The Gift

From Crescent Bay back to Earth. For several days in a row, Yu Xian woke every morning filled with anticipation. He kept hoping that Zhenwo Changjing had only stepped away temporarily, that she would return and remain smiling by his side just as she always had. Yet Zhenwo Changjing did not return. Time and again, his Super Brain calmly analyzed the data to arrive at the undeniable truth: after leaving behind her gift, she had truly departed. She had suddenly appeared in Yu Xian's life, and then, without so much as a goodbye, vanished without a trace just as abruptly. Still, Yu Xian was not one to wallow in melodrama. His reluctance to let go was genuine, and his sorrow was real, but having endured his mother's passing in childhood and later watching his father succumb to severe illness, he simply carried on with his daily life as he always had. At most, whenever a question crossed his mind, he would space out for a fleeting moment, realizing that Zhenwo Changjing—who had always possessed answers to all his doubts—was no longer there. The Island Grotto-Heaven. Clad in swim trunks, Yu Xian sunbathed, soaking in the sunlight while studying the gift Zhenwo Changjing had left him. It had taken until the second day after her departure for him to notice the mote of light on his chest. When he focused his attention upon it, its function became clear to him naturally. The Light of True Self. A force of pure yin evolved entirely from Zhenwo Changjing's countless abilities, it could also be called the power of ultimate yin. Its purpose was exceedingly simple: to transform a living being's "true self" into tangible, undeniable power. In short, it manifested the "self." This suited Zhenwo Changjing's style to a tee. She would never have gifted him any ability meant directly for attacking other living creatures; at most, she would provide defensive arts or abilities designed to unlock latent potential. The Light of True Self clearly fell into the category of potential-unlocking abilities. As for what type Yu Xian's own "true self" was, or whether it carried offensive traits, that could only be determined after using the Light of True Self—it had nothing to do with Zhenwo Changjing. "Auntie, let's see what my 'true self' really is..." After several days of study, Yu Xian finally made up his mind to use the Light of True Self. Rising from his lounger, he took a deep breath and slowly guided the light within his body toward his right hand. His index finger began to glow with a soft green light. He then tapped his own glabella with it, the motion an exact mirror of how Zhenwo Changjing had once imparted knowledge to him. In an instant, countless scenes flashed across the depths of his mind, and his soul radiated a brilliant golden glow. [Freedom and Bonds] [Ability: The depth of your bond with a target determines the degree of freedom this ability grants.] [Note: Yearning most deeply for freedom yet fearing loneliness above all else, you have decided to have both. So long as the bond is deep enough, you shall be omnipotent.] Yu Xian opened his eyes, sensing a special power added to his soul. This power originated entirely from his mind—or rather, from his "true self." Untouched by any external interference, it was at once mighty and fragile, illusory and real. Following his instincts, he reached out his hand, seeming to grasp onto some intangible substance. With a firm tug, Little Nora, who had been swimming nearby, appeared beside him in an instant—with a golden rope connecting her body to his hand. "Big Bro, what's up?" Little Nora fluttered in midair a few times before realizing she was no longer in the water. She looked at Yu Xian, puzzled. Yu Xian leaned closer and noticed the other end of the golden rope sank into Little Nora's back, right where her heart was. He asked, "Do you feel anything strange?" "Nope." Little Nora flapped her wings vigorously, wobbling in the air for a moment before shaking her head. After a moment's thought, Yu Xian said to Little Nora, "Big Bro wants to run an experiment. In a moment, I'll send you to Crescent Bay. Once you get there, don't move. Got it?" "Oh, got it." Though Little Nora had no idea what experiment Yu Xian wanted to do, since he asked, she was happy to comply. Yu Xian then created a spatial bubble and sent Little Nora to Crescent Bay in an instant. After waiting a minute, with a thought, he grabbed the manifested golden rope and gave it a tug. Far away in Crescent Bay, Little Nora was yanked back to his side in a flash. "Huh? I'm back again!" Little Nora exclaimed in surprise. Only now did she finally spot the golden rope in Yu Xian's hand. Widening her eyes, she asked, "Big Bro, is that rope your new ability?" "Yeah. Still figuring it out," Yu Xian nodded. The ability was definitely not so simple, but he still needed to study how to use it properly. He guessed that the golden rope in his hand was the manifestation of "bonds." But where did the "freedom" part come in? "Little Nora, let's merge!" Yu Xian said after thinking for a moment. Golden light flared instantly around them as Little Nora merged into his body, and the golden wings on his back spread open. After merging, he discovered that the golden rope in his hand seemed capable of shifting forms at will. With a stray thought, the rope morphed into an Adamantine Feather, and then into an Adamantine Feather Blade. Now he understood. Even though Little Nora had a contract with him and trusted him unconditionally, they had ultimately known each other for too short a time. Their bond was limited to the scope of "contract" and "trust." But a true bond surely went far beyond that; it required countless shared memories, tacit understanding, mutual recognition, and so on. In those respects, he and Little Nora clearly had a long way to go, needing more time to cultivate a deeper bond and unlock more freely adaptable power. The golden rope was likely the manifestation of the contract, while its current ability to take the form of an Adamantine Feather was proof of their having fought side by side. After undoing the merge, Yu Xian let Little Nora play on her own. Sitting on his beach chair, he watched Little Nora frolic back into the water, and smiled as he leaned back again. In truth, he had considered using the Light of True Self on Little Nora. After igniting his own "true self," the Light of True Self in his chest hadn't diminished in the slightest; he estimated it could illuminate the "true self" for quite a few more people. The problem was that Little Nora was only eight years old, with the personality of an utter child who loved nothing more than eating and playing. He truly didn't know whether he should use this ability on her. It might yield a fantastic ability, but it might just as well produce an awful one. Yu Xian even suspected that Little Nora's true self ability might turn out to be conjuring food anywhere, anytime—which was probably her absolute dream ability. Of course, people rarely truly understood themselves. It was also possible that Little Nora's real "self" secretly yearned to become overwhelmingly powerful, which would bring forth an extraordinarily formidable ability instead. Right. A thought suddenly struck Yu Xian: Zhenwo Changjing surely shared a bond with him as well, so could he pull her over? He promptly shut his eyes and sensed the various bonds attached to him. In truth, if he focused carefully, each person's bond gave off a distinct feeling. For example, Nora's bond gave him a sensation of happiness and joy with just the slightest touch of his senses, whereas Little Huangquan's bond smelled of barbecue skewers. Found it! Among his countless bonds, Yu Xian located the one belonging to Zhenwo Changjing. He immediately reached out to grasp it, but when he gave it a hard tug, nothing budged. Putting both hands to work, the illusory bond remained intangible, never coalescing into a golden rope. He poured every ounce of strength into it, yet failed to budge the bond in the slightest. "Looks like Auntie is too strong." "Still, as long as this bond remains, so long as I keep getting stronger, sooner or later I'll be able to follow this bond and find her!" Yu Xian mused inwardly as he sensed the bond in his grasp. Though formless and intangible, the bond faintly pointed out a direction. As long as he traveled that way, Zhenwo Changjing was bound to be somewhere far out there. Now he had motivation! Yu Xian felt fired up all over. He was going to cultivate diligently and break through to the Li Rank as soon as possible.