> [Location: Ember Crossroads – Embermist Ruins (Restricted Zone)]
System Notice: You are entering an Ancient Formation Field – Risk: Moderate
Recommended Action: Bring Flame-Sync Soul Pet or Partner with Compatible Flamebearer
---
Morning – Pressure Builds
By the fourth morning, the Ember Crossroads no longer felt peaceful.
The air was tight. The quiet no longer serene—but alert, like a sword being drawn slowly and unseen.
Something was brewing.
Jiang Han woke early and sat under the flameleaf tree again, but this time, it wasn't to meditate—it was to listen.
From nearby tents, voices whispered:
> "Did you hear? Trialist Garu lost his soul core last night."
"Vanished from his chest. No fight. No flames."
"That's three now."
Another voice:
> "Someone's sabotaging. Trialists are getting stripped. And no one's caught the thief."
Jiang stood.
He wasn't going to wait to become the next.
---
Noon – The Map Hidden in Flame
Jiang returned to the old marketplace.
Yanxi wasn't there.
But the origami flamebird she left behind was.
It unfolded when he approached, fluttered once, and flared—projecting a rune-map in the air.
> [Secret Location Added: Embermist Ruins – Inner Core Flame Wells]
System Note: "Formation Remnant Detected. Origin: Sovereign Flame Academy – Pre-Fall Era"
He squinted at the coordinates.
> "That's not far from the ridge where Ashkin watched me…"
Tempest coiled behind him, alert.
> "Yeah. You feel it too?"
The Phoenix Hatchling flared once—agitated.
They headed out.
---
Afternoon – The Forgotten Formation
The Embermist Ruins were blackstone arches half-buried in emberdust. Cracks glowed faintly beneath the surface, and flame-glyphs lined the broken ground in spirals.
A flicker of recognition hit Jiang's system.
> [Formation Type: Echo Cycle Array – Flame Enhancement + Skill Refinement]
Status: Corrupted, but Stable at 34% Integrity]
He stepped into the circle.
The glyphs responded, circling his boots like ripples in heat.
A flash.
Then—he stood in two places at once.
---
Trial Within a Trial – Shadow Duels
Inside the formation, time fractured.
A projection of Jiang Han appeared across from him—no older, no stronger, but colder.
Eyes empty. Flame dull.
> "You, without people. Without purpose."
The shadow Jiang raised Emberfang.
And lunged.
What followed wasn't a normal battle.
Every move Jiang made, the shadow mirrored—but less hesitantly. Cleaner. Efficient.
Jiang dodged a spin-kick and countered with Soul Thread Flame Pulse—the shadow absorbed it.
It wasn't his stats being tested.
It was his conviction.
> "Why do you hesitate?" the echo hissed.
"Do you think Tian Xue can survive where you're going?"
"Do you think legacy is enough?"
He snarled back:
> "Legacy isn't what I follow. It's what I build."
His flame burst outward, carrying both soul pets in sync—
> [Flame Fusion Activated: Ascendant Stormfire Synchronization – Tier: Stable]
He struck his shadow down.
The formation pulsed.
---
Reward
> [Trial Complete – Echo Cycle Cleared]
Skill Gained: "Mirrored Momentum"
→ Effect: For every successful flame strike, next soul skill gains 3% speed and control bonus (stackable)
Jiang gasped, falling to his knees. He clutched his ribs—bruised, not from the hit, but from the weight of seeing what he could become.
Then he heard rustling.
A watcher?
No.
A figure lay on the edge of the ruins—half-dead.
Jiang ran over.
The trialist's eyes flickered.
> "They… stole… my Flameheart…"
Jiang froze.
> "Who?"
But the man passed out.
---
Dusk – A Name Emerges
Back at Ashroot Pavilion, Jiang wrapped the injured man in a flameweave cloak and stabilized his pulse.
Then he found a mark carved into the man's shoulder:
Three black slashes across a crimson sun.
His system flashed:
> [Faction ID Recognized: Flame Scythe Syndicate – Banned Cultivator Group | Status: Rogue | Threat: High]
Rumored Presence in Convergence Trials Confirmed.
Jiang stared at it.
A new enemy. Hidden among them.
Not trialists. Hunters.
He stood, whispering to Tempest:
> "They're not here to win."
> "They're here to harvest us."