Ruan Qingran gave her a high-grade nutrient supplement.
Finally, she didn’t feel so hungry.
After a series of examinations, nothing unusual was found in her body; she was in a healthy state.
Her Jingshen seemed fine, too. Her two Jingshen spheres were still quite active.
Ruan Qingran propped his chin up, frowning in thought for a moment.
“Shushu, have you ever felt this kind of hunger or extreme exhaustion before?”
Ruan Shu thought for a moment and nodded. “Yes, sometimes when I overuse my Jingshen, I feel a bit tired and get headaches. After using my gifted ability, I feel hungrier than usual and sometimes a little dizzy.”
Hearing this, Ruan Qingran let out a small sigh of relief.
“I think I might know the reason.”
Under two curious gazes, Ruan Qingran explained, “Shushu, it’s possible that your gifted ability is about to advance. I remember that every time my elder brother’s ability advanced, he would experience a period where his body felt very cold, sometimes even developing frost.”
“Different ability users show different signs when advancing. It’s just that there’s never been… well, this kind of intense hunger. For Shushu, this probably means she needs to consume more energy. Ordinary food won’t help her; she needs nutrient supplements or exotic beast meat.”
Ruan Shu was momentarily stunned. Could gifted abilities advance too?
Noticing her confusion, Ruan Qingran smiled and explained, “Gifted abilities are different from Jingshen. Jingshen is innate; it doesn’t advance, but one can practice controlling and shaping it. Once a person’s Jingshen reaches a certain level, they can externalize it to form their own Jingshen weapon.”
As he spoke, he extended his hand, and a ghostly blue scalpel appeared, hovering above his palm. The scalpel gleamed with a chilling light, sharp enough to slice through skin effortlessly.
“But forming a Jingshen weapon usually requires at least a B-level Jingshen user, and they need to be highly skilled at controlling their Jingshen to externalize and solidify it. This is something your teacher will explain when you start middle school.”
As soon as Ruan Qingran finished speaking, the scalpel made of Jingshen dissipated from his hand.
“However, gifted abilities can improve with continuous accumulation and practice. Since you use yours often, it’s likely that your gifted ability is showing signs of advancing.”
Ruan Shu’s eyes sparkled as she looked at him.
Ruan Qingran smiled.
“Let me explain how gifted abilities are ranked. They’re divided into nine levels, with each level further divided into early, mid, and late stages. Right now, Shushu, you’re in the late stage of the first level, almost ready to advance to the second level.”
Ruan Shu nodded, relieved. As long as she wasn’t sick, everything was fine.
With a happy smile, she said to her brother, “Then this is a good thing.”
With a higher level, she could cultivate even more mutated plants!
Ruan Fengsi patted her head affectionately. “It’s definitely a good thing. Let’s head back and get you some high-grade nutrient supplements.”
Ruan Shu nodded obediently.
After saying goodbye to her cousin, she went home and told her grandfather about her situation.
Unfortunately, her father hadn’t returned yet, but Ruan Shu still messaged him to let him know.
After learning that her hunger was a normal sign of her ability advancing, her family prepared several crates of high-grade nutrient supplements for her. These were convenient to carry, so Ruan Shu could take one anytime at school.
The supplements came in various flavors, with most of them being fruity. Seeing the ten large crates, containing hundreds of nutrient sticks, Ruan Shu’s jaw dropped.
“So… so many!”
Grandpa Ruan, hands behind his back, surveyed the crates with satisfaction. Seeing the astonishment on her face, he said, “Will this be enough for you? If not, we can always get more!”
He was indeed very generous.
Ruan Shu quickly shook her head. “No, it’s just… a lot. Can I really eat all of this?”
Each high-grade nutrient supplement cost thousands of star coins.
Propping her chin on her hand, she murmured softly, “If I don’t finish them, it’ll be such a waste.”
Grandpa Ruan shook his head. “Don’t worry. Anything you can’t finish, you can give to your father; there are plenty of people in his army camp who could use them. Besides, we didn’t actually buy these. They were sent by the Lin family… formerly the Li family.”
Ruan Shu looked puzzled. “The Lin family?”
Grandpa Ruan nodded. “Yes, it used to be the Li family; you’ve heard of them, right? But the Li family members got arrested. Control over the Divine Deer clan has returned to the White Deer branch. The White Deer’s original surname was Lin, and now the Lin family is allied with us. They sent these over free of charge.”
Ruan Shu: ……
She felt like she had missed out on a lot of events.
The sentencing of the Li family actually happened just the day before yesterday.
Marshal Bruce didn’t want to completely sever ties with the Li family, but there was overwhelming evidence against them online, showing that they had stolen others’ research in medicine and developed a drug that raised contamination levels, causing Jingshen breakdowns. Public anger was intense.
In such a situation, if he tried to save the Li family, he’d only end up tainting himself.
In the end, he could only watch as one of his major sources of funding was taken away.
The Li family had many pharmacists and had virtually monopolized the production of various supplements and medicines in the Star Beast Empire, with branches on every planet. Nutrient supplements were their largest income source, and now, all of it was under the White Deer branch’s control. The White Deer’s first move in power was to have the entire family and their businesses pledge allegiance to the Ruan family.
They also cleared the names of those the Li family had wrongfully accused and awarded substantial compensation, earning considerable goodwill.
Since the White Deer branch had originally been victims, they received Ruan family support. The current head, Lin Xue, decisively purged disruptive members of the family, stabilizing their businesses.
With things settled, Bruce could only watch as his financial support flew to the Ruan family. His anger and frustration were useless.
“Ruan family, Ruan Xiao!”
At this moment, in the residence of Marshal Bruce of the First Legion, his fury remained unabated, growing even hotter.
With a dark expression, he entered a hidden room.
“I want Ruan Xiao and the Third Legion gone—just like Ruan family’s eldest son back then.”
His raspy, venomous voice echoed within the hidden room.
A projection screen appeared in front of him, revealing a figure dressed in black and wearing a mask.
“This might be a bit difficult.”
The masked figure’s voice was distorted, almost robotic and devoid of emotion.
“Marshal Ruan and the Third Legion are quite formidable. Currently, there’s no large-scale battle that could wipe out the entire Third Legion.”
“Then create the conditions! When is the next Zerg Empress due to be born?”
“In five years.”
“Good. Then I’ll wait another five years. In the meantime, I’ll find a way to increase Ruan Xiao’s contamination levels. When the time comes, I refuse to believe he’ll be able to return unscathed.”
The final word echoed ominously within the hidden room, leaving a chilling, discomforting sensation lingering in the air.