The glow of the Verdant Lifepulse Tree faded into stillness, but Ethan's spirit surged like never before.
As the sacred Spirit Fruit entered his core, the energy within it fused with his qi sea. Waves of pure life essence and elemental fire rushed through every meridian in his body. His bones crackled with golden warmth. His dantian expanded, stabilizing like a sun forming at his core.
A final pulse echoed through the cavern.
Foundation Phase-Level Nine.
Ethan exhaled slowly, a fog of emerald and gold spiraling from his lips. His vision sharpened, spiritual perception extending farther than ever before. Every sound, every flicker of movement in the cavern above them now thrummed with clarity.
Elena touched his arm, her expression unreadable.
That fruit didn't just refine your body it strengthened your connection to nature itself. I could feel it.
Ethan nodded,
It was part of something older maybe even connected to the realm's origin. But this isn't the end.
Suddenly, the Verdant Lifepulse Tree shuddered and unfurled one last gift a scroll made of glowing bark, floating before them.
Daro caught it midair and opened it with reverence. A map and warnings. It speaks of a cursed place called the Withered Marshes and a sealed ruin beneath it.
Miral Shan, bruised but steady, narrowed her eyes,
That place has long been abandoned even sects avoid its depths. It's said the spiritual energy there twists into madness.
Elena's brow furrowed,
The Marshes lie near where Ethan's family once lived before the massacre.
A chill passed between them.
Ethan stepped forward, fire flashing behind his eyes. Then it's time. If the Abyss has been influencing events from the shadows, that place may hold the key and answers about what happened to my bloodline.
The journey was nothing short of brutal.
They traveled through forests where the trees whispered names of the dead, across rivers with currents that reflected nightmares, and into mountain passes that resisted spiritual flight. Ethan, now at Foundation Phase Level nine, could sense the world's subtle layers better each step felt heavy with hidden traps, spiritual interference, and old curses.
At the edge of the Withered Marshes, the land changed. The sky darkened unnaturally, clouds swirling without wind. The trees here were dead, but their roots twitched like the limbs of forgotten beasts. Puddles of dark water reflected faces that weren't their own.
Elena placed a hand on her sword.
It's alive.
Daro lit a flame in his palm,
It's cursed.
From behind a jagged rock, a shadow moved silent, deliberate.
Ethan's instincts screamed.
In an instant, a figure in dark armor lunged from the shadows. Its movement was ghostlike, its presence smothered by an aura of decay and refinement.
An assassin!
Ethan shouted,
Drawing the Dragon Slayer Sword just in time to block a venom-tipped blade.
The enemy wore a mask shaped like a cracked porcelain face, etched with abyssal runes. No words were spoken only killing intent.
The battle was immediate.
The assassin vanished, only to reappear behind Elena. She parried with her thunder-frost blade, sparks flying, but was pushed back. Daro unleashed flames, but they passed through an afterimage.
Shadow shifting,
Miral growled,
Void-step movement and death qi.
Ethan focused, channeling his recent breakthrough. He activated the Nature-Fire fusion domain he'd inherited from the Verdant Tree. Roots shot from the ground, glowing with golden runes, latching onto the assassin's ankles.
Elena followed, releasing a barrage of lightning spears that illuminated the fog. For a moment, they caught a glimpse of the enemy's true form a Fallen Cultivator, once human, now twisted by Abyssal corruption and merged with dark techniques from another realm.
It struck again, this time aiming for Ethan's neck.
But Ethan roared, the Dragon Slayer Sword humming with nature energy. With a two-step sword form, he pivoted and struck across the enemy's mask. The blade connected, shearing through layers of energy, disrupting the assassin's void-step technique.
The porcelain mask cracked and underneath, hollow black eyes met Ethan's.
The Vein of Calamity awakens,
The assassin rasped.
Before they could finish the blow, the enemy vanished into a dark mist, leaving behind a single blood-stained talisman marked with the symbol of Ethan's long-lost clan.
Silence returned, heavy and bitter.
Ethan knelt and picked up the talisman. His hands trembled, rage and clarity burning behind his calm exterior. They were part of this Abyss didn't just attack my clan. They used someone from inside.
Elena knelt beside him, her voice soft,
This is where it begins again not just revenge and Justice.
He stood slowly, eyes locked toward the heart of the Marshes,
Then we'll follow the map into the sealed ruin. And whatever secret lies buried there.
I'll uncover it. Even if I have to burn through the Abyss itself.