While Oaks was buried in his studies, Yu Qin, for the moment, was spared the direct pressure of the Li family. The reason was Li Jie, the family's black sheep, had suddenly found his spine. Within the ancestral halls of the Li estate, fragrant with sandalwood and the weight of centuries, he made a stand, his voice cutting through the polite, tense silence.
"Gene report?"
"No!"
"Not happening!"
He vetoed a litany of 'suggestions' from his elders, the argument growing so heated the air crackled with suppressed elemental energy. It nearly came to blows. Finally, the heads of the main and third branches intervened.
"The family does not harm its own blood," stated the Patriarch, his voice not loud, but imbued with the calm authority of deep-rooted power. He was no withered elder, but a man of elegant, almost transcendent bearing, his presence like a mountain crag touched by dawn light. "Recording her lineage in the Ancestral Hall is for her benefit. Or do you plan to deny her the family's resources? With you as her shield, she bears the Li name but reaps none of its protection. Enemies will see only a target, not the shield."
The logic was sound. Li Jie, who had been raised for a time by this very man after being orphaned, knew a losing battle when he saw one. But he held his ground on the principle. "If she achieves nothing, the family can afford her bread. If she shines… well, the family tolerated you, with your temper. Surely it can handle one more? And she's clearly smarter than you'll ever be."
Li Jie grinned, utterly missing the sarcasm. "Obviously. Takes after her old man."
The Patriarch pointed a long, slender finger towards the great lacquered doors. "Get out."
Li Jie, who had never feared the old man, snorted. "You tell me to leave, so I leave? Fine. I'll be obedient this once. In return, consider your earlier silence as consent. My daughter stays out of it." He eyed the Patriarch's silver-white hair. "You're getting on, you know. Worry less. More health tonics, more calisthenics. Maybe dye it gold? Make an entrance—bam!—blinding radiance!"
"Three days kneeling in reflection. Or you will never see your daughter again."
"Right away, sir!"
He transformed into a sphere of light and literally rolled out of the hall just as a contained spatial compression shattered the floor where he'd been standing. Li Cang and Li Yu, arriving at that moment, wore expressions of profound bemusement. How did their dignified, scholarly family produce such an… entity?
The Patriarch, his composure returning like a settled mist, merely inquired after their studies before dismissing them. Once alone, an elder—Li Cang's grandfather—materialized from the shadows, Yu Qin's genetic report in his hand.
"Only the Spirit-Gathering gene talent was inherited. It's not her. The age doesn't match either."
"Age is irrelevant with the Fu bloodline. Unpredictable. That Lang Hao is still suspect. But Yu Qin must be watched, as must the others… We cannot purge them all."
Li Cang's grandfather frowned. "Of course not. That would be madness. Our advantage over the Xie in recent years stems from our numbers, our thriving lineage. I mean no disrespect to our own, but a bloodline simultaneously possessing Insight and Assault Ocular talents… the Demon Orchid trait is monstrous. And Zhou Miao is even more inscrutable."
"Investigating Lang Hao isn't difficult. The Fu family has a clan rite in nine months. If she's pregnant, she may have delivered by then. Do we wait until after the birth?"
The Patriarch's gaze lowered. "Families skilled in procreation have their secrets. Timelines are malleable. I trust only genetic proof. The Seer said this 'calamitous seed' of the Li line would possess a terrifying talent related to the sea."
"The Fu mermaid blood…" Li Cang's grandfather's face grew grave.
"The Que family is likely fearful too. Afraid the Xie will use them as a stepping stone in their resurgence. The Yun family is too well-connected, too solid. But the Ques are vulnerable… Have Li Cang cultivate Que Baimo. Investing in that bastard has its uses. Also, place someone within Dongguan. See if there's an opportunity to… hinder that Oaks."
"I sense he is a piece on Zhou Miao's board. A latent threat."
"She is investing in him personally. I'm sure of it."
Meanwhile, in a sun-drenched garden scented with honeysuckle, the Earth-Mole King, Tu Tu, was growing impatient. He took another aggrieved bite of his ice cream, his fourth, and glared at Yu Qin, who was reading under a parasol.
"When do I get to see Captain Sis? You're not hiding her, are you? Trying to become the favorite, leaving me in the dust?"
"For a burrower, you certainly have mastered the art of petty suspicion."
"Pah!"
Tu Tu huffed, using his fluffy tail to scratch his ample rear. "Then why all the ice cream? And the new clothes? And the hats?"
"Fattening you up. For the roast."
Tu Tu: "?"
He stared at the half-melted treat in his paw, conflicted.
Yu Qin laughed, pinching his soft, jiggly cheek. "You picked her because she was pretty, right? Do you know what she likes about you?"
Tu Tu: "???"
"Wear this set. We're hitting a few dungeons these next two days. Visiting a few clinics…"
At the Sage's Clinic, Yao—who had so far only flashed her bare back at Zhou Miao without compensation—was finishing a shift. Eating a quick bento from the staff kitchen, her mind was on the arcane bookshelves in the Dean's study. She asked the Deputy Director and Head Nurse Bear the occasional question, and they, treating her as a junior sister, answered freely.
A bright, youthful voice cut through the medicinal calm of the corridor. "Excuse me! My teammate is injured from a dungeon! Can you help?"
"Miss, are you available?"
A girl and a groundhog in tiny blue denim overalls and a red construction helmet appeared. The groundhog was plump, golden-furred, and covered in dust, its little red nose swollen. It clutched its tail, weeping piteously. Its fur was lustrous, its frame delightfully round, its overalls adorably askew. The girl was equally disheveled, face pale with worry.
Who could resist?
The triage nurse waved them through.
Yao's fingers tightened around her chopsticks. You little schemer.
Compared to the broad, scholarly approach of World Studies, Yao's other four subjects had highly specialized instructors. Checking her schedule, she saw the assignments:
Ye Suran (Arcane Principles), Leon (Alchemy), Ye Suran (Combat), Ye Suran (Control).
Yao was surprised. Three subjects with the same teacher usually indicated a staffing shortage or a truly formidable, multi-talented instructor with time to spare.
At 6:30 PM, her stomach still full from a haphazard bread-based meal, she waited in the designated training chamber. A strong, pungent aroma hit her first—garlic, chili oil, sesame paste. Then the door opened, and a woman in her forties barged in, holding a massive bag of garlic butter crawdads and several containers of zhajiangmian. Enough for five.
Yao stood, offering a polite greeting.
Ye Suran had a wild mane of crimson curls, a robust, full-figured build, and skin tanned and rough as weathered leather. With her sharp features and no-nonsense scowl, she looked more like a market vendor hawking fresh cuts than a master arcanist at a top academy. But Yao had done her research.
Level 70. Triple Affinity: Space, Light, Wind. Profession: Arcane Gunslinger.
Many mistook gunslingers for mechanized weapon users. True Arcane Gunslingers, after manifesting their Principle Weapons at level 30, forsook physical arms for instantaneous, will-powered conjurations. The trade-off was the loss of equipment bonuses for limitless, self-empowered growth. It was a path of extreme burst damage, high energy consumption, and relentless precision—perfect for someone with Yao's affinities, energy reserves, and pets. A sustainable high-agility, high-output specialist.
She had requested Ye Suran. It seemed the feeling was, somewhat, mutual.
"Eaten?" Ye Suran grunted, not looking at her.
"Yes, Teacher. Please, enjoy your meal."
"Wasn't offering."
"…"
Ye Suran sat cross-legged on the polished floor, her expression stormy. "Three subjects. I wasn't thrilled."
Yao waited.
"The academy is short-staffed. The pay is… significant. I relented. My time would be filled with other brats anyway." Private tutoring didn't mean exclusivity. "So don't waste it. Slack off, and I'll drop you."
"Understood."
Yao's equanimity seemed to slightly mollify the woman. She eyed Yao, pulling out a file. "Why focus solely on Principles, neglecting foundational Arcana? Think you're that good?"
A test. The teacher sounded genuinely annoyed, cracking a crawdad shell with vindictive force.
Yao couldn't say she had a cheat-sheet to level 100 magic. "My Arcana foundation is fifty paces solid. My Principles are thirty paces behind, but catching up steadily. You, Teacher, are hundreds of paces ahead. You can drag me forward."
The flattery was noted but not fully accepted. Ye Suran began typing rapidly on the chamber's control console. "Your Trial Tower results are a catastrophic mess. A spectacular waste of points. Why test against your elemental counters instead of your affinities?"
"To understand the damage my weaknesses can incur."
"Not a terrible thought. But I need to see what your strengths can do. Enter this assessment sim. Let's see what you're made of. Don't worry. It's not that hard."
A portal shimmered into existence. Yao stepped through.
Inside, three Level 50 Pronewolf appeared.
Yao: "???"
Teacher, your definition of 'not hard' is… unique.
Against such odds, hiding her power was pointless. Ye Suran was powerful—not Zhou Miao-level monstrous, but within the top fifteen combatants of her level in Beiluk. To earn her dedicated guidance, Yao needed to impress. To make her stay.
In the training chamber, Ye Suran sat slurping noodles, watching the feed. The boy looked stunned by the three wolves. Good. Let's see if he lasts a minute—
Crack. She bit through a crawdad head and froze.
On screen, the three wolves were slammed into the ground by immense gravitational force. Gunshots rang out—Bang! Bang! Bang!—not lethal, but armor-piercing, creating bloody wounds. A hundred threads of solidified light lanced into the openings. Instant death.
Ye Suran chewed slowly. The next wave—fifteen wolves—appeared. They began their pack tactic, stomping to create seismic waves to disrupt gravity.
The gravitational field inverted.
What the—?
The wolves, disoriented, flipped. Exposed bellows. Gunfire. Slaughter.
Ye Suran stopped eating, watching intently. Then a shadow lunged from the brush—a Level 50 Blue-Grade elite, fast enough to partially resist the gravity field. It shattered Yao's defensive shell with a swipe. Yao coughed blood, teleported, and rose to face three elites.
Ten minutes later, a battered, bleeding Yao was ejected from the sim.
Ye Suran tossed a roll of high-grade regeneration bandages. "Patch up. Five minutes. Then the next sim. I know about your recovery and that digestion pet. Fight until you drop. I need a baseline."
That night, Yao ran ten consecutive high-difficulty simulations. By the end, she was on the verge of collapse.
Emerging, Ye Suran had her measure. "Defense is poor. Damage resistance low. Typical for a burst gunslinger. If you get tagged despite your spatial abilities, that's on you. So we double down on offense. No point shoring up weakness."
"Normally, that's what I'd teach."
"But I won't. Your energy sustainability is abnormal. Better than mine ever was. So you can afford to bolster defense."
"My advice: For Space Principles, master Dual-Space Mirror Reflection. For Wind, Vortex Flow. For Light, Auto-Recovery Photonic Barrier. The first two mitigate damage; the third repairs. Reflected energy feeds into the Vortex, which is then absorbed by the Light barrier for conversion and healing. It's a system. A brutally difficult one. Dual-Space Mirror and Vortex Flow are high-tier Blue-Grade Principles. The Photonic Barrier is a composite field—even harder. Took me a year. With your setup, you should manage it in six months. Your call."
"That's for Principles. Combat training is grinding specific sims. Close-quarters, I'll drill you myself. Simple."
"Control is key. You have the Demon Orchid trait and the Thousand-Thorn Star-Vine. Excellent configuration. I get your focus on flora… Control studies have three pillars: resource allocation, trait cultivation, and tactical awareness. You handle allocation. I'll design a gene-enhancement plan for the Star-Vine and requisition the academy's biolabs. You buy the resources with points. Training starts next session."
"Got it? Good."
"I'm done. Leftovers are for you. A teacher's gift."
"Clean up."
She left. Yao, clutching her wounds, looked at the takeout box. Inside: one lonely crawdad. The rest, shells.
Yao: "…"
Touched.
Back in the faculty building, Ye Suran met the Vice-Dean, a man with a perpetually amused glint. "See? Told you Oaks was a good pick. You refused at first, said you preferred that Wei Mingtang girl. One session and you're already giving him your full resource access codes. So transparent."
Ye Suran scowled. "His aptitude is… acceptable. Only because Wei Mingtang's affinities don't align with mine."
"I know you and Zhao the Second have your rivalry. You refused S-Class students, couldn't compete. Your teaching rankings never cracked the top ten. You were desperate. All I'm saying is, after all your terrible picks, you finally got lucky."
"Is that a compliment?"
"But be careful. Zhao will be watching. Slip up, and he'll bury you."
The thought of her rival made Ye Suran snarl. A competent teacher was a boon. With clear, high-level direction, Yao began planning. She accessed the academy system to book specialized Principle training chambers. The fees were steep, especially for rare Principles like Dual-Space Mirror (1,000 points/hour). The queues were long.
Yao went anonymous and outbid everyone, securing priority access for days. 100,000 points vanished. She then purchased a month in an Intermediate Gene-Pool, 300 S2 mental catalysts, and the gene-enhancement resources for the Star-Vine.
"A master's knowledge… She even investigated the Star-Vine. My original plan was basic vampiric gene fragments. But with her shared permissions, I can buy the Thousand-Hand Demon-Vine Serum." A superior, rarer Orange-Grade variant. Another 350,000 points gone.
With 115,000 points remaining from her original 700,000 (minus the 120,000-point deficit), she began searching the high-tier stores unlocked by Ye Suran's codes. She sought something specific, uncertain if Dongguan even had it.
Her breath caught. There it was. A crystalline, pulsating heart, shimmering with inner light.
Sprite's Core. 100,000 points. For elevating a minor sprite's grade, or serving as a Catalyst for Principle Weapon Awakening.
The description was simple. But Yao knew another use. A different Profession.
Oaks was the Gunslinger. But she had two bodies. Two potential Professions. Oaks' body had Green Blood. When fused, Yao's original form was tempered by it. Once separated, her blood could be cultivated anew to Green Blood again. The terrifying potential of duality.
Oaks had the Xie Demon Orchid gift—a legacy. But Yao's original form, the one her soul truly inhabited… she had higher hopes for it. And she already had a sprite companion.
Zhou Miao sees something in me… The dual-body trick isn't that impressive to someone like her. It must be my soul. She senses something. The anomaly of her transmigration. Worth a test.
She bought the Sprite's Core. Failure cost 100,000 points. Success… could make 'Yao' far more formidable than 'Oaks.'
Elsewhere, Yao's Alchemy teacher, Leon, reviewed her trial records. "She lost almost all her points here. Twelve thousand. For standard tests, that's impossible. She was attempting high-difficulty projects. The explosions were so severe the tower's defense systems had to engage repeatedly, incurring massive penalty fees. But why would a freshman, with a crude alchemical background, attempt such things? Not for show. She was… farming the correct methodologies from the failure logs. Methods I wouldn't be allowed to teach her yet."
It was reckless, expensive. A mad gamble. But if it paid off…
"He really is a madman. I may have gotten a 'problematic genius' nobody wanted."
Deep within a mountain, in a tourist town, a hidden pocket space housed a sterile white room. On a cold table lay a body. Young, beautiful, intelligent, her potential now extinguished. But at her level, cellular activity lingered.
A slender young man reached out, his fingers tracing the cold lips. "Zhou Linlang… what a captivating woman."
To the province, he was known by an alias. Even Zhou Linlang's team had only caught a decoy. His true name was irrelevant. TK sufficed. He had founded the consortium.
"If you were alive, you'd find this obscene," he mused. "Pity." His form began to quiver, dissolve, transforming into a translucent, jelly-like substance. The jelly enveloped the corpse, absorbing it.
A red-haired elder, 'Old Venom,' watched with admiration. "The plan proceeds, Master. Next phase?"
"There have been… complications." The jelly's voice was distorted, yet clear. "Qin Minfeng's death. That 'Yao' girl. The Economic Minister, Xiao Lun, is now aware. He's petitioning the Governor to alter operational protocols."
Old Venom, the architect of countless ruthless schemes, was deeply respectful. "Our plans, then…"
"…Depend on the whims of Those Above." TK's voice shifted, taking on a feminine, colder tone.
Those Above? Old Venom's mind reeled. There were higher powers than the mastermind of TK?
TK continued, his—now her—voice a perfect mimicry of Zhou Linlang's, yet with a sliver of alien malice. "They deliberated long over eliminating her. Now that it's done, and my follow-up is sound… they may listen. For instance, I now propose…"
Old Venom, understanding, withdrew. Behind the sealed door, violent energies churned. When it opened, a weary, pale woman stood there—Zhou Linlang, in every visible detail. The original plan had been to lure her team, eliminate her, and assume her form. TK's true talent was Replication. A rare Gelatinous Sapien, peerless in mimicry. A non-combatant, but a survivor and infiltrator without equal.
"Master's execution remains flawless," Old Venom praised.
TK smiled, a perfect, chilling copy of Zhou Linlang's slight curve of the lips. "I just can't fight. That's what I have you all for… and Them."
A communicator chimed. A connection from Above. The voice on the other end was calm, authoritative, instantly recognizable to any provincial official.
"The old man changed the itineraries. Xiao Lun has clout. You were careless. That Qin boy was exposed. And you failed to deliver him to us. Holding out?"
TK's tone was impeccably subservient. "Sir, even if I had highlighted his peculiarities earlier, would you have believed? After seeing his exam performance… was he worth the effort? I was merely vetting him for you. My apologies for the trouble. I hope your position remains secure?"
"They've apprehended a department head. Under interrogation. What has that to do with me? I'm overseeing the audit myself." The voice was languid, confident. The board was still under control.
"Your diligence is appreciated. I have adjusted the strategy. For your approval…"
The conversation ended. TK sat in the pale room, surrounded by specimen jars holding other forms, tapping a finger on the table. Alliances of interest held no loyalty. Only mutual benefit. The communicator, specially modified, would leave no trace. The masters above were meticulous.
For two weeks, 'Oaks' and 'Yao' moved on parallel tracks, one grinding in academy sims and the Clinic, the other amassing resources and practicing alchemy. The 'Legendary Madman' had vanished into obsessive self-improvement.
New students like Wei Mingtang, Que Baimo, and Yue Mingze began climbing the trial rankings, though their point gains were dwarfed by sixth-years like Zhan Xuandong and his Tri-Element Chimera. Among the freshmen, the Orange-Blood scions—Yun Baobao, Li Cang, Xie Yiyuan—accelerated rapidly, fueled by massive family investments. Oaks, with his 120,000-point deficit, was considered a non-factor. A joke.
But the more astute felt uneasy. "That scum is brewing something. Even if we're ahead now… we must be ready for his counter."
The tension built until the semester's first major assembly—a forum for announcements, strategy, and informal teacher-student meetings. Attendance was mandatory.
That morning, Yao and Lang Hao, for the sake of their facade, left their cottage together. "Besides the Li family, I may have brought you some… minor annoyances. Pursuers," Lang Hao stated blandly.
" 'Minor' might be an understatement."
"Should I increase the payment?" She reached for her card, entirely serious.
Yao laughed, stealing a piece of her fried egg. "Keep this up, and even if Li Wukun came back, I'd consider being your postnatal caregiver."
Lang Hao stiffened, the spatula hovering. The mention of Li Wukun… Yao noticed.
They arrived at the open-air amphitheater, carved into a hillside. Dongguan's student body was a mix of elite examinees, repeat-year grinders, wealthy out-of-province students (capped at C-Class), and policy-admitted non-humans. The core, the prized investments, were the homegrown talents like Yao.
All eyes tracked the 'couple' as they walked in, conversing quietly, an ease between them that seemed genuine. They headed for the sparse freshman section on the third tier.
Just as Yao moved to sit, a banana peel sailed through the air and slapped onto her seat.
Splat.
Yao: "?"