Gen stumbled forward, his legs like water, but forced himself to stand. He looked back through the root-framed entrance at the figure of the three-tailed Sky Demon. Its bestial form was receding. The glossy exoskeleton softened, losing its aggressive edges. The red, mindless fire in its eyes dimmed, replaced by a cold, calculating sentience. The intelligence had returned.
Its voice, when it came, was the same wet, clicking rasp, but now layered with a grudging respect. "I did not expect you to have something like that up your sleeve. If I could learn how you managed it… I might grow even stronger." It tilted its head, studying Gen as if memorizing his essence. "The Sky Ocean is vast. We will meet again."
The three-tailed Sky Demon smiled, a horrible stretching of its chitinous mouth. Then it turned its back, a gesture of supreme arrogance. Its three tails danced in a final, ominous pattern—a clear warning. *Next time, I will not be so cautious.* Then it merged with the ground and was gone, leaving only the cracked earth and the scent of ozone.
***
Gen pulled Liang and Kang Mao deeper into the building. The interior was not the dense tangle of roots they expected. The walls were smooth, polished wood, as if the very tree had been persuaded to grow into straight lines and flat planes. It looked like the original builder had tried to craft a castle but lacked proper stone, so they had commanded the forest itself to become one. They entered a vast, silent hall. At the far end stood a massive throne, carved from a single, gnarled stump. Dust lay thick on everything. Faded, cryptic markings were etched into the wooden walls, their meaning lost to time.
Gen and Liang slumped next to the base of the throne. Kang Mao leaned heavily against it, breathing through the pain.
"How did you know the demon could not enter here?" Liang asked, his voice weak.
Gen scratched his head, a tired, boyish gesture. "I had no idea. I only knew I couldn't win with both of you exposed. The plan was simple: force it to stand in front of me and finish it in one blow, or let all of us die." He gave a short, hollow laugh.
Kang Mao slapped his own forehead. "You are incredible. And incredibly lucky. If we can call that luck."
Gen then leaned closer to Liang. "How do you feel?" Liang's face had a faint violet tinge around his lips.
"I am fine, it is just—" Before he could finish, he convulsed and spat a mouthful of dark, viscous blood onto the polished wood.
Gen's heart ached, a sharp, physical pain. *If Liang had not come to the Sky Ocean, he wouldn't have almost died twice already. Perhaps… perhaps I should have come alone.*
As if reading his thoughts, Liang tapped his shoulder. His touch was weak. "What should we do now? In my state… I think you should continue to look for the Zenith Root alone."
Gen shook his head violently. "No. I will not leave you here. Even if I have to carry you on my back, you are coming with me."
Kang Mao frowned, his analytical mind cutting through the emotion. "The poison is spreading fast in his body. I never knew Sky Demons were poisonous. This one was a true anomaly. But there must be an antidote. What, exactly?"
The trio fell silent. Gen had never encountered a Sky Demon before. He was utterly clueless. The image of Liang's body turning cold in this dusty hall flashed before his eyes. He dared not imagine it.
He stood up, his resolve hardening. "I will go and look. I am not well-versed in plants, but I learned a few things when we were at the Jade Palace."
Liang forced a weak smile. "You almost killed yourself back then."
Gen glared at him without heat. "I was still young then. I understand more now."
Kang Mao shifted, wincing. "I cannot help you nor stand for now, but it is only a matter of time. The **Jingdao of the Recovering Deity**. By reinforcing the structure of my internal body, I can strengthen my natural healing, turning myself into a living engine of repair."
A genuine smile broke through Gen's worry. "What kind of master taught you that, Kang Mao? With the shifting **Jingdao**, there is no need to learn any other Wheel?"
Kang Mao laughed, a sound that held both pride and old pain. "That is the prerequisite. One can choose to master only one Wheel their entire life—the **Jingdao**. But this technique, mastered to its peak, should cover all my shortcomings and versatility. You all have the other Wheels.."
Liang, listening from his slumped position, suddenly spoke. His voice was faint but clear. "That must have been a hard decision to make"
"I learned to stop holding on to things that are gone. I have not forgiven Lorel for what she did to my brother… but I do not blame you anymore."
Gen's heart grew warmer. "So… we are still friends? Lolly will love to see you back at Grandpa Wood's place."
Seeing Gen and Kang Mao laugh, sharing a moment of weary camaraderie, Liang suddenly felt something shift inside him. It had nothing to do with the pain or the poison. It was the sight of their smiles—Kang Mao's, once so bitter, and Gen's, so relieved. It was as if they had known each other for a thousand years.
*Even Kang Mao was able to come out of his demons and grow,* Liang thought. *Perhaps… I should do the same?*
He had always considered himself the weakest disciple of Immortal Jiang. It was a song sung to him his whole life, a refrain that had echoed even after they left with Gen. Although Gen had tried his best to help Liang rise above it, a part of Liang had always held on to that identity, used it as both a shield and a cage.
But now, seeing Kang Mao's transformation… a part of him wanted to let go. To finally release that thought. He *had* grown. He could use **Jingdao** now. The **Jingdao of the Unassuming Peak** was created because he wanted to be at the top but felt he didn't have the shoulders to assume the height. *Ephemeral like an unassuming mountain. Hard like its peak.*
Liang suddenly felt calmer. The frantic fear for his life subsided, replaced by a profound, accepting peace. The shouts of Gen and Kang Mao grew distant, muffled as if underwater. He didn't hear them calling his name. All he heard was silence, and within it, a quiet resolve.
"LAING! Hey! Don't fall asleep now!" Gen's voice was raw with panic. He shook his friend violently. Liang's eyelids were fluttering shut. "LAING!"
Gen's heart beat wildly against his ribs. He couldn't lose another person. Not Liang. Not his best friend. Liang was all he had left from the Jiang Mountain. Liang was the person who allowed him to be more than just the Immortal's son—to be Gen Jiang. Tears rolled down Gen's face as he clung to Liang's limp form. Kang Mao's worried shouts joined his, filling the dusty hall with a chorus of desperate fear.
Then a voice bloomed in the air, serene and melodic, cutting through their panic.
"Stop tearing my ears."
A figure molded into existence before them, as if she had always been there and they were only now permitted to see. She wore an elegant, imperial robe of deep emerald that clung to a seductive, generous figure. Her hair was a cascade of silvery-white, and her eyes held the ancient, placid depth of a forest lake.
**Shelia.**
She looked down at them, a faint frown of annoyance on her impossibly beautiful face. "He is not dead. Not yet."
Gen, seeing a sliver of hope, scrambled to his feet, forgetting in that instant that Shelia was one of those legendary Old Milky Beasts—a being who had transcended adulthood and gained abilities rivaling or perhaps above that of the strongest Pillars. He clung to the hem of her robe, his tears still wet on his cheeks.
"Help him! Please, help Liang! I will pay any price!"
Shelia's molten-silver eyes softened with something like amusement. She leaned forward, her face inches from his. "Anything, you said?"
"Anything!" Gen repeated, his voice cracking.
Kang Mao wanted to say something—to warn Gen, to question—but he was petrified. Shelia wasn't radiating aggressive pressure. It was her mere *presence*, her devastating beauty, that stole the breath and froze the mind.
Shelia smiled, a slow, knowing curve of her lips. "Then you will have to do something for me."
She floated to Liang's side. She leaned down, her lips a hair's breadth from his, and blew gently into his mouth. A faint, silver mist slipped from her lips and vanished into Liang's body.
Liang's fading consciousness suddenly surged back. He gasped, a ragged, sucking inhale, and his eyes flew open. He sat up, clutching his chest.
Gen was so overjoyed he jumped on his best friend, almost strangling him in a hug. "I thought you were dead!"
Liang coughed, pushing him off weakly. "You are going to kill me for real now."
Shelia watched them, her smile lingering. "One last thing. Although I could slow the poison, I cannot heal him completely. For that, you will need him to drink the blood of the three-tailed Sky Demon who poisoned him. That is the only solution."
Hearing that, Gen's relieved smile faltered slightly. *That wasn't the deal,* he thought. But Liang was alive, he was speaking. That was enough for now.
Kang Mao finally managed to find his voice, keeping his head slightly lowered, unable to meet her gaze directly. "Is it not risky to drink the blood of a Sky Demon?"
Gen and Liang turned to Shelia with the same questioning look.
Shelia's answer was blunt. "It is extremely risky. But it is the only possible solution. Kill the Sky Demon. Have Liang drink its blood. Then he will be safe." She paused, letting the weight of the next words settle. "However, the blood is very dangerous. It might kill him if he is not strong enough. But if he manages to survive…" Her ancient eyes gleamed. "I can guarantee you one thing. Liang will never be the same. He might even become stronger than all of you combined."
Listening to that, Gen didn't hear the dangerous part. He only heard what made his heart sing. He turned to Liang, his face alight with excitement. "You are going to become incredibly powerful! Isn't this what you wanted?"
Liang was slightly shocked, unable to fully grasp the implications. He simply nodded, dazed.
Kang Mao let out a half-smile. "So this misfortune was not so bad after all."
Shelia smiled at them, a look of deep, enigmatic satisfaction. "Once you are ready to fulfill your part of the bargain, follow me deeper into the castle." She winked at Gen—a gesture that held a universe of unspoken meaning—and then melted back into nothingness, leaving only the scent of night-blooming flowers and the echo of an impossible promise.