Back at the Lotus Isles of Vermillion Grace Hotel, a sky palace sparkled above crescent-shaped waterfalls. Charles stepped into the black-walled sanctum of his private suite.
He didn't turn around. A soft hiss came from the crystalline doors behind him as they closed.
The suite, a blend of Eastern style and hidden security, lit up as runes glowed, casting pale violet on the lotus mural.
"SIGMA. Seal the suite." Charles strode toward the hidden training wing.
[Privacy mode on. Barriers up. Ward's active. Only alert management if the city's burning—or the sky.]
"Charming."
[Would you prefer I also have room service?]
"No, let them live—for now."
He stopped before the reinforced bath chamber: a secluded underground pool carved from obsidian and quartzite. Steam curled off its volcanic altar-like surface, the heat already clawing at his skin.
"Prepare the Iron Vein soak. Add Meridian Burst and Marrow Cleansing Pills."
[Doses set. Heat up. Mixing. Dignity override off.]
Charles dropped his robe and stepped in.
It felt as if flames engulfed his body, overwhelming every sense at once.
Pain didn't arrive gradually. It struck him instantly and violently, as if he'd been hit with overwhelming force, sharp and consuming. His skin hissed. His meridians pulled tight, and qi surged like a dam breaking violently within him.
The Meridian Burst Pill detonated in his core.
"Gah..."
It felt like hundreds of internal blows; molten steel fists pummeled him within. Intense heat forced his channels open.
The Marrow Cleansing Pill came next.
A mistake. A wonderful, sinful mistake.
"Oh gods, what did I—"
Invisible fire raced through his bones. His scream echoed. Muscles twitched. The iron-laced water throbbed red as his vision blurred.
[Bone marrow density rising. Qi compression is optimal. They're pushing your pain tolerance to movie levels.]
Charles gritted his teeth.
"This isn't a movie. It's illegal."
[Correction: Pain doesn't last long. Power will always be there. You also signed the waiver.]
"I wrote the waiver!"
He slumped over and held on to the tub like it was the only thing keeping him alive.
He didn't only feel agony; it was as if the heat burned away his frailty and gave him fresh vigor.
In the thick of all the noise, something shattered.
Not him.
In him.
Suddenly, the constant pressure inside him broke, and his qi shot out in a spiral, like a cyclone forming in a storm.
[Breakthrough found. Rank Nine in the Foundation Realm has been reached. In the next hour, stabilization is needed, or else it could explode on its own.]
Charles laughed in a rough way. "Motivation: blow up or rise."
I vote for ascend. My interface doesn't like it when things are deleted.
"You're so thoughtful."
[I know. I learned from you.]
Charles climbed out of the bath with effort. Steam rose from his skin like lingering flames, his arms and legs quivering, and small red beads of blood dotted his body. In his eyes, a new fire danced, vibrant and alive.
Blazing.
He summoned fire qi and dried his body with a single gesture before collapsing cross-legged into the meditation alcove.
The Aetheric Core of the Dual Ascendant, a violet mana crystal with strands of celestial gold running through it, was a rare treasure that floated in front of him.
The light pulsed with his breath.
Inhale: qi flowed into his dantian's whirlwind. The cyclone grew steadier, firmer, each breath cementing his foundation.
Exhale: the darkness went away.
He sat perfectly still, and his thoughts became sharply focused, each one as precise and cutting as a blade.
Then, something strange happened.
A little warmth in his chest, but not in his core.
Not qi. Not blood.
Mana.
A soft, crackling ember lit up inside his heart. It was soft, electric, and impossible to ignore.
"SIGMA... Am I seeing things or...?"
[Analysis shows: Mana seed found in the left atrium. Subgrade ignition is very unstable. It could be a sign of dual path evolution.]
He couldn't breathe. Mana and Qi?
He had trained his whole life to dominate as a martial cultivator. But this...
He looked at Emberveil, his mother's pendant. Once decorative, it now glowed softly: a warm, comforting fire.
Its aura washed over him, slowing his heartbeat and bringing his mind to a calm, steady focus.
Not just an old thing. A gift to say goodbye... full of her meaning.
"Mother, you always saw more than I did, didn't you?"
[Statement: Your mother taught you more than just how to stay alive. She got you ready for revolution.]
A long silence followed.
Then Charles whispered, "Then let's burn the old world down."
His body, which had been hurt, healed itself and felt like it had been made new when his qi finally settled. The seed in his heart started to glow again.
His heartbeat was steady.
His mind? Sharpened.
His will? Never-ending.
This was more than just a bath or a breakthrough. It was the first sign of something really scary. Something beautiful.
Heavenly.
When he opened his eyes, the room got darker.
Charles didn't waste any time. He was ready to ride the wave of power through the storm.
He collected crystals of fire, earth, lightning, and darkness. Each one had a slight connection to the other. He put the Gauntlet of the Elemental Ascendant on a pedestal.
The gauntlet, made of deep black obsidian and bearing ancient writing carved into its metal hide, was still.
Not anymore.
"SIGMA. Sync the elements."
[Got it. Taking in elemental matrices... 42 percent, 71 percent, 89 percent, and 100 percent of the way there.]
The pedestal flared up. The gauntlet sparkled as each rune lit up, one by one.
Fire broke out in bursts of orange-gold flame.
The Earth pulsed like a heartbeat in the ground.
Lightning crackled like the anger of God.
Darkness swirled like promises whispered.
[Elemental Access granted,] SIGMA said in a flat voice. [Don't blow up your room.]
"Can't promise anything."
Charles slipped the gauntlet on.
Wearing the gauntlet felt like connecting to a being of immense power, far beyond his own. It fit perfectly. Weightless. Balanced. It hummed at his pulse.
Elemental power surged. The gauntlet molded to him, weightless, perfectly balanced. It hummed.
He flexed, and fire coiled around his fingers like it was waiting to obey.
"Now this—this is worth the bath."
"Suggest a combat simulation."
"Already on it."
Charles pulled out the Epoch Sphere: Trialmind Core and tossed it into the center of the room. With a whisper, the simulation activated. The walls of his chamber vanished into a shimmering dome of stone and twilight skies.
A ruin-strewn arena formed under his feet.
Round One: Basic Golems
Three towering golems lumbered forward, stone grinding against stone.
Charles vanished—his footwork blurring into Phantom Veil Steps. He appeared behind the first, fist already drawn.
"Titanheart Anvil Fist—Anvil Drop."
His gauntlet crashed down.
The floor split.
The golem's legs shattered beneath it like brittle glass. It fell before it understood what hit it.
The second turned, but Charles was already gone. His steps left behind only a silver feather and a trail of mist.
Iron Echo Flurry.
He delivered strike after strike, each blow charged with kinetic qi. By the fifth hit, the gauntlet glowed molten. The sixth blew the golem's torso into shrapnel.
The third golem met a Molten Core Thrust head-on.
And then… silence.
Round One complete.
"Well," Charles panted. "That was cardio."
Round Two: Enhanced Golems
This time, they shone with elemental cores like fire, ice, and lightning.
Charles didn't hold back.
He flickered past fire, evaded frost, and stormed through lightning. Every step left behind an afterimage, and every fist broke through defenses.
Veil Cloak is now on. He danced around the attacks, ghosting behind the ice golem and punching it so hard that its core burst into crystal tears.
Lightning Golem smacked him on the side, startling his ribs.
"Noted," Charles winced. "That one stings."
Counter: Titanheart Pulse.
His entire body glowed. One punch later, there was no golem.
Round Three: Shielded Guardians
Now things got hard.
These were not golems. They were warriors, with magical shields and intelligent movement.
Charles narrowed his eyes.
"Alright then…"
He baited them with illusions. His Moonstep Echo led two of them into attacking phantoms. When they realized the trick, it was too late. Charles was already inside their guard.
Fists like hammers. Techniques refined.
He landed a Titanheart Pulse, cracking the runed floor. All three collapsed—one crushed, one seared, one concussed into unconscious pixels.
Next Transition: Ogres
Ogres with enchanted bone clubs emerged with a roar. Their stench hit like a curse.
Charles didn't hesitate.
He shadow-stepped and slammed a Molten Core Thrust, causing an explosion and spinning backhand that dropped the ogre.
Another charge. Charles met it with a punch that shattered ribs.
The last ogre swung.
Charles vanished mid-strike—Veil Cloak rendering him a blur.
He reappeared above its head.
Anvil Drop.
The ogre cratered. Game over.
Next: Magibeasts and Spectral Wraiths
Blue-furred bears with blazing eyes circled him. Wraiths hissed and shimmered through the air, striking with ghostly blades.
Charles danced.
He dodged claws by inches. Let wraith blades pass through illusions. He countered with Titanheart Fist strikes that carried the weight of mountains.
Wraiths died screaming—unable to reform.
Bears dropped one by one.
His body screamed for rest.
But his spirit howled for more.
When the final magibeast collapsed in a smoking heap and the last wraith screamed into dissolution, the simulation dome shattered like glass.
The broken fragments of the false world faded to motes of light, revealing once more the obsidian walls of Charles's private training suite in the Lotus Isles of Vermillion Grace Hotel.
Silence reclaimed the room.
The only sound now was the soft throb of power from the Aetheric Crystal Core and the slow, ragged breathing of a man who had fought through pain to gain control.
[Simulation complete,] SIGMA said. [Combat effectiveness: 100 percent." Verified mastery of the technique.]
Charles didn't even try to get up. He fell to the cold stone floor, his body twitching from the residual qi backlash, his knuckles splitting open from the stress of the impact.
He had a smile on his face. He had done it.
[QUEST COMPLETE: Foundation Realm Rank 9]
"Show me the loot."
[Reward Unlocked: 100,000 gold coins deposited into Stellar Bank. Added items include:
Elixirs: Celestial Bone-Reinforcement Draught x1; Tempest Qi Compression Nectar x2; and Radiant Lotus Full-Recovery Elixir x1
Scrolls: Runic Art of Spirit Vein Cultivation and Arcane Thread Binding Array
Key Item: Crystal of Recall
Title Unlocked: Iron-Willed Ascendant
Passive Bonus: Qi regeneration +12%, Pain resistance +30%
New Elixir Stored: Radiant Lotus Full-Recovery Elixir— Effect: Fixes all physical damage, fills up qi channels, and clears up small meridian injuries. Side effect: a short period of happiness and possibly seeing squirrels singing.]
Charles groaned.
"Singing squirrels, huh?"
Mild risk. Side effects are statistically rare. Only 38% of past users reported musical hallucinations.
"I'll take my chances."
With a trembling hand, he summoned his spatial pouch and retrieved the reward—the Radiant Lotus Elixir. The vial shimmered with iridescent silver and soft pink hues, warm to the touch. The cork came off with a whisper of escaping steam.
He downed it in one gulp.
Flame spread down his throat. Coolness chased it. Then heat again. Then—
"Oh gods, I can feel my bones singing."
That is likely the euphoria phase. Recommend lying down.
He did just that, stretching out beside the mana core like a warrior who had just punched a mountain into submission. In his own way, he had.
And in moments… he felt his strength returning.
Knuckles stopped throbbing. Muscles unknotted. Even the cracks in his ribs realigned with a satisfying pop. His qi network pulsed, restored, and balanced. He drew in air not like a drowning man, but like a dragon in meditation.
"Not bad," he muttered. "Not bad at all."
[All vital signs are back to normal. Healed from physical trauma. Qi became stable. Dantian came together. 5.1% of the mana seeds have sprouted. Neural fatigue: 83% gone. In three hours, your next dumb thought may happen.]
He laughed again, and the sound echoed in the room.
The lotus crystal screens of the Vermillion Grace Hotel let in the golden haze of dawn. The floating gardens sparkled like dreams ready to be taken. And in its uppermost suite, where no one else would dare to go.
A young cultivator closed his eyes, completely worn out yet completely successful.
Charles didn't only make it through the storm. He became the storm.