Spiritrun Arena

​At 3 a.m., the neon sign of "Rusty Iron Tavern" blurred into a hazy red in the rain. Lin Ye wiped the last wine glass, and the glass reflected the faint pink scar at the corner of his eye – left by the spiritual vein riot three years ago, when he stood on the finals stage of the National Spirit Competition League as the youngest "Burning Heaven Flame Mark" user of the "Burning Heaven Palace".​"Jingle –"​The door burst open, and cold wind mixed with moisture rushed in. The leading man wore a dark green trench coat, and the silver flame totem on his epaulettes glowed coldly under the dim light. Lin Ye's hand paused, and the edge of the wine glass pressed a watermark on the bar.​"Lin Ye?"​The man's voice was like sandpaper scraping against metal. Lin Ye recognized this voice. At the league press conference three years ago, he stood beside Lin Ye, watching him ignite the main spirit mark with a "zero-error" perfect operation, blasting the opponent's "Mysterious Ice Shield Mark" into powder. Later... later in the third game of the finals, his spiritual vein suddenly went berserk, and the out-of-control flames devoured half of the arena.​"Captain Chen." Lin Ye forced a smile, resting his knuckles on the bar and standing up, "What a rare visitor."​Chen Zhuo didn't respond, his gaze sweeping over the drunkards staggering in the tavern, finally landing on Lin Ye's wrist. There was a faded black bandage wrapped around it, and dark golden patterns could be seen faintly moving under the exposed skin, like a sealed living creature.​"The Spirit Competition League is restarting." Chen Zhuo took out a metal box from his windbreaker, "The organizer found me and said there's a 'special guest player' quota."​The moment the metal box opened, Lin Ye heard his own heartbeat. Inside lay a diamond-shaped crystal, with spiritual energy fluctuations like starlight flowing on its surface – that was the "Spirit Mark Core", a competitive core that only top spirit mark users could activate.​"They said..." Chen Zhuo's voice lowered, "After the berserk incident, there's still a remnant of the 'Burning Heaven Flame Mark' in your spiritual vein."​Lin Ye's fingertips trembled slightly. Memories of three years ago suddenly surged up: he stood in the center of the finals stage, with the screams of 100,000 spectators in his ears, and the spirit mark core in his palm was burning. He could clearly sense the flow of every trace of flame, like a general commanding thousands of troops. But just as he was about to release the ultimate skill "Burning Heaven Domain", the spirit mark core suddenly trembled, and the energy that should have condensed into a fire pillar turned into a runaway wild horse, rampaging through his body.​When he woke up, he was in the hospital, and the doctor said his spiritual vein was "useless", no longer able to bear any spirit mark energy.​"I refused." Lin Ye lowered his head and stared at his hands, "Now I can't even perform the most basic 'Fire Summoning Technique'."​Chen Zhuo suddenly grabbed his wrist. Lin Ye winced in pain, but saw the other's palm cover his spirit mark, and the dark golden patterns actually lit up for a moment where they touched, like a spark waking from slumber.​"Residual spiritual rhyme isn't waste." Chen Zhuo's thumb rubbed the bandage on his wrist, "It's a seed."​The tavern door opened again, and this time a girl with a high ponytail entered, carrying a backpack covered in talismans. She glanced at Lin Ye, then at the spirit mark core in Chen Zhuo's hand, her eyes shining brightly: "Captain Chen! Is this the master you mentioned?"​"Su Tang, Spirit Competition League data analyst." The girl shook the tablet in her hand, "I've checked all your match videos. In that finals three years ago, in the second game, you used 'Fire Chain Restraint' to cooperate with Captain Chen's 'Shield Counterattack' to force the opponent into a corner – that tactic is still in the professional textbook."​Lin Ye's Adam's apple moved. Three years ago, he was known as the "Flame Commander" genius, who rose to the top from the rookie league with a "perfect victory record" at the age of 17. But now...​"I need a test." He suddenly said.​Chen Zhuo raised an eyebrow: "Go to the Spiritual Vein Resonance Chamber?"​"No need." Lin Ye tore off the black bandage on his wrist, exposing the entire arm. Dark golden patterns spread from the wrist to the forearm, like a sleeping dragon. He took a deep breath and gently stroked the air with his fingertips –​There was no expected explosion, only a tiny flame rising from his fingertips, trembling in mid-air like a firefly that might extinguish at any moment.​Su Tang leaned closer, and the tablet screen lit up with data streams: "Spiritual energy concentration 0.3%, but spirit mark structure integrity 97%!"​Chen Zhuo's pupils shrank. The spiritual energy concentration of a normal spirit mark user was at least above 5%, and 0.3% wasn't enough to even ignite a match. But Lin Ye's spirit marks... those lines that should have atrophied actually maintained a perfect spiral structure, as if carefully preserved by some force.​"Follow me." Chen Zhuo grabbed his coat, "In three days is the 'qualifying match' of the Spirit Competition League, and the organizer has given a 'challenger seat'."​Lin Ye looked at the tiny flame in his palm. For three years, he thought he had nothing to do with the spirit mark world anymore. But at this moment, the flame suddenly rose half an inch, reflecting the light in his eyes in the rainy night.​"Okay." He said, "But I have a condition –"​"What?"​"Let me choose the teammates." Lin Ye smiled, "This time, I want to form a team that can win myself."​