Three months slipped by like whispers in the wind, and the Ron State had grown even more. The scars of war were fading; eighty percent of the land was restored to normalcy. Cities bustled again, villages rebuilt their walls, and banners of Ron flew proudly over every stronghold.
Ameer, when not cultivating, devoted himself to his royal duties. He listened to petitions, oversaw reconstruction, and ensured that the people felt the presence of their emperor. At Jalen's request, or rather his shadow clone left behind, he also took time away with Rena, walking the gardens or traveling to the countryside. These moments of respite were not indulgence but part of his master's design—to remind him that rulership was not only conquest but care.
Rena herself had changed. Freed from her former affliction, she began cultivating under Tobias's guidance. Like him, she possessed void qi, making him the perfect teacher. Coupled with the technique Jalen had given her, she advanced with astonishing speed. In just a month and a half, she reached the Emerald Realm—a feat unheard of for a beginner.
To Tobias, such a realm was mediocre, but the speed of her ascent was not normal. He studied her progress carefully, realizing that the technique Jalen had bestowed was no ordinary method. Curiosity gnawed at him, and he began practicing it himself. Within a month, he broke through to the Sky Limit Realm, surpassing his fellow royal guards. He could hardly believe it. The technique reshaped his understanding of cultivation, and his respect for Jalen deepened. Who exactly was this youth? Where had he found such a powerful art? The questions lingered, but Tobias set them aside. What mattered was strength, and now he was stronger than all his peers.
Meanwhile, Jael and Calen continued their relentless practice. Jael, driven by discipline and the weight of his father's legacy, finally broke through to the Immortal Realm. Calen did not yet achieve a breakthrough, but his growth was undeniable. Each clash with Jael honed his blade and spirit sense, though he never won. Defeat became his forge, tempering him into steel. He also took the time out to teach young Vinh cultivation, and the boy was improving smoothly.
As for Jalen's main body, his focus lay elsewhere. For three months he labored to heal Frost. Together they had found a deserted stretch of sea beyond Ron's borders, where Jalen began the arduous process of restoration.
When Jalen reached into Frost's dantian to probe the damaged core, Frost's rare ice physique erupted. His body crystallized into pure ice, and a storm of frost swept outward, freezing a radius of three and a half miles. Spirit beasts beneath the waves were caught in the blast, transformed into statues of ice, their final cries silenced in crystalline stillness.
Though Frost's eruption was terrifying, it was still no match for Jalen. He too was an ice cultivator, and his realm stood higher. With calm precision, he pressed forward. After half a month of repeated attempts, his ice qi finally touched Frost's core without causing harm.
He then began the true healing process—using medicinal pills, his own ice qi, and the recursion light technique to repair the damaged core. It drained his energy and demanded time; he knew he would need at least half a year of consistent effort to fully restore Frost. But then, something unexpected happened only a week later. Jalen's second spirit core reacted. It emitted a green energy that fused with Frost's spirit core, altering it completely. What had once been whitish‑blue now shimmered with green light.
That was only the beginning. Over the next three days Frost's body began to change both internally and externally. His ice physique calmed, the crystalline shell dissolving into glowing flesh marked with leaf‑like tattoos. His meridians shifted, his qi transformed from white to green, and his dantian expanded, absorbing energy from nature itself. For a month the transformation raged, freezing another mile of sea as the land itself bent beneath the surge.
When the storm subsided at the end of the three months, Frost awakened transformed. His eyes glowed pale green instead of blue. His hair was whiter than before, and a mark of a green leaf pulsed faintly upon his chest. He looked younger, renewed, reborn.
Jalen was curious. He knew the cause, but not why his second spirit core had acted this way.
Then a voice echoed within his mind—the origin shard. "Had your second spirit core not intervened, that cultivator would have ascended to the Transcendent Realm before the healing process was complete. And that would have drawn the attention of the Upper Realm. So it shared its essence—your essence—with Frost. As a living eternal‑grade spirit, you can operate like the origin shard, masking transcendence and higher cultivation without alerting them. There is also no need for a slave pact. With your second spirit core's essence transforming him, he is bound to you in ways a pact could never achieve. Similar to how the origin shard bound Jael to you, but different—this is a master‑slave covenant based on an agreement of the heart."
"Agreement of the heart?" Jalen asked.
"In Frost's heart he swore that if you healed him, he would forever owe you a debt he could not repay—that he would serve you, even die if you commanded it. Your second spirit core used that vow to bind him. In return, your goodwill—your intent to use him to protect Ron and Emperor Ameer rather than harm him—was the collateral. Therefore, you cannot abuse this bond, nor can he betray you. If he does, he will suffer a backlash worse than death. And if you become an unjust master, the bond will shatter and he will be free."
Frost's voice followed, trembling with awe. "You not only healed me but also helped me break through to the next level. I never thought it would ever happen in this life."
Jalen was just as shocked. He had only intended to heal Frost, nothing more, but the outcome was far greater than expected.
His gaze was steady. "So what now? Do you intend to go back on your word and fight me now that we stand in the same realm?"
Frost met his eyes. "Something tells me that would end badly for me. Let's just call it the slave pact."
"There is no need," Jalen replied. "You felt the energy that assisted your transformation. It bound you to me. That leaf on your chest is the sign of a master‑slave covenant. If it breaks, the outcome will be a loss for both of us."
Frost thought over his words, then asked, "If you don't mind me asking… what was that energy? I've never felt anything like it before."
"Maybe in the future I'll tell you," Jalen said. "Until then, keep quiet about it."
Silence hung between them, broken only by the whisper of frost melting into the sea.
"So now that I am in the Transcendent Realm," Frost asked, "does that mean the Upper Realm will come for me?"
"No," Jalen replied. "Though you are transcendent, to others you remain half‑step. The same concealment that shields me now shields you."
"I see." Frost has now gotten confirmation that Jalen had done something to mask his true realm, though he wasn't sure how—perhaps some treasure or technique.
"Let's go," Jalen ordered.
Frost drew a robe from his pocket realm, draped it over his shoulders, and followed Jalen back toward Ron.
___
Meanwhile, as all of this was taking place, something stirred deep at the bottom of Kanto Ridge on the Rouna Continent. A sudden burst of energy erupted, shaking the entire landmass. The continent quaked as if struck by a divine hammer. Some dismissed it as a strange phenomenon, while others feared it was a natural disaster.
But the truth was far more unsettling.
From the fissure's depths, a figure shot upward, piercing the sky. He looked young—barely in his early twenties—with dark hair streaked faintly with purple. His aura was sharp, alien, and overwhelming. Yet he did not linger.
Before anyone could react, his form dissolved into shadow, slipping from sight and vanishing without a trace.