"I must hold on!"
Ery clenched his fists, channeling every ounce of his focus and willpower. He could feel the weight of the entire arena pressing upon him, the judging eyes of thousands, the turbulent forces of alchemy at war with his own essence. Gritting his teeth, he reinforced the concoction before him, pouring his spirit energy into it in a desperate attempt to stabilize the volatile mixture. Beads of sweat ford on his brow, trickling down as exhaustion gnawed at the edges of his consciousness. His energy was waning, the burden of maintaining control over the pill threatening to break him.
The artificial being, VIA, projected its cold, analytical feedback into his mind.
[78% integration]
[Warning, process interrupted]
The instability worsened. The flas roared hungrily, threatening to consu everything. Across from him, Baldoni, who had been assisting him, was visibly drained. His hands trembled as he struggled to maintain control over his half of the concoction.
Having already consud a few stamina-replenishing pills, Baldoni reached deep into his reserves, summoning the power of the cosmos in one final desperate bid to stabilize his side of the process. However, the intense heat radiating from the cauldron only drained him further, pushing him closer to collapse.
Ery's sharp instincts told him that Baldoni would soon be more of a liability than a help. The excess energy he released was unstable, disrupting the fragile equilibrium. If he lost control now, it would all be for nothing.
Without hesitation, Ery activated his [Twilight Transformation]. A surge of power coursed through his veins as silver fur sprouted across his skin. Ancient runes etched themselves upon his flesh, glowing faintly with primordial energy.
His physique beca sturdier, his muscles reinforced by the formidable endurance of the Twilight Wolf. More importantly, his innate magic resistance increased exponentially, allowing him to withstand the unbearable pressure surrounding them.
Gasps rippled through the spectators.
"The beast-man alchemist!" soone murmured in astonishnt.
"No... Look at the runes! Is he also from the fey clan!?"
Speculation ran rampant through the audience. The revelation of his transformation only fueled their curiosity, making sense of his incredible resilience and seemingly boundless power.
But Ery ignored them all. His entire focus was on the swirling, semi-ford pill within the cauldron. The minutes ticked by in agonizing slowness. Every motion, every breath, had to be precise. One mistake and the entire concoction would unravel.
[84% integration]
[88% integration]
VIA's artificial voice echoed in his mind, reporting steady progress. Ery gritted his teeth. Less than half an hour remained. If the tribulation lightning forming above was any indication, he was on the brink of creating sothing extraordinary—a pill approaching Tier 9 in quality. The sky above twisted and darkened, responding to the near-divine energy emanating from his concoction.
Then, disaster struck.
From across the arena, Ada Velace—the fad "Rose of Aether"—entered her final stage. The dozen vials arranged ticulously around her suddenly shattered in unison, releasing an explosion of mist and raw elental power. A frigid gust tore through the arena, threatening to freeze everything in its path. The atmosphere twisted violently as the eight towering pillars humd to life, channeling the boundless energy skyward.
Above her, another tribulation ford. But unlike the fire-based destruction brewing above Ery, this one radiated an overwhelming cold.
A streak of deep purple lightning crackled in the heavens. The crowd erupted in astonishnt.
"Another one! She's done it! Another Tier 9 masterpiece!"
The arena was now the epicenter of two clashing elental forces. One tribulation cloud surged with fire, and the other roared with ice. And at their center—caught in the middle of the storm—was Ery.
His own tribulation cloud shuddered under the weight of these opposing forces. It began to shrink, squeezed between the overwhelming pressure of two perfected masterpieces. The sudden instability wreaked havoc on his process.
[68% integration]
[62% integration]
[Warning, target is collapsing]
A sinking feeling settled in the pit of Ery's stomach. If things continued like this, his concoction would be obliterated. All his effort—wasted. The spectators began murmuring among themselves, doubting his chances. Even his daughter, Shinta, gripped the railing in alarm. She could see it as clearly as everyone else.
Ery was in serious trouble.
Baldoni, now on his knees, panted heavily. His voice barely carried over the storm of energy. "Just salvage what you can! Make sothing—anything!"
But his words fell on deaf ears. Ery was in a trance.
His mind raced, desperately searching for a way to survive the overwhelming forces bearing down on him. The fire was too intense, the cold too absolute. He couldn't overpower them, but perhaps—just perhaps—he didn't need to.
He received a sudden enlightennt... A mory surfaced.
He was a child again, wandering the mystical forests of his ho, marveling at the balance of nature. Life and death intertwined, warmth and cold coexisting in perfect harmony. That peaceful understanding was shattered by another mory—the brutal death of his father, a tragedy that drove him to the path of power. Happiness and sorrow. Creation and destruction.
Then, another vision—the trials within the Heaven and Earth scales. He spent days locked in the trials, mastering the opposing forces, walking the razor's edge between two extres.
And now, here he was—at the center of chaos itself.
Sothing within him clicked.
His soul ignited with newfound enlightennt.
The Dao divine technique, its final stage, the last piece of the puzzle that had eluded him for years, was suddenly within his grasp.
The Dao of Heaven and Earth was born.
Ery stretched out his hands. He no longer resisted the opposing elents. Instead, he embraced them. He beca the conduit, the bridge between two clashing worlds. The fire that threatened to consu him was cooled by the ice. The ice that sought to freeze him was tempered by the fire.
A perfect balance.
The tribulation clouds roared. The heavens trembled. The energy around him coalesced into a radiant vortex, swirling with fire and ice in perfect unison.
Then, with a final, decisive motion—Ery sealed the concoction.
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