Elder Zhao Ming stood in the doorway, his expression thunderous. Behind him were two more inner disciples, their hands glowing faintly with qi in preparation for potential combat.
"Disciple Luo Chen, I apologize if my breakthrough disturbed you," Luo Chen said immediately, keeping his voice steady despite his racing heart. "I attempted to conduct it here to avoid disrupting the breakthrough chambers—"
"Disturbed? Your breakthrough caused a spatial distortion powerful enough to register across the entire sect," Zhao Ming interrupted, pushing past him into the chamber. His eyes scanned the room, and his expression widened at the sight of the walls, which still showed faint shimmer marks from the breakthrough—evidence of the spatial warping that had occurred. "This is not a normal breakthrough. What cultivation law are you using?"
This was the moment Luo Chen had both dreaded and anticipated. Lying to a sect elder would be foolish and likely impossible—a cultivator of Zhao Ming's level would be able to sense deception through their connection to the laws of the world itself. But revealing the full truth could lead to unwanted scrutiny or even persecution.
He decided to tell a partial truth—a dangerous game, but the only option that might work.
"I'm cultivating the Space Law, Elder," Luo Chen said carefully. "My understanding of spatial mechanics is... more advanced than typical. I attempted to apply this understanding during my breakthrough, but I couldn't fully control the manifestation."
It was technically true. He was indeed cultivating the Space Law. He had simply omitted the Time Law component.
Zhao Ming continued to study him intently. His eyes began to glow faintly as he activated some form of scanning technique—a method of examining another cultivator's spiritual structure without physical contact. Luo Chen felt the inner disciple's consciousness brushing against his own, like cold water flowing across his skin, scanning his dantian and cultivation base.
The examination lasted only a few seconds, but it felt like an eternity. Zhao Ming could perceive the structure of Luo Chen's dantian—could see the spiral shape, could sense the two rotations of power around the central axis.
When Zhao Ming withdrew his examination, his expression had shifted from anger to something closer to wonder.
"Extraordinary," he murmured. "Your dantian is shaped like a spiral. I've never seen anything like it." He paused, clearly processing what he had observed, then added, "Come with me. The sect master will want to hear about this."