The morning air in the laboratory was thick with a silence more suffocating than any chemical fume. The news of the previous night's events had already swept through the tower. They were no longer just the strange disciples of the Mad Alchemist; they were the "savages," the "brutes." The team waited, the weight of their actions heavy upon them. The summons came, as expected.
They were called to the Hall of Elders, a cold, imposing chamber where judgments were passed. Xue Feng and his team were already there, their injured member heavily bandaged, his arm in a sling, his face a mask of pain and hatred. The tower's Head Instructor, a man whose face seemed carved from ancient stone, sat on a high-backed chair, his gaze impassive.
"Assault, sabotage, grievous injury," the Head Instructor began, his voice leaving no room for argument. "The rules of this tower were broken last night."
Xue Feng stepped forward, his voice shaking with rage. "Instructor, this… thing," he spat, pointing at Bu He, "is a monster! He didn't just defend himself; he tried to kill my brother-in-arms! His power is uncontrolled, savage! We demand he be expelled, his cultivation crippled!"
All eyes turned to Bu He. He stepped forward, his face pale but his eyes steady. He bowed to the Head Instructor. "I was defending our division's property from a thief," he said, his voice quiet but firm. "I did not intend the severity of the result, but I will not apologize for the act of defense."
Before the Head Instructor could respond, Elder Bao moved to stand beside his student. His usual mania was gone, replaced by a fierce, protective gravity.
"Head Instructor," Bao said, his voice ringing with conviction, "my disciple speaks the truth. They were provoked. Their property was being stolen. Does the tower condone theft and sabotage? Or does it only punish the inevitable response? Perhaps the Body-Forging path is brutal, but it is an honest brutality! It does not hide behind false honor while committing crimes in the dark!"
The Head Instructor listened, his fingers steepled. He looked from Xue Feng's righteous fury to Bu He's quiet defiance, and finally to Bao's impassioned defense.
"There is fault on both sides," he declared finally. The verdict was swift. "The Golden Vein team will be penalized resources for instigating the conflict. And you, Bu He," his eyes narrowed, "will be placed on probation. Your power is clearly volatile. Any further loss of control, any action that brings such dishonor to this tower, will result in your immediate and permanent expulsion. You have been warned."
Xue Feng seethed, but he could not argue with the verdict. He shot Bu He a look of pure venom before leading his team from the hall. "This isn't over," he mouthed silently.
Back in the lab, the relief was short-lived. Bao paced the floor, his brow furrowed in thought. He finally stopped in front of Bu He.
"We need to understand what happened," he said grimly. "That burst of strength… it wasn't normal. It was a reaction." He strode to an old, locked chest in the corner of the lab and pulled out a dusty, leather-bound tome. The cover was blank, but Bu He felt a strange thrum of energy from it.
Bao opened the book to a page marked with a strange symbol: a dragon's tail coiled around a single, black-threaded vein.
"I had my suspicions when I first saw your blood," Bao muttered, pointing to the text. "This is a forbidden text, a study of heretical bloodlines. According to this, your blood does not circulate Qi. It abhors it. It treats celestial energy as a poison, neutralizing it on contact. That is why you are a 'Spirit Null.'"
Bu He stared at the page, his heart pounding.
"But this rejection," Bao continued, his voice dropping to an intense whisper, "is also your greatest weapon. The text speaks of a terrifying process, a path for those with blood like yours. It calls it the 'Dark Ascension.'"
He traced the symbol in the book. "Your power, your Heretic Vein, doesn't grow by absorbing energy. It grows by enduring it. Each time you are struck by a significant Qi-based attack, your blood learns. It adapts, it evolves, it grows stronger and more resilient, developing a 'immunity' to that form of power. The pain of the attack becomes the catalyst for your evolution."
Bu He's mind reeled. The fight with Zhan Wei, the blows from the bullies… every attack had been making him stronger.
"But this path has a terrible cost," Bao warned, his eyes dark with gravity. "The Dark Ascension fuels the hunger you feel. Each evolution demands more energy, more sustenance from the Leyna of the earth. It tests your control, pushing you closer to the beast within. You grow stronger, yes, but with each step, you risk losing yourself."
Bu He looked at his hands, then placed one over the faint mark on his chest. It all made a terrible, perfect sense. His greatest weakness was the key to his greatest strength. His path to power wasn't about learning to dodge his enemies' attacks.
It was about learning to withstand them.