The cliffside training ground glowed orange.
Mo Fan stood with his feet planted firmly in the dirt, sweat dripping from his chin as fire coiled and pulsed around his hands. Not flames—these weren't ordinary flames anymore. Tang Yue had just handed him something that changed the entire trajectory of his Fire element.
A small crystalline shard.
Red as molten metal.
Radiating heat like a miniature sun.
A Spirit-grade Magic Seed.
Rose Flame.
Purchased through Tang Yue's special channels, using Association bounty credits from the criminal Mo Fan eliminated during the chaos.
Mo Fan held the seed between his fingers.
"So this is it… a Rose Flame Spirit Seed."
Tang Yue nodded. "Spirit Seeds amplify your base spell damage by roughly thirty to forty percent depending on your control."
Mo Fan's eyes widened. "That's… insane."
"Expensive," Tang Yue corrected. "Very expensive. Do not tell anyone you have one."
Mo Fan swallowed. "So I'm holding a bag of money."
Tang Yue resisted smiling. "Yes. A heavy bag. On fire. Try not to drop it."
He lifted the seed to chest height. The flame inside flickered—as if watching him.
"Fuse it," she instructed softly.
Mo Fan closed his eyes.
Fire stars spun.
The world narrowed.
He pressed the seed to his chest—
—and it dissolved into molten light that threaded through his veins, scorching him from the inside out.
He gasped—
fell to one knee—
and the flame in his hands roared upward into a crimson bloom.
Tang Yue steadied him, voice calm even as heat warped the air.
"Breathe. Don't fight it. Let the seed merge with your elemental foundation."
Mo Fan inhaled shakily.
The flame responded—
curling inward, blooming outward, settling, unfolding again.
Like a flower learning how to breathe.
Tang Yue stepped back, watching him carefully.
"Mo Fan," she said gently, "perform Fiery Fist."
He obeyed.
One punch.
But this time—
Fire did not burst.
It blossomed.
A layered explosion, petals of heat blooming outward in a shockwave that cracked the cliff face, melted stone, and sent birds screaming into the sky. Mo Fan stared at his own hands, stunned.
"That… THAT was me?!"
Tang Yue laughed softly.
"Yes. That is the difference between raw flame—
and a Spirit-grade seed."
Mo Fan lifted his hand again as flame curled around his fingers.
Rose Flame.
A Spirit-grade fire Soul Seed.
Now fused into his elemental core.
His base spell damage had skyrocketed.
Intermediate Fire wasn't just fiercer—
it was lethal.
Mo Fan grinned.
"Pearl Institute won't know what hit it."
"Next year," Tang Yue corrected. "Don't get ahead of yourself."
Mo Fan scowled. "Why do you always have to be right?"
"Because someone has to keep you alive."
[LATER – MAGIC CAPITAL]
Xu Mang sat cross-legged in his rented room, incense burning lightly beside him. In front of him lay three sheets of parchment—each containing the cultivation summaries of the trio.
He read them over, nodding as he calculated.
Mo Fan – Current Cultivation
Fire: Intermediate Level 2 (Rose Flame Spirit Seed fused)
• Base spell damage boosted by ~40 percent
• Control improved sharply
• Fiery Fist devastating
Lightning: Intermediate Level 1
• Lightning Strike refined
• Intermediate spell development progressing
Shadow and Summon not yet awakened
Potential: frightening.
Growth rate: absurd.
Xu Mang smirked. "He'll keep up."
Then he flipped the next page.
Lu Jun – Current Cultivation
Water: Intermediate Level 1
• Water Spiral
• Water Pressure Burst
Metal: Intermediate Level 1
• Metal Slash
• Metallic Resonance Shield
Battle control: elite-level precision
No element spirit seeds yet—but high compatibility with defensive and restraining seeds
Potential: frightening in a different way—strategic, refined, deadly at close quarters.
Xu Mang nodded. "He'll survive Pearl Institute. Probably offend half of it."
Finally, Xu Mang reviewed his own page.
Xu Mang – Current Cultivation
Lightning: Intermediate Level 2
• Lightning Strike
• Thunderclap perfected
• Intermediate spell nearly mastered
Fire: Intermediate Level 1
• (Training delayed—no Spirit Seed yet)
Dragon Concealment Sequence fused
Forbidden Forging Technique obtained
Soul Pressure far above realm due to dragon blessing
Potential: hidden.
Danger: immeasurable.
Future risk: guaranteed.
He folded the papers and tucked them away.
These three—
Fire calamity
Water–metal prodigy
Dragon-shadow lightning hybrid
They would change the world if given the chance.
And Xu Mang intended to carve that chance open with his bare hands if he had to.
[PEARL INSTITUTE – NIGHT]
The investigation into Ming Xiao's poisoning intensified. Students whispered in corridors. Teachers exchanged uneasy glances. Rumors spread like wildfire.
But only one person seemed unfazed.
Zhao He.
Curse Department instructor.
Comfortably smiling.
Eyes too calm.
Hands always held just a little too still.
He appeared beside Lu Jun as the latter reviewed student formation manuscripts.
"You handle pressure well," Zhao He said smoothly.
Lu Jun looked up, expression neutral. "I'm studying."
"Mm. Diligence is admirable." Zhao He approached, movements slow—almost serpentine. "Tell me, Lu Jun… do you feel acclimated to Pearl Institute?"
"Yes," Lu Jun replied.
"And you've made no… enemies?"
"Not intentionally."
Zhao He smiled.
The kind of smile that belonged on a man who enjoyed solving puzzles with missing bodies.
"Delightful."
He leaned closer.
"Ming Xiao was poisoned by a Widow's Pit curse. A rare spell. Difficult to cast. Difficult to hide. But the caster was… talented."
Lu Jun waited.
Zhao He tilted his head.
"A talented caster… often feels compelled to test their abilities. Sometimes they will cast again."
Lu Jun met his eyes without flinching.
"If you're warning me," he said, "speak clearly."
Zhao He chuckled softly.
"No warnings. Only curiosity."
Then he turned away and walked down the hall.
Zhou Lixing appeared seconds later, pale.
"Okay. So. That man scares me."
"Good," Lu Jun replied. "It means your instincts work."
But internally?
Yes.
Zhao He was dangerous.
Very dangerous.
And something about the man felt…
interested in Lu Jun.
Which was even worse.
[MEANWHILE – MOUNTAIN VALLEY]
Mo Fan collapsed to his knees, panting.
Tang Yue stood over him, arms crossed.
"You burned three trees," she said.
"They were in my way!"
"They were five meters behind you."
"…They were emotionally in my way."
Tang Yue massaged her temples. "Mo Fan…"
But she smiled despite herself.
Mo Fan raised his hand and conjured Rose Flame again. It flickered—feisty, bright, obedient only to him.
For a moment, he felt powerful.
Then Tang Yue slapped his hand down.
"Do NOT use that near the wildlife."
"Why not? It's pretty!"
Tang Yue pointed at a distant squirrel running for its life.
"You traumatized a woodland creature. Apologize."
Mo Fan groaned.
[MAGIC CAPITAL – UNDERGROUND MARKET]
Xu Mang slipped through a crowded subterranean bazaar, where illegal spell scrolls were sold beside roasted mushrooms, and high-tier soul essences were hidden under sacks of potatoes.
He purchased three items quietly:
A spirit vein powder to stabilize soul structures
A mimicry talisman—to disguise research as harmless practice notes
A low-grade Shadow Soul Essence, cheap but useful for experiments
Not forging.
Not yet.
Just learning.
Preparing.
He passed a stall where a man whispered, "Rare spirit-grade spirits! Lightning fragments, cheap—only five hundred thousand!"
Xu Mang snorted. Cheap.
Another stall sold imitation Flame seeds.
Garbage.
He continued on, blending into the shadows, unseen.
The Thousandfold Concealment hummed lightly beneath his skin—a reminder of the dragon's gift.
But that gift also came with a warning:
"Do not overuse this power. Concealment is not invisibility—
It is erasure.
And erasing oneself too often leaves nothing behind."
Xu Mang exhaled.
He'd be careful.
For now.
[PEARL INSTITUTE – NEXT MORNING]
Lu Jun woke before dawn, washed, dressed, and stepped onto the balcony.
From here, he could see the rising sun casting long beams across the institute grounds—bathing the dueling fields, the library spires, and the training towers in pale orange light.
This was his battleground now.
Not Bo City.
Not the ruined streets.
Not the chaos of survival.
But ambition.
Competition.
And the silent war between genius and genius.
Zhou Lixing stumbled out of bed.
"You're up early," he yawned.
Lu Jun smiled faintly. "There's work to do."
"Like what?"
"Becoming the strongest student here."
Zhou Lixing stared at him.
"…You're serious."
Lu Jun nodded once.
Zhou sighed. "I shouldn't have introduced you to my friends. Now everyone's going to be scared of you."
"That's fine," Lu Jun said. "Fear is useful."
[THREE PATHS]
Mo Fan training in Rose Flame
Lu Jun climbing Pearl Institute's elite ladder
Xu Mang weaving through the Magic Capital underground
Three arcs.
Three storms gathering.
Each one preparing for the next calamity.
Each one growing quietly, dangerously, inevitably.
And though they walked different paths, their destinies were beginning to twist around each other again—
forming the early roots of something far greater than any of them could see.
Something the world would one day call…
a revolution.