“Haaahh… Haaahh… Haaah…”
No one knew how much time passed, especially Kael. For him, it was an eternity, a hellish eternity he could never forget.
Even now, he was lying on the hot and crusty floor of the Crucible, gasping for air, desperately trying to forget the agonizing experience he had just gone through.
He couldn’t sense his body, or anything around him for that matter. His head was cloudy. He felt… weak.
He felt like he couldn’t move.
And why wouldn’t he?
Right now, he was nothing more than a puddle of flesh. He had no bones, muscles, or blood.
Only skin. The rest of his body was still regenerating, but maybe it was because his cloudy mind couldn’t sense it, or maybe he was already used to this. Right now, Kael felt no pain.
His bones regenerated at a horrifying rate, and so did his muscles and blood. Once again, his body was reformed, and this time, it wasn’t broken again.
There was no reason to break it again.
Kael’s body had reached absolute perfection.
He was only lying on the ground, with his body twitching. However, even those slight twitches filled him with power.
Slowly, Kael moved, bringing his hands in front of his eyes as he then clenched his fists, feeling the power bursting through his body.
Unable to control himself, he decided to see his status first.
[Name: Kael Carter]
[Race: Human]
[Age: 22]
[Level: 20 -> 22] (He leveled up after learning Third Circle Spells he got from Elira, not inside the Crucible)
[CE: 114/4200]
[Talent: Genesis of the Ancients]
[Talent Rank: EX Rank]
[Strength: 77 -> 94]
[Agility: 78 -> 96]
[Speed: 75 -> 93]
[Stamina: 78 -> 100]
[Defense: 80 -> 103]
[Mana: 88 -> 114]
[Intelligence: 76 -> 79]
[Charisma: 75 -> 77]
…
“Holy…”
Kael couldn’t even curse. He was dumbfounded, unable to believe his eyes.
“I am… already as strong as a Sixth Stage Warrior…?”
He muttered.
Honestly, he wanted nothing more than to stand up and fight against these wolves again. After all, it had finally turned into a fair fight. But then,
Crack
His attention was grabbed by a sound.
He quickly turned in the direction the sound came from, and his eyes once again fell on Igni’s Egg.
“Igni!”
He stood up, instantly recalling what had happened. He read the information he couldn’t read before, and his eyes widened in absolute horror when he realized Igni was going through the same pain he did.
“IGNII!!”
He screamed as he appeared right in front of the egg, touching its surface that didn’t even feel hot now.
Crack
As if answering him, the crack widened, and suddenly, an arm covered with scales came out.
“Igni…”
Kael called out, lightly holding his Igni’s arm before giving him space needed to come out.
The hand broke the rest of the Eggshell as if freeing himself. Finally, as he made enough space for himself, little Igni came out.
No, this time, he was a not-so-little Igni.
He was now as tall as Kael, his body even wider and much stronger and more powerful than before.
His red scales shimmered like glowing embers. His wings and tail had grown larger as well. His amber eyes looked more mature, holding wisdom beyond his age.
Yes, little Igni had grown.
He was no longer a baby Dragon. He was now a Phase Two Primordial Dragon.
However, before Kael could even react to this transformation, the seemingly matured Dragon jumped on top of his Father, pushing him down to the ground and,
Lick
He licked his face with his big tongue.
“Father!”
He called out excitedly, his voice deeper than before but filled with the same child-like innocence as before.
“I am finally big enough to carry you! So you won’t need that bird at all!”
Igni spoke excitedly, clearly, he was still holding it in for poor Echo.
“Igni!”
Kael laughed, trying to protect himself from Igni’s constant licking, but against the now grown-up Igni, he was completely helpless.
“Hahaha!”
He could only laugh as Igni continued to lick and kiss him.
After a few minutes, Igni finally calmed down, and only then was Kael able to speak.
“Are you okay? Are you hurt? Do you want to rest? Should I take you to a Healer instead? Tell me, where does it hurt the most? Whe-“
The father asked a bunch of questions, but then,
“Father, I am fine. It was something I had to go through, and it wasn’t even that painful.”
“It… wasn’t…?”
Kael blinked.
Do Dragons not feel pain?
Or…
Was he just weak?
Kael began doubting himself, not knowing that Igni was only saying it to not worry him.
Yes, even the little dragon went through the same pain, if not greater. After all, unlike with Kael, whose body was only burnt and regrown, Igni’s body was enlarged every time it was reformed.
His flesh, bones, and muscles were all not just reformed—they were stretched. It was extremely agonizing, but little Igni remained strong.
“I am strong.”
Igni answered proudly.
“Hahaha. Of course, you are. You are the strongest.”
Kael smiled as he patted his son’s head proudly. Igni graciously accepted those pats as the big dragon purred, but then, as if he noticed something,
“Father got stronger too.”
He commented.
“I did.”
Kael smiled. Igni, however, narrowed his eyes even further, and then suddenly, with his now usable claw, he scratched Kael’s flesh.
“Tsss!”
Kael flinched in pain.
“Igni, what are yo-“
He questioned, but then, he noticed something.
His wound… it started healing.
And it wasn’t because of his passive ability <Cycle of Renewal>.
While <Cycle of Renewal> does accelerate his recovery rate, it wasn’t something that could be seen with the naked eye. Right now, however, Kael was literally seeing his torn flesh joining together as his blood returned to his body.
Within five seconds, his wound had healed.
“As I expected.”
Igni nodded with a satisfied look on his face.
“Igni…
What just happened?”
Kael questioned, somewhat surprised.
“Your body benefited from the Baptism of Eternal Flames.”
“Hmm? I did see something like that. So does this give me the power to regenerate?”
Kael questioned, and the Dragon nodded.
“Eternal Flames are created from the purest form of Fire, Primordial Fire.
They are the Flames that never die, and you inherited that property.”
“Are you saying that I will never die…?”
Kael muttered, half in disbelief.
He had just been in this world for 3 weeks, and he was already an immortal?
“No, of course not.”
Igni, however, quickly poured cold water onto his fantasies.
“Immortality is not something that can be achieved so easily.
You will still grow old, and your life will end when your time comes. However, killing you has become much harder now. As long as your brain and heart remain unharmed, your body can heal itself over time, returning you to your full strength.”
“So… I am like a Vampire now?
Do I need to be wary of the sun?”
“Huh?”
Igni frowned at Kael’s question, unable to understand what he meant.
“Nothing, nothing, ignore me. I was too excited.”
Kael quickly shook his head.
“Sometimes, I do not understand Father.”
“Well, you aren’t alone. Sometimes, I don’t understand myself either.”
Kael chuckled. Then, as if he recalled something,
“Does this mean your wounds will heal automatically as well?”
“No.”
Igni shook his head.
“My current Evolution does not give me that. I got something else instead.”
“What did you get?”
Kael questioned.
“Why don’t you see it for yourself?”
Igni questioned back in a playful tone, and at those words, Kael’s eyes turned golden.