by Lupine King
But this was just the start. His bones began to grind themselves to dust and his muscles begun to rip themselves into confetti. The internal organs liquefied and their contents evaporated. All his hair disappeared and his skin turned even more elastic and translucent. Soon, he was nothing but a bag of pulp with two distinct pools of energy hanging in a golden egg.
This done, the ancient presence let his qi flow outwards again. Then, his arcane energy followed. The two forces mixed with the yolk causing it to glow brightly. The essence that formed the egg albumin also chose this moment to flow into it as well.
Meanwhile, the presence was now in the aperture that housed Valerian's arcane pool, looking around like a tourist. It took note of the congealed arcane energy that showed that Valerian was in the energy condensation stage and passed on without another glance. Its true interest was in the two brightly glowing orbs of essence that hung over the pool.
One was steel grey and the other a light cyan. It observed them as if pondering on whether to break them down too but reconsidered. They would remain for now. Instead, it turned its attention back to Valerian, watching as every single cell was saturated with the essence. It was only when they could not absorb any more energy that it took action.
Like a potter, that ancient presence began moulding the mix of essence, qi, arcane energy and blood back into Valerian's body. The bones formed first. They were pearly and strong. Far stronger than Valerian's first set. Titanossis or titan's bone, one of the precious essence imbued metals in the cavern, was called such because of its hardness and toughness but it was definitely weaker than Valerian's new skeleton. There was something strange about them though. They were hollowed, possessing large cavities like those of a bird.
This did not compromise their sturdiness but it did make them a lot lighter than they should be. They were barely any heavier than a normal set of human bones. As for the marrow, it was pure and possessed a frightening vitality. The bones had barely even formed and they were already producing blood.
The blood was a bright crimson fluid that carried that vital essence and life force through the fast appearing flesh. The energy it carried was shocking to the extreme and flowing nearly twice as fast as it should. This would allow it to supply nigh endless amounts of energy and essence to his organs and muscles as well as replenish cells and heal his body better. His muscle fibres were no different. They grouped themselves and attached themselves to his bones to create a physique that was multiple times better than it was before. His organs came in; better, more efficient and more purposed for their respective tasks and his skin was nearly four times tougher and resilient.
Valerian Steelborn's entire physical self was recreated. A healthier, superior, enhanced self. Best of all, all of those old internal wounds his flailing attempts at cultivation had caused were cured. All of the impurities and issues that had accumulated in his body from abusing essence imbued substances had been removed from his body. These things had all brought down the grade of his body and were just lying in wait to crop up down the line and cause even more issues in the future. However, thanks to the machinations of the ancient entity they would no longer be a problem.
His body fixed. The ancient will began working on his cultivation. Previously, Valerian's tellurian cultivation could not even be called that. His arcane one was progressing but his tellurian one was hopeless. That was why the entity had so much contempt when it examined him. There was trash and beneath that there was Valerian.
Nonetheless, it was changing that. His newly formed body was draining any essence fed to it like it was dying of thirst. His meridians had changed from pipes to canals. Their walls were thick and strong. They only required a prompt from the ancient deity to open up. The highways were now open for use and his qi did not waste any time. It travelled through the opened routes and then as if experimenting moved through his body and then diffused outwards and then back in. Satisfied it went back into his qi space and began preparing to form a core.
His arcane energy was the same. It run throughout his form and transformed it back into a perfect arcane vessel. The former one had ended up being degraded a bit by his efforts at cultivating his qi but now it was perfect again. Done. It poured out of his body and then was slowly reabsorbed.
It only took ten minutes for Valerian's entire body to be remodelled. His physique could now be compared to those legendary physiques. It was superior to his old one in every way. However, he remained floating in the egg. There was still a lot of essence left and the process would only end when he had absorbed it all.
In fact, it was already entering his energy pools and focusing on his shoulder blades in particular for some reason.
Seeing this, the ancient will gave a pleased smile. Despite this, it worried a little. It had just done a lot for Valerian. Probably, more than it should have but even that would not ensure success and safety. It thought back to Valerian's former body.
So much of that could have been avoided. Woefully, from what it gleaned from his memories, the boy was alone with no one to guide him. No access to the teachings or arts. None of the protections, resources or aid that he should have as part of his legacy. It was beyond regrettable but it happened. He was lucky he had discovered him. But this was already past the acceptable limit of what was permissible.
The rest would depend on him and his efforts. With any luck, he would make it. If not, he would fall like some of his ancestors. All he could do was give him the foundation required to aspire to the heavens. That was the most a father could do.
It faded away slowly, keeping its hold over him till the last second as if reluctant to let go. Too many of his kind had perished on this world. The boy had greatness in him along with a strong drive and an even stronger will. Now, he had a nigh peerless foundation. It just hoped it would be enough.
Strive for the heavens hatchling. Your family awaits you.
THIRTY-TWO
The Awakened Legacy
VALERIAN WOKE UP SUBMERGED in fluid. His eyes were large and greatly adapted to the depth and he breathed easily despite being underwater. But wait ... he was moving. It took a while before he realised he was not the one moving. Well, he was and he was not.
He was not in control of his body. He was just a passenger. Also, this was not his body. It felt natural and suited to him but he knew instinctively that he was not a fish or whatever this was. He reassessed himself and ... confirmed this.
He was a giant fish, a massive Ocean Lord that was to whales what they were to tuna. Stretching at least thirty-two kilometres long, he was surprised to discover that he was an actual fish and not a whale of some sort. His scales were diamond hard and his teeth were like sabres yet in spite of his size he was lightning quick in the water. What fish could be this big?
The fish continued on his merry way, living his life, Valerian along for the ride. He roamed the endless oceans without opposition. Calling him an Ocean Lord had not been a mistake. He ruled the waters. There was no creature that would dare stand in his way or contest his might. The supposedly mighty dragons scurried out of his path knowing that should he be hungry, they would become snacks.
Power, wealth, influence, territory. He lacked nothing but still, he was not happy. He felt limited by the waters, restrained somehow by their depths. The oceans only went so deep and so far before you met rocky earth. Sadly, he could never leave. Not without dying.
Oh, how he envied the birds. He could see them from his place in the waters traversing the skies. The skies were not as limited as the waters. They did not share their space with the earth and they had no upper limit. Beyond them were the heavens and beyond that the aether, the celestial domain and finally, the void that held up the stars.
The space above was limitless and he dreamed of it even in his waking moments. As the years went by, he grew even larger and more powerful. He moved through the waters putting down dragon emperors and remaining the uncontested sovereign of the waters. There was no place in the oceans he did no
t know. He had swum their length and breadth and knew them like the spines in his fins.
He began spending even more and more time looking out of the waters at the skies above. Wishing that he too could journey through them. Then one day he asked himself.
Why not? Why can't I?
Because he was a fish and sadly, not the flying kind. The oceans were his domain and he could have nothing else. Growing depressed, he begun to feel stifled in his own territory. The waters that he had swum through joyfully in his youth no longer held their wonder. His kingdom was turning into a prison.
THE SOVEREIGN OF THE waters tried to forget the heavens and be content with the depths and failed. He was lonely. Being the best had that effect. He had no equals and being a unique, divine creature of the oceans meant that there were no others his kind.
Then one day, he was passing by and saw a carp undergoing that transformation to become a dragon. He floated there, awestruck and experiencing an epiphany. This was a transformation he had seen many times but he had never truly understood its significance.
A carp was a pitiful creature by his standards. He did not even spare them a glance when he went by. Every beast ate them, even daemons did when there was nothing else to eat. Dragons were different. They were delicious! They were also mighty daemons with incredible innate abilities. Many were divine like himself.
The two creatures had no actual relation and were probably more different than night and day. Carp were fish and dragons were in some sense, divine serpents. And yet ... carps became dragons. Two completely dissimilar beasts. The carp could accumulate the power, the wisdom and the will and become something so great and powerful. It could become a different daemon.
‘Why can't I?' he asked himself.
This sparked a fierce ambition in the ocean sovereign's heart and he began to prepare himself for the change of a lifetime. Success would mean the achievement of all his dreams and failure would mean death but he cared not.
The division between the skies and the waters was perhaps far greater than that between the heavens and the earth. There was a system in place for earthly creatures to reach the heavens. There was a precedent. There was none for the oceans. At least, not in the way that he wanted. And the great fish was not limiting himself to the sky. He aspired to the heavens and everything beyond them.
What stood in his way was the firmament. Forget the dragon gate! The firmament was what truly separated the waters below and the waters above. What he wished for was not an ascension per se but a transformation from ocean dweller to sky dweller. All the odds were against him and he knew it, but he did not let that stop him.
THE WORLD ITSELF SHOOK when he rose from the waters and crossed the firmament. The heavens, the earth and the oceans stood witness as the impossible became reality. Fate itself was overturned as with sheer power and will alone, the great and divine Sovereign of the waters broke through and changed its own innate nature.
Kun became Peng. The former sovereign soared into the heavens, a new daemon.
His scales became feathers, not losing their hardness but becoming new, glossy and golden. His tail lost its gristle and turned into a waterfall of long beautiful feathers. His fins transformed, becoming two enormous golden wings that shadowed the waters below. Two developed into feet retaining the scales but growing four massive toes and impossibly sharp talons. His preternatural teeth dissolved and covered his mouth, becoming a glorious beak.
The transformation was complete. The Underwater Sovereign, the Great Kun, was no more. In its place was the Golden-Winged Peng. A divine daemon which flew off, eager to explore its new world.
Alas, not everyone was happy with the birth of a new Sky Lord. There were many that were affronted with his transformation. There were others that wished to devour him and take whatever essence had allowed him to achieve his impossible feat. And others still rightly recognised that there was a new contender.
Curiously, the Peng was happy at this attention. He welcomed all challengers. There had been a serious deficiency of action in his life. In his former kingdom, there had been no one stupid enough to dare act disrespectfully towards him. The mighty dragon kings and emperors and all the other Ocean Lords trembled in his wake. Here, things were different.
There were more varieties of daemons. Kinds he had never encountered before. Dragons he had never eaten before. Horde Lordes he had never fought with. That is not to say that he defeated everyone who came his way. But even the feeling of loss was a novelty. It gave him reason to improve, forced him to hone his new abilities and offered him adventures he had never had had in the waters.
He had been proved right. The heavens were infinite and now he could even travel the land. There were enemies to be made, others to befriend, delicacies to sample and battles to be fought. All in all, the Peng lived a life that fulfilled his dreams and more.
As the Golden-winged Peng, he never stopped soaring. First was the ascension to godhood and then was him taking his place as a Monarch of the heavens. What's more, he knew his journey would never end. Perched on an exalted cloud in his domain, he could look down past the celestial bodies at the worlds. He could look out at infinite cosmos and best of all, beside him was his family, his flock. He was at peace.
The heavens were endless. All were free to aspire to whatever lofty heights they dreamt off. This was something he strove to teach all who looked up to him. Freedom did exist! Seize power! Gather will! Do not relent and the impossible will not remain so for you!
WITH A START, VALERIAN returned to his body. For a moment, he was unsure of where he was, who he was. Just a second ago, he had been a true god, a divine being, a Golden-winged Peng ... a PENG! His mind swam with this information, with the visions and things he had just experienced.
This was not like it had been with Gleamscales. Then, he had retained a sense of self. He and the dragon were two different entities. With the KunPeng, he had lived as it. He had been the KunPeng and the KunPeng had been him.
It was all so confusing. He had seen things. Witnessed unimaginable events. He may not have experienced the KunPeng's entire life but he did go through a portion of some of its significant memories. The incident did not leave him shaken, but with a strange feeling of pride and loss. There was also a yearning for the sky. To soar into the heavens until he reached his ancestor's domain.
That last bit stuck in his mind. ‘His ancestor's domain'.
He finally knew what that ancient, divine presence was. He now understood why it had felt so familiar, so paternal. Why he had felt wrong and guilty when he lashed out at it. Why he had felt pride when it approved of him. Why he felt shame when it looked at his body with contempt.
The ancient entity was the true Golden Winged Peng. It was his Ancestor. The realisation was a shocker. His grandfather had always speculated that his mother's legacy was a high ranked one but this ... this went beyond anything that anyone could have suspected. Who would have thought that he would be the descendant of a Primordial Divinity?
Epiphany over, Valerian tried to open his eyes and get up but found he could not. He was curled into a ball, trapped within unfamiliar spherical walls and covered in liquefied essence. There was not even room to move.
He wanted to break free but an inexplicable instinct told him to wait. He knew he should not let the remaining essence go to waste. He should absorb that first and then force his way out. Getting ready to do so he found that he was already doing that unconsciously.
Quickly, he directed his gaze inward. There were two streams of energy roving through his body. Somehow, the Manifold Elemental Incarnations was active without his conscious will. Then, there was his qi. It was moving as well. He could feel it moving in a mysterious circuit through his body. As someone whose qi had never responded in such a manner, the feeling was alien to him.
The two forces were active in his body, somehow moving in tandem. One an azure blue, the other a bright gold. They were conducted through his body side by side, twin energies from
the same source that worked together to improve themselves and improve him and his cultivation.
Given how entranced Valerian was by the sight he could be forgiven for not immediately noticing what was going on but once he did he burst into joyful laughter accompanied by tears. Somehow, he did not know how it was possible but he was dual cultivating.
Previously, he had to switch between arcane cultivation and qi cultivation but presently he was doing both at the same time. He no longer had to worry about time constraints or that he would fall behind in one or the other. He applied some focus and was delighted to see them respond. The energy streams grew more active and sped up as they went through their energy circuits.
The essence around him was quickly sucked in, splitting up to join the two energy streams and swiftly being refined into the respective forces. Valerian could not be happier. Today was a day of impossible things but he had certainly never dreamed of this. Keeping his focus, he made sure to memorise the feelings that came with his new fused method and their route. He could not afford to forget this method. What would he do then?
A thought came to him and he dived into his mindscape. The human body possessed three apertures or dantian as some of the eastern lands called them. The first, the Naval Aperture, lay behind the navel and served as the storage place for qi and physical energy. The second, the Heart Aperture, overlaid the heart and stored spiritual or arcane energy. The last was the Mind Aperture which was a space for mental or psychic energy between the eyebrows.