Chapter 70 – A Thread of the Truth
The platform pulsed with energy once again as the next round commenced. Lyra, now seated on the edge of the recovery platform, her breaths still uneven, turned her gaze toward the next match. Her body throbbed from her last battle, but her spirit refused to rest. Jin was stepping onto the platform again.
"Be careful," she whispered under her breath, even though he couldn't hear.
The figure standing across from Jin was tall and narrow-eyed, his expression unreadable. His name was Raen—a mid-stage Adept Realm cultivator and the blessed child of the Tempest Fang Sect. Known for his ruthless speed and unparalleled mastery of lightning, he had gained renown for weaving between five distinct lightning techniques with near-instant precision.
Raen didn't need multiple elements. His lightning alone was terrifying.
Lyra tried to follow the match as it began, but her tired eyes couldn't keep up with the blinding bursts of motion and crackling energy. She shut them instead, focusing on recovery.
Meanwhile, on the stage—
Raen struck first. A bolt of lightning shot forward, then curved mid-air like a serpent, followed by another jagged flash erupting from behind Jin. The twin assaults converged on him.
But Jin had already moved.
He activated the movement art from his sword technique—Dance of the Heavens. His body blurred, swept by a fiery burst of speed that shattered the air behind him. He reappeared a dozen meters away, his stance fluid, calm.
"Impressive," Raen murmured, then vanished in a crackle.
This time, Jin called upon Gorr.
The beast materialized with a spatial ripple, claws digging into the platform as electricity sparked across the tiles. Gorr's senses locked onto Raen instantly, intercepting one of the lightning arcs mid-dash.
Raen didn't stop. His body blurred again.
Crackle!
A burst of paralyzing blue light struck toward Jin's flank.
He sank into the ground using his earth essence—reappearing behind Raen as if phasing through the platform.
His sword swung.
Raen turned just in time, parrying with a shield of lightning. Jin's sword clanged against it with a burst of heat, fire wreathing the blade.
The platform cracked beneath them.
Jin launched into his movement dance—his steps a blur of fire-propelled speed. He flashed forward, curved low, then vanished beneath Raen's feet with an earth-step flicker, emerging with a sweeping upward slash.
Raen countered with another technique—his third.
A dome of lightning flared out in all directions, forcing Jin and Gorr back.
"I'm not done yet," Jin said, eyes sharp.
He formed a sequence of runes mid-air with one hand, while Gorr lunged in again, claws clashing with a whip of lightning.
Raen now flicked his fingers, weaving into his fourth lightning technique—an array of mirrored strikes from every angle, so fast that Gorr took a hit across the chest and was flung back.
Jin barely dodged the barrage, dancing between strikes, his flame-boosted steps causing arcs of melted stone to form wherever he landed.
"Your pet's fast," Raen muttered, "but not faster than lightning."
"Good thing I don't rely on just speed."
Jin plunged into the ground again and burst up behind Raen. This time, he didn't use fire. He pivoted, faked a slash, then spun and launched a ground-splitting kick powered by earth essence that threw Raen into the air.
The air cracked.
Raen's fifth lightning technique erupted—a spear of refined lightning so dense it shimmered white-blue. He hurled it down at Jin with both hands.
Jin brought up the sword his master gave him, the runes along its edge glowing. A fire-and-earth essence blend exploded from his feet as he met the spear mid-air.
Boom!
The platform shook. Dust rose. Lightning scattered across the sky.
Both fighters landed hard.
Raen coughed blood. Jin wiped a trail of crimson from his lip.
They were battered, breathing hard.
Raen grimaced. "I thought you were just a freak who beat Kaelun with tricks. But you… you're something else."
He charged again.
But Jin was already moving.
His sword danced. Fire traced every strike, and earth surged beneath his steps.
Raen unleashed another barrage—repeating his first technique.
Jin matched the rhythm now.
He slipped past every bolt, fire blooming at his heels. He danced forward, faster, step by step, until his sword whispered past Raen's guard.
The final blow came like a flicker of flame—clean, graceful, lethal.
Raen froze, a line of red blooming across his chest.
He dropped to his knees.
"I yield," he whispered.
The voice of the realm echoed:
"Victory: Jin."
Jin lowered his blade, exhaling sharply.
He turned toward the recovery platform. Lyra gave him a tired smile.
No crowd. No applause. No cheers.
Just silence.
And ten other contenders still locked in their own desperate battles.
Jin sat down next to Lyra, but left her to cultivate and was deep in thoughts, he'd always have suspicions about why his master had such a vast library or why his master even picked him without knowing about his four elements at first, or how a rogue cultivator without any sect affiliations became as strong as the sect heads of the southern continent.
Whilst Jin was deep in thoughts, his mind flashed back to when his master talked about a 'planet detrox', he was almost close to enlightenment, but it felt like a fog was covering the truth and he couldn't grasp the enlightenment he was about to have, his goal was to kill elder varek because of the pain he was caused to suffer.
But whilst Jin was about to wrap up his thinking still with doubts and planned to ask his master once he left here. Cold sweat couldn't help but trickle down his back, he wondered why he didn't remember his father and mother, it felt like his memory was foggy and he didn't still know how his parents got the stone for the aegis sect recruitment.
He felt like there was something bigger than him in place, and his next course of action was to find his parents after this tournament. Even with his heart racing more than ever before, he had to calm down and approach his doubts carefully and rightfully.
Was this all speculations or was he grasping at a thread of the full truth, He didn't know, but he knows he has a very long and ardous journey ahead, with his gaze burning with determination he makes a vow to get to the top.