The moon was a crooked grin that night, hanging over the Imperial Academy like it knew trouble was brewing.
Most of the students slept soundly. Most.
In a quiet corner courtyard filled with laundry lines, stacked buckets, and suspiciously shiny broom handles, Shen Liang was lying on a bamboo mat, snoring with one leg propped up on a sack of rice.
He was deep in the kind of dream only a lifelong laborer could appreciate — where spirit beasts helped him sweep, clouds formed into mops, and Heaven itself paid him overtime in spiritual jade.
Then, the night shifted.
The crickets went silent.
The wind stopped moving.
And ten shadows slipped across the courtyard walls — dark figures cloaked in Iron Sky Pavilion robes, their blades whispering with killing intent.
Their leader gestured silently.
"Remember," he hissed, "we eliminate him before dawn. The Falling Sword Sect humiliated our allies. The Pavilion will not tolerate this insult."
Another assassin smirked. "He's just a broom cultivator. How hard can it be?"
They crept closer.
Ten Core Formation cultivators surrounded the sleeping figure. Their spiritual pressure distorted the air — enough to crush any lesser man.
But before they could strike, Shen Liang turned over, scratching his chest and muttering in his sleep:
"Ahh… sweep clockwise… enlightenment counterclockwise…"
The assassins froze.
"…Is he—dream-training?" one whispered.
"Doesn't matter," the leader growled. "On my mark—three, two—"
"ONE!"
Ten blades stabbed downward—
—only to clang! against something unseen.
A wave of golden light burst from Shen Liang's mat, throwing all ten men backward like dry leaves in a storm.
Shen Liang sat up, yawning, scratching his head. "You know," he said sleepily, "I always wanted an alarm clock that kicks back."
The assassins steadied themselves, eyes wide. "He—he wasn't asleep?!"
"Oh, I was," Shen Liang said, standing up and stretching, "but my back hurts if I don't dream defensively."
His gaze hardened, though his tone stayed annoyingly casual. "Iron Sky Pavilion, huh? You guys could've just knocked on the door instead of sneaking around like unpaid interns."
The leader sneered. "Enough talk. Kill him!"
They unleashed their combined Qi — a storm of metal blades and wind force, each strike sharp enough to cleave stone.
Shen Liang's hand moved lazily, catching a broom from behind him.
"Broom Sword Style, Level 3 Cleaning Authorization: Dust to Dust."
The courtyard exploded with aura.
Golden threads of light spiraled from the broom, wrapping around Shen Liang like ribbons of divine energy. His bare feet lifted slightly from the ground as a brilliant halo formed behind him — not of holy symbols, but swirling petals of dust.
The assassins halted in shock.
"That… that's sword intent! No—worse—it's Sword Aura!"
"Impossible! He's only in Spirit Severing!"
Shen Liang tilted his head. "Only? You make it sound like I'm getting graded."
He twirled the broom once, and the air hummed. "You all came to clean me up, right? Well, lucky for you—"
He smiled, eyes glinting gold. "—I accept apprentices."
They charged, roaring.
Ten Core cultivators unleashed everything — Qi storms, iron spears, crescent blades, talismans blazing with spirit fire.
And Shen Liang moved.
Not like a swordsman. Not like a cultivator. But like a janitor cleaning the world itself.
Each sweep of his broom cut through Qi waves as though polishing the air.
Each spin redirected an attack, scattering sparks like falling stars.
His aura turned golden, the broom glowing so bright it looked forged by Heaven's artisans.
"Broom Sword Aura – Complete Form!" Shen Liang called, his voice echoing like temple bells.
He thrust the broom downward — and the ground beneath them glowed, etched with the radiant sigil of the Falling Sword Sect.
The assassins' blades shattered upon contact. Their Qi flows destabilized, crushed by an overwhelming rhythm of labor-born intent.
"Impossible! This aura—it's refined—refined through work, not battle!"
"Exactly," Shen Liang said, spinning gracefully, "you can forge steel by war, but perfection only comes from polishing floors."
Then, in a single sweeping motion, he moved.
The broom slashed horizontally — not to kill, but to cleanse.
A golden shockwave erupted, blasting the ten Core cultivators off their feet, sending them tumbling through the courtyard walls like leaves in a hurricane.
They landed in a heap outside, groaning, their robes shredded, blades snapped, and dignity annihilated.
Shen Liang lowered his broom, exhaling softly. "That's enough violence for tonight. Any more, and the neighbors will complain."
From the rooftop nearby, Luo Yan had been watching — summoned by a faint fluctuation of energy she'd sensed while meditating.
Now, she stood frozen, eyes wide in disbelief.
"This…" she whispered. "He… he defeated ten Core cultivators — barefoot — with a broom?"
Her gaze softened, her chest tightening. She had thought she'd already understood him — his humor, his wit, his strange, grounded philosophies.
But now… she realized.
He was holding back.
Every duel, every show of incompetence, every joke — he'd been hiding a depth of power that didn't just defy logic. It transcended it.
"Why… why hide such strength?" she murmured.
As if hearing her thoughts, Shen Liang glanced upward, meeting her eyes.
For a heartbeat, neither spoke.
Then he smiled — that same easy, carefree grin that had infuriated and fascinated her since the day they met.
"Can't mop properly if the world trembles every time you move," he said lightly.
Luo Yan blinked, speechless.
He turned back toward the unconscious assassins and sighed. "Tch. Now I have to clean this up too."
Within minutes, Shen Liang had the whole courtyard spotless again.
Broken tiles — repaired.
Dust — gone.
Bodies — neatly lined up outside with polite "Do Not Disturb" notes pinned to their robes.
As dawn light touched the horizon, the courtyard gleamed like new.
Shen Liang leaned on his broom, watching the sunrise. "Another night, another mess cleaned. I should start charging Heaven by the hour."
The System chimed in softly:
[Quest Completed: Iron Sky Pavilion's Treachery.]
[Skill Evolved: Broom Sword Aura – Divine Artisan Form Unlocked.]
[Hidden Trait Revealed: Heavenly Labor Intent.]
Shen Liang smiled. "Divine Artisan Form, huh? Sounds fancy. I wonder if it comes with vacation days."
He yawned, stretched, and sauntered back toward his bamboo mat. "Now then… where was I in that dream? Ah yes, the mop-shaped dragon."
As he drifted back to sleep, Luo Yan still stood on the rooftop — heart pounding, mind racing.
For the first time, she truly saw Shen Liang not as a fool, not as a jester… but as something terrifyingly extraordinary.
She whispered into the wind, "Who are you, really?"
And down below, the man in question was already snoring again.