Chapter Twenty-Three: Breaking through 

The lantern in Lira's small room flickered weakly, its amber glow fading to a soft spark that barely lit the rough cream walls and the blue vine tapestry hanging above her narrow pallet. The air was warm and heavy with her scent—lavender and sweat—mixing with the earthy smell of straw scattered on the floor. Roderic Vane sat cross-legged beside her, his patched tunic sticking to his sweaty skin, the straw poking through his trousers. Lira slept on the pallet, her tan skin shining with sweat, chestnut hair spread across the gray blanket, breathing softly after their intense night. It had only been a week since he'd found the relic—that strange metal shard in the quarry—and already it had changed everything.

Roderic closed his eyes, hands on his knees, meditating as the night stretched on. His qi buzzed inside him—fire and spirit swirling together from the Flame Soul Art. He breathed slow and deep, chest moving like he was stoking a fire. The qi surged—red fire heating his body, gold spirit calming it—mixing into a strong, spinning energy in his chest. Sweat dripped down his face, his skin glowing faintly red and gold, like embers under his tan. He'd broken through a level tonight—something big—faster than he'd ever thought possible. The relic had done this, turning sex with Lira into a boost he couldn't explain.

He kept meditating, hours passing quietly, moonlight slipping through the cracked shutters to light his face in silver lines. His qi grew stronger—fire roaring, spirit balancing it—until dawn's pink light peeked in. He'd become a real cultivator in just a week, way ahead of where he should be.

But here's what neither Roderic nor Lira knew as she slept: the relic didn't just help him—it helped her too. The night had boosted her qi, too, not just his. Roderic's qi was wild and strong because of the relic, and when they were together, some of it flowed into her. Her qi—weak before, barely there—got better, like a tiny spark turning into a small flame. She didn't feel it yet, sleeping soundly, but it was growing inside her, making her stronger than she'd ever been.

In this world, cultivation had levels everyone knew about. First was the Mortal Realm—normal people with no real qi, like Lira a week ago, just a faint spark. Next was the Initiate Realm, split into Early, Middle, and Late—where newbies like Roderic started, learning to use their qi. He'd been Early Initiate when he found the relic a week ago, barely a spark himself. Then came the Foundation Realm—Early, Middle, Late—where adepts got tougher, their qi like a steady fire. After that was Core Formation, for seniors like Cressida, with strong qi they could fight with, and Nascent Soul, elders like Maris, super powerful. There were higher levels too, but people only whispered about them.

The relic had a trick—sex made qi grow fast for both people. For Roderic, it pushed him from Early Initiate to Middle Initiate in a week, and his qi was four times stronger than a normal Middle Initiate's—like he could take on adepts already. His core felt huge, like a big fire burning bright, way more than it should after just seven days. For Lira, it woke her qi up—from almost nothing to Early Initiate, a little flame starting to burn steady. She'd feel it when she woke—stronger, warmer—not knowing it came from their night together.

Roderic opened his eyes as dawn light filled the room, grinning big. He'd done in a week what took others months—Middle Initiate, four times stronger, thanks to the relic. Lira slept on, her tan skin glowing, legs weak from the night, not knowing she'd changed too—a spark now a flame, all from

one wild week.