The news spread quietly through the outer sect.
Not as rumors.
But as simple observations.
"Have you noticed the spiritual energy lately?"
"It feels smoother."
"Circulation is easier during cultivation."
Many outer disciples had begun talking about it.
No one understood the cause.
But almost everyone had felt the change.
Lin Xuan walked through the training courtyard that afternoon.
Several disciples were practicing sword techniques nearby.
Their movements were steady, their spiritual energy flowing through their meridians as they attacked invisible targets in the air.
One disciple stopped mid-practice.
"That was faster than yesterday."
Another nodded.
"I broke through my circulation bottleneck this morning."
A third disciple laughed.
"Maybe the spiritual energy around the sect is improving."
Lin Xuan said nothing.
But he already knew the truth.
The ancient network beneath the mountains had begun stabilizing the spiritual flow of the region.
And the effects were gradually becoming noticeable.
Later that evening, Lin Xuan returned to his small courtyard residence.
The sky above the sect had already darkened.
A faint wind moved through the trees.
He sat down quietly and began cultivating again.
The moment he circulated his spiritual energy—
He felt it.
The connection.
Still faint.
Still distant.
But undeniably present.
Like a vast structure hidden beneath the earth, slowly breathing.
Lin Xuan opened his eyes.
"So it's still expanding."
He could not control the network.
Not yet.
But the fragment within him allowed him to sense the system's activity.
And the circulation pattern had clearly grown stronger compared to yesterday.
Meanwhile, inside the inner sect hall—
Senior Qiao stood before several elders.
Instructor Han had placed multiple sensing plates across the long stone table.
The readings on them were bright.
Much brighter than before.
One elder frowned.
"The circulation density increased again?"
Instructor Han nodded.
"Yes."
Another elder asked,
"Is the source confirmed?"
Senior Qiao answered calmly.
"Yes."
"But the matter remains classified."
The elders studied the sensing plates carefully.
Lines of spiritual flow spread outward across the region.
Like a web forming beneath the land.
One elder spoke quietly.
"This resembles ancient formation engineering."
Instructor Han agreed.
"That's exactly what we believe."
Another elder finally asked the question everyone was thinking.
"Can we control it?"
Senior Qiao did not answer immediately.
Instead, he said,
"For now… only one person has shown any connection to the system."
The elders exchanged glances.
They all knew who that meant.
Back in the outer sect—
Lin Xuan remained seated in cultivation.
The night grew deeper.
His breathing slowed.
Spiritual energy flowed steadily through his meridians.
Then suddenly—
A faint pulse passed through the ground beneath him.
Very weak.
But unmistakable.
Lin Xuan's eyes opened instantly.
"That wasn't from here."
The direction of the pulse was different.
Far away.
Somewhere beyond the sect territory.
Deep within the mountains hundreds of kilometers away—
Another ancient node had just begun to react.
Not fully awakened.
But responding.
As if the activation of the first convergence node had triggered a chain reaction within the ancient system.
And slowly—
Very slowly—
The forgotten network of the old era was beginning to wake.