The courtyard of the Lunar Flare Clan shimmered with qi threads, woven into the air like strands of living wind. Nate danced through them, his movements fluid, precise, and impossibly fast. His Wind Style—personally taught by Jalen—had evolved beyond expectation. Each step was a whisper, each strike a gust, each dodge a cyclone of intent. The Wind Orb, his Eternal Grade spirit tool, pulsed with resonance, responding to his every motion like a living extension of his will.
Jalen stood at the edge of the courtyard, arms folded, watching his disciple with quiet pride. Nate, now nearing sixteen, had reached the peak of the Enlightened Realm and was showing signs of breaking into the Star Realm. From Gold Realm to this level in a single year—such progress was unheard of. But Nate wasn't just any cultivator.
He was Jalen's disciple. The top pupil of the Lunar Flare Clan's younger generation under a hundred years old. His name had spread across the Flare State and neighboring territories of the Rouna Continent. A monstrous genius, they called him. A wind-born prodigy.
Jalen had seen the spark in Nate early on. But now, that spark had become a storm.
"I see you've improved," Jalen said as Nate landed, his breath steady despite the intensity of his training.
Nate nodded, wiping sweat from his brow. "Yeah, but I'm still not as good as you, Master."
Jalen smiled faintly. "It's time."
Nate's eyes widened. "You mean—?"
"I'm allowing you to leave the continent for two years," Jalen confirmed. "Seek out opportunities. Test your limits. Grow."
Nate bowed deeply. "Thank you, Master."
Jalen's gaze lingered for a breath longer than usual. "Your training ends here. You may leave," he said, voice calm but distant.
Without waiting for a response, he turned and walked away—his robes trailing behind him like fading echoes.
Nate watched his master disappear into the corridor's light, the silence between them heavier than any farewell. Then, with a quiet breath, he turned and headed to his quarters to clean up.
__
The next morning, a quiet send-off was held. Jalen, Jaquan, Nate's best friend Steve, and Tyler Flare—the top elder of the Lunar Flare Clan and a direct descendant of the Flare bloodline—were present.
Steve, though clearly saddened by Nate's departure, kept a tough demeanor. "By the time you get back, I'll be stronger than you," he said with a smirk.
Both boys laughed. Neither believed it.
"Good luck," Steve added, clapping Nate's shoulder. "Stay safe."
Jaquan pulled Nate into a firm hug. "Stay safe son," he said. "And know that if it gets tough you can always come back home."
Tyler Flare stepped forward, offering Nate a shimmering jade talisman. A life-saving treasure. "Use it wisely," he said.
"Thank you, Senior," Nate said, accepting the gift with a bow.
Then Jalen approached. He placed a limited spirit sense tether on Nate—a subtle thread that allowed him to track his disciple's whereabouts without invading his privacy. It was a gesture of trust, and Nate understood its weight.
But what shocked Nate more was the hug that followed.
Jalen, usually reserved, pulled him close. "Do not overestimate your abilities. If you can't handle the enemy before you," he whispered, "then run. Live. Grow. Return stronger."
Nate nodded, eyes burning with resolve.
With wind swirling around him, he stepped into the portal and vanished into the horizon.
After Nate's departure, life in the Flare State settled into a rhythm. The usual disciple training resumed, politics stirred quietly, and six months passed in a blur of cultivation and reconstruction.
Jalen spent that time with his wife, children, and extended family. He embraced the warmth of domestic life—meals with Rana, playtime with his children, quiet evenings with Jaquan and Lara. But even in peace, he knew stillness was dangerous. Enemies lurked beyond borders, and idleness was a luxury he couldn't afford for long.
In the final week of the sixth month, Lloyd returned from the Great Wave Continent.
He was stunned by what he saw.
The former EmberFall City had transformed into a gleaming capital—its spires reaching skyward, its palace rivaling the grandeur of royal courts he'd seen abroad. The Flare territory pulsed with vitality, fortified with divine formations and bustling with cultivators. Whatever had caused this shift, Lloyd knew one thing: it had Jalen's fingerprints all over it.
But Lloyd didn't return alone.
Tera, the woman who had stood beside Lloyd and Jalen during the Vault incident at Renin Mountain, arrived with him—alongside seven other young women. All seven had met Lloyd during the few years he spent in the Great Wave Continent. Some relationships lasted weeks, others months, but each left its mark.
Six of the women brought with them children: four under a year old, two just over. Tera herself was pregnant. The seventh woman, also pregnant, had been involved with Lloyd during the time Jalen was staying at the Raine Sect. Their relationship had been secretive—more an affair than a commitment—and ended when Lloyd refused to settle down. Shortly after, he reconnected with Tera, whose chemistry with him had always lingered beneath the surface. That connection deepened, and now she carried his child.
Though the other women were no longer romantically involved with Lloyd—and some harbored quiet jealousy toward Tera—they had agreed to come for the sake of their children. They wanted their kids to know their father's family. And they were welcomed warmly by Jaquan, Lara, and Jana.
Jana and Lara offered them the option to stay in the Flare State. Some accepted. Others hesitated. But all agreed: Lloyd would be part of his children's lives.
While the women chatted and settled in—some exploring the palace halls, others bonding over shared stories of motherhood—Jaquan and Jalen took Lloyd aside for a private conversation over spirit fruit wine.
They settled on the palace's west terrace, where the view stretched across Hewitt Capital's glowing skyline. The air was crisp, tinged with the scent of blooming flame orchids. A servant poured the wine into carved spiritwood cups, then quietly departed, leaving the three men in silence.
Jaquan raised his cup first. "To fatherhood," he said with a smirk, "and the chaos it brings."
Lloyd chuckled, clinking his cup against his father's. "You're one to talk. I've been gone a few years and you're already at baby number five."
Jaquan laughed, shaking his head. "Touché. But I've only got one woman to answer to. You? You've got a whole council."
Jalen, seated quietly beside them, took a slow sip, his gaze drifting toward the horizon. He didn't speak, but his presence grounded the moment.
Lloyd leaned back, exhaling. "It wasn't supposed to be like this. I didn't plan to have eight baby mothers. Things just… happened."
"Things always 'just happen' when you're not thinking with your brain," Jaquan said, raising an eyebrow. "You're lucky they all came here peacefully. That's rare."
"I know," Lloyd admitted, it took him days to convince them all to travel with him here. "I didn't expect them to agree. Especially not after how things ended."
Jaquan leaned forward, his tone softening. "Though I don't condone with what you doing, I'm also not here to judge you, son. What's done is done. But you've got kids now—real lives depending on you. You can't keep floating between women like it's a cultivation technique."
Lloyd looked down at his cup. "I've been thinking about that. Tera's the one I'm closest to now. But I don't know if that'll last. I don't even know what I want to be honest."
Jaquan's tone softened. "Then figure it out. Don't wait until one of those kids grows up asking why their father was a stranger."
Lloyd nodded slowly. "I'll try."
"You'll do more than try," Jaquan said, finishing his drink. "You'll choose. You'll commit. And you'll be a damn good father to all of those kids."
A quiet pause followed. The wind rustled the terrace curtains. Jalen's eyes flicked toward Lloyd, unreadable.
Jaquan stood, stretching. "Alright, I've said my piece. I'll leave you two to talk."
He clapped Lloyd on the shoulder, gave Jalen a nod, and disappeared into the palace.
Now only Jalen and Lloyd remained.
Lloyd glanced at Jalen a bit awkwardly. "You're not going to say anything about all this?"
Jalen took a sip of his wine, then set the cup down. "What is there to say?"
Lloyd gave a dry chuckle. "Fair enough."
Jalen's gaze sharpened. "You're at the Spirit Fusion Realm now. Did you come back for vengeance?"
Lloyd's expression hardened. "That's part of the reason I'm here."
Jalen nodded once. "Then we wait two more days. After that, we head to the Reign Continent."
Lloyd raised his cup and drank.
The night grew quiet around them.