the second layer of the physique transformation realm, provided that he cooped up inside his hut the whole time and didn't waste a single second.

This scenario was also impossible, since he was obliged to attend every lesson, perform the less taxing daily tasks such as cleaning up the sect grounds and classrooms, and helping out in the kitchen...

Yet the sect would definitely punish him greatly or directly expel him if he failed to reach the deadline within four weeks. This puzzled him. Why did they put an impossible target in front of the inexperienced disciples?

...Or did the issue lie with him? His cultivation sessions weren't producing the result they were supposed to– this could actually be the crux of his problem. Elder Kong did say that his meridians weren't in a perfect condition that day.

Could it be?

Gripping the sheets full of calculation, Xuhan felt sweat covering his forehead. This world was nothing like those from xianxia novels in certain aspects.

The disciples in novels got paid for being a disciple and all the martial arts or cultivation techniques were free in the sects. But the situation here was the total opposite. He was the one paying for being a disciple. There was no relaxed atmosphere, no arrogant young masters to stomp on and loot, no jade beauties bearing treasures and blessings.

There wasn't even a fricking inter-sect tournament to take advantage of.

Feeling distressed, Han Xuhan ran his hands over his only assets in this world, his pouches full of loaned money.

Suddenly, a eureka moment struck him as he remembered one of the popular tropes.

"Aren't all sects supposed to have cultivation resources in novels, especially a large amount reserved for the genius disciples to cultivate faster? This isn't something that can be avoided if one wants to cultivate faster than normal, right? Pills, ancient grounds filled with opportunities, heavenly treasures that could boost cultivation level..."

There should definitely be something similar in this sect too. Han Xuhan was sure of it. After all, he had been able to purchase the supplementary gadgets from the treasury. Even though he had been scammed, the opportunity was still there!

So he immediately ran out of his hut in a disarray and started looking for his seniors in the neighboring huts.

The senior disciples who stayed inside the sect were never available, always busy in closed-door cultivation or recuperating from injuries that they didn't want to talk about.

But his quick idea paid off. Soon, he tracked down the first senior he had met here, the snarky big sister who had introduced him to master Daheng. From her, he found out some detailed information about cultivation resources in the sect.

The sect did actually follow the style of cherishing the strong and suppressing the weak. The disciples with the highest potential received cultivation resources for free, provided that they broke through to the soul reformation realm within two years.

While the notion seemed absurd to Xuhan, he was more concerned about his current predicament.

"Senior, can I use spirit stones to directly buy resources from the sect?"

The older disciple gave him a strange look upon hearing his question.

"Junior brother, you certainly can...except, don't mind me asking this but, how many spirit stones do you have?"

"A bit more than a thousand, senior."

The older disciple looked taken aback for a moment, making Xuhan feel a bit more confident. But then she chuckled derisively.

"Junior, I advise you to give up on those pipe dreams. Even the lowest quality of resources is worth hundreds of spirit stones. And they are consumables, get it?

Unlike those gadgets you've bought, these resources will run out very soon. Then you'll be stuck with no money, and no way to continue cultivating fast anymore, which is a very, very, frustrating experience...since you would have already tasted the sweetness of fast cultivation speed." The senior disciple looked traumatized, as if she was speaking from personal experience.

"If you borrow emergency funds to buy resources, you'll be mired with loans again. You'll end up like a drug addict from the mortal world. Are you sure you can pursue such an extravagant lifestyle? "

"Do I have a choice? I'll have to go for broke, whether I want to or not," Han Xuhan replied calmly.

"...I suppose not," she muttered. "Farewell, then. Go make a visit to the treasury, see what they offer you in there...and take a piece of advice–

Only buy resources from elder Shen, the person in charge of the treasury. The rest of the disciples working there will do their best to scam you...again. That's how they operate. But the elder himself wouldn't give away his face by scamming a child."

"I see, I see..." Han Xuhan was stupefied.

After thanking her, Xuhan visited the Treasury immediately. It was located far away from his mountain peak, near the center of the mountain-cluster, guarded 24/7 by some intimidating seniors.

Xuhan revealed his intention to buy resources from the storage to one of the disciples there. The senior seemed to recognize him, his eyes lighting up with schadenfreude.

"Come in, come in! I'll help you choose!" he dragged Han Xuhan inside enthusiastically.

"Elder Shen will help me choose, senior. Thank you for the warm welcome, though."

The senior's expression turned sour. "Elder Shen is unavailable at the moment," he said flatly.

"Well, I ain't buying then."

"Suit yourself, junior. I can tell you've got a deadline to meet. Are you sure you want to wait?"

The senior's smile was dirty, making his intention clear. But Han Xuhan wasn't bothered in the slightest.

A dead man fears no guillotine.

Why would he care about offending these scammers when his life was on the line here?

Han Xuhan opened his moneybag and began to surf through its contents.

"Oh! A junior who understands the rules so fast! That's rare! I like you, young man!" The senior disciple laughed, putting his palm forward to receive the bribe.

A second later, his smile froze.

Looking down at the large number of spirit stones placed on his palm, he also noticed the blue, glowing crystal accompanying them, and his thoughts fell into disarray.

"The emergency contact method?" he said in a daze.

"The rulebook says any elder near an activated contact crystal is obliged to appear and help." Han Xuhan recited from memory.

"Hahaha! Do you think elder Shen will appreciate the fact that you've interrupted his cultivation session for your personal business?!" the disciple said incredulously. "That crystal is used in times of fatal danger, you retard!"

"Who is it?! What is it?! Who dares to make a scene in my treasury?!" Came a roar from outside.

An old man furiously rushed in and caught sight of the crystal in the senior disciple's hand. His expression turned strange.

"What's happening here? You!" He pointed at the senior disciple immediately, before Han Xuhan could open his mouth. "Explain!"

Han Xuhan sucked in a breath. The elder was clearly picking the side of this scammer! It seems this isn't the first time someone has tried this method.

The senior disciple played the role of a dumbstruck salesman perfectly in front of the manager. Han Xuhan was the Karen of his story.

"How insolent of you to interrupt my cultivation for your personal busi-"

"What? No!" Han Xuhan cut in sharply. "I interrupted your cultivation session because this senior forcibly robbed my spirit stones. He threatened to cripple me if I didn't hand my pouch over. What else could I do if not seek the help of an elder?"

"..." Elder Shen glanced at the senior disciple.

"What a bucketload of lies!" The senior disciple roared. "You think you can accuse anyone of any crime like this?"

"The evidence is in your hand, senior. Those are my spirit stones," Han Xuhan said. "And that is my contact crystal."

"Lies! These spirit stones are mine, elder. He wanted to borrow some of my money to buy resources. But when I tried to hand the amount to him, he-"

"How many stones are in your hand, senior?" Han Xuhan asked.

"...Well, I didn't keep count, did I? I took out whatever fits in my palm!"

"But I know how many spirit stones are in your hand. Even though these stones have been piled up on your palm and it's impossible for me to count them without going through the pile one by one, the total number of spirit stones in your palm, added with the number remaining in my pouch, equals to one hundred."

"...."

"....."

Both elder Shen and the senior disciple fell silent.

"I would never be able to make this calculation, had that pile originated from your bag as you've claimed...so what is it going to be, senior? Are you going to stick to your false claims?

I mean, that would be pretty pathetic...but it does befit you, pardon my insolence."

Han Xuhan spoke the last sentence with his eyes fixed on elder Shen's face, which was turning sourer and sourer with each syllable.