After the letter, Su Yang sat in silence within his spirit land, the still glow of the half-buried egg pulsing nearby.
Max slept soundly on his lap, breathing softly.
But Su Yang's heart was anything but calm.
> "After I tempered her body and soul… she became stronger. Much stronger."
He leaned back, gazing up at the spirit land's sky—an illusion of peace above a world full of hidden knives.
> "In order to help someone absorb origin blood, your cultivation must be incredibly powerful. But I… I did it without even knowing all the risks. If I had failed—"
He didn't finish the thought.
The truth was terrifying.
In his alchemy studies, Su Yang had read countless scrolls on the dangers of original blood. Even a perfectly healthy body could collapse under its weight. And the soul? That was a different nightmare entirely.
The soul was mysterious. Elusive. Untouchable by most cultivation methods.
To temper it was to dance on the edge of life and death.
> "Most people need heavenly treasures or forbidden-level martial arts just to attempt it… and even then, they risk death."
And yet, his Karma Fire Body had accomplished what legends only whispered about.
> "Without any side effects. Without any backlash. Just pure tempering."
It was a miracle. Or a warning.
Now, Lu Ying could absorb the ice-origin blood. But her current transformation had triggered a mutation in her Extreme Ice Body.
That was why her body was unstable. That was why her grandmother took her away.
> "But here's the real question… who exactly is her grandmother?"
That thought haunted him more than anything.
> "How did she know her body was unstable? How did she appear inside the ancient legacy site without being noticed? Was she watching us all along?"
A cold shiver passed through him.
From the very beginning, Lu Ying's grandmother had been guiding her. Supporting her. Preparing her.
> "This wasn't coincidence. She has power—and knowledge far beyond my comprehension."
Lu Ying had inherited a legacy ring, one that led to an ancient room filled with pure ice-origin blood. That ring was passed down by her mother—meaning her family had cultivated this plan for generations.
> "That legacy wasn't random. It was custom-built for someone with her exact physique. Only a family with great influence and terrifying resources could create such a place."
He looked down at his hand—the same hand that had delivered Karma Fire to Lu Ying's soul.
> "So why didn't her grandmother kill me?"
Su Yang's breathing slowed.
> "She saw me use karna True Fire. Twice."
Once to assist Lu Ying, and once to heal himself. He had also used natural law power to accelerate his recovery—something that, by all rights, should've been impossible for someone at his cultivation level.
> "My karma True Fire is still immature. She probably thought it was just a spatial flame or an advanced elemental technique."
But healing using natural law? That was different.
> "To harness laws like that, even partially, requires centuries of cultivation. I'm not supposed to have that ability."
Then came the most damning secret of all: the Karma Fire Body.
> "A treasure beyond value. It can temper the soul, something even divine flames struggle to do. If she knew the full extent of my body's potential…"
He clenched his fist.
> "I'd be dead already."
The realization hit him like ice water.
> "I was lucky. Too lucky."
His emotions churned between fear, shame, and frustration. He had revealed too much to someone he barely knew. All because she had saved him once.
> "This isn't a world where kindness is repaid with kindness. This is a world where power is currency and trust is a luxury."
He could've died without even realizing who killed him. Just a single mistake—and his body would've been buried in t
hat cave alongside ancient bones.
> "I need to grow stronger. But more importantly, I need to become more careful."