Grand Return System-Chapter 98: The Gathering Storm Above Amethyst Summit

The Gathering Storm Above Amethyst Summit

For a moment, Selena froze - then so did Rias. Both pulled back without thinking.

A hush fell where laughter had been just moments before. The air inside the room grew heavy, like the calm right after a shout.

"This... is this a sign of a breakthrough?" Selena whispered, her silver lashes trembling slightly.

Her fingers tightened on the red fabric, a whisper of silk breaking the quiet. Staring at Kevin - sitting there, legs folded in the yard - the spark she often wore slipped away like sand through fingers.

One moment they stood silent, frozen in place. Then came a shared breath, sharp and sudden. Their eyes locked, wide with disbelief.

Few words came from Leon - slow thoughts on growing things, on staying steady inside. Not rushed, just quiet ideas about roots and patience.

What path brought us here from there?

Fascinated but calm, Leon stood there squinting slightly, his expression more curious than tense.

A soft lift of his hand, fingers open, told the pair behind him to stay where they were.

"Don’t interfere," he said softly. "Just watch."

A small twist tugged one side of his lips upward.

"Interesting... enlightenment on the spot?"

Frozen in place, Kevin showed every sign of shock.

This was not reckless advancement.

This was epiphany.

A cultivator’s sudden clarity—rare as a star falling in daylight.

Such a state could not be forced. It demanded comprehension, timing, and the alignment of heart and fate. Many cultivators pursued it their entire lives and never touched its edge.

Still, Kevin walked right in without a pause.

A soft gust lifted the edge of Leon’s robe, its pale purple threads catching the air. Hands locked together behind him, he stood still under the dark cloth that swayed like water.

"If he stabilizes this," Leon murmured inwardly, "it will surpass any pill I could ever give him."

Wind moved across Amethyst Summit Division.

Down went Kevin, easing into a seated position, back stiff, air pulling slow through his lungs. The stillness around him matched the steady rise and fall of his chest. Each breath anchored him further, firm and unshaken. Ground met bones softly, yet he held like stone.

Faster now, the mana inside him started to rise.

Not violently.

Not chaotically.

But like tides rolling across a vast lake.

In an instant, the surrounding spiritual currents responded.

Mana gathered from the heavens and earth, condensing above the summit into a spiraling vortex. Clouds shifted unnaturally, drawn toward a single point.

The air thickened.

The leaves of the peach forest trembled as if bowing.

A phenomenon formed in the sky.

Mana Blessings.

Far away—

Within Emerald Crest Division—

Headmaster Mike was meditating in silence when his eyes suddenly snapped open.

A ripple passed through the air, subtle but unmistakable.

"This is..."

His expression changed.

"Mana Blessings?"

He rose instantly, grey hair flowing behind him.

The vortex was forming above Amethyst Summit Division.

Such a phenomenon was rare even once in a century.

"Could it be... one of Leon’s students?"

He didn’t hesitate.

In a flash of light, his figure disappeared, soaring toward the source.

At Holy Water Division, Maya had been preaching to Amaya.

Her voice paused mid-sentence.

She looked up sharply.

High above Amethyst Summit Division, the vortex of Mana twisted like a celestial whirlpool.

Her eyes widened.

"Mana Blessings... who caused this?"

Amaya followed her gaze, black hair brushing her shoulders.

"Teacher... could it be Guardian Elder Leon?"

Ever since that day, the illusion of Leon’s weakness had shattered in their hearts. They now understood—his calm was not emptiness, but restraint.

Maya hesitated.

"To cause such a phenomenon... the one at the center cannot be ordinary."

She looked at her student.

"Amaya. Come. We will witness this wonder. Perhaps you will comprehend something from it."

Without another word, the two figures lifted from the ground, robes fluttering as they flew toward Amethyst Summit Division.

Across Celestis Academy, the vortex expanded.

From Secret Sword Summit to Black Sword Summit, cultivators stopped mid-training.

They felt it.

They saw it.

The entire Academy was shaken.

At Secret Sword Summit, Shera had just returned and barely removed his outer robe when he sensed the surging aura.

He stepped outside and looked toward Amethyst Summit Division.

His face darkened.

"Amethyst Summit Division again..."

His jaw tightened.

"Damn it."

One by one, figures rose into the sky.

The once-quiet Amethyst Summit Division suddenly became the center of attention.

Leon stepped out of the old training hall, purple eyes lifting toward the sky.

The vortex roared silently, drawing in Mana like a starving star devouring light.

"...Damn," he muttered under his breath.

"So many people?"

For centuries, Amethyst Summit Division had known loneliness.

A few wooden houses.

Two students.

Silence.

Now—

The sky above it churned, and experts from across the Seven Division gathered like moths to flame.

A figure appeared beside Leon almost instantly.

Headmaster Mike.

"Junior Brother Leon," he asked urgently, voice steady but eyes burning with anticipation, "who caused this phenomenon?"

Anyone capable of triggering Mana Blessings was no ordinary cultivator.

Such a person—

Was a treasure.

A pillar of the future.

Mike’s mind raced.

Was it Selena?

Her Divine Ice Bones were rare beyond measure.

Or Rias, who had recently entered the Academy yet carried extraordinary potential?

Leon merely smiled faintly.

He did not answer immediately.

More figures descended.

"Haha! Junior Brother Leon!" boomed a deep voice before its owner even arrived.

Yaman of Black Sword Summit.

"Your Amethyst Summit Division truly hides dragons and crouching tigers. The mountains are beautiful, the waters clear—yet today, it has produced Mana Blessings. I am truly shocked!"

He landed heavily, robes fluttering.

Behind him, other elders gathered, their gazes fixed on the swirling sky.

Moments later, Maya descended gracefully with Amaya.

Her dark blue robes flowed like water.

"Junior Brother Leon," she said softly, though her eyes remained fixed on the vortex above, "you have silently given us another surprise."

Her tone carried genuine amazement.

"Quickly, tell me—who caused this phenomenon?"

The vortex tightened.

Mana spiraled downward like threads of light.

At the center of it all—

Kevin sat unmoving.

Calm.

Still.

As if the entire world had fallen away, leaving only him and the path before him.