Fifteen minutes later, Riven left the Venom Hall again.
His hand rested lightly against the grey beast pouch at his waist.
Silk Symbiosis was a relatively simple skill in theory.
But in practice—
It was still strange.
Once he had arrived at the predator spider's enclosure, it had approached him almost immediately.
Seris had opened the glass, and Riven had begun forming the net-like pattern before sending it toward the spider.
Normally, that would have been risky.
But Riven hadn't been worried.
The spider accepted the soul force without resistance.
For a brief moment, the net tightened—
Then returned.
A faint spark caught within it.
When the pattern settled back into his mind palace, the spark began to circle slowly around his soul.
And with it—
A connection formed.
Not just direction.
Not just position.
Something more.
He could feel it.
Sense it.
Roughly understand its intent.
Seris had questioned him afterward.
Her gaze sharp.
"That wasn't the Beast Slave Technique."
She had been certain.
Riven hadn't denied it.
But he hadn't explained either.
"I thought that's what you learned," she had added.
Riven had simply shrugged.
He wasn't in the mood to explain a method most people would consider dangerous.
Or pointless.
Seris hadn't pressed further.
But the look she gave him lingered.
Now—
Riven was outside again, his fingers brushed lightly against the pouch.
A faint presence rested inside.
Quiet.
Still.
The predator spider.
He could feel it clearly.
I'll have to figure out how to help this little one advance…
Riven's gaze lingered on the pouch for a moment longer.
Then he turned—
Not toward his residence.
The path curved gently through the lower terraces.
Riven walked without hurry, his steps steady, familiar.
A broad structure of pale stone came into view soon enough, its entrance framed by simple wooden beams. Disciples moved in and out, some carrying materials, others exchanging tokens or scrolls.
The Resource Hall.
This time Riven didn't meet a disciple reminding him of past days.
He stepped inside.
Cool air greeted him.
The same quiet order. Shelves lined with supplies. Counters spaced evenly across the hall.
And behind one of them—
Lumi.
She stood where she had before, sorting through a small stack of items, her movements neat and practiced.
For a brief moment, Riven paused.
It had been quite some time he last saw her.
Then he stepped forward.
Her eyes lifted.
Recognition came instantly.
"Riven."
Surprise was on her face.
Riven gave a small nod.
"Lumi."
A short silence followed.
Then Lumi leaned slightly against the counter, head tilting.
"Well… look who finally decided to show up again."
A faint smile tugged at her lips.
"It's been a while."
Riven gave a small nod.
"Yeah."
Normally, he would've said more.
She would've teased him for disappearing.
He would've answered.
Something.
Now—
Nothing came.
For a brief moment, as she looked at him—
Her face blurred.
Overlapped.
Another face.
Riven looked away.
"…Didn't die out there?" she added lightly.
He looked back.
"Not yet."
Short.
Flat.
More his style recently.
Lumi's fingers tapped once against the counter as she studied him.
Then stilled.
There was nothing she could bounce off of.
"…What do you need?" she asked.
Riven could feel how the atmosphere had turned a little colder.
But somehow he found that more comfortable.
"Travel rations."
"Alright."
She turned and moved toward the shelves.
Riven watched her for a moment.
Then looked away again.
He didn't feel like talking to her.
It felt like the previous warmth between them was just an illusion.
A mirage he wanted to avoid.
To make sure it wouldn't turn into a nightmare too.
Lumi returned, placing a bundle on the counter.
"Dried food. Water. A few tools."
A brief pause.
"Try not to come back half-dead this time."
Every time she spoke—
That same flicker.
That same overlap.
It was irritating.
So he ignored it.
Riven glanced at the items.
"Yeah."
He placed his identity token down.
Lumi took it and deducted some contribution points.
No teasing.
"…You've been busy?" she asked.
"Something like that."
Again—
Nothing to follow.
"…Right."
"That's all?" she asked after a moment.
"Yeah."
Riven picked up the supplies.
For a brief moment, he lingered.
Then moved.
"…Thanks."
"Don't get yourself killed."
It sounded the same as before.
But it didn't feel the same.
Riven nodded once.
Then turned and walked away.
He didn't look back.
Behind him—
Lumi stood still for a moment longer than necessary.
Her brows furrowed slightly.
There had been no "Big Sis Lumi".
No nothing.
>>>
On the way back, Riven stopped by the Beast Hall, a place Seris had mentioned.
It was smaller than expected.
Practical.
To the point.
After a short exchange, he learned what he needed—basic methods to nurture and feed growth to feral beasts.
And most importantly, specific information about his predator spider.
And how to make it advance.
He didn't linger.
Riven returned straight to his residence afterward.
The moment he stepped inside, the outside noise faded.
Quiet again.
Familiar.
His supplies were set aside, stored in his spatial ring.
The beast pouch rested at his waist.
The faint presence within it steady.
Waiting.
Riven sat down on his bed.
Cross-legged.
Eyes closing slowly.
His next objective—
Cultivation.
Riven let his breathing settle.
Then he began.
His dantian was almost completely filled with qi.
To absorb more—
He'd have to compress it further.
Slowly, he drew the qi out of his dantian.
Guiding it into his meridian network.
Following the pathways of the Frozen Gale Codex.
One full circulation.
There were no issues.
His qi compressed.
Fourteen cycles.
Riven didn't stop.
He guided it out again.
Another cycle.
This time—
The resistance was stronger.
The qi heavier.
Harder to move.
Still—
He pushed through.
Maintained control.
Refined it again.
Fifteen.
A thin layer of sweat formed on his forehead.
His breathing deepened slightly.
But his focus didn't waver.
One more.
He drew the qi out again.
Every movement required effort now.
The pathways felt tighter.
The qi more stubborn.
Less willing to bend.
Riven clenched down on his control.
Forced it through.
Completed the cycle.
Then—
Compressed.
Sixteen.
Riven exhaled slowly and opened his eyes.
He didn't plan to compress his qi any further.
What had once been the size of a small melon was now barely larger than a pebble.
Denser.
Purer.
Each strand of it far more potent than before.
But—
There wasn't much left.
No matter how efficient his techniques became, they still required qi.
And his control wasn't refined enough to use only the smallest amounts.
If he kept compressing now—
His actual combat capability would start to drop.
Riven let out a quiet breath.
He'd need to gather more qi first.
Then compress again later.
Riven reached into his spatial ring.
Two scrolls appeared in his hand.
Falconburst Kick — Gale Variant.
Falconburst Kick — Wave Variant.
He unrolled the first.
Then the second.
His eyes moved steadily across the pages.
Line by line.
Detail by detail.
Since opening his Mind Palace—
Memorization had become… easy.
Not effortless.
But precise.
Clean.
The information settled into place without slipping away.
He read them both once.
Then again.
And again.
Making sure nothing was missed.
It didn't take long.
But after multiple read throughs he eventually rolled the scrolls back up.
He didn't understand them yet.
But that didn't matter.
He had them memorized now.
Even without the scrolls—
He could practice in the future.
Master them over time.
With that done, Riven stood.
There was no reason to stay any longer.
Training inside the sect—
Wouldn't be enough.
Not for what he needed.
The auction was soon.
And he wanted money.
A lot more.
To secure finding a good map.
He stepped out of his residence without hesitation.
His first stop was the Martial Skills Pavilion.
He entered and placed the scrolls on the lacquered desk.
Falconburst Kick — Gale Variant.
Falconburst Kick — Wave Variant.
Silk Symbiosis.
The elder gave a faint nod.
Said nothing.
Riven didn't linger.
A moment later, he stepped back outside.
Turned.
And headed upward.
Toward Kael's residence.
Riven left the place soon after entering.
Kael had explained the mission.
It was relatively simple.
At least in premise.
He was to act as the young master of a certain mansion.
They would provide the wealth.
The status.
The invitation to the auction.
In return—
Riven would represent them.
Stand in for their "young master."
And if necessary—
Fight.
That was all.
As far as Riven was concerned—
It was a good deal.
Now all he'd need would be to reach their place and get the details sorted out.
He turned back down the mountain.
Jasmine Garden came into view soon enough.
Quiet as always.
Riven stepped inside.
Checked his things.
Supplies.
Scrolls.
The beast pouch at his waist.
Everything in place.
Brann was there.
Riven gave him a short nod.
"Heading out again."
Brann looked up, studied him briefly, then nodded back.
Riven stepped out of the residence.
Crossed the garden.
Then continued on down the mountain.
He stopped briefly at the sect library to check something.
Before continuing down.
The sect gates stood open ahead.
Riven didn't slow.
And just like that—
He left again.
This time without any plans to return again.