I withdrew my hand and turned to look at the crack in the rock. That speck of light was still flickering, brightening and dimming like it was breathing. The spirit beast's ears remained pricked, its body leaning slightly forward, its tail swaying gently. It did not seem alert so much as if it were responding to something.
I sat up straighter and stopped the breathing exercise I had been doing. The spiritual power within me had only just settled into a rhythm; I could not disrupt it. But the speck of light grew brighter and brighter, and the air around it began to ripple. I could feel the spiritual energy trembling faintly.
"System," I asked in my sea of consciousness, "scan the situation over there."
The interface immediately appeared, data scrolling across it:
[High-concentration life energy fluctuations detected] [Source: symbiotic spirit beast] [Abnormal status: ancient bloodline activating] [Notice: this individual meets the evolution requirements for 'Heaven and Earth Resonance.' The process is irreversible.]
I froze for a moment. Evolution? It could evolve?
I remembered when I had first caught it. It had been an ordinary little beast, grayish-white all over, with pale cyan horns and not a trace of light on its body. Later, it had followed me through the wind tribulation and cultivation, always quietly staying by my side. At most, it would react when it sensed changes in my spiritual power.
But now, its aura had clearly changed. It was not merely stronger—it was... deeper. Like a well that had suddenly found its source and begun to gush with water.
Just as I was about to move closer for a better look, the spirit beast suddenly let out a low growl, and its entire body violently shuddered. Immediately after, a blast of air erupted from its body, making my chest feel tight and nearly knocking me off balance.
Loose stones at the edge of the rock platform were hurled into the air, striking the rock wall with a sharp clatter. I quickly raised a hand and set up a simple protective formation in front of me. Before the spiritual power had fully taken shape, another shockwave slammed into it. The formation shook twice, and a thin crack appeared.
"Don't panic," I said softly, not knowing whether I was saying it to it or to myself.
I sat cross-legged and calmed my mind. I could not panic. If I did, it would affect it. The system had not said I needed to intervene, which meant the safest thing I could do now was stay and guard it.
I closed my eyes and used my consciousness to sense its condition. Its outline appeared in my sea of consciousness, its entire body glowing gold and red. The energy was densest around its forehead and the joints of its limbs. Those lights were flowing, as though rearranging some kind of structure.
It shuddered again, a suppressed sound coming from its throat, as if it were in pain—or holding back with all its strength.
I reached out and gently pressed a hand to the back of its neck. It was burning hot there, the muscles beneath its fur tense as stone. I sent a thread of spiritual power into it, not to help, but only to convey one message—I was here.
Its ears twitched, and its breathing eased slightly.
Time passed bit by bit. The sky had gone completely dark, and the only light in the valley came from this glowing mass. I sat at the heart of the formation, maintaining the defense while watching the system data change.
[Energy level continuously rising] [Bone density increased by 180%] [Meridian reconstruction 73% complete] [Estimated remaining time: two quarters of an hour]
I did not dare relax. A transformation of this level could lose control at any moment. If it went berserk, I might not be able to suppress it.
Sure enough, when it was nearly halfway through, it suddenly arched its back, kicked against the ground with all four limbs, and let out a low cry that tore through the night sky. The sound was not sharp, but it was piercing enough to make my eardrums tingle.
The protective formation exploded with a bang, spiritual power scattering in all directions like fragments. I gritted my teeth and held on, immediately adding a second layer. This time, I added stagnation runes to slow the leaking energy.
It rolled across the ground once, then was bounced back by the force it had unleashed itself. I rushed over, grabbed it around the neck, and pinned it down. Its body was terrifyingly hot, its muscles constantly twitching as though something inside were crashing about.
"Hold on!" I said. "Just hold on a little longer!"
It opened its eyes. Its pupils were golden, unfocused, filled entirely with light. I could not understand what it was thinking, but I could feel it struggling, resisting something.
I continued sending spiritual power into it—not much, only enough to let it know I was not an enemy. Slowly, its movements weakened, and its breathing steadied.
The final burst of energy came without warning. The entire valley lit up, and the vines on the rock walls cast long shadows that twisted like living things. I raised my hand to shield my eyes. There was a boom in my ears, like thunder exploding inside my head.
When the light faded, everything fell silent.
I lowered my hand and saw it lying on the ground, completely motionless.
My heart stopped for a moment.
"Hey?" I gave it a push.
Its ears twitched. It slowly raised its head, then stood up.
I took half a step back.
It had grown larger. It had once only reached my knees, but now it was nearly as tall as I was while sitting. Its body was lean and sturdy, its limbs powerful. When its paws touched the ground, a faint earth-colored halo spread outward. The horn on its forehead had turned deep cyan, etched with a ring of natural patterns that looked like runes—or perhaps some kind of writing.
It turned to look at me, its gaze clear and carrying a familiar affection.
Then it lowered its head and rubbed against my hand.
I let out a breath of relief and laughed.
"You little guy... you finally made it through."
It rumbled in its throat, as if answering me.
I had the system scan it again.
[Evolution complete] [New form: Earth Spirit Beast · Initial Stage] [Abilities unlocked: spiritual energy purification, node guidance, resonance amplification]
I did not fully understand that last term, but when I saw "node guidance," my heart stirred. That spot around my shoulder and neck always got stuck. Before, no matter how many times I practiced, I could only slowly force through it myself. If it could really help me...
I tried sitting cross-legged again and resumed my breathing exercise. It quietly lay down behind me, its nose pointed at my back.
The moment I drew in my first breath, I felt that something was wrong.
The spiritual energy in the air was denser than usual, and... cleaner. It had always carried a faint impurity when I drew it in, as though mixed with sand. Now, though, it was like it had been filtered, flowing smoothly into my meridians.
The system immediately displayed a notification:
[External assistance detected] [Spiritual energy purity increased to 92%] [Absorption efficiency +67%]
I continued circulating my spiritual power, starting with the Lesser Heavenly Cycle. When it reached my shoulder, I ran into that stagnant point again. Before I could force my way through, a faint tremor came from behind me.
The spirit beast's horn lit up.
A gentle energy climbed up along my spine and landed precisely on that node. With just one touch, the blockage loosened. Spiritual power passed through smoothly, even a little faster than usual.
I opened my eyes and looked back at it.
It lay there without moving, its eyes half-closed, as if it were matching my rhythm.
I closed my eyes again and sped up the circulation. Whenever I reached a difficult point, its horn lit up once, every time at exactly the moment I needed it most. Never too early, never too late. It was as if it could see straight through my meridians.
After one full Greater Heavenly Cycle, the spiritual power in my dantian had clearly grown denser. It had once been like a cloud of mist, but now it had begun to take on substance, heavy like mercury.
I tried compression training again, dividing my spiritual power into nine streams and compressing them one by one. Before, it took more than ten rounds at the fastest to form even one stream. Now, with its vibrations assisting me, the third stream succeeded.
The system displayed a notification:
[Spiritual power compression has reached the standard value] [Meridian openness rate: 98%] [Control precision rating: Good → Excellent]
I stopped and exhaled a breath of stale air.
This time, my aura was heavy and steady, settling without a sound.
I turned around and touched its horn. It was cooler than before, smooth like jade.
"When were you hiding a skill like this?" I said with a smile.
It lifted its head to look at me, then suddenly opened its mouth and let out a short cry. The sound was not loud, but it echoed through the valley, as if it were some kind of reply.
Just as I was about to ask more, it suddenly stood up and lifted its nose to sniff the sky.
I sensed it too.
The air had changed.
It was not the concentration of spiritual energy, but... its direction. The spiritual energy that had once drifted about chaotically was now beginning to flow in a pattern, as if something were drawing it in.
I looked up at the sky.
The stars were still there, and the moon had risen as well. But directly above us, an invisible field was taking shape. I could feel its pressure—faint, but undeniably there.
The spirit beast walked to the edge of the rock platform, raised one front paw, and lightly stepped on the ground.
A ring of earth-colored ripples spread outward and sank into the ground.
Three seconds later, several pieces of rubble in a distant pile of rocks floated into the air, hanging motionless in midair.
I stood and walked to its side.
It glanced at me, then raised its head and let out a long cry.
Unlike before, the sound was no longer restrained. It burst directly outward. As the sound waves spread, the spiritual energy field overhead suddenly tightened, like a net dropping down.
The spiritual power within me responded on its own, surging upward through my meridians.
I knew this was an opportunity.
If I tried to ascend now, perhaps things would be different.
I took a deep breath, lifted both feet from the ground, and poured spiritual power into them.
My body became light.
Not the strained sensation of barely floating from before. I was truly light, like a feather lifted by the wind.
I rose two meters and steadied myself.
Three meters, still rising.
Five meters—the same height where I had failed last time. But this time, I did not fall.
I hovered in the air and looked down at it.
It stood on the rock platform, looking up at me, the faint glow on its horn not yet dispersed.
I smiled.
But just as I prepared to rise higher, my chest suddenly tightened.
It was not spiritual power depletion, nor was it a blocked node.
It was another feeling.
As if someone far away were watching me.
I abruptly turned and looked beyond the valley.
Deep within the darkness, a shadow flashed past.