Free Web NovelChapter 67: Chapter 67: After the Ruin
The Broken Seal Ruin mission ended with an official academy statement.
The notice was carefully worded.
[Broken Seal Ruin exploration suspended.]
[Cause: Unexpected seal disturbance in Outer Zone Two.]
[Student teams safely withdrawn.]
[Further investigation assigned to academy instructors.]
[Students involved in rescue will receive merit compensation.]
It did not mention Blood Sun Hall.
It did not mention bloodline testing.
It did not mention Qin Yuheng.
But within the academy’s upper levels, the matter was no longer small.
Yu Qingmei summoned Qin Yuheng privately the next day.
This time, Xu Chengdao was also present.
The room was sealed.
Yu Qingmei spoke first.
"Tell us exactly what you felt."
Qin Yuheng knew he could not hide everything. Not after the seal trap reacted so specifically.
But he also could not reveal the Qin bloodline’s deeper truth.
"The seal pressure tried to resonate with my blood," he said. "It was faint. I suppressed it."
Xu Chengdao’s eyes narrowed.
"Your bloodline?"
"The Qin family has old inheritance traces," Qin Yuheng said calmly. "Dormant. Not active."
That was true.
Yu Qingmei studied him.
"Blood Sun Hall may have targeted you to test whether those traces remain."
"I believe so."
"Did your talent become suppressed?"
"Partially slowed, but not sealed."
Another careful truth. Primordial Origin Evolution had been unaffected, but his public thunder-body power had felt pressure.
Xu Chengdao asked, "Could you identify the seal?"
"Low-grade imitation bloodline reaction seal. Four core nodes. It reacted to mana bursts, talent power, and blood aura."
Yu Qingmei and Xu Chengdao exchanged a glance.
"You analyzed that during the rescue?" Xu Chengdao asked.
"Partly. Qin Mo handled the formation."
Yu Qingmei smiled faintly.
"You give your team credit."
"They earned it."
She nodded.
"Good."
Then her expression became serious.
"The academy will not ask about your family secrets. But understand this: if Blood Sun Hall has marked you, you must report any future contact, bait, or suspicious resource routes."
Qin Yuheng answered, "I will."
Xu Chengdao placed a small badge on the table.
"Temporary academy protection marker. It allows you to request instructor-level assistance inside academy territory if you detect Blood Sun-related activity."
Qin Yuheng accepted it.
"Thank you."
After he left, Xu Chengdao looked at Yu Qingmei.
"He is hiding much."
"Yes."
"Are we letting him?"
"For now."
"Why?"
Yu Qingmei looked toward the training grounds.
"Because he is not hiding against the academy. He is hiding from enemies. There is a difference."
Xu Chengdao smiled.
"Dangerous distinction."
"Useful one."
Back at the Qin Estate, Qin Yuheng reported everything to Qin Wanshan.
The old man’s face became terrifyingly calm.
Gu Tianhe stood beside him, silent as a mountain.
Qin Zhengyuan listened with lowered eyes.
Mu Qinglan’s fingers glowed faintly silver.
When Qin Yuheng described suppressing the bloodline resonance, Mu Qinglan finally relaxed slightly.
"You did well."
Qin Wanshan nodded.
"If you had followed the resonance, they might have confirmed more."
Qin Yuheng asked, "How much do they know now?"
Qin Zhengyuan answered, "They know the Qin blood is not dead."
Gu Tianhe’s voice was low.
"That alone is enough to raise their priority."
Qin Wanshan looked at Qin Yuheng.
"From now on, no unsupervised real-world ruin missions."
"I understand."
"And you will carry the Silent token at all times."
"Yes."
Qin Yuheng then took out the Seal-Stabilizing Stone Fragment from the ruin.
"I collected this before withdrawal."
Qin Wanshan stared at it.
Qin Mo, who had been invited to inspect it, sighed.
"Of course he still harvested something."
Qin Yuheng enhanced it later.
[C Grade Seal-Stabilizing Stone Fragment]
↓
[A Grade Ancient Seal-Stabilizing Stone]
Another treatment support material.
But this time, Qin Wanshan did not use it immediately.
"We store it. Zhengyuan’s wound has improved recently. Too many treatments in a short period may destabilize the deeper layer."
Qin Yuheng accepted the decision.
Patience again.
That night, he sat alone and reviewed everything.
Blood Sun Hall had tested Qin blood.
The academy had offered protection but also knew more.
The Qin family had tightened security.
His father’s treatment had paused to avoid instability.
Floor progression had reached Floor 5.
Next came Floor 6: Burning Grassland. fɾeewebnoveℓ.co๓
Fire resistance.
Heat endurance.
Flame beasts.
Possibly Flame Horn Rhino.
Qin Yuheng’s team needed to continue growing, but now they had to be less predictable.
He decided to delay Floor 6 for several days and focus on training.
For himself, he practiced Origin Thunder Emperor Body Scripture.
For movement, he balanced Thunder Shadow Flash and War Thunder Advance.
For the team, he arranged specialized training:
Qin Yuchen: pressure combat and prediction against faster enemies.
Qin Lian: stealth under detection arrays using the Silent Moon Shadow Cloak.
Qin Mo: seal formation basics and emergency anti-reaction formation techniques.
The ruin had exposed a weakness.
They needed better tools against seals.
Qin Mo complained but learned quickly.
"This is all because of that ruin."
"Yes," Qin Yuheng said.
"I hate that I am interested."
"That means you are improving."
"I hate that too."
Several days passed.
The academy calmed outwardly, but Qin Yuheng knew it was only surface calm.
Then, on the fifth day after the ruin mission, a sealed letter arrived from Yu Qingmei.
Floor 6 access approved.
Burning Grassland has shown unusual flame density.
Entry recommended only if your team has completed fire-resistance preparation.
No external mission pressure.
Decision yours.
Qin Yuheng looked at the letter.
A normal person might wait longer.
But he had prepared.
And enemies were already moving.
If he stopped too long, they would shape the battlefield around him.
He would not let that happen.
He gathered the team.
"Floor 6," he said. "Burning Grassland."
Qin Mo looked up.
"Fire?"
"Yes."
He thought for a moment.
"At least fire makes sound."
Qin Yuheng smiled faintly.
"Then you are coming?"
Qin Mo sighed.
"Unfortunately, yes."
