Rebirth of a Divine Body
"Now, Nux… explain to me. What in the stars is going on?"
Felberta sat opposite him, elbows resting on the carved agate table, her chin propped on the back of her hands. Her violet eyes, usually sharp as blades, blinked with doubt and frustration.
Nux's voice remained calm, concise, almost detached. He gave her the truth—but not all of it. The Wife Taking System was his secret.
"I had no intention of ascending," he said flatly. "So I chose to reshape and rebuild. This Genesis Lotus… it's the treasure that can rebirth me."
Felberta's lips pressed into a thin line before her anger broke loose. "Are you fucking stupid?!" Her delicate hand slammed the tabletop. "You could have crossed the tribulation and lived! Why would you deliberately hurl yourself into divine lightning? Do you crave death so badly?"
Nux didn't answer. His silence only made her chest burn hotter.
"You don't understand," she said, her voice trembling now, less rage and more heartbreak. "If you had crossed, you'd have stood out—you could've become a God, Nux!"
At last, he turned his head. His black eyes reflected not defiance, but a deep, steady flame. "And what's so good about becoming a God?"
Felberta blinked at him, her long lashes trembling. "What's so good?" she echoed, incredulous. "You become a God, you ascend to the God Realm! Eternal life, infinite power—what else could you possibly want?"
Her jade fingers curled one by one as if she were ticking off treasures she'd hand to him. Her voice sharpened, but her trembling betrayed the emotion behind it. She looked like a porcelain doll that had cracked from the weight of caring too much.
"Yes… the God Realm has everything," Nux said softly, his gaze unshakable. "But…"
His voice dropped into a whisper that spread through the chamber like ripples across water.
"The God Realm doesn't have you."
The words struck like lightning.
Felberta froze. Her violet eyes widened, their brilliance scattering like shattered starlight. For a long moment, she just stood there, dazed, breathing unevenly.
"You… what did you just say?" Her voice quivered as though she'd been thrown into a storm.
"Nothing."
She stared at him, her expression tangled—a softness she never allowed herself to show flickered for just an instant before she shoved it back down, burying it beneath the armor of pride.
"Then why?" she demanded, voice harsher now, though her hands trembled. "Why risk death? Why blow yourself apart against tribulation lightning?"
Nux finally tilted his head toward her, eyes narrowing with a teasing smile. "Tell me, Felberta… when I detonated it, were you happy?"
Her body jerked. Emotions she had tried to smother now roared back, tearing her composure apart. Her chest heaved, her delicate body trembled, and her violet eyes shone with waves she could no longer hide.
"Millions of years of cultivation gone in an instant," she whispered, her voice cracking. "I just want to know one thing. Was it worth it?"
"Why don't you ask me something else?"
"Then do you regret it?" The words spilled out before she could stop them, her voice raw, stripped of the Moonborn Dragon Queen's authority. For once, she wasn't the queen. She was just Felberta.
Nux's answer was firm, immediate. "Not regret."
Her heart shattered. Something inside her—something she'd kept caged for eons—broke free. She opened her mouth, ready to unleash everything she had suppressed, but—
"Hahahaha!" Nux's booming laugh erupted from the lotus, echoing around the chamber.
Felberta's fury snapped back in an instant. "Why the hell are you laughing?!"
He chuckled again, unrepentant. "Silly girl, I was just teasing you. I didn't throw myself into lightning for fun. My rebirth had a purpose."
"You dare joke with me at a time like this?!" Flames practically leapt from Felberta's violet eyes.
Nux teased again, his voice playful. "Come on, admit it. Didn't you feel like you fell in love with me for just a second back there?"
"Heh!" Felberta tossed her silver hair with a proud snort. "Me? Fall in love with a human? Don't delude yourself. Impossible. Not in this life."
"That's good then," Nux said with a mock sigh of relief. "For a moment, I was worried. If you did fall for me, and I happened to like another girl later… you'd probably chop me to pieces with that hatchet temper of yours."
"Asshole! Don't flatter yourself. This queen would never fall for you!"
"Yeah, yeah. I'm clearly not good enough for you."
Felberta's lips parted with an insult on her tongue—something like bastard—but she bit it back. All that remained was a cold snort, but in her violet eyes, hidden deep, was a light she couldn't extinguish.
Nux sighed inwardly. The Wife Taking System demanded he capture women of Spirita, yet Felberta… she was different. Not that he didn't like her—he did—but her strength and pride would make her a dangerous lover. If he ever flirted with another woman, he might actually end up hacked apart.
I'm sorry, Fel, he thought silently. I promise you this much: when you ascend, when you stand as the Moonborn Dragon Queen, I'll see you lead your clan. I'll see you bring the Gods themselves to their knees. I swear it.
What Nux didn't know was that dragonkind never believed in monogamy to begin with.
Three days later.
The pool was empty. Every drop of spiritual liquid had been consumed by the Genesis Lotus.
The twenty-four petals spun wildly, radiating golden brilliance, drawing every thread of energy from miles around.
Then—
Boom!
Light exploded. Lotus blossoms unfurled in a storm of fragrance, filling the chamber.
Felberta's violet eyes widened, her breath caught in her throat.
From within the blooming golden lotus stepped a figure—like a banished immortal descending into the mortal realm.
A boy of twelve or thirteen, his features stunningly refined: swordlike brows, thin lips tinged with arrogance, and eyes black as the abyss yet gleaming with charm. His figure was slender yet perfectly proportioned, every line of his body harmonious. Even veiled in divine radiance, he radiated a natural allure, a charisma that seemed to strike straight at the heart.
But it wasn't just his looks.
As Nux scanned his new body, he could feel it—nine orifices wide open, the eight extraordinary meridians clear, golden light running through his veins. A divine body, flawless.
He chuckled to himself. Even William White, with all his years of cultivation and immortal herbs, only barely opened his meridians. Compared to me? He's nothing.
"Hey, crooked! Wake up!" Nux waved a hand in front of Felberta's stunned face.
She blinked, snapped out of her trance—and then her cheeks flushed crimson.
"Y-you… shameless bastard!" Her fist shot forward on instinct. "Why aren't you wearing clothes?!"
"Wait, wait—Ancestor, mercy!" Nux cried. But too late—her fist struck, blasting him into the wall with enough force to rattle the chamber.
Coughing, he pulled himself free, clutching his chest. "Agh… Felberta, easy! I just got this body. If you break me now, I'll be useless!"
Felberta's rage faltered as she realized what she'd done. His cultivation had dropped—her casual blow could've killed him. She rushed to his side, panic flooding her proud face. "Nux! Don't you dare die!"
"Ahem. Still alive… barely. Another punch like that, though, and I'm finished." He grinned weakly.
Her violet eyes darted over his chest. She froze, staring at the flawless lines of muscle, the radiant golden veins. Without thinking, she reached out and touched him.
"F-Felberta, what are you doing?! Trying to take advantage of me in your secret chamber?" Nux yelped.
She ignored him, her hand trembling against his skin. "Your body… it's too perfect. No flaws at all."
"Of course. Otherwise, your punch would've turned me to dust." He batted her jade hand away. "Careful. If you keep touching me like that, I might commit a crime."
Her cheeks burned crimson. She spun around, covering her face. "Shut up, you shameless brat!"
Nux could only sigh. This girl… either slow to react, or using excuses to touch me. Which is it?
At that moment, the golden lotus petals lifted from the pool, swirling toward him.
"What now—?"
The petals burst into light, vanishing into his body.
When the glow faded, he stood transformed: black hair tied with a golden crown, an indigo robe draped over his frame, a jade ribbon at his waist, cloud-patterned boots upon his feet. His aura sharpened, tempered, utterly divine.
Felberta had turned back just in time. She peeked through her fingers, and her breath caught again.
"Nux… I think I've discovered something…"
He raised a brow. "And what's that?"
"You're… a little handsome." She fiddled with her finger, muttering softly.
"A little? Try a billion points."
She ignored his arrogance, whispering with uncharacteristic sincerity. "Your body… it's the number one divine body in all Spirita. No one could compare. Your presence—it's like poison to women. When you step out into the world, I fear you'll leave a trail of broken hearts behind you."
Nux rolled his eyes. "Don't exaggerate. I'm not that special."
"I'm serious," Felberta said, her tone shifting back to her queenly weight. "This isn't a joke."
He coughed lightly, smirking. "You sound awfully convincing… like you've tested it yourself."
"Go to hell!" She raised her fist again, her face scarlet.
"Alright, alright. I'll behave."
But when she turned her back, cheeks burning, her lips curved ever so slightly. With Nux, her queenly coldness melted away, leaving only a girl caught between pride and… something else.
"Nux," she said suddenly, her voice steady again. "What will you do now?"
He smiled faintly. "Fel… I'm leaving the mountain."
"You're leaving?" Her expression didn't change, but her eyes quivered, betraying the storm within.
"Yes."
"Where will you go?"
"The first stop…" His gaze hardened with resolve. "…the Soulforge Citadel."