Through fractured clouds and crimson skies,
The sun arose with bloodshot eyes.
Beneath its glare, on scorched terrain,
A youth lay wrapped in silent pain.
Lin Xun stirred from haunting dreams,
Where molten thrones split starlit streams.
His pulse beat slow—his breath returned,
His core still flared with fires that burned.
Xu Qingxue sat in quiet grace,
A slight frown carved upon her face.
She touched his wrist, her gaze intent,
To gauge how far his strength was spent.
> "You've bathed in flame and drunk the void,"
"Yet still your soul is half-destroyed."
Lin Xun, with cracked and bloodied lip,
Replied, "I lived. That's more than gift."
He sat up straight, though pain did roar,
And smiled despite the wounds he bore.
> "The Saint retreated?"
"Barely," she said. "But he'll return. His pride's been scorched. His hate will burn."
A silence passed between the pair,
While mountain winds whipped through the air.
Then Lin Xun asked, with voice unsure,
> "Why help me? Why endure?"
Xu Qingxue rose with breeze-like grace,
Her eyes like stars in tranquil space.
> "I owe no answer, flame-born boy,
But fate delights in strange employ."
"Besides…"—her lips curled into jest—
"It's rare to see a fool stand such test."
She tossed him something small and bright—
A pill that shimmered pale moonlight.
> "Consume it. Heal. We journey soon.
The Skyrect trials begin at noon."
Lin Xun blinked.
> "Trials? Already?"
"Indeed. And you'll need steady footing… if you wish to survive."
—
Elsewhere, across the sacred plains,
Where Skyrect Sect bore silent chains,
The elders gathered in a dome,
Their faces carved like ancient stone.
Elder Mo—his beard like falling sand—
Spoke first, with staff in weathered hand.
> "The boy has merged two sacred cores,"
"Such things disturb the cosmic doors."
Lady Zhen, with silver hair like silk,
Whispered low, her voice like milk.
> "Perhaps this is the heir long lost…"
"The flames he bears, they pay the cost."
But one man stood with venom sharp—
Elder Wu, with voice like harp.
> "We cannot let a cursed blood thrive!"
"If he ascends, none here survive!"
A hush fell hard, but then came sound—
The Master's voice, both soft and bound.
Sect Master Han, with sunken eyes,
Spoke not of fear but truth and ties.
> "Let him climb the Heaven's Path,"
"Let him face the Sect's own wrath."
"If he survives, then fate approves."
"If not… then Heaven's blade shall move."
—
Lin Xun and Xu now traveled east,
Through lands where even beasts had ceased.
Their path wound deep through hallowed trails,
Where spirit roots and cursed trees wailed.
They reached the gates of Skyrect Keep,
Where even stars paused breath and sleep.
Ten thousand steps carved from starlit stone
Rose high like dragon's spine and bone.
> "Here lies the path," she said with hush,
"Where blood must fall and bones must crush."
A disciple clad in azure robe
Stepped forward with a crystal globe.
> "Name?" he barked.
"Lin Xun," came strong and clear.
The globe flashed red—it flared with heat,
And all around him shuffled feet.
> "A twin core bearer?" someone gasped.
"Is that... phoenix and frost?" another asked.
Eyes widened, voices filled with dread.
But Lin Xun only bowed his head.
> "I walk the path. I climb alone."
Xu Qingxue watched, her stance like stone.
> "I'll see you at the summit's flame.
Don't die before you earn your name."
—
Step by step, he climbed the stair,
Where many failed beneath despair.
Each step bore weight beyond the flesh—
A soul-boun
d toll, a fate enmesh'd.
On step one thousand, visions struck—
His past returned, his failures clucked.
On step five thousand, blood ran dry—
His veins screamed out