Chapter 37 - Flames Rekindled

Dust and embers settled like a funeral shroud over the Veil of Shadows battlefield, the air thick with the coppery tang of blood and scorched qi. Abraham stood amid the carnage, chest heaving, Plum Blossom sword dripping crimson rivulets that steamed on the cooling earth. His lean frame, corded with sinew from endless trials, bore fresh gashes—shallow across his forearm where the cultist's poisoned ribbon had kissed flesh, deeper across ribs from a glancing axe blow. Sweat plastered dark hair to his brow, eyes sharp as forged steel scanning for lingering threats. Veil lifted, but shadows breed, he thought, meridians throbbing with Violet Cloud's renewal, qi knitting wounds like threads in a loom. The Origin Core Fragment pulsed steady, a heartbeat against chaos. �Michael loomed nearby, colossus unbowed—towering seven feet, broad as an ox yoke, black-crimson armor cracked from shoulder where poison blade scored deep, exposing veined muscle glistening red. His gauntleted fists, knuckles split and bloodied, clenched with leashed fury; breath ragged but eyes coal-voids burning undimmed. A split lip curled in disdain at fallen cultists, their twisted runes fading like dying embers. Storm unbroken, Abraham noted, respect mingling exhaustion. Disciples rallied—Li Wei clutching jade slip, face pale but resolute, others bandaging amid moans.Jang Mun's messenger arrived on winded horse, robes muddied: "Sect Leader summons. Cult's Obsidian Fortress stirs—Kaien rallies remnants." Abraham nodded, cleaning blade with cloth scrap. Pursuit eternal. Camp struck swift; they marched east, fog parting to reveal charred trails leading wasteland-ward. En route, strategy brewed: Li Wei unfurled maps, "Fortress wards blood rites—reversal fields drain qi." Abraham traced routes: "Plum illusions breach outer; Michael shatters gates." Inner voice honed: No mercy for venom roots. Empire's dawn demands purge.Nights blurred training—Abraham drilling disciples Twenty-Four Blossoms under stars. "Cascade Bloom evades pull," he demonstrated, feet ghosting dew, petals qi-blooming shields against thrown stones. Li Wei mirrored, wiry frame adapting swift—youthful vigor tempered discipline. Michael sparred periphery, fists cratering earth, crimson qi exploding geysers; disciples paled but watched awed. Twin Demons teach unity, Abraham mused, Sovereign urge leashed. Hua's grace, machine's fire—converge.Dawn third day: Emberfire's edge loomed—lava rivers glowing veins, air shimmering heat-haze. Scouting revealed cult armaments: blood-forged catapults hurling ichor-bombs, reversal totems pulsing drain. Michael crushed scout patrol single-handed—fist pulverizing armor, qi-backlash vaporizing three. Abraham looted totem shard, relic syncing: "Analyzing. Counter: Plum Zenith disrupts flow."Regrouped at lava-blistered ridge, plans solidified. Abraham addressed circle, voice steel-clad: "Kaien weaves web—ambush flanks, totems core. We sever head." Disciples nodded fierce; Li Wei gripped sword: "For Hua." Michael grunted assent, aura flaring warning.Ambush struck midday—cult vanguard from fissures, reversal fields yanking footing unstable. Abraham bloomed Barricade, petals layering dome; Michael anchored, fists anchoring earth. Disciples Storm-unleashed, qi-petals overwhelming. Abraham pierced field with Eclipse Descent—crescent shattering totem, reversal imploding cultists inward, screams gurgling crimson.Advanced relentless: armaments fell to coordinated strikes—catapults toppled by Michael's qi-quakes, ichor neutralized Violet renewal. Casualties mounted—disciple skewered, Li Wei arm-gashed—but morale iron. Growth in blood, Abraham reflected, sword singing Pinnacle through ranks.Fortress silhouette sharpened—obsidian spires thorned, blood-moats bubbling. Kaien's silhouette loomed parapet, laughter booming. Horns wailed; gates groaned. Abraham's qi surged resolve: Flames rekindled—forge ends in fire. Michael cracked knuckles thunderous. Disciples chanted low: "Twin Demons prevail."Siege ignited—lava catwalks slick, reversal winds howling. Abraham led van, Plum Zenith dome shielding volleys; Michael vanguard-smash, gates crumpling meteor-impact. Defenders poured—blood golems viscous, assassins veiled. Battle symphony: petals vs ichor, crimson fists vs totems.Abraham's mind raced: Kaien watches—gambit unfolds. Inner steel: We've bled together; unbreakable. Horde thinned; inner courtyard beckoned. Flames rekindled victory's promise—yet warlord's shadow loomed eterna