In the sprawling trade city of Aurehaven, nestled between the jagged Ironspine Mountains and the endless Verdant Expanse, the Celestine Academy stood as a beacon of martial and alchemical prestige. Every year, thousands of hopeful youths flocked to its gates, dreaming of mastering the twin paths of Sword Dao and Alchemy.
Among them was Elias Varnholt, a lanky seventeen-year-old with storm-gray eyes and ash-brown hair that always looked wind-tousled. He wore a patched gray cloak, the only memento from his late mother, and carried a battered iron sword slung across his back.
Elias had no prestigious lineage. No ancient bloodline. No spirit beast companion. He was an orphan from Emberfall, a forgotten mining village razed three years ago by a rogue Pyre Wyrm. The disaster had claimed his family and left him with nothing but scars—and a strange, dormant ember in his soul that no healer could explain.
Today was the Celestine Entrance Trial.
The academy's outer courtyard buzzed with activity. Nobles in silk robes flaunted glowing spirit rings. Prodigies from the Storm Coast Clans demonstrated wind-step techniques. A girl with silver hair—Liora Valcrest, heiress of the Valcrest Duchy—casually crushed a testing stone with a single finger, earning gasps from the crowd.
Elias stood at the back, clutching his registration token: a crude wooden plaque marked #4721.
"Next! Elias Varnholt of Emberfall!" a proctor bellowed.
He stepped forward to the Spirit Resonance Obelisk, a towering crystal pillar pulsing with azure runes. Candidates placed their palms on it to awaken their Soul Vein and reveal their Affinity Grade.
Elias pressed his hand against the cold surface.
Nothing happened.
Seconds ticked by. The obelisk remained dark. Whispers turned to snickers.
"Zero resonance? A Null Vein?"
"Emberfall trash. Why's he even here?"
The proctor sighed. "Failed. Next—"
"Wait!" Elias gritted his teeth. "Let me try the Alchemy Trial instead."
The crowd burst into laughter. Sword Dao required spirit veins. Alchemy demanded precise soul control and rare Herb Sense. A Null Vein attempting alchemy was suicide.
But the proctor shrugged. "Fine. The cauldron's over there. Brew a Vitality Elixir in one hour. Ingredients are provided."
Elias approached the bronze tripod cauldron. On the table lay standard herbs: Moonpetal, Ironroot, Drakebloom, and a vial of Beast Essence.
He closed his eyes.
In his mind, the ember stirred.
Not spirit veins… but something else.
His hands moved on instinct. He crushed Moonpetal into a fine powder, not with a pestle, but between his fingers—infusing it with faint heat. Ironroot was sliced paper-thin, each cut releasing a metallic scent. Drakebloom petals were seared over the cauldron's rim, caramelizing their edges.
The crowd watched in stunned silence.
That's… not in any textbook.
Elias poured Beast Essence last, but instead of stirring clockwise (the standard method), he traced a spiral inward, then outward—mimicking the ember's pulse in his chest.
A pillar of crimson-gold flame erupted from the cauldron, licking the sky. The proctor dove back.
When the light faded, a single drop of liquid hovered above the tripod—iridescent, like liquid starlight.
The obelisk, dormant moments ago, suddenly screamed. Runes blazed across its surface. A phantom sword and a golden pill materialized above Elias's head, spinning in perfect harmony.
"Dual Supreme Affinity—Sword Dao & Alchemy!" the obelisk thundered.
The courtyard fell deathly quiet.
Liora Valcrest's eyes narrowed. A boy beside her, Cassian Holt, heir of the Holt Merchant Syndicate, clenched his fists. His own affinity had been High-Grade Sword, yet this nobody...
The proctor stammered, "I-Impossible! The obelisk has never—"
Elias stared at the floating drop. It drifted into his palm and vanished, leaving a burning rune on his skin: 🔥⚔️.
A cold voice cut through the shock. "He cheated. No Null Vein can awaken dual paths." Cassian stepped forward, smirking. "I demand a retest—under Soul Lock Formation."
The proctor hesitated, then nodded. A formation of silver chains erupted from the ground, binding Elias's arms and sealing his meridians. No external spirit energy could interfere.
"Try again," Cassian sneered. "Brew it now."
Elias's lips curved. The ember in his soul flared brighter than ever.
They want a show? Fine.
He grabbed a handful of scrap herbs from the reject pile—wilted, low-grade, worthless. With the chains rattling, he slammed them into the cauldron. No measurements. No tools.
His fingers danced. Flames erupted from his bare palms, not the cauldron. The scraps melted, fused, and screamed as they transmuted.
Ten seconds later, three iridescent drops floated out—each purer than the first.
The Soul Lock Formation shattered. The obelisk cracked down the middle.
Cassian's face went white.
Elias flicked a drop toward the proctor. "Vitality Elixir, Perfected Grade. Drink it. You'll break through a minor realm."
The proctor, trembling, swallowed it. His aura surged—Foundation Stage, Level 4 to Level 5 in an instant.
The courtyard erupted into chaos.
Liora Valcrest whispered, "He's… a Dao Anomaly."
High above, on the academy's jade tower, an elderly figure in starlit robes opened his eyes. Archmage Orion, the Celestine Academy's hidden guardian, gazed down at Elias.
"The Primordial Ember… has chosen a vessel."
Elias wiped sweat from his brow and grinned at the stunned crowd. "So. Do I pass?"