Chapter 125: The Second Ability

"Why such a commotion?" Mei asked, looking at the frost spreading throughout the room in bewilderment.

She had witnessed awakenings many times before; even when the family saw two hundred people awaken in a single day, she had never seen such a spectacle.

"Use your brain! Don't make me regret my medical treatment by wondering if I damaged your intellect," Cyril retorted, casting a look of disdain at Mei as he removed his glasses to observe An Ziyou’s reaction to the awakening.

Finding herself rebuked, Mei blinked and pouted slightly, but she obediently began to ponder the reason.

The answer was actually quite simple. During a first awakening, spiritual power is generally low, and aside from the energy stored within the body, it doesn't attract much external force. Things were different now: An Ziyou’s spiritual power had already condensed into a spiritual core, comparable to a first-level mage. He was now capable of resonating with external energy, so such a grand display was no surprise.

However, the changes in An Ziyou went beyond that. His shoulder-length hair had begun to grow, and a faint hint of blue now streaked through the black.

"Tsk, tsk. Is this the path to becoming an Ice Elf?"

An Ziyou’s features had always been delicate and soft, much like those of the Elf race, but now he looked even more like one.

This strange phenomenon lasted for thirty minutes before the frost in the room finally receded and An Ziyou woke up.

"Congratulations, Xiaoyou, you’ve awakened successfully!" Mei said with a beaming smile.

"Did I succeed?" An Ziyou was still groggy upon waking. He seemed to process her words slowly. When he felt the new surge of energy within his body, he became instantly thrilled. He couldn't wait to manifest his power, and staring at the ice spike in his palm, he was ecstatic to finally possess combat ability.

The Great Prophecy was powerful, but his level was still too low to utilize it for combat; he could only serve as a support in battle. Yet, as a man, he yearned to fight. He didn't want to be the one who always needed protection.

He had thought that participating in actual combat was a distant dream, never expecting to successfully awaken a second ability—and a Frost-type ability at that, second only to Lightning in offensive power. How could he not be excited?

An Ziyou couldn't help but toy with the ice spike in his hand, constantly trying to alter its shape.

"Don't get too happy just yet. While you are now a dual-ability user, it also means you will have to put in double the effort!" Mei reminded him, seeing that he was getting carried away.

"I know, Mei'er! I will work twice as hard to raise my Frost-type ability level as soon as possible!" An Ziyou’s voice was light, and his expression was more confident than ever.

Seeing this, Mei felt a touch of helplessness. It seemed that the late-blooming nature of the Great Prophecy had caused him a great deal of self-doubt. She didn't want to dwell on the comparison of abilities, so she shifted the subject: "Xiaoyou, your appearance has changed!"

"Changed?"

An Ziyou paused, only then noticing his hair had grown down to his waist.

"Why is my hair so long?" An Ziyou exclaimed.

"That's not all! Look at your eyes!" Mei handed him a small mirror.

An Ziyou took it with trepidation. He looked into the mirror and saw that his originally black irises had turned blue.

"What is going on?" An Ziyou asked, looking at Mei in confusion.

"It’s likely because you absorbed too much energy during your awakening and couldn't digest it all at once, causing your body to undergo these changes. After a while, when you fully assimilate the energy, you might change back. Though, you actually look quite good like this; it doesn't matter if you don't change back, does it?" Mei conjectured.

"Really? Won't it be strange?" An Ziyou asked uncertainly, looking at his black hair with blue highlights and his own eyes.

"Of course not. You look just like an Ice Elf; how could that be strange?"

"An Ice Elf? Does your race have elves like that?"

"Of course. Ice Elves are a branch of the Elf race. They live in cold regions and also have blue eyes, though their hair is a bit lighter than yours."

Hearing this, An Ziyou felt that his new appearance wasn't so bad after all, so he let go of his inner struggle and stopped worrying about whether he would turn back.

As they spoke, Lin Shaojie and Qu Wenyuan woke up one after another. Neither had shown any energy fluctuations throughout the process; clearly, their awakenings had failed. Though disappointed, they had expected this. The probability of awakening a second ability was very low, so failure was natural. They pulled themselves together, congratulated An Ziyou, and waited for the results of the final two companions.

A while later, Mo Chen woke up. As Mei had predicted, he did not awaken a new ability. He had already prepared himself for this, so there was not a trace of disappointment on his face. Seeing the change in An Ziyou and learning of his success with the Frost-type ability, Mo Chen was genuinely happy for him. Although he didn't show it often, Mo Chen had sensed his desire for combat. Now, he could finally have his wish.

Only Ye Jingxuan remained. At first, they waited patiently, but after an hour passed, everyone felt that something was wrong.

Without Mei needing to speak, Cyril stepped forward to investigate. However, the moment his spiritual power entered Ye Jingxuan’s body, a powerful force instantly devoured it.

"You gave him a magic rune?" The characteristics, clearly belonging to Dark-type energy, led him to a certain possibility. He turned to Mei and asked.

"I didn't give it to him; he absorbed it himself! Why, is there a problem?" Mei shook her head. Mo Chen and the others, hearing the term "magic rune" for the first time, looked blank but did not interrupt.

"See for yourself!" Cyril didn't explain, leaving it to Mei.

Mei released her spiritual power, and as soon as it entered Ye Jingxuan’s body, it was entangled by a strand of Dark-type energy. The energy contained in a magic rune was limited and usually attached to the host's own strength, not forming an independent force. Mei had not expected the Dark energy within him to separate on its own, so she hurriedly used her spiritual power to control it.

The separated Dark energy had devoured quite a bit of Ye Jingxuan’s Metal-type energy, becoming several times stronger than when it first entered his body. Mei struggled to bring the Dark energy under control. Just as she was about to re-attach it to the Metal energy, another force surged within him.

Blazing flames erupted from Ye Jingxuan’s body, engulfing him—and Mei, who was nearby—in an instant.

"What is happening?"

The red flames were scorching and fierce, making it impossible to get close. Qu Wenyuan’s Water-type ability couldn't extinguish them, let alone An Ziyou’s newly awakened Frost-type ability.

"He is awakening his ability; don't interfere!" Seeing them trying to find ways to douse the flames, Cyril finally couldn't watch anymore. He spoke while raising a barrier to prevent the heat from affecting the rest of the cabin.

"But Mei'er is still in the fire!" Mo Chen looked at the figure wrapped in flames, his eyes reddening with anxiety.

"She will be fine! His flames will not hurt her!" Although Cyril’s tone was calm, his eyes were fixed on Mei’s figure within the fire, never blinking.

Mei, who everyone was worried about, felt only warmth and was completely unharmed. The flames seemed to have a consciousness of their own; they didn't even singe a single strand of her hair.

Mei turned her attention back to Ye Jingxuan. Freed from the consumption of the Dark-type energy, his Fire-type energy began to grow frantically. External energy poured into him, which he absorbed and converted. Mei waited until the absorption slowed before once again controlling the Dark energy to re-attach to the two types of energy within him.

Once the energy in his body calmed down, Ye Jingxuan finally opened his eyes.

"Ah Ye, congratulations on awakening your Fire-type ability!" Mei said as he woke up. She observed him for any changes, as his spiritual power had also condensed into a core. If her previous theory was correct, he should have changed as well.

However, Ye Jingxuan’s hair remained the same, and his eyes stayed black. He looked no different than before. Mei observed him for a moment and realized something was off. Although he had opened his eyes, they lacked focus; he wasn't truly awake.

"Ah Ye?" Mei called again.

At the sound of her voice, a flash of red crossed his pupils, and focus slowly returned.

"Mei'er!" Ye Jingxuan looked at Mei and whispered her name instinctively.

"Are you alright?" Mei asked with concern.

"I'm fine. I'm doing great!" Ye Jingxuan was fully awake now. Looking at the flames surrounding them, he could feel a connection to them, as if they were an extension of his own consciousness that could change according to his will.

"That's good! But your flames seem a bit strange. Why is the temperature so low?" Mei asked curiously once she was sure he was unharmed.

When Ye Jingxuan retracted the flames into his body, Mei was startled by the scene in the room. The bed frame had been melted by the intense heat, the bed boards were charred black, and the linens were gone. If Cyril hadn't acted in time, the fire might have spread outside!

Mei looked at Ye Jingxuan in surprise, but he only curled his lips slightly and offered no explanation.

She was the person he wanted to protect with his life; how could the flames controlled by his will ever hurt her?