Shen couldn't feel the Drow Maiden within his aura, but he wasn't surprised to hear her whisper, "Have fun," in his ear.

Then, he felt her mana behind him.

He had developed the ability to feel it in the past three months. It was almost a mere side-effect of the Maiden's explanations on Energy and constant subjection to her magic. Yet, as offhanded as his energy sensitivity advancement had been, the results were still outstanding.

Shen could now feel the Alliance's manufactured energy as well as he did qi—and his qi senses had also improved. His current self could passively feel both energies within a dozen yards or anywhere inside his aura. The range increased to almost a hundred yards if he focused on it.

Speaking of his aura, its range had increased to an impressive six hundred yards. On top of that, he could decide how far he pushed it and even retract it completely—though the latter was thanks to him developing a domain, not the training.

So Shen felt the mana behind him both passively and with his aura. Passively, he only detected the mana concentration and where it was. His aura went further, letting him identify whether Concepts and Laws were being used. Better yet, if he had had previous contact with the involved Concepts—or Laws to a lesser degree–and seen what they could do, he could also guesstimate what was coming.

The mana behind seemed to be affecting space. Shen vaguely glimpsed some Laws of Reality getting broken by the imposition of the terrifyingly powerful will he had gotten familiar with. The spell was filled with the same Law currently preventing his body from healing.

That caused what he could only poorly understand as a spatial interposition with another part of the world. The portal-like thing was in place for less than an instant, then space was mended by the Laws of Reality.

No physical evidence pointed at the Maiden being gone instead of just invisible, but Shen was sure she was no longer around. She wouldn't have let him feel her mana or spell otherwise. A "hidden" chunk of her training was forcing him to practice how to understand one's intent through their usual behavior. He didn't even entertain the possibility of it being a ruse; she was too powerful to need to do something like that.

No, she had purposefully let him know he was alone.

So he allowed the absolute dread he had been feeling this past year to wash over him.

The Drow Maiden was mighty beyond his understanding. Shen wasn't sure if even his father would've been an opponent for that woman. Her drive and focus were like an unyielding flame that consumed all that dared not conform to her will. He had never felt that with anyone else, with one exception: the Immortal Emperor.

And yet, she was just a C-rank in a race without any A-ranks.

That, more than anything, more than Valentina's and the Void's indecipherable power, gave him a clearer picture of the existential threat in his future.

Shen had been thinking too small. The Eternal Empire was the grandest thing he had known, so he had subconsciously compared it to the Multiverse Alliance.

However, the latter was unimaginably more immense.

During his training, the Drow Maiden had claimed the Alliance had around ten million C-ranks, not counting rift dwellers. How many of them were like her? She had called herself an elite, but within ten million beings, it was statistically likely that many others were like her.

Even if she was in the top 0.1%, that were still ten thousand terrifying C-ranks like her—as strong or stronger than his father, who had been an elite in the Eternal Empire.

More importantly, although many of the things the Maiden had said during the training were obvious taunts, he could still detect how she wasn't lying when she called him stupid or pathetic. Not entirely, at least.

Therefore, when she also revealed almost ten billion D-ranks walked the Multiverse Alliance, his pride was thoroughly crushed.

How many of those were elites like him but less stupid and with stronger willpower?

Shen was not special.

How had he dared be arrogant in front of such numbers and logistic grandeur that was the Alliance?

He didn't dare; not any longer.

Shen's Path had taken a sharp turn in many ways. He could tell where the Drow Maiden had carefully lapidated him but accepted it where he felt it was wise. The most significant change was how he had been thoroughly humbled by her power and the knowledge she had shared.

He felt almost no pride and a lot of caution when she said he was a first-class talent and that the Alliance valued it. To the new him, that only meant danger. If a C-rank came to quell the flames of his talent before it bloomed into an inferno that might inconvenience their race, he would die, and that was it.

Yet, Shen had dared to act otherwise in front of the drow. He had clad himself in fake arrogance for one last test. He had needed to know whether she would punish him or his people for his defiance when he refused her offer for the drop of blood essence.

She hadn't.

The Drow Maiden had simply ignored his stupid decision and moved on.

That had been the final act that let him quell his anger and replace it with undying gratitude.

The Maiden had directly saved his life in the rift, then indirectly three other times. First, when the mere memory of her movement let him produce a domain that brought him victory over the Void Embryo. Second, when she made him recall how essential his humanity was. Third, when she trained him—his new power would ensure his survival in many future situations.

Her methods were disrespectful, to say the least. Shen could tell they didn't care for him. He recognized he could have died during training, or his Path might've been crippled.

Such a disregard for his life had angered him at first.

Yet, the results were undeniable and impressive. His willpower wouldn't have developed as much if he had willingly entered the training. It would've been even worse if he had been informed of her methodology beforehand.

Shen had gotten angry because he hadn't known any better. Because he had been too ignorant to react otherwise. He now recognized how... breathtaking the techniques and knowledge she had shared with him were. How valuable. How above everything else he had ever gotten in contact with.

Right now, if there was a paradoxical button he had to push to ensure his past self would go through what he had just gone through, he would push it.

Therefore, Shen would not seek revenge on the Drow Maiden. Yet, he also understood that he couldn't let her actions go unanswered. When he was strong enough, he had to crush her.

He owed her that.

The drow was almost as alien to him as the Void. However, he had understood a few things about her. She was a heartless bastard that didn't care for individuals. What she did respect was strength, and the only way to prove to her that she hadn't wasted her time training him was by showing the power to beat her down.

But that was a long, long way in the future.

For now, Shen took a deep breath and let his body and soul tremble.

The dread for what the future held in store for him came and went. His inferiority complex washed over him and disappeared. All feelings he had quelled, repressed, or forcibly changed in the past months reappeared and had their moment before he disposed of them one last time.

He thoroughly analyzed each of them for what would come next.

Emotional control, he had learned, happened in two distinct ways. First, it let him control his feelings as they happened. Second, it allowed him to change his very self so that when those feelings reappeared, they did so in the way he allowed them to.

Shen sat down and worked on that.

The first thing he did was significantly decrease how much feeling attracted to someone would affect him. He didn't destroy the feeling, however. As he had told the Drow Maiden, he recognized its usefulness. All emotions fulfilled a purpose.

He was only making sure they would fulfill his purpose.

He went over each one of his sentiments. Humility wasn't inferiority; it was recognizing his flaws instead of giving his strengths exclusive control over his thoughts and actions. Arrogance also had its place in protecting his ego and not letting other arrogant or apathetic people walk over him. Anger was a great tool to drive him forward in some situations. Calm would be better in different circumstances.

Time moved forth, and Feng Shen categorized everything he had felt since he woke up on modern Earth. He estimated how feeling things differently would've benefited him more. Then, he ensured his feelings would work according to his will.

It took him three days to finish the process.

When Shen finally stood up, the full moon shone brightly in the starry sky. He had no idea where he was, nor could he find it without the system. He should've read a book on astronomy or navigation while he had had the chance.

He would have to walk until he found a place where he could eavesdrop on people for directions. He was sure the no-communication rule wasn't in place to prevent that.

Shen picked his new rings up and inspected them. He had tested that function before and knew it hadn't been cut off from him.

=

Drow Token (G)

A cultural item among the drow race. It's usually used as proof of association with someone else. Mostly applicable when held by non-drow.

It contains a crystalized C+++ blood drop. You can inspect it separately.

=

Being G-rank made it easy to crush, so he was glad he could safely store it away.

Inspecting the blood drop said nothing but the race it belonged to. How any drow would know it belonged to the Drow Maiden was beyond him.

Drow Spatial Ring (C)

Enchantments: Mental Connection (C), Durability (C), Self-Repair (C), Spatial Fold (C)

The standard spatial ring used by the drow race. Has a larger inner space than comparable C-tier spatial rings.

The spatial ring had four enchantments instead of the five he expected for a C-tier item. That meant it had a core Law. Probably something related to Space or Time.

The system's inspection didn't explain how the ring worked, but it gave him a hint through the mental connection enchantment. So Shen put the ring on and focused on it. He instantly felt a minuscule and fragile magic connection coming from the ring. It touched his body, which prevented its progress.

The magic's feebleness guaranteed anything more substantial trying to use it to invade his mind would be readily noticed. Moreover, it made it easy to cut the connection off. He trusted it enough.

Shen opened himself to the magic and felt it connecting with his mind.

In the next instant, he knew how big the ring's inner space was—around seven cubic yards—and that he could push things inside and out merely by willing it. He also knew time inside the spatial fold worked exactly as outside. No convenient time-stopping enchantment for him like he had read in some xianxia stories.

Any movable object in direct contact with or within three feet of him could be pulled into his ring. However, he bet anything under the effect of someone else's energy or Path would resist the ring's pull. His best guess was that it would force a battle of willpower between him and the opposing power.

He pushed the Drow Token into the spatial ring, then inspected the spear.

Masterwork Spear (C+)

Enchantments: Sharpness (C+), Durability (C+), Self-Repair (C+), Flexibility (C+)

A spear that seeks to be as good as any spear has the right to be at the C-tier.

Its enchantments focus on improving certain traits of a spear.

Shen felt something extraordinary whenever he touched the weapon. He couldn't explain it as anything other than the spear singing to his soul. Holding it was like having someone that could fully understand him and whom he could fully understand back.

He had felt nothing like that while holding the spatial ring. Evidently, holding items with core Laws related to his own core Concepts or Laws was a unique experience.

The endearing, mystical, wondrous feeling made him hesitant to part with the spear.

Shen stored it inside his ring anyway.

He felt lesser for not touching it anymore and welcomed the emotion. He was not a spear. The weapon didn't make him more. It was only a tool, one of many in his arsenal. Maybe a core tool, but not him.

He considered pushing his tattered clothes into the ring too, but they were little more than rags by this point. Most of his body had been on full display for months, including his intimate parts.

The Drow Maiden hadn't cared, and he had learned not to either, as dishonorable as he had once considered it. He still didn't feel comfortable with it, but it was no longer part of his personal code of honor in certain situations.

Shen had been so absorbed by everything going on that only then did he realize the Drow Maiden had forgotten to give him new clothes or had lied about helping him with that.

He took it as another tip about how she wouldn't monitor him.

The signs were obvious enough. The Maiden had been too adamant about a Rupture Pilgrimage being about him. At best, it would be ineffective for her to watch over him. At worst, it might negatively affect the process. He was sure she couldn't care less about his actions despite still feeling her domain touching him.

The prickly Law on his skin was the ultimate proof. If she really wanted him not to be recognized, she would have pushed her Law deeper inside him. As it were, he only had to be willing to brave losing half an inch of skin to get rid of it.

Shen would still obey the rules whenever possible, though. He was sure they were there for a reason. He had learned to accept she was much wiser than him regarding his training.

So, he would go on the Rupture Pilgrimage—while doing something he wanted to. No, needed to. He needed it even more than growing more powerful to survive the Summit.

Shen needed closure.

He had previously considered how he constantly had to deal with urgent matters and kept pushing his own things for later. That "later" never came. That had assisted in making him see himself as nothing more than a tool.

His humanity, sense of self, and identity; they required him to find his clan's ancestral home. He needed to stop wondering about it. He needed to find out whether there was a message left for him there or if he had been thoroughly forgotten and abandoned.

The answer's content didn't matter as much as having an answer, any response.

Shen wasn't a weapon or a tool. He was a human being. Controlling his feelings also meant respecting them sometimes and acting accordingly. And those feelings demanded he dealt with that when he had the chance. Who knew when he would return after the drow took him away?

He had twenty-four days, not a single one more.

He willed his aura to bring him the sheets of paper the drow had given him. He changed his perspective so the magically created paper wouldn't disintegrate on his touch and sorted through them.

He decided the one with "Sharpness" would be the easiest to deal with because it was manifest in a physical object. Unfortunately, it required his spear, which he wouldn't use anytime soon.

"Combat" came second because the drawing of two people going against each other seemed like something he would constantly do.

"Unidentified Gentle Breeze" and "Unidentified Electric Arc" came third. They also appeared to be physical but seemed to contain movement, so they were ephemeral. They could exist one moment but disappear the other. He would need to actively seek them.

Lastly, "War" needed too many people and grand-scale thinking, while "Flow" and "Boundlessness" felt too abstract. He would leave those for last.

Shen would keep all that in mind. He would also carry the sheets with his hands to constantly look at them as he moved. Finding other sheets of paper to copy them and keep the copies safe also sounded like a good idea.

That was it, then. Time to move.

He pulled his aura back into himself, picked a random direction, and ran, naked, toward the horizon.

Sooner or later, he would find a road and abandoned cars. He was confident there would be clothes in one of them. Then, he would follow it until he found a town and localized himself. Once there, making sure no one saw him—so they couldn't inspect him—would be straightforward with his new abilities.

The odds of finding something other than a road first were so flimsy he hadn't considered it.

He had been wrong.

Two minutes later, Shen found two twelve-foot-tall blue E-rank ogres. They wore terribly maintained leather armor and were sitting around a firepit.

A human corpse was being spit-roasted on it.