The Flame Emperor Sect's retreat was not a flight but a calculated withdrawal, a serpent coiling to strike again. Crimson banners, once held high, now dragged through the ash-choked mud as cultivators in scorched armor limped across the blighted battlefield. At the rear, General Krell, his face a mask of molten flesh from Li Tian's primal strike, turned toward the village. His voice, amplified by smoldering qi, shook the ruins:
*"This earth will drink your blood, Li Tian. The Flame Emperor's wrath will scorch your name from history!"*
The threat lingered like sulfur as the last of the sect's war machines vanished into the haze.
---
**The Cost of Victory**
Li Tian stood amidst the smoldering remains of the village square, the Primal Core's light dimming in his chest. Around him, the survivors moved like ghosts—villagers sifting through rubble for belongings, mothers clutching silent children, healers kneeling beside the maimed. The air reeked of charred wood and iron, the metallic tang of blood mixing with the acrid sting of spent qi.
Mei Ling found him staring at the ruins of the watchtower, its timbers still crackling. "We lost thirty-seven," she said quietly. "Including Old Lian and his granddaughter."
Li Tian's jaw tightened. The Core pulsed, its energy gnawing at his meridians. "Their pyres will burn tonight. The sect will see the smoke."
"And know we're still here," Yan Mei added, joining them. Her dagger hand trembled—whether from exhaustion or rage, Li Tian couldn't tell. "But they'll return. Stronger."
---
**The Council of Ashes**
In the relic chamber, now crowded with the wounded, the village's leaders gathered. Old Guo traced the Primal Core's sigil on a parchment, his voice frail but insistent. "The Core is not a tool—it's a pact. The Magic Emperor used it to build his sanctum, but its hunger consumed his disciples."
Renshu slammed a charred siege construct fragment onto the table. "We need walls that *fight back*. Let the Core's energy protect us."
"At what cost?" Xia countered, her healing qi still wrapped around a burn victim. "Li Tian can barely stand. If we bind the Core to the village, it could drain him—or worse."
All eyes turned to Li Tian. The corruption had spread to his collarbone, black veins stark against his pallid skin. "We have no choice. The next attack will be annihilation, not a raid." He placed a hand on the relic chamber's central stone, the Core flaring in response. "We rebuild. Not just walls—a *bastion*."
---
**The First Fortification**
At dawn, Li Tian climbed the shattered northern gate. Survivors gathered below, their faces gaunt but resolute. With a roar, he channeled the Core's energy into the earth.
The ground trembled. From the soil erupted obsidian spires, their surfaces etched with primal runes. They curved inward, forming a lattice of glowing black stone over the village. The air hummed as the barrier sealed, its energy repelling a stray vulture with a crackle of light.
"The Primal Veil," Li Tian announced, though his voice faltered. Blood trickled from his nose. "It will hold against fire and steel."
The villagers cheered, but their joy died as Li Tian collapsed.
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**The Hollow Star's Whisper**
That night, Li Tian dreamt of the labyrinth. The Hollow Star awaited him, its form a shifting void crowned with frozen flames.
*"You think this barrier a triumph?"* it mocked. *"You've only made the village a beacon. My kin stir in the deep—they smell the Core's light."*
Li Tian woke gasping, the corruption now clawing at his throat. Outside, the Primal Veil shimmered, its shadow stretching toward the Deadbone Wastes like an invitation.
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