Abilities and Inheritance

Guo Hongtao stood in front of Jiang Yuan. "If his results are voided, you have to give us an explanation, right? Song Xi applied for unrestricted actual combat herself, and her equipment passed inspection. Brother Yuan won on his own merits, so why is he being taken away?"

"You're not in a position to ask questions here." The dean of academic affairs 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 on the shoulder. "Go back first. Don't drag yourself into this too."

"I'll wait 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 and followed the dean of academic affairs out of the assessment 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 stepped inside, the principal was already standing before the light screen.

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

The principal raised a hand and paused the footage. The image froze precisely on 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 the exoskeleton."

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

Only the low hum of operating equipment remained in the office, with the faint crackle of electricity crawling along the corners of the walls.

Jiang Yuan did not answer at once.

His gaze fell on the light screen. The principal had not mentioned Nine Yang Inner Force, nor had the dean produced the qi-and-blood test report. They were only pressing him about the outcome, without touching upon the source of that power for now.

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

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

The principal leaned forward. "Explain in detail."

"Before winter break, my punching force was only three hundred and fifty kilograms, and my speed was sixteen meters per second. During that period, I did a great deal of extreme training, and later, some changes appeared in my body."

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 guide the other party'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 took over. "You already knew you had this ability?"

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

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

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

The principal brought up the footage again, his finger gliding through the air.

Song Xi's fist struck Jiang Yuan's chest. The exoskeleton's energy circuits went dark starting from her right arm, the frame broke apart piece by piece, and then she was pushed out of the arena by that rebounding force.

"The classification of special abilities must be submitted to the New Star Testing Center for review." The principal shut off the footage. "Before the results come out, the school will classify your ability as top-level confidential material."

Jiang Yuan did not ask about the testing arrangements.

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

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

[Special Resource Allocation Agreement Generated.]

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

"These three potions come from the school's treasury." The principal raised a hand to confirm the agreement's contents. "The gravity chamber's advanced access will also be assigned to you, with no usage limit set for the time being. All the potions and training time are for your push toward New Star Martial University. Jiang Yuan, you are now the school's number one seed. The school will prioritize supporting 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 rankings."

"The rankings can be recalculated." The principal's answer left no room for discussion. "Whether we can send someone to New Star is what matters most now."

Jiang Yuan swept his gaze across the agreement but did not confirm it immediately.

Three high-grade qi-and-blood potions were enough to speed up the cultivation of the first volume of the Nine Yang Divine Skill by another stretch. Advanced gravity chamber access could continuously pressure his body and make it easier for him to master his qi, 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 examination." Jiang Yuan withdrew his hand. "My goal is clear: to meet New Star Martial University's direct admission standard."

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

Jiang Yuan stood, saluted the two men, and then left the office.

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

"How was it? Did they deduct your resources?"

"Quite the opposite." Jiang Yuan lifted his student terminal. "From now on, I can use the gravity chamber whenever I want, and I also got three high-grade qi-and-blood potions."

Guo Hongtao opened his mouth. It took him a long while to squeeze out a sentence. "So getting taken away this time counted as a promotion?"

"Count it as the school raising the stakes on me."

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

Jiang Yuan put the terminal back into his pocket. "First win your next challenge. Don't let the resources already in your hands slip through your fingers."

Guo Hongtao thumped his chest in agreement, producing a dull smack when his palm landed. Jiang Yuan did not continue the conversation.

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

The school had already treated him as a New Star seed. The people watching him would only grow more numerous.

That evening, Jiang Yuan returned home with the potions.

He locked his door, drew the curtains, and confirmed that his communication terminal was offline before taking a high-grade qi-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 trigger the expulsion of bodily impurities.]

"Absorb directly."

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

The medicinal liquid dropped into his stomach, and Nine Yang Inner Force immediately began circulating through his meridians. The hot current swept up that high-purity energy, divided it into several streams, and sent it throughout his body.

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

The potion was stronger than he had expected.

Each time his inner force completed a circulation, another sluggish substance appeared within his body. Nine Yang Inner Force pushed it toward his skin, where it first seeped from his shoulders and back before spreading across his waist, abdomen, and legs.

Black impurities mixed with sweat and were expelled. His clothes clung to his skin, and the fabric gave off a foul, fishy stench.

Jiang Yuan did not stop circulating his inner force.

The energy within the high-grade potion steadily diminished. Nine Yang Inner Force looped through his meridians again and again, drawing out the qi and blood originally scattered throughout his flesh and guiding it through a complete cycle along the cultivation route.

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

Two hours later, the final trace of medicinal power was swallowed by his inner force.

Jiang Yuan opened his eyes. The hot current in his abdomen had already joined into one. Nine Yang Inner Force once more traveled through his meridians without the slightest obstruction, circulating on its own between release and withdrawal.

[Nine Yang Divine Skill Volume One cultivation progress has reached 100%.]

[Current status: Volume One mastered.]

Jiang Yuan lowered his eyes to look at his palms, then rose and walked to the window.

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

Its lens peered through the gap in the curtains, aimed at the figure inside who had just risen to his feet.