The Source of a Warlock's Power

Gu Yuan slapped Shen Tingxue on the back.

"Cousin, get up and take me out to eat!"

His tone was full of the resentment of an overworked wage slave.

Shen Tingxue jolted awake on the sofa.

Her body reflexively threw a punch.

"Bang!"

A dull thud rang out.

Gu Yuan hadn't even had time to react before everything went black. A heavy punch landed squarely on his forehead.

"Urgh..."

Gu Yuan clutched his head, unable to say a word for a moment.

After a while, he finally recovered.

"Are you crazy?!"

Clutching his head, Gu Yuan glared at Shen Tingxue on the sofa and cursed through gritted teeth.

"You violent woman! No wonder you don't have a boyfriend!"

Only then did Shen Tingxue wake up completely.

But she didn't look the least bit guilty. Instead, she rolled her eyes.

"You had it coming."

Shen Tingxue stood up and grabbed the coat beside her, throwing it on.

"Couldn't you wake me up like a normal person? You had to smack me. Show some respect."

The two kept bickering, neither willing to back down.

"Enough, enough. I can't be bothered to argue with a little brat like you." Shen Tingxue waved a hand and got up from the sofa first.

"Come on. I'll treat you to a good meal. Consider it compensation for your injuries."

Gu Yuan got up, clutching his forehead. He could feel a huge bump already swelling there.

Grimacing, he followed Shen Tingxue, muttering, "With that temper, you'll never get married. Whoever marries you will be the unlucky one."

"What did you say?" Shen Tingxue whipped around, her gaze turning hostile.

"I said you're naturally beautiful, with a face like a flower. Whoever marries you will be blessed for three lifetimes!" Gu Yuan changed his tune so fast it was remarkable.

Shen Tingxue snorted, opened the office door, and walked out.

Gu Yuan followed behind her, silently cursing his violent cousin a hundred times over.

As soon as they stepped outside, Shen Tingxue stopped.

At a workstation not far from the office, Sun Miaomiao was still hard at work.

She held the missing-person case file in her left hand, while her right hovered in midair. Pale blue light curled around her fingertips as she rapidly traced something in the air.

Yellow talisman papers were neatly arranged on the desk in front of her. With each movement of her fingers, mysterious runes appeared from thin air and imprinted themselves onto the papers.

Shen Tingxue glanced at the clock on the wall and saw that the other veteran team members had already slipped off to the cafeteria. Only the new intern was still diligently working overtime.

"Mm, not bad. No wonder you're new here—you've certainly got drive."

Shen Tingxue nodded with satisfaction. She felt her decision had been absolutely brilliant: not only had she escaped the misery of having to think, she'd also inspired the new team member's enthusiasm for work.

Gu Yuan stared at Sun Miaomiao, completely captivated by the blue light around her hand.

Is this a warlock's power?

He stirred and quietly activated the Eye of Meridians.

Through the Eye of Meridians, Sun Miaomiao became a translucent figure made up of countless threads of light.

It was completely different from the way a martial artist's blood-and-qi power gathered in the dantian and then flowed throughout the body through the meridians.

The source of a warlock's power was, astonishingly, in the mind.

Streams of pure energy spread out from her brain, following the paths of her meridians until they gathered at her fingertips.

Those threads of energy were countless times more refined than the flow of a martial artist's blood and qi. Their precision was almost perfect, and in the end, they condensed into blue light at her fingertips.

The whole process was nothing like the broad, sweeping movements of a martial artist channeling power. No wonder that warlock he'd once seen arguing with a martial artist had called martial artists crude.

By comparison, the way martial artists circulated and controlled their power did seem... well, crude.

So this was how warlocks channeled their power...

After observing for a while, he felt a faint sense of fatigue in his brain, so he voluntarily deactivated the Eye of Meridians.

The moment his vision returned to normal, Gu Yuan felt a cool clarity wash through his mind. The slight fatigue vanished, and his thoughts even seemed sharper and clearer than usual.

This feels... amazing!

He looked at Sun Miaomiao in delight, and a new line of information appeared beneath her trait.

[Inspiration] (Purple)

[Acquisition Condition: Use the Eye of Meridians to observe the holder channeling mental energy 10 times.]

[Current Progress: 1/10. Each observation will slightly nourish and enhance your mental energy.]

Gu Yuan's heart leaped with joy.

He really had stumbled into a lucky break! What incredible luck! He'd unlocked the trait's condition entirely by accident.

But the methods for acquiring these traits were so strange and varied that they were almost impossible to predict.

"Miaomiao, take a break," Shen Tingxue's bright voice interrupted Gu Yuan's thoughts. She waved toward Sun Miaomiao's workstation. "Come on, I'm treating you to a meal!"

At the words "meal," Sun Miaomiao immediately stopped what she was doing. She looked up at Shen Tingxue, her eyes sparkling.

She briskly packed the finished talisman papers into a special pouch, then dashed over in three quick steps, smiling.

"Captain, you said it yourself! I'm going to make you pay today!"

"Come on, eat as much as you want. You're so tiny—if you can eat enough to bankrupt me, I'll admit defeat." Shen Tingxue waved her hand grandly, put an arm around Sun Miaomiao's shoulders, and headed for the elevator.

The Destiny Bureau's cafeteria.

It was more like an upscale restaurant for martial artists than a cafeteria.

The decor was simple, but the ingredients were exceptionally fine, and the air was thick with a rich, unusual meaty aroma.

Most of the meat served in the Destiny Bureau's cafeteria came from vicious beasts in the wilderness outside the city. After special preparation, the meat was stripped of its violent, impure baleful energy, leaving only the purest essence of the flesh.

Regular consumption could gradually nourish a martial artist's blood and qi and strengthen their foundation.

Even ordinary people could build up their health by eating it. Of course, the prices were exorbitant. A single meal could easily cost an ordinary person a month's wages.

The three of them found a seat by the window.

"Order whatever you want. Anything at all, and don't hold back. It's on me today!" Shen Tingxue pushed the tablet on the table toward them.

However, she soon realized that what she'd said was completely unnecessary.

Before she'd even finished speaking, Gu Yuan and Sun Miaomiao had each grabbed a tablet. Their fingers blurred across the screens as they started ordering like mad.

"Three portions of Explosive Flame Beef Tenderloin!"

"One large serving of Ice Crystal Shrimp Emperor, with garlic!"

"Wind-Runner Chicken! This one's delicious—let's start with three!"

Sun Miaomiao wasn't about to be outdone. She focused on the dishes that could replenish mental energy.

"Steamed Spirit Fish. This one's good for the brain!"

"Hundred-Fruit Sweet Soup. I love this one!"

"Flowing Cloud and Flying Catkin Cake..."

As Shen Tingxue watched the two of them act as if they meant to order everything on the menu, her bold expression slowly stiffened.

She quietly checked her account balance, and her heart began to ache.

"...You two really have no idea what it means to hold back, do you?"