August 20, 9995, Yulan Calendar.
There were still ten days until the new term began.
Akes sat in the dormitory courtyard, looking at the Fire Spirit Bead in his hand.
"Fallen Heart Flame, Fire Spirit Bead," he murmured.
For the past few days, he had been considering one question: should he tell his brothers?
Logically, he was not someone who liked to show off. The fewer people who knew a secret, the better. But Fallen Heart Flame was special—it could accelerate cultivation, not only for himself but for others as well.
The flames produced by Fallen Heart Flame, if controlled properly, could create an environment saturated with fire elements. Fire-element magi would get twice the result with half the effort cultivating in such an environment. The effect would be weaker for other elements, but increased elemental activity would still help somewhat.
"Yale is water-element, George is wind-element, Reynolds is wind-element too, and Linley has both earth and wind elements." Akes calculated. "Other than me, none of them are fire-element."
But it would still be of some use.
Besides, he trusted those brothers.
After nine years together, he knew them too well.
Yale looked careless and easygoing, but he was sharp inside. He asked what he should ask and never pried into what he should not. George was steady and knew his limits. Reynolds talked a lot but understood the rules. As for Linley, there was no need to mention him. He had a tremendous secret of his own and understood better than anyone what the word "privacy" meant.
"Fine, it's settled."
He stood and called into the room, "Come out, all of you. I have something to say."
Before long, the four came out and sat down in the courtyard.
"What's with all this formality?" Yale lounged lazily in his chair. "Don't tell me you're going to borrow money?"
"Borrow what money? Your family is richer than mine." Akes rolled his eyes at him. "Let's get serious."
He paused, gathering his thoughts. "I gained something during this trip to the Magical Beast Mountain Range."
The others looked at him, waiting for him to continue.
"Deep in the mountains, I found a special flame power that can be absorbed into the body." He raised his right hand, and a pale white flame appeared in his palm. "It's called Fallen Heart Flame. It can speed up cultivation."
The flame flickered in his palm, and the surrounding temperature instantly rose by several degrees.
Reynolds's eyes lit up. "Speed up cultivation? How?"
"If a fire-element mage cultivates beside me, their speed can increase by more than fifty percent," Akes said. "The effect is weaker for other elements, but it can still increase by twenty to thirty percent."
Yale whistled. "That powerful?"
George pondered for a moment. "You're telling us about a treasure like this?"
Akes smiled. "What else? Should I use it in secret by myself?"
"That's not what I mean." George shook his head. "With a treasure of this level, anyone else would hide it away and tell no one."
Akes withdrew the flame and leaned back in his chair. "You're my brothers. Why hide it from you? Besides, it's not like it disappears after being used. We can all use it together."
Everyone fell silent.
After a while, Linley spoke. "What do we need to do?"
Akes nodded inwardly.
"It's simple." He stood up. "From now on, we'll set aside one hour every day to cultivate together. I'll activate Fallen Heart Flame and increase the concentration of fire elements around us. Meditate if you need to meditate, cultivate if you need to cultivate. There will definitely be an effect. How much you gain depends on yourselves."
"That simple?" Reynolds asked.
"That simple."
"Then what are we waiting for?" Yale slapped his thigh. "Let's start right now!"
Akes raised a hand to stop him. "Eat first. You need a full stomach to have the strength to cultivate."
The five of them laughed as they headed toward the dining hall.
That afternoon, at the back mountain.
Akes chose an open area, and the five of them each found a place to sit.
"Ready?" Akes asked.
They nodded.
Akes sat cross-legged, closed his eyes, and began activating Fallen Heart Flame.
Pale white fire slowly flowed from his body, forming a faint layer of firelight around him. The flames did not spread far, covering only a five-meter radius.
All five of them were within that range.
"It's starting," Akes said.
They closed their eyes and entered meditation.
Akes cultivated as well. Fallen Heart Flame operated at full force, and the concentration of fire elements around them rose sharply. He could clearly sense that the magic power in his middle dantian was increasing at twice its usual speed.
The Fire Spirit Bead also glowed faintly, working with Fallen Heart Flame to make the effect even more pronounced.
One hour later.
Akes opened his eyes and reined in the flames.
The others gradually woke up as well.
"How was it?" he asked.
Reynolds was the first to leap up. "So fast! I feel like this one hour was even better than cultivating for three hours normally!"
George nodded. "The effect was indeed obvious. The activity of the wind elements increased considerably."
Yale stroked his chin. "I'm water-element, and it still felt pretty good. I was probably about fifty percent faster."
Linley said nothing, merely nodding at Akes.
Akes understood that look: it worked. Thanks.
"We'll continue tomorrow," Akes said. "Before the term starts, cultivate as much as we can."
Over the next ten days, the five of them went to the back mountain every afternoon and cultivated for one hour without fail.
Akes discovered that as he continuously activated Fallen Heart Flame, his control over the flames became more and more precise. At first, it was somewhat strenuous, but later, he could activate the flames while cultivating himself, without either interfering with the other.
On the eighth day, he broke through.
A fifth-rank mage.
He opened his eyes, and the flames around him automatically withdrew.
"You broke through?" Linley asked.
"Yeah." Akes nodded. "Fifth rank."
Yale gave him a thumbs-up. "Impressive."
Reynolds looked envious. "When will I reach fifth rank too...?"
"Cultivate properly, and it'll be soon," George said.
Akes stood and stretched his body. After reaching fifth rank, his magic power was nearly twice as abundant as before, and his perception of the elements had become sharper as well.
"My treat tonight," he said.
"Absolutely!" Yale laughed.
That night, at the Wald Hotel.
The five drank until midnight. In the end, Akes and George had to help the others back.
When Akes woke the next day, his head felt like it was splitting apart, and he swore he would never drink that much again.
The day before school began, the five cultivated together one last time.
Afterward, Reynolds asked, "Third Brother, can we keep doing this after school starts?"
"Of course," Akes said. "As long as I'm here, we'll do one hour every day."
"Great!" Reynolds jumped with excitement.
Yale patted Akes on the shoulder. "Third Brother, thanks."
"Enough nonsense." Akes waved a hand. "Go pack your things. School starts tomorrow."
Back in the dormitory, Akes lay on his bed, recalling what had happened over the past ten days.
[Ding—Detected that the host has shared Fallen Heart Flame cultivation with multiple people for the first time.] [Hidden condition triggered. Sign in?]
Sign in.
[Sign-in successful.] [Reward obtained: Azeroth Arcane Brilliance (Permanent)—spiritual perception greatly increased, sensitivity to elemental fluctuations enhanced.]
A cool breath surged into his mind and instantly spread outward.
In that instant, everything around him became incomparably clear. He could sense Reynolds's breathing in the next room, the faint tremor of leaves in the courtyard, and even the subtle elemental fluctuations drifting from the distant back mountain.
"Good stuff." He nodded to himself.
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