Kael jerked back from the ring's inner world, breath ragged, vision blurring at the edges.
The real forest slammed into place—cold wind, rustling leaves, the faint hiss of dying Emberfang embers.
Then—
A sharp, needling sting shot through his eyes.
"Ghh—my eyes—what now?!"
Azreath responded with a sigh so theatrical it could have belonged to an ancient emperor denied his afternoon nap.
"For a creature with triple nature, you have remarkably little sense. You tried exploring a soul-bound storage dimension with cultivation barely worthy of a half-asleep squirrel. Of course your eyes sting."
Kael pressed his palms against his face.
"I thought that's how it worked!"
"You thought," Azreath repeated, dripping disdain. "There lies the root of all mortal injuries."
Kael glared—eyes watering too much for it to be intimidating. "Then why didn't you warn me?!"
"I assumed the pain would teach faster."
"Tch—you—"
Kael groaned and dropped his hands. The pain faded slowly, leaving a dull throb that matched his heartbeat.
Azreath hummed smugly, like this was a lecture he gave to idiots centuries ago.
'" forcing your sense inside the ring is like trying to sprint with newborn legs. The sting is your spirit protesting."
Kael let out a breath, letting the pain ebb.
His hands lowered slowly.
The forest quieted.
His racing mind did not.
He sat there, staring at the ring, breath uneven as images replayed behind his eyelids:
Her tools.
Her notes.
Her books.
Her memories of him.
Her hidden wealth.
An entire world she stored away for him.
His throat tightened.
"…Azreath," he murmured, voice low, "why did we live like that? Why did she act poor? If she had all this… if she was this resourceful—wealthier than the sect I wanted to join—why did we have nothing? why did she make us live like we barely had bread?"
Azreath hummed, a deep, ancient sound, neither mocking nor gentle.
"How in every cracked realm would I know the choices of a woman determined to die for you?"
Kael clenched the ring.
Kael's jaw tightened.
Azreath continued, voice quieter:
"But if I were to guess…
hiding strength is the hardest part of survival. She couldn't use the items without revealing her identity. Weakening cultivation makes a person vulnerable."
" And weakened as she was, defending those valuables was impossible. Even a child could see that. Even I can see the logic."
Kael stared at the ground.
It hurt.
It hurt how much sense that made.
"She lived in poverty," Azreath said, "because safety isn't bought with gold. It's bought with being unworthy of attention."
Kael's breath trembled.
He hated that the truth tasted right.
For a long moment, neither of them spoke.
Only when his heartbeat steadied did Kael lift the ring again.
"…She saved all this. For me."
Azreath didn't reply.
He didn't need to.
Kael bowed his head.
Emotion crept up like a slow tide.
He didn't fight it.
She hadn't just hidden him.
She had erased herself piece by piece
...….
A faint ripple stirred within the ring, and a small wooden box drifted forward.
Kael drew it into his hands, the wood still faintly warm, as if it had been waiting.
He lifted the lid.
Inside lay several rolled scrolls —
Rank 1 and Rank 2 formulas, each wrapped with thin threads and labeled in his mother's careful hand.
He didn't open a single one.
He wouldn't know how to read them anyway.
Instead, he traced the names written along the outer bindings:
Veilmist Scent-Breaker Liquid
"Verdant Mana Restoration pill."
"Spiritdew Recovery Pill."
"Starbloom Vitality Pill."
"Mistglow Resistance Pill."
It struck him then:
She hadn't only prepared flame related formulas.
She prepared varied formula — as if she'd planned for every senerio he might face.
Then the scribbles on the labels caught his eye.
Small notes.
Soft handwriting.
Her voice trapped in ink.
"If your thoughts scatter, drink half dose."
"If the flame wavers, steady your breath and focus again."
"Kael, DO NOT test the pill strength on your tongue."
"Shake gently, not like last time."
"Rewrite this label… hands shaking again today."
"Kael, if you try this without me, I swear on the heavens I will haunt you."
His breath stilled.
These weren't professional annotations.
They were a mother talking to herself.
A mother leaving behind what she couldn't teach in person.
Kael closed the scroll box carefully, as if his fingers might bruise the memories.
A second box hovered in the corner of his mana-sense —
darker wood, heavier seal.
When his mana brushed the surface,
a dense, controlled pulse pushed back.
Rank 3.
Not beginner.
He withdrew instantly.
"…Not yet."
Even Azreath didn't mock him for it.
Further inside the ring,
a row of small boxes rested in perfect stillness —
each wrapped in pale silk, tied with gold thread, humming faintly.
Rank 4.
Each placed alone.
Each sealed individually.
Each one dangerous in a way he instinctively respected.
Kael didn't move.
Didn't test.
Didn't even breathe too close.
Some things didn't need curiosity — only wisdom.
"One day," he whispered. "Far from today."
He backed away mentally, letting the ring's space settle back into silence.
...
This time,he retrived four boxes—each one finely carved, reinforced with threads of silver-gold, unmistakably the best section of weapons shelf.
Kael's breath caught.
These weren't crude tools.
These weren't normal-grade weapons.
These were Strong. Rare. Dangerous.
Each lid bore a faint mark indicating the rank of the beast core sealed inside:
Rank 4… Rank 5… Rank 4… Rank 5.
His heart thudded.
His mother had hidden treasures.
He reached for the first box.
Cold mist slipped out instantly.
Inside, coiled like a sleeping river-beast, rested a whip woven from serpent hide that shimmered blue, each scale-like segment reflecting light like liquid glass.
When Kael picked it up, the whip flowed in his palm—weightless, gentle, cold.
The mist wrapped around his arm like the breath of deep water.
Kael's reaction was instinctive:
A shiver.
A tightening in his chest.
A strange calm, as if water was soothing the fire inside him.
He gave the whip a small flick.
A ripple of water essence extended its reach—smooth, silent—almost twice its physical length.
A folded parchment rested beneath it. Kael unfolded it, careful not to tear the worn edges. The center was printed, but the margins were filled with thin, familiar handwriting.
[ TIDEVEIN LASH (Rank 4)
Core Origin:Frostwater Serpent — Rank 4
Weapon Type: Water-Element Whip
Primary Abilities:
• Waterflow Extension — When swung, the whip extends farther than its physical length, forming water-veins that bind or slow targets
• Mist Shroud — A small burst of mist can obscure vision for a heartbeat—useful for repositioning.
• Frostbite Snap — When infused with enough mana, the tip strikes with a freezing pulse that slows muscle movement.
Slight resistance to water or cold-based attacks while wielded.
Her notes curled around the writing:
Overuse may cause temporary numbness in his arms from cold backlash.… Slight resistance to water or cold-based attacks… hSlight resistance to water or cold-based attacks... Moderately compatible.
Kael's chest tightened.
He folded the parchment slowly, as though closing a memory.
Azreath snorted inside his mind.
"A gentle leash. Fitting for someone still unsure of his own spine."
Kael pretended not to hear him and moved to the second box.
The wood vibrated faintly even before Kael touched it.
When he opened the lid, lightning cracked across a dark spear forged with jagged violet veins. The spearhead resembled a raptor's talon frozen mid-strike, hungry and sharp.
He grasped the shaft—
A violent jolt surged up his arm.
His pulse spiked.
His legs tensed.
His body leaned forward involuntarily—as if drawn into a hunt.
Kael dropped the weapon, exhaling sharply.
A parchment lay rolled beneath the spear. He unrolled it carefully.
[ STORMPIERCER FANG (Rank 5):
Core Origin:Thunderclaw Raptor — Rank 5 ( extremely fast, aggressive lightning-beast )
Weapon Type: Lightning Spear
Primary Abilities:
• Thunderburst Thrust — A thrust releases a short-range lightning shockwave.
• Raptor Dash — Lightens the user's body momentarily, increasing movement speed.
• Static Disruption — Spearhead carries penetrating lightning that disrupts mana of foes.
Massive boost to reaction speed and striking velocity.
"too fast… even I couldn't steady it on bad days …. only for life-or-death moments… not for practice
he must grow stronger first… speed can save him… but carries predatory aggression."
]
Azreath chuckled.
"If you tried to use it now , you'll be dead before you realize you moved."
Kael closed the box quickly—the spear continued to crackle faintly even inside.
Warmth radiated from the third box the moment he touched it.
Inside rested a sword with ember-veins glowing gently beneath the metal, like molten lava captured within steel.
When Kael wrapped his fingers around the hilt, the blade hummed—soft, steady, resonant. The warmth traveled up his arm, settling in his chest.
He inhaled sharply.
"…Mother…"
[ Emberwolf Aegisblade ( (Rank 4):
Core Origin: Scorchfen Wolf — Rank 4
Weapon Type: Flame element Sword
Primary Abilities:
• Ember Edge — Blade's edge gains a thin line of flame that increases attack damage.
• Searing Wave — Generates arc of compressed flames that can be unleashed (not continuously).
• Greatly boosts fire affinity control.
"helpful for Kael's unstable flame seed…if he grows with this blade, it will protect him when I cannot ….Safest weapon for him and ideal for early cultivation."
Azreath scoffed, though softer than before.
"Hmph. A weapon that boost flame control. Suitable for your current incompetence."
Kael didn't rise to it.
He reached for the last box.
The last box felt colder than the others, as if the air around it dimmed in anticipation. He opened the lid slowly.
Inside lay two slender daggers resting side by side, equal in shape but utterly different in presence.
The left dagger shimmered with a faint green sheen. When Kael brushed its edge, a thin curl of toxic mist drifted upward, vanishing almost immediately.
The right dagger was an obsidian-black shard of silence. Its surface rippled with faint shadows, swallowing stray light. When Kael moved it slightly, even the air seemed to step back.
A chill slipped down his spine.
These blades didn't feel crafted.
A folded parchment sat beneath them, tied with thread. Kael lifted it carefully. The parchment crackled softly.
He steadied his breath and began to read.
[ VIPERSHADE TWIN DAGGERS
Core Origins:
Left Dagger:Rank-5 Venommaw Cobra Core — Poison
Right Dagger:Rank-4 Nightbrink Panther Core — Darkness
Primary Abilities:
Left – Venommaw Dagger
• Toxin Veil: emits a poison mist
• Piercing Venom: wounds inflicted resist natural healing
• Beast Fear: lesser beasts recoil instinctively due to venomous aura
Right – Nightbrink Dagger:
• Shadow Slip: dampens sound of movement
• Dark Pulse: cCan briefly blind or disorient targets in close range.
• Silent Edge: cuts create almost no sound or sparks
If used together, strikes become harder to track — poisons blend into shadows.
Enhances stealth, agility, close-range precision.
Heightened night-vision while holding the shadow dagger.
"dangerous even for me… but kept just in case he ever needs to escape unseen….shadow whispers too softly… he mustn't stay inside it long…. pray he never uses it lightly….these are for last choices… desperation… not his first… remember poison doesn't differentiate between anyone…use only if have solution of poisining"
]
His fingers trembled—not out of fear, but from something colder. These weren't just weapons. These were contingency plan, forged for the darkest moments a person might face. His mother hadn't chosen them for just their power.
She had chosen them because she feared he might one day need to survive when everything else failed.
He lifted the green dagger again.
His fingertips tingled with sharp warning.
It felt like a promise whispered through clenched teeth.
He lifted the shadow dagger next.
Silence fell.
Even his breath felt muted.
Kael exhaled unsteadily.
"…These shouldn't belong to me."
Azreath's voice emerged from the quiet—lower, heavier than before.
"Shadow and poison are not paths of pride. They are the tools of those who refuses to direct confrontation. She knew life might force you to crawl before you can stand."
Kael closed both daggers into the box, hands gentle, almost reverent.
He whispered, barely audible—
"Thank you, mother…"
And closed the lid.
The forest around him felt colder, but the ache in his chest eased—
because even in these darkest blades…
he could still feel her love.