⚡ The Last Disciple of Lightning Peak
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The spiritual boat soared quietly above the mist-veiled peaks, its trail glowing faintly with green talisman light. Aarush sat at the edge, gripping the wooden rail, unable to take his eyes off the girl standing at the helm.
She hadn't said much since they'd left the trial grounds. Only that the trial wasn't over… and that he was coming with her.
Her long hair fluttered gently in the wind, and even in silence, her presence felt like a calm storm — the kind that could destroy mountains or heal the earth beneath them.
Aarush dared to speak.
> "Where are we going…?"
The girl finally turned.
> "Where he once meditated."
He blinked. "He…?"
> "Our master."
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🌿 A Garden Above the Sky
The boat descended into a narrow ravine. At the end of the gorge, surrounded by ancient trees and glowing stones, was a hidden garden — untouched by time.
Crimson lilies bloomed beside silver lotuses. A small pond reflected the sky like glass. The qi in the air was so thick it shimmered faintly with each breath.
> It feels like the air itself is alive…
Aarush stepped down, stunned. It was nothing like the outer world. Not even sect grounds had this kind of purity.
> "This place… is real?"
She smiled faintly. "Only for those he trusts."
He turned. "Why did you help me? Why did you speak for me?"
The girl didn't answer immediately. She walked to a raised stone altar under a twisted flame-leaf tree, opened a jade box — and revealed something glowing faintly inside.
A single herb. Thick green roots. A central stem covered in tiny crimson scales, as if forged by fire. The leaves curved like blades of glass.
Aarush's eyes widened.
> "That's… the Embervein Soulgrass! I read about it in the Ancient Alchemic Codex…!"
> "Correct," she said softly. "One of the few natural herbs known to rebuild a shattered spiritual root."
He stepped closer, heart racing.
> "But… it's dangerous. If it fuses improperly, it can burn the soul lines… tear apart the nerves… even cause… explosion."
She nodded. "You might not survive the pain. Your meridians could rupture. Your body could collapse."
Aarush was silent.
Then he said:
> "If I must live without a spiritual root… then I'd rather not live at all."
The wind stilled.
Even the pond stopped rippling.
She studied him for a long moment. Then slowly closed the box.
> "He was right about you."
Aarush frowned. "What do you mean?"
She stepped toward him, voice softening.
> "Our master never trained you because he had to leave the continent. But before he left… he gave me this herb. And a message."
She looked directly into his eyes.
> "When the time comes… give this to the boy who was born without a root, but carries the will of a cultivator stronger than most emperors."
Aarush's breath caught.
> "He… didn't abandon me?"
She shook her head. "He saw something in you. Something most people missed."
Aarush clenched his fists. The memory of all the laughter, the mocking voices, the cold eyes — it swirled behind his ribs like fire pressing against a dam.
> "Then teach me," he whispered. "Please… let me change this fate."
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🔥 The Choice and the Flame
She knelt beside the stone altar and placed the herb onto a refined furnace shaped like a lotus.
> "Normally, this would be refined into a pill. But he taught us an older way. A… forgotten way."
She placed her palm over the herb and whispered an ancient incantation. The herb began to glow, its essence liquifying, floating into a glowing crimson droplet above the flame.
> "This will fuse directly into your spiritual sea. There's no barrier, no protection. You must guide it yourself."
> "And if I fail…?"
> "You won't wake up again."
Aarush looked at the flame.
Then at his trembling hands.
Then… he stepped forward, closed his eyes, and said:
> "I'm ready."
---
As the drop entered his forehead, his entire body convulsed. It felt as if lightning exploded through his bones, fire igniting every vessel, his blood evaporating and boiling all at once.
His soul thrashed against the current of fire, his nerves screaming for release. Time itself bent—seconds felt like eternities.
He screamed — but there was no sound.
His vision went white.
Then black.
Then —
A single flame bloomed inside the void of his soul.
Faint.
But alive.
It pulsed gently within a fractured sea of silence — a sea that had never known warmth… until now.