With that thought firmly lodged in his mind, Kael stripped off his clothes until only his underwear remained before throwing himself onto the bed. The moment his head touched the pillow, the exhaustion accumulated throughout the day finally caught up with him.
He fell asleep almost instantly.
---
Time passed quietly.
By the time Kael opened his eyes again, darkness had already swallowed the outside world. The faint glow of the city seeped through the curtains, illuminating portions of his room as he reached for his phone.
The screen lit up.
1:00 AM.
Kael stared at the time for a moment before noticing the notification waiting on his phone. Judging from the timing, it was probably from Ferris.
He considered checking it.
Then decided against it.
Whatever Ferris sent could wait.
Tonight wasn’t the time for distractions. He had a rift to run.
Kael climbed out of bed and began preparing himself. Within a short while, his combat suit had replaced his ordinary clothes, the familiar equipment settling around his body as he made his final preparations.
Once he was ready, Kael closed his eyes and willed himself toward the Tower.
The world around him distorted.
A strange sensation passed through his body, and when his surroundings stabilized, Kael was standing inside his familiar start room once again.
He glanced around.
Compared to a few weeks ago, the room had changed.
Over the past few weeks, Aiona had finally finished digesting the benefits she had obtained from his previous trials, and as a result, her authority had increased slightly.
That increase had allowed her to expand the starting room.
It was now roughly half again as large as it had originally been.
Kael’s gaze shifted toward the small house resting in one corner of the room.
The tiny door opened.
A small figure emerged from within.
Aiona’s tiny fairy body floated into the air, her delicate wings flapping as she flew toward him. Her expression brightened the moment she saw him.
"Welcome back, Kael."
Over the past few weeks, Kael had spent a considerable amount of time cultivating inside the start room. During that period, he and Aiona had also spent quite a bit of time together.
Their relationship had gradually become less formal.
At some point, Kael had simply told her to stop calling him Challenger and use his real name instead.
Aiona had agreed.
"Hey there, Aiona." Kael smiled slightly. "How are you doing today?"
"Thanks. I’m doing fine."
Aiona hovered in front of him for a moment before tilting her head.
"So, why are you here? Are you going to cultivate again?"
"That, and I also plan on completing a few floor trials."
Aiona nodded.
"Okay. I’ll get out of your head, then."
"Sure."
The tiny fairy flew back toward her little home. Once she reached it, her figure disappeared inside, leaving Kael alone in the start room.
Kael looked around once before lowering himself to the ground.
He crossed his legs and closed his eyes.
He didn’t immediately begin cultivating the Primordial Genesis Sutra.
Instead, he entered a state of meditation and began sorting through today’s experience.
Every fragment of combat experience that had accumulated from the spar with the Sword Saint was slowly brought together in his mind.
Kael had been developing the new combat style for some time now, but until today, the path had remained incomplete. He had possessed the pieces, but not the complete picture.
Now, after absorbing today’s experience, those scattered pieces finally began connecting.
It took time.
Kael remained perfectly still as countless movements and principles passed through his mind, his consciousness repeatedly analyzing them and discarding anything that didn’t belong.
Gradually, the vague outline became clearer.
Then clearer still.
Until, eventually, a distinct path appeared before him.
A complete path.
Kael opened his eyes.
His gaze carried a strange sharpness.
He finally understood what he wanted the technique to become.
Now that the combat style had reached a point where it’s beginning to take shape, there was only one thing left to do.
Give it a name.


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