The day after Jalen rescued Rana and fled the Solar Clan was one of chaos and fury.
Veyron, once the composed and calculating acting patriarch, had lost all semblance of control. His rage was volcanic. The search for Rana became a crusade. He overturned every stone, interrogated every elder, and stormed into the inner circle—starting with Master Talia, who had long opposed his methods.
The result was catastrophic.
Master Talia and her loyal elders fled the Solar Clan, but not without bloodshed. Violent clashes erupted across the Solar State. Though they escaped, many bore wounds that would take months to heal. Veyron's forces suffered too. The once-unified Solar Clan now stood fractured. Tension gripped the state, and security tightened to a suffocating degree.
Then came another blow.
The Raven State prince arrived that evening in grand ceremony—his entourage glittering with banners, gifts, and pride. But his bride was nowhere to be found.
Rana's absence was a slap to his face. Humiliated before the gathered clans, the prince flew into a fury. His pride wounded, his threats were swift and merciless. The Solar Clan, already teetering, now faced the wrath of an external power.
As Jalen had feared, Veyron responded with desperation. He dispatched elite elders and powerful cultivators to the Rouna Continent. Their mission: find Rana. If she was there, bring her back. If not, hold her family hostage and force her—and the boy who defied them—out of hiding.
Even with their strength, the journey from Solar to Rouna would take seven days without rest.
___
Another day passed in a blur, the sanctuary bathed in soft golden light as the winds whispered through the stone arches. Rana stood tall now, her body fully healed, her spirit blazing with newfound strength. Her cultivation had surged—no, skyrocketed—to the Peak Imperial Realm, a level she had never dreamed of reaching so soon. The ritual the origin shard had carried out on her had not only spared her—it had transformed her.
Jalen watched her from the edge of the sanctuary, arms folded, his expression unreadable. Though the pain in his body had faded, his cultivation remained crippled. His dantian was still hollow, his qi channels dry. He could walk, breathe, and even spar lightly—but he was no longer the warrior who had once defied clans and shattered formations.
Jael had awakened too, though not without cost. The boy's cultivation had dropped from Peak Star Realm to Peak Enlightened Realm—a full realm and two sub-realms lower.
The twins, on the other hand, were thriving. Their qi pulsed brightly, their tiny bodies radiating strength. At Mid Enlightened Realm, they were already a sub-realm below Jael—and dangerously above Jalen. When they cried, their tantrums shook the sanctuary walls. Jalen, powerless to calm them with qi, could only cradle them and hope they didn't accidentally vaporize him with a stray burst of energy.
Jael noticed the shift in his father. He had once clung to Jalen's shoulder during flights, never realizing how heavy he truly was. But now, even resting on Jalen's back had nearly broken him. The boy had cried quietly that night, vowing to be gentler, to never hurt his father again.
It wasn't until the third day that everything changed.
Jalen sat in meditation, his breath steady, his mind quiet. Then, without warning, his qi surged. His dantian flared to life, and his meridians pulsed with energy. He gasped, eyes snapping open as power flooded his body.
His cultivation—once Peak Immortal Realm—had returned. No, it had evolved. He was now at the early Sage Realm.
He didn't need to ask how. He already knew.
The Origin Shard had acted again.
The eighty percent of the Flaming Core of the Sky Limit Realm Dragon—which had once been housed within Jael's body—had now fused with Jalen's primary core; that was the main reason for his breakthrough.
No wonder Jael's realm had fallen so drastically. The origin shard had seized the moment of weakness to carry out its purpose. It tricked him into manipulating Jael into not resisting its influence so the Flaming Beast core would not rebel against it devouring it.
Jalen clenched his fists. "Damn shard," he muttered.
It had tricked him. Again.
He had known it was dangerous and had suspected its manipulations even. But he had accepted its help, desperate to protect his family. And now, it had made him stronger—whether he liked it or not.
Luckily Jael's two beast cores were not affected.
Rana entered the chamber, her eyes wide with surprise. "Your cultivation… it's back? Stronger."
Jalen nodded slowly. "Yes." But Jalen didn't feel like it was something to celebrate due to the method in which it was given.
Rana knelt beside him, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Why do I get the feeling that you are not happy about this?"
He's not. But he couldn't afford to dwell on it. Time was slipping away.
He rose to his feet, his gaze distant. "I need to go."
Rana blinked. "Go? Where?"
"To the Flare Family," he said, and Rana understood immediately.
After all, the solar clan had threatened to wipe out her family if she rejected the Raven State prince's proposal, and seeing she was missing on the day set for his arrival would not only humiliate him but the solar clan as well. And big clans and families like these don't take humiliations ever. They are bound to act.
Sadly for her, even with her strength, there is nothing she can do, and though Jalen is strong, she doesn't think he'll be able to do this all on his own.
"I left them measures to escape, but if the Solar Clan sent anyone, it won't be enough. Not against Immortal Realm cultivators. Not against Sage Realm experts."
"Will you be able to take them on your own?" She asked, uncertain whether to tell him to stay or go. If he didn't go, her parents, his parents, his siblings, and Nate—the entire Flare family—would be in danger. But if he did, there was a chance he might be harmed… or, worst of all, never return.
Jalen met her gaze, steady and resolute. "I have to," he said. "For the sake of our family."
She didn't argue. She just nodded and forced a smile. "Be careful."
Jalen nodded, then turned to Jael, who stood quietly nearby, clutching a small spirit stone. The boy's eyes were wide, his lips trembling.
"You're leaving?" Jael asked softly.
Jalen knelt and pulled him into a hug. "Just for a while. I'll come back for you. I promise."
Jael nodded, though his grip tightened. "Be careful, Daddy."
"I will."
Jalen kissed Rana, whispered a final word to the twins, and stepped out of the sanctuary. The wind greeted him like an old friend, swirling around his robes as he launched into the sky.
He flew fast, cutting through clouds and currents, his mind focused on the Rouna Continent. But halfway through the journey, something shifted.
The Origin Shard flared.
Jalen's body jerked mid-flight, his limbs locking. The shard had sensed something.
A powerful treasure nearby.
"No," Jalen hissed. "Not now."