Chapter 19: Stealing the Stars with Skillful Hands

“How is it?” The old emperor, seeing Li Xiu suddenly freeze, asked.

Li Xiu steeled himself, opened his eyes, and gritted his teeth as he replied, “Your Majesty, I have calculated it. In the future, the young man from the Ji family will become the backbone of Great Zhou! He will lead our dynasty to unprecedented glory! He will be the strongest shield of the royal family!”

At those words, the old emperor’s breathing paused for a moment.

Could he have realized I’m making this up? Prophecies are never one hundred percent accurate, after all. Besides, only I know the truth; whatever I say, the final interpretation belongs to me, doesn’t it?

Li Xiu’s heart fluttered with anxiety. Many imperial astrologers in the past had spoken honestly and met tragic ends. As a seasoned national advisor who had survived decades without being dismissed, his skill at lying with open eyes was well proven.

“Hahahaha! Good! Excellent!” the old emperor suddenly burst into laughter, relieved of a heavy burden. He had also discovered a future general for Zhou, so his imperial countenance was radiant, his mood buoyant.

“Congratulations, Your Majesty! Felicitations, Your Majesty!” Li Xiu hurriedly bowed in celebration, secretly relieved. The post of national advisor was indeed not easy to fill.

...

“Dad, what does it mean that the emperor invited me to the banquet tonight?” Ji Huo asked.

Ji Xiaoxiong was in high spirits, grinning broadly. “Nothing much. I reckon you’ve never tasted the royal feast before, so he’s letting you broaden your horizons.”

“I don’t believe it. That mischievous smile on your face has already betrayed you,” Ji Huo squinted, “Is tricking your son really that much fun?”

“Hahahaha! Yes, I’m tricking you—so what?” Ji Xiaoxiong replied triumphantly. “Son, perform well tonight! You won’t regret it!”

Ji Huo: “…”

He originally wanted to visit the Six Gates Bureau, but since there was still time, the two returned first to the Duke’s residence.

At this hour, Little Red Sugar was just waking up, still groggy as she washed up. Ji Huo, spotting her, asked straight away, “Did you kill someone last night?”

Little Red Sugar’s face was full of confusion. “No?”

Ji Huo nodded and asked again, “Then what did you do last night?”

After finishing her ablutions, Little Red Sugar sat in a chair, swinging her small feet and fiddling with her fingers as she counted, word by word: “I ate roasted pig’s trotters, grilled gluten, Fuding pork slices, grilled squid, octopus balls, spicy chicken skewers, stinky tofu, wolf-tooth potatoes, lover’s tofu, grilled sausages, grilled chicken feet, grilled chicken wings… Oh, and candied hawthorn! The candied hawthorn here is so delicious! So sweet!”

Ji Huo replied sourly, “You ate so much and didn’t even bring me any…”

Little Red Sugar protested innocently, “I was afraid you’d fallen asleep. If I woke you, you’d get grumpy.”

Ji Huo snorted and decided he’d go out for skewers tonight as well. There had been night markets and barbecue in Western Sichuan, but he’d yet to experience those in the capital.

“Why are you asking me?” Little Red Sugar asked.

Ji Huo grinned, “Last night, the owner of the Tongji Inn was killed. Witnesses saw the culprit in red, carrying a red umbrella—a small figure. The Six Gates Bureau hasn’t confirmed it, but rumors say it’s ‘Red Umbrella.’”

Little Red Sugar squinted. “Nonsense! Just because the culprit was short and carried a red umbrella doesn’t mean it’s Red Umbrella! Besides, I’m not short—I just haven’t grown yet!”

“So, do you have any enemies? Maybe someone is trying to lure you out this way.”

Little Red Sugar scratched her head, her face pure innocence. “You know me well. Most of my enemies have already been dealt with. If you ask me now, I can’t remember any.”

Ji Huo tapped the table and pondered, “In that case, come with me this afternoon to the Six Gates Bureau to check out the case. Maybe we’ll find clues. If the culprit uses your name, their target must be us.”

“Alright.” Little Red Sugar bit her lip and growled, “I’ll see who’s daring to kill in my name! Outrageous.”

Around noon, Ji Huo remembered he hadn’t done his daily draw yet. He did it idly, not expecting much—if he got some cultivation points, that would be nice.

[Congratulations, you won: “Dexterous Hands Steal Stars” manual.]

Huh!

He blinked at the sky. Did his luck really improve after coming to the capital?

Two days in a row winning manuals?

Or is the system encouraging me to get out more?

[Item: “Dexterous Hands Steal Stars” manual]

[Grade: Profound rank, mid-tier]

[Description: Want my treasure? Open a blind box!]

What kind of description is that?

Without hesitation, Ji Huo clicked to learn it! He thought about finding his big brother someday to see if he could get more ordinary martial manuals and finish the task quickly.

[All Rivers Flow to the Sea: Learn one hundred martial arts, cultivate them to perfection (90/100)]

Figures flickered in his mind, but this time, no matter how they changed, it was just a small figure reaching forward, and then nothing more.

The difference was only in how they reached—straight, reversed, backhanded.

Once he’d thoroughly mastered “Dexterous Hands Steal Stars,” Ji Huo’s face grew strange. He glanced at it—the mid-tier profound manual took two hundred thousand cultivation points! Twice as much as other manuals of the same grade!

Only…

This manual had just one move! Only a single move—reach forward and that’s it!

“What the heck! One move cost me two hundred thousand!”

Ji Huo exclaimed, then instinctively followed the memory in his mind, reaching into the air. Suddenly, his hand held a half-eaten candied hawthorn.

“…”

“Aaahhhhh!” Little Red Sugar’s frantic screams came from the next room, followed by rummaging noises. Soon she dashed in, panting, “Ji Huo! We’ve been robbed! My candy…”

Before she finished, her eyes widened, lips quivered, and tears welled up, ready to spill like pearls. “My candied hawthorn… You even stole my candied hawthorn! You always promised I’d have food every day, so I wouldn’t have to drink soup. Now you’re eating my candied hawthorn… and you even ate half… I couldn’t bear to finish it myself… You heartless man… Is this what men are like…”

Ji Huo hurriedly tossed the candied hawthorn back to her, comforting her, “It was an accident! I’ll buy you another later.”

It took a while to console her back to her room.

Ji Huo then stared oddly at his own hand, reading the information in his mind, finally understanding what kind of martial art “Dexterous Hands Steal Stars” was.

It was invented by a master thief, who was said to have shattered the void and ascended. The manual was a bit fantastical, according to its text.

“Dexterous Hands Steal Stars” had thirteen levels. The first twelve were about stealing from people nearby without their knowledge—a mere improvement in skill, always a simple reach.

But at the thirteenth level, who knows how the thief cultivated it: when the intention to steal reached its peak, he created a technique never before seen—“Dexterous Hands Steal Stars,” the namesake skill.

Its effect: randomly snatch items from any living creature within a mile, ignoring their cultivation, ignoring all defensive measures.

You could choose the target, but not the item—it was like opening a blind box. If there was no target, it would pick someone at random.

If there were no living creatures within a mile, who knew what would be grabbed—but you’d always get something, truly a thief who never left empty-handed.

“Well, this is nearly at the level of causality! Even if this world has magicians and other fantasy arts, this skill is really out there!”

“Thunderous Bear Fist” at perfection could seal time and space, guaranteeing a hit; that made sense to Ji Huo. But a thief inventing a technique to snatch items from afar, inevitably—he couldn’t wrap his head around that.

“Could it be that advanced martial arts, at perfection, approach the level of consciousness or even rules? That the peak of martial arts isn’t technique, but realm? Or some ethereal awareness?”

Even with ninety martial arts perfected, Ji Huo still couldn’t fully grasp the levels of realm.

Instinctively, he reached out again. The familiar sensation greeted his fingers—he looked down: sure enough, it was the same half-eaten candied hawthorn. It had three berries before; now only two and a half remained, with a bite mark on the half.

Outside the room, after a brief silence, Little Red Sugar’s furious voice rang out:

“Ji Huo!!”