The convergence chamber slowly returned to silence.
The formation circle beneath Lin Xuan dimmed until only a faint glow remained in the stone.
But the system itself had not stopped.
Lin Xuan could still feel it.
Far beneath the mountains, the ancient network continued circulating spiritual energy through its channels and relays.
Quiet.
Stable.
Awake.
Senior Qiao looked around the chamber one last time.
"We leave."
His tone made it clear the decision was final.
Instructor Han carefully retrieved the sensing plates he had placed around the area.
The readings on them were still fluctuating slightly.
"The network is stabilizing," he said.
"But it will continue expanding its circulation range."
Xu Liang asked the obvious question.
"How long before other sects notice?"
Instructor Han thought for a moment.
"Days… maybe weeks."
Yan Rui shook his head.
"Not that long."
Everyone looked at him.
"If the spiritual density starts increasing across the region," he continued, "cultivators will notice almost immediately."
Senior Qiao frowned.
"That means this place will become a battlefield."
Yan Rui shrugged slightly.
"Eventually."
Lin Xuan stepped away from the convergence circle.
The moment he left the inner ring, the formation lines faded even further.
But the connection remained.
Not strong.
Just present.
Like sensing a distant current flowing beneath the earth.
Xu Liang noticed.
"You can still feel it."
Lin Xuan nodded.
"Yes."
Instructor Han looked both impressed and worried.
"That means the system registered you as a recognized operator."
Yan Rui added casually,
"Which makes him extremely valuable now."
Senior Qiao's voice hardened.
"All the more reason we leave immediately."
The Hollow Vein envoy remained near the corridor entrance.
He watched the group calmly.
"You've seen what you came to see."
Senior Qiao looked at him.
"You allowed this."
"Yes."
"Why?"
The envoy answered simply.
"The system needed completion."
Yan Rui laughed softly.
"So you woke a regional formation network without knowing where the last fragment was."
The envoy didn't deny it.
"Correct."
Xu Liang shook his head slightly.
"That's reckless."
The envoy's expression remained calm.
"Necessary."
Senior Qiao turned away.
"We return to the sect."
No one argued.
Instructor Han packed the final sensing plate.
Xu Liang moved toward the corridor exit.
Yan Rui stretched his shoulders lazily before following.
Lin Xuan walked last.
Before leaving the chamber, he looked back once at the convergence circle.
The ancient formation remained silent.
But he knew it was still working.
Still circulating energy through the mountains.
Still slowly waking the old system buried beneath the land.
As they stepped back into the long stone corridor, Yan Rui spoke quietly.
"You realize what this means, right?"
Xu Liang glanced at him.
"Explain."
Yan Rui pointed back toward the chamber.
"That network covers a huge territory."
Instructor Han nodded slowly.
"Yes."
Yan Rui continued,
"And now someone can interact with it."
He looked directly at Lin Xuan.
"Which means every major sect in the region will want to know one thing."
Senior Qiao's voice cut in before he could finish.
"Enough."
But everyone already understood.
Once word spread about the awakened network—
Lin Xuan would no longer be just a young cultivator from a small sect.
He would become the key to controlling an ancient system.
Outside the stone corridor, the evening sky was already darkening.
The forest looked normal again.
Quiet.
Calm.
But the ground beneath it was no longer the same.
Because somewhere deep underground—
The ancient cultivation network had begun circulating again.
And this time…
It had found someone it could respond to.
Lin Xuan.