Draven walked for three days. The world was quiet around him. He was moving north, following a faint golden line on the ground that only he could see. It was the System’s path leading him toward the Verdant Ring.He felt strong. His Body Refining stage made walking easy. His breaths were deep and steady. The five elements cycled inside him like a quiet hum of power.On the fourth day he reached the edge of the Ash Barrens. It was a dead grey wasteland.Someone was waiting for him.A man leaned against a rocky outcrop. He looked bored. He wore simple dark clothes. No fancy armor. No weapons. He looked like an ordinary person."Hey there" the man called in a friendly voice. "You look a little lost."Draven stopped. His instincts tightened. The man’s Aura was completely hidden. That was the first warning sign."I know where I am going" Draven said."Do you?" the man asked. He pushed off the rock and walked closer in a relaxed way. "That is the strange thing. People who think they know wh

Ten more days of travel brought Draven to the edge of a completely different world.The golden path ended at a sharp cliff. Below him was the Verdant Ring. It was a huge round valley filled with so much life that it looked like a green ocean. The trees were taller than the Citadel spire and their leaves formed one endless roof of green. Thick vines hung between them. The air rising from the valley was warm, wet and full of a strong Life Aura that made his own affinity react.The System appeared.[ Primary Objective: Reach the Verdant Ring. Complete. ][ Environment Analysis: Extremely high Life Aura detected. Cultivation speed for Life skills increased by five hundred percent. Recovery greatly enhanced. ][ Warning: Life forms are extremely diverse. Animals and plants will be aggressive, territorial and highly evolved. ][ New Primary Objective: Survive and cultivate in the Verdant Ring for thirty days. Unlock the next stage of the Five Element Path. ]Draven breathed in the rich air.

Draven stood at the border of the Verdant Ring and breathed in deeply. The air here was thick with the smell of wet soil, growing plants, and old decay. For thirty long days, this place had been everything to him. It had sheltered him. It had fought him. And it had taught him.Now he stood at the end of the forest. Behind him were towering trees and a world full of life. In front of him was a sudden change of scenery. The green forest stopped sharply, and ahead stretched a grey landscape of rough stone and rising ground. Far in the distance, the stone climbed into tall, sharp mountains that pierced the clouds.The Sky Sunder Peaks.The name alone felt heavy in his chest.Draven closed his eyes for a moment. He could feel the power inside his body humming like a quiet storm. The Five Element Fist art was no longer something he used. It had become the natural way his body moved. His Life Aura, now his strongest element, pulsed warmly inside him like a second heartbeat.Time for a check,

The whispers followed Draven up the mountain, carried by the wind. He knew his victory had made a loud statement. Any chance he had to stay unnoticed was now gone. Bor had been well known. He was solid and immovable, a Level 10 Awakener who guarded the First Gate. Breaking him so easily was the same as announcing that you were something far beyond normal.The golden System path glowed ahead of him, curving through a narrow canyon of sharp black rock. The air grew thinner with every step, and the Aura felt sharper and full of static. It made the hair on Draven’s arms rise.He turned a tight corner and stopped. His way was blocked again, but this time it was not a checkpoint.Three Awakeners stood side by side, blocking the path. They were not resting. Their feet were set and their bodies ready. They had been waiting for him. The man in the middle wore dark green and brown, and his Aura smelled like earth and metal. The woman on his left had hands that glowed like burning embers. The on

The door of twisted wood felt warm under Draven’s hand. It almost felt alive. A slow pulse beat beneath his palm like a living heart. When he pushed it open, he was not met with a normal room. Instead, a deep sensation washed over him and swallowed everything.He stood in a space made of bright green energy. There was no floor under him and no sky above him. Everything was glowing Life Aura. It was so thick that breathing felt like pulling warm liquid into his lungs. Floating in the center of this empty green place was one tiny seed.“Second Challenge,” Liana’s voice said. Her voice was softer here, like she respected this place. “This is the Seed of Striving. It holds a spark of raw and wild life force. Your task is not to fight. You must help it grow. You must use your Life affinity correctly. If you force it, it will die. If you rush, it will wither. You must understand what it needs.”Draven walked closer. The seed was small and fragile, with a thin white shell that almost glowed.