Sunrise Alchemist, Ch 2: Absorption (Patreon)

The ancient formation that was supporting the recording shook. Then the spirit stones exploded into fragments that ripped past Verse and tore through the inner hall. Ribbons of wild energy lashed at the interior, sweeping across it from one side to the other as they carved gouges in the stone.

It took some time for it to fade.

Although he was standing next to the formation, none of the explosion threatened him. He coughed as he summoned a strong breeze and blew the crystalline dust away from his face.

The center of the hall was a crushed expanse of stone, and the ornate pillars supporting the cavern were riddled with cracks, as if they would collapse at any moment. It was a desolate scene.

The only thing remaining on the floor was the outline of the formation, but the grooves that had held the spirit stones were warped and the floor had shifted. The dragon who’d created the record had built it to destroy itself. If anyone without the right bloodline had approached it, it would have tried to take them with it. Since it was Verse, it had delivered the message before it self-destructed.

The recording helped to place the timeline for the hall, putting its closure around 50,000 years ago, which was more recent than he had thought.

“Well, that explains why the last hall was empty,” he said. “Everything there was taken away or destroyed. It looks like I’ll have to head south to find more information.”

The last hall had a different design and there were more marks of battles inside, but the inner hall had already collapsed when he found out. It was hard to tell if the same sort of record had been there. If so, it had been destroyed a long time ago.

This time, his luck was better.

There was a smile that tugged at his lips as he looked down at the dragon scale and drop of blood. The energy radiating from them was like an emerald fire warming his hands. Finding them made the trip worthwhile.

“Yes, you’ll have to head south eventually,” the shrine agreed, “but not yet. You can’t follow the trail like you are now. This record makes it obvious how dangerous it will be. You have no chance of avenging the dragons if an adult Netherblood Demon shows up. You’d be eaten like a snack.

“The best thing to do right now is to train more. After all the time that’s passed, a little more isn’t going to make a difference. Dragons are supposed to be wise, so let’s keep you alive to prove it. Once you have the ability, you can follow the trail.”

A sense of pride swelled up in protest, but Verse pushed it back down with a snort. He wanted to head south immediately and find out what happened to the dragons, or at least see if they’d left other records behind, but the time wasn’t right. The shrine was right. He wasn’t even strong by human standards, much less a dragon’s.

A long time had passed since the Elder War, but Memory had warned that enemies would look for him now that he was awake. This recording suggested he was the last of the Hearts not under their control.

If Verse wanted to get involved in that, he needed to be prepared to face the Netherblood Demons and Magma Giants, as well as whoever else was behind the attack.

He almost pitied the Magma Giants, since the demons had a grudge against them too. Their alliance had probably been short-lived.

There were other takeaways from the record here, but the most important one was that he needed to be cautious. This region was the old home of the Heart of War, and if the demons were still active here there was no way they’d let that power go. The demons weren’t the sort to give up something they had, nor to forget a grudge.

Memory was afraid of the Heart of War finding him, and he’d said that it had younger races serving it. If it was still around, that might include the Starfall Empire, which was the dominant power in the region. It wasn’t the thought he wanted to have, but it was one he couldn’t ignore.

He gave himself a stern shake as he pushed the thought aside for later. He didn’t have any intention at the moment to get involved in the war between the Hearts. It would be no different from committing suicide. Tracking down the history of the dragons was important, but he had to do it on his own timeline.

He gripped the scale tightly as he looked around one last time, but the only things left in the hall were the scale and the drop of emerald blood. Both were shining with a soft green light that ran across their surface like fire.

Thoughts flickered through Verse’s mind as he considered his options, and then he settled on a plan. Right now, he needed to absorb the bloodline energy in the scale and blood. It should help him break through to peak Essence Condensation. This hall was secure and would do as well as any place.

After that, the shrine was right. It was time to train his skills. The shrine had given him a complete training plan for his bloodline called the Nine Dragon Meridian Art, and it had extensive knowledge in alchemy, formations, and the celestial dao. If he could get a handle on those, his chances of survival would be much better.

He looked around the ruined hall and then shrugged. This place was as good as any to get started. A series of talismans flew out from his hand, creating a quick defensive formation around the area.

A moment later, he was seated in a meditation pose at the center of the hall where the scale had been. The bloodline energy was the strongest here, which made it the best place to cultivate. His hands rested on his knees with his palms turned up. The scale sat on his right hand and the drop of blood on his left.

There was a chance someone had seen him enter, so the sooner he was done, the better. For a human, absorbing this energy would have been life-threatening, but for him it was the simplest thing in the world.

Memory had given him a complete foundation when he awoke his bloodline and the shrine had gone a step further with a method to train it.

He started with the drop of blood, which was the most powerful of the two. With a gesture, the emerald stone floated into the air. A rumble built in his veins as he gathered his energy.

A moment later, his mouth opened as he let out a roar. A wave of invisible bloodline energy crashed against stone. Instantly, the crystallized exterior of the stone began to liquify.

Before long, there was only a glowing emerald droplet hanging there. It swirled in a shining sphere as a green and golden mist rose from it, creating miniature wisps of condensed spiritual energy like morning dew in a forest.

To a dragon, this droplet of blood wasn’t very large, but to him, it was the size of his fist. It had grown larger as it absorbed the exterior, which had been a crystallized form of the blood. If it had been a different type of blood, he would have eaten it and stripped the natural energy from it that way. That was one of the innate abilities all dragons had, even him in his human form, but this was dragon blood.

Instead, he made a complex seal with his hands and a word rumbled from his mouth in the dragon language, “Merge.” The drop shook and then shot toward his chest, where it disappeared into his heart. Thunder crashed through his veins as his heart beat, sending the blood to every part of his body.

A tracery of silver scales appeared on his skin and grew brighter, but it would take more than a drop of blood to rebuild a dragon body. Instead, most of the change was in his spirit.

As the power of the bloodline fused into his own, the thunderous power roared through his spirit and brought a new space into existence. It was almost like the blood droplet had created its own miniature world.

It felt like a spatial storage had suddenly opened up in his soul. The space inside was a sphere about ten feet across and it was filled with the same emerald golden mist that had been around the blood. It was dense with spiritual energy that tasted like Wood and Stone.

“That’s the Emerald Dragon Soul Space!” the shrine said with delight as it watched. “I wasn’t expecting you would open it yet. It’s one of the racial abilities of Emerald Dragons. Your elemental affinity allows you to create a separate soul space to foster the growth of special herbs and materials that will bolster your cultivation.

“In simple terms, you can stick an herb in there and it will absorb energy from you to grow more quickly. Its quality will improve too, but not past your own cultivation. As you get stronger, the size of the space will increase and you can store more. You can also use it as a unique spatial storage if you want, but it’s not big enough to hold that much. When you’re stronger, it will get bigger and can replace your other storage items.”

Verse’s eyes sparkled as he studied the soul space, and after a few minutes he nodded in approval. It would be very useful for his studies in alchemy if he had a place to grow his own herbs, even if it was small. One of an alchemist’s main problems was finding the right materials.

He’d heard about this soul space from the shrine before, and he knew it was one of the reasons the dragons’ alchemy had been so advanced. The elemental affinities of the race were perfect for the profession.

He didn’t spend too much longer studying the space, since there was still the scale to deal with it. It was glowing with emerald light like flames as it rested on his palm.

“For that one,” the shrine added, “once you absorb the energy in it, keep the scale on you. If anyone ever detects your bloodline, you can say it comes from that. Not that they should be able to detect anything from you with me here. I’ll do my best to hide your bloodline energy from anyone under the Divine Essence realm. That should be the peak powers in this world, except for any adult Kin who might be around.”

Verse nodded in thanks. There were seven basic realms of power in the world and Divine Essence was the highest. Qi Gathering was the first and Essence Condensation was the second. The Aligned realm was the third. Each of them came with massive increases in power.

For the shrine to be able to block detection from everyone except the Divine Essence realm showed just how powerful its original owner had been. Even so, it had to be careful with its energy, since it was hard for it to gather more.

He looked down at the scale in his hand, and then he raised it to his mouth. Bloodline energy roared around his body as a halo of crimson and golden flames surrounded him. Each flame burned like the sunset. The flames around the scale rose higher in response, like they were rejoicing.

With a deep breath, he inhaled.

A wave of energy flowed off the scale toward him. Part of it merged into the flames around him and part of it fused into his lungs. Sharp jabs filled his chest as miniature explosions of energy followed. When he let out his breath again, tiny emerald flames left his tongue.

He breathed in again, drawing away about half of the energy from the scale, and then two more times in quick succession until the scale was dim.

His lungs were awash in a flood of emerald fire, and he closed his eyes as he let the energy begin the transformation. Inside his body, his lungs were changing and becoming more dragon-like. Their structure grew stronger and the inner layers began to radiate with emerald flame that gathered in a thousand sparks.

Air that he breathed in was like a bellows fueling the flame, making it surge from one side to the other. With each movement, it felt like he’d breathed in a scalding heat, but none of it was dangerous to him.

It didn’t take long before the emerald flame from the scale fully merged with his lungs, and when it did, he opened his eyes again and let out a breath. This time, a wave of fire followed, igniting the air as it turned into a small stream of emerald flame.

“Emerald Flame,” the shrine said in approval. “As expected. One of the basic innate abilities of your race. Like the soul space, it’s small and you won’t be able to breathe out much of it yet, but it is the foundation for dragon fire, as well as your alchemy. It’s a Wood-aligned fire, which has all sorts of unique effects for an alchemy cauldron. You’ll need it.”

Verse breathed in, and then let out another breath that was infused with fire. As the emerald wave spread outward, he chuckled and then let it dissipate. He knew he could summon it by itself too, rather than breathing it out, but it was fun

Compared to his Dao of the Crimson Sunset, which was what gave rise to the crimson-gold flames all around him, this was a much smaller flame, but it had good potential.

The entire process of absorbing the bloodline energy only took about thirty minutes. When it was done, he clasped his hands and gave a respectful bow to the ancient hall around him. Then he dusted off his robe as he stood up.

He could study the two abilities in more detail later. Right now, he needed to leave here. It wouldn’t be good to get caught inside. As he considered his next steps, he pulled two items out of his spatial bracelet.

One was a golden signet ring with a deep emblem carved on the front and the other was an ornate leather scroll that had several profound seals stamped onto it. Each of them had great meaning.

The signet ring had once belonged to Rekan, one of the two Azurewind Guards who had helped him at Whitestone. The man had been loyal to the end, and one of the last things he’d done was to give this seal to him, telling him to take it and join the Azurewind Guard in his place. He had been trying to give him a way out, since he knew Whitestone was a dead end.

The Azurewind Guard was a large organization with a lot of power, and by joining it, he would be able to use its authority to protect himself from politics and other issues, like a giant umbrella. It was a sort of unofficial army for the empire, one that was a more elite version of the Adventurer’s Guild. When there were issues that the guild couldn’t solve, it called in the Azurewind Guard to help.

The other item was the deed to the barony that his adopted father and the former City Lord of Whitestone, Lord Jao, had passed to him, along with the title. It had been one of his last acts before he died.

The title was also a path out of Whitestone, but it had been a way of passing down his heritage and leaving Verse with something to remember him by. He had felt bound by his sense of duty and he wanted Verse to live a freer life than he had, to explore the world and taste all the flavors.

To drink the tea dry.

Their relationship hadn’t started out as father and son. Lord Jao had tried to reward him for his help by taking him as a squire and passing down the Seal of the Imperial Knights. That had turned into a stronger connection over time.

The Barony of Elos was little more than a village on a hill and it was a long way to the south, but it wasn’t as far away as the dragon lairs. The title as baron also gave him a tiny amount of status in the empire.

Each of the items was a possible path, but they weren’t mutually exclusive. He could join the Azurewind Guard and then head to the south. He tapped his finger on the side of the scroll as he thought. Then he tucked the scroll back away and looked at the signet ring.

“We’re not too far from Boreas now,” he said as he made a decision. “It’s the capital of this province, so it should have a station for the Azurewind Guards. Let’s go join up with them and take some missions. It will be a good cover for exploring the area. I can gather resources and train, and then head south when I’m ready.”

And maybe there would be some good tea or wine to drink in memory of Lord Jao and Rekan. He would raise a toast to both of them.

“This province is well known for alchemy ingredients, which is why we came this way,” the shrine agreed. “Let’s go see what they have. Maybe you’ll find something to store in your soul space, or at least some high-grade spirit crystals. If you can get enough of those to eat, it’ll speed up your growth. Beast cores at the Aligned realm would be good too. Dragons need to eat to grow and beast cores are one of the best supplements.”

Verse nodded as he gave the hall a last look. Then he turned and headed for the entrance. With Rekan’s signet and his own position as an Imperial Knight, it shouldn’t be too difficult to join the Azurewind Guard.

“Before you leave, take a look at what I’ve created to track your training,” the shrine said, interrupting his thoughts. “This should help to keep track of your progress and make sure you don’t forget anything. It’s your training record.”

As Verse turned his attention to the shrine, a glowing green bamboo scroll appeared in his vision. It was an illusion, which was apparent from how translucent it was, but at the same time, it felt very real. He could sense a strong connection between the scroll and the celestial shrine, but it also felt like him.

He wasn’t expecting to see an illusory scroll, so it made him pause. Then the scroll unfurled. Written across it in elegant script was information about him that the shrine had recorded, as well as his current level in all of his main arts.

It had everything from his innate physiques to his bloodline and martial techniques, even ones he hadn’t used in a while. The shrine had been busy.

Verse.

Race: Emerald Dragon (Human Form).

Titles: Knight of the Crimson Sunset, Baron of Elos, Descendant of Memory, Child of the Elder Race, Disciple of the Seven Sages Sect.

Bloodline Art: Nine Dragon Meridian Art. Progress: First Meridian: First Dragon Breathing (Initial Stage).

Cultivation Realm: Essence Condensation (Late).

Cultivation Art: The Jade Scripture.

Dao Paths:

Sun (Body Cultivation): Related Daos: Crimson Sunset, Endless Dawn.

Jade (Spiritual Cultivation): Related Daos: Fire, Water, Stone, Life, Wind.

Innate Abilities:

Emerald Dragon Bloodline: Nine Dragon Physique, Dragon Runic Language, Emerald Dragon Soul Space, Emerald Flame.

Undaunted Sun Physique: Evolved from the combination of the Crimson Sunset Body and Endless Dawn Body.

The Jade Scripture: Jade Essence, Jade Slow Healing, Jade Essence Inspection, Spiritual Sense: 500 meters.

Dao Attunements:

Crimson Sunset: Tier 2, Heart of the Dao.

Endless Dawn: Tier 2, Heart of the Dao

Fire: Tier 1, Touch of the Dao.

Water: Tier 1, Touch of the Dao.

Spiritual Arts:

Dusk to Dawn.

Solar Cycle.

Talisman Soul Inscription.

Manifest: Formation Disk.

Summon: Nine Revolutions Shrine.

Martial Techniques:

Vitality of Light (Healing Technique).

Formless Body.

Crimson Sunset Sword Technique: Sunset Edge, Sunset Strike, Sunset Pillar, Sunset Radiance, Piercing Rain, Sunset Wave.

Ice Dragon’s Scales (Shield Technique)

Lightning Summoning Wings of Flight.

Six Transformations of the Eagle: Wind Blade, Eagle’s Cry, Eagle’s Claw.

Stone Fist of Legend: Stone Body.

Ten Waves of the Tide: Folded Blade Strike, Pressure Wave.

“This is just the basic information about you,” the shrine said as it noticed he’d reached the end of the scroll. “I can add more to it as needed. This type of record was very common in my time. We tried to maximize training as much as possible and you can’t do that without a good record.”

Verse looked over the scroll and nodded. It looked like it would be useful and an easy way to track his progress. Then he pushed the information to the back of his mind. He’d study it more later.

As he did, the image furled itself back up and disappeared, but he knew it could return whenever he wanted it. The shrine was taking its job as his mentor seriously.

“Let’s head to Boreas,” he said as he headed toward the tunnel that led out of the mountain. “It’s as good a place as any to start training.”