Chapter 5

Kai's memory suddenly glimpsed back to when he and Sydney were children.

****

"What are you doing?"

A cute little girl with light blue hair that reached the back of her dress and large bright and warm blue eyes was curiously looking up toward an 8-year-old boy who was moving his small body from pillar to pillar with great skill and speed, she watched him dodge many balls of fire that shot at him coming from a small dragon-like beast and clenched the hem of her dress when he almost got struck.

The 8-year-old boy had numerous beads of sweat coming down his face, he was concentrated in absolute tranquility as he tried to not get burnt by the flaming balls of fire coming his way, he regained his balance on the small surface area after almost getting hit off the pillar and spoke.

"Enough!"

Kai ordered the baby dragon who huffed and puffed out of its nostrils, apparently, the beast was mad it couldn't hit him no matter how hard it tried to, it seemed to understand his words and stopped its attacks.

Kai exhaled in relief and turned towards Sydney who was curiously watching him, he jumped down the massive twenty-foot pillar that was erected from the ground with Earth Qi and told her.

"I'm training so my Father will take me with him to search for Killian, he says I'm not powerful enough, he dares say that even when I am a 6th level Martial Intermediary" Kai didn't look happy as he scoffed.

Sydney opened her little mouth in a cute o shape when she heard him say his cultivation level, she was a 4th level Martial Intermediary herself, and her parents and clan constantly praised her achievements. Kai was two levels higher and they were of similar age which made her admire him even more.

Kai smiled proudly at her reaction and said

"Want to train with me? I will help you become powerful like me."

Sydney quickly nodded her delicate head up and down, but then she blushed in embarrassment.

"I-I don't think I can do what you were just doing."

Kai looked down at her petite and dainty figure and nodded in agreement.

"Just watch and learn!"

This continued for the next few weeks every single day, Kai would train while Sydney learned and watched.

Today was the day Kai's father was supposed to search for Kai's brother, Killian, who had mysteriously disappeared about a year ago.

Sydney arrived at the Celestial Eye Clan's Palace and went looking for Kai like it was any other day.

Sydney would occasionally hear screams coming from within the Ximen Family's Main Hall of the Celestial Eye Clan's Palace whenever she went to visit Kai.

This day in particular the yelling was much louder than ever, her curiousness got the best of her as she put her ear against the closed door into the room she heard the arguing coming from.

What she heard made her surprised, she could vaguely tell the voices seemed to be Kai's parents.

A woman could be heard crying as she yelled at a man, something about how he will disappear too and to not drag their youngest son into this, the man didn't reply before saying he won't and that he will bring their eldest son back, he said those words with such conviction in an extremely deep and profound voice that was able to rumble one's soul, Sydney heard footsteps like the man who spoke was walking out of the room and started running away toward the training grounds, afraid to get caught for peeping on them.

Before she left she was able to hear the beautiful women's voice getting mad and yelling at the man "If you don't return, I won't forgive you!"

Sydney's heart shook at that statement as she made her way through the massive Celestial Eye Clan's Palace corridors until she made it to the training room she and Kai always met in. She ordered the guards standing outside to open the wide and tall gates and walked inside to a desolate room with a somber atmosphere.

She wondered where Kai was since he was always here training, it wasn't like him to miss a day.

She went outside to ask the guards where their young master was, they told her they didn't know and that he never came here today.

Sydney thought he would most likely be in his room and walked toward the Asura Palace Garden until she finally made it to Kai's bedroom, she had a deep foreboding feeling in her heart as she went to the gate of his bedroom and knocked on it.

Her heart was beating violently as she awaited for Kai to open the door and greet her, everything was so off today which made her feel like something horrible happened, she was met with no response and couldn't wait for any longer, she decided to push open the gates to his bedroom and her heart dropped at the scene she saw inside.

The massive bed was broken, the furniture was decimated, the palace floor had many cracks and had a huge crater in the middle of the room, the entire bedroom was a complete and utter mess and that wasn't the worst part.

Inside the crater, amongst all the mess, laid a boy, only 8-years of age.

The boy was letting out feeble breaths with blood covering his entire body, leaking from his seven orifices, he looked to be dead or almost if he wasn't already.

"KAI!"

Sydney cried out, she rushed toward him with tears falling out of her once vibrant blue eyes.

She quickly put her small and dainty hands on his chest, her fingers constantly flickered with an azure light as she tried activating her special healing technique she learned just a few months ago, but it only activated for a few seconds before halting entirely.

The little Sydney had tears falling out of her large blue eyes, she was crying so much her long light blue hair was turning damp as she looked at the bloodied figure of Kai, she felt guilty that she couldn't even help him in his time of need.

*cough* *cough*

Kai suddenly coughed out, his chest hurt badly and he felt spent of all his energy as he was trying to bring himself out of the complete darkness in his mind, that was until he suddenly saw a bright light amongst the darkness, he willed his mind toward the light and when he reached it he felt a warm and wonderful feeling on his chest like his heart got just the right amount of blood it needed to be pumped right into it.

His eyes fluttered open to be greeted by Sydney's beautiful and delicate face crying on his chest.

"Sydney?" Kai's voice was weak and groaned

Sydney stopped her crying and looked at the now awoken Kai, shocked, but relieved to no end.

"Kai! You're alive!"

Sydney shouted and pressed her small body against him in a huge bear hug.

"Of course I'm alive" Kai sat up, soreness and pain hit him, but Sydney's hug was full of warmth and love and was able to distract him for a bit.

Kai checked his body, luckily, other than the close brush with death his body seemed intact and in order aside from the apparent soreness and pain, in fact, his body was better than ever as he checked his inner Dantian and smiled at his increase in strength. He looked toward his left and saw a shiny ball about the size of an adult human's fist next to him, the inside of it was shining vibrantly with a yellowish light. Kai's body slightly shivered at it, he didn't expect the spiritual energy inside that ball to be so tyrannical that it almost killed him.

The ball was a Saint Beast Core that he took from his father, there were many different types of beasts in the World of Aeon, the many types of beasts had a cultivation system of their own that was similar to humans. These beasts gathered spiritual energy into a core and had 1-12 ranks that were similar to the 12 realms of cultivation, they were also much stronger than humans of the same realm, but one who was able to kill one meant the chance at harvesting their valuable core,

A 12th ranked beast, the highest attainable rank, was called a Saint Beast, similar to how a 12th realm cultivator was called a Martial Saint.

Today was the day Kai was supposed to leave with his father and grandfather in search of Killian, but he was rejected once more when he asked, his father told him he still wasn't strong enough to go with them, and on a whim Kai 'borrowed' a Saint Beast Core from the Ximen Families Treasury and tried absorbing it to increase his strength as soon as possible.

If Kai knew what he was getting into he definitely would not have done something so stupid, he was just an eager and fearless little boy, but that attitude almost led him to his very demise.

A Saint Beast's Core was extremely tyrannical in energy, so tyrannical that not even a Martial Saint would try to absorb it from the very source. It required a skilled alchemist to break down and condense the immense energies into a consumable pill, which made the Saint Beast Core less useful and domineering but much easier to consume.

Kai managed to not only survive from absorbing the Saint Beast's Core directly, even if it was barely 1% of the energy within the core. He also managed to increase his realm from the 6th level Martial Intermediary to the 1st level Martial Avant which was an entire realm increase. He would have been able to absorb even more if he didn't pass out from the immense pain and lost control of the absorption process which completely wrecked his insides. Kai knew if he was able to keep his consciousness from the absorption process of such tyrannical energy, he would be able to quickly ascend in strength, but even he didn't know how he was able to absorb the energy in the first place.

Kai looked down at the little Sydney who still clung tightly to him, she was still sobbing, but the sobs were now tears of happiness. A weird feeling deeply surged within his chest, like a seed full of emotion was planted. He shook it off and pushed Sydney away from him.

"Sydney, wait here! I have to show my father my new strength!" Kai quickly stood up, ignoring the fatigue and pain within him, and ran outside.

Unfortunately, he checked everywhere within the Palace, asked the guards, other clan members, and even his mother.

It turned out his father already left.

****

The memories stopped as Kai returned to the now, he looked toward Sydney who was awaiting his answer, that seed of emotion that was deeply planted within his chest began to sprout as he stared at her, Sydney was always there for him, even after his father left they would still train together and she would always be there next to him, practicing her healing technique with whatever injuries he got himself each new day.

Kai took a deep breath, staring at Sydney as he said with a smile

"Of course I'm not gay."