“Yes, we did it,” Jared said. “I stand at Human Immortal Realm Level Five, and you at the very peak of Level Two. Even the Soul Devourer must now think twice before crossing our path.”
They stepped from the cultivation pool. Muscles felt denser, spirits brighter, and the raw energy swirling beneath their skin had been refined to something sharp enough to cut moonlight. Confidence gleamed in the glance they shared, an unspoken vow that no storm would ever scatter them again.
“Let’s rest,” Sylvia suggested. Side by side, they sank onto the cool marble of the ancient hall. Hours of relentless cultivation had left their bodies aching. But each throb reminded them how high they had climbed, and anticipation beat in their chests like new wings testing the air.
Jared turned, sober now. “Sylvia, thank you for staying with me, through every cliff and every fire.” She answered with a gentle curve of her lips. “We’re partners, remember? Whatever hunts us, we face it together!”
Their eyes locked. In that quiet exchange lay tenderness, iron resolve, and the simple, dangerous promise of tomorrow. In a world where the strong feast on the weak, they understood that only by holding fast to each other could they keep walking forward.
When strength had returned to weary limbs, they rose. The Heaven Gate Ruins had given them everything it could. Now the wider world awaited.
“Time to go,” Jared said, and together they strode toward the distant mouth of the ruin.
At the threshold, moonlight spilled across broken pillars. They were a single step from open sky when Sylvia caught his wrist.
“Jared…” she whispered, “Before we leave this place, could we steal one more moment of joy?”
Her voice trembled, half laughter, half plea. “Out there, life may treat us kindly for a time. But who knows when we might stand side by side again?”
Sylvia had always known one hard truth. Jared’s ambition was never going to stop at level nine.
Someday, he would rise beyond this sky and keep climbing until nothing higher remained. In that distant future, she feared joy itself might drift so far from her grasp that she would never touch it again.
“All right…” Jared gave a quiet nod, the promise in his eyes deeper than the word itself.
***
Three days slipped past in a blur, nights of pain entwined with delight, before Sylvia finally let herself breathe again.
When they stepped out of the ruined archway that had once been the Heaven Gate Sect, a sweep of fresh wind met them.
Before their eyes spread the rivers and mountains they were familiar with. Even the rustle of leaves and the chatter of birds felt like long-lost friends calling them home.
“We made it back!” Sylvia exclaimed.
Light danced in her eyes, as bright and restless as sunrise on water.
Jared’s answering smile carried equal relief. “Yes. We’re back. And stronger than ever. It’s time we honored Elder Hawksley’s last wish.”
Their gazes locked. Resolve shimmered between them like a drawn blade. Both understood how much their power had grown, and that growth carried a debt only action could repay.
“Let’s move.” Jared’s voice cut through the morning stillness, and together they shot into the sky, twin streaks of silver light aimed at destiny.
Guided by Sylvia, Jared landed beside her on the black-stoned terrace of the Earth Fiend Sect.
The Soul Devourer was rumored to be nursing his wounds somewhere in these halls. If they meant to end him, there was no other place to start.
“Ms. Vale…” The Grand Elder and three deputy sect masters bowed low as Sylvia strode in.
The Grand Elder nearly choked on his own dread when he noticed Sylvia’s fingers laced through Jared’s.
So Ms. Vale has fallen to him after all. And I… Fool that I am, once struck the man. Will I be punished?
“Has the Soul Devourer shown himself at all?” Sylvia asked, her tone clipped and businesslike.
“Not once,” one deputy replied, shaking his head.
“Good. Follow us to the Forbidden Grounds. While he’s still weak, we finish this.” Hearing that the Soul Devourer had not yet healed, Sylvia’s lips curved in fierce satisfaction.
The elders froze. Soul Devourer, the name alone conjured nightmares. Charging such a creature sounded less like duty and more like a signed death warrant.
“Ms. Vale, please reconsider. Soul Devourer is…”
“Silence.” Sylvia’s single word cracked through the chamber. “I lead here. You follow!”
