Chapter 9: The Hidden Gate
The training chamber beneath Zhao Manor had long been sealed.
Few even remembered its existence — a relic from the First Generation. But Zhao Yuchen stood before its gates now, blood humming with purpose.
Lines of ancient runes etched across the walls faintly glowed as his presence stirred the formation.
This was no ordinary place. This was where his ancestor, Zhao Shenyuan — the first Flameborn cultivator of their bloodline — had trained before humanity's great wandering.
Yuchen pressed his palm against the cold stone.
The seal on his hand shimmered in response.
> "Recognition confirmed."
A low hum vibrated through the walls.
> "Bloodline access granted. Initiating legacy trial."
The gate dissolved like smoke.
Beyond it was darkness — not just an absence of light, but the kind that felt alive. Hungry.
He stepped through.
Inside, the air was thick with ancient qi. Not the kind synthesized in cultivation pods — this was raw, wild, and laced with something else: time.
Torches lit on their own as he walked. Each one marked a generation past.
Zhao 1st Generation… Zhao 2nd… Zhao 73rd…
His family's legacy wasn't built on comfort. It was carved through war, migration, and silent sacrifice. He could feel the weight of those names watching him.
At the heart of the chamber was a stone platform.
Upon it: an orb, flickering between crimson and gold — like a flame dancing through memory.
He knelt before it.
> "Zhao Yuchen, 114th generation," a voice echoed in the chamber — deep, ancient, and somehow still his own.
> "Why have you come?"
Yuchen didn't hesitate. "To awaken the path of our origin. To reclaim Earth."
The orb pulsed once, acknowledging.
Then pain shot through his body.
Not from the outside — but inside, as if something locked away was being forced open.
Visions flooded his mind — of Earth in its prime: green forests, blue skies, oceans alive with spirit beasts.
Then… fire. War. Alien ships breaching the sky. Humanity fleeing, chased by silver vines and light-blades. The fall of continents.
> "This is what we lost."
His body trembled. But he clenched his fists.
> "And this is what you must earn."
Suddenly, the orb shattered — not into pieces, but into light, which surged into his core.
For a moment, he couldn't breathe.
Then, it settled — warm, powerful, anchoring itself in his dantian like a second sun.
The seal on his palm shifted. Now, beneath the flame symbol, a faint outline of Earth glowed.
Yuchen stood up slowly.
His bloodline had accepted him.
And now, it had shown him the way forward.