After distributing all the candies and pastries to the children, Lu Yuan bid them farewell.
Before long, Lu Yuan arrived at the old village chief’s doorstep, carrying his gifts.
Knock, knock, knock!
“Grandpa Chief, it’s me!”
After a few light knocks, the urgent tapping of a cane came from inside.
“Oh?
It’s Xiao Yuan—come in, come in!”
Pushing open the door and seeing who it was, the old chief’s face lit up with joy.
But after welcoming Lu Yuan inside, his expression turned puzzled.
“Xiao Yuan, aren’t you supposed to be studying at the academy?
Why have you come back now?”
Putting down his things without explaining, Lu Yuan found an open space in the room under the old chief’s curious gaze.
“Grandpa Niu—watch closely!”
“Martial soul possession!”
As Lu Yuan’s voice fell, a pitch-black figure materialized behind him.
Then, under Lu Yuan’s deliberate guidance, he displayed only one of his two spirit rings instead of both.
It wasn’t that he didn’t trust the old chief—but the old man’s health wasn’t great, and Lu Yuan didn’t want to give him a shock.
Su Yuntao had cultivated for over twenty years to obtain two spirit rings.
If Lu Yuan had achieved the same in just over two months, the old chief might have fainted from the surprise.
Even though Lu Yuan had kept it low-key and deliberately suppressed the aura emanating from his martial soul, a single yellow spirit ring still left the old chief staring in a daze.
“Th-this…”
Looking at that gleaming spirit ring before him, the old chief couldn’t snap out of it for a long time.
Seeing the old chief swaying unsteadily on his feet, Lu Yuan quickly reached out to support him and dismissed the spirit ring.
“Grandpa Niu, don’t get too excited.
Here—follow me and take a deep breath!”
Helping the old chief into a chair and soothing him for a while, Lu Yuan then hurried over to pour him a glass of water.
After a while, when the old chief had calmed down, he gripped Lu Yuan’s hands tightly and asked, his voice still trembling:
“Xiao Yuan—have you really become a spirit master?”
“Yes, Grandpa Niu—I really have become a spirit master!
“Quick—let Grandpa see if you’re hurt.”
As Lu Yuan had expected, compared to becoming a spirit master, the old chief was more concerned about Lu Yuan’s well-being.
“Grandpa Niu, I’m not hurt at all.
See?
I’m perfectly fine.
Teacher Su did all the work—I just delivered the final blow!”
Lu Yuan explained as he turned around for the old chief to inspect.
After Lu Yuan’s explanation and a thorough inspection, tears streamed down the old chief’s face.
“Finally—finally, after decades of silence, Dihun Village has produced another spirit master!”
“And with a hundred-year spirit ring!”
“Hahaha—now our village is no weaker than neighboring Shenghun Village!”
Pulling up a stool to sit, Lu Yuan didn’t interrupt the old chief’s muttering.
The old chief had always dreamed of the village producing another spirit master—after all, the last one had been over a decade ago.
But with the passing of Lu Yuan’s parents, Dihun Village had returned to its days without a spirit master.
Now that the old chief’s dream had come true, Lu Yuan wanted to let the old man bask in his happiness a while longer.
After the old chief finished laughing, he pulled Lu Yuan into a long conversation about the entire process of obtaining a spirit ring.
Though he wasn’t a spirit master himself, he had always longed to become one.
Lu Yuan indulged the old chief’s curiosity.
Aside from concealing the actual age of the spirit ring, he told the old chief everything he could—recounting it like a storyteller spinning a tale.
The old chief listened with rapt attention, nodding frequently.
But when Lu Yuan got to the part about hunting and absorbing spirit rings, the old chief fell silent again.
After a long moment, he slowly stood up, walked over to Lu Yuan, and gently patted his shoulder with a look of regret and sympathy.
“Xiao Yuan—you’ve worked hard.
Though Grandpa isn’t a spirit master, I can tell from your words that there are dangers ahead on your path.”
Pausing briefly, the old chief continued: “Grandpa doesn’t have much ability—I can’t give you any help on your journey ahead.
You’re a child with your own mind, so from now on, you’ll have to rely on yourself.”
The road is difficult, but the journey will be made.
That was something Lu Yuan had learned in his past life.
After a long silence, Lu Yuan spoke with firm determination: “Grandpa—trust me.”
“In the future, I will become a powerful spirit master.
The old chief was briefly stunned, then burst into laughter as he patted Lu Yuan’s shoulder.
“Good—good child.
Grandpa believes in you!”
…
After bidding farewell to the old chief, Lu Yuan returned home.
Pushing open the door and seeing everything familiar, Lu Yuan felt an indescribable sense of relaxation and comfort.
But before he had been home long, Li Erniu and several other uncles and aunts who were close to his family all came rushing over, each carrying some food.
Some brought millet, others vegetables or fruit.
They had heard from their children that Lu Yuan was back.
Perhaps by some unspoken understanding, they all assumed he might not have any food at home, so they brought some from their own kitchens.
Since each of them still had chores to finish, they only exchanged a few words, asked why Lu Yuan had returned so suddenly, then took their leave.
Time passed like flowing water.
During his days in the village, Lu Yuan didn’t stay idle.
Every day, he went into the mountains—sometimes catching rabbits, sometimes hunting wild boars, and occasionally bringing back a bear to supplement the villagers’ nutrition.
Over the span of a few days, the malnourished children in the village gradually regained some color, and their spirits brightened considerably.
And that was exactly what Lu Yuan wanted to see.
If the children got proper nutrition, their physical constitutions wouldn’t be lacking—and perhaps, when their martial soul awakenings came the following year, one more child might succeed.
This was the only thing Lu Yuan could do for the village right now.
Perhaps, when he grew powerful enough to protect the village, he could bring back elixirs and magical herbs for the children.
But for now—even if Lu Yuan had such medicines, he wouldn’t dare give them.
A common man without fault, but possessing a treasure invites guilt.
And with the current atmosphere so tense, if the Spirit Hall caught wind of anything, it would be disastrous.
On the day before the semester began, Lu Yuan boarded the carriage back to the academy.
When he arrived in Notting City once more, it felt like a lifetime had passed—a familiar strangeness washed over him.
The carriage slowly stopped at the academy gate.
Just as Lu Yuan was saying goodbye to Li Erniu, he suddenly heard a familiar voice.
Following the direction of the voice, Lu Yuan saw an old man and a young boy standing just outside the academy gate.
The old man was hunched over, wearing a fawning expression as he addressed a disdainful middle-aged man just inside the gate.
Standing beside him was a rather ordinary-looking boy—dark-skinned, thin, dressed in coarse hemp cloth, with a bundle slung over his back.
Seeing this scene, a name instantly came to Lu Yuan’s mind.
“Tang San!”