Pain was certainly not something I liked to embrace, but it came alongside strength. In a way, the Caldera were right when they said that pain was no more than weakness leaving the body. Then again, even they thought I had lost my mind. But did I? Really?

The flamelet in my World was intriguing. Not only did it appear out of nowhere, but it also augmented my body in certain ways. Ether circulated faster through my fingers as they pierced through the lava pond’s surface. I guided them almost playfully through the lava, a smile forming on my lips as ether circulated hastily through my hand.

That was not all. It was just the beginning. When the flamelet did not disperse as it had in the morning, I felt a subtle shift in the surroundings. The fire-attuned ether in the hall flowed faster toward me. My pores opened to the attuned ether and absorbed–annexed–it faster than before. Even better, the lava pond did not feel as disgustingly hot as before.

Once again, I was no fan of pain, but the growth I’d experienced through pain was undeniable. My experience with Ruler Kazriel made that much clear. So burning myself a little to gain some resistance to the heat of ether-infused lava and to improve my ether circulation sounded almost like a dream. At least I hadn’t been on the verge of death when Medicus Lasgha pulled me out of the pond. I was still alive and swiftly healed.

Accepting the ambient ether in breaths, I couldn’t help but marvel at the opportunity at hand.

If I spent most of my days here, it should be possible to fill the second 3-Star Gate in two, maybe three, weeks. I calculated in my head after double-checking the Ether Gate’s condition. It was almost half full thanks to the resources Ruler Kazriel provided, but that didn’t mean the opportunities were equal. The pond was clearly superior to the Ruler’s resources.

In the pond, using ambient attuned ether, I wouldn’t have to be afraid of experiencing ether toxicity. That meant that as long as I had enough time to spare, I could focus on Body Tempering all day. If I didn’t die in the lava pond–and the Medicus stayed with me to provide healing in case something went wrong.

“Can I go back in?” I rephrased my earlier question, all while the Medicus’s healing continued to patch me together.

Medicus Lasgha stared blankly at me for a good minute before nodding, apparently liking what he saw in my eyes.

“Please do not die, Pyaera.” He called me that for the second time, which confirmed my earlier suspicion. Clearly, Zegrath had told the Spiritcaller about Aureus, which resulted in this–whatever this was.

Regardless of what it was, I was quite happy with the attention I received. Having a Medicus by my side was exactly what I needed right now. Knowing someone was present to rescue me, I could dive back into the pond to figure out what exactly the flame in my World was, how to make use of it, and maybe how to nurture it as well. That being said, I did exactly that.

I stepped into the lava pond and submerged within seconds, ignoring the comments ringing in my head.

This time, I did not leave the lava pond quickly. I stayed longer, and I was happy the Medicus did not pull me out either. Waves of pain assaulted me as my nerves burned again, but I was lucky enough to endure the seconds of unbearable pain until I could no longer feel pain. That was when the real fun began.

Healing flames reached out to me, restoring the wreck of my body as the Pyrosh’s lava burned me down. Knowing I was dying but unable to feel it, while being healed by mythical flames, was… odd. The combination was strange too, but I ignored it as best I could and zoned in on the flamelet.

It flickered, seemingly coming to life, as I submerged in the Pyrosh’s lava. Focusing on the shifts in the inner World, the flamelet, and the enormous amount of ether that seemed to surge in and out of my body in rapid tides, I noticed several shifts–one being fairly surprising.

My weave acknowledged and even went as far as to infuse raw, fire-attuned energy into it, tempering it not unlike my Ether Gates did. This method was probably supposed to be incredibly painful, to burn me from the inside out, but I couldn’t feel anything. The Pyrosh reached every part of my body, and, at this point, I couldn’t even tell if my internal organs were safe.

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Brushing the worries aside for the moment, I refocused on the flamelet. It had grown considerably and expanded explosively, only to shrink down and lose most of its strength a moment later. It consumed more and more soul energy, which instigated its growth. Then it spread outward and latched onto the core, which devoured the flames. My World rippled and expanded, and so did my core. The growth spurt was minuscule. It was definitely not a worthy replacement for the Blastor Refinery technique, yet it piqued my interest.

As I paid more attention to it, I noticed another shift when my core did not consume the flamelet’s expanding flames, after the eleventh time. The flamelet had stopped devouring soul energy and occupied it instead, eliminating the core’s need to retrieve the soul energy that was stolen. After all, no more soul energy was stolen; it was occupied instead.

It was almost like the flamelet was alive and sentient enough to understand the predicament. It spread outward, occupying more neutral soul energy. The process was slow and hesitant at first, but once it was clear the core didn’t do anything, the flamelet burst into action, engulfing dozens of golden particles, shaping and changing them forever.

Then the thread came to be – a thin, crimson one. It was a soulshare, yet different – nothing like my bonds with Aureus and Nox. The crimson thread was not final – it was temporary. But while it was not permanently integrated, it latched onto my excessive soul energy and provided everything a regular soulshare provided. It… changed me. Helped me, just like I helped it – or at least, that’s what it felt like.

Inspecting my World once again showed just how large it had become. Consistency and hellish training had been more than enough to push my World to new heights, and so did my bonds with Aureus and Nox. If anything, it was my bonds that made everything work. It was a perfect combination that allowed me to bind a third Soulkin. Though that was unnecessary now. Or–

I don’t know. I stirred in the bond, not quite sure what the flame was. Other than being unique and quite useful – but that was apparent.

The majority of my soul energy was attuned to Nox and Aureus, leaving no more than about 200 units untouched. Then there were the red-blazing bits. Exactly 100 soul energy units had been occupied by the mysterious flame before it stopped expanding.

Only a few seconds passed after the flame stopped working its wonders when I was pulled from the lava pond.

I gasped for air, a bright smile forming on my molten lips. It only widened as I healed, spreading from one ear to the other as Medicus Lasgha stared at me wide-eyed. So did Orieath, flames puffing from his body, his jaw hitting the ground.

Zegrath reciprocated my smile, but hers was more dashing. Her smile shimmered, almost divinely, her attention making me oddly conscious of myself, and the fact that I was still naked.

“You are a mysterious man, Adam.” She chuckled. “If not for looking like this, I would probably pounce on you and take you right this instance.”

I blushed heavily, though I doubted anyone noticed. Not with how I looked, flesh regrowing slowly, pink skin forming bit by bit. All this while, a faint crimson shimmer oozed from my body, keeping me warm, cozy, and filled to the brim with ambient ether.

***

My mission for the following days was a no-brainer. Truly, it would have been stupid if I didn’t leverage my position, so I returned to the lava pond whenever I could. Always with a Medicus. Although it didn’t matter which Medicus accompanied me, I preferred Lasgha. Medicus Lasgha asked the fewest questions. He was no fan of jokes and favored the hard-working, which suited me perfectly.

Even if I was still not quite sure whether Medicus Lasgha liked me or not, he accompanied me for my daily torture sessions more often than others. And he patched me together best. The others… well, let’s just say I was happy the lava ponds melted my body at times. It was even better that Medicus Lasgha was present, ensuring my ears were where they were supposed to be, even when the lava pond melted parts of my face for the last time.

Two hours a day in the lava pond, five sessions spread throughout the day, ensured my body was constantly brimming with ambient ether. The mysterious flame was being nurtured, but I was the happiest with my Ether Gates. Fueling the leaking Ether Gates took only minutes in the lava pond. In the meantime, filling the half-full 3-Star Gate was rapid as well. Even better was the sensation of growth. My body was growing more formidable even though the 3-Star Gate had yet to be linked to the weave.

The Pyrosh tempered me. It destroyed me. The medics patched me together – only for me to be destroyed once again. It was a vicious cycle that ended up lasting exactly ten days. Ten days of torture, but the reward was worth it. In my opinion, at least. At last, my second 3-Star Gate was filled to the brim with the purest ether I could find, and I connected it to my weave without a second thought. It shimmered in a faint crimson hue and exuded a boiling heat that would have affected me a few weeks ago, but it worked as well as the others. If anything, it might even be a little bit better than the others.

Adapting to the physical changes induced by the Gate connecting to the weave, I leaped into the lava pond and swam around. It was hot but no longer unbearable. The heat was acceptable; my body was used to it and no longer melting either. Pure perfection.