The barrier to the Golden Core stage was not a wall; it was a chasm. For three months, Su Mei
had stood on the edge of it, her Qi volatile and screaming for release.
The atmosphere on Moon Peak had become unlivable. The temperature fluctuated wildly—one
moment freezing, the next boiling. Servants had fled. Even the hardy spirit beasts in the forest
had migrated to lower elevations.
Only Li Wei remained.
He sat in the outer hall of the palace, wrapped in furs, watching the door to the meditation
chamber. It vibrated with the force of Su Mei's frustration. She was stuck. Her foundation was
perfect, her talent was peerless, but she lacked the catalyst to fuse her liquid Qi into a solid
core.
[System Alert: Beneficiary Critical Instability.] [Diagnosis: Yin Qi Overload. The cold is
consuming her soul.] [Required Cure: Nine-Petaled Soul Lotus (Yang Attribute).]
[Location: The Blazing rift of the Fire Crow Sect borders. (Danger: Extreme).]
Li Wei stood up. He didn't hesitate. If she didn't get the Lotus, she would die—or worse, become
an ice statue, a mindless elemental.
"System, buy the strongest fire-resistance gear you have."
[Item Redeemed: Mantle of the Salamander (High Mortal Grade).] [Cost: 1,000 Support
Points.] [Remaining Points: 50.]
Li Wei looked at his point balance. He was bankrupt again. He didn't care.
He left a note on the table: "Gone to find tea leaves. Back soon."
He descended the mountain, rented a fast spirit crane with his last few loose coins, and flew
toward the Fire Crow territory.
The Blazing Rift was a wound in the earth, spewing magma and sulfur. The heat was physical, a
heavy hammer crushing the lungs.
Li Wei wrapped the red Mantle of the Salamander tight. It shimmered, creating a thin barrier of
cool air. He climbed down into the rift.
Every step was agony. The rocks were hot enough to melt normal boots. His shoes smoked.
The System guided him deeper, toward a small island of obsidian in the center of a lava lake.
There it was. The Nine-Petaled Soul Lotus. It burned with a ghostly white flame.
"Almost there," Li Wei wheezed. His skin was blistering. The Mantle was failing; it wasn't
designed for this depth.
A screech echoed. A Fire Crow, wings spanning three meters, dove from the smoke. It was only
a Qi Condensation beast, weak by Su Mei's standards, but a dragon to Li Wei.
He didn't have a weapon. He had a shovel.
As the bird dove, Li Wei didn't fight. He threw himself forward, landing chest-first on the burning
obsidian. The bird's talons grazed his back, tearing through the Mantle and deep into his flesh.
He screamed. The smell of his own burning blood filled his nose.
But his hand closed around the Lotus.
"Got... you..."
He didn't look back at the bird. He activated a Teleportation Talisman—a one-time escape item
he had kept in his pocket for two years.
Flash.
He collapsed on the cool stone floor of the Moon Peak palace.
He was a mess. His back was shredded. His hands were third-degree burns. His hair was singed off on the left side. He couldn't breathe without coughing up ash.
The door to the meditation chamber slammed open.
Su Mei rushed out. She looked wild, her hair disheveled, her eyes glowing with dangerous,
unstable light.
"I smell... pure Yang energy," she gasped.
She saw Li Wei lying on the floor, clutching the white flaming flower.
Li Wei tried to smile. "Mei'er... I found..."
Su Mei didn't look at his face. Her eyes locked onto the Lotus. The hunger in her expression
was terrifying. It was the look of a starving addict seeing a needle.
She moved. A blur of white. She snatched the Lotus from his blistered hand.
"The Nine-Petaled Soul Lotus!" she exclaimed, her voice trembling with ecstasy. "This is it! With
this, the Yin and Yang will balance! My Core will be flawless!"
She turned back toward the meditation chamber.
Li Wei reached out, his hand trembling in the air. "Mei'er... it hurts..."
Su Mei stopped. She turned halfway back. For a second, the haze of cultivation madness
cleared. She looked down and saw the blood pooling under him. She saw the claw marks. She
saw the burns.
Her eyes widened. "You... you went to the Rift?"
"For you," Li Wei rasped.
Su Mei hesitated. She looked at the Lotus, which was already beginning to wilt in the cold air of
the palace.
"The medicinal potency is leaking," she said, her voice hardening. "I must consume it within ten
breaths, or it becomes useless."
She flicked her wrist. A small green bottle flew out of her sleeve and landed next to Li Wei's
head.
"That is Spirit Regeneration Salve," she said fast. "Apply it to the wounds. It will stop the
bleeding. Wait for me, husband. Once I form the Core, I will heal you completely."
"But..." Li Wei wanted her to hold him. Just for a second.
"I cannot wait!" she shouted, panic entering her voice. "The Dao is slipping away!"
She slammed the door shut. The lock clicked.
Li Wei lay alone on the cold stone floor. He looked at the green bottle. He had to use his burnt
fingers to uncork it. He cried out in pain as he smeared the salve on his own back, twisting his
body in agony.
Inside the chamber, he heard her laughing—a sound of power and triumph.
Outside, Li Wei curled into a ball, shivering from the shock, listening to his wife ascend to a
realm he could never touch, fueled by the blood drying on his back.