When I woke again, I was not under the willow tree.
The ceiling above me was carved from white jade, etched with ancient runes that shimmered faintly in the dark. My body lay on a soft bed, my wounds dressed with herbal paste that burned and cooled at the same time.
The academy's infirmary.
I groaned, forcing myself upright. Every muscle ached, though strength pulsed beneath my skin like molten fire. Yesterday's duel replayed in my mind—the lightning, the explosion, Chen Hao's defeat. And then… that eye.
The colossal eye staring through the Rift.
A shiver ran down my spine. I clenched my fists, but the memory refused to fade. That gaze hadn't been curious. It had been hungry.
Ding!
The system screen flickered awake in front of me.
[System Integrity: 72%]
[Foreign Will Interference: Dormant.]
[Recommendation: Increase Host Strength to resist intrusion.]
I exhaled slowly. Dormant. For now. But how long until it returned?
Before I could think further, the infirmary doors creaked open. A tall figure stepped inside, her robes embroidered with the academy's crest—Instructor Ling Yue.
She was a woman in her thirties, her posture rigid, her eyes sharp as blades. Known as the youngest Sword Instructor in the academy's history, she rarely smiled, and she tolerated no weakness.
Her gaze fell on me, and for the first time in my life, she didn't look at me like trash.
"Li Feng," she said, her voice calm but laced with steel. "You've caused quite a storm."
I lowered my head. "Instructor…"
"You defeated Chen Hao twice, and in the second fight, you manifested lightning affinity. Do you realize what that means?"
I hesitated. "…That I'm not trash?"
For a moment, silence. Then—to my shock—she laughed, a short, cold laugh that made my skin prickle.
"No, boy. It means you've painted a target on your back."
My heart skipped.
Ling Yue paced slowly, her boots clicking against the jade floor. "This world worships talent. Prodigies rise, and sects, clans, and empires fight to claim them. But you? You were nothing yesterday, and today you've risen higher than those who trained for years. Do you think they'll just accept that?"
Her words struck like arrows. I clenched my fists. "Then what should I do?"
Ling Yue stopped, her eyes narrowing. "Survive. Grow stronger. Or be crushed."
She turned to leave, then paused. "There's something else. When you fought Chen Hao, the Rift trembled. The elders felt it. And one… thing… was watching."
My blood froze.
She looked back at me, her voice dropping to a whisper. "Boy, tell me. Did you see it too?"
The colossal eye flashed in my mind. I swallowed hard. "…Yes."
Her lips pressed into a thin line. She didn't ask further. But her silence was louder than any warning.
Three days passed.
I recovered quickly—too quickly. My body craved battle, fragments, attributes. At night, I crept to the training grounds, harvesting stray motes from every student sweating under the moonlight. My stats grew at a terrifying pace.
[Host Attributes:]
Strength: 65
Agility: 52
Endurance: 47
Lightning Affinity: 63
Sword Comprehension: 15
In just a few days, I had surpassed students who had trained for years. But the system's warnings haunted me. Every time I gained too much at once, the sigil on my chest burned faintly, as though tethered to something vast beyond the Rift.
And I began to notice… the fragments weren't all the same.
Most were small motes—+1, +2, glowing faintly like sparks. But sometimes, when geniuses meditated deeply or fought fiercely, rare fragments appeared. Golden, pulsing, heavy.
The first time I touched one, a searing heat poured into my veins.
Ding! Hidden Attribute Acquired: Spiritual Perception +1.
My mind cleared, senses sharpening until I could feel the heartbeat of a sparrow in the trees behind me.
Hidden attributes.
If strength, endurance, and affinity were steps on the ladder… hidden attributes were the rungs no one else could see.
And I could collect them.
On the fourth night, as I crouched beneath the willow tree absorbing fragments, the air shifted.
A faint ripple spread across the training ground, like a stone dropped into still water. The fragments froze midair, trembling violently.
Then, I felt it. A presence. Heavy, suffocating, ancient.
I spun around, heart hammering.
A figure stood in the shadows. Cloaked, hood drawn, face hidden. The air around him shimmered unnaturally, like the Rift itself bent to shield him from sight.
For a long moment, he simply watched me. Then he spoke, his voice low, like gravel sliding across stone.
"You… are not supposed to exist."
My blood turned to ice. "Who are you?"
The cloaked figure stepped closer, and the willow branches above us trembled as though bowing to him.
"I am a Watcher. My duty is to observe those who tamper with the Rift's gifts. And you, boy… you reek of stolen power."
The sigil on my chest seared in response, glowing faintly through my robes. I staggered back, clutching it.
The Watcher tilted his head. "Ah. So the mark chose you. How… unfortunate."
Ding!
The system chimed frantically.
[Warning! High-level entity detected.]
[Host cannot resist in current state.]
[Recommendation: Escape immediately.]
My muscles screamed, every instinct urging me to run. But the Watcher raised a hand lazily, and the ground itself chained me in place. Roots of the willow surged up, wrapping my legs like iron.
"You are not the first to steal fragments," he said, voice colder than winter. "But you may be the last. That eye you saw? It belongs to the one who scattered these fragments across realms. And if you continue… it will not be me you fear, but Him."
He stretched his hand forward, as if to seize me. The willow roots tightened, crushing my bones. Pain lanced through my body, blood rushing to my ears.
The system screamed.
[Emergency Protocol Activated.]
[Attribute Burst: Strength +50, Agility +50.]
My body ignited with power. With a roar, I shattered the roots, lunging backward. Lightning exploded around me, burning the grass black.
The Watcher's hood shifted slightly, as though he smiled beneath it.
"Good. Struggle harder, thief. Struggle… before He comes."
Then his body dissolved into mist, vanishing into the night.
I collapsed, chest heaving, sweat dripping into the dirt. My limbs shook uncontrollably. That… thing… hadn't even tried. He could've killed me with a flick of his wrist.
And yet, he let me live.
Why?
The system's voice answered coldly.
[The Watchers are agents of the Rift. They do not kill prematurely. They test.]
I pressed my forehead into the ground, teeth grinding. My life wasn't just mine anymore. Every step I took was under the gaze of eyes I couldn't fight.
But if they wanted me to struggle, then I would.
Not just struggle. I would climb. I would rise. I would seize every fragment, every hidden attribute, every drop of power until even the Rift itself could not chain me.
And if that eye beyond the sky came for me…
I would pierce it.
The next morning, the academy was in uproar.
Chen Hao had been taken away by his clan, humiliated beyond measure. But his defeat was nothing compared to the rumors spreading now.
"Last night, the elders felt a disturbance near the Rift."
"Someone said a Watcher appeared."
"A student was targeted."
Every whisper, every rumor circled closer to me. I felt their eyes, sharp as blades, following me through the halls.
When I entered the lecture hall, silence fell. Students shifted aside as I passed, some in awe, others in fear.
For the first time in my life, I wasn't invisible.
But attention was as dangerous as any blade.
And then, as I took my seat, the system chimed again.
Ding!
[Quest Triggered: Survive the Hunter's Trial.]
[Time Limit: 7 Days.]
[Failure Penalty: Forced Fragment Extraction.]
My breath caught.
"Hunter's… trial?"
The system's screen flickered, red text flashing violently.
[Warning! The Rift has sent a Hunter to reclaim fragments.]
[Hunter Arrival: Imminent.]
The lecture hall buzzed faintly around me, but I heard nothing.
A Hunter. Sent for me.
My hand trembled as I clenched my desk. If a Watcher was already terrifying… what kind of monster was a Hunter?
And in that moment, a chill swept through the room. Every student stiffened. The instructor froze mid-sentence.
The door at the far end of the hall creaked open.
A tall figure stepped inside, his presence so suffocating the air seemed to warp. His eyes, cold and sharp as knives, scanned the room—until they locked on me.
And he smiled.