The air inside the Crimson Core Cavern tore apart with a deafening roar as Railin and Senior Disciple Lu collided in mid-air over the boiling red pool.
The impact was cataclysmic. Railin's dark blue lightning and black devouring qi clashed against Lu's incandescent golden dragon fire, creating a violent shockwave that blasted outward in every direction. Thermal currents slammed into the basalt walls, shattering massive crimson crystals and sending a rainfall of fiery debris into the boiling spirit liquid below.
BOOM!
The explosive recoil forced both combatants backward. Railin skidded thirty feet across the slick, scalding stone edge of the cavern, his boots carving deep grooves into the volcanic rock. His dark navy robes were singed at the sleeves, and his knuckles throbbed with a dull ache from the raw kinetic force of Lu's incomplete Foundation power.
On the other side of the boiling pool, Lu alighted atop a ledge of red magma stone. Although he remained airborne for a fraction of a second longer due to his semi-flight capabilities, his breath was slightly heavy, and the golden array runes etched across his chest flickered with unstable red sparks.
"Incredible," Lu spat, his voice echoing with a mixture of rage and incredulity. His golden eyes locked onto Railin with murderous intensity. "A commoner worm who entered the sect only months ago can actually stand against seventy percent of a true Foundation Establishment base without being instantly vaporized. Your physical body... it's not normal. What kind of taboo art did you harvest from the outer ruins?!"
Railin didn't waste his breath on answers. He stood tall, his black eyes cold and calculating as he observed every micro-fluctuation in Lu's spiritual energy.
His lower dantian has not fully crystallized, Railin analyzed swiftly, his spirit sense penetrating the dense heat layer around Lu's body. Because I interrupted his core condensation, his spirit sea is half-liquid and half-crystal. The golden fire qi is leaking from his meridians with every heavy strike. He has immense destructive power, but his endurance is flawed.
"Su Chen!" Railin barked without turning his head. "Suppress the perimeter thermal array! Don't let him absorb any more of the cavern's crimson liquid!"
Across the cavern, Su Chen had already positioned herself on a high rock ledge overlooking the boiling pool. Her pale face was drenched in cold sweat, but her eyes burned with decisive coldness.
"Glacial Seal — Frozen Heart Realm!" she chanted, plunging her translucent rapier deep into the stone wall.
CRACK-CRACK-CRACK!
Thick layers of glacial ice spread rapidly down the walls, sealing off the subterranean thermal vents that fed energy into the boiling pool. The scalding red liquid began to cool at a visible rate, its crimson glow dimming as a layer of thick frost blanketed the edges of the pool.
"Useless trash!" Lu roared, his gaze snapping toward Su Chen. "You think a mere inner disciple from the Ice Mystic Peak can restrict my ascension?!"
Lu raised his right hand, unleashing a forty-foot dragon made of pure golden fire that surged straight toward Su Chen's position on the high ledge.
"Your opponent is here," Railin's flat voice sounded from right beside Lu's ear.
Swoosh.
Using the sudden drop in temperature as a distraction, Railin had executed his shadow step to its absolute limit, blurring across the freezing pool and reappearing directly in Lu's blind spot.
The Eclipse Soul Scripture — Concentrated Triple Soul Needles!
Buzz!
Railin didn't hold back. He funneled eighty percent of his refined soul force into three pitch-black mental needles. They shot out from his upper dantian in a tight triangular formation, flying straight for the back of Lu's skull with terrifying velocity!
THWACK!
Lu's eyes widened in sudden, visceral horror as an invisible spike of pure mental force pierced through his protective spirit barrier and slammed into his sea of consciousness.
"AAAGHH!"
Lu let out a choked scream, clutching his head as his vision blurred and his golden aura flickered violently. The forty-foot fire dragon heading toward Su Chen instantly collapsed into harmless golden sparks in mid-air.
However, as a Half-Step expert who had reached seventy percent of the Foundation Establishment stage, Lu's soul foundation was vastly superior to that of ordinary Ninth Level disciples. He did not die instantly. Driven into a suicidal rage by the excruciating pain in his brain, Lu swung his right arm backward in a wild, desperate counter-attack!
"Golden Dragon Palm — Sun Shatterer!"
A colossal, five-foot palm formed of compressed golden fire slammed directly into Railin's chest!
CRASH!
Railin quickly raised his left arm, summoning the Void Wall to intercept the strike. But the sheer physical density of Lu's panicked counter-attack exceeded the black vortex's current absorption capacity. The black barrier shattered with a metallic ring, and the residual kinetic impact struck Railin squarely in the ribs.
BANG!
Railin was sent flying backward like a cannonball, crashing straight through two thick crystal pillars before slamming into the solid basalt wall of the cavern.
Cough!
Railin slid down to the stone floor, coughing up a small mouthful of dark blood. Two of his ribs were cracked, and his left arm felt completely numb from the thermal impact. Yet, despite the injury, his expression remained terrifyingly calm. His black eyes flared with an even darker, hungrier light.
"Heh... Hahaha!" Lu laughed maniacally, blood trickling from his own nose and ears as he struggled to stabilize his shattered soul sea. He stumbled forward on the magma ledge, his breath ragged. "Do you see the gap now, commoner?! My foundation is backed by the resources of the Imperial Dragon Peak! You cannot kill me!"
"Your soul is cracked, Lu," Railin said quietly, slowly standing up from the rubble. He wiped the blood from his chin with the back of his hand, his dark blue liquid core churning inside his lower dantian as it rapidly healed his cracked bones using consumed vital essence. "Every time you channel spirit qi now, your brain feels like it is being torn apart by hot iron."
Lu's laughter died in his throat. Railin was right. The Triple Soul Needles had left microscopic cracks across Lu's sea of consciousness. The pain was agonizing, making it almost impossible for him to focus his spirit sense or condense a high-grade martial art without risking permanent mental collapse.
"I don't need to channel high-grade arts to tear you apart!" Lu shrieked, his voice losing all its noble dignity.
He stomped his foot onto the stone floor, drawing a long, crimson-hued broadsword from his spatial ring. The blade was a mid-grade spiritual artifact, vibrating with a high-pitched hum as Lu poured fifty percent of his remaining liquid spirit qi directly into the steel.
"Die!"
Lu propelled himself forward, blurring into a streak of golden-red light. His sword cut through the steam, executing twelve lethal sword arcs in a single breath—a high-level movement technique designed to leave no avenue of escape!
Railin did not try to dodge. He knew his body speed could not completely outpace a flying sword trajectory at close range.
Instead, he took a step forward, deliberately inviting the attack.
CLANG! CLANG! FLASH!
Railin's dark blue lightning-encased fists parried eight of the sword arcs, but the remaining four slashed deep across his torso and shoulders, leaving bloody gashes that sizzled under the lingering golden fire.
Yet, Railin didn't flinch. He didn't even blink.
The moment Lu's broadsword buried itself three inches deep into Railin's left shoulder blade, Railin's left hand shot out like an iron clamp, grabbing the flat of the crimson blade and locking it tightly against his shoulder bone!
"What?!" Lu's eyes widened in sheer panic. He tried to yank the blade back, but Railin's grip was absolute, holding the steel with horrifying, unnatural strength.
"I have you," Railin whispered softly, his face just inches from Lu's terrified eyes.
"Release it! Let go, you lunatic!" Lu roared, trying to channel golden fire through the blade to burn Railin's hand to ash.
"Too late."
Railin's right hand, fully enveloped in a pitch-black, roaring gravitational whirlpool, thrust forward with lightning speed!
The Ashen Devouring Technique — Heart Shattering Claw!
SPLUP!
Railin's hand pierced straight through Lu's golden dragon armor plate, stabbing deep into his chest cavity and wrapping his fingers directly around Lu's pulsing, semi-crystallized spirit core!
"AAAGGGHH—!"
A scream of unimaginable agony erupted from Lu's throat, shaking the entire subterranean cavern.
"Devour," Railin commanded coldly.
VRRRRRRRRRR!
The pitch-black devouring vortex exploded with violent, unrestricted power deep within Lu's chest!
In full view of Su Chen, who watched from the high ledge in paralyzed awe, a horrific scene unfolded.
The massive seventy-percent Foundation Establishment base, the pure golden dragon blood essence, and the rich life force of Senior Disciple Lu were violently extracted from his body in thick, visible streams of golden, crimson, and white light. The streams surged through Railin's hand, flowing up his arm meridians like liquid fire and roaring straight into his lower dantian!
"No... No! My cultivation... My noble bloodline... Stop... STOP!" Lu shrieked, his voice turning thin and brittle as his hair turned white in seconds. His smooth skin withered, shrinking against his bones as his eyes dried into sunken sockets.
"You built your foundation on the backs of commoners," Railin murmured into the dying noble's ear, his voice cold as the grave. "Now, your foundation belongs to me."
CRACK-CRACK-CRACK!
Inside Railin's lower dantian, the massive influx of semi-crystallized Foundation spirit qi collided with his molten pool of dark blue liquid core. The combined energy surged to an unprecedented peak, creating a compressed, swirling storm of spirit power.
BOOM!
The liquid core inside Railin broke through its final physical constraint. The dark blue liquid began to condense, crystallizing from the center outward at a terrifying speed. Specks of black lightning wrapped around the emerging crystal core, turning it into a polished, diamond-like sphere of absolute power!
True Foundation Establishment Realm — Achieved!
A massive, terrifying aura erupted from Railin's body. The sudden shockwave blew away all the scalding steam in the cavern, shattering the remaining crystal pillars into fine dust and sending a wave of black lightning rippling across the cooling pool below!
Gurgle... CRACK!
In Railin's grip, the proud, arrogant body of Senior Disciple Lu—the leader of the Imperial Dragon Peak's trial faction—was reduced to a completely dry, brittle frame of gray bone.
Railin released his grip. The skeleton fell onto the cold basalt floor, shattering into a small pile of black ash that drifted away in the lingering wind.
The cavern fell into dead, absolute silence.
The boiling pool was now frozen over, the crimson steam was gone, and the heavy pressure of the noble faction had been completely erased from the Trial Grounds.
Railin stood alone in the center of the subterranean chamber, his dark navy robes torn and bloodstained, but his posture straight as a spear. The dark blue lightning crackling around his arms was now mixed with subtle strands of gold, reflecting the terrifying, refined strength of his newly formed Foundation core.
He took a slow, deep breath, stabilizing the vast ocean of spirit qi now roaring through his expanded meridians. Every sense was heightened; he could feel the faint vibrations of the earth three miles away and hear the drop of frost falling from Su Chen's rapier.
Swish.
Su Chen landed softly on the stone floor twenty feet behind him. Her rapier was sheathed, but her face remained unusually pale as she looked at the pile of black ash where Senior Disciple Lu had stood moments ago.
She stared at Railin's back, her icy blue eyes filled with a complex mix of shock, awe, and deep, instinctual caution. She had witnessed a commoner disciple—someone the noble factions viewed as expendable trash—slaughter an entire elite squad and absorb a Foundation Establishment expert whole.
"It's over," Su Chen said quietly, her crisp voice breaking the heavy stillness. "Senior Disciple Lu is dead. The Imperial Dragon Peak's force in this trial has been entirely wiped out."
Railin slowly turned around to face her. His black eyes were deep and clear, the violent lightning gradually receding beneath his skin.
"It is only over for them," Railin replied calmly, his voice flat and unreadable. "For us, the trial rewards are still waiting at the altar."
Su Chen nodded slowly. She reached into her spatial pouch and pulled out two glowing crimson tokens, holding them out toward him. "These belong to you. Without your intervention, I would have died at the hand of the Frost-Spine Behemoth, and the Ice Mystic Peak would have gained nothing from this trial."
Railin glanced at the tokens, then reached out and took one, leaving the second in her hand.
"One is enough for the top rank," Railin said smoothly. "Keep the other. An alliance should yield benefits for both sides."
Su Chen's eyes flickered with surprise. She looked at the token in her palm, then back at Railin, a faint, rare smile appearing on her cold lips. "A sensible commoner. If you survive the political fallout from the Imperial Dragon Peak elders after we return to the Inner Sect, the Ice Mystic Peak will remember this debt."
"Let the elders come," Railin murmured, turning his gaze back toward the tunnel exit leading up to the surface. "They will only find more ash."
See you in next chapter....