"Captain Su, good morning!"
"Morning."
The morning sun was bright.
Yesterday, Su Mu was passed over for the position of Security Captain for the fifth time, leaving him a bit frustrated. Today he took a day's leave from the school, which was readily approved, as he almost never requests time off.
Early in the morning, his wife and daughter called him on video and sent him a red envelope. Su Mu was pleasantly surprised, only realizing during the conversation that today was his birthday. However, he could only spend it alone now, but he was used to it.
"Sigh, thirty-three years have passed without realizing, I'm another year older."
Su Mu was not from this world; he had transmigrated here from the womb.
This world was much more competitive than Blue Star in his previous life, twisted into a pretzel, like a Chinese knot.
Because this was a High Martial World fraught with danger, a thousand years ago, with the resurgence of Spiritual Qi, plants and animals mutated, Fierce Beasts descended, and humanity's situation became perilous.
In the crisis of survival, countless human pioneers sacrificed themselves, paving the way; humanity finally explored a cultivation technique, giving rise to martial artists who used martial arts to fight against the Fierce Beasts.
Yet internal worries were endless, and external threats emerged again.
A few hundred years ago, an anomaly in Blue Star's space led to an invasion attempt by the Alien Race through a spatial passageway. Human martial artists began a war against the alien invasion.
Generations of martial artists sacrificed their lives in battle, eventually managing to keep the Alien Race contained within the spatial passages. Over time, these temporary spatial passages mutated.
After expanding, they formed nearly permanent small spaces, where the bodies of fallen martial artists, the Alien Race, and Fierce Beasts intertwined with Spiritual Qi, giving rise to numerous precious cultivation resources.
Now, human martial artists and the Alien Race fight daily within these small spaces, not only to protect their homeland but also to compete for cultivation resources.
These small spaces have now become today's Alien Race Battlefields.
The Alien Race Battlefields connect directly to Blue Star, with martial artists stationed at entry points by all nations to guard them.
Outside the large and medium-sized battlefields within Dragon Country's first and second-tier cities, elite troops and Saint Martial University are stationed, while ordinary Martial Arts Universities and troops guard the small and micro battlefields in third to fifth-tier cities.
"Born in worry and died in comfort," the Alien Race Battlefields are the best places for learning.
Shenjiang Martial Arts University is one of them. Due to its remote location, it ranks at the bottom among Dragon Country's hundred or so Martial Arts Universities.
After transmigrating to this world, Su Mu was full of passion and ambition, planning to achieve great things and make a name for himself.
But while dreams were grand, reality was quite stark.
Although diligent in his cultivation, Su Mu's martial arts talent was mediocre. If not for choosing the bottom-ranked Shenjiang Martial Arts University and being admitted as a local with a lower score, he would have failed the entrance exam that year.
Even so, being admitted to the Martial Arts University was considered an achievement in Linjiang Base; there were over a hundred thousand candidates from Shenjiang City's Linjiang Base that year, and less than a thousand were successfully admitted to universities, making them one in a few hundred.
Su Mu had thought being admitted to the Martial Arts University would be the start of his glorious life, but it turned out to be just the peak.
"Martial artists are classified into nine levels, first being the lowest and ninth being the highest, revered as Martial Saints by the world."
"I started cultivation at ten. By eighteen, my Qi Blood Value barely reached 150 calories, completing my first Bone Tempering to become a First Level Martial Artist. In five years, I advanced to a Second Level Martial Artist, but for the last ten years, I have remained a Second Level Martial Artist."
"It's said that if you can't reach Third Level Martial Artist by thirty, your potential is likely at its limit, and you'll only remain at that level for life."
"Sigh..."
Su Mu couldn't help but sigh, but fortunately, this world treated martial artists well, and Su Mu didn't have the pressure of a mortgage.
"Let's eat first."
With a day off and his birthday, he decided to spend the red envelope money to buy a few pounds of fish, ribs, and meat through internal channels in the cafeteria to improve his meals.
These were Exotic Beast meats, beneficial to martial artists' cultivation when consumed regularly, and not easily available outside.
"Let's braise the fish in soy sauce, season the ribs with salt and pepper, and stir-fry the meat with chili."
With a high flame, the fragrance quickly filled the whole house.
Su Mu was quite skilled at cooking, a handy talent when courting his wife. When feeling down, he liked to drink a little wine, though he couldn't drink during workdays.
He took a bottle of cold beer from the fridge, but the next second, he froze.
The bottle opener hadn't even been moved, but he heard a clear "ding" sound.
He must have heard wrong, probably because he hadn't slept well the night before.
Su Mu smiled self-deprecatingly, swiftly opened the beer, and suddenly his eyes widened.
[Superpower Refresh System Loaded Successfully!]
[Each month, you can consume Spirit Stones to randomly refresh a superpower. Each refresh costs 10,000 Spirit Stones, with the probability of obtaining higher quality superpowers increasing with extra Spirit Stones consumed.]
[PS: The first refresh is free!]
A few lines of text suddenly appeared in front of him. After seeing them clearly, he hurriedly rubbed his eyes, pinched his thigh hard, and the pain turned his daze into ecstasy.
Superpower Refresh System?!
Could this be the legendary cheat code for a Transmigrator, the system?!
Even with two lives, Su Mu, already a settled middle-aged man, was a bit overwhelmed at this moment.
Thirty-three years! Finally waiting for you, glad I didn't give up.
Oh cheat code, do you know how he, Su Mu, lived these thirty-three years?
Su Mu's breathing became rapid, and after a while, he calmed down and looked carefully at this cheat code that arrived more than thirty years late.
"One random superpower per month? I see."
"Starting at 10,000 Spirit Stones, not cheap indeed."
Su Mu appeared pained; an officially recognized Low-grade Spirit Stone was equivalent to one hundred Dragon Country Coins. Currently, his basic salary was 500 Low-grade Spirit Stones per month, possibly increasing by 200 with martial artist and school subsidies.
This salary was quite good, which was why Su Mu chose to stay at the school after graduation.
But even saving without eating or drinking, it'd take him over a year to save up 10,000 Spirit Stones. Not eating or drinking wasn't feasible; his wife and daughter needed support, and he had to provide for his elderly parents.
Saving this 10,000 might take years; his daughter had been weak since childhood and fell seriously ill last year, costing a lot. Now, he only had less than 20,000 Spirit Stones in savings, just enough for one attempt.
"The system is considerate; the first time is free."
Su Mu rubbed his hands, eagerly starting his first draw.
With a thought, a semi-transparent blue disc appeared in the void in front of him, seeming small but containing everything.
After a few seconds of spinning, Su Mu silently thought: stop.
The pointer quickly hovered in a certain area.
The next second.
Golden light burst forth, dazzlingly bright.
Golden legend?!
Though unsure of what the superpower was, Su Mu knew his luck was good this time.
[Quality: Golden]
[Superpower: Basic Source Supplement Foundation Establishment (Special Type), effective for martial artists of Third Level and below, converts upcoming cultivation Qi and Blood increases into bone-enhancing Marrow Washing, allowing acquired enhancement of martial artist Root Bone]
[PS: The drawn ability lasts one month]
Enhancing Root Bone?
Acquired enhancement?!!
The first drawn ability is this groundbreaking?!!
...