"Brother, don't just focus on being close to Sister Gu Qingcheng and that naughty nephew!"
Lu Xuan shook Lu Cheng's arm relentlessly, her eyes filled with undisguised possessiveness and a hint of a little girl's wariness.
"Honestly, what's up with this newcomer?"
"I feel like I've seen her before!"
Lu Cheng withdrew his hand, turned around, and dotingly flicked his sister's nose.
"You're so disrespectful, call her Sister."
"No way!"
Lu Xuan made a face, but her gaze couldn't help but linger on Lu Ying's face. "She looks like... she can't speak."
Lu Ying, or rather Ise Hinata, after being granted the new life as "Lu Ying," now stood meekly behind Lu Cheng.
She carried a sense of bewildered detachment towards everything around her, only for a faint glimmer to appear in her empty eyes when she felt Lu Cheng's gaze.
"She's just not quite used to... our place here," Lu Cheng said indifferently, his voice not loud, yet clearly reaching the ears of every woman present.
They had long been accustomed to Lu Cheng's domineering and unfathomable nature, but each time, this man always managed to bring them new "surprises," or rather... "shocks."
Lu Cheng ignored the varying thoughts of the women. His gaze swept across the room, and finally, with an unquestionable tone, he issued his command.
"Ji Yao, Ji Ling."
"Master."
Two flawless figures appeared silently behind him, like phantoms.
"Are the things I asked for ready?"
"According to your will, all basic rune matrices have been inscribed and are ready for activation at any time."
Ji Yao's voice was ethereal and pleasant, devoid of any emotion.
Lu Cheng nodded in satisfaction.
What he wanted to do was far more than simply increasing the spiritual energy concentration of the manor.
He wanted to establish a truly embryonic form on this land that belonged to him.
An absolute domain, independent of the rules of this plane!
"Gu Qingcheng, you all go back to your rooms and rest."
Lu Cheng's voice softened. He turned to Gu Qingcheng and said softly, "It might get a bit noisy soon."
"Hmm."
Gu Qingcheng nodded obediently. She could feel the little one in her belly excitedly anticipating what was about to happen.
After the women returned to the villa, only Lu Cheng and the sisters Ji Yao and Ji Ling remained in the entire manor.
Lu Cheng slowly walked to the "spiritual eye" bluestone in the back garden, and with a thought, a hum resonated!
Two divine artifacts, emitting completely different auras, floated in mid-air out of nowhere!
That golden core, which he had stripped and refined from the National Luck of Dongying!
It represented the most fundamental "Qi" of a land, yet at this moment, it gently circled Lu Cheng, emitting a friendly fluctuation.
The other was the ancient and weathered yata mirror, its surface seeming to reflect the passage of time!
"Begin."
"With the Dragon Country's earth pulse as the foundation, the National Luck as the fuel, and the yata mirror as the furnace!"
"Melt these two forces completely, and forge the first wisp of immortal energy unique to my Lu Family!"
"As you command, Master!"
Ji Yao and Ji Ling responded simultaneously. The two sisters each extended a hand, one left and one right, palms facing each other. Strings of rune chains shot out from their palms, precisely connecting to the golden core and the yata mirror!
Underneath the entire Lu Family Manor, it was as if a primeval giant dragon that had slept for ten thousand years had awakened at this moment!
That "spiritual eye" bluestone instantly erupted with a light more brilliant than the sun!
The golden National Luck core was instantly cast into this light, like a top-grade ore thrown into a steel-making furnace, instantly decomposing and vaporizing!
And the yata mirror, under Ji Ling's control, its surface abruptly aimed at the chaotic golden energy mist!
Hiss—!
The mirror light swirled, and a beam of light as black as ink, seemingly capable of devouring all things, shot out from the mirror, completely enveloping the golden energy mist!
That was not an attack, but rather... analysis, transformation, and reconstruction!
The yata mirror, this supreme divine artifact of Dongying, was now, in Lu Cheng's hands, reduced to the most efficient "energy converter"!
It was frantically, completely erasing the rule imprint of "Amaterasu" from that National Luck, and then reshaping it according to the rules unique to Lu Cheng, input by Ji Yao!
For a time, the entire manor's weather changed, and the clash of energies even caused visible ripples in space!
Lu Cheng stood with his hands behind his back, watching all of this with an indifferent expression.
He slowly raised his hand and gently clenched it towards the chaotic energy center.
"Still."
One word, and the law followed!
The turbulent energy instantly calmed, as docile as a lamb.
Finally, all the light and energy transformed into wisps of mist with a faint purple hue, like a hundred rivers returning to the sea, and were absorbed into the great formation underground!
Hum—!
The great formation was fully activated!
At this moment, the Lu Family Manor had become a world unto itself!
The air within the manor instantly changed.
If the spiritual energy before was pure mountain spring water, then the "immortal energy" now was a divine wine aged for ten thousand years!
The water in the swimming pool began to bubble gurglingly, its quality becoming viscous, emitting a refreshing fragrance.
In the garden, the precious flowers grew and bloomed at a visible speed, and even drops of dew containing life energy condensed on their petals.
Inside the villa, the women who were resting almost simultaneously felt this "divine grace."
Their bodies, their souls, were passively undergoing a transformative evolution under the cleansing of this higher-dimensional energy!
They could clearly feel that the connection between them and Lu Cheng had become even closer, as if their lives had become a part of his?
And this was just the beginning... Meanwhile.
On the sports field of a certain third-rate university in Modu.
"Xiao Fan! What are you dawdling for! If you fail the 1000-meter test again, you'll have to retake the course!"
The impatient roar of the physical education teacher drew a burst of laughter from the surrounding students.
A thin young man with a somewhat pale complexion was leaning on his knees, gasping for breath.
His name was Xiao Fan, and he was one of the most inconspicuous students in this university.
Ordinary family background, ordinary appearance, ordinary grades; throw him into a crowd, and you wouldn't find him in three seconds.
"Heh, with his physique, he's running 1000 meters? Don't drop dead halfway through."
"Exactly, he always drags the whole class down, what a waste."
Not far away, several boys in designer sportswear were standing with their arms crossed, discussing him with disdain.
Xiao Fan listened to the harsh taunts, his fists unconsciously clenching, his fingernails digging deep into his flesh.
Humiliation, unwillingness... Yesterday, he participated in a class outing. To retrieve a girl's water bottle that had fallen down a hillside, he accidentally slipped and rolled into an inconspicuous small cave.
He thought he was dead for sure, but to his surprise, in a corner of the cave, he found an unremarkable gray stone.
The moment he touched the stone, it transformed into a stream of light and merged into his body.
"Ding! Congratulations, Host, for binding the 'All-Things Attribute Picking System'!"
"This system can pick up attribute light orbs dropped by all things to strengthen yourself!"
At first, Xiao Fan thought he had hit his head and was hallucinating.
But when he saw a white light orb of [Strength +0.01] floating next to a spider in the cave, and with a thought, the light orb flew into his body, he realized... his destiny was about to be rewritten!
At this moment, he looked at the track, then at Zhao Hao, the scornful rich second-generation heir not far away.
In his vision, a green light orb, brighter than those of other classmates, was floating above Zhao Hao's head.
[Strength +1]!
"Pick up!"
Xiao Fan silently chanted in his mind.
The next second, that green light orb transformed into a stream of light and instantly merged into his body!
A warm current instantly spread throughout his limbs and bones!
Xiao Fan could clearly feel that his originally weak and sore legs were instantly filled with strength!
On the other side, Zhao Hao, who was preparing to enjoy the show, suddenly felt his legs go weak and almost lost his balance.
"Strange, why do I suddenly feel a bit weak?"
He shook his head, assuming he just hadn't slept well last night.
"Ready—set—go!"
With the teacher's command, Xiao Fan shot out like an arrow released from a bow!
His speed was so fast that everyone was stunned!
The wind whistled past his ears, and the track stretched beneath his feet. He even felt he could go faster!
Finally, he crossed the finish line with a time that broke the school record!
The entire field was silent.
Everyone looked at Xiao Fan, who was casually adjusting his breathing, with eyes as if he were a monster.
And Xiao Fan slowly turned his head, his gaze falling on the dumbfounded Zhao Hao.
A never-before-seen arrogant smile appeared on his face.
He knew that from today onwards, all those who had once looked down on him would be fiercely trampled under his feet!