Lucifer stirred from his thoughts. He glanced down at his empty wine cup, then without a word, poured himself another.
The crimson liquid swirled like blood under the dying sun as he raised it to his lips and drank slowly, silently. The warmth slid down his throat, but it didn't ease the heaviness in his chest.
His eyes drifted toward the horizon, where the golden light gave way to the deep blues of approaching dusk.
"Kaira…"
The name echoed again in his heart—soft, haunting, unforgettable.
He didn't know who she was. He didn't know why her voice lingered so vividly in his dreams. But every time he closed his eyes, he felt her presence.
Familiar… yet distant. Like a part of him had been lost long ago—and was now calling him back.
"No matter what it takes… I'll find out who you are!" He made a promise to himself.
Lucifer clenched the cup in his hand. He wasn't someone ruled by emotion, but when it came to her, something inside him stirred—something raw, ancient, and unexplainable.
Was it love?
No.
It was deeper yet stranger.
As if she wasn't just someone he had to find.
But someone he was meant to remember.
He closed his eyes briefly, steadying his breath.
"I'm almost at the peak of the Blazed Soul Realm."
That part was undeniable. His foundation was solid—his cultivation path sharp and unwavering. In Rainey Kingdom, he was a prodigy. A legend in the making.
But outside this kingdom…
His jaw tightened.
Out there, true monsters existed—geniuses far beyond his level.
Young geniuses who are not even eighteen… already far stronger than Darian Aurelia, the clan leader himself.
Bloodlines blessed by ancient dragons.
Souls tempered by divine flames.
He had heard rumors of youths who shattered mountains with a glance, who walked through lightning as if it were rain. Talents so overwhelming they made the word genius feel meaningless.
Lucifer knew that if he wanted answers—if he wanted to reach the truth behind his dream, behind Kaira, he couldn't afford to stay in this small corner of the world.
Rainey Kingdom was too small.
The Aurelia Clan… too quiet.
The real path of cultivation—the true struggle for power, legacy, and fate lay far beyond these walls.
And he would chase it.
With fire.
With blood.
With unwavering resolve.
He stood, setting the wine cup down beside the window sill. The sky had turned darker now, painted with streaks of violet and ember.
The wind outside picked up, cold and wild like the future calling out to him.
Lucifer looked toward the horizon, his silver eyes narrowing.
"Soon..." he whispered, the word carried away by the wind.
He planned to begin his breakthrough tonight.
The path ahead was clear, the next realm was within reach. His spiritual core was stable, his mind focused, his intent sharp. All he needed was silence.
But just as he moved toward the cushion in the center of his room…
Knock! Knock!
A few quick taps on the door, followed by an all-too-familiar, energetic voice.
"Brother Lucifer! Are you there?"
Lucifer blinked once, his thoughts scattering like mist. He let out a breath, then stood and opened the door with a small, knowing smile.
"Brother Dennis?" he said, raising a brow, "You're still sweating. Didn't cool off after training?"
Dennis Aurelia stood grinning in the doorway, breathless and flushed, his white training shirt clinging to his chest.
His jet-black hair was tousled, and his sharp eyes—always gleaming with fire locked onto Lucifer with excitement.
"I just heard from the elders!" Dennis blurted, practically bouncing on his heels, "You got the slot for the Blazing Sky Institute recruitment! Brother, that's insane!"
Lucifer blinked, amused by the younger man's enthusiasm.
"So the news has already spread that far?"
"Of course it has!" Dennis beamed, stepping inside without waiting for an invitation, "The whole inner court's buzzing about it. But get this—I was selected too!"
Lucifer's eyes narrowed with faint surprise. "You too?"
"Yup!" Dennis slapped his own chest proudly, still grinning, "The clan picked four of us. We don't know who the other two are yet, but you and I are confirmed. This is our shot, Brother. The Western Continent's most legendary legacy… and we'll be standing right at its gates!"
Lucifer gave a slow nod, his smile subtle but sincere. "Then we'd better not embarrass the Aurelia name."
Dennis laughed, dropping into the nearby chair, wiping sweat from his forehead with his sleeve.
"Embarrass? Please. You're Lucifer Aurelia. Everyone already calls you the clan's brightest star. They'll be shocked when they see what we're made of."
Lucifer sat across from him, arms resting on the windowsill. The sky was darker now, the stars flickering to life.
"Brightest star or not," he said quietly, "once we step beyond this kingdom, we're not special anymore. There are those out there whose strength makes ours look like child's play."
Dennis fell quiet for a moment.
Then he smiled softer this time.
"Then let's make them remember us."
Lucifer glanced at him, then gave a rare chuckle. "Deal!"
Outside, the wind whispered through the trees like a quiet drumroll for what was to come.
After talking for a while longer, Dennis finally rose to his feet, flashing one last grin before heading out.
"Rest well, Brother. Tomorrow, everything changes!"
Lucifer gave a nod and closed the door behind him with a soft click. The laughter faded, the warmth of companionship replaced once more by silence.
He turned, stepping into the heart of his room, the polished wooden floor cool beneath his feet as he sat cross-legged in the center.
From his sleeve, he retrieved a small jade bottle and gently uncorked it.
Inside lay a single, emerald-green pill, glowing faintly in the dim candlelight.
"Purity Ember Pill!"
A rare Rank One treasure—something even most elite clans in the Rainey Kingdom couldn't easily obtain. There were only three within the entire Aurelia Clan… and this one had been granted to him personally by the Clan Leader.
He stared at the pill in silence, its scent clean and sharp, like morning dew on sacred herbs.
"One pill, one chance."
"This could cleanse my body, enhance my spirit, and push me past the final bottleneck."
In the Celestial Starry Realm, cultivation followed a strict and mysterious path:
1. Blazed Soul Realm
2. True Starlet Realm
3. Infernal Lord Realm
4. Half-Saint Realm
5. Saint Realm
Beyond that, the stages remained shrouded in myth and legend.
Lucifer didn't hesitate. He placed the pill on his tongue and swallowed. The moment it entered his body, a surge of warmth erupted in his core, spreading through his veins like liquid sunlight. A faint tremor ran through his spine.
He shut his eyes and exhaled slowly, steadying his mind.
Then he began.
His breathing changed—no longer shallow and casual, but deep, rhythmic, measured.
Inhale. Exhale.
A subtle hum resonated through the room as the cultivation technique activated.
His seven orifices gently opened, a thin mist of spiritual energy being pulled from the air around him. The heavens responded—soft traces of power weaving into his body like invisible threads.
Golden particles of light formed around him, orbiting slowly as if drawn to his existence.
The impurities in his blood began to boil. His muscles twitched. His bones creaked softly. A dull ache rose from deep within his meridians, but Lucifer didn't flinch.
He had endured worse.
This was merely the fire before the forge.
He focused inward, guiding the flow of energy into his spiritual core, the very heart of his cultivation.
It pulsed dimly at first but then began to glow brighter with each passing breath.
The energy from the Purity Ember Pill flowed smoothly, nourishing every cell. He began channeling it through the final internal cycle, ready to break through…
Then everything went wrong.
A sharp twist.
The energy deviated.
His eyes snapped open. "What…!?"
Instead of circulating to his core, the flow shifted violently toward his lower abdomen. A sudden black vortex tore into existence, spinning like a silent scream—an ink-dark spiral that devoured everything.
"Fuck!" he cursed mentally, panic surging in his chest. "What the hell is that!?"
The vortex acted like a black hole. In one heartbeat, the entire spiritual energy from the pill... every drop was gone...
Not a trace remained.
Lucifer's expression darkened as cold sweat broke across his back. "That was a Rank One pill… and it just vanished like nothing?"
Clenching his jaw, he directed his spiritual sense inward. His awareness pierced through his meridians and locked onto the thing in his abdomen.
A black sphere. Silent. Still. Ominous.
Then it vibrated.
A pulse echoed through his soul like the cry of something ancient and unfathomable. A soundless whisper, felt more than heard, brushed the edge of his mind.
And then… The sphere released everything it had devoured.
A surge of power exploded through his body. But this time, the energy wasn't the same.
Lucifer's eyes flew open, wide with disbelief.
"This… this energy is different. Purer. Denser. Ten times more refined than before!"
He couldn't tell whether that thing was a blessing or a curse but it didn't matter now.
He bit down on his thoughts and resumed his breathing technique.
"Breakthrough first. Questions later."
The refined energy swept into his spiritual core like a roaring tide. His veins burned, his bones cracked, and his heart thundered like a war drum.
The final barrier before the next realm…
It trembled. Then shattered.
BOOM!
A shockwave erupted within him, invisible to the world outside. His entire body lit up in radiant light for a brief instant before calming like the surface of a lake after a storm.
Lucifer exhaled slowly. His eyes gleamed like stars in the dark.
He had stepped into a new realm.
But his gaze remained sharp.
He extended his palm, then clenched it into a fist.
With a swift motion, he punched the air in front of him.
BOOM!
A supersonic crack resounded as the air split apart like thunder tearing through silence. The shockwave rippled across the chamber, shaking the dust from the walls.
Lucifer stood tall, his robes rustling in the fading echo.
He exhaled slowly, but the fire in his eyes betrayed his calm exterior. But a faint smile tugged at the corner of his lips.
"I've finally broken through..." he muttered under his breath. "The First Stage of the True Starlet Realm."
This moment—this feeling was something only cultivators could understand. The surge of power. The clarity of perception. The sensation that the very world had bent slightly in your favor.
He flexed his fingers, feeling the energy flow seamlessly through every part of his body. His limbs felt lighter, his senses sharper, and his spiritual core now pulsed like a miniature star steady, luminous, and alive.
True Starlet Realm!
A stage where a cultivator's body began resonating with the starlight of the heavens.
Where the soul aligned with celestial patterns.
And where each advancement brought one closer to grasping the laws of the cosmos.
Each realm was vast.
Each one is divided into nine sub-stages.
And this was just the beginning.
He took a step forward.
The floor cracked lightly beneath his foot. He blinked in surprise. "...I wasn't even using full strength."
That black vortex... the mysterious energy refinement… it hadn't just helped him break through it had enhanced his entire foundation.
But that wasn't what unsettled him.
Lucifer lowered his hand and glanced down at his abdomen.
The black vortex had gone still again, but he could still feel its presence—silent, dormant, yet vast. It felt like staring into an abyss that stared back.
A mystery.
A threat.
Or perhaps… a blessing in disguise.
"I need to be careful moving forward," he muttered, narrowing his eyes. "But one thing's clear my path won't be ordinary."
His lips curled into a smirk.
"And neither will my enemies."