The sky over Veinspire turned the color of molten bronze when Karma left the city.
He walked through the eastern gate before dawn, his cloak billowing softly in the cool wind, his every step echoing quiet purpose. Ahead lay the open wilderness — untamed, vast, and whispering with palpable danger.
His internal system, Mira, reported the route projection was loaded. Estimated travel time to the Corridor rim: thirty-two hours if you don't stop for sightseeing.
"I'll take my time," Karma murmured, adjusting his satchel. "The land's still wounded from the Calamity. No point rushing through a bleeding vein."
Mira analyzed the remark: That is poetic again. The probability of you nearly dying because of poetic decisions is currently seventy-eight percent.
He smiled faintly, a brief flash of humor. "Make it seventy-seven. I'm improving my survivability rating."
The Land of Broken Thunder
The first day's journey passed beneath a bruised, angry sky.
The landscape grew stranger, violently scarred by divine warfare. The ground itself bore deep wounds: valleys carved by lightning, plains split by rivers of half-solid qi, and stones humming faintly with static.
Karma paused beside a ruined ridge, watching a deep fissure in the earth spill vivid blue light like a rhythmic heartbeat.
Residual Vein energy is detected,Mira warned. It is highly unstable but harvestable. Recommendation: minimal exposure. The core lightning density here is lethal.
He crouched anyway, feeling the primal pull of the power. "Let's test the body's new limits. I need to know the strength of my shell."
Drawing a deep breath, he extended his palm toward the glowing fissure and activated Devour. The energy rushed toward him like an avalanche. His meridians screamed, but they held. The green glow of the lotus within his chest flared, stabilizing the torrent.
A single, beautiful bead of lightning condensed in his palm—small, yet intensely alive.
He smiled, a genuine flicker of power. "I can drink from storms now."
That is noted for future reckless experiments,Mira deadpanned. The proof of concept is valuable.
He sealed the bead into a jade vial and continued his journey.
Ghosts of the Calamity
By nightfall, the land had changed again. Blackened, skeletal forests sprawled under a violet sky, the air heavy with the echo of the Dual Calamity.
Karma found a secure perch on a rocky ridge, watching the distant horizon flicker with massive lightning strikes.
Environmental reading confirms the ideal conditions for Silvernight growth,Mira informed him. Ambient qi density is 620% above standard Dao Realm requirements. We are within a 20-kilometer radius.
"Then we're close," he whispered.
Correction: you are too close. Demonic signatures are detected—minor class, but they are numerous and moving. Most likely Scavengers.
Karma opened his eyes. "Then let's stay unseen."
He drew his cloak tighter and slipped down the slope like smoke.
The valley that led directly to the Corridor's edge was a silent, ominous graveyard of lightning. Charred peaks rose like broken teeth, and rivers of condensed qi ran through the air itself.
Karma stopped when he finally saw the spectacle.
A vast canyon, split by a single, colossal scar of light—the Stormfall Corridor. Lightning arced constantly from wall to wall.
Mira delivered the harsh truth: Warning. Energy density exceeds your survival threshold by a factor of six. Entry probability is suicidal.
Karma smiled, his eyes fixed on the chaotic heart of the storm. "Good thing I'm not planning to live forever on the safer side."
…You worry me all the times. Proceed with extreme caution.
He crouched, scanning the slopes below. Clinging to the dark, sheltered canyon walls were patches of shimmering blue plants—lotus-like, their centers glowing faintly with clear silver veins.
"Silvernight Lotus," he breathed, relief flooding his core. "We found it."
Correct identification,Mira confirmed. Secondary analysis shows trace demonic corruption in the surrounding soil. Suggest extreme caution during harvest; the qi is too powerful, and normal harvesting may destroy the fragile soul-anchoring properties.
He nodded. "We'll handle it gently."
Karma descended slowly, pressing his body against the rock. He reached the first cluster after half an hour of precarious climbing.
He drew out a jade dagger, and whispered, "Devour, minimal containment."
Green light gathered intensely at his fingertips, forming a protective, consuming barrier around the plant's qi field. The raw energy around the plant softened—calmed. He cut the resilient stem in a single, clean motion and gently sealed the lotus into a crystal vial.
One secured. Nine to go. That was precise, Host.
"Keep watch for scavengers and beasts," he requested, already moving.
Time blurred into a rhythm of patience and danger. Each harvest pushed him deeper into the canyon.
By the ninth lotus, fatigue settled deep into his bones, but satisfaction burned brighter.
That is enough for multiple doses and future trading. The return route is stabilized. Time to leave.
Karma didn't answer immediately. He was staring at something a few meters below his position—a faint shimmer, different from the lotuses. Something darker and strangely tempting.
He descended another few meters, curiosity pulling stronger than logic, unable to ignore the unique energy signature.