~1,900 words
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The world was quiet in the hours before dawn.
I sat cross-legged beneath the gnarled willow in the back courtyard, letting the cold air bite into my skin. Every breath I drew tasted like dust and old smoke. But within me… something else breathed.
The violet flame.
And tonight, it did more than flicker.
It spoke.
Not with words exactly—but with heat that carried thought.
> [ASH BORN SYSTEM INITIALIZED]
A glowing panel floated in the darkness of my mind.
---
> • Phoenix Flame Core: Active
• Soul State: Whole (Earth-Origin)
• Bloodline Sync: 5%
Passive Unlocked: Ashen Embers (Lvl 1)
Gradual restoration of energy through heat absorption.
Skill Tree: Locked
Phoenix Inheritance: Fragment Detected
Condition for Inheritance Unlock:
> Reach Dou Zhe
Fully awaken Phoenix Flame Core
---
> So it's not just a cheat. It's alive.
The Ash Born System wasn't like some robotic video game panel. It pulsed with intent—like the flame itself remembered what it had once been.
Something ancient. Something broken.
> "The ashes remember," I whispered.
I closed my eyes and began to cultivate again.
This time, I felt it.
Not just Dou Qi flowing through my meridians… but fire. Controlled, refined, almost surgical. My system guided it, adjusted the flow, even minimized backlash.
And the efficiency?
> Insane.
In just three hours, I broke through.
From 6th Duan Qi… to 7th.
> In one night.
---
The next week
I made a routine.
Sleep little. Eat less. Train when the clan wasn't watching.
I told no one. Not even Yue'er, the loyal maid who still brought me medicinal soup.
The fewer people who knew about the flame, the safer I'd be.
The Xiao Clan was full of cousins who would kill to gain an edge.
The clan elders wouldn't understand the flame, let alone tolerate it.
And if word ever spread beyond Wu Tan City…
> I'd be hunted before I ever reached adulthood.
---
Instead, I used my new passive ability to sneak into the outer ring of the Warcraft Mountains at night.
I could absorb ambient heat now. Even the slight body warmth of small prey kept my Qi recovery up.
> I became a ghost in the woods.
Killed my first beast—a one-horned red boar—using only a half-formed flame claw.
It took a week, but by the time I returned to Wu Tan, I was already approaching 8th Duan Qi.
The Ash Born System pinged again.
> Trait Unlocked: Flame Body Tempering (Passive)
While enveloped in natural flame or heat aura, your physique will strengthen over time.
> Effect: +5% Physical Resistance, +3% Strength
My punches began leaving cracks in wooden dummies.
The old clan guards started noticing my change.
"Third Young Master is… recovering well," one whispered.
"Too well," said another.
---
One month later
The Xiao Clan held its mid-year combat ranking trials.
I should've sat it out. But I volunteered.
Even Xiao Zhan, my new father in this world, looked surprised.
"You've barely walked three miles in your life, and now you want to fight?"
I bowed. "Let me show what I've learned."
He stared at me long and hard. "Very well. Just… don't humiliate yourself."
> He still thinks I'm weak. That's good.
I entered the ring against Xiao Feng, one of the more arrogant sons from a side branch.
8th Duan Qi. Arrogant. Sloppy.
He came at me with a wide slash.
I leaned under it, focused…
> Activate: Flame Flow Pulse
My body blurred forward, flame reinforcing my step. My fist hit his stomach like a cannonball.
He flew back six meters and hit the arena wall.
Silence.
Then someone shouted: "That's not normal!"
Xiao Zhan stood halfway out of his chair. The Elders leaned forward.
I calmly stepped out of the ring and bowed.
"I withdraw from further matches. I only wanted to prove I wasn't crippled."
---
That night, the system upgraded again.
> Phoenix Flame Core Sync: 12%
System Trait Progression Unlocked: Choose 1 Path
Two options lit up:
> 🔥 Path of Flame Sovereign
> Focus: Heavenly Flame Mastery, Spiritual Alchemy, Large-scale AoE
🐦 Path of Ash Phoenix
> Focus: Flame Martial Body, Rebirth Abilities, Speed, and Combat Focus
I hesitated.
I remembered BTTH's original plot. Heavenly Flames were a big deal. But I also remembered that strength in raw combat made Xiao Yan a beast even before he mastered alchemy.
> I chose Ash Phoenix.
A sound like crackling wood filled my head.
The flame inside me shifted. Became hotter. Tighter. Less like a wild inferno, more like a compressed furnace core.
The system confirmed:
> Path of Ash Phoenix Chosen. Martial Growth Enhanced. Flame Physique Progression Unlocked.
> +10% Flame Resistance
+5% Physical Regeneration
Skill Tree Access: Level 1 Unlocked
---
Skill Tree – Martial Branch (Ash Phoenix)
> [Active Skill Unlocked]: Ember Step
• Explosive burst movement using flame compression.
• Cooldown: 10 seconds.
> [Passive Skill]: Charred Will
• Resist minor spiritual attacks and soul tampering attempts.
• Effectiveness increases with bloodline sync.
---
I smiled.
No ring spirit. No Yao Lao. But I was carving my own path.
And I wasn't just catching up.
> I was surpassing.
---
Meanwhile, elsewhere…
In a far desert kingdom, a crown of serpents lay dormant beneath golden sand.
In the depths of a mountain, beneath layers of spirit ores and dragon bones, a lavender-eyed beast slumbered.
But they would awaken.
Eventually.
And when they did… they would feel it:
A fire not born of this world. A soul that had burned once before, and refused to fade.
---
[End of Chapter 2]