Liam''s Perspective


    Pain. Blinding, all-consuming pain.


    The lightning struck me again, tearing through muscle and bone like they were paper. My skin ckened, cracked, and peeled away. The smell of my own burning flesh filled my nostrils.


    But I remained conscious. That was the true torture of a breakthrough tribtion—you felt every excruciating moment.


    "AAAAARRRGH!" My scream echoed through the pit as another bolt hammered down.


    The difference between regr cultivation and reaching Grandmaster was likeparing a summer rain to a hurricane. This was no gentle tempering—this was destruction and rebirth.


    I forced my eyes open between strikes. Above, the heavens had turned an unnatural purple-ck. Lightning danced between clouds, gathering power for the next assault. Each bolt was stronger than thest. Each one should have killed me.


    "Not... yet..." I growled through clenched teeth.


    ra watched from her hiding spot, horror etched across her young face. I''d told her to stay hidden, but she couldn''t look away. Smart girl. At least she remained silent.


    Another crack of thunder, and lightningnced down. This one split me from crown to navel. My ribcage burst open, exposing my still-beating heart.


    "FUCK!" I roared, my voice barely human.


    I wasn''t just enduring this tribtion—I was embracing it. Each strike reshaped me, burned away impurities, forced my cells to be something greater.


    High above, beyond my field of vision, I could hear voices.


    "It''s magnificent!" That was Sammy Taylor, awe in his voice.


    "The treasure must be phenomenal to cause such a reaction," another voice chimed in.


    Idiots. They still thought this was about some ancient relic. They had no idea I was bing the weapon they should fear.


    ---


    Above the pit, Sammy Taylor paced excitedly, his eyes fixed on the swirling storm clouds. Three men stood with him—Glenn Talbot, a burly treasure hunter; Sammy''s assistant Wei; and Mr. Noble, a supposed expert brought by the Ashworth family.


    "Have you ever seen anything like this?" Sammy asked, gripping Glenn''s shoulder.


    Glenn shook his head. "Never. Whatever''s being born down there... it''s special."


    "Liam Knight was right," Sammy said, pride in his voice. "The Ashworths will reward me handsomely for this discovery."


    Mr. Noble stepped forward, stroking his thin mustache. "This is nothing impressive. I''ve witnessed far more intense heavenly phenomena in the Eastern Provinces."


    Wei rolled his eyes. "Of course you have."


    ---


    The pain reached new heights as the seventh bolt struck. My lungs exploded, my eyes melted in their sockets, and still I endured.


    "More," I challenged the heavens, though I had no lungs to speak with. My consciousness remained intact even as my body disintegrated. "GIVE ME MORE!"


    The lightning responded with renewed fury. This time, rather than just striking me, it formed a cage around my broken form. The Sea of Thunder technique. This was my chance.


    With what remained of my will, I drew the lightning inward instead of resisting it. Let it course through what remained of my meridians, let it reshape me ording to my design rather than destroying mepletely.


    Every master who reached this level had their own method. Some used artifacts to deflect the tribtion. Others hid behind formations. I faced mine head-on, using my enemy''s strength against it.


    The lightning burned blue-white inside me, illuminating the pit with ghostly light.


    ---


    "Look at that glow!" Sammy eximed, peering down. "The treasure is materializing!"


    Mr. Noble scoffed. "This lightning is weak. Watch."


    Before anyone could stop him, Noble thrust his hand into the downward stream of energy. His smug expression instantly transformed into agony.


    "AAAAAHHH!"


    His hand vanished—not just burned, butpletely incinerated. Nothing remained but a smoking stump at his wrist.


    Glenn burst outughing. "Still think it''s weak?"


    Noble copsed, clutching his arm and howling. Nobody moved to help him.


    "Fool," Wei muttered. <dfn ss="ref-b1ff9e">Reader support at * made this trantion possible.</dfn>


    ---


    The ninth bolt was different. Bigger. Darker. It didn''t just strike—it consumed.


    When it hit, I ceased to exist as a cohesive being. My body shattered into fragments, each piece scattered across the pit floor. My consciousness wavered, dimming like a candle in a storm.


    This was the moment of truth. Either I would reform, or I would die.


    ra couldn''t contain herself any longer. "LIAM!" she screamed, her voice breaking with terror.


    The sound of my name anchored me. Pulled my awareness back from the brink. I focused on that single point of connection—ra''s voice, her concern for me.


    The fragments of my body began to glow. First dimly, then with increasing brightness. They lifted from the ground, drifting toward each other like maized dust.


    Pain beyond description apanied the reassembly. Every nerve ending reconnected, every sinew reattached, every bone reformed—but stronger now. Different. The lightning had transformed the very essence of what I was.


    ---


    "Did you hear someone calling Liam Knight''s name just now?" Glenn asked, turning to Sammy.


    Sammy frowned. "What? No. Why would anyone be calling for that loser?"


    "I swear I heard a girl''s voice..." Glenn continued, moving toward the edge of the pit.


    Wei grabbed his arm. "Don''t get too close. That lightning isn''t done yet."


    As if to punctuate his warning, the clouds pulsed with renewed energy. The final phase was beginning.


    ---


    My body had reformed, but the tribtion wasn''t finished. The clouds gathered for one final assault—the killing stroke meant to test if my new form was truly worthy.


    This bolt was pure white, concentrated destruction. It struck with the force of a mountain falling from the sky.


    I didn''t resist. I opened myself fully, epting the heavenly judgment. The lightning filled me, became me.


    For an instant, I was pure energy—boundless, formless, perfect.


    Then reality reasserted itself. The clouds dispersed. The pressure lifted. And I stood, whole again, steam rising from my renewed flesh.


    Every cell in my body hummed with power. My senses extended beyond normal limits—I could hear the heartbeats of everyone above, smell their sweat, feel their anticipation.


    I had done it. I was a Grandmaster.


    ra emerged from her hiding ce, tears streaming down her dirt-streaked face. "Liam? Are you... are you okay?"


    I flexed my fingers, watching as small arcs of electricity danced between them. My skin glowed with an inner light, and my muscles felt dense as steel.


    "Better than okay," I replied, my voice deeper and more resonant than before.


    Before I could say more, Glenn Talbot''s voice echoed down from above.


    "I''m telling you, I heard someone say Liam Knight''s name. And look—there''s something moving down there!"