The acrid scent of charred stone and ash lingered in the cave, a stark reminder of the battle they had just survived. Liang Feng leaned against the jagged wall, his breath still uneven as he clutched his trembling hand. The cursed flame had receded to a faint glow, its usual chaotic energy surprisingly calm. Across from him, Ziyan stood with her arms crossed, her glowing feathers dimmed but still radiant. Her sharp gaze was fixed on him, scrutinizing every movement.
"You should be dead," she said bluntly, breaking the heavy silence.
Liang managed a weak chuckle, his voice hoarse. "Thanks for the vote of confidence."
Ziyan's eyes narrowed. "I'm serious. The power you just unleashed… it should have consumed you. That cursed flame is dangerous, and yet, you're still standing." She stepped closer, her expression a mixture of curiosity and frustration. "How?"
Liang shook his head, wiping the sweat from his brow. "I don't know," he admitted. "It felt like the flame took over, but not in the usual way. It… listened to me, as if it wanted to help."
Ziyan's lips pressed into a thin line, her feathers ruffling slightly. "That's not how the cursed flame works. It's chaos incarnate, a force that consumes everything in its path. If it's listening to you, that means something has changed."
Liang glanced at his hand, the faint ember pulsing in time with his heartbeat. There was a strange sense of calm in its glow, a far cry from the erratic, destructive energy he was used to. "Maybe it's because of the bond," he said, meeting her gaze. "When you hatched from the egg, something shifted. The flame feels… different now."
Ziyan's eyes narrowed further, her frustration evident. "That bond is unnatural," she muttered. "You tampered with something you didn't understand, and now we're both paying the price."
"It saved us," Liang countered, his voice firm despite his exhaustion. "If I hadn't unleashed the flame, that beast would've killed us both. You can't deny that."
Ziyan's feathers flared faintly, a sign of her rising irritation, but she didn't argue. Instead, she turned away, her gaze sweeping over the scorched remains of the cave floor. "Survival is one thing. Understanding what just happened is another. That kind of power doesn't come without a cost."
Liang pushed off the wall, steadying himself as he stood. His legs still felt weak, but the newfound strength coursing through his veins was undeniable. "It felt… incredible," he admitted, his voice softer now. "Like I wasn't just fighting the flame anymore. It was part of me, and for the first time, it wasn't trying to destroy everything around me."
Ziyan turned back to him, her expression unreadable. "Don't let that feeling fool you," she said. "The cursed flame is still what it is—chaos and destruction. If you get too comfortable, it will turn on you the moment you falter."
Liang met her gaze, his own resolve hardening. "Then I won't falter," he said. "If this power can be controlled, I'll find a way to do it. I have to."
For a moment, Ziyan said nothing. Then she sighed, her feathers settling as the tension in her posture eased slightly. "You're stubborn," she muttered. "That might be the only reason you're still alive."
Liang allowed himself a faint smile. "I'll take that as a compliment."
Ziyan rolled her eyes, but the faintest hint of amusement flickered in her expression. "Don't. It wasn't one."
They both fell silent, the weight of the battle and their precarious situation settling over them. Liang glanced around the cave, his eyes lingering on the faint scorch marks left by the shadow maw's claws. The beast had been formidable, more than anything he had faced before, and yet, he had survived. The cursed flame had given him the strength to prevail, but it also left him with more questions than answers.
"What now?" he asked, his voice breaking the quiet.
Ziyan tilted her head, her fiery eyes glinting in the dim light. "Now, we figure out what we're dealing with," she said. "The cursed flame's change, the bond between us—none of it is normal. If we don't understand it, we won't survive what's coming."
Liang nodded, a sense of determination settling over him. "Then we'd better get started," he said. "Because whatever this power is, I'm not going to waste it."
Ziyan studied him for a long moment before nodding. "Fine," she said. "But don't think for a moment that this changes anything. I'm still bound to you against my will, and I'm not about to let your recklessness drag me down."
Liang smirked faintly, his confidence returning. "Then it's a good thing I'm not planning to fail."
Ziyan's feathers flared faintly as she exhaled, tension lingering in the air. "That remains to be seen," she said. Her gaze shifted to the cave entrance, where faint light from the world outside flickered. "The trial isn't over yet, and this… anomaly has likely drawn attention. We'll need to be prepared for whatever comes next."
Liang followed her gaze, a sense of foreboding stirring in his chest. The cursed flame pulsed faintly in his hand, as if echoing her warning. "Do you think the beast was sent?" he asked, his voice quieter now.
Ziyan glanced back at him, her expression unreadable. "Perhaps," she said. "Or perhaps the flame's surge called to it. Power like that doesn't go unnoticed."
Her words settled heavily over him, but Liang pushed the fear aside. He clenched his fist, the ember in his palm flaring briefly. "Then we keep moving," he said firmly. "If there are more challenges ahead, I'll face them. And this time, I won't hold back."
Ziyan watched him carefully, her expression softening for the briefest moment. "For both our sakes, you'd better not," she said.
They began gathering what little they could, their movements quiet but deliberate. Despite their uneasy alliance, a fragile thread of understanding had begun to form between them. The battle had shown them their vulnerabilities, but also their potential—and they would need both to survive the trials that lay ahead.