"Do you want to be my studt?" Master Orion asked, the question sounding less like an offer and more like giving him no other option.
This was also the first time he asked someone to be his studt, and moreover, a human from a primitive planet.
Should his companions found about this, would undoubtedly ridicule him. Yet, he ssed that accepting this human as a pupil would be advantageous to him.
"What?" Ram managed to ask, his voice barely above a whisper. He wasn't sure if what he heard was right.
Master Orion stepped closer, his presce looming. "It's simple, really," he began, his tone casual.
"You have abilities that are rare, and I have knowledge and power you've only begun to imagine. Under my guidance, you could surpass what you're now—far beyond these low-level humans."
Ram's breath hitched as he absorbed the weight of Orion's words. The allure of strgth, of unlocking a greater pottial, was undiable.
But something inside him resisted. "What does he really want? And what's the cost of following someone like him?"
"What's the catch?" Ram finally asked, finding a sliver of boldness in his voice. He knew that nothing came for free, especially not from someone as calculating as Orion.
Orion's grin remained, but his gaze turned sharper, almost predatory. "The catch?" He chuckled, a sound that st chills down Ram's spine.
"There's always a price to power, boy. But for now, I simply want to see how far you can go. Consider it an... investmt."
Ram's stomach twisted. There it was—the unspok threat, the unse price tag.
Whatever this "investmt" was, Ram doubted it was as simple as Orion made it sound. Yet the promise of power, of learning, of not being vulnerable—was it worth the risk?
The silce stretched betwe them as Ram weighed his options. Orion watched him with calm patice as if he already knew the answer Ram would give.
Ram clched his fists, the urge to resist clashing with the lure of power. "And if I say no?" he asked quietly.
Orion's expression didn't falter, but his tone harded, almost imperceptibly. "Th you'll continue to stumble through your growth, wasting that talt of yours."
But instead, he felt something far stranger. The seed dissolved into a network of root-like spiritual lines, spreading along his body, like a second set of meridians, intertwining with his blood vessels.
Ram staggered, clutching his chest as the ssation overwhelmed him. He could feel the seed's ergy pulsing, connecting to his own life force and spiritual power.
The roots wer't harming him—rather, they seemed to merge with his body, becoming part of him.
Master Orion watched with cold satisfaction, his arms crossed as if everything was going exactly as planned. "Consider that seed as an extsion of yourself; it will grow alongside you from this momt forward, although it grows very slowly, it is stronger than you can imagine," he said calmly.
"It's an extsion of your own life force. Nurture it, feed it, and it will evolve alongside you."
Ram's heart pounded as Orion's figure started to blur at the edges, fading away into the suring air.
Ev as the oppressive weight of his presce began to lift, his parting words echoed in Ram's mind.
"Wh the seed sprouts, seek me out. Until th... grow stronger." Orion's voice was almost a whisper, yet it resonated deep within Ram's core. "Don't disappoint me, kid. I'll be waiting."
This wasn't just a gift—it was a test. A test of his ability to handle the power he'd be giv.
And just like that, Master Orion was gone.
Ram stood there, feeling the pressure in the air gradually ease as his body finally relaxed.
He swallowed hard, wiping the cold sweat from his forehead. "What... just happed?" He exhaled slowly, his mind still racing.
But before he could utter another word, a sudd pain overwhelmed his sses, coursing through his tire body, and he collapsed.
In front of Ling Xi, his body slowly disappeared from the Wood Spirit Realm.
Like it? Add to the library!! I tagged this book, come and support me with Power Stones!
Thank You!!