[Ember Base Open-Air Training Ground]
The morning sun filtered through the clouds, spilling onto the training ground and the Children of the Stars who were tirelessly training, drenched in sweat.
Among them, some were exercising their physique, some were honing their combat skills, and others were sitting cross-legged in meditation, refining their Stars Energy.
Yet, amid all these diligent stars, one figure stood out, appearing completely out of place.
Under the shade of a tree at the edge of the training ground, Jing Liuli was sound asleep, wearing a cute light-purple pajama, hugging a fluffy pillow.
Her quality of sleep was so good that she didn't even notice the glistening drool hanging from the corner of her mouth. Occasionally, she would smack her lips and let out a couple of silly giggles, likely dreaming of something wonderful.
Watching Liuli openly slacking off on the monitor screen, Yun Meng helplessly rubbed her forehead.
"Doctor... are you sure you don't need to supervise Liuli, this child?"
As the Chief Instructor of the Children of the Stars Project, she should have strictly demanded discipline from everyone, but when facing little Liuli, she always found herself unable to be firm.
It was like seeing her own daughter secretly sleeping in class—she wanted to shake her awake and educate her, yet couldn't bear to be too harsh.
Hearing Yun Meng's words, the Doctor, who was sitting on the sofa quietly analyzing data on a tactical tablet, replied without lifting his head: "It's fine. Just let her be."
"But..."
Yun Meng, who was fully aware of the contents of the entire Children of the Stars Project, did not want Jing Liuli to fall behind.
Listening to Yun Meng's hesitant tone, the Doctor put down his tactical tablet and looked up at her.
"Yun Meng, sometimes change... doesn't necessarily mean a good thing."
"You must understand that among these little ones, quite a few are very clear about their own talent and potential."
"Therefore, for some special existences among them, we don't need to interfere too much. Let nature take its course."
Although the Doctor did not respond directly, his words clearly implied to Yun Meng.
Jing Liuli was the special existence he mentioned—one who knew her own talent and potential.
She did not require excessive interference.
After all, with her Stars Energy control, which was almost 'instinctual,' high-intensity training would not only fail to improve her but might actually disrupt her inherently terrifying 'instinct.'
Knowing this, Yun Meng finally gave up the idea of going into the training ground, dragging Jing Liuli up, and making her 'study' properly.
Since the Doctor, the 'Principal' of Ember, had spoken, what could she, the 'Dean of Students' of Ember, say?
Simply obey.
However, humans are never troubled by scarcity but by inequality.
While everyone else was training seriously, Jing Liuli was openly slacking off.
This kind of 'special treatment' undoubtedly made her an eyesore in the view of many Children of the Stars.
In short... she was a non-conformist.
"Hey, if you want to sleep, get back to your own dorm! Don't be in the way here."
Just as Jing Liuli was sleeping soundly, a loud, rough reprimand appeared on the training ground.
Seeing the situation unfold here, many Children of the Stars stopped what they were doing and watched the drama.
The one who spoke was Sak, ranked 'NO.11' among the Children of the Stars. His implanted Star Core was the 'Thousand-Bladed Mantis'.
As a Child of the Stars who narrowly missed the top ten, Sak had always been very dissatisfied with his ranking.
He believed he should be in the high sequence of the top ten, or even the top five.
Not stuck at the awkward 11th spot—neither high nor low—like he was now.
It should be noted that this was only the first month since these Children of the Stars completed their Star Core surgery. Many had not even fully adapted to their Star Cores, let alone unleashed their potential.
Yet, despite this situation, the base had already released a ranking list early on.
This inevitably caused dissatisfaction among many people, who felt the list lacked credibility.
Sak was one of these Children of the Stars who questioned the rankings. He had been looking for an opportunity to prove himself and raise his rank.
The saying goes: pick the softest persimmon to squeeze.
Among the top three Children of the Stars, NO.1 Tendo clearly looked unapproachable. NO.2 Chen Xing and NO.4 Caroline were also visibly powerful.
Only NO.3 Jing Liuli was different.
From the time she completed her Star Core surgery until now, she had been sleeping for two-thirds of the day.
When she met people, she always wore an innocent, harmless expression that made others feel absolutely no sense of danger from her.
Jing Liuli's high ranking, combined with her seemingly non-combat nature, naturally made her the perfect target for many Children of the Stars who wanted to prove themselves.
However, what made Sak feel both angry and annoyed was that, in the face of his scolding, Jing Liuli not only didn't react but even hugged her pillow and turned over in a soft, cozy motion.
It was as if she hadn't heard him at all.
In response, Sak's green buzzcut stood up like a hedgehog, and a vein pulsed on his forehead.
He was clearly on the verge of exploding.
And seeing Sak, who was obviously looking for trouble, on screen.
Liuli's fans on Site 13 were displeased.
'Seriously, where did this green-haired hedgehog come from? You think you can bully our Liuli?'
'Lol! You think our Liuli is an easy target, huh? Just you wait, you're gonna get what's coming to you.'
'The audacity! From his tone, you'd think he was NO.1.'
"Hey! I'm talking to you! Did you hear me or not?"
Sak said, while reaching out to grab the precious pillow in Jing Liuli's arms.
He clearly intended to force Liuli awake.
But the moment his hand reached out, a faint light-purple glow suddenly emanated from Liuli.
The next second, countless tiny 'Dream Butterflies' flew up from around Liuli, gently wrapping around Sak's wrist.
They were seemingly delicate light-purple butterflies that looked like they could be crushed with a squeeze, but at that moment, Sak felt as if he were bound by unbreakable iron chains. He was completely unable to break free from these Dream Butterflies for a long time.
Meanwhile, as more and more Dream Butterflies flew near him, Sak's eyelids grew heavy.
Finally, under the surprised gaze of many Children of the Stars, Sak collapsed with a thud and fell into a deep sleep.
"..."
Seeing this scene, many Children of the Stars fell silent.
They had expected a fierce battle between him and Liuli, but the result was so dramatic.
Jing Liuli didn't even lift a finger, and Sak was down.
However, they were not fools. They wouldn't underestimate the sleeping Jing Liuli just because of this anticlimactic ending.
After all, she could so effortlessly defeat a high-ranking Child of the Stars, rank 11, while in an unconscious state of sleep.
Wouldn't dealing with others be even easier?
Thinking this, the Children of the Stars who had gathered to watch the show instantly scattered like birds and beasts.
As for Sak, who was forcefully pulled into slacking off by Liuli, no one stepped forward to wake him.
After all, just as Sak wanted to raise his rank, others also wanted to raise theirs.
Allowing Sak to miss a day of training would undoubtedly delay his cultivation progress, creating more opportunities for the people ranked below him.
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