Mismatched System

The sound of the qin music echoed around the beams, melodious and pleasing to the ear, graceful yet filled with vigor, like the music of the heavens, reminiscent of a celestial abode's melody. Li Jiudao played the qin with fluidity and finesse, his slender and long fingers glistening, epitomizing perfection. 

After finishing the piece, he lingered in the aftertaste, immersed in the music he had just created. "Had I been in my previous life, I surely would have become wildly famous, a superstar known in every household, overshadowing all singers, even the divas!" He sighed, feeling that not even the famed ancient qin masters could compare to him. 

"Alas, why did I end up in such a world? With such a system, shouldn't I have been transported back to the ancient dynasties?" He lamented, filled with a sense of melancholy, having also experienced the trend of traversing from Blue Star to this realm. 

This world was one of cultivation, where cultivators could command the wind and rain, overturn seas, shift stars, essentially omnipotent, akin to the gods of Blue Star's myths. "This world would be fine too, but did they give me the wrong system?" The more he thought about it, the more aggrieved he felt. He had what other transmigrators had, but... it just didn't match up!

Ding!

"Host played 'Wild Geese on the Sandbank,' experience +188,888." The system's voice echoed in Li Jiudao's mind, to which he had become numb. A faint light screen appeared before Li Jiudao, visible only to him, displaying the system panel data.

'Host: Li Jiudao.'

'Cultivation: Mortal.'

'Skills: Qin Technique "Transcendence and Holiness."'

'Chess Technique "Transcendence and Holiness."'

'Calligraphy "Transcendence and Holiness."'

'Painting "Transcendence and Holiness."'

'Tea Ceremony "Transcendence and Holiness."'

'Sculpting "Transcendence and Holiness."'

'Fishing "Transcendence and Holiness."'

'Medical Skills "Transcendence and Holiness."'

'Archery "Transcendence and Holiness."'

...

This was Li Jiudao's system, possessing various skills. "Transcendence and Holiness" was the highest level, and Li Jiudao had mastered various skills to the pinnacle. But... it was useless here!

In a world of cultivation, where cultivators could destroy the heavens and the earth with a wave of their hand, his skills, impressive as they were, added no strength to him. A cultivator could easily crush him with a mere flick of a finger.

"In a world of cultivation, you should have given me a matching cultivation system, not a skills system! Are you trying to kill me?" Li Jiudao was deeply frustrated. 

Had he been back in the ancient dynasties of Blue Star, or even if he had stayed on Blue Star, this set of skills would have made him incredibly powerful. But in a world of cultivation, this skills system was utterly useless.

"All I want is to cultivate!" Li Jiudao felt like crying. The system was useless, and worse, he lacked the talent for cultivation, unable to enter the path. 

He had dreamed of shining brightly in this strange world, like those transmigrators from Blue Star, to dominate and become the supreme ruler. But now, he could only dream, unable to step on the path of cultivation, destined to be just an ordinary mortal.

"Being a mortal is fine, at least I won't starve." Li Jiudao consoled himself. While these skills couldn't make him a supreme ruler, they ensured he lived comfortably. 

He opened a small shop in Qing Shan City near Tai Hua Sect, living decently with his skills. "Qing Shan City is lively again, Tai Hua Sect is recruiting disciples." He envied them. Tai Hua Sect, a major cultivation sect in the region, recruited disciples every three years.

Having been in this world for nine years, Li Jiudao had once eagerly participated in Tai Hua Sect's disciple selection, hoping to become a disciple and start his cultivation journey. But with no cultivation talent, he was eliminated in the first round and stayed in Qing Shan City.

Qing Shan City was large and prosperous, especially bustling with young people from all around waiting for Tai Hua Sect's exams to start. The streets were crowded, filled with extraordinary young talents.

"This qin music...!" A stunningly beautiful girl with flawless skin and a tall, full figure stood in front of Li Jiudao's shop, her expression one of shock and awe. "I

... broke through?" She couldn't believe it, trembling with disbelief. Just a short piece of qin music, and she had broken through a barrier she had struggled with for a year!

"How is this possible!?" She couldn't believe that the barrier which had eluded her for a year was broken just by listening to this short piece of music. "It's true, I've broken through!" She checked carefully, realizing she had reached a higher realm. 

"Who is the master playing the qin inside?" Her heart was filled with shock. Just a short piece of music had helped her break through; the person playing inside must be an unimaginably powerful elder! Even with high-ranking cultivators from the palace guiding her day and night, she hadn't broken through. This was a major realm, which required self-effort to break through, and others could hardly help.

"I'm so lucky!" Her face bloomed with joy, her heart racing with excitement. She had unexpectedly encountered such a powerful elder here! "I mustn't be rude, I can't leave a bad impression on the elder." She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself, and started to examine the shop.

The shop was small, with a clean and simple decor, not extravagant, filled with various books and paintings, apparently an art shop. Her gaze moved up to the signboard of the shop. 

'Dao!'

On the signboard was just one word, written with the power of a dragon and the finesse of a snake, embodying the ethereal essence of the Dao, endlessly transformative. "Indeed, a powerful elder!" Her heart, which had just calmed down, fluttered with excitement again. Just this 'Dao' character made her feel an endless Dao wisdom, beyond the capability of ordinary people to write. 

Even her father, the Emperor of Xia, couldn't write with such profound Dao. She lamented her low realm which prevented her from comprehending this profound Dao, otherwise, she would have grown even stronger, reaching higher realms. 

Finally, she calmed herself down again and entered the shop. "Oh, a customer." Li Jiudao, from deep within the shop, saw the young girl entering and quickly approached from the qin table. 

"Excuse me, were you the one playing the qin just now?" the girl asked nervously and cautiously. Seeing Li Jiudao's polite demeanor, she was pleasantly surprised. Not an ordinary girl, probably from a cultivator family, she respectfully addressed Li Jiudao, a mere mortal, which he hadn't expected.