CHAPTER 83: LESSONS IN CINDERFALL

The next half-year in the Ashen Dimension passed in a strange, almost domestic tranquility that was completely at odds with the chaotic power now housed within its starlit void.

Rhys’s days fell into a predictable rhythm, a cycle of learning, practice, and dealing with the increasingly complex dynamics of his new, bizarre family.

His mornings were dedicated to his own cultivation.

He would sit atop the highest crystalline tower of his newly built city, a silent fortress named ’Cinderfall’, and absorb the pure energy of his domain.

He did not need to push for breakthroughs anymore; his foundation was set. Instead, he focused on control, on mastering the immense power now flowing through his 108 Ascendent Cores.

He learned to isolate the energy of each core, to feel the unique signature of every element he had bonded with, from the simple, solid strength of Earth to the mind-bending complexity of Time.

His afternoons, however, were for his lessons with Seduction.

The lessons were a constant battle of wills.

Seduction was a frustrating teacher, her explanations often wrapped in layers of flirtatious teasing and cryptic metaphors.

She would demonstrate a concept not by explaining it, but by using it on him.

"The properties you mortals see in an element are just the most obvious ripples on the surface of a very deep ocean," she explained one day, lounging on a throne of black ice she had conjured.

Sera sat on a smaller, identical throne beside her, mimicking her pose with a grumpy expression, a silent protest against the ’coquettish bitch’s’ very existence.

"Take water," Seduction continued, a small sphere of water appearing in her palm. "You see it as something that flows, something that freezes, something that quenches thirst. Boring."

The sphere of water in her hand shimmered, and suddenly, it was a perfect, moving reflection of Rhys’s own face.

"But water can also reflect. It can create illusions. That is a mutated property. A different path."

The reflection in the water smiled, but it was not Rhys’s smile. It was a cruel, mocking sneer. The illusionary Rhys began to speak, its voice a perfect copy of his own.

"You think you are in control, but you are just a puppet dancing on the strings of fate."

Rhys felt a flicker of annoyance. He knew she was just trying to provoke him. He focused his will, and a thin wisp of his Voidheart Flame shot from his finger, piercing the water sphere.

The illusion shattered with a hiss of steam.

Seduction clapped her hands softly. "Very good. You used a concept to destroy a concept. But you used a sledgehammer to kill a fly. What if you wanted to create, not just destroy?"

She waved her hand again. The air around Rhys suddenly felt thick, heavy. His perception of time seemed to stretch.

Seduction’s movements, which had been fluid and graceful, now seemed incredibly slow, as if he were watching her through thick honey.

He felt nostalgic. This was the power Yuki had used in the desert, the ability to freeze time itself.

"This," Seduction said, her voice echoing strangely in his slowed perception, "is what happens when you blend concepts. My foolish little sister mixed the ’freezing’ property of Water with the ’stasis’ property of Time. A simple but effective combination. She created a new law, a personal one."

The effect ended as quickly as it began. The world snapped back to its normal speed. Rhys stood there, his mind reeling.

He finally understood.

The properties were not just different ways of using an element; they were the building blocks for creating entirely new abilities, new laws of reality.

There were countless possibilities which seemed to be endless.

"How?" Rhys asked, his voice filled with a genuine thirst for knowledge.

Seduction smiled, a genuine, teacher-like smile for the first time.

"You need a bridge. A catalyst. Something that can link two different concepts together. For Yuki, her own core, a piece of a Celestial being, was the catalyst. It allowed her to bend the rules. You... you will have to find your own."

The revelation was a lightning bolt in his mind. His builds, his specialised dantians, were powerful, but they were isolated towers of strength.

To reach the next level, he had to build bridges between them. He had to learn how to combine the silent death of his Shadow build with the explosive fury of his Inferno build.

He had to learn how to weave the defensive power of Earth with the elusive nature of Wind.

This became his new, long-term goal. The Ashen Dimension was a perfect training ground, but the catalysts he needed were not here.

He would have to find them in the outside world.

While Rhys was engrossed in his lessons, Sera was on her own journey of discovery. She had quickly grown bored of the silent, obedient Ashen Vindicators.

Her new favourite playmate was the Ashen Behemoth. The massive, star-forged creature, which would have terrified any other child, was like a giant, loyal puppy to her.

She would climb its massive legs, slide down its back, and command it to make the floating islands gently bob up and down like a cradle.

During her explorations, she began to experiment with her own powers. She had consumed the heart of the Celestial Behemoth, and its essence was now a part of her.

One day, while playing in the ruins, she was trying to reach a shiny Celestial Ore that had fallen into a deep crack.

She could not reach it. Frustrated, she pouted and focused on the ore, wishing it would come to her.

To her surprise, the ore wobbled, then lifted from the crack and floated gently into her waiting hands.

She gasped, her pitch-black eyes wide with wonder. She had used the Behemoth’s gravitational power without even trying.

She had not shape-shifted into its form; she had simply willed its power to manifest.

She spent the rest of the day in a state of gleeful excitement, making small rocks and pieces of crystal float around her head like a miniature solar system.

Her potential was growing at a terrifying rate.

The half-year mark approached.

Rhys knew it was time to leave. His power had stabilised, and his understanding of the world had deepened immeasurably.

He had learned all he could from Seduction for now. The rest required real-world experience.

He began his preparations.

He went to the forge he had built in Cinderfall, a grand workshop filled with the rarest materials from the Labyrinth.

He spent a week crafting. Using threads of refined Celestial Ore and the supple, shadow-infused leather from the beasts of the Ashen Plains, he created new sets of clothes for himself and Sera.

They were simple and unassuming on the outside, looking like the durable clothes of a travelling merchant, but they were imbued with powerful defensive formations.

They were artefacts of a quality that the Azure Province had never seen.

When he presented Sera with her new, dark grey dress, she twirled around happily.

"Now I look like Papa!" she giggled.

Seduction watched from the doorway of the forge, a possessive smile on her face.

"You’re not truly thinking of leaving without me, are you, husband?"

Rhys sighed. He had known this was coming.

"It will be dangerous," he said, a weak attempt at dissuading her.

"Of course it will be," she purred, gliding into the room.

"That’s what will make it so much fun. Besides,’ her eyes glinted, ’someone needs to make sure you don’t get yourself killed before you unlock the secrets I need."

Sera shot her a venomous glare. "Papa doesn’t need a coquettish bitch to protect him! I can protect him!"

"Oh, you sweet, naive little thing," Seduction cooed, patting Sera’s head. Sera tried to bite her hand.

"Protecting a man like him is a woman’s job, not a child’s. And..a man require something, a child can’t give him..."