"I noticed something unusual," The Saintess continued speaking. "You were not cultivating, yet your internal state was changing."
Lin Mu hesitated for a moment, then nodded.
"I was experimenting," he said. "With my new affinity. I noticed that it breaks substances down further than expected. Salt, in particular. It produced something I could not perceive afterward. Unknown particles."
At those words, the Saintess's expression changed.
It was subtle, but Lin Mu caught it.
Recognition.
She tilted her head slightly, her brows knitting together as if searching through memories long untouched.
"Unknown particles," she repeated softly.
For a few moments, she remained silent.
Then she spoke again.
"I have read of something like this," she said. "Long ago. In an ancient text."
Lin Mu's eyes sharpened instantly.
"Ancient text?" he asked. "What did it say?"
The Saintess folded her hands calmly.
"It spoke of elements," she said. "But not elements as cultivators understand them."
