Chapter 13: "The Starborn Stream Sect"
Scene 1: The Naming – A Sect's Identity
Luo Fan stood atop the crumbling shrine, the mirror shard projecting the Sect Management Interface. Xiao Ling crouched beside him, sharpening a stolen dagger with a stone. The holographic screen pulsed with urgency:
**[System Alert: "Name Your Sect!"]**
**[Reward: Sect Starter Pack (Spirit Vein Awakening Pill x3, Basic Formation Flags x10)!]**
Luo Fan (muttering):
"Names matter, huh? What do you think, kid?"
Xiao Ling (not looking up):
"Call it 'The Runaway Rats.' Fits us."
**[User [CelestialPeach] Comment: "Starborn Legacy Sect! Honor your mom!!"]**
**[User [DemonQueen666] Donated 200 SC: "Chaos Covenant! Let's goooo!"]**
Luo Fan's gaze lingered on Shen Li's star map flickering in the shard.
Luo Fan:
"Starborn Stream Sect. We'll be the signal they can't silence."
**[Ding! Sect Named!]**
**[Reward Granted!]**
**[New Quest: "Recruit 10 Disciples" → Unlock "Sect Treasury"!]**
The shrine trembled as dormant spirit veins awakened beneath them, Qi swirling into a vortex.
Xiao Ling (wide-eyed):
"Did you… plan that?"
Luo Fan (grinning):
"Totally meant to."
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Scene 2: The First Disciple – Xiao Ling's Trial
Luo Fan tossed Xiao Ling an Awakening Pill.
Luo Fan:
"Swallow it. Let's see if your meridians are as messed up as mine were."
Xiao Ling (hesitating):
"What if I explode?"
**Luo Fan**:
"Then I'll stream it. 'Mortals Gone Wild: Boom Edition.'"
She gulped the pill. Her meridians flared—crimson and gold light twisting like snarled wires. The ground cracked as Qi surged, knocking Luo Fan back.
Xiao Ling (screaming):
"Make it STOP!"
**[User [WanderingCultivator42] Donated 500 SC: "Redirect the Qi to her dantian!"]**
Luo Fan slammed his palm on her back, channeling his system's Qi.
Luo Fan:
"Focus! You're not dying on my watch!"
Her meridians stabilized, a single thread of gold Qi circling her core.
Xiao Ling (panting):
"…Thanks."
Luo Fan (tossing her a formation flag):
"Don't mention it. Now plant this. We're fortifying this dump."
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Scene 3: The Abyssal Auction – A Disgraced Disciple
Disguised in cloaks, Luo Fan and Xiao Ling infiltrated the Abyssal Auction—a black market hidden beneath Vermilion Bird City. Vendors hawked cursed artifacts and enslaved cultivators.
Luo Fan (eyeing a chained demon beast):
"Remind me why we're here?"
Xiao Ling (pointing):
"Him."
A young man in tattered Dominion robes knelt on the auction block—Jiang Chen, his face bruised but defiant.
Auctioneer:
"Lot 44: Disgraced disciple! Perfect for blood rituals or target practice!"
Jiang Chen (spitting blood):
"I'll carve your eyes out before you touch me."
**[User [Shadowblade Guild] Donated 1,000 SC: "Buy him! Potential spy!"]**
Luo Fan raised his bidding paddle.
Luo Fan:
"100 spirit stones."
Auctioneer (sneering):
"Current bid: 10,000. Got anything *real*, beggar?"
Luo Fan activated his stream, the camera zooming on Jiang Chen's shackles.
Luo Fan (to viewers):
"Let's liberate this guy. Donate to unlock Chain-Shattering Strike!"
**[User [DemonQueen666] Donated 5,000 SC: "BREAK HIM FREE!!"]**
The system surged. Luo Fan's fist glowed, shattering Jiang Chen's chains.
Jiang Chen (staggering free):
"Who the hell are you?"
Luo Fan:
"Your new boss. Run now, existential crisis later."
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Scene 4: The Dominion's Hunt – Princess Lian's Fury
Back at the shrine, Jiang Chen paced.
Jiang Chen:
"Princess Lian doesn't forgive traitors. She'll raze this city to find you."
Xiao Ling:
"Then we leave. Voidspire Peaks, right?"
Luo Fan (studying the star map):
"Not yet. We need resources—spirit stones, relics, subscribers."
**[System Alert: "Heavenly Jade Dominion Forces Detected – 5 Miles Away!"]**
Jiang Chen (grim):
"Too late. They're here."
Outside, Captain Hong and 20 enforcers surrounded the shrine, their Qi oppressive.
Captain Hong:
"Princess Lian wants your head on a pike, streamer. The girl's soul will fuel her cauldron."
Luo Fan (activating formation flags):
"Xiao Ling, Jiang Chen—hold the perimeter. I'll handle the pretty one."
Xiao Ling (gripping her dagger):
"Try not to die."
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Scene 5: The Battle – Qi vs. System
Luo Fan leapt into the fray, Karma Algorithm highlighting enforcers' sins.
**[Divine Retribution Activated!]**
His fists blazed with hellfire frost Qi, each strike magnified by subscriber donations.
**[User [CelestialPeach] Donated 2,000 SC: "Aim for Captain Hong's left knee! Weak point!"]**
Luo Fan feinted, then shattered Hong's kneecap.
Captain Hong (roaring):
"You think this changes anything? The Dominion is eternal!"
A holographic alert flashed:
**[Subscriber Milestone: 500! Reward: "Soulbond Pact" Unlocked!]**
Luo Fan (grinning):
"Let's test that."
He activated Soulbond Pact, linking Xiao Ling and Jiang Chen's Qi. Their combined attack—a storm of daggers and lightning—drove the enforcers back.
As Captain Hong retreated, Princess Lian's voice echoed from his communication talisman:
Princess Lian:
"Enough games. Deploy the Worldshard Cannon."
The ground split, a massive artillery piece emerging—its barrel glowing with stolen realm energy.
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Next Chapter Preview:
The Starborn Stream Sect flees to Voidspire Peaks, but the Worldshard Cannon's blast awakens an ancient guardian—a sentient AI from Shen Li's era. Meanwhile, Jiang Chen's Admin fragment begins rewriting the system…
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