High in the jagged cliffs beyond Ember Valley, veiled in eternal mist and guarded by sheer vertical drop-offs, stood a forgotten ruin: The Lightning Temple.
It wasn't on any map. The elders spoke of it only in whispers — a place where thunder slept in the stones, and gods once walked barefoot upon storm-scorched floors. According to the scroll Jayden unearthed from the rune chamber weeks ago, this temple housed the third seal of the Dragon Form — the one said to awaken the user's true combat instincts and shatter all internal energy blockages.
Jayden stood at the foot of the temple's moss-covered stairway.
Lena reached into her bag, pulling out a wrapped orb that pulsed faintly with violet light. "Storm Compass," she explained. "It only reacts when you're within fifty steps of a dragon-tier lightning source."
Jayden raised an eyebrow. "And it's reacting now?"
She nodded. "Screaming, actually."
The Temple Wakes
The first step echoed like thunder through the cliffs. With every footfall up the winding stair, the clouds above thickened, crackling faintly with energy. By the time Jayden reached the shattered arch at the summit, lightning danced from stone to stone like silver snakes.
Inside, the Lightning Temple was no more than ruin and rubble. Yet, beneath the destruction, the runes still pulsed with breath. The floor itself was etched with ancient sigils that sparked faintly when Jayden approached.
He placed his palm on the center emblem.
Crack!
The world split around him.
Trial One: Illusions of Thunder
The floor vanished beneath Jayden's feet. In the blink of an eye, he found himself standing in the middle of a burning village — one he recognized immediately.
His old neighborhood. The same one he'd grown up in.
Only now, it was engulfed in war.
Screams rang from every house. Gangs clashed with spectral martial artists in a blur of blood and steel. Explosions lit the night sky. And in the middle of it all—Jayden's younger self stood frozen, fists clenched, eyes wide with terror.
"I remember this night," he whispered. "The night I ran."
A voice, deep and hollow, echoed in the air:
"Run again… and you will fail the trial."
The past-Jayden turned, eyes locking with the present one.
Monsters formed from smoke and fear charged from the alleyways. Jayden's younger self turned to flee.
But the real Jayden bolted forward, intercepting the first nightmare with a blinding kick. His chi surged. Every instinct sharpened.
"You're not alone this time."
What followed was chaos.
Fists moved like lightning. Palms shattered illusions. For every shadowy beast that lunged, Jayden countered with precise strikes — elbow, shoulder, spin, stomp. He wasn't just reacting. He was the storm now.
When the final illusion dissolved, the scene melted, and he stood once again in the temple.
First trial passed.
Trial Two: Thunder Beasts
The floor peeled open like a lotus bloom, revealing a massive underground chamber where three thunder beasts — each shaped like an ancient guardian animal — lay coiled in sleep.
A jade serpent. A bronze tiger. And a massive obsidian tortoise with glowing runes across its shell.
Jayden stepped forward, and their eyes snapped open — lightning bolts flickering in their pupils.
A voice boomed:
"Choose only one to defeat. Choose wrong… and die."
Jayden didn't hesitate.
The serpent.
It lunged first. Faster than thought.
But Jayden had already moved.
Dodging sideways, he placed a foot on its skull and spun backward mid-air, channeling chi into his heel. The resulting blow echoed like thunder, stunning the beast.
It hissed, spinning its massive body and lashing out with a tail strike that tore chunks of stone from the temple floor.
Jayden rolled beneath it, grabbing hold of a long crackling pillar and channeling chi into his palms — the Thousand Volt Palm, a skill he'd only recently refined.
He struck the beast dead center between its eyes.
CRACK!
The entire chamber lit with blinding white.
The serpent collapsed.
A portal opened, golden and radiant.
Trial Two: Passed.
Trial Three: The Dragon's Mirror
This time, there was no battlefield. No beasts.
Just… silence.
Jayden stood in a circular chamber surrounded by mirrors — each reflecting a version of himself. Some wore bloodstained robes. Others glowed with celestial power. One stood with Kael's face. Another had no face at all.
Then… the mirror in front of him shattered.
And from it stepped his own reflection, crackling with golden lightning. But this reflection didn't speak. It moved instantly, fists like spears, strikes laced with devastating chi.
Jayden countered, shocked at the sheer ferocity.
This opponent… knew everything he did. Every counter. Every technique.
And more.
The mirror form fought not just with the Dragon Form's first and second seals — it had awakened the third.
Jayden's mouth bled. His shoulder cracked.
But he grinned.
"You're stronger," he whispered. "So let me show you what I learned from my failures."
He shifted his stance — not traditional, not street-fighting. A blend. His own. Chi surged from his core like a tidal wave.
He merged the Ember Lotus Palm with Dragon Flow Step.
Even the mirror paused.
Jayden struck.
One. Two. Spin. Elbow. Knee. He layered attacks unpredictably, mixing flow with force, rhythm with ruthlessness.
Finally, he leapt, channeling every last ounce of chi into his palm — forming a compressed stormball at its center.
He struck the chest of his reflection.
It cracked like glass. And shattered.
Awakening the Third Seal
The room dissolved. The runes on Jayden's body burned — this time in a bright electric blue. Veins surged with new chi channels. His dantian expanded. His vision sharpened. Every sound became a musical note in the air.
The third seal wasn't just about power.
It was about perception.
And now… he could see movements before they happened. Feel intent. Predict pressure.
The Dragon Form now awakened combat foresight — a technique said to only be mastered by ancient gods of war.
He stood, lightning crackling harmlessly around him.
"It's done," he said.
Outside the Temple
Lena waited near the cliff edge. When Jayden emerged, she gasped.
"You're… glowing."
He nodded. "It's the third seal."
She touched his hand. "And your heart?"
"Still mine."
For now.
Meanwhile… Deep Within the Stormlands
Kael stood before an obsidian monolith, whispering an incantation. Dozens of shadow cultivators knelt behind him, each branded with blood runes.
He opened his palm. A crimson flame danced — the Soulfire of the Wraith King, stolen from a forbidden vault.
"Let the boy climb," Kael muttered. "When he falls… I want him to remember what hope felt like."
He dropped the flame into the monolith.
The world shook.