Prophecy

A lazy afternoon nap.

Golden sunlight spilled over that alluring body.

Perhaps it was a nightmare—her long lashes suddenly trembled, and a faint trace of pain surfaced on that beautiful face.

“…I don’t want to be a girl… No…!”

The beauty suddenly cried out, her sweet, delicate voice echoing in the room.

She woke from her dream, panic and pain still lingering on her face.

At the corners of her eyes, the faint wetness seemed to be telling of some grievance.

Su Xuan sat up straight, staring blankly ahead.

His trembling hands reached toward his chest—A flat plain.

“Phew~ Still flat…”

He breathed a sigh of relief.

He had just dreamt that he turned into a girl—

And not the instant transformation kind, but the slow process of changing from male to female.

That painful experience, combined with the near-realistic sensations, had nearly broken him.

In the dream, some irresistible force reshaped Su Xuan’s body into that of a girl.

Terror and helplessness surged up from the depths of his heart.

“This can’t be allowed to happen!”

Su Xuan made a silent vow.

It was far too horrifying—he had to get the Dark Energy Stone as soon as possible.

He glanced at the clock hanging on the wall—it was only 1:30.

He’d only slept for a little over half an hour, but it was enough.

The morning’s training had drained a large amount of enerons; he needed to replenish them.

Taking out the energy stone the man had given him as an apology, he emptied his mind and looked into the void of his Phantom Soul space.
Only a fiery red blade floated in the air—Su Xuan’er was nowhere to be seen.

According to Su Xuan’er, she had absorbed too much Life Origin Energy that day and needed to return part of it to the body.

That meant Su Xuan wouldn’t be “seeing” Su Xuan’er for a while.

With the help of the Life Origin Energy, his body’s development would receive a significant boost.

The so-called Life Origin Energy referred to the primal source of life—The essence every living creature possessed.

It was stored both in the body and in the Phantom Soul.

In the body, it manifested as the essence of life itself.

In the Phantom Soul, it manifested as life characteristics.

Su Xuan wanted to tell Su Xuan’er to share the excess Life Origin Energy with the Crimson Blade.

But it was as if she hadn’t heard him—she ignored him completely.

Still, during cultivation, the Phantom Soul’s support effect remained.

Whenever he absorbed enerons, a faint bluish-purple glow would bloom.

After all, she was still inside his body—she’d just… gone somewhere else.

Thinking of that dream just now, and of his body developing further under the combined effects of Life Origin Energy and intense training—
A shiver ran down his spine.

“Is this all part of your plan, Su Xuan’er?!”

Golden light filled the streets.

Not a wisp of cloud marred the blue sky.

The blinding sun painted the world in gold and white.

Only under the shade of trees could one feel a hint of coolness.

There were few pedestrians outside.

It was already siesta time, and with this scorching heat, hardly anyone wanted to leave the embrace of air-conditioning to step out onto the street.

Which meant they missed their chance to witness a beauty in person.

The breathtaking figure bathed in sunlight—

A short, deep-black T-shirt that couldn’t hide the alluring, crime-worthy curves.

A flawless face that dimmed even the sun’s radiance.

Only those who happened to glance toward the street were caught by that fleeting moment of beauty, their eyes following her figure until she vanished around the corner.

What those lustful gawkers never imagined was—this beauty had something bigger than theirs when it came out.

(Isn’t that even better?) a nameless thug picking his nose muttered.

Unlike the nearly empty streets outside, the training facility still had a few people.

Clearly, they too were immersed in their own training rhythm.

Astonished by Su Xuan’s beauty, a few male trainees trembled inwardly.

Having such a gorgeous person “training alongside” them somehow reignited their fighting spirit.

Their motivation blazed anew for no apparent reason.

Su Xuan ignored their predatory stares.

After all, he was someone they could never hope to obtain in their lifetime—why bother shattering their little fantasies?

Those dazzling long legs—the kind only seen in anime—

Stepped up the stairs and disappeared from view.

“If she stepped on me, that’d feel sooo good~~”

A young male trainee drooled lecherously as those pale, slender legs vanished from sight.

At the door to Room 1324, the door stood half open, cool air from the AC spilling out.

Su Xuan pushed it open immediately, not bothering with yesterday’s polite hesitation.

“Oh, here you are. Looking quite spirited!”

Zhang Heng beamed at Su Xuan.

His long coat was still on, making Su Xuan wonder—wasn’t he hot wearing that?

Even with AC, surely there were times without it?

Noticing Su Xuan’s puzzled glance at his coat, Zhang Heng cursed inwardly: It’s because of the way you look—if I didn’t wear this coat, how would I hide my long spear and short cannon?

“Go back to the place you trained this morning and review your breathing technique.

I know you’ve already mastered it, but regular review is necessary.

This time, though, I want to give you a challenge—reduce your time to under five seconds.”

Zhang Heng spoke slowly, taking a sip from his ever-present thermos.

“Oh…”

Su Xuan replied absentmindedly as he headed toward the training room, still annoyed that Zhang Heng got to eat all the good food while he was stuck with bugs and ants that were hard to swallow.

The thought of Zhang Heng feasting on meat and delicacies while he gnawed on insect legs filled him with a quiet sorrow.

Fortunately, once inside the training area, he had no time for grief.

All focus had to be on the training ahead.

Su Xuan stepped onto the high platform again, closed his eyes, and adjusted his breathing.

After a short while, his eyes snapped open.

In a blur, his figure dashed across the perilous steel rope, long hair streaming behind him.

Before Zhang Heng could take a sip, Su Xuan had completed the challenge—

Time: 1.35 seconds.

Zhang Heng’s astonishment was plain to see.

Without a doubt, Su Xuan’s mastery of breathing was near perfect.

Otherwise, it would’ve been impossible to complete the run at such speed.

He had thought Su Xuan would need two more days to reach this level—

Who knew a single nap would do the trick?

“So this is what they call… genius?!”

Zhang Heng couldn’t help but think of his younger self—

A celebrated prodigy of his generation, a star of the military summer camp…

If only he hadn’t injured his foundation…

“Coach?”

“Ah—oh. Don’t call me coach. Call me teacher.”

Su Xuan’s voice had pulled him from his memories.

Zhang Heng had already resolved to train Su Xuan thoroughly.

“Oh, teacher. What’s next?”

Su Xuan looked at Zhang Heng with a cocky expression, as if the time he’d just achieved wasn’t even his limit.

“Next? Oh, you’re going to have a rough time.

This kind of physical pain… most people can’t endure it.”

From who-knows-where, Zhang Heng produced a folding fan and waved it leisurely as he spoke.