The First Threshold Broken!
"What? Na'er is missing?"
As he spoke, Yao Xuan swung his legs out of bed. His eyes, still heavy with sleep, immediately fell upon the note left conspicuously on his desk. His heart clenched, but he moved towards it with a calm that belied the storm inside.
He picked up the slip of paper. Na'er's delicate, precise handwriting greeted him, each character a small arrow piercing his soul.
"Brother, Mom, I'm leaving. Thank you so much for taking care of me these past two years. But I've remembered who I am, and my family has come to pick me up. I have to go."
"The days I spent with you were truly, truly happy. I really, truly hate to leave you, but my gradually returning memories force me to go. I have so many things to do."
"Brother, I will always remember how you saved me from the bad guys, and I will always remember all your care and love for me. But if I stay, it might bring you trouble, even disaster. For your safety, I have to leave."
"Brother, there's a talisman I left for you around your neck. You must keep it safe. If danger comes, it will protect you."
"—Your dearest, Na'er."
His fingers trembled slightly as he finished reading. He looked down at his chest, where a necklace now rested against his skin. Hanging from it was a single, luminous white scale, its surface shimmering with a soft, iridescent light, like a tear of moonlight frozen into a gem.
'Are these... her scales?' he thought, his heart aching with a mixture of tenderness and fierce resolve. 'Left behind to protect me? Yes... I'm still too weak. I need to become stronger. I must become stronger!'
The scale was not just a gift; it was a reminder of his inadequacy and a symbol of the immense power he needed to attain.
"Mom," he said, turning to Lin Ximeng, who stood wringing her hands in the doorway. He handed her the note. "Na'er left this. She said she regained her memories, remembered her family, and went back to them."
Lin Ximeng scanned the note, her expression softening with a bittersweet sadness. "She found her family? That... that must be a good thing for her." She looked up at Yao Xuan, her maternal instincts sensing the profound loss he was trying to mask. "Child, I know you care for Na'er deeply. You must be heartbroken that she's gone. I understand completely."
"I can see that she misses you terribly too," she continued, her voice gentle but firm. "In the future, after she finishes what she needs to do, you will definitely have a chance to meet again, right? So, I hope you can cheer up. Don't let sadness consume you."
"Yes, Mom. I understand," Yao Xuan nodded, his voice quiet but steady.
And he did understand. In the days, weeks, and months that followed, he did not allow himself the luxury of wallowing. Instead, he channeled every ounce of his energy, every waking moment, into two things: the rhythmic, demanding art of forging and the relentless pursuit of cultivation. The memory of Na'er's smile and the cool weight of the scale against his chest became the twin fuels for his fiery determination.
Nine months later.
Yao Xuan sat cross-legged in his room, the familiar interface of the Super God System glowing in his mind's eye.
[Ancestral Dragon Bloodline: 9.9%]
[Golden Evolution Points: 10]
A slow, determined smile touched his lips. "Now, my Ancestral Dragon Bloodline can finally complete the first stage of unlocking!"
The path to this moment had been long. On his eighth birthday, his bloodline had stood at 7.9%. Na'er's farewell kiss, imbued with a fragment of her Silver Dragon King essence, had pushed it to 8.2%. The subsequent success in Thousand Refining and the reward of 100 Golden Evolution Points had catapulted it to 9.3%. For nine months, through relentless training and the steady, if slow, accumulation of points from Tang Wulin's progress and his own efforts, he had gathered just enough. Sixty points from training, ten from Tang Wulin—it was finally sufficient.
According to the system, breaking through the 10% threshold would not be a simple stat increase. It represented a qualitative leap—a surge in qi, blood power, and physical attributes that would fundamentally reshape his foundation. It would unlock new abilities, both passive and active. Most crucially, it would allow him to advance to the Great Soul Master realm with a perfection few in history could claim.
'Yes!' The command was silent, but it echoed with the force of his will.
The ten precious points vanished. In their place, a torrent of the purest evolutionary energy, warm and potent, flooded his veins. It was like liquid sunlight, igniting every cell. The dormant Ancestral Dragon bloodline within him stirred, then roared to life, hungrily devouring the energy, its purity and concentration skyrocketing.
ROAR!
A phantom bellow, ancient and majestic, thundered in the depths of his sea of consciousness. It was the voice of his own bloodline, shaking off its shackles. Yao Xuan felt an invisible barrier deep within his body shatter into a million pieces.
The effect was instantaneous and violent.
A power as scorching and relentless as magma erupted from his core, flooding his meridians, his muscles, his bones. It was not the gentle warmth of cultivation, but a forge-fire intent on remaking him.
"So... hot!" he gasped, his body seizing up. Sweat beaded on his skin and instantly evaporated in the heat radiating from him. He gritted his teeth until his jaw ached, his knuckles white as he gripped his knees. To faint now was to die, or at best, be crippled forever. He would not fail. Not when he had a promise to keep.
"Ancestral Dragon Martial Soul, possess me!"
With a mental shout, he summoned his soul power. A brilliant flash of nine-colored light filled the room. The magnificent form of the Ancestral Dragon Martial Soul materialized, let out a silent roar, and plunged down, merging into the crown of his head.
The moment the Martial Soul fused with him, a faint, iridescent layer of dragon scales shimmered into existence across his skin. His physical resilience skyrocketed. The agonizing pain became a manageable, intense burning. Now, he could focus. He directed all his will, all his spiritual power, towards guiding and refining the chaotic, primal dragon energy rampaging inside him.
It was a battle of attrition. Stream by stream, he wrestled the scorching power, forcing it to integrate, to strengthen rather than destroy. He felt his muscles condense, his bones hum with newfound density. His strength, measurable in his mind, shattered through the 2,000-kilogram mark and continued to climb. His meridians, once robust, now felt like tempered divine steel, widening and strengthening, allowing for a far greater flow of soul power. His dantian, the core of his power, expanded, its capacity increasing dramatically.
Simultaneously, the network of qi and blood within him, which had formed a basic circulation at 5%, now exploded in complexity and volume. A intricate, nine-colored lattice of light bloomed across and within his body, weaving through his flesh and spirit, orchestrating incredible, fundamental changes.
For a full, grueling hour, he sat immobile, a statue bathed in the faint, pulsating light of his own transformation. Finally, the inferno within him began to subside, cooling into a steady, immense warmth that promised boundless power.
Yao Xuan slumped forward, catching his breath in great, heaving gulps. The tension drained from his body, replaced by a fatigue that was profoundly satisfying. He had done it. The first major threshold was crossed. He opened his eyes, and they glowed for a moment with a sharp, nine-colored light before settling back into their usual calm depth. The path ahead was still long, but the first, most crucial gate was now behind him. For their future reunion, he had taken a monumental leap.