The morning came with ash-colored clouds rolling over Qinghe like a slow tide.
The orchard was blooming again.
Not just one tree. Five. Ten. A whole row of trees that had been dead for years now swayed with green leaves and early fruit each carrying faint spiritual warmth.
The villagers celebrated. Called it a blessing from the old spirits. Burned incense. Hung charms.
But Lin Wei knew better.
> Ding!
> [Spiritual Mutation Detected – Area Karma Influenced by Host: 23%]
> [Ping'er's Affinity: Early Spiritual Sensing → Mid Spiritual Sensing]
> [New Karmic Thread Manifesting]
The girl who once ran barefoot through the streets was now meditating under the peach tree.
Eyes closed. Breathing steady.
Absorbing without guidance. Growing without foundation.
And at the center of it all… his silent ripple.
That afternoon, the masked cultivator returned.
Not in robes this time, but in a merchant's tunic, face partially exposed—no mask, only a red string tied to one ear and a flute hanging from his back.
Lin Wei spotted him immediately, weaving through the market, chatting with Auntie Nuan, smiling like an old friend.
> Ding!
> [Recognized Aura Signature: Unmasked Variant Detected]
> [Spiritual Disguise Active – Origin: Unknown Sect]
> [Intent: Observation – passive engagement]
Same man. Different mask.
The System confirmed what Lin Wei already suspected.
The man wasn't hunting him. Not yet.
But he was watching—like someone waiting to see what rose to the surface when no one stirred the water.
By evening, the man had set up in the old teahouse, playing music.
Soft. Melancholic. Harmless.
Most thought he was a bard.
But Lin Wei watched him change notes when certain people passed. Faster for the chief. Slower for the merchant. Oddly sharp when Mei Lan walked by.
And when Lin Wei passed?
Silence.
> Ding!
> [Behavioral Marking Detected – Identity Suppression Test]
> [Your passive field has disrupted his spiritual rhythm. You are now a node of interest.]
So he knows I'm not ordinary, Lin Wei thought. But not how. Not yet.
The question was—should he do something about it?
Or stay still, and let fate move around him?
That night, it wasn't the system that whispered to him.
It was Ping'er.
She came to his hut with her hands behind her back and a peach blossom tucked in her hair.
"Big brother Lin," she said, "the tree said something in my dream."
Lin Wei blinked. "The tree?"
"It said... I have to give you this." She held out her hands.
A single fruit. Golden. Not yet ripe.
But it glowed faintly with energy.
> Ding!
> [You have received a Minor Karmic Fruit.]
> [Effect: Passive stat increase based on unseen consequence. Randomized outcome.]
He gently accepted it, and she smiled.
"I don't know what it does," she said, "but I feel like it *belongs to you."
Later that night, while the village slept, Lin Wei sat beneath the stars and looked at the fruit.
He didn't eat it yet.
He held it and thought.
Not about power. Or system tricks.
But about what kind of person he was becoming.
The System pinged.
[Path Evolution Detected]
Your karma has grown beyond prediction. As your nature deepens, a path begins to shape itself.
Choose how you wish the world to feel your ripple.
You may now select a Passive Cultivation Persona:
1. Fated Ghost –
You will become legend whispered of but never seen. All growth favors concealment, long-term influence, and karmic mystery.
2. Gentle Hand –
You bend the world gently with action so subtle it becomes unconscious. Those you aid passively gain talents, allies, or fate-bound events.
3. Veiled Flame –
When you move, you burn. When you act, the world recoils. Your passive power fuels critical shifts—rare but overwhelming.
Lin Wei stared at the three.
Fated Ghost. Gentle Hand. Veiled Flame.
All of them powerful. But only one felt right.
He wasn't trying to disappear forever. Nor to explode like a hidden weapon.
He wanted to nudge the world from the shadows.
Quietly. Patiently. Without names or thanks.
> Choice Confirmed: Gentle Hand
> You now leave passive blessings in areas you linger.
> When karma accumulates past threshold, hidden events may trigger nearby.
> Passive Trait Gained: "Threadweaver's Calm" – Insight improves when multiple threads connect in secret.
The next day, something strange happened.
A young man collapsed in front of the shrine. A visitor—his robes marked from the outer province sect, his skin pale, eyes unfocused.
He had been possessed.
Or something close.
Master Yunmo arrived within minutes, eyes wide, talismans fluttering in hand.
"What's wrong with him?" Mei Lan asked.
Yunmo frowned. "Something inside him is trying to climb out."
The man convulsed.
And as he writhed, he pointed at Lin Wei.
"You..." he gasped, "You left a door open... in the orchard…"
> Ding!
> [Hidden Event Triggered: Karma Overgrowth – Echo Tree Has Drawn Something Ancient]
> [Bound Beneath the Shrine: 14%]
> [Risk Threshold Exceeded. Nearby entities may now sense karmic radiation.]
Lin Wei stood still.
Everyone looked at him but no one accused him.
Just a moment of silence, broken by Master Yunmo's whisper:
"Then it begins."