The morning sun beat down on the cobblestone streets of Azure Wind City, but Kai felt none of the heat. He was walking on air, the taste of Mrs. Lin's "gratitude" still lingering on his tongue like a phantom sweetness.
He turned the corner, slipping into a quiet alleyway to check the notification blinking in his peripheral vision.
[Ding!][Experience Threshold Met: 100/100][Level Up Available!][Do you wish to ascend to Level 2? (Y/N)]
"Yes," Kai whispered, clenching his fist.
A surge of golden energy erupted from his core. It wasn't the warm, healing flow of the potion; this was raw power. It rushed through his meridians, expanding them, refining his muscles and sharpening his senses. The world seemed to snap into higher definition. The cracks in the wall, the distant chatter of the market—everything was clearer.
[Congratulations! You have reached Level 2.][Reward: +5 Free Stat Points][Current Status: Mortal (Refined)]
Kai stared at the floating blue screen. Five points. In a standard RPG, he would dump these into Strength or Agility to ensure survival. But this wasn't a standard game. This was a world where influence was power, and his "cultivation" relied on interaction.
He thought back to the kitchen. He had nearly failed with Mrs. Lin. He had been forced to spend 50 XP—half a level's worth of effort—on a one-time consumable scroll just to convince a lonely woman to let him touch her.
"I can't rely on the Shop for everything," Kai muttered, rubbing his chin. "It's too expensive. I need natural magnetism. I need to be able to walk into a room and make them wet just by looking at them."
He made his choice.
"System, allocate all 5 points to Charisma."
[Processing...][Charisma: 3 -> 8 (Above Average)][Stat Update Complete.]
The change wasn't explosive, but it was profound. A subtle shift occurred in Kai's features. His jawline seemed to sharpen just a fraction. The rough, peasant dullness of his skin smoothed out, giving him a faint, healthy glow. His eyes, previously a muddy brown, darkened to a deep, intense obsidian that seemed to pull light into them. He stood straighter, an unconscious aura of confidence settling over his shoulders.
He wasn't a god yet, but he was no longer invisible.
[New Quest Generated!][Quest: The First Step to Heaven][Objective: Proceed to the Azure Wind Martial Academy and confirm enrollment status.][Reward: Access to Academy Grounds + 20 XP]
Kai smirked, adjusting his collar. "Time to go to school."
The Azure Wind Martial Academy was a fortress of elitism. Huge walls of white stone surrounded the campus, and the main gate was a towering archway carved with roaring dragons.
Today, the plaza in front of the gate was a sea of bodies. Hundreds of hopefuls—mostly commoners and low-level merchants—were jostling for position, trying to get close to the massive jade bulletin board where the admission results were posted.
Kai waded into the crowd. Before, he would have been shoved aside like trash. But now, as he moved, people instinctively stepped back. They didn't know why, but the young man with the dark eyes and the confident stride felt... important. He parted the sea of unwashed bodies with ease.
He reached the front. His eyes scanned the golden script floating on the jade surface.
Rank 1: Ye Feng (Core Family)Rank 2: Li Wei...
He skipped the top. He knew his place wasn't there yet. He scanned the bottom, the "Outer Disciple" section, where the scraps were thrown.
...Wang Lei......Chen Bo......Kai (Ye Family - Outer Branch)...
Kai froze. There it was.
"Fuck yes," he hissed under his breath, a savage grin breaking across his face. "I'm in."
It didn't matter that he was at the bottom. It didn't matter that he was practically a charity case. He was inside the walls. And inside the walls were the daughters of clans, the female instructors, the high-born ice queens. The "Prey."
"Move aside, trash!"
A sharp voice cut through his celebration.
The crowd parted violently, silencing the chatter. A group of students wearing the pristine white and blue robes of the Academy marched out from the gates. They were led by a woman who commanded the very air around her.
Kai looked up, and his breath hitched—not out of fear, but out of appreciation.
She was a masterpiece of cold, hard lines.
She looked to be in her late thirties, a mature woman in the absolute prime of her power. She wore the uniform of a Senior Instructor, but on her, it looked like bondage gear designed for high society. The dark blue silk was tight—impossibly tight. It clung to a body that was firm, athletic, and voluptuously curved.
Her breasts were high and proud, restrained by the stiff fabric of her collar, looking like two cannonballs ready to burst free. Her waist was cinched tight with a black sash, emphasizing the flare of hips that were built for bearing strong heirs. The slit in her skirt went dangerously high, revealing a long, toned leg encased in sheer black stockings that ended in sharp-heeled boots.
She held a riding crop in her hand, tapping it rhythmically against her thigh. Thwack. Thwack.
[Ding!][Target Identified: Instructor Li Hua][Age: 37][Role: Senior Discipline Mistress][Cultivation: Spirit Realm (High)][Trait: Elitist (Despises the Lower Class)][Attraction Level: Disgust (-10)]
Li Hua stopped at the top of the stairs, looking down at the crowd of commoners with eyes like chips of ice. She didn't see people; she saw vermin.
"The list has been posted," she announced, her voice crisp and commanding, carrying over the plaza without effort. "If your name is not on the Jade Wall, remove yourselves from the Academy grounds immediately. You are cluttering the air."
Her gaze swept across the front row. It landed on Kai.
Most commoners cowered under her stare. They looked at their feet, ashamed of their poverty.
Kai didn't look down. He looked up.
With his upgraded Charisma and his "Eye of Lust" active, he met her gaze with a bold, unwavering intensity. He looked at her not as a superior, but as a challenge. His eyes dropped to her chest, lingered on the tight buttons straining to hold her in, then traveled down to the slit in her dress, before snapping back to her eyes with a smirk.
Li Hua narrowed her eyes. She saw the look. A peasant? Looking at her? And not with reverence, but with... hunger?
She stepped down one stair, the heel of her boot clicking loudly. The sound echoed like a gunshot.
"You," she said, pointing the riding crop directly at Kai's chest. "You are smiling. Do you find the sanctity of this Academy amusing, boy?"
Her voice was dripping with disdain. She hated his clothes. She hated his messy hair. But most of all, she hated that he wasn't trembling.
Kai straightened his back. The scent of her—expensive orchids and cold steel—wafted down to him.
"Not amusing, Instructor," Kai said, his voice smooth, utilizing his new Charisma stat to keep it steady. "Inspiring. I was just admiring the... view."