The door clicked softly behind him.
Shen Hao slipped off his shoes and stepped into the small living room. The walls were warm with evening light, and the scent of ginger and garlic floated from the kitchen.
"You're late," his mom called out.
"I stayed after school a bit."
She peeked out. "Homework?"
"Something like that."
She shook her head but smiled. "Go wash up. Dinner's almost ready."
Shen Hao nodded and went to the sink. Water ran over his fingers. The day felt long — not because of school, but because his real life had changed forever.
The weight of what lay in his ring pressed against his thoughts like a second pulse.
He ate quietly with his mother. She asked about school. He gave vague answers. She laughed at one of his rare jokes. It felt almost normal — dangerously normal.
After dinner, he retreated to his room and locked the door.
The lights dimmed.
He sat cross-legged on the floor, exhaling slowly.
With a flash of Qi, he summoned the three treasures from his ring. They appeared before him like a silent prophecy:
The Aetherblaze Fruit, glowing with an inner flame like a caged sun
The Shard of Naxus, dark, crystalline, humming with sealed chaos
And the Scroll, wrapped in golden energy, waiting for a worthy mind
The room shimmered with their presence.
Mo Han's spirit formed beside him, calm and composed.
"Before you even think about using the Shard," he said, "you must first refine the Aetherblaze Fruit. It will prepare your body to endure what lies beyond."
Shen Hao looked at the fruit, his expression serious.
"Will it hurt?"
"Yes. It burns you from the inside. But if you survive it... your foundation will harden like tempered steel."
Lingfeng popped into view beside the scroll. "Sounds spicy."
"You're not wrong," Mo Han said. "Most cultivators fear the Aetherblaze because it doesn't just raise power... it demands transformation."
Shen Hao picked up the fruit. It was warm to the touch — not hot, but alive.
"I'm ready."
Mo Han's eyes narrowed. "Then begin. And don't stop until your Qi flames run dry."
Shen Hao lifted the fruit to his lips.
It pulsed in his palm — like it could sense what was about to happen.
Then he bit into it.
The moment his teeth sank into the flesh, a burst of molten Qi surged through his tongue, down his throat, and into his dantian like a wildfire. His chest tightened. Heat flared in his lungs.
He dropped the fruit — half-eaten — and slammed both palms to the floor.
"GHH—!"
His body locked.
Flames tore through his meridians like rivers of lava.
Inside his soul, the Qi didn't flow — it raged.
Mo Han hovered close, watching intently.
"Hold it, Shen Hao. Don't resist it — guide it!"
Lingfeng flailed. "BRO IS COOKING FROM THE INSIDE! THIS IS NOT WHAT I MEANT BY SPICY!"
The golems inside his mind remained silent — ancient, watching, measuring.
Sweat poured from Shen Hao's forehead. His hands trembled. His back arched involuntarily as a rush of Qi exploded from his lower core, pushing upward like a geyser trying to break through his ribs.
Every breath scorched his lungs.
Every beat of his heart was thunder.
But through the agony — he remained seated. Rooted.
Eyes shut. Jaw clenched.
Focused.
He reached inward.
The fire in his dantian began to take shape — not chaotic, but forming into clean streams of pressure. The Aetherblaze Fruit wasn't just fire. It was refined energy, condensed from a tree that once stood above all clouds.
He guided the flames with all his will.
The first wall cracked.
BOOM!
Level 6.
Qi shot through his bones like needles — hardening them, reinforcing muscle fibers, sharpening spiritual awareness.
Mo Han smiled faintly.
"He's doing it. Faster than I expected."
But Shen Hao wasn't done.
The fruit had more to give.
He drew it deeper. Pulled its essence into the core of his being. His consciousness burned white — like a star collapsing in on itself.
Another push.
Another explosion from within.
CRACK!
Level 7.
Shen Hao's eyes flew open — glowing purple and gold for a moment, then dimming back to black.
The flames subsided.
Smoke lifted gently from his shoulders.
His breathing was slow. Steady. Deep.
He had done it.
"Beginning Realm… Level 7."
His voice was quiet.
Mo Han nodded with pride. "You've tempered yourself well."
Lingfeng blinked, hovering awkwardly. "Okay, I almost cried back there."
Shen Hao chuckled weakly. "That's just because you thought I was gonna explode."
"Okay maybe, but still!"
The scroll shimmered from the corner.
The Shard of Nexus pulsed with soft black light.
They waited.
But now… Shen Hao was ready for them.