Max's eyes remained fixed on the dark red fruit hanging quietly from the flame branch of the Chaos Tree. For a long moment, he did not even notice the terrifying flames of the twelfth layer surrounding his body. His entire consciousness was immersed within his inner world, studying the transformation that had just taken place.
The fruit was not ordinary in appearance.
Its surface was smooth yet etched with faint patterns that resembled flowing flame laws. The dark red color was deep and rich, almost like condensed blood infused with fire. From within it, a subtle radiance pulsed outward, neither violent nor chaotic. Instead, it felt ancient and restrained, as though the overwhelming power it contained had been perfectly refined and compressed.
The energy emanating from it was profoundly mysterious.
It did not feel like raw flame energy. It did not feel like the chaotic flame laws that had once battered him within the Path to Eternal Flames. It felt complete.
