High Martial: I Grind Professions

”Take care, Li Wen! I look forward to you making a splash on the Alka Star!” Blood Blade clapped Li Wen firmly on the shoulder.

”Thank you, Instructor! We’ll meet again!” Li Wen said a solemn farewell, then followed Leo Lieyang aboard the Starship, a vessel that represented a higher echelon of power.

The hatch closed, revealing a simple yet efficient interior.

As Leo worked at the console, the Starship emitted a deep, resonant hum of energy.

It ascended vertically, smooth and swift, instantly breaking free from the planet’s gravitational pull and piercing into the deep expanse of space.

Outside the porthole, the stars began to streak into lines of light.

The Starship’s acceleration was astonishing, yet it remained exceptionally stable, with almost no sense of turbulence.

Soon, the forward instruments showed that the Starship’s velocity was infinitely approaching the critical point of light speed.

The moment its speed successfully reached the speed of light!

HUMMM—!

The hull trembled slightly, and the cosmic view outside changed dramatically.

The brilliant Star River was gone. In its place, a vast river of endless, roaring silver light, interspersed with distorted folds in spacetime, suddenly unfurled before the Starship’s bow.

Without the slightest hesitation, the Starship aimed its bow at the surging torrent of light and plunged right in.

Upon entering the turbulent river of time, a soft but resilient silver membrane of light instantly appeared on the hull’s surface.

This was the Power of Time emanating from the Time Stone, perfectly isolating the ship from the violent spatio-temporal turbulence outside.

Looking through the porthole, the view was no longer of stars, but an endless, torrential flood of silver light.

The two of them didn’t head directly for Alka Star. Instead, they traveled in the opposite direction, toward Blue Star.

This was at Li Wen’s request; he had asked Leo Lieyang to first drop his Wish Power clone off at Blue Star.

Although his Wish Power clone possessed the strength of a Tier One Primordial Spirit Star Lord and could travel much faster than before...

...its current location was not the Lain Empire, but the core region of the Moluo Empire.

Traveling back through the river of time on its own would take the Wish Power clone at least a year or two.

But traveling in an advanced Starship from the Source Net would only take half a day.

The choice was obvious; Li Wen didn’t even have to think about it.

...

The variegated streams of light in the river of time flew backward past the Starship’s porthole, as if their colors were being erased by an invisible force.

A strange tranquility filled the Starship’s interior.

「In the blink of an eye, half a day had passed.」

”We’re here.” Leo Lieyang’s deep voice broke the silence as his closed eyes snapped open.

His thick fingers brushed over several key points on the console, and the Starship, which had been rapidly navigating the temporal turbulence, began to decelerate smoothly.

When the Starship’s speed dropped below a certain threshold, the fantastical, dreamlike scenery of time receded like a tide.

The vast universe, which had vanished, reclaimed their view. Deep darkness and the stars that dotted it instantly filled the porthole.

The Starship, enveloped in a soft halo of energy, seemed to pass through a curtain of water as it effortlessly penetrated the membrane separating spacetime and returned to the embrace of the Material Cosmos.

The Starship hovered millions of miles away from a sapphire-blue planet.

Li Wen’s figure instantly appeared before the viewport.

His home, the familiar planet that had given him life—Blue Star—floated silently in the Star Sea, radiating a serene and warm light.

After a two-year absence, to see it now so close at hand, an indescribable emotion suddenly seized him.

Excitement and longing surged in his chest, along with a faint, barely perceptible trace of the anxiety of returning home after a long absence.

”I can wait for you for two hours,” Leo Lieyang’s voice came from behind, tinged with a knowing understanding. ”Any longer, and we’ll miss our deadline for returning to the Alka Star.”

Li Wen turned, suppressing the tempest in his heart. His eyes filled with sincere gratitude. ”Yes, thank you, Deacon Leo. I appreciate the trouble.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Li Wen’s figure vanished from inside the Starship.

The next moment, he was in the cold vacuum of space.

His gaze locked onto the azure planet, his body transformed into a streak of light nearly invisible to the naked eye as he tore through the void, racing toward it.

A distance of millions of miles was but an instant for the Li Wen of today.

Hundreds of thousands of miles away, his powerful divine sense had already spread out silently, covering the entirety of Blue Star like an invisible, gentle tide.

’The changes are immense…’ The scenes relayed by his divine sense stirred Li Wen’s heart.

In just two short years, free from the oppression and ravages of the Demon Race, and bolstered by the massive resources he had brought back from the Demon Realm, Blue Star had erupted with astonishing vitality.

Modern metropolises were scattered across the land like stars, their towering skyscrapers gleaming with a technological sheen.

Across the vast wilderness and forests, thriving Martial Arts Dojos and training grounds had blossomed everywhere, with waves of dense energy fluctuating one after another.

Technological civilization and the civilization of the Martial Dao had interwoven and merged, presenting a scene of prosperous and rapid development.

「Changning City, Li Manor.」

Sunlight warmed the neatly trimmed lawn.

Li Hong and his wife, Wang Juan, were sitting and chatting with a few close relatives of the Li clan.

Thanks to the vast resources Li Wen had left behind and the continuous support they received, Li Hong and Wang Juan were no longer the people they once were.

They had successfully broken through to the Flying Star Realm, greatly increasing not only their strength but also their lifespan.

The two of them now looked radiant, with rosy complexions and even the wrinkles at the corners of their eyes having faded significantly.

They looked even younger and more vigorous than when Li Wen had left two years ago, and their every movement carried the restrained air of a Martial Artist.

The clansmen’s words were filled with respect and compliments, their conversation revolving around the expansion of the family’s businesses, the cultivation progress of the younger generation, and their longing for and worry about Li Wen, who was far away in the Star Sea.

Just then, without any warning, the space in the center of the manor rippled like water.

A pitch-black rift tore open violently, and the aura of spatial turbulence flashed for an instant before vanishing.

”On guard!” A few clansmen acting as guards instantly became alert, shouting sharply as True Essence surged within their bodies.

However, before they could react further, a tall, upright figure dressed in a simple black training uniform had already stepped out calmly from within.

He had a handsome face and eyes as deep as the Star Sea. His aura was harmonious and restrained, yet it carried an undeniable majesty.

”Wen... Brother Wen?!” A young Li disciple, Li Wen’s cousin Li Chen, was the first to recognize the visitor, his voice cracking in astonishment.

”Ah Wen? Y-You’re back?!” Li Hong and Wang Juan shot to their feet, their expressions frozen for a moment before being overwhelmed by immense joy and disbelief.

Tears instantly welled up in Wang Juan’s eyes.

”Dad! Mom!” Li Wen looked at his parents, who were now clearly much younger, and a warm smile blossomed on his face as he strode forward.

”Ah! It’s good you’re back! It’s good you’re back!” Li Hong’s eyes were slightly red. He fought back his excitement and patted his son’s sturdy shoulder forcefully.

Feeling that aura, as steady as a mountain and unfathomably deep, he was filled with both pride and emotion.

Wang Juan, however, could no longer hold back. She rushed forward and threw her arms around Li Wen, tears streaming down her face as she sobbed, unable to speak, only muttering, ”You’ve gotten thinner... and it seems you’ve grown a little taller...”

The surrounding clansmen, recovering from their initial shock, erupted into enthusiastic cheers and greetings.

The manor was instantly filled with an atmosphere of excitement and joy.

Li Wen responded to each of his relatives’ greetings one by one, his tone gentle and completely without airs.

But the majesty that emanated from the very essence of his being left everyone in awe.

He asked in detail about his parents’ health and their lives, as well as the changes on Blue Star and within the family, his words filled with concern.

Warm reunions are always fleeting.

After staying at home for just over an hour, a thought crossed Li Wen’s mind.

A figure nearly identical to his own quietly materialized in a corner of the living room. Its aura was slightly inferior to his main body’s, but it was similarly vast and profound.

It was his Tier One Primordial Spirit Star Lord Level Wish Power clone.

Li Wen’s main body said to his parents and clansmen, ”Mom, Dad, uncles, and brothers, this clone of mine will stay behind to accompany you and protect Blue Star. My main body has important matters to attend to and must leave immediately.”

Though reluctant to see him go, Li Hong and Wang Juan knew their son shouldered heavy responsibilities, and they nodded with tears in their eyes.

”Go on, Ah Wen. Take care of yourself! Having this clone with us is enough.”

Li Wen’s main body said no more. Space tore open once again, and his figure vanished.