The Urban Cultivation Grandmaster

Chapter 4: The Neighborhood Pet Cat Rampage Incident

“What? Is that for real?” “Where did these volunteer teachers come from? They’re not military instructors or disciples from ancient martial arts sects, are they? What good would that do? The ancient martial arts they teach take too long to master—it’ll take a year or two just to sense spiritual energy. What’s the point of practicing that crap? We’d be better off figuring out how to make money to support our families.” “Yeah, we’ve already missed the best time to practice martial arts and boxing. Without orthodox Xuan Realm cultivation techniques, we’ll never have a chance to become powerful cultivators in our lifetime.” “I heard this time is different—they’re graduates of Tianhai Academy, the true cream of the crop, orthodox Xuan Realm cultivators.” “Wow, looks like Tianjiang is about to rise to prominence.” “Do we have a chance to get into the Tianjiang Cultivator Academy? Does anyone have any connections?” Mu Tian read through the entire chat between his elementary school classmates and was slightly surprised, but he didn’t immediately step forward to reveal that he was the volunteer teacher. Instead, he became quite interested in the military instructors teaching martial arts. Over the past couple of days, while liaising with Mayor Li, Mu Tian had also learned about the Cultivator Academy. Tianjiang City already had a Cultivator Academy, where most of the instructors came from the military, ancient martial arts sects, or Taoist and Buddhist temples. The cultivation techniques they taught weren’t the authentic, stone-stele-inscribed traditions, but rather methods evolved from ancient martial arts, Taoist arts, and Buddhist teachings, drawing on the essence of Xuan Realm civilization. Admittedly, this was not a bad shortcut for promoting widespread cultivation, but at present, it still seemed somewhat underdeveloped. After skimming through the chat log, Mu Tian went back to lurking. This wasn’t because he was indifferent or unwilling to help these classmates; it was simply that he had just arrived in Tianjiang and didn’t know much about the Tianjiang Cultivator Academy yet, so he didn’t want to make any rash promises. Once he settled in, if anyone wanted to cultivate, he’d be more than happy to serve as their guide. Mu Tian walked along the road at a leisurely pace, making no effort to speed up. Although, with his abilities, moving quickly over short distances was as easy as an ordinary person sprinting a hundred meters, and if he harnessed his spiritual power to scale walls and leap across rooftops, traveling a thousand li in a single day would be no problem at all. As he walked, the bustling city unfolded before him like a scroll. The everyday scenes of city life, brimming with vitality, played out continuously before Mu Tian’s eyes—the clamor tinged with a touch of tranquility. The bustle was merely the surface; the tranquility held deeper meaning. Having emerged from Tianhai, Mu Tian’s understanding far exceeded that of ordinary people. The city remained as vibrant as ever, and Earth’s civilization continued to flourish. Yet with the great upheaval in the cosmos and the arrival of the Xuan Realm civilization, the world was far from the peaceful and prosperous place one might imagine. The new world brought new opportunities and a new order, yet the entire globe was filled with uncertainty. Aside from the reshuffling of power dynamics, the future struggle for resources in this new world alone was enough to cause headaches. Struggles and bloodshed would gradually tear away the veil of this bustling metropolis. It may still be too early to tell—after all, these are merely internal conflicts among humans. The cataclysm has altered not only the course of human civilization but has also affected all life and the environment on Earth. The sky and the sea have once again become shrouded in mystery, while lakes and mountains have undergone wondrous transformations. Other life forms on Earth are evolving in ways that defy comprehension; compared to humanity’s adaptation to this new world, their integration is far more direct and brutal. Humanity’s status as the Earth’s dominant species is under severe threat. Perhaps he could do his part? Spread the civilization of the Xuan Realm, conduct Chuandao, and lead the entire globe down a path of light? Mu Tian pondered these questions all along the way. This wasn’t because he was deeply concerned for his country and its people, nor because he had taken it upon himself to save all living beings under heaven with a lofty sense of purpose. Rather, he was thinking about these things simply because what he intended to do coincided perfectly with those very goals. Mu Tian needed to grow stronger and forge his own path—for himself and for what he needed to protect. To achieve this, he had to cultivate and develop the Star Sea; the growth of the Star Sea, in turn, required Chuandao, which would help even more people... It all seemed to fall into place naturally: establishing a super-cultivator Academy, Chuandao across the globe, and having disciples all over the world. Mu Tian was contemplating the future of humanity and the direction of the world from an unparalleled perspective, but the moment he returned to his residential complex, he sensed something was amiss. Police sirens wailed as SWAT teams formed a human barrier to cordon off the onlookers outside. Over the loudspeakers, authorities urged the public not to panic, yet inside the complex, panicked residents kept rushing out in disarray, screaming that there was a monster. Cries and screams blended into a single cacophony; the entire complex had lost its usual tranquility, as if it were under attack by terrorists. Police officers kept pouring in, setting up rescue and evacuation operations around the perimeter of the complex. Mu Tian’s expression changed. Although he wasn’t sure exactly what had happened, he had a vague hunch. Worried about his parents’ safety, he ignored the police’s attempts to stop him, darted forward, and in the blink of an eye, had already rushed into the complex. “Danger! Don’t go in… Holy shit, it’s actually a cultivator!” The police officer maintaining order saw Mu Tian recklessly trying to force his way in and immediately tried to stop him. But just as the words reached his lips, he caught sight of Mu Tian’s ghostly figure—and everything he was about to say froze on his tongue, even causing him to blurt out a curse. No sooner had Mu Tian rushed into the complex than a large crowd arrived at the entrance. Among them were local government officials, military officers and soldiers, and members of special agencies—all rushing to the scene in a flurry of activity. The leader of the group, looking anxious, inquired about the situation on the ground. “Reporting to Mayor Li, an unusual incident has occurred in Xishi Residential Complex. A pet cat in a resident’s home has mutated into a ferocious monster that suddenly attacked people. Currently, one person has died and twenty-seven have been injured. We’ve already dispatched police to rescue the residents in danger. As for that monstrous pet cat...” The chief of the Tianjiang City Police Department’s expression turned troubled the moment he mentioned the monster. Mayor Li was the very same official who had hosted the welcome banquet for Mu Tian that day. Now, his heart was in his throat. Upon hearing the police chief’s report, he nodded slightly and said to the middle-aged man standing beside him, “Commander Wang, I’m leaving that mutated pet cat in your hands.” Wang Jian, a major, served as the commander of the Tianjiang Ancient Martial Arts Battalion under the Ganpo Military District, as well as the vice president and chief instructor of the Tianjiang Cultivator Academy. Born into a family with a long tradition of ancient martial arts, he had deep roots in the discipline. He had been in the military for many years. Three years ago, when the world underwent a great upheaval and spiritual energy surged,his progress became unstoppable. With his foundation in ancient martial arts combined with cultivation techniques from the Xuan Realm civilization, over the past two years, Wang Jian had clearly become a flagship figure for the Tianjiang City government. “Mayor Li, rest assured—I guarantee we’ll complete the mission.” Wang Jian never dithered when it came to getting things done; as soon as he finished speaking, he signaled his men to head toward the residential complex. “Wait a moment, Commander Wang,” Mayor Li called out to Wang Jian. Wang Jian was extremely anxious; the situation was critical—every second of delay put lives at risk. However, faced with Mayor Li, he had no choice but to patiently listen to see what else the mayor had to say. “There’s a volunteer teacher from Tianhai Cultivator Academy inside the complex, Commander Wang. You must rescue her as soon as possible—the future of cultivator education in Tianjiang City depends on it.” Wang Jian nodded and turned to enter the residential complex. Outwardly, he showed no reaction, but inwardly, he scoffed. That the very “pride of the empire” from the prestigious Tianhai Cultivator Academy would actually need him to rescue them—what a joke. He really had no idea how Tianhai Academy’s selection criteria were established, or whether they were simply applying double standards, treating people differently based on who they were.