Engraving

Staring at the filled sand dune before him, Xuan Ye let out a melancholy sigh in his heart.

This was the desert. Though he had wrapped everything in wolf hide, as time passed and the dunes shifted, it likely wouldn't last long. Worse still, someone might even form into a wandering undead.

But this was all he could do...

The sand dune burying the dead stood alone amidst the wind and sand, the risen sun baking it scorching hot.

Yet not long after Xuan Ye left, an unnatural tremor appeared atop the dune, as if a groundhog was churning beneath. Then a slender hand wrapped in a metal armguard burst through the sand. The damaged guard revealed pale yet delicate skin beneath. At this eerie location, appearing in such an eerie manner, it carried a chilling, hair-raising aura...

......

Following the simple desert navigation he'd learned along the way, using the crude map of the Stanrose region from Rorogi as a reference, after nearly half a month, the scenery before Xuan Ye finally ceased to be endless sand.

It turned into a gravel gobi. The occasional weed sprouting among the stones added a touch of life to this dead wilderness.

Relying on his strength, which had stepped into the professional rank, Xuan Ye encountered no major trouble on the road. Instead, he used the occasional prey to practice and consolidate, constantly adjusting his breathing technique through his soul database. Over this half-month journey, he finally stabilized the restless flaws from his forced breakthrough at level eight using a magic core, re-solidifying his foundation.

However, traveling alone kept him in a constant state of alert. He had no opportunity to meditate along the way, so his mental cultivation remained at the level of a third-rank magic apprentice. Nor did he have a safe environment to inscribe talent runes onto his professional core.

Now that he had left the desert, he should be able to find a suitable place to organize and consolidate everything.

The gobi was nearly as desolate as the desert, but instead of dunes, it featured bizarrely shaped weathered boulders as its main characteristic. It seemed Stanrose City was built atop a giant mine.

To find a safe, secluded spot, Xuan Ye naturally didn't think of returning to the city—after all, the city might be even more dangerous for him. Spending an entire day, he found a sturdy enough boulder and forcibly chiseled a three-meter-deep hole into it.

He crawled inside, then blocked the entrance with a similarly sized stone. Due to the irregular shapes of the stone and the hole, the gaps left were enough to ensure airflow for a short time.

Having condensed his core in the 'Perception' inner palace as a 'Ranger,' the faint light seeping through the gaps was enough to see everything inside clearly, even the dust dancing in the golden beams of light.

"Hmm, let's see what this rich mage's stuff has. Maybe there's a more advanced meditation method."

Since his self-set goal ultimately required opening the Star Palace, Xuan Ye valued mental cultivation highly. Likewise, Dean's impressive performance back then had made him envious.

A ninth-rank apprentice unleashing such terrifying power—it truly left other professions far behind.

Dean himself was still a magic apprentice. Even if he was a talented and capable one, he couldn't escape the level he was currently studying. Among the items in his spatial pouch, aside from some odd spellcasting materials, books took up the most space!

"High Elf Grammar and Syntax," "Dragon Phonetic Annotation," "Thirty-Six Basic Magic Runes Every Apprentice Must Master," "Three Years as an Intern, Five Years as a Formal," "Complete Guide to Common Rizel Wilderness Medicinal Herbs," "Mage Travel Survival Guide"...

And so on. It was dazzling to Xuan Ye. The first things that came to mind were various special language textbooks—truly a motley collection, headache-inducing just to look at. Back in the day, learning English had been a pain; this was pure torment.

But after a simple categorization, Xuan Ye realized most of the language books revolved around two main languages: High Elvish and Draconic. These were likely the most practical and in-demand magical languages. With his soul database, he could barely manage.

He also found two meditation methods. One was the basic meditation similar to the common street-variety he'd bought—almost no difference at all.

According to the annotations Dean had written on it, for the apprentice level, basic meditation was indeed the most suitable and complete.

The other was an advanced meditation that could only be used after condensing a professional core in the Star Palace. Aside from referencing it, there was no need to consider it for now.

Those runes, symbols, spell models—Xuan Ye was interested in them too, as they were fundamental. But for now, he set them aside.

Well, it had been half a month since he condensed his core, and it was still blank. Sure, most professional ranks were blank, but he happened to have the 'Keen Sight' talent rune on hand. With the environment stable now, it was time to inscribe it.

It was said to stabilize energy and increase control. Back then, the Kende family had offered a high price to acquire it—that alone showed its value.

"Rune inscription... requires a rune scroll, a ritual, or an active spirit. Even as a third-rank apprentice, I should be able to skip the scroll and ritual."

After digging up the memories about talent runes, Xuan Ye pondered for a moment, then began to try.

Immersing his spirit fully into his body, focusing on the 'Perception' inner palace near his liver, a 'light' appeared in his spiritual perception. Like a scan, it locked onto his grain-sized professional core.

Uh... is this a core or a kidney stone...

By continuously concentrating, it gradually magnified in his perception. Then, stroke by stroke, he began carving a complex rune at the very center of the 'soft' core. Since he had only just become a professional rank, the core was still in a malleable state, making the carving process relatively simple.

Even as he carefully carved, his soul database automatically assisted in guiding him. The process went unusually smoothly, effortlessly imprinting the 'Keen Sight' rune into the core. A few minor tweaks based on the database were instinctively added by Xuan Ye, likely improving the effect like the basic breathing technique.

After finishing the inscription, he saw that due to his precise control, the rune was locked entirely at the core's center, leaving large blank areas around it. Xuan Ye felt a twinge of obsessive compulsion. Damn, it looked like he could carve another one.

Thinking it, he did it. Then, with a twitch of his hand, he began carving a second 'Keen Sight' beside it. But this move stirred up a hornet's nest.

A professional core was like a magic beast's crystal—a product of highly compressed energy. The first talent rune at the very center had a stabilizing and suppressing effect. But carving another one on the side tore apart the original balance, instantly causing a violent upheaval.

Xuan Ye was scared out of his wits. That uncle had barely survived burning his core; if his own core went berserk, the consequences would be unthinkable!

But thanks to the database's assistance, he had carved too fast—finishing the second in one smooth motion, unable to stop. Seeing the energy about to leak, in a panic, he recalled something his teacher had taught him as a child.

"A triangle is the most stable shape~"

Then, instinctively, he began carving a third. But after finishing it, he cursed. The core was three-dimensional! A triangle is the most stable? Screw that!

After that, he was like a firefighter—whenever the core was pulled in one direction, he carved another rune on the opposite side, then patched the next spot.

In the end, he carved a total of five runes before the core regained balance!

The center held the first one, while the four around it formed a perfect regular tetrahedron. Each additional rune was equidistant from the first!

After doing all this with his nerves stretched taut, Xuan Ye felt utterly drained once the core finally stabilized. Good thing he carved fast, or else...

But just then, the five talent runes seemed to trigger something. In his spiritual perception, the entire 'Perception' inner palace suddenly trembled. At the same time, a heavy, vast voice in an unknown language echoed in his ears.

Though he had never learned this language, and the original owner hadn't either, he inexplicably understood it.

"Huh~"

Then, with a sudden jolt of his spirit, he realized he seemed to have 'awakened'...

However...

Looking at the scene before him, now reduced to only black and white, Xuan Ye was completely stunned.

The entire world seemed frozen, devoid of life, as if everything had died.

No color, no sound, no passage of time.

And not only that—Xuan Ye also discovered that he had become completely isolated from this world, losing all connection with it. Though he was clearly inside the small hole he had dug, with just a thought, he 'passed through' the rock and 'floated' outside.

Gazing at the equally gray and motionless world beyond, he was utterly shaken.

No.

No! Not everything was still! A gloomy gray cloud in the sky was churning endlessly!

Staring intently at that single cloud that possessed 'life,' watching it gradually form a ferocious yet awe-inspiring outline of a head, he found himself unable to stay calm.

That massive structure formed by the clouds—was this, could this be the legendary Dragon Head?

The only golden vertical pupil in that gray-white world radiated a majestic, irresistible power, forcing him to lower his head involuntarily.

"An interesting mortal. You bear the cause of the past, yet lack the fruit of the future. With power like an ant's, you have broken free from the most fundamental laws of the world."

Whether muttering to himself or whispering softly, that peculiar tone pierced directly into the soul, requiring no understanding of the words.

Xuan Ye's heart pounded wildly. Though he knew little of Reizel, seeing this spectacle, he knew he had stumbled into something enormous.

Just considering dragons—the dragon race of Reizel was truly the pinnacle species, equal to the gods themselves.

Legend said that after the ancient Five Dragons' Reign ended and the High Elves migrated into Reizel to take on the duty of reviving life, the dragons had already departed from this world. The occasional appearances afterward were isolated individuals—either exiles or lost whelps—and each such appearance stirred up a bloody storm across Reizel.

In the end, most were either retrieved by their own kind or subdued by descending gods, each event becoming a chapter of epic legend.

Now, some traces of 'dragons' still remained in Reizel, but they were merely those bearing dragon bloodlines.

Not like this, boss. Not like this.

"Supervision is my duty. You are the first mortal to catch my attention. How interesting. I wonder if I should correct it."

The self-murmuring voice paid no heed to Xuan Ye's thoughts, seeming rather intrigued. But when he heard that final word—'correct'—Xuan Ye felt an inexplicable chill from the depths of his soul.

"Haha, in the name of..., I bestow upon you the Dragon Envoy's Seal. As my Dragon Envoy, do not disgrace this title..."

Just as Xuan Ye's heart was tangled in turmoil, that majestic being seemed to have made its choice. A beam of light descended from the sky, branding itself onto the back of Xuan Ye's hand. Then, after a dizzying sensation of the world spinning, darkness took him, and he lost consciousness...

Thanks to btllk, Soft Candy, Jidaowuyu, and One-Handed Sword for the bookmarks and rewards... Also, to that classmate who helped advertise, sorry you started a bit early. Actually, some hints were left earlier~ But you won't see them for a while.