Before Heavenly Star Mountain.

The middle-aged man with an aquiline nose straightened his robes and calmly called out, "This humble Daoist Divine Eagle requests an audience with Daoist Heavenly Star!"

His voice carried into Heavenly Star Mountain with peculiar precision—only those at the Divine Transformation realm or above could hear it. Within the mountain, Heavenly Star Ancestor, a Divine Transformation cultivator currently in seclusion, furrowed his brows upon hearing the voice.

"Vulture? What brings him here?" he muttered to himself.

Heavenly Star was a rogue Divine Transformation cultivator who had established the neutral faction Heavenly Star Peak, gathering other rogue cultivators and passing down the Star Cultivation lineage. While it wasn't unusual for demonic sect cultivators to visit for star-related services, Vulture's personal appearance signaled something significant.

"Fellow Daoist Divine Eagle, you are welcome!"

Heavenly Star flicked his horsetail whisk, summoning a trail of starlight from the mountain. The Vulture Demon calmly stepped onto it.

In a flash of returning starlight, the Vulture Demon materialized before Heavenly Star.

"Greetings, Fellow Daoist Heavenly Star!" The Vulture Demon smiled.

"Fellow Daoist Divine Eagle, what an unexpected guest!"

Heavenly Star waved his whisk again, causing celestial light to descend from the sky and coalesce into two cups of star tea. The liquid shimmered with countless stellar reflections, as if containing the entire cosmos.

"Please, enjoy the tea."

The Vulture Demon didn't stand on ceremony. After seating himself, he inspected the cup carefully for poison before downing it in one gulp.

Instantly, his mind cleared, and the demonic energy within him grew more refined.

"Excellent tea!" the Vulture Demon praised.

"Regular consumption yields diminishing returns. You may visit once every ten years."

Heavenly Star's words carried an implicit request—don't come too often.

Unfazed, the Vulture Demon chuckled. "Tea can wait. Today, I come with a proposition. Might Heavenly Star Daoist lend his expertise?"

"What matter requires my intervention?" Heavenly Star Ancestor cut straight to the point.

"The Seven Extremes Sect seems to have gained a new Star Cultivator—one capable of channeling the power of the Big Dipper. I wish to enlist your help in disrupting their connection, or better yet, causing a backlash that eliminates them."

Heavenly Star frowned. "I'm aware of recent anomalies in the Big Dipper's alignment, but countless Star Cultivators exist. Why target the Seven Extremes Sect?"

His question masked a demand for better terms.

The Vulture Demon smiled faintly. "For disrupting their stellar resonance—10,000 top-grade spirit stones. Severe injury—100,000. Elimination—1 million, plus a Divine Transformation-grade stellar material."

Heavenly Star Ancestor fell into contemplation before responding, "First, I must divine the feasibility. One hundred top-grade spirit stones for the divination."

The Vulture Demon's eyes gleamed. "Agreed!"

He produced the stones and slapped them onto the table.

Nodding, Heavenly Star checked the sky. "Wait for the moon to reach its zenith."

The Vulture Demon acquiesced.

When midnight arrived, Heavenly Star stood before an altar at the mountain's peak. At its center rested his lifebound treasure—a fifth-grade mirror artifact, the Heavenly Star Mirror, which housed most of his cultivation techniques.

Gazing upward at the starry sky, he began his work.

The Star Cultivation tradition had many schools—the Three Enclosures and Four Symbols, the Twenty-Eight Mansions, the Thirty-Six Heavenly Stars, and the Seventy-Two Earthly Fiends. Practitioners typically specialized in one stellar system.

The Big Dipper belonged to the Purple Forbidden Enclosure, a supremely powerful constellation where each individual star held immense might, and their combined force was peerless.

Heavenly Star himself cultivated the Heavenly Chief Star, leader of the Thirty-Six Heavenly Stars.

In truth, the specific star mattered little—no mortal practitioner could reach a constellation's full potential. Mastery depended entirely on individual cultivation. Thus, debating whether the Big Dipper or Heavenly Chief Star was stronger missed the point.

A beam of starlight shot upward toward the Heavenly Chief Star as Heavenly Star activated his divination arts.

Starlight shimmered, celestial patterns emerged, and revelations descended from the heavens.

Closing his eyes, Heavenly Star glimpsed fragmented visions—seven beams of light descending upon the Seven Extremes Sect, and a familiar figure flashing briefly through the scene.

"Oh? Him!" Heavenly Star's eyebrows shot up.

The waiting Vulture Demon perked up. "You've identified the target?"

"Indeed. They made no effort to obscure celestial traces, and their techniques appear rudimentary—yet they've gained the Big Dipper's acknowledgment as a Star Cultivator."

Heavenly Star rubbed his fingers absently, momentarily lost in thought.

The Vulture Demon's expression darkened as he tossed another hundred spirit stones to Heavenly Star.

Pocketing them swiftly, Heavenly Star snapped back to attention. "It's Nangong Xianweng. He previously cultivated the Dao of Fire but has now begun Star Cultivation. Though a novice in this path, his Divine Transformation cultivation makes him no easy target."

The Vulture Demon paled. "Him? Are you certain? I suspected one of the Seven Extremes Sect's founding ancestors had returned—he can't possibly be that figure! Could there be another Star Cultivator?"

Heavenly Star blinked, then understood—this explained the Vulture Demon's personal visit.

The Seven Extremes Sect had an infamous history of founding ancestors emerging one after another. No sooner would one reach the Void Refinement realm and depart than another would appear, each time shaking the cultivation world.

After six or seven such occurrences, the demonic sects had suffered tremendously while the Seven Extremes Sect rose from mediocrity to lead the righteous path. Another ancestor's emergence would understandably panic the demonic factions.

Heavenly Star shook his head slowly. "My divination confirms only one recent Big Dipper acknowledgment in the past century, with no signs of concealment. The Seven Extremes Sect has just one Star Cultivator. Remember how rare our path is—the entire continent boasts only a few dozen practitioners. Two emerging simultaneously in one sect is impossible."

"True enough," the Vulture Demon conceded thoughtfully. "But why him? Can you handle Nangong?"

Heavenly Star laughed dryly. "He's a fledgling Star Cultivator—comparing us is like matching a grown man against a toddler. Victory would require but a wave of my hand."

His tone brimmed with absolute confidence. The gap between a master and beginner was insurmountable—while he soared among the stars, Nangong was still playing in the mud.

The Vulture Demon nodded. "Will you take the commission?"

"Inflicting serious harm or death seems unlikely, but interfering with his stellar cultivation is feasible. My price is thirty thousand spirit stones."

"You drive a hard bargain!"

"All dealings with Divine Transformation cultivators involve risk," Heavenly Star countered.

"Very well. Two other demonic factions have also enlisted Star Cultivator masters—please coordinate with them discreetly."

"Oh? The demonic sects mobilize in force this time." Heavenly Star remained indifferent to the conflict between righteous and demonic paths—whichever side dominated wouldn't affect his neutral faction. Such contracts always included secrecy oaths, ensuring his involvement remained unknown.

After finalizing details and accepting payment, the Vulture Demon departed.

Star Cultivator masters commanded pure profit—clients covered all material costs separately by convention. This made Star Cultivators exceptionally wealthy, and neither faction dared offend them, lest they defect to the opposing side.

Meanwhile, the Mist Hidden Demon and Mad Daoist had each secured their own Star Cultivator masters, demonstrating the demonic sects' full commitment.

At the same time...

Nangong Xianweng, mid-discussion with sect elders, suddenly frowned.

Gazing skyward, he noticed subtle fluctuations in the Big Dipper that stirred unease.

"What's wrong?" asked a female Divine Transformation elder beside him.

"Stellar resonance—someone is divining me," Nangong said gravely. "Though my first experience, the phenomenon matches ancient records."

"Wait—stellar divination? That's a Star Cultivator technique!" another elder exclaimed. "You...?"

"Oh, I became a Star Cultivator half a day ago." Nangong smoothed his hair absently. "Who knew I'd display such talent? The Dao of Fire already consumes so much time—what am I to do now?"

His peers twitched at his nonchalance but couldn't hide their astonishment.

"You actually became a Star Cultivator? Incredible!"

"Impossible! The shortest recorded mastery takes a century!"

"Natural aptitude, I suppose." Nangong sighed, then grew serious. "Likely demonic-aligned Star Masters probing me. I'm probably exposed—I wonder if Ancestor Su remains hidden. Technically, he's the true orthodox practitioner—why target me?"

"Perhaps they can't detect Ancestor Su at all?" someone suggested insightfully.

Nangong hesitated. "Surely not? Su Yuan created this art mere moments ago—he shouldn't possess the means to evade stellar detection..."

Their conversation occurred within a formation that blocked celestial light, temporarily shielding them from further divination.

"How should we proceed? Once the demonic Star Masters divine our plans..."

"Nangong, can you obscure our movements?"

Nangong's face darkened. "I've barely begun—only mastered the first nine manuals! The advanced tenth through eighteenth remain untouched. How could I possibly conceal anything?"

"Then we must consult Ancestor Su. If he detected the demonic spies undetected, perhaps he can mask our actions too."

All eyes turned to Nangong.

"Me again?" he protested. "Have we prepared tribute? I won't approach our ancestor empty-handed!"