Chapter 3

Xu Jintang widened her eyes slightly, staring in shock at the behemoth that had suddenly appeared before her.

An ice dragon coiled in the air, its body five times her size. The dim light hitting its scales refracted a piercing, frigid radiance.

...The ancestors did not lie to me; dragons truly exist in this world.

However, her current situation seemed rather perilous.

Xu Jintang calmed her emotions, quietly retrieved a teleportation inscription from her spatial bracelet, and held it in her palm, ready to act according to the circumstances.

She cleared her throat and asked with feigned composure, "What kind of deal?"

A mysterious, distant, and lingering voice slowly echoed: "I will help you become stronger. In exchange, I need to reside in your spiritual sea for a period of time."

"Why me?" Xu Jintang questioned.

"Because you are the only human I have encountered today who possesses a double-capacity spiritual sea."

Xu Jintang was stunned. "A double-capacity spiritual sea?"

The Ice Soul Dragon continued, "There is no time. I will first help you remodel your body, and then I will explain."

In the next second, the Ice Soul Dragon lunged forward. It moved with such speed that Xu Jintang had no time to react before the dragon's head was right in front of her.

Unexpectedly, when the Ice Soul Dragon touched her body, it eerily passed through it. The massive dragon head burrowed into her.

A surge of dense energy poured into her body. It started as a warm sensation, but then the energy grew increasingly scorching, as if it were burning her entire being.

Xu Jintang’s face twisted in pain; she opened her mouth to stop the Ice Soul Dragon, but the agony swept through her, rendering her unable to speak a complete sentence.

*You said this was a deal! Isn’t it against the rules to force this on me before I’ve even agreed!*

"You are currently unable to fully absorb my energy. I will use my dragon bones, dragon flesh, and dragon blood to remodel your entire body. The process will be agonizing, but if you endure it, you will be reborn."

"I am beginning now," the Ice Soul Dragon’s warning sounded.

A more intense wave of pain struck. It felt as if a hammer were shattering every bone in her body, one by one, only to forcefully piece them back together.

The look of agony on Xu Jintang’s face deepened. She gritted her teeth and clenched her fists, her palms marked by deep red indentations.

As all of the Ice Soul Dragon's energy was injected into her, the pain grew so severe that Xu Jintang nearly lost consciousness. She bit her lip hard, drawing bright red blood, clinging to the last shred of her awareness.

"To think you haven't fainted yet," the Ice Soul Dragon muttered in surprise, realizing Xu Jintang was still conscious. It had been prepared to intervene to protect her mind if she couldn't hold on. It hadn't expected the girl to withstand it herself.

Replacing her bones and flesh, washing her entire body with the essence of dragon blood, and finally replacing her skin with dragon scales—the process was excruciating.

The blood that had just seeped from Xu Jintang’s bitten lips dried, only for new beads of blood to emerge, staining her lips crimson.

When it was all over, Xu Jintang felt the pain vanish. She asked weakly, "Is it over?"

"Yes," the Ice Soul Dragon replied.

Ignoring the fact that she was still in the dangerous Beast Forest, Xu Jintang fell into a deep sleep.

The Ice Soul Dragon, now shrunken to a fraction of its original size, slowly circled within Xu Jintang’s spiritual sea, a glint of light flashing in its profound eyes. Its lifespan was nearing its end, and its strength had plummeted. The human experts who coveted its dragon bones and physical essence would certainly not let it go easily.

Now, by personally dismantling its own flesh and blood to help Xu Jintang be reborn, and by moving its soul and consciousness into her spiritual sea, it could not only continue to exist but also perfectly mask its aura so that those human experts would not discover it.

This deal indeed served its own selfish motives. But it had also gifted the girl a tremendous opportunity.

When Xu Jintang woke up, her whole body ached as if it were falling apart. Any slight movement made her wince.

"Awake?" the Ice Soul Dragon’s voice sounded.

Xu Jintang’s expression was sour. "So, what exactly is the benefit of this deal for me?"

"Let me introduce myself. I am the Ice Soul Dragon, the only divine beast in this world to reach the tenth rank. I command the powers of ice and wind. At my peak, even if your human experts joined forces, they could not inflict any harm upon me."

"Now, my lifespan is near its end, and many are hunting me. I knew I couldn't survive, so I chose to flee. I met many humans during this time, but their spiritual seas could not contain me—until I met you."

"I have now integrated my dragon bones and physical essence into your body. You cannot fully absorb the energy yet, but as you train and your strength grows, it will continuously improve your physique."

"Secondly, your domain ability originally only had a slowing effect. I have added an ice attribute for you, but your strength is too low. You cannot currently utilize my ice attribute; you will need to reach the second rank as an ability user before it can be of any use."

Xu Jintang frowned slightly. "Then what about this double-capacity spiritual sea?"

The Ice Soul Dragon chuckled. "I was curious why your spiritual sea was larger than others your age. After entering your sea, I discovered you had an unactivated ability, so I helped you awaken it."

Xu Jintang: "!" She actually had a second ability?!

The Ice Soul Dragon: "I don't know much about human abilities. I only saw that its manifestation is a scale. Close your eyes; I will teach you how to look inward."

Xu Jintang became curious. Introspection of the spiritual sea usually required one to be a second-rank ability user, but with the Ice Soul Dragon's help, her consciousness was instantly pulled into her sea.

The surface of her spiritual sea was a translucent ice-blue, and a miniature version of the Ice Soul Dragon was circling above the blue expanse. Beside it, a silver-white scale floated in the air. The pointer of the scale swayed back and forth, surrounded by starlight, set against the backdrop of a strange, mysterious starry sky.

Was this her second ability?

The miniature Xu Jintang swam around her spiritual sea for a while before flying over to observe the scale. However, after staring for a long time, she couldn't discern anything.

The Ice Soul Dragon spoke: "I can sense that it is a star-attribute ability. If I remember correctly, there is a profession in your human world called an Inscriptionist, and the prerequisite for becoming one is awakening a star-attribute ability."

The Ice Soul Dragon's words reminded Xu Jintang. She examined the scale with even greater surprise. "It's actually a star-attribute ability?"

After observing for a while longer without any new discoveries, Xu Jintang focused her attention on the Ice Soul Dragon, her expression becoming serious. "Then I’d like to ask, what is the situation with you living in my spiritual sea now?"

Before this, she had never heard of a beast's consciousness being able to reside in a human's spiritual sea.

The Ice Soul Dragon: "Simply put, I have abandoned my physical body and now exist as your ice-attribute ability. Don't worry about me harming you; our lives are bound together. If you encounter danger, I will intervene."

*So advanced! A beast can actually become a human's ability?* Xu Jintang was even more astonished.

The Ice Soul Dragon seemed to guess her thoughts and continued: "However, until you have the strength to protect yourself, I do not advise you to reveal my existence. Many human experts are tracking me to obtain my bones and blood. If my whereabouts are exposed, those who chase me will surely set their sights on you."

"Your body has been remodeled with my essence—even if they can't get my original bones and blood, your own bones and flesh would be considered a great tonic."

Xu Jintang’s mouth twitched. This deal was truly forced, but the Ice Soul Dragon's appearance had indeed brought her a massive opportunity.

After glancing at the scale again and finding nothing new, Xu Jintang withdrew from her spiritual sea and opened her eyes to reality. She stood up and brushed the dust off her clothes. She would have to find another opportunity to inquire about this scale ability.

Suddenly, the communicator on her chest vibrated, warning her that the deadline for the urgent collection mission was almost up.

*The mission is about to expire!* Xu Jintang turned and ran toward the forest exit.

Half an hour later, within the final minutes before the deadline, Xu Jintang arrived at the main city’s branch of the Inscriptionist Association and submitted the ten Snow Spirit Grasses to the requester.

The requester was a man in white robes with a refined and elegant temperament. However, his face looked unpleasant. "Two more minutes and I would have been late for my Inscriptionist examination!"

Xu Jintang quickly apologized. "I'm sorry, I encountered an accident on the way. My apologies."

The man snorted, took the ten herbs, transferred the payment, and walked into the Inscriptionist Association.

Xu Jintang watched his back. *So he’s an Inscriptionist. No wonder he could pay double for an urgent order.*

Inscriptionists could incorporate specific spirit plants or rare materials into their runes to improve quality. They were rarely short of money; only their group could afford to be so lavish with mission requests.

With another thousand star coins in her account, Xu Jintang’s mood improved. The dragon in her spiritual sea had gone quiet, so she ignored it and began to excitedly research the world of Inscriptionists.

The high demand for rune charms had led to the rising status of Inscriptionists. It was said that even a first-rank Inscriptionist had countless ability users eager to befriend them. But the conditions to become one were extremely harsh: first, one had to possess a star-attribute ability; second, it depended on the individual's inherent talent for engraving. In reality, only one in every hundred thousand people awakened a star-attribute ability.

This alone cut off the path for countless people. Since Xu Jintang happened to have this ability, she wanted to take this chance and try. If she could successfully engrave a rune, she would make a fortune.

Xu Jintang searched for information on the star network and soon went to the main city’s second-hand market. She had checked the price of inscription pens; a new one cost at least six hundred, but second-hand ones were usually around three hundred. For someone as impoverished as her, she had to save where she could.

The market was crowded, and many vendors were shouting. Xu Jintang walked up to an inconspicuous stall. "Boss, what are you selling?"

The vendor, who hadn't made a sale all day, enthusiastically introduced his wares. "I sell items for Inscriptionists. Look at this pen, used only once, same as new, but half the price. Three hundred star coins today!"

The vendor looked at her curiously. "Miss, are you an Inscriptionist?"

Xu Jintang waved her hands. "No, just curious."

At fifteen, she looked quite naive, and the vendor decided to try his luck. "They say you need a star-attribute ability to be an Inscriptionist, but that’s nonsense. I think you have talent! Why not try? I have everything you need, and I’ll give you a discount!"

Xu Jintang frowned, playing the ignorant girl. "Really? But three hundred is still a bit expensive."

Seeing a chance, the vendor pulled her aside and lowered his voice. "Take it for two hundred. A new one costs six or seven hundred. I'm giving you a huge discount, and I'll throw in ten non-attribute raw stones for free. How about it?"

Real Inscriptionists were rare, and they usually ordered custom-made, high-end pens. This entry-level pen had been gathering dust. The vendor would rather make a small profit than lose the sale.

Xu Jintang hesitated for a moment, then acted as if she were making a gamble. "One hundred and fifty, and I’ll buy it. If I become an Inscriptionist, I’ll come back to you for materials."

The vendor felt the sting of the price but nodded. "Deal!" He didn't take her words to heart, though. Becoming an Inscriptionist wasn't that easy.

Xu Jintang paid, tucked the pen and stones into her spatial bracelet, and returned to the academy.

The academy provided free, single-occupancy dorms, which were private and secure. Xu Jintang locked the door and sat at her desk.

The non-attribute raw stone was a thumb-sized white rock. Rune charms were created by engraving array patterns onto such stones. The Inscriptionist Association had posted basic patterns online. She found a defensive array pattern and set up the stone.

Everything ready, she called out, "Dragon, can you make runes? Teach me."

The awakened Ice Soul Dragon: "...How would I know how to do human things?"

Xu Jintang was skeptical. "Aren't you the only divine beast in the world? How can you know nothing?"

The Ice Soul Dragon had no choice but to guide her: "Try to condense your star-attribute spiritual power into threads, inject them into the pen, and trace the array pattern onto the stone. That should be it."

"I'll try."

Two seconds later, blue threads extended from her palm into the pen. The pen began to glow.

Xu Jintang’s eyes lit up. She picked up the pen, channeled her spiritual power, and began to trace the defensive pattern onto the stone. She had to maintain the flow of spiritual power without interruption while focusing on the precision of the lines.

She poured all her energy into the task. After an unknown amount of time, a bead of sweat rolled down her forehead, and her hand shook slightly.

The final stroke of the array pattern was completed.

The dull white stone suddenly bloomed with light and changed its shape. Within seconds, it had transformed into a defensive rune charm.

"Success!"