The clearing was dead silent save for the ragged, desperate gasps of the remaining disciples struggling within their respective water locks. The fine blue mist from Lin Yuan’s shattered sphere hung in the air like a shimmering shroud, slowly dampening the iron-hard earth.Master Teng Lianhua did not speak immediately. His dark eyes remained fixed on Lin Yuan, his massive chest rising and falling as the Abyssal Water-Bear behind him slowly dissolved back into his shadow, its dark blue form rippling away like a receding tide. The shock within the instructor’s mind was profound. In the long history of the academy, no disciple at the Spirit Beast Realm had ever dismantled a Core Beast Realm intent lock through pure, unadulterated spatial calibration."Stand down, Lin Yuan," Lianhua finally rasped, his voice carrying a rare, heavy gravity that cut through the sounds of the clearing. He waved his hand toward the remaining four spheres, manually dialing back their internal pressure before the

The dawn that broke over the academy the following morning was thin and watery, painting the granite compound in dreary shades of slate and ash. A low, clinging fog rolled in from the surrounding peaks, pooling thick around the ankles of the fourteen disciples as they stood assembled before the heavy iron-reinforced doors of the underground sectors. The air was bitingly cold, carrying the damp, ancient smell of subterranean stone and rusted gears.Lin Yuan stood in his usual position at the rear flank, his shoulder lightly resting against the moss-slicked brickwork of the main entrance wall. His posture remained perfectly loose, his hands tucked into the wide sleeves of his simple grey robes. Within his soul aperture, the thirty-one percent jade-green essence pool sat with a heavy, glassy stillness. The grueling compression exercises from the day before had entirely smoothed out any remaining volatility in his meridians; his energy no longer felt like a fluid current, but rather a sol