Nachgedacht für 5sCelestial Forge Reborn Chapter 1: Fall of the Starforged
The heavens wept starfire as Kai plummeted, a comet of shattered glory streaking through the nine celestial layers. Betrayal's sting burned hotter than the void-winds whipping his tattered robes—Elder Varyn's blade in his back, the sect's sacred tribunal chanting heretic as chains of heavenly lightning bound his meridians. "For the purity of the Dao," the old fox had sneered, even as Kai's accusations of corruption hung unanswered. Kai's dantian, once a roaring furnace of ninth-layer qi, now fractured like flawed jade, leaking essence into the abyss.
Not like this, Kai thought, meridians screaming as gravity's cruel hand dragged him toward the mortal coil below. The Celestial Forge Sect's spires—his home, his prison—dwindled to specks amid the clouds. Survival? A fool's prayer. But Kai was no fool. In his final gambit, he'd swallowed the Star-Metal Shard, a forbidden relic from the outer voids: raw chaos-forged iron, said to birth gods or unmake worlds. It scorched his core now, a supernova in his gut, demanding tribute.
"Reforge me," he growled through bloodied teeth, qi sputtering in defiant bursts. The shard responded—a pulse like a hammer on anvil, cracking his dantian wide. Agony bloomed, exquisite, as star-metal fused with his soul-sea, birthing something new: the Celestial Forge. Not a mere cultivation base, but a living spirit, an anvil of cosmic hunger etched in his essence.
Celestial Forge System: Awakened. Host: Kai. Core Integrity: 1% (Shattered). Essence Influx: Critical. Level 1 Unlocked. Warning: Mortal Descent Imminent—Impact Will Forge or Shatter.
The interface bloomed in his mind's eye, runes of molten gold scrolling like divine script. Kai laughed, a ragged bark lost to the winds—LitRPG nonsense from mortal tales, or the shard's gift? No time to ponder. The mortal realms rushed up: jagged peaks of the Ironspine Mountains, dotted with sect enclaves like festering boils on the Dao's skin.
His trajectory favored the worst: Crimson Flame Sect's outer forge-halls, rivals who'd long coveted his forge-secrets. Poetic, Kai mused, channeling the last dregs of his qi into a barrier-veil. The shard thrummed approval, feeding him glimpses: Artifact Scan—Incoming: Flameheart Anvil (Sect Treasure, Lv. 5). Soul Potential: High.
Impact hit like the gods' own hammer. Kai cratered through the forge's tiled roof, stone shattering in a blizzard of debris, slamming into the central anvil with bone-crunching force. The world spun—flames roaring from braziers, hammers clanging in alarm, cultivators scattering like rats from a qi-storm. Pain? A distant echo, buffered by the Forge's nascent hum: Impact Essence: +500. Core Stabilization: 5%.
He lay sprawled, blood pooling beneath him, mingling with the anvil's sacred oils. The Flameheart pulsed hot under his palm—ancient relic, veined with fire-qi, centerpiece of their artifact rites. Kai's blood—laced now with star-metal—hissed on contact, igniting not in flame, but in fusion. The anvil glowed, runes awakening in sympathy, drawing his essence like a vortex.
Forge Ignition: Blood Resonance Detected. Reforging Sequence Initiated. Material Scan: Elder Varyn's Betrayal Sword (Soul-Bound, Lv. 7)—Nearby.
Across the hall, Elder Huo—the Crimson Flame's forge-master—staggered to his feet, his prized blade drawn: a crimson greatsword, soul-forged from a phoenix remnant, humming with bound spirit-fire. The old man's face twisted from shock to fury, beard singed from the debris. "Intruder! Heavenly devil—how dare you profane our sacred forge?" Disciples rallied behind him—ten green-robed youths, qi at foundation establishment, spears crackling with flame talismans. The sect's alarms wailed, a clarion summoning more.
Kai pushed up, ribs grinding like gravel, but the Forge worked—star-metal threads weaving his fractures, vitality surging: Regen Active: +2 Health/sec. New Skill: Soul Siphon (Lv.1)—Drain Essence from Bound Artifacts.
Huo lunged, sword arcing in a blaze of phoenix-wing slashes, air igniting in his wake. "Die, fallen star!" The blade descended, soul-fire licking Kai's barrier-veil, scorching through to blister his skin.
But Kai's blood had already claimed the anvil. It responded—the Flameheart bucking like a living beast, flames inverting to star-blue inferno. Huo's sword—mid-swing—melted. The hilt glowed first, then the blade drooped like wax under cosmic heat, phoenix-spirit wailing as it sloughed free: a fiery wisp, essence unbound, drawn inexorably to Kai's palm.
Soul Harvest: Phoenix Remnant Acquired. Forge Input: High-Grade Fire Essence. Output Preview: Starflame Dagger (Proto). Betrayal Detected: Rival Sect Incursion—Multiplier x1.5.
The elder's eyes bulged, sword reduced to a molten stump. "Impossible—my Flamebinder! You... you devour souls?" Horror cracked his voice, but rage propelled him forward, bare fists igniting with foundation qi, punching for Kai's throat.
Kai rolled aside, the anvil's edge biting into his side—Pain Tolerance +1. He snatched the phoenix wisp mid-air, the Forge hammering it internally: essence compressing, reforming around a shard of his own fractured dantian. In his grip, it solidified—a dagger of star-forged obsidian, hilt wrapped in phoenix-feather veins that burned cold, blade humming with dual affinities: void-star and rebirth flame.
Artifact Forged: Starflame Betrayer (Lv. 3). Effect: Soul-Pierce (Ignores 50% Qi Defense), Essence Drain (10% per Strike). Bound to Host.
No time for appraisal. Huo's fist grazed his shoulder, qi-explosion hurling Kai into a rack of half-forged spears—metal twisting on impact, the Forge instinctively alloying them with his blood-spatter: Batch Upgrade: Iron Spears → Star-Alloy Javelins (x5, Throw Bonus +20%).
Disciples charged, spears thrusting in flame-ward formations, qi-nets weaving to ensnare. "For Elder Huo! Seal the demon!" Their chants fueled a barrier-dome, crimson light caging the hall.
Kai rose, Starflame Betrayer singing in his grip. The Forge whispered blueprints: Optimal Strike—Target: Sword Hand. Essence Yield: Elder Soul-Core.
He blurred forward—Agility Surge: Core Fusion +15%—dagger flashing. Huo's guard was iron, foundation peak shielding him like a tortoise shell, but the blade ignored it, piercing qi-veins to kiss flesh. The elder howled, arm convulsing as essence drained: a river of fire-qi siphoned into Kai's dantian, the Forge hammering it on the anvil of his soul.
Essence Gained: +200 (Elder Qi). Betrayal Multiplier: Sect Rivalry—x2. Total: 1,200/1,000. Level Up: Core Integrity 15%. New Perk: Forge Echo—Replay Forged Artifact Effects (1/day).
Huo reeled, stump-arm cauterized to blackened ruin, but his off-hand summoned a talisman-scroll: Crimson Phoenix Descent—the hall erupting in illusory flames, spectral bird diving for Kai's heart.
Kai countered instinctually, hurling a star-alloy javelin—Skill Acquired: Star Throw (Lv.1). It pierced the phoenix mid-dive, exploding in a nova of alloy-shards that riddled the illusion, backlash scorching the disciples' formation. Two fell, qi-devastated, their nascent cores cracking like eggshells—Collateral Harvest: +50 Essence Each.
The elder, desperate, channeled his core: a suicide burst, body igniting as true phoenix-fire bloomed, sword-stump reforming into a crude claw. "Burn in the Dao's judgment!" He lunged, flames consuming the air, the anvil itself cracking under the heat.
Kai met him head-on, Starflame Betrayer parrying the claw—metal on soul-fire, sparks birthing micro-stars. The Forge fed on the clash, anvil pulsing in rhythm: Resonance Sync: Anvil Claimed. Upgrade Path: Celestial Integration (Requires Elder Soul).
With a twist, Kai drove the dagger home—through the claw, into Huo's dantian. The elder's eyes widened, core shattering on the blade's soul-pierce, essence flooding out like a dam-burst. Kai siphoned it all, the Forge hammering relentlessly: Huo's soul-wisp dragged free, a screaming phoenix reduced to raw material.
Kill Confirmed: Elder Huo (Lv. 12). Essence: +800. Betrayal: Sect Execution—x3. Total Overflow: Level 3 Achieved! Core Integrity: 30%. Artifact Evolution: Flameheart Anvil → Starforged Anvil (Portable, Soul-Bound). New Blueprint: Phoenix Soul-Armor (Craftable).
Huo's body crumpled, flames guttering to embers, his form dissolving into ash that the anvil absorbed—Material Bank: Ashen Residue (Fire Catalyst). The disciples froze, horror rooting them as alarms crescendoed: reinforcements inbound, qi-signatures blotting the skies.
Kai staggered, the hall a ruin of molten slag and whimpering foes. The Starforged Anvil shrank at his will, folding into a bracer on his forearm—glowing with embedded runes, ready to unfold anywhere. His meridians thrummed, qi circulating anew, laced with star-metal's infinity.
But victory soured. A shadow fell over the cratered roof—sect elders descending on sword-lights, auras flaring like angry suns. Leading them: Patriarch Ignis, Huo's brother, face a mask of volcanic rage. "The heavenly traitor! He slew my kin—unleash the Flame Arrays!"
Kai grinned through bloodied lips, Starflame Betrayer dripping essence. The Forge purred, blueprint queue filling: armor from phoenix, javelins upgraded, and deeper—Empire Seed: Claim Sect Forge for Base Lv.1.
Betrayal had forged him anew. Now, the heavens would quake.
From the patriarch's glare, a probe of divine sense lanced—scanning his core, widening in shock. "The Star-Metal... he's reborn. Seal him before the Dao trembles!"
The arrays ignited, crimson chains lancing down. Kai dodged, hurling his last javelin—Star Throw: Critical—impaling a disciple mid-air, essence chaining to the next. But more came, a tide of fire and fury.
The fall was over. The forging? Just begun.
To be continued...
End of Chapter 1