The wind had changed.
Arin noticed it almost immediately as he stepped deeper into the forest. The air carried a strange scent like charred stone mixed with something metallic. Not blood. Not rot. Something older. Something… forged.
The Whispered Sight lines danced faintly in front of his eyes, leading him toward a narrow crack in the forest floor.
From a distance, it looked like a dead end just another shadow among the roots.
But as Arin stepped closer, the crack deepened, widened, and unfolded into a hidden path descending into the earth.
> "Location Identified: The Broken Pillar Cavern"
"Trial Available: One Who Endures Flame"
"Warning: This is a mid-grade trial ground. Recommended for cultivators nearing breakthrough."
Arin took a deep breath.
"I guess that's me."
His Qi Core was 60% unblocked now. He could feel the energy moving easier, faster. The last few days had pushed him to his edge and beyond. He had killed beasts, passed ancient trials, and survived places that would have broken the Arin from just a week ago.
Now he stood on the edge of something more.
He lit a torch using dried moss and stepped into the cavern.
The descent was steep, the air growing hotter with every step. The walls of the cavern shimmered faintly with reddish light metal veins pulsing just beneath the rock. Symbols had been carved into the walls long ago, their meanings lost to time, but the energy they gave off was still present.
Not hostile.
Just… testing.
The ground flattened into a wide chamber. Massive stone pillars lined the walls, though many were cracked or broken. At the center, a circular platform glowed faintly red. A ring of fire surrounded it, unburning but hot enough to make Arin sweat.
> "Trial Initiated: One Who Endures Flame" Objective: Stand within the Circle of Tempering for 20 minutes. Rules: No healing items. No external aid. Movement permitted. Focus on internal strength.
A voice ancient and deep whispered in his mind.
"Endure, not with might, but with will."
Arin stepped into the circle.
The fire roared to life.
The first minute was bearable.
The heat pressed in from all sides, making him sweat, making it harder to breathe. But he had trained under pressure before. The Hollow Creek, the Whispering Woods all of it had prepared him.
By the fifth minute, his skin felt like it was being pricked by a thousand tiny needles.
His Qi surged in protest, trying to defend him. But the trial wasn't meant to harm it was meant to shape.
Every second within the ring forced his body to adapt, to grow stronger.
> "+2 EXP"
"+1 KP"
He shifted his stance, balancing his weight.
The pendant on his chest began to glow faintly. Not bright but enough to ease the pressure slightly.
> "Pendant of the Hollow Eye is resonating with trial flame. Passive defense increased."
He let out a shaky breath and pushed through the tenth minute.
Flashes of memory flickered through his mind. Lira's face. The pain of betrayal. The emptiness of the cave. The rage when he first fought the Flame - Furred Hound.
He focused all of it.
Fed it into his Willpower.
And endured.
At minute fifteen, the real trial began.
The fire turned gold.
Not just heat now but spirit flame. It seared his soul.
> "Mental strain increasing. Willpower check initiated."
"Result: Pass. Resilient Mind activated."
The ground trembled.
And from the center of the circle, something rose.
A burning figure a humanoid shape, cloaked in molten light, stepped forward.
It had no face, no voice. But it stared at Arin with the weight of a mountain.
"Prove yourself," the flame-being said.
Then it attacked.
Arin barely dodged in time. The platform gave him space, but not much.
He fought back not with brute strength, but with technique. Dodging. Blocking. Surviving.
The being didn't use weapons. Just its burning limbs. Every strike carried heat and pressure. Arin's arms blistered as he blocked, his breath came ragged, but he didn't fall.
> "Trial Guardian Engaged – Last Phase Initiated"
He lasted five minutes against the guardian.
Then, finally, the flame-being stopped.
It raised a hand.
Then lowered it.
And vanished in a pillar of fire.
> "Trial Complete."
"+10 EXP | +3 KP | +1 Strength | +2 Willpower" "Reward Item: Embersteel Core Fragment – Can be used to refine Qi Core."
Arin dropped to one knee, panting.
The fire around the circle died down.
> "EXP: 75 / 100"
"KP: 9"
"Strength: 19"
"Willpower: 34"
He had done it.
And something inside had shifted again.
Not just his strength—but his resolve.
He stood up, cradling the glowing Embersteel Core Fragment in his palm. It pulsed warmly—like a piece of a star. This could help clear more of his Qi Core. Maybe even complete it.
> "System Note: Using Embersteel Core Fragment now will increase Qi Core Cleansing by 20%."
"Use it," Arin said.
The fragment dissolved into light.
A rush of heat spread through his chest.
> "Qi Core Blockage Cleared: 60% → 80%"
He fell backward, heart pounding, but the pain was manageable. His core now almost completely opened.
> "+5 EXP"
> "EXP: 80 / 100"
Just 20 more.
And then he'd reach Level 2.
He walked out of the cavern slowly.
His eyes sharper.
His step steadier.
The flame had not broken him.
It had forged him.