The journey back from the Spirit Hunting Forest was quiet.
Most students had minor injuries or fatigue from the experience, but Tang San walked steadily, his steps relaxed yet perfectly controlled. Behind his calm exterior, he was examining every change inside himself.
The moment he absorbed the Datura Snake ring, his Blue Silver Grass had become subtly different from his previous life. More pliable, more resilient. It carried a faint toxin now—nothing deadly, but enough to numb flesh or stall movement. What was more, the vine's regenerative speed had doubled.
Yet, what interested him more was not the spirit ring itself.
It was the change within the Karmic Vein Technique.
The black stone in his dantian—his second secret—had revealed part of its mystery during absorption. The "Flowing Star Cycle" was now active, circulating tiny streams of refined spirit energy through his meridians even without conscious effort. And with each breath of his cultivation, he could feel his potential increasing—slowly, like water carving stone.
His innate talent hadn't jumped to a monstrous level overnight. But it had started to rise.
His capacity for spirit power had grown slightly broader. He knew, if this continued, there might come a day where he could rival even those blessed by Heaven from birth.
---
Return to Nuoding Academy
The academy welcomed them back with a small celebration. Dean and instructors alike praised the children who'd returned with their first rings. Tang San received polite congratulations, but nothing excessive. After all, who paid much attention to an orphaned blacksmith's son?
That suited him just fine.
He returned to his dorm, greeted the still-sleeping Wang Sheng with a glance, and sat cross-legged on his bed.
Xiao Wu, ever intrusive, peeked in.
"Back to cultivating already?" she asked, hopping up to sit on her bed across from his.
Tang San nodded. "There's always more to learn."
She tilted her head. "You're weird, Tang San. Most kids would be bragging or playing after getting their first ring."
"I'm not most kids," he said simply.
She grinned. "True."
Tang San breathed in.
The Mysterious Heaven Technique flowed naturally through his body, but now there was a second current—a whisper of starlight threading beneath his spirit veins.
The Karmic Vein Technique operated silently, enhancing his cultivation just a little with every hour. At this pace, he predicted he would reach Rank 13 long before most even stabilized Rank 12.
---
Learning, Observing, Adapting
Days passed quickly.
In the daytime, Tang San attended classes. He studied spirit beast habits, martial soul theory, and battlefield tactics. While most children listened blankly, Tang San absorbed everything. The knowledge overlapped with his past life, but with his improved mental acuity, he picked up on nuances he had overlooked before.
At night, he cultivated—both techniques simultaneously.
He also began testing the boundaries of his new spirit ability: Blue Silver Binding.
Unlike before, the skill could extend farther and retract quicker. It wasn't much, but it made his strikes harder to evade. He suspected the increase came not just from the spirit ring, but also from his evolving meridians.
When he sparred with Wang Sheng and the dorm boys, he held back, but in subtle ways sharpened his techniques. Every move was deliberate. The ghost steps, the vine binding, the needle flicks—all refined slowly.
And when no one was watching, he trained his hidden weapons arts again.
The Tang Sect had lived and died with him once.
He would resurrect it with his own hands this time—on stronger, freer terms.
---
Fragments of the Future
One evening, as he meditated alone beneath the tree behind the smithy, a sudden image flashed into his mind.
A figure wrapped in flames.
A spear of dragon aura.
A boy from the future—Huo Yuhao.
The vision lasted only a second.
Tang San opened his eyes, stunned.
That had not been a memory. It was something else—a karmic echo? A thread across time? He remembered, now, that Yuhao once learned to withstand higher-age spirit rings through extreme soul resonance. Could he, too, walk that path?
Or better yet, forge his own?
He looked down at his hand. The Blue Silver Grass trembled with life.
"If I can raise my tolerance for spirit energy slowly," he murmured, "perhaps I can begin absorbing higher-aged spirit rings… earlier."
Not now. But in time.
That was the benefit of his slow and steady evolution. No explosive leaps. Just constant ascent.
He smiled faintly.
---
Unseen Currents
Elsewhere, a cloaked man knelt in a mountain cave far from Nuoding City. Before him floated a crystal orb, pulsing darkly.
"The first fluctuation has occurred," a voice echoed from the orb.
"The seed was touched. He absorbed the ring, and the technique awoke."
The kneeling man bowed deeper.
"Good. Monitor the flow of karma. Do not interfere yet."
"As you command."
The orb dimmed.
In the shadows, things began to stir.
---
The Next Step
Back at Nuoding Academy, Tang San began planning ahead.
He remembered Grandmaster.
He would appear soon.
And Tang San would still act as before—humble, grateful, respectful.
But this time, he would keep more secrets.
He was no longer merely following fate.
He was shaping it.