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Chapter 8 – Crimson Pact
Night bled across the sky like ink spilled over a parchment of stars.
Kael's breath steamed in the cold air as he stared down at the crimson-marked stone in his palm. It pulsed once every few seconds—a low, rhythmic heartbeat that didn't belong to him.
Beside him, Lys crouched near the frozen stream, one gloved hand skimming over the water's surface. Her new cloak, now fully bonded, shimmered faintly with frost-thread magic. It had accepted her. No rites. No ceremony. Just recognition.
She moved like she had always worn it.
They were deep in the Blightwood now, far from Westgate's broken walls and burning silence. The corrupted trees groaned with age and dark Qi, their bark split with glowing red veins. Every few steps, Kael could feel the ambient tension—the sensation of being watched.
He hated it.
Lys stood and exhaled. "There's something wrong with the Qi here. It's not just corrupted—it's wounded."
Kael blinked. "Wounded?"
"Like something ancient is bleeding beneath the roots."
Before he could ask more, the stone in his palm flared. A flash of memory—not his own—slammed into him.
A chained figure beneath a mountain. Eyes aflame. Voice like a storm: "You are not the first to carry the fire."
Kael staggered back, his pulse hammering. "What the hell was that?"
Lys was already at his side, eyes narrowed. "You heard something."
He nodded. "No. Saw something. Someone."
The Gracebound System chimed again.
> New Quest: Seek the Wyrm Seal
Objective: Discover the source of the corrupted flame
Reward: ???
> New Passive Unlocked – Fireline Echo:
Residual memories of the draconic path now echo in your perception. Beware what sees you back.
Kael looked down at his palm. The stone had vanished—absorbed into his skin. A faint mark now lingered, glowing faintly like a branded sigil.
"Things keep getting weirder," he muttered.
"I'd say welcome to cultivation," Lys replied dryly, "but this is worse than usual."
They walked on, the terrain growing colder and darker. Ice crystals bloomed unnaturally on roots and rocks. When they reached a clearing, Kael raised a hand—something moved.
A beast crouched on the far side of the glade. It looked like a wolf carved from obsidian, with crimson streaks in its fur and three burning eyes.
"Bloodfang," Lys whispered. "And a big one."
Kael unsheathed the Emberfang Blade. "How do you want to play it?"
She slid a pair of frost-glass daggers from her belt. "Fast and brutal."
The Bloodfang didn't wait.
It lunged—pure muscle and speed. Kael ducked under its swipe and slashed with Emberfang. Fire licked across the beast's side, but the creature rolled with the strike and countered with a spiraling leap. Lys blurred forward, moving with unnatural grace. Her frost cloak shimmered, allowing her to pivot mid-air and drive both daggers into its exposed neck.
The beast howled.
Kael summoned Gale Edge, the wind-slice spell, and let it loose. The arc cleaved the Bloodfang's hind legs, toppling it.
Lys didn't hesitate. She twisted the blades, jumped free, and Kael ended it with a single, fire-empowered thrust through its heart.
The glade fell silent. The Bloodfang's body turned to black ash, revealing three items where it fell: a silver-etched chestplate, a flame-touched ring, and a tattered leather tome.
Kael approached first. The ring pulsed with a subtle heat, resonating with his Qi.
He slipped it on.
> Flamebinder's Ring:
+10% Fire Qi channeling, increased resistance to heat-based damage.
The chestplate floated toward Lys of its own accord. She raised an eyebrow but allowed it. When the frost-thread cloak shifted to accommodate it, she nodded.
"Not bad. Reinforced leather. Lightweight, enchanted to resist piercing strikes and cold damage."
Kael picked up the tome. It unsealed at his touch, revealing sketches of glyphs and runes—most of them half-faded. At the very back, a folded scroll was tucked between the pages.
Spell Acquired: Mirror Shards
Summons three illusory clones that distract and disrupt for five seconds.
He handed it to Lys without speaking. She tucked it away silently.
The system chimed one last time.
> Battle Spoils Collected. Grace Points +15.
Current GP: 25
They made camp near the edge of the clearing, and as the fire crackled between them, Kael finally broke the silence.
"What if the fire in me isn't mine?"
Lys didn't look up. "It's yours now."
He frowned. "You're not curious where it came from?"
"Of course I am. But I've seen enough strange things to know one truth—whatever power chooses you, you still decide what you do with it."
Kael leaned back, letting her words settle like embers into his chest.
And far beneath them, something ancient stirred.
Chains rattled.
And a voice whispered in a language long dead.
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