The morning came with the scent of rain on the wind and the quiet hum of a world just starting to stir. I stood in the courtyard behind our home — a house larger and warmer than the broken shack we'd once called home. It wasn't much, but it was safe. It was ours.
But safety wouldn't last. Not in this world.
Sweat ran down my back as I drove my blade forward, muscles burning with the effort. The Primordial Ascent Manual pushed me harder than anything I'd ever known — each strike felt like a battle against the limits of my own body. But that was the point.
I wasn't here to stay comfortable.
I was here to become unstoppable.
Yoon-Hee watched from the edge of the courtyard, her arms crossed, her own training finished hours ago. The Azure Lotus Scripture had already started changing her — her movements faster, her strikes colder. The air around her seemed to hum with restrained power.
But there was something else in her eyes as she watched me. Worry.
"You push too hard," she said softly.
"Not hard enough," I replied, not breaking my rhythm.
"Seol-Yeong—"
The snap of a branch cut her off. We both turned — blades drawn before the sound had even finished. But it was just Seol-Ah, standing at the edge of the trees with a basket in her arms and a defiant set to her jaw.
"You shouldn't sneak up on people like that," I said, sliding my sword back into its sheath.
"I wouldn't have to if you came inside and ate once in a while," she shot back.
I smiled despite myself. She was getting bolder. Stronger. And that… worried me more than anything.
The Bloodline of the Silver Phoenix hadn't awakened yet. But it was only a matter of time.
---
The bounty office was quieter than usual. Not because the work had dried up — but because the fear had set in.
The Infinite Ascension Tower stood at the edge of the world — a monument to madness and ambition. Floors filled with trials and monsters and things no one could name. The strongest warriors had tried to climb it.
Most never came back.
And now it was stirring again.
But that wasn't our fight. Not yet.
I scanned the board and plucked a notice from the top. A Nightfang Warlord — a bandit leader with a small army and a fortress in the hills. Dangerous.
Perfect.
"Again?" Yoon-Hee asked, reading over my shoulder.
"Every coin counts," I said.
But it wasn't just the money. Every fight made us stronger. And we needed strength more than anything.
---
The warlord's fortress loomed ahead — stone and steel and too many eyes watching from the walls.
"This is a bad idea," Yoon-Hee whispered.
"Most of my ideas are," I replied. "But they work."
We hit them hard and fast.
Yoon-Hee moved like lightning — her sword a blur of silver and ice. The Azure Lotus Scripture had given her more than speed — it had given her grace. Precision. Death wrapped in beauty.
I was something else entirely.
The Primordial Ascent Manual didn't deal in elegance. It was strength — raw and brutal and unrelenting. My blade cut through armor and bone alike, each strike faster and heavier than the last.
By the time the warlord emerged, the courtyard was already soaked in blood.
He was big — a mountain of a man with a scarred face and eyes that burned with fury. His weapon was a massive glaive, and when he swung it, the air screamed.
But I didn't back down.
Because I wasn't afraid.
Not anymore.
---
The fight was savage. Fast. Every strike felt like a storm — every block a gamble. But I didn't break. I didn't bend.
And when my blade found his throat, it was over.
---
The coin was enough. More than enough.
We stood outside a house on the edge of the village — larger than anything we'd ever dreamed of. Stone walls, a tiled roof, a courtyard wide enough for training. A home worthy of my family.
My mother cried when we showed it to her. My father didn't say a word — but the way his hand gripped my shoulder told me everything.
That night, we sat around a table piled high with food. Real food — not scraps. Seol-Ah laughed and ate until she couldn't move.
And for the first time in a long time, I let myself breathe.
But the weight never really left.
Because no matter how far we came, it still wasn't enough.
Not yet.
---
In the quiet hours before dawn, I stood at the edge of the courtyard — my blade in my hands and my thoughts on the tower.
One day, we'd climb it.
One day, we'd reach the top.
And when we did… the world would never forget our names.