Abilities and Inheritance

Guo Hongtao stood in front of Jiang Yuan. "You have to give us an explanation for voiding the results, right? Song Xi applied for unrestricted combat herself, and her equipment passed inspection. Brother Yuan won fair and square, so why is he being taken away?"

"This isn't your place to ask questions." The dean swept his gaze over Guo Hongtao's face. "The principal's office will provide an explanation."

Jiang Yuan raised a hand and patted Guo Hongtao's shoulder. "Go back first. Don't get yourself dragged into this too."

"I'll wait for you downstairs." Guo Hongtao lowered his voice until only the two of them could hear. "If they bully you, I'll call everyone over."

Jiang Yuan smiled faintly and followed the dean out of the testing center.

The principal's office was on the top floor of the teaching building. The dean swiped open the access control, and when Jiang Yuan entered, the principal was already standing before a light screen.

Several surveillance clips played in rotation. Song Xi closed in with a punch, her fist striking Jiang Yuan's chest. The exoskeleton frame warped on the spot, and then she was sent flying backward.

The principal raised a hand and paused the footage. The image froze right in front of Jiang Yuan's chest, where the fabric had been pressed into deep folds by the impact.

"Sit."

Jiang Yuan pulled out a chair and sat down. The dean stood guard by the door and casually locked it.

"Jiang Yuan, there are several suspicious points in today's match." The principal turned around. "First, you weren't wearing protective gear. Second, you took a frontal impact of five hundred and three kilograms without being injured. Third, Song Xi's injuries came from her own fist, and the force even penetrated her exoskeleton."

The principal fixed his eyes on Jiang Yuan. "Did you awaken a special ability that rebounds physical attacks?"

Only the low hum of the equipment remained in the office, along with the faint sound of electricity creeping along the corners of the walls.

Jiang Yuan did not answer immediately.

He let his gaze fall on the light screen. The principal had not mentioned the Nine Yang Inner Force, nor had the dean brought out the vitality and blood test report. They were only pressing him about the outcome and had not yet touched on the source of his power.

As long as he attributed everything to physical mutation, he could keep the system and the Nine Yang Divine Skill hidden.

Jiang Yuan raised his head. "I don't know if this counts as an ability."

The principal leaned forward. "Explain in detail."

"Before winter break, my punching strength was only three hundred and fifty kilograms, and my speed was sixteen meters per second. During that time, I did a lot of extreme training, and afterward, my body underwent some changes."

Jiang Yuan pressed his palm against his knee, his fingertips feeling the rough texture of the fabric through his pants.

"When I'm struck by external force, I can redirect the other person's power back at them. At first, I could only withstand ordinary attacks. Today was the first time I succeeded in actual combat."

The dean cut in. "You already knew you had this ability?"

"I knew my body had changed, but I couldn't be sure whether I could block Song Xi's punch." Jiang Yuan looked up at him. "That's why I didn't wear protective gear."

As soon as those words fell, the dean's expression darkened.

Jiang Yuan continued, "I also didn't expect the rebound effect to be this strong. The damage to the exoskeleton can only be considered an accident."

The principal pulled up the footage again, his finger swiping through the air.

Song Xi's fist struck Jiang Yuan's chest. The exoskeleton's energy circuits began shutting down from her right arm, the frame snapped apart one section after another, and then she was pushed out of the arena by the rebounding force.

"The classification of special abilities needs to be submitted to the New Star Testing Center for review." The principal closed the footage. "Until the results come out, the school will list your ability as top-level confidential information."

Jiang Yuan did not ask about the testing arrangements.

If he appeared too eager, it would only make it easier to leave behind questions.

The principal walked to his desk and opened the storage authorization.

[Special resource allocation agreement generated.]

The light screen listed three high-grade vitality and blood potions, along with advanced access to the gravity room.

"These three potions come from the school treasury." The principal raised a hand and confirmed the agreement. "The gravity room's advanced access will also be assigned to you, with no set expiration date for now. All potions and training time are to be used for your push toward New Star Martial University. Jiang Yuan, you are now the school's number one seed. The school will prioritize your training."

The dean looked at the resource list on the agreement, his fingers twitching at his side. "Principal, these resources were originally meant to be distributed according to ranking."

"The rankings can be recalculated." The principal's reply left no room for negotiation. "What matters most right now is whether we can send someone to New Star."

Jiang Yuan glanced over the agreement without confirming it immediately.

Three high-grade vitality and blood potions would be enough to speed up the first volume of the Nine Yang Divine Skill by another notch. Advanced gravity room access could continuously pressure his body and would also help him gain control over his vitality, blood, and inner force as soon as possible.

He raised his hand, his fingertip landing on the confirmation button.

"I'll use these resources for training before the martial arts exam." Jiang Yuan withdrew his hand. "My goal is clear: to meet the direct admission standard for New Star Martial University."

The principal nodded. "It's good that you have that goal."

Jiang Yuan rose, bowed to the two of them, and then left the office.

At the end of the hallway, Guo Hongtao was still waiting against the wall. The moment he heard footsteps, he hurried over.

"How did it go? Did they deduct your resources?"

"The exact opposite." Jiang Yuan raised his student terminal. "From now on, I can use the gravity room whenever I want, and I also got three high-grade vitality and blood potions."

Guo Hongtao opened his mouth, and only after a long while did he squeeze out a sentence. "So being taken away this time counts as getting promoted?"

"More like the school raising the stakes on me."

"Brother Yuan, don't forget about me once you get to New Star."

Jiang Yuan slipped the terminal back into his pocket. "Win your next challenge first. Don't let the resources already in your hands slip away."

Guo Hongtao agreed, patting his chest. When his palm landed, it made a dull thud. Jiang Yuan did not continue the conversation.

After leaving the teaching building, Jiang Yuan looked back at the windows on the top floor. The lights in the principal's office were still on.

The school had already treated him as a New Star prospect. There would only be more and more people watching him.

That evening, Jiang Yuan returned home with the potions.

He locked the door, drew the curtains, and made sure his communication terminal was offline before taking a high-grade vitality and blood potion from his storage bag.

The pale golden liquid was contained in a slender tube, with no unnecessary markings on the bottle.

[High-purity energy substance detected.]

[Can be used to accelerate martial arts deduction or absorbed directly.]

[Direct absorption may cause bodily impurities to be expelled.]

"Absorb it directly."

Jiang Yuan twisted open the cap and swallowed the potion in one gulp.

The liquid entered his stomach, and the Nine Yang Inner Force immediately began circulating through his meridians. The heat swept up the high-purity energy, dividing it into several streams and sending them throughout his body.

Jiang Yuan sat cross-legged on the bed, both palms pressing against his knees as his heavy breathing echoed back and forth through the room.

The potion's effects were stronger than he had expected.

Every time his inner force completed a cycle, another sluggish substance emerged within his body. The Nine Yang Inner Force pushed it toward his skin. It first seeped from his shoulders and back, then spread across his waist, abdomen, and legs.

Black impurities mixed with his sweat as they were expelled. His clothes clung to his skin, and a foul, fishy stench seeped from the fabric.

Jiang Yuan did not stop circulating his inner force.

The energy in the high-grade potion steadily dwindled. The Nine Yang Inner Force circulated through his meridians again and again, drawing out the vitality and blood originally scattered throughout his flesh and blood and completing a cycle along its path.

The room lights were off. City lights outside slipped through the gap in the curtains and spread across the floor, slowly shifting as vehicles passed by.

Two hours later, the last trace of medicinal energy was swallowed by his inner force.

Jiang Yuan opened his eyes. The heat in his abdomen had already merged into one. The Nine Yang Inner Force flowed through his meridians once more, meeting no obstruction along the way and circulating on its own between release and withdrawal.

[Nine Yang Divine Skill first volume training progress has reached 100%.]

[Current status: First Volume Mastery.]

Jiang Yuan lowered his eyes to his palm, then rose and walked to the window.

At that moment, in the darkness of a blind spot along the exterior wall, a palm-sized miniature reconnaissance drone hovered in midair.

Its camera peered through the gap in the curtains, aimed at the figure inside who had just risen.