Tian Lei raised his head. The exhaustion was there, but so was the fire—the kind that didn’t fade with victory.
"I know there are still ranks beyond the Divine," he said quietly. "They are the Empyrean, Celestial, and finally... Supre. I want to reach them all."
The Sect Master looked at him for a long mont, then nodded.
"Very well. Tian Lei, you have beco eligible for the final legacy of our Sect. Many have reached this point before, but none were able to claim it. Can you?" he asked.
At the sa ti, Tian Lei in Tian lei and other disciples mind, a notofication appeared that the Trial of the forge have reached the final phase, dumbfounding most of them, but then recognition ca, as they rembered one of them is directly a core disciple now.
The Sect Master stood up, his fiery eyes gleaming. As he extended his hand behind him, space itself split open—revealing a portal to the Sect’s Fla Realm, where countless naturally born flas resided.
"Inside it are many kinds of flas, born from nature and heaven itself. To ascend to the Empyrean Rank and beyond, no ordinary flas can aid you," he said solemnly. "Now, you need to enter the Heaven and Earth Fla Realm. Go inside—and if you can obtain at least a Heaven-Rank Fla, the legacy will be yours."
Tian Lei nodded and entered without hesitation.
The instant Tian Lei stepped through the rift, his surroundings shifted—violently, breathtakingly.
It was as if he had walked into the heart of creation itself.
Flas of every imaginable hue danced across the horizon. Rivers of molten light flowed through mountains of ember-crystal, while in the skies above, vast fla-spirits soared like living cots. Each exhalation of the realm carried the heat of stars, each gust of wind shimred with raw, radiant life.
This was the Heaven and Earth Fla Realm—a domain where ordinary logic burned away, leaving only will, spirit, and fire.
Tian Lei’s body trembled—not in fear, but in reverence. His spirit flas responded instinctively, flaring brighter in awe of the world’s grandeur.
"...So this is it," he whispered. "The place where true blacksmiths are reborn."
A surge of heat rolled past him. Not just ordinary fire—it was living intent, testing him. Flas gathered, coalescing into figures—so humanoid, so beast-like, so abstract shapes of pure energy. Each presence radiated the power of Heaven-Rank and beyond.
"An intruder," a voice crackled, deep and ancient. "Another mortal co to steal the breath of the stars."
The flas around him shimred, forming a circle. Their collective heat pressed against his soul, probing his worth.
Tian Lei didn’t draw his weapon. He simply stood straight, his aura flaring—not aggressively, but confidently. His Heartfla floated out beside him, burning in sync with his pulse, its color shifting between crimson and gold.
"I didn’t co to steal," he said firmly. "I ca to earn."
The air seed to pause. Then laughter—a booming, molten echo that shook the ground.
"Bold words," said the voice again. "Then prove it, for in this realm, words burn to ash. Only fire speaks the truth."
With that, the surrounding flas erupted into chaos. Rivers of magma rose like serpents, the sky split with roaring fire-beasts, and the very air turned molten.
Tian Lei’s eyes sharpened.
He took a deep breath—then stepped forward.
Every step burned away the ground beneath him, yet his own fla didn’t falter. The Heartfla beside him pulsed stronger, feeding him not warmth, but purpose.
One by one, the lesser fla spirits lunged—and one by one, they were absorbed into his fire, their essence purified and rged.
Higher, deeper, fiercer he went—through storms of radiant plasma and oceans of starfire. Each trial pushed him closer to his limit, each step tested not just his power, but his resolve.
Finally, he reached it.
At the center of the realm floated a vast, golden sun—the Primordial Heaven Fla, the heart of the entire domain. Its light was blinding, its heat divine. Even from miles away, Tian Lei’s skin cracked, his bones glowed, and his blood boiled.
He fell to one knee, trembling, but his eyes... burned brighter than ever.
"So this... is the test," he whispered hoarsely.
The fla pulsed, its voice echoing across the heavens like the song of creation itself.
"Mortal blacksmith... if you wish to wield one of my children, then show —what will you sacrifice?"
Tian Lei stood tall, his gaze unwavering.
"Nothing," he said calmly. "I’m not willing to sacrifice anything. I wish to keep everything of mine safe and sound—not trade them away for power."
For a long mont, the realm was silent. The surrounding flas flickered uncertainly, as if confused by his answer. But then, the great fla before him... laughed.
It wasn’t mockery—it was warmth.
"You are steadfast, mortal. Most would have succumbed to temptation and offered grandiose lies—claiming they’d give up life, soul, or spirit, all for strength."
Her tone softened, almost approving.
"All who said such words, I accepted. And all of them... I took their lives in return."
Tian Lei blinked, then gave a small, helpless smile. "Damn. Thanks, I guess. Though I didn’t expect you to sound this dramatic—it’s like sothing out of a novel," he muttered under his breath.
The fla spirit’s laughter deepened, resonating through the mountains of molten stone. Her blazing form shifted, coalescing into that of a radiant woman—her hair a cascade of living fire, her eyes twin suns.
"Then, mortal blacksmith," she said, extending her hand toward him, "prove your words not through sacrifice... but through endurance."
The ground trembled. Mountains of fire rose around them, and countless elental spirits erged—each one a trial, each one a test of his resolve.
Tian Lei exhaled slowly, gripping his hamr. "Endurance, huh? Fine by ."
He stepped forward, flas roaring in answer.
The mont Tian Lei stepped forward, the world ignited.
Flas rose like tidal waves, folding and twisting, devouring sky and earth alike. The Heaven and Earth Fla Realm revealed its true nature—not a battlefield, but a crucible. The ground beneath his feet turned to molten glass, and each breath he took burned like swallowing sunlight.
The elental spirits scread as they descended upon him—creatures born not of flesh, but of fla and will. So were serpentine, so avian, others shaped like burning giants forged from magma and lightning. Each step Tian Lei took forward drew them in, as if the realm itself sought to erase his defiance.
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