Chapter 5 - Terrifying training speed

City No. 17, Pan Family, in a secluded courtyard.

A young man with dyed green hair and a somewhat pale complexion was practicing his daily exercise routine.

His name was Pan Kaiji, the eldest son of the wealthy Pan family. In the eyes of outsiders, this identity seemed very fortunate, but only he knew the bitterness that came with it.

"I still can't sense the aura... I can't believe my affinity score is just 1!"

"Could it be that I, Pan Kaiji, am truly useless?"

After finishing another futile attempt to sense the aura, Pan Kaiji let out a long sigh, looking somewhat dejected.

At his age, not being able to sense the aura was definitely seen as a waste, a sign to give up on cultivation.

But for the Pan family, things were different. After all, the resources he consumed were unimaginable to others.

He had been fed on beast meat since childhood, and when he formally started practicing martial arts, he was injected with medicinal serums and received guidance from renowned teachers...

Under these conditions, failing to sense the aura was nothing short of a disgrace!

Pan Kaiji felt even more ashamed when he thought about how many official warriors there already were in his family. He had been stuck at this step for so long that he had nearly lost the motivation to keep trying. He didn't even bother to try out the training method he got from the Star Network.

After all, it wasn't like he hadn't seen strong men before, and if the advice from those people hadn't worked, what was the point of this new training method?

"Forget it, let's treat the dead horse like a living doctor!"

"I might as well give it a try."

After some thought, Pan Kaiji retrieved the memory from the depths of his mind.

Star Art, Acquired Layer.

There was no need to take the initiative to learn it; the moment he received it, the movements practiced countless times were imprinted in his memory.

When he began the first movement, Pan Kaiji's previously discouraged expression became serious.

"Eh..."

"It seems like something's different!"

He could feel that although these movements were somewhat similar to the ones he had practiced before, they were completely different in terms of fundamentals! It was as if the movement of his entire body was under control, ready to explode at any moment.

Even better, the flow of his blood and energy was no longer stagnant as it had been before.

As the movements accelerated, Pan Kaiji felt his blood boiling.

The medical power and nutrients accumulated in his body in the past were quickly transformed into pure power with each move, merging into Pan Kaiji's body and breaking through acupoints.

After half an hour.

Breakthrough!

With a punch, all the power in Pan Kaiji's body was concentrated at one point, accompanied by a cracking sound.

"A warrior... it's done! I really am a genius!"

After completing this set of movements, Pan Kaiji realized he had successfully broken through and officially entered the Acquired realm!

At this moment, in addition to joy, he was also shocked.

If Pan Kaiji had been merely curious about the Star Network before, he was now completely in awe of it.

As a second-generation martial artist, he knew very well what a complete cultivation system meant.

"If I can seize this opportunity, maybe my future achievements will surpass the old man's!"

"Star Art..."

Pan Kaiji's past laziness was gone, and his eyes became more determined.

At that moment, a reminder from the Star Network appeared.

[Congratulations on completing the mission: Officially becoming an Acquired First Layer warrior, you are rewarded with 100 Trade Points!]

At the same time, another notification instantly brought the Star Network to life.

[Trading Function Enabled]

[Trade points can be earned by exchanging items, uploading skills and knowledge, completing tasks, etc.]

[Available tradeable items will vary over time, including everything in reality and fiction.]

[Cultivation techniques, talents, resources, secret techniques... whatever you can imagine.]

"Trading function?"

Pan Kaiji's eyes lit up, and he immediately focused his consciousness on the Star Network to examine it carefully.

Those who have already tasted the sweetness of the Star Art realize how terrifying the Star Network truly is.

The rewards he received upon entering the Star Network allowed him to break through to the Acquired realm!

If this could be exchanged for something even more powerful, wouldn't he improve even faster?

But now, there were only two items available for exchange in the newly opened trading function.

[Training Assistance from the Star Network: 10 Trade Points per hour]

Pan Kaiji examined it and found the training assistance function to be simple and practical. The Star Network calculates the most suitable training method according to each person's condition, taking into account every detail and providing the optimal training time!

Ten trade points per hour was a steep price for most people at this stage.

"However, I've just successfully broken through and earned a reward. I can try it out later."

"Wait... there it is!"

When Pan Kaiji, who was pondering, saw something else, he became so excited that he couldn't control himself.

[Star Art, Innate Layer]

Exchange Price: 1,000 Trade Points!

As a comprehensive cultivation system, the follow-up improvement methods are naturally indispensable.

Now that the trading function has appeared, everyone finally has a goal.

"Make sure to hurry and exchange it!"

Although Pan Kaiji had not yet perfected the Acquired Layer and his strength had not reached its peak, he could improve faster by exchanging it earlier.

Unfortunately, he didn't have enough trade points.

With a total of 1,000 trade points required, no one at this stage could clear out the Star Network.

Fortunately, the trading system had another feature.

Recycling.

As long as you quietly hold the item in your mind, the Star Network will evaluate its current value and recycle it.

Pan Kaiji tried it out and found that the beast meat he usually ate to replenish Qi and blood and sense the aura was worth one trade point per kilogram, and his eyes lit up.

The price of such fierce beast meat on the market was about 10,000 yuan per kilogram, an extremely high price.

For ordinary people, eating it occasionally was a luxury.

But with the financial resources of the Pan family, did that even matter?

If calculated this way, it would take about 10 million to obtain 1,000 trade points by purchasing and recycling beast meat.

"It's not cheap, but it's definitely worth it!"

Pan Kaiji had already witnessed the rapid improvement brought by Star Art, so how could he refuse?

At that moment, an additional mission appeared in the task bar.

[Herb Recycling: Within ten days, specific herbs can be exchanged for double the trade points.]

Without hesitation, Pan Kaiji rushed to the family's warehouse as fast as he could, searching for items that could be exchanged.

"Don't stop me, I want Krypton gold!"