Nine Star Burden

The news of Han Jiangxue’s breakthrough to the Galaxy Stage was undoubtedly flabbergasting. It was no longer a piece of news that would affect only the province and municipality. It actually affected the entire nation.

The first thing it would affect was the game odds of the betting company…

Yeah, forget it. Let’s not talk about the details. 

We’ll focus on the competition.

During a competition with proper rules, where two armies fought each other, a Galaxy Stage Rules Awakened would be far more powerful than a Galaxy Stage melee fighter!

Even when Han Jiangxue had yet to advance in level and the scheming Yuan Qinghua was the most elite of the year, everyone still said that the Rules Awakened were going to dominate the competition this year.

Rules Awakened was synonymous with orthodoxy and were symbols of victors.

Now that Han Jiangxue had been promoted to the Galaxy Stage, everyone was even more certain that the Rules Awakened would dominate.

In order to pursue the greatest benefits, Hai Tianqing, of course, highlighted the fact that Han Jiangxue had advanced to the Galaxy Stage when he was communicating with the leaders.

Within just one day, the news spread like wildfire across China.

Han Jiangxue was very well protected, and everyone in the team stayed in the officially designated hotel, refusing to go out or meet anyone.

They ate and stayed in the hotel, and also practiced their battle tactics in the spacious rooms. They seemed to be in reclusion.

Of course, that was said in hindsight.

At this moment, everyone in the team was looking at the Star Beads on the table while their hearts ricocheted.

The problem of bias could never be solved since ancient times. Even if you had a pair of biological twins that were both your flesh and blood, you would tend to love one of them more than the other.

Parental love was the greatest and most selfless, but even so, the levels varied. What else couldn’t be distinguished in the world?

Han Jiangxue was clearly the favored one.

Most of the Star Beads on the table were prepared for her.

Although everyone in the team had played a role in creating history and deserved to be rewarded, the reality was harsh.

Hai Tianqing tried to comfort them from a different perspective. “After all, you guys have already acquired the maximum number of Star Techniques for now, and Han Jiangxue can still acquire eight more. Hence, the rewards are for her. If she can acquire a few more Star Techniques, we will have hopes of advancing in the competition.”

Fortunately, there were no feelings of resentment or jealousy among the four members of the team. Xia Yan had always been fond of Han Jiangxue and admired her greatly, while Li Weiyi had always been magnanimous. Needless to say, Jiang Xiao wasn’t jealous of her at all because she was his family member.

Otherwise, the so-called rewards would simply be a poison that destroyed the unity of the team.

Among the shining Star Beads on the table, Xia Yan was given three Gold Quality ones from the Shadow Realm.

The Shadow Realm was a unique Dimensional Space found in the Yanzhao Province and Tianjin.

Among the different Shadow-series Dimensional Spaces, Shadow Cave was the most famous one.

It contained creatures that people were more familiar with, such as the Fallen Shadow Witch, Fallen Shadow Warrior, Fallen Shadow Thorn, and Fallen Shadow Demon.

Jiang Xiao’s Enmity, Counter-current Light, and Sound of Silence were from the Fallen Shadow Witch.

In the “Shadow Realm,” there was also a group of terrifying shadow creatures: Fallen Shadow Spirit, Fallen Shadow Hunter, Fallen Shadow Soul, and Fallen Shadow Mage.

Most of the shadow Star Techniques that belonged to the Tianjin team members were from the creatures in the “Shadow Realm.” Liu Yang’s Star Techniques, Shadow Summoner, Shadow Transformer, and Gold Quality Tailgate, were all from the Fallen Shadow Spirit.

What Xia Yan got wasn’t the Fallen Shadow Spirit Star Beads. As mentioned earlier, Xia Yan and Liu Yang from Tianjin had completely different styles even though they were both melee fighters. After they went to university, they would go to different factions.

At this moment, Xia Yan obtained the Fallen Shadow Mage Star Bead which contained three Star Techniques: Shadow Apprentice, Shadow Warrior, and Shadow Master.

It turned out to be a summoner’s Star Techniques. They would condense Star Power and summon powerful shadows to give aid.

The shadows summoned by them would possess a certain strength of the summoner according to different qualities.

In other words, the shadow would be that of the summoner himself, and how much power the shadow could ultimately exert depended entirely on the summoner.

The Shadow Apprentice could exert 20% of the summoner’s strength, while the Shadow Warrior could exert 40%, and the Shadow Master could exert 60%.

The percentage was a terrifying thing. They were classic Star Beads that were beyond “quality.”

They existed beyond the realms known to the people.

Why was that the case?

Because the quality of the Star Techniques did not limit them.

The Star Technique Shadow Master was of Gold Quality, and it genuinely couldn’t be upgraded.

However, the abilities of the summoner himself could be upgraded.

Xia Yan, who was in the Nebula Stage, would summon a Shadow Master that was worlds apart from a Shadow Master that she summoned at the Galaxy Stage.

A Gold Quality Shadow Master could use the summoner’s Star Techniques below the Silver Quality.

Likewise, a Silver Quality Shadow Warrior would be able to use any Brass Quality Star Techniques belonging to the summoner.

As for a Brass Quality Shadow Apprentice, it would be impossible for it to use any Star Techniques because it was purely a combat shadow.

For Jiang Xiao, such a Star Technique was absolutely agonizing.

Why?

Because in terms of attributes, the Shadows were used for battle and not for support.

If Jiang Xiao wanted that Star Technique, he would have to have access to plenty of corresponding Star Beads. Otherwise, it would be useless to him.

For example, if Jiang Xiao acquired the Gold Quality Shadow Master at this moment.

The Shadow Master he summoned would possess 60% of his strength.

Jiang Xiao’s physical strength was now in the Nebula Stage Level 2, so 60%… would mean that it was likely to be as strong as Jiang Xiao when he was at the Stardust Stage.

Of course, Jiang Xiao’s strength would be improved. That wasn’t a reason to reject the Star Technique. What really mattered was…

In Jiang Xiao’s gilded and glittering Star Map, the Gold Quality Shadow Master could only use Silver Quality Blessing and Decoy. The other Star Techniques couldn’t be used at all, because they were all of Gold Quality…

The quality of Jiang Xiao’s Star Techniques would always be improved. Hence, the Shadow Master had to be one quality level ahead of all the Star Techniques in Jiang Xiao’s Star Map. Otherwise, it would simply be a shadow that couldn’t use any other Star Techniques.

The issue was, were there numerous Star Beads of that kind?

The Shadow Cave and Shadow Realm were the same and wouldn’t be open to the public at all.

Besides, everything was just conjecture.

If the Gold Quality Shadow Master was upgraded to Platinum Quality, it still wouldn’t be able to use Star Techniques above Silver Quality because the Gold Quality Shadow Master wouldn’t have its usage of Star Techniques improved.

Jiang Xiao would be in agony, then.

Um… he could cry too?

So, this Star Technique was prepared for attackers and not supportive members.

Well, at least, it wouldn’t be of any help to Jiang Xiao’s gold star slots.

Li Weiyi absorbed three Fallen Shadow Warrior Star Beads from the Shadow Cave, which contained the Star Techniques: Shadow Gun, Shadow Shield, and Shadow Hammer.

Jiang Xiao was no stranger to those Star Techniques because, back in the Provincial High School League, the organizers had once mistakenly given the Star Beads to him. He could also read the functions of those Star Techniques through his internal Star Map.

There were offensive and defensive Star Techniques that came with soul-attacking abilities contained in them. They were good Star Beads.

Jiang Xiao also got three Star Beads from the Fallen Shadow Witch.

In fact, in everyone’s eyes, Jiang Xiao didn’t need any Fallen Shadow Witch Star Beads because he already had Sound of Silence. So why were they given to him?

Of course, it was because they were actually gifts for Han Jiangxue!

It was because Hai Tianqing had requested more than once and hoped for Han Jiangxue to possess Sound of Silence, so as to increase the team’s strength.

According to Jiang Xiao’s request, Hai Tianqing helped Han Jiangxue obtain the Fallen Shadow Witch Star Beads. However, he didn’t know that Jiang Xiao was going to pocket them under Han Jiangxue’s guise.

The official leaders had also given everyone the Star Beads from the Shadow Cave and Shadow Realm. The Star Beads awarded during the Provincial League were also from the Shadow Cave, thus making Jiang Xiao think that Beijiang Province and Tianjin or Yanzhao Province were closely related.

The team representing Beijiang Province could go so far, undoubtedly because of the help from Tianjin and Yanzhao Provinces.

Jiang Xiao originally thought that the Star Beads meant as rewards for Han Jiangxue were also from the Shadow Cave and Shadow Realm. After all, there were Platinum Quality Fallen Shadow Demons in the Shadow Cave and powerful creatures of other dimensions like the Fallen Shadow Soul in the Shadow Realm.

To his surprise, Han Jiangxue’s Star Beads did not have anything to do with Shadows.

She received three Lightning-series Star Beads and three other fire-series ones.

Although her name was related to ice, she seemed to have the potential to specialize in lightning and fire-series Star Techniques.

That was understandable. After all, Han Jiangxue’s Star Map was in the shape of White Flames, which must be the most suitable for fire-series Star Techniques. On the other hand, lightning-series Star Techniques were the most explosive. All the output Rules Awakened should have a lightning-series Star Technique.

The three lightning-series Star Beads were from Haisu Province, Shanghai, and Eastern Zhejiang.

The three fire-series Star Beads were from Beijing, whose representatives were good at fire-series Star Techniques.

The violent lightning and thunder Star Techniques were not as formidable as the three support-type Star Techniques contained in those three Star Beads.

They were for defense, reconnoitering, and keeping a distance.

Actually, the leaders might be worried about Li Weiyi and Jiang Xiao.