As the class bell rang, everyone finally moved away from Ding Yun's side and returned to their seats. Then the teacher came in and asked where the fragrance was coming from.
"Teacher, it's the scent from Aiyuan."
"She's awakened the 'Fragrant Breath' ability!"
"Understood, let's start class!"
The teacher didn't seem to be in a mood to make trouble, nodded in understanding, walked to the podium, opened the book, and began the lesson as usual.
Subsequently, every unsuspecting teacher who entered the classroom for a lesson would ask about the scent. The students in the class were also very enthusiastic in their responses, helping Ding Yun explain. After three or four repetitions, the news that Wen Aiyuan of Class 3-4 had awakened the 'Fragrant Breath' ability, along with the students' discussions and the teachers' conversations in the office, quickly spread throughout the entire school.
The reason this matter spread so quickly was mainly due to its rarity. If Ding Yun had awakened any elemental ability such as gold, wood, water, fire, earth, darkness, or light, or even abilities related to strength or speed, and even if the ability level was relatively high, people wouldn't have been so concerned or curious. This was because elemental and physique-based abilities were common. They often saw these types of ability users on television, and their own families, relatives, neighbors, or friends also had people who awakened such abilities. It was normal, so who would be curious or care? However, the 'Fragrant Breath' ability was something that had never appeared since the school was founded. No matter how low the level, it couldn't resist the curiosity that came with rarity.
Many people were so curious that they specifically came to watch after class, just to catch a whiff of the scent from Ding Yun from a distance. Some even discussed privately whether her ability would change after leveling up, if she would become a giant human-shaped scent source, or if she herself would suffer from olfactory damage due to the overwhelming intensity of the fragrance. In short, Ding Yun was a campus celebrity for several consecutive days before the related buzz slowly subsided. The classmates gradually got used to the fragrance on her, and life returned to its normal track.
Since the curriculum for the third year of junior high held no difficulty for Ding Yun, she quickly grasped everything. Therefore, she naturally dedicated more of her energy to the system, and to the training of her abilities and martial arts. In particular, the training of the 'Fragrant Breath' ability occupied most of Ding Yun's energy. Compared to practicing martial arts, training the 'Fragrant Breath' ability was simply too easy and convenient, and could be practiced anytime, anywhere. After all, the method of training the 'Fragrant Breath' ability was nothing more than deep inhalation and prolonged exhalation. As long as Ding Yun had nothing in her mouth, whether in class, after class, watching TV, or using the restroom, she could train. Her proficiency was increasing visibly every day, soaring like a rocket. In comparison to the speed at which her 'Fragrant Breath' ability improved, the progress of her martial arts was as slow as a turtle's.
There was no way around it; martial arts couldn't be practiced during class, while eating, using the restroom, or sleeping. After a day of classes, homework, dinner, and some playtime with friends, and excluding the eight hours of sleep, there was very little remaining time. It was good if she could gain a few points of proficiency each day. Therefore, it wasn't until more than half a month later that she finally managed to raise her martial arts to another level.
[Host: Wen Aiyuan (Ding Yun)
Level: Novice Second-Rate Martial Artist
Skills: Fragrant Breath Lv5 (95/10000)
Martial Arts: Basic Inner Force Lv3 (2/500)
Basic Light Body Skill Lv3 (2/500)
Thousand Mile Bright Eyes Skill Lv3 (6/500)...]
The upgrade of her martial arts to that of a second-rate martial artist was unremarkable. There were no major changes, just a bit more strength and inner force. However, the 'Fragrant Breath' ability underwent a drastic transformation upon reaching Level 5. It could now attack.
Yes, 'Fragrant Breath' could now be used for offense. The attack method was quite simple: by exhaling. The ability could generate an extremely potent fragrance, which could be directly sprayed at enemies. One must realize that when a fragrance reaches a certain level of intensity, it ceases to be pleasant; it becomes an irritant. A faint, pleasant scent soothes the mind and body. A slightly stronger fragrance uplifts the spirit. But an extremely concentrated fragrance would only evoke disgust, even causing dizziness and nausea as if one had inhaled poison gas, or rendering them unable to fight.
After her ability reached Level 5, Ding Yun could compress the fragrance she exhaled. As long as she compressed the fragrance from her mouth more than a hundredfold, virtually no one could withstand the attack of such an intensely concentrated aroma. If she didn't compress her fragrance, her 'Fragrant Breath' ability at Level 5 had a wide radius of effect. A single use of the ability could make the area for several miles around her exude a rich fragrance. As for the specific scent, it depended on what she ate that day and her mood. If she ate a lot of fruit, there would be a strong fruity scent, and if she was in a good mood, the fruity scent would carry a hint of sweetness, making people feel happy. If she ate a lot of vegetables, there would be a rich woody fragrance. When in a good mood, the woody scent would be accompanied by a hint of floral notes. When in an average mood, it would contain a slightly neutral woody aroma. When depressed or unhappy, it would be mixed with a faint cool fragrance. It also had a similar effect on people's emotions, though the impact was very weak. If she ate a lot of meat, she would emit a rich meaty aroma. However, the meat scent might be mixed with fragrances like rosemary, scallions, or cilantro to act as a harmonious blend, making it rich but not greasy.
However, these were just very rough descriptions. In reality, the fragrance Ding Yun exhaled was complex, with almost no two days being the same. There could even be significant differences in fragrance within an hour. If Ding Yun hadn't been able to control when to use or not use her ability, and if she hadn't frequently collected the exhaled fragrance into her soul space to convert it back into ability energy during her training, it's likely that neither Ding Yun, her family, nor her neighbors would have been able to tolerate it, as not everyone enjoys all kinds of fragrances. Some people might prefer odorless air.
Now that her ability had reached Level 5, the newly acquired ability to compress fragrance finally solved Ding Yun's dilemma of having to constantly use her ability to increase its level, while also having to minimize the spread of the fragrance. This was because she could now compress the fragrance exhaled from her mouth into liquid form for preservation through extreme compression. This way, she only needed to prepare some glass bottles to store the liquid fragrance she expelled. These fragrance liquids were equivalent to fruit concentrates. A single drop could be used to dilute hundreds or thousands of bottles of perfume. This not only allowed her to train her ability without affecting others around her but also enabled her to sell the product of her ability to earn money. What a win-win situation, killing two birds with one stone!
Therefore, after her ability completed its upgrade and she figured out the perfect method of use, Ding Yun informed her parents about the matter. Her parents then stepped in to help her establish a perfume company, with Ding Yun responsible for providing the basic fragrance raw materials, which would then be produced by a contract manufacturer. They would sell the products online through an e-commerce store. Su Yan and Wen Chang even spent hundreds of thousands of yuan on advertising and promotion to boost Ding Yun's sales.
Whether it was the effective advertising, the public's curiosity about perfumes created by a 'Fragrant Breath' ability user, or the compelling publicity that each batch of perfume had a unique scent that even the ability user couldn't replicate, appealing to the public's desire for uniqueness, the perfumes sold very well. Before the end of the third year of junior high, Ding Yun had achieved financial freedom. Her assets not only surpassed her parents', but her future also appeared to be a smooth, unobstructed path. As long as her ability didn't encounter any issues, her perfume company would be enough for her to live on for a lifetime. This development was truly beyond the imagination of the entire family. Su Yan, who had once tried to comfort Ding Yun with a collection of stories about successful people with seemingly "useless" abilities, had never dared to dream of such a scenario. After all, who could have imagined that less than half a year after giving her daughter a pep talk, she would become a successful individual? This wasn't just chicken soup for the soul. It was practically a catalyst for realizing daydreams!