Chapter 58 – The Calm Before the Storm
Silence.
For nearly a century, that was the only companion within the timeless void of Jin's time chamber. But now, with a deep, rumbling breath, his eyes snapped open. A radiant light flashed through them—not black, but deep blue. His once-dark eyes now shimmered with the quiet flow of time itself. His long hair, once midnight black, had turned a soft, almost glowing white.
He looked like a young man in his twenties. But his eyes… they told a different story.
Jin remained still for a moment, breathing in the aura around him. Then he stood up, his body creaking faintly as though shaking off dust from forgotten eons. He stretched slowly, muscle by muscle, limb by limb, adjusting to using his physical form again. Every inch of his body cultivation had been refined to its peak. The Titan Vein Tempering was complete.
Then he focused inward.
His soul cultivation… almost done. Just one final step remained.
He narrowed his eyes and scanned the layers of his memories, senses, and core. And then he counted.
"…Ninety-eight years," he whispered, his voice carrying weight, tinged with quiet disbelief. "I only planned for eighty."
But time inside this realm wasn't bound to rules. It stretched when needed, twisted when unnoticed. He looked to the ceiling, then the ground, then smiled faintly.
"Two months left... before the tournament begins."
He recalled his master's words clearly now—spoken decades ago but etched permanently into his mind:
> "In the final two months, the Grand Ascension Realm initiates its true trial. A battle—a tournament created by the realm itself. All who remain will be transported into an ancient arena and forced to compete. Winners gain fortune. Losers… pray you survive."
Jin exhaled. His body shifted slightly, and with a flick of his hand, runes burst into life around the chamber. With practiced ease, he wove them into a spatial seal—an array meant not to attack or defend, but to store. The entire time chamber shimmered, shrank, and collapsed into a crystalline rune, which floated gently into his palm.
He stored it in his spatial ring and smiled. "A gift for Master."
Without wasting a breath, he extended his spiritual awareness into the faint strand of Gorr's hair embedded with the teleportation signature. It pulsed once in response. A heartbeat later, space rippled around him—and he vanished.
---
He reappeared beneath a cloud-swept sky, and the first thing he saw made his brow twitch.
Gorr and Lyra were robbing cultivators.
Two poor souls were on their knees, wailing in disbelief as Gorr casually rifled through their storage rings while Lyra stood watch, fire and light flaring around her like a queen of judgment.
"...Really?" Jin muttered.
Gorr froze mid-loot. Lyra turned around. Both stared.
Then, in the next moment—
"JIN!"
They rushed over, completely abandoning their victims.
"Holy hell, you're alive!" Gorr said, clapping Jin on the back hard enough to nearly knock a tree over.
Lyra's eyes were wide with wonder. "Your hair… and your eyes... what happened to you?"
Jin smiled. "It's a long story. I broke through to mid-stage Adept Realm. Finished my body cultivation. Soul cultivation is almost done."
Her eyes glowed with amazement—but Jin noticed something else too. Lyra's aura had changed.
"You broke through too," he said, eyes narrowing. "Early-stage Adept Realm. Congrats."
Lyra nodded. "Still consolidating, but I can feel the difference."
Jin nodded approvingly. "Perfect. We need to prepare."
"Prepare?" Gorr asked. "For what?"
Jin's tone turned serious. "The tournament. The real reason this is called the Grand Ascension Tournament. In two months, the realm itself will teleport every remaining cultivator into an arena. It will pit us against each other. One-on-one battles. And the prizes…" he looked to the horizon, "...are said to be bestowed by the realm itself."
Gorr's expression shifted instantly. "Now that sounds like my kind of party."
Jin grinned, then gestured to the terrain around them. With a stomp, the ground rumbled and shifted. He lifted the soil and stone with his earth element, carefully carving out a wide clearing.
He clapped his hands.
A small, elegant pagoda began to take shape in the center. With delicate hand motions, Jin infused the structure with defensive runes—each one pulsing with different colored light. The entire structure shimmered with power.
Inside, he created an essence gathering array—one finely tuned to assist Lyra's consolidation and give himself a space to practice new skills.
They stepped inside, and for a moment, the world outside went quiet. Birds no longer chirped. The wind didn't blow.
It was the quiet before a storm.
All across the Grand Ascension Realm, cultivators felt it. A subtle pressure in the air. A tension rising in the sky. Everyone knew what was coming.
The final two months passed quickly.
---
Two months later.
It began at sunrise.
Without warning, the sky above the Grand Ascension Realm lit up with golden cracks. Space tore open in every direction, and beams of light descended, enveloping every remaining cultivator.
In a massive coliseum on the Southern Continent, millions watched with bated breath. Floating crystal screens broadcasted every match, every clash of elements and might.
The sect heads of the Blazing Phoenix Sect, Howling Storm Sect, and Luminous Peak Sect all leaned forward in their seats.
Elders whispered predictions. Disciples held their breath.
And in the midst of it all, one old man—his face weathered, eyes sharp like blades—sat silently with a wine flask in hand.
Jin's master.
He stared at the screen, lips parting.
"Jin… I believe in you."
---
Back inside the realm, space began to ripple around Jin, Lyra, and Gorr.
Gorr gave a wink and vanished into Jin's storage ring, teleporting himself to avoid separation.
Jin looked to Lyra and extended his hand. "Together?"
She smiled, her fingers threading through his. "Always."
The teleportation light consumed them.
And the arena awaited.