The group soon reached the Elemental Hall.
Within the sprawling landscape of the city, the tower itself appeared unimpressive. Apart from its height, there was nothing remarkable about it. Its walls were constructed of plain grey stone, its doors fashioned from old, weathered wood. At its apex, smoke drifted lazily into the sky, carried away by the cold winds that swept through the capital.
Above the tower, a sign hung with the words "Tower of Reconnaissance" deeply etched into its surface. The text was invisible to ordinary eyes, only perceptible to those who could wield qi.
It was a tower like any other, and yet, as Caine and his fellow soldiers gazed up at its imposing form, they couldn't help but swallow hard, a sense of foreboding settling over them.
With a step forward, Caine took the initiative. Without hesitation, he reached out to touch the entry door, his hand pressing firmly against its surface—
"NO! WAIT—"
He vanished.
***
When Caine's vision cleared, he found himself standing in a strange, grey void. Below him stretched an endless expanse of black water that, despite its appearance, bore his weight and would not let him sink.
In the distance, a metallic sphere hovered mid-air, radiating a dim, silvery glow. It resembled a miniature sun, with flares of silver qi dancing across its surface, emitting an aura that drew Caine's attention irresistibly.
[Are you ready for your awakening?]
Before he could respond, Caine was abruptly transported, now standing mere steps away from the sphere.
[Failure to awaken your elements may result in a loss of life force.]
Caine exhaled deeply, his expression calm. Lowering himself into a cross-legged position, he closed his eyes and softly spoke, "Let us begin."
[Good luck.]
The metallic sphere exploded, shattering into four distinct fragments that hovered around him at the cardinal points. Energy barriers formed between them, enclosing Caine within a glowing geometric cage.
The black waters below churned violently, their surface twisting into towering waves that crashed against the barrier with deafening force.
Caine felt a stirring deep within him, something ancient and primal awakening from eons of slumber. His body trembled as his eyes snapped open, widening in shock.
A violent cough wracked his body, forcing him to vomit a mouthful of foul, black blood—impurities. Simultaneously, his pores opened, expelling a thick, oily substance that coated him in the remnants of years of hidden imperfections.
While this awakening was necessary to complete his bones, Caine intended to use it as a platform to advance further—to step into the second stage of the Blood Realm: the Flesh Destruction Stage.
'Let's start with the awakening.'
BOOOOOM!
A mantle of white energy enveloped Caine, its pristine glow stained by countless silver runes. Streams of golden and black energy swirled chaotically around him, sending ripples of force across the black waters below.
Arcs of lightning, tongues of flame, harsh winds, and droplets of water coalesced around him. They flared briefly, elements vying for dominance, but were quickly devoured by the stained mantle of energy that now cloaked him.
His eyes burned like twin torches, purging the remaining impurities from his body in a searing wave of heat.
[Affinity awakened—Unknown.]
The monument couldn't recognize his affinity, but Caine knew exactly what it was. That knowledge, however, wasn't important at this moment. What mattered now was that the perfect conditions had been created to complete his bones.
With a roar, Caine unleashed his power. His Celestial Taiyi Bones glowed brilliantly beneath his flesh, the runes etched upon them flaring so brightly they illuminated the entire expanse of the void.
The surrounding elements—the flashes of lightning, fire, wind, and water—shattered into countless runes. These runes flowed like rivers of light, etching themselves into his bones.
Caine wasn't simply anchoring his affinity into his bones. No, what he was doing was far more profound—and heretical. He was stealing a fragment of the universal force his affinity resonated with, fusing it into his very being.
By doing so, his bones would no longer rely on the world for resonance. Instead, they would devour the essence of that universal force, becoming their own center of power, unbound by the limitations of the world.
It was an act of defiance, a rejection of the natural order.
Caine knew the risk he was taking. Such an action would be impossible in a stronger world, but this one was weak. He could feel it in the very air. It was the same weakness that had allowed him to survive his innate circle tribulation, the same weakness that made his plans feasible.
It was suicidal. But if he didn't dare to seize this opportunity, how could he ever hope to reach the heights he sought to surpass?
BOOOOOOOOOOM!
The runes etched themselves into his bones all at once. What had once been pristine white now turned a dark, burnished gold, streaked with swirling silver runes.
The power emanating from his bones tore through his flesh, incinerating it until his body resembled the skeletal form of a Reaper of Samsara.
'Second step.'
The second stage of the Blood Realm, the Flesh Destruction Stage, was a logical progression from the Bone Forging Stage.
Having forged his bones with blood qi, Caine now needed to address his flesh. The task was to drain his flesh of its blood qi entirely, redirecting it into his bones to create a perpetual stream of qi flowing through them. This process would cause his flesh to wither and fall away, preparing it for reconstruction.
By weaving his blood qi into intricate filaments, he would remake his flesh and muscles, using these qi threads as the foundation.
The transformation would render his flesh unimaginably powerful. Moreover, his cells would gain the ability to naturally produce blood qi independent of his physical blood.
This would resolve the issue of quantity and quality he would have faced relying solely on blood qi.
As with the Bone Forging Stage, this step also had a secret technique: inscribing runes onto the flesh. These runes would resonate with those on the bones, completing a cycle that bridged the realms of qi and matter. The resulting synergy would transform the body into an unstoppable machine.
But for Caine, the challenge wasn't simply completing this stage—it was in the type of Blood Qi Flesh he intended to forge.
'It's definitely doable,' he thought, his gaze steely.