The Urban Cultivation Grandmaster

Chapter 3: Analyzing the Star Sea

Mu Tian was somewhat surprised. He had anticipated that his return to the local branch church would be warmly welcomed, but he never imagined it would be such a grand affair—the mayor himself, a man of real power, had personally come to the train station to greet him. Mu Tian was greatly surprised by Mayor Li’s personal welcome and warm hospitality; while feeling both flattered and overwhelmed, his favorable impression of the local government grew significantly. After some small talk and a round of toasts, Mu Tian, eager to return home, excused himself early. Mayor Li fully understood Mu Tian’s feelings; after studying away from home for so many years, it was only natural to miss home. He immediately arranged a car for Mu Tian, leaving the details of other matters to be discussed in greater detail at a later date. “Old man, look—a convoy of cars is pulling into our neighborhood.” “What’s so special about that? The streets are full of private cars.” “Hey, old man, look at those license plates and permits—those are the cars of city government officials.” “Huh, it really does look like it. I don’t think anyone in the community notified us that officials were coming to visit... Wait a minute—the cars stopped at the Mu family’s house, and Old Mu even came out to greet them?” “A young man got out of the car and hugged the Mu couple...” “Isn’t that Old Mu’s son? Did he come back from out of town? Or did the city government send him here? Mu Tian’s really made something of himself.” In an instant, the elderly men and women in the old neighborhood gathered in a circle, buzzing with discussion. Before long, the entire neighborhood knew that the Mu family’s son had returned—and in grand style, making a triumphant homecoming. Unit 301, Building 84, Xishi Residential Complex—Mu Tian’s home. “Xiaotian, you’re finally back. How have you been these past few years?” “Hmm... I’ve gotten a lot stronger. Have you been eating well out there...?” As soon as he returned, his mother, Lü Lan, showered him with concern, asking him countless questions. It was no wonder—for the past three years, Mu Tian had been studying at Tianhai Cultivator Academy, with very few breaks. Naturally, he rarely came home, and whenever he did, he’d stay for just a few days before leaving again. Sometimes, even when he had a break, he’d choose to spend it at the Daowen Research Group because his grades weren’t up to par. Mu Tian broke into a smile and explained his situation to his parents in detail. “So does that mean you’ll be staying home from now on?” Lü Lan asked, her face lighting up with delight. “Yes, Mom. I’ll be staying in Tianjiang City to work from now on. The car that brought me here just now was from the city government. I’ve spoken with Mayor Li, and in a few days, I’ll be heading to the Tianjiang Cultivator Academy to teach.” Mu Yuanming, Mu Tian’s father, who had been smiling and silently watching the mother and son, spoke up at that moment: “Xiao Tian, Dad fully supports your decision. There are countless people in Tianjiang who long to become cultivators but lack the connections. You’ve got to do your best.” “Don’t worry, Dad.” For several days in a row, Mu Tian didn’t report to the Tianjiang Cultivator Academy; instead, he stayed at home with his parents, chatting with them. Though the daily chatter was trivial, having been away from home for so long, Mu Tian found it all quite enjoyable. And, of course, they were filled with a deep sense of warmth. Even while taking a break during his vacation, Mu Tian didn’t slack off. The starry sky in his spiritual sea continued to shimmer, and the flowing light on the Heritage Steles never ceased. There were seven Heritage Steles in total. Four of them—covering Artifact Forging, Alchemy, Restrictive Formations, and Beast Taming—were complex and verbose, making progress in deciphering them quite slow. Moreover, Mu Tian currently had little need for them; even if he understood them perfectly and mastered them thoroughly, it would all be for naught given the current shortage of materials. As for the other three Heritage Steles, they are extremely useful—they contain three sets of cultivation techniques that would cause a sensation if revealed to the outside world. *The Ancient Wild Ox Visualization Diagram* "The Secret of a Thousand Tides and Ten Thousand Waves" "Visualization Diagram of the Three-Headed Fierce Dragon" These three stone steles represent the challenges Mu Tian currently needs to overcome. He has analyzed *The Visualization Diagram of the Ancient Wild Ox* to 40% completion and *The Art of a Thousand Tides and Ten Thousand Waves* to 20%. Mu Tian has already mastered both of these cultivation techniques thoroughly; not only can he practice them himself, but thanks to his deep understanding of them, he is also able to teach them to others. This is precisely the foundation of Mu Tian’s confidence in his ability to teach his students well. As for the *Visualization Diagram of the Three-Headed Fierce Dragon*, it is a relatively advanced cultivation technique, and the Star Sea within his Mind Sea is completely helpless against it. Of course, this situation was only temporary. Three years ago, during the great upheaval of heaven and earth, Mu Tian had luckily obtained this mysterious Star Sea and gained the ability to analyze it; however, the situation was not optimistic at first. The Star Sea’s capabilities were extremely limited initially, and it simply lacked the capacity to analyze this profound and wondrous legacy of the Xuan Realm. Later, by chance, while Mu Tian was teaching his classmate Daowen, something miraculous happened: after the student had mastered the lesson, several threads of light entered Mu Tian’s body. Afterward, Mu Tian conducted numerous experiments and vigorously taught Daowen’s knowledge throughout the school. Soon, Mu Tian’s ability to analyze the Star Sea began to flourish, and by now, he has reached the point where he can analyze the heritage stele. Chuandao and imparting knowledge can enhance and cultivate the Star Sea! This discovery filled Mu Tian with delight—and it was precisely the main reason he had chosen to teach in his hometown. Mu Tian pondered this for a moment; as a thought crossed his mind, the streams of light throughout his Star Sea seemed to respond to some kind of call, all flowing toward the “Ancient Wild Ox Visualization Diagram” heritage stele. The cultivation technique Mu Tian had previously practiced was the *Ancient Wild Ox Visualization Diagram*, so he was currently devoting all his energy to it. Although the Analysis Star Sea had already parsed more than half of it, this did not mean that Mu Tian had truly mastered it. After all, analyzing the Star Sea served only as an auxiliary step. Unlike the “initiation” received by prodigies when accepting a legacy stele, Mu Tian still had to rely on himself to truly master the *Ancient Wild Ox Visualization Diagram*. It was like a complex math problem: even if the solution process were laid out in detail, if you couldn’t understand it, you’d never be able to learn it. That said, even so, the analysis of the Star Sea is still incredibly extraordinary. At the very least, cultivation techniques that would seem like hieroglyphs to ordinary people are laid out very clearly before Mu Tian. He can grasp the entire set of techniques with unparalleled clarity; all the profound principles seem to have no hidden depths whatsoever, pointing directly to the source. This is even more miraculous than the “enlightenment” bestowed by the Heritage Stele. If he were to fully comprehend it on his own, his understanding of this technique would likely rival that of its creator.” Mu Tian quieted his mind and carefully contemplated the *Ancient Wild Ox Visualization Diagram*. The earthworm-like Daowen characters kept flashing through his mind, and he then began to practice a set of fist and foot techniques in the park near his home. The form consisted of twelve moves. At first glance, it appeared no different from the other people practicing martial arts in the park, but if a cultivated practitioner were to witness it, they would surely be astonished. As Mu Tian channeled his cultivation technique and visualized the ancient Wild Ox’s majestic and imposing presence, the image of that colossal beast—standing tall enough to touch the heavens and the earth—became increasingly vivid and lifelike, as if it were about to transcend time and space to descend upon Earth. Along with it, the spiritual energy throughout the heavens and earth, as if responding to some call, surged toward Mu Tian. Mu Tian greedily absorbed the spiritual energy, breathing it in and out in an unending stream. By evening, Mu Tian finally stopped when he felt mentally exhausted. Finding the walk home boring, he pulled out his phone to pass the time, opened QQ, and scrolled through his messages. In a class chat group that had been silent for a long time, the message count now read “99+,” instantly piquing Mu Tian’s interest. “Shocking! Tianjiang City is getting a cultivator to serve as a volunteer teacher.” Instantly, this message—which tagged everyone—sent the quiet group into a frenzy.