The Temple of the First Idol's chamber crackled with shadow resonance as the minions of the First Idol advanced, their glowing eyes fixed on Li Luo. The towering leader, its form a swirling mass of shadow and elemental sparks, raised a clawed hand, unleashing a wave of oppressive energy that tested the team's resonance palaces. Li Luo's Heavenly Dragon's Resonance Blade gleamed with water resonance, his primal resonance amplifying his senses. Beside him, Jiang Qing'e's light-forged sword blazed, casting a radiant glow that pushed back the darkness. Lu Qing'er, Cai Wei, and Zhao Chen stood ready, their resonances humming in unison.
"Protect the forge!" Li Luo shouted, sensing the minions' intent to disrupt the stabilized resonance vortex at the chamber's center. His wood resonance surged, conjuring a barrier of verdant vines to shield the altar.
The leader hissed, its voice a discordant chorus. "The chosen must fall. The Origin will awaken." It lunged, its claws tearing through the air with shadow-infused force.
Qing'e met it head-on, her light resonance slicing through the shadow like dawn breaking night. "Li Luo, focus on the others!" she called, her sword dancing in a radiant arc that forced the leader back.
Li Luo nodded, turning to the lesser minions—humanoid shadows wielding spears of fire and ice. He unleashed a torrent of water resonance, his blade weaving a pattern that harmonized with his primal resonance, amplifying each strike. Lu Qing'er's ice resonance joined his, freezing the minions' weapons, while Cai Wei's earth resonance raised walls to funnel them into a trap. Zhao Chen darted through the chaos, his chaotic blade striking with unpredictable precision, each hit disrupting the minions' resonance cores.
The battle was fierce, the temple's walls trembling under the clash of energies. Li Luo's primal resonance pulsed, guiding his movements with an instinct he couldn't explain. As he felled a minion, the crystalline orb above the forge flared, and a surge of energy enveloped him. His vision blurred, and the temple vanished, replaced by a familiar, blood-soaked plain under a stormy sky.
The Noble's Battlefield.
Li Luo stood alone, his blade in hand, the air thick with the scent of iron and resonance. Before him loomed a spectral figure—Li Taixuan, his father, clad in battle-worn armor, his dragon-shaped resonance blade radiating power. "You've come far, Luo'er," the figure said, his voice both familiar and distant. "But the Origin demands more. Prove your resonance is worthy."
Li Luo's heart raced. "Father? Is this real?"
The figure smiled faintly. "A memory, a trial. The Noble's Battlefield was forged by the Idol Kings to test those who seek the Origin. Face me, and claim my legacy."
Li Taixuan's blade roared, a dragon of azure resonance coiling around it. Li Luo raised his own blade, his triple palaces surging—water, wood, and primal. The clash was instantaneous, their blades meeting in a burst of energy that shook the plain. Li Taixuan's dragon resonance was overwhelming, each strike a lesson in precision and power. Li Luo countered with his Absolute Resonance, harmonizing his elements to deflect the onslaught.
"You're strong," Li Taixuan said, his eyes gleaming with pride. "But strength alone won't guard the Origin. It tests your heart, your will."
Li Luo gritted his teeth, his primal resonance flaring. He unleashed a new technique, born from the forge's trial—a wave of primal energy that merged his water and wood resonances into a spiraling dragon of verdant blue. It clashed with Li Taixuan's dragon, the battlefield trembling under their combined might.
The vision shattered, and Li Luo found himself back in the temple, his blade buried in the last minion's core. The leader was down, felled by Qing'e's radiant strike, and the chamber was quiet, save for the forge's hum. His team stared at him, concern in their eyes.
"Li Luo, what happened?" Qing'e asked, her hand on his shoulder. "You froze mid-battle, then moved like a god."
He caught his breath, the vision's weight lingering. "The Noble's Battlefield… I saw my father. He was testing me, teaching me. This temple's forge—it's connected to that dimension."
Zhao Chen's eyes widened. "The Battlefield? That's no myth. The Idol Kings used it to forge the strongest cultivators. If it's calling you, you're deeper in this than I thought."
Li Luo touched his blade, feeling a faint trace of Li Taixuan's dragon resonance within it. "He left me something—a fragment of his technique. It's like he knew I'd come here."
Cai Wei frowned, studying the forge. "The orb's map is clearer now. It's pointing to the next temple, but the path is guarded. We need to move before more minions come."
Lu Qing'er shivered, her ice resonance dimming. "This place is draining. My palace feels… heavy."
Zhao Chen nodded. "The Origin Continent taxes your resonance. Rest when you can, or you'll burn out."
Li Luo glanced at the forge, its vortex now stable but pulsing with latent power. "My father fought to seal the Origin. Whatever he and Mother did, it's tied to these temples. We keep going."
Qing'e's light resonance flared, a beacon of resolve. "Then we face the next trial together. No one falls behind."
As the team prepared to leave, the temple trembled, and a distant roar echoed—a resonance beast, drawn by the forge's energy. Zhao Chen smirked, twirling his blade. "Looks like the continent's not done with us yet."
Li Luo gripped his blade, his primal resonance humming with his father's legacy. The path to the Myriad Idols' Origin lay ahead, and with it, the truth of his parents' sacrifice.
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