The Ten Flames That Shouldn’t Exist

Morning light spilled across the mountain tops like a golden river, bathing the Heaven Defying Academy in warmth and brilliance. Birds sang. The wind danced. But beneath that peaceful surface, something new stirred. Something that felt wild. Uncontrolled. And maybe even dangerous.

Because today was not like other days.

Today, a legend was going to teach.

After years of silence, the Flame Empress had returned. Once feared, once sealed, now walking openly through the halls of the most powerful academy across all worlds.

And she had made a decision.

Not to join quietly. Not to sit in meetings or offer advice like other elders.

She was going to teach.

But not just anyone.

She had chosen the worst of them.

The impossible ones.

The students everyone else had given up on.

At sunrise, a golden scroll appeared in the center of the courtyard. Not with an explosion. Not with trumpets. Just floating, glowing softly in the air like it belonged there.

Students crowded around. Even elders came to see.

On the scroll were ten names.

Ten students who had been whispered about for years.

The unteachable.

The unstable.

The uncontrollable.

And next to those names, in flaming letters, was a single phrase.

Class Instructor: Flame Empress

Gasps filled the air. Whispers flew like fire through dry grass.

"Is this real?"

"Why would she take them?"

"Are they going to survive?"

Inside the main hall, Dev Yadav stood before a giant celestial map, eyes fixed on the scroll from afar. He didn't speak. He didn't move. But there was a softness in his gaze. A quiet curiosity.

He had known the Flame Empress would shake the world.

He just didn't expect her to start with a classroom.

Elder Xin walked in behind him, holding a fresh cup of spirit tea.

"She chose the impossible ones."

Dev nodded.

"She always liked challenges."

Xin took a slow sip.

"Or maybe she sees something we don't."

Below them, the ten students began to gather in the far eastern training grounds. The section of the academy that hadn't been used in years. Broken stones. Overgrown vines. Forgotten symbols on the walls.

Now, it had a new life.

Waiting for its new teacher.

The ten students didn't come together.

They arrived alone. Scattered. Each with their own baggage.

First was Haran, the prideful sword genius who had once challenged an elder to a duel and nearly burned down half the inner courtyard.

Then came Laya, the sleepy-eyed girl with an unknown bloodline and an odd ability to absorb spiritual energy without cultivating.

Third was Meira, quiet as a shadow, with a spirit beast no one could see but everyone could feel.

Fourth was Kavi, always angry, always trembling with raw power he couldn't control. He had once sneezed and accidentally made a floating mountain collapse.

The rest followed. Each strange. Each powerful in ways they didn't understand. Each rejected by every master they'd met.

And now, all of them stood in a crooked line under a burning red sky, facing a woman who once made the stars cry.

The Flame Empress didn't wear armor or jewels. Just a simple red robe, barefoot as always, her eyes glowing softly.

She looked at them like they were puzzles.

And she loved puzzles.

"Welcome," she said. Her voice was smooth and warm, but it didn't invite comfort.

It promised change.

"You've all been labeled unteachable. Untamable. Broken. Dangerous."

No one spoke.

"Good," she continued. "That means you're worth my time."

Haran scoffed. "I didn't ask to be here."

She smiled. "But you stayed."

He looked away, annoyed.

She turned to Meira. "You hide your voice because you think speaking will hurt others. One day, you'll speak and save someone."

Then to Kavi. "You're scared of your own strength. So we'll use that fear until it becomes clarity."

Laya raised a hand. "Do we have to train right now? I didn't sleep much."

The Flame Empress didn't blink.

"You'll rest when you're dead."

Laya blinked. "Noted."

She stepped back and raised one hand. Fire erupted in the sky, forming shapes—dragons, tigers, swords, and stars.

"Everything you think you know about cultivation," she said, "is wrong for you. The rules they gave you were made for others."

She clenched her fist, and the flames exploded into tiny orbs that floated gently around the students.

"You will make your own rules."

One by one, the flames entered their bodies.

Each student gasped, but none were harmed. Instead, something inside them shifted. A pressure. A heat. A calling.

"This flame will show you who you are," she said. "And who you could be."

Then she turned and walked away.

"Wait!" Haran called. "What do we do next?"

She paused.

"Burn."

That was all.

Then she vanished.

Behind her, the ten stood in silence. The air around them glowed faintly. Their hearts beat faster. Not with fear. But with something dangerous.

Hope.

For the first time… they didn't feel cursed.

They felt chosen.

Later that night, as the academy settled, Dev found himself walking the eastern path. He passed the old fire trees, now blooming again. The air smelled of ash and promise.

He found her there.

Sitting on the roof of the old training hall. Watching the stars like they were stories waiting to be read.

"They're good," she said before he even spoke.

"They're trouble," he replied.

She grinned. "Same thing."

He stepped beside her, not touching, but close enough.

"Why them?"

She looked at him then, and for a moment, she wasn't the Flame Empress.

She was just the girl who once ran barefoot across broken realms with him.

"Because I was them," she said. "Once. Before I became fire."

He nodded.

And together, they watched the flames grow.

Ten lights.

Ten paths.

Ten disasters waiting to become legends.