Part 1: Talents Under Pressure
Three days had passed since the Celestial Void Tempering Chamber was activated. The air inside the cave vibrated with screams, sweat, and the pounding of bodies pushed to their limits, each day stained by the threat of death beneath the sand.
Samael supervised from the platform, his face as stony as his will. Every disciple trained as if the next wave of beasts or hunters could break in at any moment.
Violeta performed her routine with lethal coldness: every stroke of her wooden sword left a visible trail of frost, the pressure of Yin merging with increased gravity. Her focus was so intense that the room seemed colder around her.
But Eris was a volcano. She tried to imitate her sister's fluidity, but her Qi burned untamable. When she forced a thrust, the sword exploded into splinters. Reddish dust rose, and Eris, furious, stared at the broken hilt with stormy, determined eyes.
"You're not a swordswoman, Eris," Samael intervened, his voice cutting the tension. "Violeta cuts with cold; you are fire that pierces and scorches. We'll forge you a spear, no more imitations."
He glanced toward the disciples in the back, exhausted by the gravity and the uncompromising training. "Here, strength without technique is just meat for the desert. And the desert doesn't forgive mistakes."
Part 2: Ruins in the Sand
The Dragon Bone Compass, increasingly restless, vibrated with unusual energy, pointing east, where a sand whirlwind opened atop a rocky outcrop.
[System: Ancient spiritual residue detected. Origin: Ruins of the Celestial Twin Sect (Sun and Moon).]
Samael didn't hesitate. "Kael, Seraphina, Twins, with me. Lilith, guard the cave. If the Path-Devourer approaches, activate the barrier and evacuate."
They advanced across the sand, always alert to the trembling beneath their feet. The half-buried entrance to the ruin exuded danger and promises of ancient power.
Crossing the threshold, the air became dense. It wasn't just dust… it was the memory of thousands of blood trials.
"Watch your step," Samael warned.
Kael activated his senses and, by accident, brushed against a sunken slab. Click! Spiritual energy arrows shot from the walls. Kael, nerves tempered by recent training, deflected most, but one grazed his shoulder.
"It won't be easy," Samael grunted. "Here, only the worthy survive. Eris, Violeta, center. Kael, vanguard. Seraphina, cover the flanks."
They traversed hallways riddled with traps: altered gravity, blades, fire gusts. Instinct and the blood bond kept them alive, but every trap was a warning: the desert does not forgive the indecisive.
Part 3: Guardians of Sun and Moon
The vault door was monumental, engraved with solar and lunar symbols. Two colossal statues blocked the way, their metal eyes lighting up: one with the brightness of the sun (Yang), the other with lunar cold (Yin).
[System: Sun-Moon Automaton Guardians. Threat level: Transcendence Stage 5. Ultra-high defense if they fight together.]
"INTRUDERS!" thundered the mechanical voice.
The Solar Guardian launched a wall of fire, forcing the twins and Kael back. The Lunar Guardian rushed at Seraphina, its icy fists seeking her heart.
"Kael, distract the fire one!" Samael ordered.
Kael, using the Law Seed, moved with wind and edge. Seraphina released an icy aura, barely slowing the lunar guardian's advance.
Then Samael intervened: "They use the Yin-Yang balance. We need to break the scale."
He unsheathed his Odachi and executed the Law of the Void Wind, unleashing a slash that distorted the space between the guardians. The flow of energy between them broke.
Both automatons flickered, losing sync. The Solar overheated, the Lunar froze for a second.
"Now," Samael ordered.
In two precise moves, he decapitated the Solar and split the Lunar in two. Their cores exploded in smoke.
Part 4: Ancestral Loot
The door opened and the air changed, as if the ruin itself approved of the conquest. On jade pedestals, the true treasures gleamed:
For Eris:
Red jade manual
Ancient spear: "Sky-Piercing Phoenix Spear" (High Earth Grade) — explosive attacks, Fire Qi.
For Violeta:
Blue jade manual
Slim sword: "Lunar Frost Waltz" (High Earth Grade) — speed, illusions, freezing.
For Kael:
Worn scroll: "Phantom Gale Slash" — kill before the enemy hears the draw.
For Seraphina:
White jade ring: "Ring of the Forgotten Empress" — first volume of the "Imperial Lotus Sutra," battle aura mind control.
Additionally, movement techniques and defensive formations:
"Shifting Dune Steps"
"Iron Phalanx Formation"
"This will give us a chance," Samael said, storing the loot in his spatial ring.
Part 5: Blood on the Sand
They returned to the base at dusk, wounded but undefeated, danger from the desert and echoes beneath the sand lurking. As soon as the manuals were delivered, the defensive formation's alarm flickered.
[System: Intrusion alert! Multiple hostile signatures detected. Identification: Valois Blood Hunters.]
Samael looked at his people.
"We just obtained new techniques. It'd be a shame not to test them."
Kael stood at his side, sword ready, while the disciples, tense but determined, formed up at the entrance.
"Open the formation," Samael ordered, a cold smile on his lips. "It's time to stain the sand with Valois blood."
Part 6: Royal Baptism
Under the moon, fifty Valois surrounded the entrance. The leader, a scar crossing his face, raised his dagger and shouted threats.
Samael raised his hand and brought it down:
"Kill them all."
The battle was brutal. Kael, wielding a new technique, cut down enemies before they could scream. Eris and Violeta, connected by the blood bond and their new weapons, swept through with fire and frost. Seraphina, at the center, used the Ring to crush the enemy's will; the disciples formed an impenetrable phalanx.
The Valois commander tried to face Samael, but was mercilessly defeated. His blood fed the Eclipse Odachi, and silence returned to the desert.
The sand, stained red beneath the moon, bore witness:
The Morningstar clan was not prey. It was predator.
Samael cleaned his blade, looking at his people:
"Clean up the mess. Tomorrow gravity goes up to level 6."
In the background, beneath the sand, the Path-Devourer turned, impatient. The real danger had yet to come.
End of Chapter 14