Divine Ability: Mist Manipulation to Scheme for Startling Thunder

Consciousness pulled away from that bizarre, shifting "beach" and returned to its vessel.

Chen Yuan's eyes snapped open. The needle-like headache from severe mental exhaustion hadn't fully faded, but he had no time to dwell on it.

Three distinct streams of information and insight crashed like tidal waves into his Sea of Consciousness.

The first to flood in was the fragment from the White Shell.

It wasn't simple text or images—it was an eerily vivid "memory" segment, as if he'd lived it himself, carrying a cold sense of inevitability:

The scene was the training grounds outside the Lin Hai County yamen. Banners fluttered in a solemn atmosphere.

A stern-faced examiner in official robes announced loudly: "...After the first two rounds, the following twenty candidates have advanced to the final combat test."

"The third round: eradicate the 'Chishui Bandits' entrenched in the reef caves at the Chishui River estuary, a hundred li east of the county. Time limit: three days. Rankings based on number of bandit heads taken, bandits eliminated, and our own casualties!"

The scene abruptly shifted—dark and secretive. Late night, a dim chamber, candlelight flickering. A man with a sinister gaze and fierce bearing whispered lowly to a slightly portly figure in silk robes.

Chen Yuan's consciousness seemed drawn closer. He could vaguely sense their identities—the portly man was Zhang Kui Shan, head of the Zhang family's fish market!

And the sinister man across from him was his younger brother, Zhang Kui Tao—the one rumored to have died at sea years ago, bones never found!

Zhang Kui Shan's voice was ice-cold, laced with cruelty: "...The information is solid. The county yamen has set its plan."

"A bunch of rookies. Not a single Tendon Strengthening among them. At most Skin Grinding - Peak... Prepare early. Set more traps and archers. Make sure they never come back!"

"Let the County Magistrate and those meddlers know who truly rules the waters of Lin Hai County!"

The man called "Chishui Flood Dragon," Zhang Kui Tao, grinned savagely, baring white teeth: "Don't worry, big brother. A bunch of greenhorns who've never seen blood? Perfect whetstones for my blade!"

"I'll show them the might of the 'Chishui Flood Dragon.' We've been short on 'supplies' lately. These delivered Blood Food, with strong bones and tendons, will make up for the brothers' cultivation losses."

The final image flashed: the Chishui River estuary—a tangled maze of reeds, hidden reefs, and treacherous waters.

The shortlisted candidates had just approached the islet in small boats when they were met with a hail of poisoned crossbow bolts and a swarm of bandits like Water Ghosts!

The bandits far outnumbered expectations. Every one of them was vicious, with plenty of Skin Grinding experts among them—and even faint traces of Tendon Strengthening aura lurking in the shadows. The candidates were caught off guard. In an instant, casualties were heavy. Blood dyed the river red... The information cut off there.

This news struck Chen Yuan's mind like a thunderbolt from the clear sky, shaking his very soul and chilling him to the bone!

The specific content of the County Examination's third round! The true identity of the Chishui Bandit leader, "Chishui Flood Dragon"—Zhang Kui Tao, the "dead" younger brother of the Zhang family!

The Zhang family dared to be this audacious?!

The implications were too vast, too horrifying! If this leaked, it would stir a monstrous wave across Lin Hai County!

And knowing this in advance, he now held a key that could decide countless fates—an enormous advantage and endless room to maneuver.

This seemingly insignificant white item—its value was immeasurable. It completely shattered his understanding that "white meant ordinary."

Forcing down the storm in his heart, Chen Yuan slowly closed his eyes, sinking his mind deep into his Sea of Consciousness, touching that ice-blue Divine Ability Seed.

Hum—

A cool, moist, ever-shifting sensation flowed through his entire body, as if he had been born knowing how to commune with "mist."

That seed, formed from countless intricate and profound Runes, had already begun fusing with his soul, becoming an almost instinctive part of him.

Innate Minor Divine Ability · [Mist Manipulation]: Derived from the remnant essence of an ancient Sea Beast that naturally controlled water vapor and clouds. Upon successful fusion, grants the ability to manipulate ambient moisture, forming and commanding mist.

With a flicker of thought, he tried to activate this newly acquired ability.

The faint moisture in the room's air visibly gathered toward his palm, coalescing into a fist-sized ball of rolling white mist—cool and damp.

He shifted his intent. The mist suddenly expanded, enveloping a few feet around him. Though thin, it indeed obscured vision, making the oil lamp's glow hazy.

He stood and moved within the thin fog. His steps felt lighter, his aura more restrained.

"Truly miraculous!" An uncontrollable surge of joy welled up in Chen Yuan's heart.

Though newly acquired, this ability had limitless potential! Whether for surprise attacks, concealment, retreat in battle, or for stealth, reconnaissance, or even aiding in cultivating water-aligned techniques—it had endless uses.

This was undoubtedly a powerful trump card, one worth keeping hidden!

He could even sense a subtle resonance between this ability and the water-attributed blood energy and force cultivated through the Mysterious Vortex Skin Grinding Method, making its circulation slightly smoother.

Finally, his attention fell on the green treasure.

With a thought, a physical object appeared in his hand.

It was palm-sized, cool and slippery to the touch, as if covered in extremely fine cyan scales, exuding a faint oceanic scent.

The pouch's opening was cinched with a nearly transparent, tough fish sinew, adorned with a rice-grain-sized, lustrous pale-blue pearl as a pendant. Its style was ancient.

[Scarab Fish Secret Pouch]: A storage artifact crafted from the swim bladder of a third-tier Sea Beast, the "Scarab Fish," supplemented with the softest scales from its neck, sewn together and refined by an Artifact Forging expert using a simplified Water Refining Method.

The internal space has been initially expanded to roughly ten times its external volume.

It provides excellent preservation and spirit-locking effects for water-attributed materials, especially aquatic plants and Sea Beast materials, greatly slowing spiritual energy loss while perfectly sealing away briny odors and maintaining freshness.

Requires a trace of blood essence or mental energy to activate and bind. Convenient to use—items can be stored or retrieved with a mere thought.

A storage pouch! Chen Yuan's joy reached its peak.

Without hesitation, he forced out another drop of blood, infused with his own blood essence mark, and let it fall onto the pouch's tiny pearl.

The blood was absorbed instantly. A close, intuitive connection was established, as if the pouch were an extension of his own will.

Eagerly, he began testing it. His gaze swept the room—the oil lamp on the table, a few loose silver pieces, the hardwood practice blade...

With a slight thought, those items vanished instantly, appearing in a grayish yet remarkably stable, roughly one-cubic-meter-sized strange space, floating silently.

With another thought, they returned to their original spot in an instant, stored and retrieved with ease and no hesitation, as if that space had always been a part of his body.

He even tried placing half a cup of water inside, and after a moment, took it out—not a single drop spilled, and the water temperature hadn't changed.

"Perfect!" Chen Yuan couldn't help but exclaim in a low voice.

For someone who needed vast resources for cultivation and had to go out to sea, this was practically a tailor-made divine tool!

Its actual value surpassed even many offensive weapons. From now on, harvesting precious sea goods, carrying cultivation resources, and hiding important items would all have an excellent safeguard!

One single "Ebbing Tide" had yielded three heavy treasures: life-or-death intelligence tied to the future situation, a complete Lesser Divine Ability with boundless potential, and an incredibly practical storage treasure. The harvest was far richer than imagined.

After a while, the excitement and ecstasy receded like a tide, replaced by a sudden surge of calm and deep contemplation.

The opportunity was already in hand. The next step was how to turn it into tangible power and advantage.

He took a few deep breaths, forcing his boiling mind to settle completely. The wind howled outside the house, making the silence within even more pronounced.

He stood up and paced slowly in the cramped room, his mind racing with calculations.

The information had to be used, but it couldn't be stated directly.

The best approach was to make himself a "keen discoverer" rather than a "clairvoyant informant."

Perhaps during the County Examination, he could rely on his newly acquired Mist Manipulation divine ability's sensitivity to water vapor to "accidentally" notice abnormal moisture flows or lingering bloodstains in the bandits' ambush zone?

Or, while fighting the outlaws, he could "unexpectedly" knock down a leader and search out a token bearing the Zhang family's mark from his body?

Even more ruthless, he could use the Mist Barrier to secretly capture a minor leader in the know, pry open his mouth, and then inform the other examinees or examiners of what he'd found...

That way, the clues would be something he "risked his life" to uncover, earning him both merit and hardship, while also nailing the Zhang family's crimes beyond doubt.

By then, he wouldn't just be a hero for wiping out the bandits, but a champion who exposed a massive conspiracy. The rewards, fame, and attention from the martial arts school and officials would far exceed merely passing the County Examination.

And the vast interests left vacant after the Zhang family's fall... Chen Yuan's eyes turned cold.

The Blackwater Martial Arts School would never let such a huge profit slip away. As the key figure who uncovered this matter and a direct disciple of the school, he was sure to get a share of the spoils, perhaps even secure some fish stall quotas for his family, which would greatly ease the pressure for cultivation resources.

As for those Chishui Bandits... Chen Yuan clenched his fist, feeling the surging blood and qi in his body and the Spiral Force flowing beneath his skin.

He'd use them to hone his newly acquired divine ability and test the results of this month's Arduous Cultivation!

He had already practiced the Mysterious Vortex Skin Grinding Method quite proficiently. His skin membrane grew tougher by the day, hard for ordinary blades to wound. He was just lacking a real battle to temper it.

With his mind made up, Chen Yuan felt the path ahead grow much clearer. He focused again, sensing the Tidal Stele in his Sea of Consciousness.

The stele's information had already updated:

Realm: Skin Grinding Realm - Minor Accomplishment (26/100) Techniques: Mysterious Vortex Skin Grinding Method (Proficient), Cold River Spirit Blade Saber Canon (Beginner) Divine Ability: Lesser Divine Ability: Mist Manipulation (Glancing Insight) Items: Scarab Fish Secret Pouch (Bound) Tide Fortune: 0/100 Status: Ebb Tide Period (Next Rising Tide requires accumulating 100 points of Tide Fortune)

Twenty days of Arduous Cultivation, from just entering Skin Grinding (5/100) to Minor Accomplishment (26/100)—the progress could be called lightning-fast.

This wasn't just due to daily, unceasing training and Skin Tempering Ointment; the insights brought by Tide Intent had also played a significant role.

Now, with the Mist Manipulation divine ability, which meshed perfectly with his own techniques, his future cultivation speed was bound to increase a bit more.

Tide Fortune had reset to zero again, and he didn't know when it would next fill up. But Chen Yuan wasn't anxious. With a clear goal now, he just needed to take it step by step.

He pushed open the wooden window, and the sea wind, carrying a biting, salty tang, rushed in instantly. The divine ability was in hand, the secret pouch at his waist, and the deadly scheme was clear.

Three months from now, the County Examination would no longer be just a test. It would be the true beginning of Chen Yuan's rise in Lin Hai County, stirring up waves!

"Chishui Flood Dragon... Zhang family... just wait." The youth's whisper melted into the howling wind, and then he sank into a deep sleep.