Chapter 55 — Time Chamber
Jin stood silently before the great hall. Though it lacked grandeur, the place pulsed with a strange energy that teased his senses. Runes of all shapes and strokes adorned the walls and the floor. He couldn't understand a single one, but their presence stirred something inside him.
Despite the alien symbols swirling across the ancient stone, Jin wasn't discouraged. He had been a quick learner since childhood—grasping complex elemental theories before most could form a proper stance. But as he stared at the volumes stacked on the side shelves and the diagrams etched into the walls, he came to a frustrating realization.
"What I need now… isn't talent. It's time," he muttered.
There were at least a hundred stone tablets and over five dozen scrolls, most written in ancient glyphs. Some glowed faintly with dormant power, while others were cracked and half-decayed.
Jin didn't waste time marveling. He waved his hand and swept every piece of readable material into his spatial ring. He could sense that this ruin had more to offer—something personal, something secret.
After a couple more hours of searching, Jin discovered a narrow hallway hidden behind a shattered wall, partially covered in dust. He stepped through and arrived at a room unlike any other.
It was barren, except for a single polished slab mounted on the back wall. Its surface had only two words etched in bold runic letters:
Time Chamber.
Jin tilted his head. "Time chamber?"
He didn't know what exactly it meant, but the name was telling enough. Could it actually alter the flow of time? Curious, Jin took out a fruit from his ring—one of the ripe duskberries he had picked along the way. Typically, they rotted after three days due to the low essence contained in them.
He gently tossed the fruit into the chamber. It floated slightly, then slowly fell and settled on the floor within.
Jin sat cross-legged at the entrance. He decided to use this time to cultivate while observing the fruit's decay. Days passed.
On the thirtieth day, the fruit finally showed clear signs of rotting—far beyond what it should've lasted.
Jin's eyes narrowed. "So… time moves ten times slower in there."
A burst of excitement welled up in his chest. This chamber would be the key to everything. His fingers curled into fists as resolve flared in his eyes. He wouldn't waste this opportunity.
Without hesitation, Jin stepped into the chamber.
The air was different—richer, slower, denser. Elemental essence clung to every breath. He could feel his muscles respond with unusual clarity, and his thoughts moved at a calm, controlled pace.
He had three goals.
First, to study and understand the ancient runes. They were more than just symbols—they could alter reality if used correctly. And in this ruin, he had found a basic rune carved into the center of the chamber. It was used to condense energy into a single point—likely placed here by the original owner of the ruin to help with energy accumulation.
Jin decided he would spend forty years—equivalent to four years in real time—absorbing and practicing every rune he had collected. Understanding structure, flow, and the elemental equations encoded into each symbol.
Second, he would dedicate twenty years purely to cultivation. With the elevated essence inside the chamber and the rune helping to concentrate energy, he'd reach limits he could never approach outside.
Third, the last twenty years would be spent mastering new techniques. He planned to rotate his time between body tempering, soul cultivation, and elemental synchronization.
He flipped his palm and retrieved the soul manual he had been using—Last Five Minutes—a skill that let him watch the final moments of the dead. But its value was limited now. Jin needed more. In its place, he brought out another manual from his ring: Soul Search.
This one was far more invasive. It let him dive into the mind of a still-living or subdued enemy, pulling any memory he wanted. The risks were higher, but the information gained could change the course of a battle—or even his entire path.
"This… is the path I need," Jin whispered as he walked deeper into the chamber. He looked once more at the glowing rune in the center, then found a corner to settle in.
Before he closed his eyes, Jin took one final breath and muttered under it, "Lyra… Gorr… stay safe out there. If you don't call me… I'm not coming out. See you in 10 years, I hope you're both stronger"
The spatial strand they each carried—the one made from Gorr's hair with a blood tip—would bind them across vast distances, calling Jin to them the moment it was scanned with spiritual awareness. It was their only way of summoning him.
Otherwise, he would remain hidden for decades, lost to the world—yet forging a terrifying future within.
As the door to the time chamber closed with a deep hum, the air shimmered, and a wave of elemental energy swirled toward the lone cultivator inside.
Jin sat cross-legged beneath the runic ceiling.
His fire element danced gently across his palms.
Wind circled around him like a whisper.
Earth hardened his aura, rooting him to the chamber.
Water flowed through his meridians with smooth force.
He reached into his ring and drew out a scroll—one that showed how to form chains of runes to create illusions based off the victim soul energy.
And then… he began.