The first thing Chen Ming felt was the warmth—not from a body, but from within his soul.
It pulsed like a heartbeat, steady and strong.
His eyes snapped open. The sanctuary's glow had changed—deeper, more resonant, as if reality itself had shifted overnight. He sat up slowly, the Balanceflame beneath him now swirling in distinct patterns, weaving around his legs like coiling serpents of gold and violet.
A system window flickered into his vision.
[SYSTEM UPDATE COMPLETE]
New Passive Unlocked:
🜂 Flame of Unity— When bonded lovers are present, physical stats +35%, recovery +50%.— Emotional resonance grants bonus skill effects.
New Active Skill:
🜂 Heartfire Surge— Amplifies spiritual power by drawing upon bonded affection.— Can only be used once per bonded connection per day.
Lanmei stirred beside him, her breath slow and even, cheek nestled against his bare chest. Ye Yue, to his other side, shifted with a frown, sensing the surge of new energy. Her celestial aura instinctively reacted—but then settled as she recognized it.
"You've grown again," she whispered, still half-asleep. "You're not just touching divine power now, Ming. You're shaping it."
He didn't answer right away. He couldn't. The power within him didn't just feel new—it felt ancient. Like something unlocked.
But the moment didn't last.
The sanctuary trembled—not with danger, but with summons.
A divine ripple moved through the air, and then the voice came, calm and cruel:
"Champion Chen Ming. The Trial Arena of Divine Flame now opens. Present yourself before the eyes of the Courts. Delay is failure."
They sat up together, the weight of divine formality cutting through the intimacy of the morning.
Lanmei glanced at him, calm despite the tension. "No more hiding, huh?"
"Not for any of us," Ye Yue added, already summoning her divine robes. "They'll want to see everything you've become… and judge it."
Chen stood slowly, gathering the clothing and armor he'd stored in his inventory—half battlewear, half ceremonial, lined in flame-kissed gold and crimson threads spun by his bonded lovers.
But as he donned it, a vision flickered again—brief, but sharp.
A masked goddess. Watching him from behind the veil of dimensions.
Lysaria.
"They will not understand your power. Not yet. But you will show them."
With one last look at Lanmei and Ye Yue—two pillars of his strength—Chen stepped into the summoning portal as the sanctuary dissolved around them.
The divine arena rose like a cathedral of flame and sky, with thousands of divine beings watching from above. Courts gathered—Flame, Storm, Moon, Obsidian, and more. And atop it all, the Matriarch of the Flame Court sat upon her throne, draped in fire.
Her voice boomed through the cosmos.
"Let the Tournament of Divine Breeding begin!"
A hush fell.
And Chen Ming… smiled.
He had come from nothing. But now, every god and goddess would learn:
The God of Yang had arrived.