After the fusion phase, each class began dispersing for assembly.
At Class 5's assembly point, Yang Minghui looked at the sixteen familiar faces he had spent years with. His eyes flickered with emotion, and his throat was full of unspoken words, but in the end, all those sentiments condensed into two stern instructions.
"Tomorrow morning at eight, assemble at the academy square. Go home today and make your preparations properly."
"Even though this is a welfare exploration, deaths and injuries happen every year. Don't take it lightly."
"Got it!"
...
After parting ways with Sun Hao, Song Chi flagged down an energy-powered car by the roadside. His home was near the city center, not far from the academy. In less than twenty minutes, the car stopped at the gate of Dongjiang Community where his family lived.
"Universal Credit Points deducted: 10 points. Account balance: 2,413,543 points."
As soon as he stepped off the car, his smart wristband chimed with a notification about the deduction. Looking at the balance displayed on his account, Song Chi's expression remained indifferent. But if outsiders were to see it, they definitely wouldn't be this calm.
As the universal currency of Chenxing Principality, credit points had substantial purchasing power.
The monthly salary of an average person hovered around three thousand points. After daily expenses, they could save up to two thousand points a month at most. Calculating this way, it would take an ordinary person at least a hundred years to save up 2.4 million points.
For a current student who hadn't yet graduated, it was hard to imagine how astonishing Song Chi's savings were. After all, these weren't the funds given by his parents—it was money he had earned himself over the past thirty years.
The source? In his past life, as a seasoned author skilled in writing niche-content novels, Song Chi had a bit of "talent" in this domain. Over two decades, his works accumulated to a decent number.
The most famous among them was "Warship Across the Skies" and "Floating Lands of Douluo." Yet unfortunately, after tens of thousands of years of development within Torch Human Civilization, the realm of online literature was far from blank, and his works were only moderately popular. The royalties he had accumulated added up to just two million points—it wasn't even worth mentioning anymore.
Dongjiang Community, Building 5, Room 403.
As soon as he stepped inside, Song Chao and Chen Lixia's gazes converged on him almost instantly.
"Son, you're back! Come, Mom made your favorite braised deep-sea mackerel."
Song Chi's eyes lit up. He quickly put down his backpack, walking swiftly to the dining table. After finishing a bowl full of fish soup, he felt a warm current spreading from his stomach to his entire body. A genuine sense of satisfaction appeared on his face.
Deep-sea mackerel didn't actually taste very good—in fact, some would even call it unpleasant. Among other kids, it was easily ranked as one of the top "untouchable foods" on picky-eater menus. But Song Chi had kept eating it persistently for over twenty years.
*What truly drew him was the rich Blood Qi Energy contained in the fish meat. This energy significantly boosted his practice of the Guidance Technique, which was one reason he had cultivated it to Level 4 within just twenty years.*
Among his peers, most had their Guidance Technique stuck at Level 2; only those with decent talent could achieve Level 3.
*The higher the level of the Guidance Technique, the harder the cultivation and the slower the pace—a commonly known fact throughout the domains of Torch Human Civilization.*
Opening his hands, Song Chi activated the Guidance Technique within his body, swiftly absorbing the Blood Qi Energy contained in the fish soup to intensify his cultivation.
Of course, it should now be referred to as Spectral Energy Guidance Technique. After undergoing Spectral Energy transformation, his body had converted into a Spectral Energy Body, and his Guidance Technique had automatically advanced into Spectral Energy Guidance Technique. Compared to the standard version, the cultivation speed of the Spectral Energy Guidance Technique was faster.
Seeing the wisps of black spectral energy that appeared surrounding Song Chi, Song Chao and Chen Lixia's worried expressions quickly faded. Both of them had awakened their Seed of Torch, and were very familiar with spectral energy.
Upon realizing that their son could already control spectral energy, they immediately understood that Song Chi had successfully awakened.
"Awakened with a colorless Seed of Torch, Spectral Shuttle fusion completed. Tomorrow at eight in the morning begins the first exploration into a different River Domain."
While absorbing and converting the Blood Qi Energy within him, Song Chi explained his basic situation succinctly.
Upon hearing this, his father and mother nodded slightly, their gazes showing no trace of disappointment.
When Song Chi was born, both Song Chao and Chen Lixia had colorless Seeds of Torch, meaning the upper limits of their bloodlines were set. As long as their son could successfully awaken the Seed of Torch, they were already more than satisfied.
As for awakening a Fire Seed of white quality or beyond, neither of them had ever harbored any hope—the odds were far too slim.
...
"Little Chi, come here."
After lunch, the first thing Song Chao did was call Song Chi into the study.
Within the study, Song Chao's expression was solemn. After a lengthy string of advice, a faint ghostly light flashed between his brows, and two light spheres flew out from his Ancestral Torch, hovering before Song Chi.
"These are the starting resources your mother and I prepared for you: one thousand strands of Zero Rank Floating Land Origin and the white special component for the Torch Warship, 'Fire Peony Soldier Effigy Tree.'"
Song Chi's face immediately lit up with joy. Although this amount of resources wasn't much, it was more than enough for him, a beginner, to perform preliminary enhancement upgrades on his Spectral Shuttle, boosting its various attributes and strengthening its combat power and survival capabilities.
*This initial advantage placed him ahead of most peers. Sometimes it's the slightest edge at the start that becomes the key to soaring in the future.*
...
Compared to the thousand strands of Zero Rank Floating Land Origin, Song Chi's eyes were far more drawn to the white-quality special component "Fire Peony Soldier Effigy Tree."
*It was a well-known fact that any Torch Warship component possessing color was certainly derived from a Starry Sea Oddity, and once associated with the four words "Starry Sea Oddity," the item's value would exponentially soar—even if it was the lowest tier white oddity.*
Not to mention, the "Soldier Figurine Component" was one of the most sought-after components for a warship.
*After all, soldier puppets summoned at will could serve as bodyguards, aid in combat, or act as cannon fodder. They greatly enhanced a captain's survival rate and often triggered fierce competition upon their appearance.*
*The value of the Fire Peony Soldier Effigy Tree Component was evident.*
"Thank you, Dad, Mom."
Song Chi channeled his spectral energy, absorbing both light spheres into his Ancestral Torch. After receiving another round of advice from his parents, he was finally allowed to go upstairs.
Back in his bedroom, instead of diving into his Ancestral Torch to inspect the detailed attributes of the Spectral Shuttle, Song Chi first removed the copper plate hanging around his neck.
He had carried this object—the very one responsible for his transmigration—with him every day since the incident.
The copper plate wasn't big, only about half the size of a lighter. Its front was engraved with four characters—"Star Sea Ruin Market"—which was why he had always referred to it as the Star Sea Ruin Market Rank.
*Studying the Star Sea Ruin Market Rank closely, Song Chi soon discovered a change in the artifact.*
*Over the past thirty years, it had always resembled an ordinary copper plate, never displaying any reaction no matter how he examined or tinkered with it. But now, an extremely faint ghostly black glow adorned its surface. The glow was so weak that, had he not been checking carefully, he might have missed it.*
"Is this... spectral energy?"
Song Chi's gaze brightened sharply. Just then, the copper plate underwent another transformation.
Perhaps due to his prolonged observation, an attribute panel automatically popped up beside the Star Sea Ruin Market Rank.
[Name: Spectral Energy—Star Sea Ruin Market Rank]
[Category: Growth-Type Oddity]
[Quality: ??]
[Level: lv0]
[Feature: Grants control over and connection to a specific Star Sea Ruin Market.]
[Feature 2: Upon meeting certain conditions, the Star Sea Ruin Market Rank can independently advance.]
[Note: Among Oddities, a rare treasure with boundless potential.]