Death had a strange way of bringing the mind into focus.

  One moment, I was being turned into pure light by some fanatical priest, and the next, I was opening my eyes to find myself rolled up in a shell of vines in the Wei family’s training ground.

  This transition was even more smooth than the previous times. Perhaps, I really was getting used to dying.

  “Master?” Azure called out, clearly concerned. “How are you feeling?”

  I drew in a deep breath, thankful for the simple pleasure of lungs that were not being converted into divine energy. “I feel fine.” The night air was cool on my skin, it carried the smell of spirit herbs from the garden nearby. “How long was I gone?”

  “For about two hours here,” Azure replied, “but you have spent about a month in the Two Suns world.”

  I nodded thoughtfully. Allowing that to sink in. There was still lots of time before the duel with Chen Wu. But more importantly...

  I turned my attention inward, and examined my inner world. The Genesis Seed was still gleaming away in the center, while the little red sun cowered in one corner as usual, but it was the new arrival that brought my attention up to the full.

  There was a little blue sun huddling in the opposite corner, as far away as possible from its red counterpart as possible.

  “Congratulations on another powerup, Master,” Azure said, the tone of his voice contained a trace of pride in it.

  “It’s all thanks to the Genesis Seed’s ability to purify the energy and prevent me from going insane like all the others. Hell, I probably wouldn’t have returned to that world ever again.”

  Despite my modest words, I couldn’t help but smile. Growing stronger always felt good. And the differences between the two energy sources were fascinating.

  The power of the red sun focused heavily on physical enhancement at Rank 1, only at Rank 2 did it branch into elemental manipulation.

  As for Lightweavers, while I had only seen Rank 2 priests and above, they all demonstrated impressive healing abilities alongside their ability to manipulate light.

  “Although, I doubt they’re just limited to that,” I murmured internally. “The magic system of the Two Sun’s world seems to operate with runes at its core. The main difference is just the energy source they use to power them. I wouldn't be surprised if you could power Skybound runes with blue sun energy..."

  Before I could get carried away, Azure cut me off.

  “We can test that theory another time, Master…”

  “You’re right,” I agreed, bringing my focus back to the matter at hand. “Let’s see the effect the raw power of the blue sun.”

  I concentrated back on my inner world and reached for the energy of the blue sun however the heavenly orb was surprisingly reluctant and wouldn’t supply me with any of its energy. It tried to shrink away, but the Genesis Seed turned its attention in its direction like a stern parent chastising a naughty child. The little sun seemed to wither under that look and released its energy with what felt like a sulky puff.

  The red sun began to glow slightly brighter, smugly one might almost say, until the Genesis Seed's attention turned in that direction. The red sun immediately dimmed, giving off a feeling of "I wasn't even doing anything!"

  When the blue energy coursed through my body, my brown eyes showed a tinge of blue light. The lingering fatigue from my recent death was gone, only to be succeeded by something else. For a disturbing moment, I had an overwhelming desire to rise and preach about divine light and sacred purification, but this passed almost instantly thanks to the Genesis Seed’s influence.

  "The madness of the blue sun is certainly more potent than the madness of the red sun," I muttered as the urge passed, "but the priests do a better job at hiding it."

  Focusing on the insane sensation helped me better understand Lightweavers. The energy itself was overwhelming in its vitality. To call it “full of life” would be a great injustice to its special properties. Every cell in my body literally felt supercharged with pure, righteous power.

  "The true strength of the blue sun isn't healing or light manipulation," I realized. "It's the promotion of life itself. The healing is just a side effect." I let out a dry laugh. "No wonder they convinced so many people they were the 'good guys.' This energy practically radiates divine righteousness."

  A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

  "Master," Azure interrupted my thoughts, "your soul essence has increased."

  Cultivation: Qi Condensation Stage 4

  Inner World: Radius of 40 meters

  Soul Essence: 113

  Spiritual Essence: 40

  Physical Essence: 22

  Special Features: Blue sun active

  Notes: Soul enhancement active, duration unknown

  Looking at the 10 point increase, I nodded. It made sense.

  Both the red sun and the blue sun could affect a cultivator’s spiritual energy, however, the red sun generally dealt with the physical aspect while the blue sun had a much deeper connection with a person's soul – this is where all that "purification" nonsense came from.

  But there was something that greatly troubled me. "Azure..."

  "What is wrong, Master?"

  "That rank two priest couldn't cause permanent damage to my soul, however, a high ranked Lightweaver may be able to." I exhaled a sigh and ran my hands through my hair. "We should probably avoid the Two Suns world for awhile or at least, try to stay away from any Lightweavers, if we do end up going back."

  "A wise decision, Master," Azure agreed. "However, the Genesis Seed’s protection may also include your soul. It is worth exploring."

  The blue sun's energy slowly dissipated and my stats returned their base, but now I felt energized and refreshed.

  “Azure, let's figure out how to create a Fundamental Rune in this world.”

  We went over the choices we had. The first choice was attempting to create the rune in my inner world using red sun energy - theoretically possible; however, highly advanced. The second choice was the traditional method of inscribing it directly on my physical body.

  "You have no experience at all with creating runes solely with pure energy," Azure reminded. "Elder Molric told us it was a more advanced technique."

  "True." I agreed. "Inscribing the rune on my physical body will be safer. Then we can transfer the red sun's energy into it later."

  I commanded the plant life covering me to pull back so I could get up, and I then stretched my muscles until I was ready to collect the tools required to inscribe the rune.

  The Wei compound was relatively quiet at this hour; however, I managed to find a servant who guided me to Wei Lin's room.

  Wei Lin looked up in surprise when I knocked. "What brings you here? I assumed you'd be pushing through for at least another... " He stopped mid-sentence and studied my face more closely. His eyes widened. "You... you broke through!"

  I couldn't resist smiling at his enthusiasm. "I was just a hair's breadth away anyways."

  Relief washed over his expression. Apparently, he'd been far more concerned about the duel than he'd allowed to show. "Do you want to get some combat training in? We could—"

  "Actually, I need a knife."

  "You do know if you're hungry, you could have just asked a servant," he said, looking perplexed. "Although, we did just finish eating… But then again, breakthroughs can build up an appetite—"

  "No," I interrupted with a smile. "I need a knife capable of cutting through the skin of a fourth-stage Qi Condensation cultivator."

  Wei Lin opened his mouth, likely to ask why, but then seemed to reconsider.

  "Come in," he said instead, shaking his head. "I should have a few."

  His room was exactly as I imagined it. The furniture was high-end quality but had been selected based upon longevity rather than aesthetic appeal, and the carvings on the walls that appeared to be purely decorative were actually storage seals. On the desk near the window lay a large stack of papers filled with well written calculations and lists.

  Wei Lin rummaged through the numerous containers stacked around the room until he finally found a knife. The blade of the knife was dark-colored and seemed to have intricate patterns that changed in the light as he moved the knife, and the handle of the knife was wrapped in what looked like spirit beast hide.

  I raised an eyebrow at how casually he treated an object as valuable as this. "That's... not a typical tool."

  Wei Lin shrugged. "If you want it, take it. I don't use it anyway. Father always sends me cultivation supplies I never asked for. I think he wants to encourage me to develop more of my combat skills."

  He studied my face intently and I could almost see the guilty look in his eyes?

  "I keep thinking about Father's challenge. Are you really sure about this? Chen Wu isn't simply some mercenary muscle; he's one of the top combat specialists in our organization."

  "I figured that out," I said dryly. "The way he uses his qi... he's received real training."

  Wei Lin nodded. "Father hired him because he specializes in evaluating potential recruits and can test a recruit to their limits without accidentally killing them.” He paused. "Most of the time."

  "How comforting."

  "I'm serious, Ke Yin," Wei Lin looked me up and down. "If you want to back down..."

  I shook my head. "I want that wind essence." I didn't add that after what I had just seen in that other world, a sparring match with a 5th Stage Qi Condensation cultivator seemed almost therapeutic.

  Wei Lin groaned, though I could see a hint of a grin on his face. "I knew you'd say that. Well, if you're set on doing this..." He handed me the knife.

  "Thanks," I said, taking the knife from him with caution, and checking its weight. "Can you find out what you can about Chen Wu's fighting style? Any specific techniques he likes to use?"

  Wei Lin laughed. "I've already started on that. Did you really believe I would let my brother fight one of Father's cultivators without gathering proper intelligence? I'll know everything from which leg he leads with when attacking to his favorite breakfast by tomorrow morning."

  I left feeling somewhat touched by his commitment.

  Once I got back to my room, I settled onto the meditation mat, and unfastened my robes, revealing my chest. The knife felt cool against my palm as I began to meditate, and prepare to inscribe the Fundamental Rune that would allow me to store the red sun's energy.

  "Are you ready, Master?"

  I took a deep breath, imagining the pattern we'd worked on countless times in the Two Suns world.

  "Ready as I’ll ever be."

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