"You were supposed to remain sealed," the Origin Shard snarled, its voice grinding like stone.
"You're scarcely at full strength, yet you dare defy this king's will. How insolent," Jalen's second spirit core replied, calm yet absolute.
Emerald energy surged, suppressing the shard's resonance and reclaiming control of Jalen's body.
"You're no ordinary Eternal‑grade spirit tool, are you?" The shard hissed, venom dripping from every syllable. "You're—"
The second spirit core silenced it, then spoke gently to Jalen:
"Hello again, king. Do not worry—for now, the Origin Shard cannot override your control. Forgive me for my delay. That wretch spent twenty years trying to seal me away. I let him believe he had succeeded so he would lower his guard. Only then could I suppress him easily. Had I acted openly from the start, our vessel would have imploded from the clash. I could have crushed him completely, but your vessel is not yet strong enough to withstand our full power."
Relief washed over Jalen. "Regardless… thank you," he whispered. His gaze lingered inward for a moment, honoringhonouring the core's intervention. "Without you, I would have been lost."
Only then did he withdraw his hand from Jael, who collapsed against him, weakened.
"I'm sorry, my son. I never meant to…"
"It's okay, Dad. I'm alright," Jael murmured, though his life force flickered faintly.
Jalen activated a flare of restoration, light wrapping around Jael's body. The technique strained him, burning through his qi due to Jael being a near peer in cultivation, but when Jael stabilised, his heart eased.
He rushed to Ameer, regret etched across his face. "Ameer…"
"It's okay, Master. I know it wasn't you," Ameer said, his voice steady despite the strain.
Jalen's guilt deepened. "I know, but still…"
"I'll be alright, Master. I just need to rest and restore my qi."
Jalen clenched his fists, loathing the shard's presence within him. He longed to cast it out forever, yet he knew the truth—if the Origin Shard left him, his life would end as well. The only path forward was to subjugate that wretched force once and for all.
For now, his focus remained on Ameer and Jael, tending to them until their strength returned. As they slowly recovered, the guilt in his heart eased, though it still lingered in his eyes. He had nearly lost them—and worse, had been turned into the weapon that struck them down. Yet Jael and Ameer, resilient as ever, worked together to lift his spirits, their quiet laughter softening the weight pressing on his chest. At last, Jalen allowed himself a faint smile.
When the two had regained at least half their strength, the three turned toward the distant pulse of power resonating through the Realm of Transformation. In a single step, they appeared before a doorway. Jael and Ameer moved to enter, but Jalen raised a hand to stop them.
"Wait here," he said firmly. His second spirit core had warned him: they were too weak now to enter, and the energy inside would destroy them.
Jalen stepped forward alone. The moment he crossed the threshold, a wave of energy threatened to crush him. His second spirit core neutralised it, breaking it down and absorbing it. Pain wracked his body, but he endured under its guidance.
"What is this place?" Jalen asked through clenched teeth.
"It's a Qi Chamber," the second core explained. "It is used for cultivation, but entry is forbidden until one reaches the Transcendent Mega Star Realm. You, however, are a special living Eternal‑grade spirit tool—you can survive it. The source of this chamber, the infinite qi crystal, is what the Origin Shard sought to use to force your realm to improve. I am absorbing it now to transform you."
The voice grew solemn. "There are also five Eternal‑grade spirits dwelling here. They are not of use to you—unless you wished to bear children who themselves would be living spirit tools. But that is unnecessary for someone like us. We are already one, and our bloodline will pass this gift naturally to our descendants to the third generation. Instead, these spirits can serve your family and friends. Your wife could inherit the Fire Spirit. Frost could take the Ice Spirit to strengthen his cultivation. Two spirits are suited for your disciple Calista. Integration may take centuries, so they will require a time realm where years pass slowly. The last one is very rare. You may keep it until you have a successor worthy of it."
Jalen frowned. "What is a living Eternal‑grade spirit tool? And why am I one?"
The voice answered, steady as stone:
"A living Eternal‑grade spirit tool is, in essence, an Eternal‑grade spirit incarnated into a human cultivator. As for how you became one—your father once encountered us in our pre‑incarnate form, a tri‑Imperial Wood Eternal‑grade spirit, during one of his clan's outings. He was on the brink of death, but we intervened and saved him. In return, we used him to fulfil our wish of becoming a human cultivator. He has no memory of this, for mortals cannot retain such encounters. And you, desiring to live as a normal man, chose not to remember either.
Normally, when such a union between spirit and cultivator occurs, the human would gradually gain most of the spirit's powers over the course of a century. Their descendants would then inherit the mantle of a living Eternal‑grade spirit tool, carrying the memory of the spirit that merged with them. But we are different. We can bestow our power in an instant. Of course, your father was too weak to withstand all of it, so you gave him only a fragment—enough to accelerate his growth beyond any of his kin. He became strong and became a father, and so you were born. I became your second spirit core, while our third personhood became your primary core."
"That is why your mind is sharper than most, why your cultivation rises faster than others, and why you can contain two Eternal‑grade spirit tools without collapse. You are not merely a wielder—you are a living Eternal‑grade spirit tool."
Jalen's breath caught. The truth struck him like a blade and a blessing at once. "I see… If you don't mind me asking."
"A tri‑Imperial Eternal‑grade spirit is a rare specimen. Unlike ordinary Eternal‑grade spirits, you are superior in both quality and strength. From the moment of creation, you possessed sentience—three personhoods bound together. One being three, the same in one way and yet not the same in another.
Most Eternal‑grade spirits require thousands of years to awaken awareness—many never do. Those without sentience are often forged into spirit tools, which may only develop semi‑sentience or full sentience after countless ages.
The Origin Shard itself was created from a dual‑Imperial Eternal‑grade spirit, but even so, it cannot match us. In terms of rank, it's inferior."
All of this came as a shock to Jalen, leaving him brimming with questions. But before he could speak, the voice pressed on:
"Now, enough conversation. I must focus on devouring the source of energy and leaving this place before the time limit runs out."
Jalen nodded and settled into a meditative position.