Chapter 43: Talent Refresh, White Crane’s Return

Half an hour later.

Jiang He placed the box in the trunk and sat in the passenger seat.

“Jiang He, don’t forget, when school starts we’ll take music class together, then form a band and play around.” Shaojun leaned against the car window.

Jiang He did have some interest in music, but forming a band sounded a bit too exaggerated: “I haven’t even learned yet…”

“Just give it a try, you’re an S-rank genius after all.” Shaojun grinned as he backed away: “See you at school!”

“See you.”

Zhang Zhiyong drove onto the highway. Perhaps because he overheard their conversation, he chuckled and said: “Music is great. Back when I was young, I loved playing the guitar. Lots of girls chased after me because of that.”

Jiang He closed the window and curiously asked: “Then why didn’t you become a singer, but a firefighter instead?”

Jiang He thought he would hear some kind of touching story.

Unexpectedly, Zhang Zhiyong said: “Of course it was because of talent.”

“My talent is 【Shifting Sands】, an earth-type shaping talent, not suitable for a path in music. So, I became a firefighter.”

“But you have a Word-Spirit talent, an ability related to sound. Learning some music wouldn’t be bad.”

Because of talent, one’s path in life was decided.

This was the 「Law」 of the Transcendent Era.

Jiang He’s heart stirred.

He had futures with all kinds of talents, and naturally, he also had all kinds of possible future paths.

Perhaps there would be a Jiang He the musician, Jiang He the artist, Jiang He the scientist, Jiang He the doctor…

The thought itself was quite exciting.

From the corner of his eye, Zhang Zhiyong noticed the longing in the boy’s gaze. With a faint smile, he turned on the car stereo.

As the melodious music played, the car sped down the highway, kicking up wind and sand.

In the wheat fields by the roadside, a pair of blood-red vertical pupils watched the car as it passed, before vanishing into the fields.

…

With the Spiritual Blood in hand, Jiang He asked Zhang Zhiyong for two days of leave, planning to return to the squad on Saturday.

Zhang Zhiyong had already expected this and readily agreed, driving him back to Lidu Community.

Back home, Jiang He impatiently opened the box and pulled out a metal bottle.

The metal bottle was about the size of a beverage bottle, filled with 500 grams of Spiritual Blood. There were twenty bottles in total, amounting to 10,000 grams.

At a unit price of 60 per gram, the total was 600,000. A single bottle was worth a full 30,000!

This was heavy, heavy money!

Jiang He hid away the remaining bottles and carried one into his bedroom.

Sitting at his desk, he focused his thoughts and used the few remaining skill points of his Word Keeper profession to unlock its core skill.

【Vivid Depiction — Active Skill. Using Spiritual Blood as ink, inscribe a stored Word-Spirit into a Spell Word.】

Once this skill was unlocked, the Word Keeper’s skill tree was truly revealed.

It showed two paths: 【Word-Keeping】 and 【Sound-Keeping】.

As an advanced profession, these paths no longer had growth skills, but rather two separate reinforcement routes.

The reinforcement skills ahead were much stronger than those of the Rumor Bearer and also took on different forms.

However, Jiang He no longer had any skill points, so he temporarily ignored it.

He focused his attention on inscribing Spell Words.

The 【Vivid Depiction】 skill could only inscribe already stored Word-Spirits.

But for a Word-Spirit gifted one, this was hardly a restriction.

Jiang He could release Word-Spirits freely, which meant he could also freely replace stored Word-Spirits, and thus freely inscribe Spell Words.

At this moment, he stored the Word-Spirit 「Deep Sleep」 and drew two grams of Spiritual Blood from the bottle.

Spiritual Blood as ink, Heaven and Earth as paper.

His fingers danced, sketching traces in the air, forming crimson lines that converged into a single red light.

He opened his mouth slightly, swallowing the red light. As soon as it touched his tongue root, it bloomed into intricate markings.

The Spell Word was formed!

“The first inscription took three minutes in total.”

White Crane said: “At this pace, by tomorrow evening around seven, raising the Word Keeper profession to level ten won’t be a problem.”

As long as he reached level ten, Jiang He could store six Word-Spirits and would already have accumulated hundreds of Spell Words.

This way, even if White Crane left, Jiang He’s identity as a “Word-Spirit gifted one” would not be exposed.

However, Jiang He did not relax because of this.

Avoiding exposure was only the most basic goal.

Before the disappearance of the Word-Spirit talent, the more Spell Words he accumulated, the better.

Jiang He raised his finger, about to draw out another two grams of Spiritual Blood to continue inscribing Spell Words.

At this moment, White Crane interrupted: “Wait a moment.”

“What is it?” Jiang He asked doubtfully.

White Crane raised an eyebrow: “Tomorrow I’ll be returning. Do you really plan to keep me locked up here for the entire last day, just watching you draw Spell Words?”

From the moment he was summoned, White Crane had given Jiang He countless help.

Future foresight, professions, Fire Source, combat… the list went on.

But to shut him inside for the entire last day was indeed a bit much.

This was his future self, after all. Shouldn’t he treat him better?

Jiang He hesitated for a moment, then pulled out his phone from his pocket and handed it to White Crane.

White Crane: “You’re giving me this just to play on my phone for a day??”

“You’re overthinking.” Jiang He shook his head and said: “From this moment on, you are not White Crane, but ‘Jiang He’.”

“Before tomorrow evening, you can use my identity to move freely in this world. Go wherever you want, do whatever you want.”

“The only conditions are: no killing, no causing trouble, no inciting chaos, no brainwashing others, no…”

Jiang He rattled off a long list of prohibitions before finally concluding: “In short, you understand—don’t mess around.”

White Crane held up the phone: “And this…?”

Jiang He said: “There’s still half a million left. Spend it however you want.”

“Even a miser like you can pluck a feather?” White Crane’s lips curved: “I’ll really spend it, you know.”

“Anyway, you’re the one who helped me earn that money. Do as you like.” Jiang He felt his heart bleeding, but his mouth stayed hard: “If you can, go ahead and spend it all!”

“You said it yourself.”

Seeing Jiang He’s stubborn act, White Crane couldn’t help but laugh.

He had reminded him so many times, but the younger Jiang He still hadn’t learned to be wary of himself.

But truth be told, he didn’t dislike this part of him.

White Crane pocketed the phone, and as he turned, his hair color shifted from white to black. He spoke.

“See you next time.”

Jiang He withdrew his gaze, brushed a finger over the bottle’s mouth, and drew out two more grams of Spiritual Blood.

Grind on!

“Compared to music class, I think I need art class more…”

…

May 25th, Friday, 19:38.

The front door opened. “Jiang He” arrived home right on time, turning back into White Crane’s form as he placed the phone on the table.

“I’m back.”

Inside the bedroom, Jiang He didn’t even lift his head. He was wholly focused on drawing out two grams of Spiritual Blood to inscribe a Spell Word.

His eyes were bloodshot. Clearly, he hadn’t rested all day, and his spirit was at its very limit.

Even so, he didn’t stop.

“Just one more, just one more…”

【Spell Word successfully inscribed, Profession Experience +1】

【Word Keeper Profession Level Up, Current Level: lv16 (0/170)】

Success!!

Jiang He swiftly slotted a prepared Word-Spirit into the new slot.

Only then did he breathe out in relief, turning his gaze toward the doorway.

“Welcome back.”

Before Jiang He finished speaking, he saw White Crane toss over a card. With a wave of his hand, his body shattered into countless motes of light.

Within Jiang He’s consciousness, the golden card depicting the white-haired youth dimmed.

May 25th, Friday, 19:40.

Talent refreshed. Heroic Spirit returned.

…

…

A gray planet shrouded in death had already become a complete ruin.

On this endless wasteland, countless figures knelt on the ground, kowtowing forward.

The blood beneath them had long since solidified, dyeing the land dark brown.

At the end of the boundless crowd stood a hundred-zhang tall pitch-black monolith, upright like a tombstone, looming in the center of the ruins.

Beside the monolith stood a pale-haired youth.

He was dressed in solemn black ceremonial attire, neat and proper, his eyes lowered, standing statue-like, as though attending a grand funeral.

This funeral had endured for countless ages, so long that even time itself had halted upon this planet.

Until one moment, the youth’s lashes trembled, and he lifted his gaze, a faint smile appearing.

In that instant, the gray death that blanketed the entire planet seemed to disperse.

But as his gaze fell upon the monolith, it trembled slightly before lowering again.

Death surged once more. The planet fell into silence.

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