Enlightenment: Infinite of Time

A neighborhood behind the Hall of Tranquility.

"This is the place. As long as you're still Precidian Sheriffs, it'll always belong to you."

Percy led them to house number seventy-nine and tossed its key to Jia Ruo.

"Get some rest. The house has all the basic necessities. If you run into any trouble, you can come find me at the Hall of Tranquility."

With that, Percy turned and left.

"Wow!"

Neeko was thrilled. She had a home again.

Jia Ruo opened the door and inspected their new place.

The house was still built around a tree, with its thick trunk serving as the main beam.

A row of branches three or four meters above the ground had planks laid across them, dividing the house into two levels.

Jia Ruo saw the layout of the lower floor: a kitchen, a living room, and a washroom.

Then Jia Ruo and Neeko climbed the wooden stairs to the upper floor, where there were three bedrooms and a meditation room.

"This is amazing. This will be our home from now on."

Jia Ruo was happy too. He and Neeko each picked a bedroom.

Though they were called bedrooms, all they contained was a wooden bed, some bedding, and a clean floor.

He casually tossed the Bear Skin Bundle he'd carried all the way there to one side.

He'd sort things out tomorrow. He was exhausted today, especially after sparring with Elder Percy. It hadn't lasted long, but it had taken a tremendous amount of concentration.

"Feels great."

Jia Ruo sprawled out on the bed, savoring the comfort as the soft mattress enveloped him.

I'd love to just fall asleep like this, but...

He focused and circulated his Mana, slowly floating into a meditative state.

Just as Jia Ruo was getting into it—

"Crack~"

It sounded like something had broken.

The fragment! Jia Ruo hurriedly undid his bracer.

Sure enough, the fragment had turned from pale blue to gray-white and had shattered into countless tiny pieces.

What a shame.

He'd long expected this day to come. The energy contained within the fragment had to have its limits.

Jia Ruo wrapped up the pieces. They were certainly no ordinary thing, so he'd better hold on to them for now.

But just then, something strange happened in his mind.

The pale blue energy that had flowed from the fragment into his mind was now gathering into a cluster, a blue glow pulsing across its surface.

It was like an egg about to hatch, incubating something within.

In an instant, blue light filled Jia Ruo's mind, and the "egg" revealed its true form.

At its center was a pale blue rune stone, surrounded by four golden rings of varying thickness.

A voice rang out in Jia Ruo's mind.

He learned its name and origin.

The thing hovering in Jia Ruo's mind could be understood as the form taken by the World Runes' energy within his body.

The energy that had flowed from the fragment earlier had enhanced Jia Ruo's senses and thinking, but that was merely a side effect. Most of it had been used to form this sphere of light—"Enlightenment: Infinite of Time!"

"Enlightenment? The World Runes!"

Jia Ruo cried out.

That fragment had been part of "Enlightenment," one of the World Runes that had created the world.

When Jia Ruo's thoughts touched "Enlightenment: Infinite of Time" in his mind, he clearly sensed Enlightenment's essence: outwit, and use creation to overturn convention.

The next moment, pale blue energy surged out from his mind and swept through Jia Ruo's entire body.

Enlightenment granted Jia Ruo a skill: Time Warp.

He knew it wasn't the only one.

Once he absorbed more of the World Runes' energy, the World Runes would grant him more in return.

"Phew~~~"

Jia Ruo let out a long breath, using deep breaths to calm himself.

He could actually make the power of the World Runes his own—that was the power of creation!

He suppressed his excitement and tried using Time Warp. He watched a bird fly past the window in slow motion, just like a scene in a movie. He had plenty of time to see every flap of its wings.

But the price was that it consumed two-tenths of the Mana in his body.

It seemed that this skill achieved its time-warping effect by speeding up my thoughts.

Jia Ruo pondered. The skill would surely be a great help in battle, but it would consume a lot.

He absorbed magical elements from the world around him through breathing, converting them into Mana within his body.

As long as his breathing remained steady, he could recover about one-tenth of his Mana in five minutes. In meditation, it took one minute to recover one-tenth.

Yet even maintaining Time Warp for just one second consumed two-tenths.

But the Mana cost was well worth it—it meant that as long as he activated Time Warp and his body could keep up, he would have nearly unlimited reaction speed.

After being in the Rune Continent for so long, Jia Ruo had always thought he could only become a little minnow, unable to make waves in the great river of Runeterra.

Who would've thought? Happiness had come so suddenly.

Smiling, Jia Ruo continued meditating.

The next morning, a knock sounded at the door.

Jia Ruo hurriedly jumped out of bed and ran to answer it. Could it be Elder Percy?

He opened the door, but the person standing there wasn't the burly man he'd imagined.

It was an old man wearing a bamboo hat and carrying a small wooden box on his back.

"Sir, who are you?"

Jia Ruo didn't recognize him.

"Young man, you joined the Hall of Tranquility yesterday, didn't you?"

"Yes."

"I'm the Hall's Weaver. I've come to see if you have any thoughts about the house and to help you renovate it."

"Please, come in."

Unlike in the villages of Ionia, houses in Ionia's big cities weren't built simply from lumber. They were "woven" by specialized Weavers.

They were a group of skilled artisans adept at Plant Magic. Using the trees in nature and special techniques, they could build the kind of structures Ionians liked best.

It was an art that embodied the beauty of nature.

"Please, come in."

Jia Ruo invited the Weaver inside. Neeko had heard the commotion earlier and now came into the hall, rubbing her eyes.

"So this is the Vastaya girl from yesterday, the one skilled in Plant Magic."

You sure know a lot, old-timer. Do rumors really spread that fast?

Jia Ruo suddenly realized something. Master Percy had deliberately sparred with him the day before, probably because he wanted to observe Wuju through him.

And this Weaver... most likely wanted to explore the secrets of Plant Magic by talking to Neeko.

Sure enough.

After listening to some of Jia Ruo and Neeko's requests and making a few adjustments to the house, the old Weaver gave an awkward smile.

"Little girl, your name is Neeko, right? I heard about you yesterday. We Weavers have always admired the Vastaya's magical talents, especially those of someone like you who uses Plant Magic..."

"Grandpa, just say what you want."

Neeko didn't use the Weaver's Shuoma to learn what he was thinking.

Neeko blinked her big eyes. Jia Ruo had emphasized to her many times that doing so was very impolite and showed a lack of respect for others.

Neeko would respect others, and she would make sure they respected her too, she thought.

"I'm a little embarrassed to say this. I've spent most of my life, yet I've only learned the barest basics of Plant Magic. I hope you might offer me some guidance, Miss Neeko, so I can improve."

"Neeko... Neeko doesn't know how to teach you. It's something we're born with."

"No matter. Just let me see how you use Plant Magic."

The Weaver paused. "You two haven't had breakfast yet, have you? Allow me to treat you. Once we've eaten, we can continue talking."

"Then we won't stand on ceremony. We haven't had a chance to explore Placidium yet, so thank you."

Jia Ruo offered a polite response but didn't refuse.

And so, the Weaver led Jia Ruo and Neeko toward the Placidium marketplace.