The arena was no longer a place of combat. It was a reactor meltdown.
The fissure in the ground spewed a geyser of azure light. It was the **Dragon Vein**—the lifeblood of the city, the condensed Natural Law that the Frost Sect had spent years plotting to steal.
And Kaelen was drinking it.
He stood in the center of the pillar of light. His arms were spread wide, his head thrown back.
**Heaven-Devouring Scripture: Maximum Output.**
The energy didn't flow into him gently. It swirled around him like a hurricane, entering through his pores, his mouth, his very eyes.
Jian Chen, hovering in the air, watched in horror.
"Stop!" Jian Chen screamed, his voice cracking. "That energy belongs to the Frost Sect! You dirty thief! You'll explode! No mortal body can hold raw Dragon Qi!"
He was right. Normally.
Raw Dragon Qi was heavy. It turned organs to mush.
But Kaelen's body was currently a construction site managed by a god.
> **[System Alert]**
> **[High-Grade Energy Source Detected.]**
> **[Category: Earth Pulse (Dragon Vein).]**
> **[Assimilation Rate: 400%.]**
Inside Kaelen's body, the **Steel Bones** (Stage 8) were vibrating. The grey metal turned white-hot. The impurities were burned away by the sheer pressure of the Dragon Qi.
*CRACK. SNAP. RE-FUSE.*
His bones weren't just hardening. They were changing density. Becoming heavier.
**Body Refining Stage 9.**
The final stage of the mortal realm.
Jian Chen couldn't watch anymore. If Kaelen absorbed that energy, the Frost Sect's plan would fail. The Elders would blame *him*.
"DIE!"
Jian Chen dove.
He channeled the last of his Qi. He ignited his Life Essence.
His ice sword grew to ten feet long, glowing with a desperate, blinding white light.
"**Heaven-Falling Strike!**"
He aimed for Kaelen's neck. He put everything—his pride, his future, his soul—into this one slash.
The blade cut through the azure light. It reached Kaelen.
*CLINK.*
The sound was small. Insultingly small.
The massive ice blade stopped.
Jian Chen blinked.
Kaelen hadn't dodged. He hadn't used his slab.
He had raised his left hand.
He caught the blade.
Between his thumb and forefinger.
"What..." Jian Chen gasped. He pushed. He strained. The sword wouldn't move. It was stuck in a vice of absolute force.
The azure light faded, absorbed into Kaelen's body.
Kaelen lowered his hand, dragging the sword (and Jian Chen) down to eye level.
Kaelen's skin was no longer grey. It had returned to a healthy, vibrant tan. But under the skin, a faint azure lattice pulsed like a second nervous system.
> **[Ascension Successful]**
> **Current Rank: Body Refining Stage 9 (Mythic Flesh).**
> **Passive Effect: Elemental Nullification (Low).**
Kaelen looked at the trembling genius.
"You said I would explode," Kaelen noted calmly.
He squeezed his fingers.
*SHATTER.*
The ten-foot ice sword, forged from the Frost Sect's secret arts and Jian Chen's life essence, disintegrated into snow.
Jian Chen fell to the ground, coughing blood. The backlash of his weapon breaking shattered his meridians.
He looked up, eyes filled with terror.
"Monster... you are a monster..."
Kaelen stepped closer. The pressure radiating off him was heavy enough to crack the stones beneath his feet without touching them.
"You came to my home," Kaelen said. "You insulted me. You tried to bury me."
Kaelen grabbed Jian Chen by the throat. He lifted him one-handed, feet dangling in the air.
"And worst of all," Kaelen whispered, his vertical pupils narrowing. "You interrupted my meal."
"Put him down!"
A roar echoed from the VIP box.
**Elder Frost**, the leader of the delegation, leaped from the stand. He was **Qi Condensation Stage 8**. A true powerhouse.
He flew toward the arena, a trail of ice forming behind him.
"Vane Patriarch! Control your dog or I will slaughter this entire city!" Elder Frost bellowed.
The Vane Patriarch stood up, pale and shaking. "Kaelen! Stop! Release Young Master Jian!"
Kaelen ignored the Patriarch. He ignored the flying Elder.
He looked at Elara, who was standing at the railing, her hands covering her mouth, tears streaming down her face.
"You chose him, Elara," Kaelen's voice projected across the silent stadium.
"Watch what you bought."
Kaelen didn't snap Jian Chen's neck. That was too quick.
He slammed Jian Chen into the ground.
*BOOM.*
Then he raised his fist.
"**Serious Punch.**"
He punched Jian Chen in the Dantian—the center of his cultivation.
*CRUNCH.*
It wasn't a bone breaking. It was the sound of a balloon popping.
Jian Chen screamed—a high-pitched, broken sound that curdled the blood of everyone watching.
His cultivation leaked out. His aura vanished. The genius of the Frost Sect... was now a mortal cripple.
Kaelen dropped the sobbing, broken mess.
He turned to face the incoming Elder Frost.
The Elder landed in the arena, his face twisted in pure rage.
"YOU DARE!" Elder Frost roared. "You crippled him! You destroyed the Sect's future!"
Kaelen picked up his **Nameless Slab**.
He pointed it at the Elder.
"I didn't just cripple him," Kaelen said, his voice cold as the grave.
"I sent a message."
Kaelen smiled.
"You're next."