Back in his office, Fang Yuan sat alone with his gaze fixated on a long, lacquered box.
Its surface practically glead faintly, the royal seal burned into the wood like an ever-watchful eye.
His fingers tapped the desk once before he leaned forward, sliding the box open.
Inside lay a sword, old, weathered, its blade rusted almost beyond recognition.
Another rusted sword.
Fang Yuan’s lips curved faintly as he muttered,
"Du Juan’s sword was the sa when I found her. Rusted, worn down... discarded."
He tilted his head, eyes narrowing.
"Is rusted sword getting popular lately?"
The words had barely left his mouth when the sword trembled violently.
—BAAM!
A blinding radiance burst forth, a pillar of light shooting straight through the roof.
The heavens themselves seed to split, and for an instant, the brilliance was no less than that of a true Heaven-grade weapon’s awakening.
Except it was not one.
Fang Yuan’s expression twisted cold, venom dripping from every word as he glared into the torrent of light.
"So this was your plan all along, Crown Prince. To stage the birth of a Heaven-grade weapon here, in my territory, then let the greed of cultivators and opportunists descend to strike down.
And when the dust settles, you unveil the true Heaven-grade treasure you’ve been cultivating in secret. The world calls you its savior while their resentnt festers against ."
His voice dropped lower, sharper.
"Because cultivating a Heaven-grade weapon is not glory, it is a cri against humanity itself. It demands blood. Endless blood. Wherever one manifests, it is always built upon mountains of corpses."
His eyes burned crimson as the realization deepened.
"That was your design. To brand as a blood-path cultivator, to paint the villain. You strike down, play the hero, and bask in the worship of the masses."
His teeth clenched, the fury in his gaze almost tangible.
"Very good. Very good! Then I am glad my brother seized that blade instead of you. Better it rests in his hands than be tainted by yours."
The furious light raged for several heartbeats before fading, leaving silence in its wake.
Fang Yuan’s expression never wavered, cold and furious on the surface.
But within, a sly smirk curled in the depths of his mind.
Tsk. Did you really think I wouldn’t see through your little sche, Qin Hai? I know you’re watching right now, listening through that cursed sword of yours. Go on, then. Why don’t you guess why I have never opened this ’gift’ of yours until today.
None of it reached his lips though.
Outwardly, he maintained his mask of anger, storming out of the chamber with heavy steps.
The mont the door shut behind him, the fury drained from his face.
His expression returned to that of a calm and then he lifted a hand and swiped the air.
A golden screen shimred into existence before him.
[System Status]
Host: Fang Yuan
Realm: Initial Hollow Spirit Realm
Root: Heavenly Root
Hidden Physique: None
Martial Techniques:
Swift Step Footwork (Low-grade Black)
Golden Shell Armor (Mid-grade Earth)
Tyrant’s Light Sword (Low-grade Black)
System Points: 7,400
Faith Points: 46,000
[Faith System – Heavenly Mandate Scripture] (Saint Rank)
Current Rank: 1 / 9
Faith Exp Needed for Level 2: 100,000
Current Faith Exp: 12,666 / 100,000
Unlocked Abilities:
Authority Domain (Passive) – Foes within one ter will be instantly identified and locked under your cultivation aura.
[Fang Clan]
Head: Fang Yuan (Strongest cultivator in Coldwind City)
Vassal: Lin Clan
Clan Faith in Their Head: 75% (dium)
Daily Generation: 600 Faith Exp, 4,000 Faith Points
Exceptional Believers (Faith > 99):
Fang Chen – 500 Faith Exp, 1,000 Faith Points daily
Du Juan – 500 Faith Exp, 1,000 Faith Points daily
The golden screen shimred before his eyes.
[Congratulations, Host. Reward for reaching Level 1 has been unlocked.
Would you like to claim now?]
Fang Yuan tapped Claim.
A heartbeat later, his knees buckled.
He crashed to the ground, his body wracked with agony.
An unbearable weight bore down on him, as though mountains pressed against his very bones.
As soone in a hollow Spirit Realm, he should have been granted inhuman pain tolerance, yet this pain tore past all defenses.
For two long minutes, he endured. Every breath was fire, every twitch of muscle a blade.
And then, release.
Gasping, drenched in sweat, Fang Yuan forced himself back to his feet.
His body trembled, but his eyes sharpened.
Sothing was different. His fra felt... lighter. Not weaker, lighter and free.
The golden screen pulsed once more.
[You have been infused with the Faith Dao Bone.]
Fang Yuan froze.
"...Wait. What?"
Dao Bone.
His breath hitched. A Dao Bone? In ?
And then he felt it, his dantian quivered, expanding and contracting as though it were a living lung.
His ridians burned, yet not with fire, this was sothing different, as though every vessel in his body was being carved anew by unseen chisels.
A vibration thrumd deep in his marrow, resonating with his very skeleton.
It was not spiritual qi, nor blood essence. It was sothing stranger, weightless yet oppressive, formless yet absolute.
Faith.
The collective belief of thousands, the intangible force he had been harvesting, now condensed into bone, becoming part of him.
His fra felt lighter, yes, but also unshakable, as though his body itself could anchor heaven and earth.
Every breath pulled with it whispers, not words, but echoes.
The faith of his clan.
Their reverence, their trust, their worship... it was flowing through him.
His hand trembled slightly as he lifted it before his eyes.
For the first ti in his life, Fang Yuan felt the absurd illusion that if he willed it, the world would listen.
"...So this is the Faith Dao Bone." His voice was low, tinged with awe, but his eyes glead dangerously.
"The system truly plays with things beyond mortal comprehension."
The golden screen slowly faded away.
Fang Yuan exhaled, his lips curling into a faint smirk as he muttered,
"I wonder what the other rewards will be like... if the reward for level one was this amazing."
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