The Immortal Coward: Path of the Aegis Cauldron

Chapter 6: The Light Manipulation Technique

His skin felt like it was being roasted over a bonfire lit by a demon, yet strangely, the rhino leather armor he wore did not burn to ashes. Instead, the armor absorbed the exploding spiritual fire, creating thick plumes of purple smoke that blanketed the entire field.

"Ow, ow, ow! I am being toasted! I am really going to become a cultivator kebab if this keeps up!" Zarox screamed in panic, his eyes clamped shut. He rolled around on the ground, disregarding his dignity as a newly victorious sect disciple.

Suddenly, Master Vaelin appeared amidst the fog and smoke. The man landed gracefully, his white robes unblemished. With a single wave of his hand, he dispelled the spiritual fire with a wave of pure energy. "Get up, you foolish brat. You are being far too loud."

Zarox stopped his rolling and opened one eye. He saw Master Vaelin standing before him with a look that was hard to decipher, somewhere between irritation and being impressed. Zarox immediately scrambled to his feet, even though his legs still felt shaky from the weight of the armor, which was starting to heat up from the residual energy.

"Master! You came! I was almost turned into charred food! Who did this? Is this an assassination attempt? I demand justice, or at the very least, I want to transfer to a safer sect, maybe one that does not have enemies who enjoy blowing up their own disciples!" Zarox protested in a high-pitched voice.

Vaelin let out a long sigh, a rare sight indeed.

He pointed to the sky where the remains of the light needles were slowly fading into dust particles. "This is a Light Manipulation technique: Astral Needle Rain. Someone isn't just trying to kill you, Zarox. They are trying to test you. Or perhaps, they are attempting to lure out something hiding within you."

"Something? What? Hidden talent? Or maybe just some excess fat they want to use as medicine ingredients?" Zarox felt his chest, making sure the Aegis Cauldron was still tucked behind his armor.

"Follow me," Vaelin commanded curtly. He didn't wait for an answer, immediately turning and walking toward his private pavilion.

Zarox had no choice but to follow. As he walked, he kept grumbling about how unfair this cultivation world was. "Sect Master, do you know how expensive this armor was? If it breaks, can I claim insurance? I feel like the sect should be responsible for its students' safety. This is a very toxic work environment for my mental health."

Vaelin stopped right in front of a meditation room surrounded by blue energy seals. "Get in. You need to learn how to control the volatile energy in your body. I saw you use a nonsensical technique, but you have no control at all. If you keep this up, that cauldron, or your own body, will explode one day."

Zarox swallowed hard. "You know about the cauldron?"

"I am the Sect Master of Sky Peak. Nothing escapes my sight," Vaelin replied coldly. "Now, sit and focus. I will teach you the proper basics of Light Manipulation, not how to scream while rolling around on the ground."

Zarox sat cross-legged in the middle of the room, his hands trembling. Vaelin began to guide him, directing him on how to focus spiritual energy into his palms. However, instead of a subtle light, Zarox released an overflowing surge of energy. His hands glowed intensely, nearly blinding his eyes.

"Focus, Zarox! Do not let the energy overwhelm you!" Vaelin commanded sharply.

"I'm trying! But the energy feels like it wants to burst out all at once!" Zarox shrieked. He felt as though a massive dam inside him had just burst.

Zarox tried to modify the technique. He remembered how he had used the Aegis Cauldron to change the quality of objects. He imagined his energy not as a weapon, but as a shroud, an illusory shield that could make him disappear or, at the very least, make him look like an inanimate object so he wouldn't be a target.

"Don't do that!" Vaelin shouted, realizing what Zarox was planning.

But it was too late. Zarox slammed his hands onto the ground. BZZZZT!

Instead of an illusion, a massive surge of energy erupted, striking the light-absorbing crystals on the walls. The room shook violently. The wooden walls of the dormitory, which were part of the main structure of the student area, began to crack.

"Master, I think I just made a huge mistake!" Zarox panicked, trying to pull his energy back, but his power only surged more.

"Stop!" Vaelin tried to erect a protective barrier, but Zarox's energy was too wild and erratic. 

BOOM!

An explosion of pure light radiated from Zarox's room, obliterating the wooden walls in front of him and toppling the dormitory's support pillars. All the sleeping students woke up from the shock, which felt like an earthquake. Wood dust and tile fragments flew in every direction.

Zarox coughed in the middle of the destruction. He looked around. Half the dormitory was now leveled to the ground. He could see the furious faces of other students staring at him with pure rage from behind the ruins.

"Zarox! What have you done to our dorm?!" shouted Ayan, one of the most vocal outer disciples, while drawing his wooden sword.

"I... I was just practicing meditation?" Zarox replied in a weak voice, trying to give an awkward smile while covering the giant hole he had just made in the wall.

Sect Master Vaelin rubbed his temples, looking utterly frustrated. "It turns out you really are more dangerous than I imagined. You don't have energy control; you have destruction at your fingertips."

Zarox saw the students starting to surround him. Grog, who had appeared out of nowhere, was already holding a club ready to swing. Zarox knew that this time, he couldn't use the victim excuse. He turned toward Sect Master Vaelin, hoping the Master would defend him, but the man instead stepped back.

"Handle your own problems, Zarox. This is part of your training," Vaelin said before vanishing into the shadows.

"Wait, Master! Don't leave me!" Zarox cried out.

Grog stepped forward, his face full of resentment. "So you're really a troublemaker, aren't you? After wrecking the kitchen, now you destroy our dorm? Get ready to be beaten until you forget your own name!"

Zarox panicked. He quickly reached into his robes, looking for something he could use to escape. He felt the Aegis Cauldron and realized it was vibrating violently, as if it were storing the energy he had just released.

"Fine, you guys want to play? Then let's see who's left standing after this!" Zarox shouted, trying to mimic the speech style of a great cultivator, even though his legs were shaking uncontrollably. He held his cauldron high, and accidentally, the remaining light energy in the room was sucked into the cauldron, creating a blinding purple light that began to swirl into a small tornado in his palm.

"Zarox, what is that thing you're holding?!" Grog turned pale, his instincts as a veteran cultivator telling him that the object was far more dangerous than an ordinary cauldron.

"I don't know either!" Zarox answered honestly, while the energy vortex in his hand grew larger, ready to explode at any moment.

Suddenly, the remaining dormitory roof began to collapse due to the gravitational pull of the energy vortex, and at the same time, the sound of dozens of angry students' footsteps could be heard approaching the destroyed entrance. Zarox stared at the vortex in his hand, then at the approaching crowd. He realized he had no other choice. He had to release it, even though he knew the consequences would destroy more than just the dormitory.

He took a long breath, holding back his heartbeat that felt like it wanted to jump out, then prepared to swing his cauldron toward the floor. However, before he could move, a pale hand from the darkness caught his wrist from behind, stopping his movement just before the energy exploded.

"Don't be a fool," a familiar yet cold whisper sounded in his ear. "If you detonate that now, you won't just destroy the sect; you'll obliterate your own soul before you even get a chance to enjoy the immortality you seek."