Two weeks passed with the same monotony.
After Luo Yuexi's departure, the Luo family mansion returned gradually to its usual routine. The vitality and bustle that once dominated the halls began to recede into the distance, day by day. Members of the family came calling and then left, the servants went about their usual motions, and the grand estate fell into a familiar, almost mundane calm.
For Luo Feng, the two weeks turned into a period of almost complete isolation.
During this time, he barely ventured out of his courtyard. No one sought him out. No seniors called upon him. No relative remembered that he existed. Meals came at appointed times, and they would be delivered outside his door with neither a word nor a mirthful remark.
After the servant departed, the courtyard would revert to its natural silence. There existed a dull rhythm in this monotony that could effectively numb the mind.
Nevertheless, in Luo Feng, there was no sign of restlessness. When measured against the humiliations and indifference he had suffered before, his present lonely obscurity was almost a comfort. Nothing bothered him, nor did anyone expect anything of him.
More importantly, however, his body was still changing – albeit at a slower rate. Unlike the sudden increment in strength, this increase did not happen at one time, nor did it come with a clear announcement. It started with small, almost imperceptible steps, to the point that one could easily question it if one were not watching closely.
He also began to realize the change in small, ordinary ways. His long walks no longer tired him out. He could lift the water and the furniture in the courtyard without finding it as taxing as before. His grasp improved, and he could balance himself better. Yet the changes were not as radical as before. While the initial change had been like extricating himself from the muddy ground, the current stage had become like climbing a mild slope.
Luo Feng did not mind. On the contrary, the slowness gave him a sense of comfort. Then, with the passage of days, he felt a certain pressure inside his body. The feeling had nothing to do with pain, nor did it affect any of his physical activities. The pressure felt more like a certain tension brewing inside, like the buildup of water behind a dam.
So, when he sat quietly and concentrated, this sensation became more defined. It is as if he were to reach a threshold, a boundary of some sort. The boundary that, of course, Luo Feng could neither articulate nor put into words, but deep down, he knew that crossing this boundary meant attaining a quality that would differ from what he presently experienced, this gradual buildup that seemed to just inch along.
On this particular day, Luo Feng sat in his room on a small wooden table to prepare his tea. He always did this. The routine activity consisted of pouring water and allowing the right amount of time for the leaves to steep. Vapor rose into the air.
Lifting the teapot, his mind drifted back to the system. For two weeks, he had checked it occasionally, out of habit rather than hope. Each time, he had seen that everything was the same. His bound partner was still the same, his karma value still the same. Yet he had an inexplicable desire to check once again.
He called the panel without any conscious effort. It appeared instantly. Luo Feng's hand stayed frozen.
[Karma: 10]
For a moment, he thought that was a mistaken reading. He concentrated again. The number remained unchanged. Ten. The tea spilled over the rim of the cup, dark liquid flowing across the tabletop surface, but Luo Feng gave no visible sign. His eyes were fixed solely on the board before him.
It was previously zero. He was sure of it. It was not as if there was a notice, a notification, a sign that something different had occurred. Yet, there was an increment in karma.
His heart beat a little faster as he inspected the panel more closely.
[Bound: Huang Lei (Qi Refinement Level 2)]
The first part was the same, but the karma was different.
Luo Feng focused his thinking and noticed something new. The karma value reacted to his focus. It was delicately indicated as if to tempt interaction. He took a moment to choose it.
The panel changed. A line of text appeared below the karma amount:
[Spend karma points to accelerate cultivation feedback from bound partners for 24 hours]
Luo Feng took a deep breath. So karma was a resource, not simply something accumulated, but something to be spent to magnify the feedback he had been getting all along.
Below this line was an empty field where he was encouraged to enter a sum. The message was clear: The more karma he spent, the stronger or faster his results would come, at least for a limited time. However, there was no additional information given.
But why was the karma rising, and what activities triggered these increases? Were they steady or just random events? Luo Feng slightly leaned back in his chair, his eyes gazing into the distance, thinking.
He personally had not interacted with Huang Lei, nor had he affected the situation. The most obvious implication, therefore, was that the karma rose in relation to Huang Lei himself, his cultivation, his destiny, or any major developments involving him or around him.
If so, then he himself was actually much more connected to Huang Lei than he had previously thought. The system allowed no passive observation without any system reaction.
Even before he could experiment with the karma function further, the panel began to flicker. This was sudden and emphatic enough to jar his thoughts. For a brief moment, he lost sight as another prompt came rushing forward.
[Huang Lei has awakened his saint physique: Barbaric Dominator Body]
Luo Feng's mind went blank. "Saint physique." Just hearing the words was enough to make one feel the weight. These physiques were the stuff of legend, enough to change eras, not just individuals.
It all fell into place. The system had picked Huang Lei for a reason. Huang Lei had never been among the ordinary people.
Before Luo Feng fully comprehended the shock, the system proceeded.
[You can choose one of the following:]
[1. Claim Physique]
[2. Convert to karma points]
The two options appeared clearly, suspended before him like an open verdict.