Chapter 4 - Shadows Beneath the Willow16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHyTZLBeJF1
At dawn the next day, Lin Yuan woke up to a message from the system:
DING16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXbp0DdPPd9
[Reward unlocked: Trust Bond – Xiao Lian]16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFU291vOhe9
[Description: For making a child laugh freely and survive a night without extra trauma, the system deems this a minor miracle. Reward: +30 points and unlocking the trait "Dawn Guide."]16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUqgN3x6WQY
[Hint: Keep being helpful. It's working surprisingly well.]
Lin Yuan opened his eyes and stood up, staring at the sun with hopeful eyes. He felt something new unlocking inside him—not a skill, but a certainty: every time he healed the invisible wounds of these children he adopted, he also slowly healed the scars of his own soul.
The day passed quietly.
He taught for the first time an energy regulation technique: Tranquil Willow Breathing.
Tranquil Willow Breathing was an ancient energy regulation technique, inspired by willows that sway without breaking in the wind. He taught the kids to breathe deeply and slowly, letting the air flow like a gentle current through their bodies.
With each exhalation, tension dissipated like autumn leaves, allowing the body to restore itself, and with each inhalation, mana aligned in its internal channels with the serenity of a calm lake. Practicing it strengthened its energetic core and helped calm the turbulent emotions following achievements, like the branch of a wise tree.
Along with the technique, the system gave him some basic knowledge about the world's magical energy system:
[SYSTEM INFORMATION: BASIC MAGIC ENERGY SYSTEM]16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuthAXwSXFl
• All races have the ability to resonate with the world's mana. Congrats, you're not totally useless.16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo4x8wOV39s
• With enough patience and luck, this resonance lets you form an internal mana core.16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFfmTumJuCr
• Long-lived races? They manage this easier. Humans, of course, had to invent shortcuts.16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLXAu5a7w0R
• A well-formed core allows channeling mana and casting spells.16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7KYsh38c30
[PROGRESS HALTED]16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMHsB2DqSzt
[System note: "I know, you want more info. What a surprise. Unfortunately, your current level is so basic I'm bored out of my virtual mind. Improve, explore, or play the magic roulette and maybe—just maybe—I'll tell you more."]
Lin Yuan sighed. He hoped to soon get some martial arts skills. After all, what man hasn't dreamed of flying through the skies on a sword?
That day, the kids practiced enthusiastically.16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzM8y2tSZQO
Xiao Lian showed a natural sensitivity: she perceived mana flows even Lin couldn't detect yet.16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPPdooqVDa8
Ben organized practice schedules for everyone, making sure they also had time for other activities like Roman's painting or shifts in the cabin under construction.16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDnfLCEG0M2
The kids were excited. For the first time, they felt like they were doing more than just surviving. They were cultivating. And with that joy, they pushed even harder.16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLA7c0llLD8
Zhenglian, especially, practiced with great zeal. His obsession made him distant from the others, consumed by the need to improve without pause.
But that night, while the refuge slept, calm disappeared.
On her straw mattress, Xiao Lian trembled.16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0xlv7W88sV
Tiny threads of energy floated around her, tense like a drawn bowstring. Her talent's first manifestation came with anguish.
In her dream, she walked down a damp stone hallway.16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡztzq0osbNy
The walls were covered with eyes. Whispering voices hissed among echoes:
— "Veilblood… bad omen…"
At the hallway's end, a woman with the same skin and eye color, her face covered, screamed from a cell:
— "Your blood only brings death! You shouldn't have been born!"
Her childish self shrank, apologizing for existing.
The nightmares worsened.16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB50rDj8KXh
She relived abuse from caretakers, attacks from villagers who stoned or beat her whenever she came near.16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnUTwYqwy7S
The residual spirit of the alpha rat, far from gone, clung to her like an ethereal splinter.16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKOnJ26eLEs
It crept through her mental paths, dragging her into memories she wished to forget.
She woke up gasping, eyes red and heart pounding.
She couldn't sleep again that night. Every time she tried, another nightmare caught her.
During the day, irritation made her usually shy words sharp.16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBu98jBQf5G
She lashed out sarcastically. She rejected others' company except during training.16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSkxMtG3VGR
Roman, her closest friend, was puzzled. He couldn't talk to her without getting emotional wounds.
Lin Yuan watched, confused. The girl who yesterday talked about self-acceptance now seemed someone else.
Then, the system spoke:
[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION]16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVKNJOj1zj1
[Cause detected: Residual Spirit of the Alpha Spiritual Rat. Yep, it's still there. Annoying, isn't it?]16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4aCEzYpjaJ
[Nature: Mental parasite – effects: trauma, repressed memories, extreme irritability, potential damage to core formation.]16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqiZnBguxNA
[Recommendation: Emotional intervention. Maybe try… talking.]
Roman, who struggled with his desire to show his art to the world, felt frustrated and hurt when his closest friend responded bitterly; believing she was fed up with him, he distanced himself from the group.16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtr7QoAk6VQ
His depression, fueled by the cold isolation of mountain life and the absence of anyone with whom to share his art, grew heavier every day. Roman withdrew further into himself, skipping meals and spending long hours in silence. With charcoal in hand, he poured his restless emotions onto the rough surfaces of the rocks; his once hopeful drawings now transformed into dark and anguished scenes.
His art had become a reflection of his inner torment; once filled with dreams, it was now a gallery of screams.16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrVSTcXeagJ
Loneliness slowly consumed him.
Ben noticed. Xiao Lian was aggressive, Roman was depressed, and Zhenglian… his obsession with training was also pushing him away.
He tried talking to them, but no results.16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8kNQNwg2gV
With no other option, he went to Lin Yuan.
Lin listened carefully. The system had already revealed Xiao Lian's case, but he hadn't noticed Roman's or Ben's loneliness. Maybe the kids were pretending to be normal around him.
He felt guilty.
He wanted to help them. But he didn't know how to handle something so delicate.
For days he observed quietly.16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAyYhfUH9M8
And he decided to start with Xiao Lian. After all, he was the one who activated her talent card. Guilt gnawed at him.
One afternoon he found her sitting on a rock under a willow tree, barefoot, her feet on the cold earth.16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrR2k0IF36d
She rested her head on her knees.16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFi0Z5eyatX
Around her, spiritual threads floated like a living spiderweb, reflecting her confusion and emerging power.
The Tranquil Willow Breathing technique had started to stabilize her mana. But her mind… was still in pieces.
Lin Yuan sat beside her, saying nothing.
"I'm here," he murmured. "Whenever you want to talk, I'll listen."
Xiao Lian didn't answer at first.16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuQz5ZIm8ho
But little by little… she began to speak.
