The next child tripped in the circle, drawing chuckles. Qin Yu remained behind the tree, face schooled into blankness. He tugged his sleeves down to hide the faint gray sheen on his arms. Already, it was fading—system camouflage reinforcing the illusion.
> [Camouflage Layer: 93% stability. Visual aura suppressed. No elemental signature detected.]
He exhaled. Good.
The moment had passed. Mostly.
But he needed to anchor the narrative. Villagers had seen something strange. That meant stories would spread. He couldn't let them grow too wild.
He opened the Copy/Steal menu, choosing a nearby boy who had awakened a genuine stone-hardened spirit—gray scales on one arm.
> [Target: Local youth "Meng Fan" – Spirit: Stone Serpent Scale (defensive)]
[Ability: "Hardened Dermis" – Rank F. Duration: 10 mins.]
[Copy? Minimal cost.]
He triggered it instantly.
A ripple spread beneath his skin.
The Voidborne Body flexed, shifted—reforming his forearms into a more traditional shape. No liquid black shimmer, no mirrored surface. Just dull stone. Lined. Predictable.
He stepped forward into the sun.
The elder glanced up, distracted by the process of helping another child off the array.
"You," he said, squinting. "Back already?"
Qin Yu nodded. He let the copied scale flash subtly beneath his sleeve, just enough for the elder to glimpse.
"Still stabilizing," he murmured. "Just… felt strange."
The elder tapped his staff twice. "Ah. Happens sometimes with unique types. Looks like a variant of obsidian hide. Rare, but not unheard of. You'll want to speak to the town's spirit tutor—if we had one."
A weak laugh.
Qin Yu bowed lightly. "Thank you, Elder."
The Spirit Hall acolyte, Liang Fei, hadn't moved. But his gaze locked briefly onto Qin Yu's hand.
No expression.
But his finger twitched once at his side.
He saw the difference, Qin Yu thought. Noted the change. But didn't challenge it.
Which meant he was thinking. Analyzing. Perhaps testing.
The boy behind Qin Yu activated a flame-based martial spirit. A brief flare of orange light drew the crowd's attention.
Good.
Qin Yu stepped back into the mass of children, perfectly blending in. Dull. Thin. Unremarkable.
But behind the stone mask, his Voidborne Body purred silently beneath his skin—reactive, waiting, watching.
> [EXP Gain: +4.6 (Spirit Awakened)]
[Current Passive: Hardened Dermis (Copied – 6 min left)]
[Void Density: 3% enhancement]
Every moment forward now would build on this lie.
A child with a rare, unimpressive defense-type body.
Harmless. Forgettable.
Exactly what he needed to be.
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