The plateau had quieted, the twelve-colored lights dissipated, and the valley seemed to exhale with relief. For a brief moment, everything returned to normal—or so it appeared. Yet, the air still hummed faintly with residual energy, like a heartbeat of something far greater than any mortal could comprehend.
Suddenly, a subtle vibration ran through the entire village. Trees quivered, the river rippled unnaturally, and even the clouds above seemed to shudder. The villagers looked around in confusion, feeling an instinctive chill, but no one could see the source. Even heaven itself seemed to whisper in resonance, a low hum that only the most sensitive cultivators could perceive.
Among the few who understood the magnitude of what was happening, Luo Tang's parents and Tong Chen were no longer in their previous positions. Tong Chen, carrying YunKai Tao, had vanished from the training ground without a trace, leaving the other elders stunned. Luo Tang's parents, previously suspended in the sky, were now gone as well, leaving only a faint shimmer of their auras in the distance.
In the center of the village, near the river, stood the small wooden house where Tao and Luo Tang lived. Inside, YunKai Tao's body lay on a simple mat, unconscious, pale but stable. The front of the house was guarded by Luo Tang's parents, their auras faintly glowing, green and blue, calm but alert.
From above, Unty appeared silently, descending gracefully to hover near the house. Her energy radiated in soft waves, flowing through the room, scanning every corner.
"Nothing is happening," she murmured, her voice echoing slightly in the air. "He is safe… merely unconscious. His body has absorbed too much strain. No external threat is present. Just… the limits of his current power."
The parents nodded subtly, relief mixed with vigilance. The man's voice, calm yet firm, broke the silence:
"There is no need for worry. This is something that would have happened sooner or later. It has occurred early, yes, but that only gives us the chance to intervene. So… do not fear for him."
Tong Chen appeared suddenly, kneeling half-bowed toward the two figures, his usual commanding presence tempered by humility. His voice was respectful, laced with urgency and reverence:
"Sir… is the child safe? I… I fear I have failed in my duty. Please, punish me if I have erred!"
The woman's gaze was serene, yet carried the weight of eternity, a quiet authority that Tong Chen instinctively recognized. She said softly, yet with absolute certainty:
"There is no failure here, Tong Chen. What has occurred was never yours to control alone. The boy has faced forces beyond the understanding of mortals. You have done what you could."
The man stepped slightly forward, his blue aura shimmering faintly, a calm but overwhelming presence. His voice was deep, measured:
"Do not trouble yourself with punishment. This was inevitable, though it came sooner than expected. It has given us the opportunity to guide him properly. That is all you need to understand. The child is safe."
Tong Chen bowed lower, his mind racing. Even with all his years of experience, he could not fully comprehend the identities before him, nor the true extent of their power. Yet, he sensed deeply that these were not ordinary cultivators—something divine, eternal, beyond mortal measure. Still, he trusted their words.
As the exchange continued, a subtle vibration began to spread across the hidden land. The air thickened, and a low hum resonated from the far edges of the valley to the distant peaks. Those attuned to energy—the elders and the divine presences of Luo Tang's parents—immediately noticed it. Their gazes shifted simultaneously toward a single point in the village, where Luo Tang remained in a deep meditation posture.
In that moment, the golden fents around Luo Tang's body, previously faint and almost imperceptible, began to pulse subtly. Tiny threads of light started gathering around him, small sparks coalescing into a faint aura. It was not the full bloom of power, yet the presence was undeniable.
Then, the heavens themselves responded. The sky above the hidden land began to shift, the air vibrating with a pressure unlike anything the cultivators had experienced. Where once there had been twelve colors from the previous phenomenon, now nine prime colors emerged, sharp, mysterious, and overwhelming in their brilliance. The colors were not mere light—they were manifestations of cosmic forces, filling the entire hidden land, pressing on the air, and stretching across the sky like a living canopy.
The elders, still observing from a distance, noticed the phenomenon simultaneously. Yan Zhi Lan's eyes narrowed, Wu Chen's calm expression deepened, and Tong Chen felt an instinctive pulse in his chest—recognition of something monumental. Luo Tang's parents, sensing their son, understood immediately: this was the world itself responding to the unique potential in him, a challenge and suppression from heaven to test and guide the latent force within.
"See the pressure?" Yan Zhi Lan murmured, her voice barely audible. "This is not for him to control… yet. Heaven itself has intervened."
Wu Chen nodded. "The prime colors are aligning with his fents… gold at the center. It's a test, or a suppression. One wrong step, and…" He trailed off, unable to finish the thought, for even the elders could only anticipate, not dictate, the outcome.
After confirming that YunKai Tao remained safe in the village, Tong Chen, along with the other elders, vanished from their distant observation point near the village and reappeared above the training ground. Their movements were seamless, almost instantaneous, carried by their mastery over space and energy. From this vantage, they continued to watch, ensuring that the hidden land remained stable, their attention now fully on Luo Tang at the center of the nine-color phenomenon.
From below, Luo Tang remained perfectly still, the golden fents around him flickering and gathering energy. The nine prime colors in the sky seemed drawn toward him, converging subtly, as if the heavens were focusing their cosmic pressure to test, suppress, and perhaps awaken something within the boy.
The pressure in the air intensified. Birds scattered, and the river rippled unnaturally as if feeling the weight of celestial forces pressing upon the land. Even the trees leaned subtly, responding to vibrations that no mortal could measure. Yet Luo Tang, unmoving in meditation, was the axis of it all. The aura around him radiated faint warmth and pressure simultaneously—the hidden land itself seemed to acknowledge his potential and test his endurance.
The elders exchanged glances, their expressions grave but restrained. They had seen powerful phenomena before, but rarely had they witnessed a world-level response to a single youngster's inner energy.
"He will either grow… or break under it," Tong Chen muttered, his eyes fixed on the center. "We can only watch and ensure his safety. Nothing else is ours to command."
The scene was set: Luo Tang at the center, calm and meditative, as the nine prime colors of heaven converged, filling the sky, compressing the air, and testing the very limits of his golden fents. The hidden land trembled subtly under the pressure, a quiet prelude to the trial that had just begun.
The nine prime colors above the hidden land did not merely shine—they pressurized the air, compressing every atom in the valley with a weight that was almost tangible. Each hue pulsed rhythmically, as though breathing in tandem with the latent energy in Luo Tang's body. From above, even the elders could feel the subtle oscillations, a mixture of awe and caution settling over them.
At the center, Luo Tang remained motionless, his young face calm, yet every fiber of his being was alive with sensation. The faint golden fents surrounding him flickered, small sparks dancing along his limbs and torso. Each color from heaven seemed drawn toward him, testing every layer of his blood and energy.
A single red thread of energy brushed against the outer edge of his golden fents. The boy felt it not as pain, but as a whisper in his blood, a distant echo of potential waiting to be awakened. His eyes fluttered slightly beneath closed lids, responding to the subtle pressure. The golden fents within his veins pulsed in response, expanding slightly as if absorbing the celestial influence.
The sky's nine colors converged in an intricate pattern, their intensity rising with every heartbeat. The air shimmered, and the hidden land trembled, not violently, but with a profound sense of cosmic rhythm pressing down. Luo Tang's parents, still observing discreetly from the distance, exchanged a subtle glance. Their son was on the cusp of something—an awakening tied not only to his meditation but to a deep, mysterious inheritance he had barely begun to understand.
Within Luo Tang's red blood, faint traces of a golden glow—the same color as his fents—pulsed and shimmered faintly. He could not consciously sense it, not yet, but the energy moved with an intelligence of its own, responding to the testing pressure of the nine prime colors.
The first wave of energy struck the golden fents directly. Luo Tang's body shivered ever so slightly, but he remained in perfect meditation posture. The fents expanded like small wings of light, creating a protective lattice over his blood energy. For the first time, a subtle resonance occurred: the outer nine prime colors aligned momentarily with the inner fents, almost as if heaven itself was acknowledging the unique structure of his blood and inheritance.
Tong Chen, observing from above, whispered under his breath, "This… is beyond normal human cultivation. The child's blood is interacting with the heavens themselves. He may survive, but the strain… it will leave its mark."
The golden fents pulsed again, stronger this time, pushing against the pressure of the nine prime colors. Luo Tang's hidden inheritance—a faint, barely perceptible pattern of energy encoded in his blood—began to stir with life. Tiny sparks of power, almost imperceptible, flickered deep within him, revealing that the trial was not merely about endurance; it was a test of compatibility, resonance, and awakening.
The celestial colors pressed further, their vibrations growing more intense. Each strike of energy pushed on his golden fents, and each time, Luo Tang's body absorbed it, his blood energy responding naturally to the trial. His chest rose and fell steadily, his mind clear, his focus unbroken. For the first time, he sensed the latent might hidden within his veins, a force that had always been dormant, now nudged awake by heaven's judgment.
In the distance, his parents' gazes softened, though their expressions remained inscrutable. "He is ready," the woman murmured softly. "Not fully… but he is beginning to feel his inheritance."
The man added, "This is the moment that will define him. He may step further than anyone expects—or falter. But the trial itself… will awaken him."
Time seemed to stretch. The nine prime colors pulsed, danced, and pressed downward, but Luo Tang's golden fents expanded in response, interlacing with the celestial pressure like threads of light weaving a protective cage. Each pulse of heavenly energy was met with a counterwave from his golden fents, a subtle, rhythmic exchange of force.
And then, in a single instant, a spark ignited deep within his blood: a tiny, bright point of golden light, invisible to any observer but pulsating at the very center of his veins. It was the first visible sign of his hidden inheritance stirring—a seed of power that had waited silently for this moment.
The sky's nine prime colors wavered, sensing resistance. The hidden inheritance within Luo Tang had acknowledged the trial and was beginning to respond, sending subtle vibrations through his blood and fents. The pressure in the air softened slightly, as if heaven itself had recognized the boy's potential and was now observing more than testing.
As Luo Tang sat in meditation, the surge of his golden fents and awakened inheritance reached its peak. For a fleeting moment, he felt the exhilaration of the 9-star Foundation Establishment, the energy in his blood roaring like a contained storm.
But then, a sudden awareness gripped him: "I am the controller of my body… my mind… my blood… my very essence." The realization acted like a restraint, a conscious command to harmonize the overwhelming inheritance. Almost immediately, the golden energy compressed, his 9-star power condensing sharply down to 8 stars, then sliding further—8 to 1.
The process repeated in a strange rhythm. The inheritance seemed to surge of its own will, then his conscious control reasserted itself. 1 to 8, then back to 1; 5, then 2; 3… and finally, after countless pulses of internal struggle, the energy stabilized at 2-star Foundation Establishment, mid-level. Here, Luo Tang's body, blood, and fents reached a tenuous equilibrium—the inheritance still active, but fully under his control.
From above, the elders exchanged intrigued glances, their voices low but unmistakably animated.
Yan Zhi Lan murmured, "Fascinating… his inheritance is pushing him far beyond natural limits, yet he is consciously restraining it. It is almost as if he is negotiating with the energy itself."
Wu Chen's brow furrowed. "He's deliberately compressing the levels. Each spike… each collapse is his control asserting itself over the inheritance. Rare—beyond rare for someone of his age."
Tong Chen, who had been watching with quiet intensity, whispered under his breath, "I have seen rapid breakthroughs before, but this… this is a dialogue between a cultivator and his blood. The inheritance is alive, testing him, and he is responding, step by step. The balance he's achieving… it is extraordinary."
Yan Zhi Lan added, "Yet there is risk. Each collapse drains some stamina, some energy. If he cannot sustain this control, the inheritance might force another spike, and the boy could suffer… or worse."
Wu Chen nodded slowly. "But note this: even at mid-level 2-star, his blood energy is far more refined than anyone else at a comparable stage. The inheritance has reshaped him, even within these limits. The boy's potential… is staggering."
Luo Tang, still seated in perfect meditation, felt the golden fents settle. Each contraction and expansion of his blood energy had left traces, patterns of light that whispered the story of his inheritance. Though the external world seemed calm, internally he had faced the storm of his own potential—and emerged aware, disciplined, and alive.
The elders remained silent for a moment, letting the weight of the boy's achievement settle. Tong Chen finally said, "He has survived the dialogue. The inheritance has tested him… and he has proven that he can control it. From here, the true journey begins."
Yan Zhi Lan's lips curved slightly. "And yet… this is only the beginning. The boy has tasted the heights of his potential, and he knows now the cost of mastery. That understanding will shape everything that follows."
Wu Chen's calm gaze swept over the training ground. "Indeed. The 2-star mid-level may appear modest, but it is the foundation upon which something extraordinary will be built. The boy has lived through both fire and restraint—and survived intact."
From a distance, Luo Tang's parents observed intently, their expressions a mixture of awe, concern, and quiet pride. The golden fents of their son shimmered faintly, revealing both the brilliance and the strain of his inheritance.
The mother spoke first, her voice low but deliberate, carrying both worry and recognition:
"He has settled at 2-star mid… yet I can feel the oscillation, the compression of his levels. It is not weakness—it is the inheritance itself testing him. Each rise and fall, each surge and retreat… he has faced them, and he has endured. That alone shows extraordinary control for his age."
The father's blue aura pulsed faintly as he added, his tone steady but layered with caution:
"Yes. He moved from 1-star to 9-star, and then back to 1-star, only to stabilize at mid-level 2-star. That fluctuation is dangerous, yet necessary. It is the inheritance calibrating itself against his consciousness, teaching him restraint. Without such a trial, he would never truly master it."
The mother nodded, her gaze softening as she considered their son.
"Control is everything. He is learning that mastery of power without mastery of self is meaningless. The compression of his levels… it is like the inheritance speaking to him, forcing him to recognize that strength alone cannot guide him. Awareness, discipline, and patience—these will define his true potential."
The father's voice, deep and reflective, carried an edge of quiet admiration.
"Even now, at 2-star mid, the foundation he has built is firm. Each oscillation, each fluctuation, has strengthened his core. The inheritance is alive, yes, and it challenges him like a double-edged blade—but he has shown the resolve to withstand it. That resolve… is more valuable than any peak level at this stage."
The mother added softly, almost in thought, her eyes lingering on Luo Tang's calm form:
"He has understood the weight of his own blood, the inheritance coded before his birth. Each spike, each compression… it has taught him humility and control. If he continues on this path, guided by awareness and restraint, he will rise far beyond what we can foresee."
The father placed a steady hand on her shoulder, a silent acknowledgment of shared pride and concern.
"Yes. For now, the external world sees only a boy at mid-level 2-star, calm and serene. But inside, he has faced the storm of his own potential—and emerged disciplined, aware, and alive. That… is the true victory."
They exchanged a quiet glance, their eyes reflecting both the light of his golden fents and the weight of the inheritance he carried. The parents knew that the journey ahead would be long, challenging, and filled with trials—but they also knew that their son had passed the first, most critical test: mastery over himself.