I slowly open my eyes and see Richard and Doggy, both with a weird yet annoyed expression. I don't even give them a additional glance. There's something much more interesting next to me.

Trees withering, flowers blooming. Contrary yet complementary to each other. The sunlight illuminating the center of this beautiful painting, Lyra, the Goddess of Life and Death. The Heavenly Energy forming a vortex around her, like mine but less concentrated. However it has a strange aura, like I'm bound to the ground I'm sitting with my eyes glued to her image because of it. Truly like admiring a painting.

The vortex doesn't looks like it's stopping any time soon, so I ask Richard - who I had no idea was near me - what happened while I enlightened myself on the Water Laws.

"Are you an idiot? Or perhaps just ignorant?"

His response surprised me, more than his annoyed expression from before. But he doesn't give me time to react before he continued, this time with a less irritated face.

"First you should know what the enlightenment you experienced means. The first time the Heavens bless someone is called Heavens' Aid, that's what happened to you. However, the second time is somewhat different. It's called One with the Heavens" he takes a little pause to look at Lyra and then continues, "This phenomenon is the prove you're a Heavenly Child; you're someone who can carry the Heavens."

'You're someone who can carry the Heavens', nothing more than a fool's dream, at least in my previous life; it won't be a dream in this one though.

Richard doesn't seem willing to speak any more, so I just check my status in the System. Nothing changed, besides my Cultivation Realm and Occupation, respectively Qi Gathering 6th Stage and Student of Seven Elements Academy.

However, the Skills section has a great change.

Six Swords Water Dance 1st Stage.

For the first time I instictively know what this "new" skill is, emphasis on the scare quotes. This is the congregation of my understandings towards the Myriad Waters Sword Technique, more specifically speaking, my insights regarding the Laws that govern the Technique.

However, I notice another big change among the few skills I have.

Sword Mastery Lv. 4 (Preliminary Sword Intent)

Sword Intent, the first step on the real Sword Dao. Often called Sword Laws by people who don't practice, but for those who follow this path, it's a way to live by. It's the whole congregation of a person's understanding of the Sword Dao; the way that person sees the Sword.

It also means that you're a real expert of the sword, even if it's only in it's preliminary form. Sword Intent has many uses but the primary one is using ranged strikes without spending Qi as Sword Intent acts as an magnet for Heavenly Energy, making it possible to use it for many uses. It can also be used in a similar way to Will to give purpose to Heavenly Energy.

I could think about a hundred other uses for Sword Intent, but I decided to think about something else. Why hasn't anyone come see this disturbance?

I look around focusing Qi in my eyes and giving the purpose of see through, a thing only possible because of Mind of a Sage. I quickly spot some strange marks and runes and line, all united in a single existence in the form of a dome around Lyra.

I haven't read the books the old man gave me yet, but I'm pretty sure this is a formation. Probably something useful for supressing auras; possibly making illusions too.

The structure of each rune has a strange yet pleasant aesthetic with sharp breaks in the lines but also curved ones. It reminds me a bit of the carvings on the Willow Tree Manor's outer walls. Maybe there's some kind of formation there for defending the manor?

I quickly push those thoughts away as I take the opportunity to sit and meditate, stabilising my Will and circulating my Qi; it's not always you have such an perfect ambient to meditate. Richard and Doggy have long been meditating on the ground.

Like this, we spent one hour meditating before Lyra's enlightenment phenomenon ended.

This grandson of mine is quite interesting. It's been barely four hours and so much has happened to him.

Meeting that stinky guy, Tadrick, and his cute little disciple, Lenus. Getting enlightened, not once, but two times. Dueling with the second best fighter among the first year students, and even almost winning.

Spiritual Perception is truly an amazing thing to use to spy on people.

Time to show myself to these brats, the phenomenon is almost ending.

"Come with me Robbie." he just responds to me with a nod. Always so unwilling to show himself...

As I open my open my eyes I see a weird scene.

Dad, Grandpa and godforsaken Lyra who lost her sanity after seeing my father. Her eyes burn with excitement, like she didn't experience something much more wonderful moments ago; she's adoring Dad like he's some sort of saint.

I hear her talking about Dad's time in the military, when he still was part of the younger generation of the Empire. I don't know exactly what were his accomplishments in the military, but I once heard a conversation from the servants talking about him as an one-man army. A thing to be especially proud of among cultivators.

However, the adoration the servants had was nowhere near Lyra's. She's a completely different person when she's talking to or about my father.

I don know when or how those two appeared here, but I presume they've been watching us for a while. I've been having this uncomfortable feeling of being observed since I arrived in the Academy in the morning.

Richard and Doggy are respectfully standing by the side, listening with great interest to their talk, if it can be called that as it's basically Lyra praising my father and he awkwardly laughing...

I join them and listen to their "talk". Before long I got bored and interrupted their conversation which had slowly shifted to Grandpa, the Academy's most important man, who had been previously neglected by Lyra, "So, Dad, why are you here with Grandpa?"

He doesn't even bother to say anything first and just flickes my forehead at the speed of light, only after I cry in pain he says, "Don't you want this old man to be close to your new friends? You've only known each other for a few hours and you're already shutting out this old man of your life..." as he says this he's fake crying...

I can only try my best not to lose face and say, "I'm sorry Dad," I try to put on my best guilty face but I think I don't think I did a good job at it as Dad just says, "Alright, alright. Just stop doing... well, that."

I still ended up losing face, but I at least got some good laughs from everyone. Yeah, that's a good thing. Right?

Dad interrupts my self mocking session as he reaches for the scabbard he's wearing by his belt and hands it to me saying, "This is your welcome gift, treasure it as your own life."

His serious expression makes me take a additional glance at it. A shade of blue resembling the midnight sky painted with myriad stars, there are no carvings in it, but it doesn't make any difference to it's elegance; there's beauty in simplicity.

However the System's notification makes me even more mesmerized by the sword.

Life-bound Sword detected, do you wish to bind it now?

I mentally say yes and instantly I feel a connection between me and the sword forming itself. It makes sense what Dad said, this sword became a part of my life, my very soul is connect to it. This feeling is weird, but also comfortable; like reuniting with a lover.

I let myself enjoy it for a short moment, free of worries, before I thank my father, "Thank you," I take a short pause and continue, "for everything you've done for me."

He just puts on his usual smile and brushs this topic off as Richard, Doggy and I go back to the dorms without Lyra, who shamelessly insisted to continue chatting with Dad...