Chapter 28: Thunderfire spear art

Chapter 28: Chapter 28: Thunderfire spear art

[Reward: Thunderfire Spear Art — Acquired]

Jason let out a short laugh, unable to help himself. The exhaustion weighing down his limbs seemed to disappear for a moment.

"Now that’s more like it."

[Integrating Thunderfire Spear Art.]

Jason felt a rush of information flow into his head.

The sensation wasn’t quite as painful as when he had first received the Heretical God Law, but it still left his skull throbbing.

He reached for the manual mentally, and lines of text unfolded across his vision.

[Thunderfire Spear Art: A technique manual keyed to dual Fire and Lightning affinities. Techniques unlock progressively with cultivator strength.]

[Piercing Thunder: Flood the legs and weapon with Lightning essence to generate a short, violent burst of speed, delivering a single devastating strike. Warning: induces severe tunnel vision during casting.]

[Crimson Blaze: Discharge Fire essence through the weapon’s head in a wide arc for area denial, or compress the same essence into a focused point for concentrated damage.]

Pain lanced through his skull as the rest of the manual settled into place. Dozens of technique names flickered past too quickly for him to properly read, most of them grayed out and locked.

"Agh."

He pressed a hand against his temple, waiting for the worst of the headache to subside.

’Most of this is too advanced for my current cultivation. Yet another reason to get stronger.’

He tried Piercing Thunder first.

Being careful, he fed a thin stream of Lightning essence into his legs.

The result was immediate.

And terrible.

His body lurched forward with a sudden burst of speed, but his balance couldn’t keep up. What should have been a controlled charge became little more than a stumbling dash.

Jason barely managed to plant his spear into the ground and stop himself before his face met the grass.

’Right.’

He straightened himself.

’Knowing the technique and actually being able to use it are two completely different things.’

He tried again.

This time, the movement was slightly smoother.

Still clumsy.

Still far from usable in actual combat.

Crimson Blaze came a little more naturally.

Fire essence surged through the spearhead, spilling outward in an uneven arc.

Instead of the clean curtain of flame described by the technique, Jason produced something closer to a sputtering campfire.

He stared at it.

’Needs a lot of work.’

The flames disappeared.

Jason pulled out his phone before leaving the field and dialed Reeve while the lingering adrenaline was still keeping him upright.

"Jason. Wasn’t expecting to hear from you until next week."

"Training wrapped up early. Wanted to check if anything’s available."

"Funny you’d ask."

Papers shuffled on the other end.

"There’s a D-Rank Gate looking for grunt workers. F through D-Rank bodies to clear the small fry while the stronger cultivators handle the real threats inside. Decent pay, relatively low risk. That one’s still about a week out, though. They’re finalizing the roster."

"Anything sooner?"

"Actually, yeah. We’ve already got a Gate lined up. Planned the raid around your training since Darius gave us a rough timeline, but it looks like you finished early."

A brief pause followed.

"The raid’s in two days. Same crew. Myself, Skyler, Wen. You in?"

"I’m in."

"Good. I’ll send the details tonight."

"I’ll be there."

"Two days," Reeve confirmed. "Try not to show up sore."

Jason glanced down at his aching body.

"No promises."

He ended the call and started the walk home, his spear resting comfortably against his shoulder.

As he walked, he went over both techniques again in his head, replaying every mistake he’d made on the training field.

He had the techniques now.

But actually mastering them would be another matter entirely.

---

Judith met him at the door.

"There he is."

She looked him over, a small smile appearing on her face.

"You’re in a good mood this evening, Mr. Jason."

She paused.

Her eyes narrowed slightly as she seemed to notice the subtle change in his aura.

"Congratulations on your breakthrough."

"Thanks."

Judith glanced at the clock before reaching for her bag.

"I’d stay and celebrate, but I really should get going. I promised my son I’d be home for dinner."

"Of course."

Jason smiled.

"Thank you. For everything this week, Judith."

"That’s the job."

She paused at the door and smiled again.

"Congratulations, by the way."

Her gaze shifted toward Novaria.

"And Novaria, I’ll see you soon, okay?"

Novaria gave her a small wave.

"See you."

Judith headed down the street, leaving Jason to turn toward Novaria, who was waiting at the table.

"You’re back early," she said.

Then her eyes narrowed.

"And you’re grinning like an idiot."

Jason laughed.

"Darius decided my training should end today. Apparently, I’m a real spearman now."

"You don’t say."

Novaria raised an eyebrow.

"Well? Tell me what happened."

Jason sat down and told her everything.

The run he could barely keep pace with.

The suppressed essence.

The lightning that had done nothing against Darius’s earth barrier.

The moment his perception suddenly surged, making the battle seem to slow around him.

Then he told her about the breakthrough.

Novaria went very still.

"You broke through in the middle of the fight," she said slowly.

"Mid-block, technically."

"That’s not a small thing, Jason."

Something serious settled behind her eyes.

"My father used to say that forcing a breakthrough under real combat pressure, without the calm most cultivators needed, was the mark of a true combat genius. He claimed he’d only seen it happen a few times throughout his entire career."

Jason scratched the back of his head.

"That’s a lot of weight to put on what might’ve just been a fluke."

"It wasn’t a fluke."

She said it with such certainty that Jason couldn’t help but look at her.

"You can’t fluke your way into something like that."

He didn’t immediately respond.

Something warm settled in his chest.

It was strange.

A few days ago, he would have dismissed the praise entirely.

Now, hearing it from Novaria made the achievement feel strangely different.

"Anyway," he said, standing up, "I’m making dinner. Seven Herb Ginseng Stew."

He glanced at her.

"We’ve both earned something good today."

"We have."

Novaria watched him head toward the kitchen before adding,

"Want some company?"

Jason looked back.

"Always."

She smiled faintly.

He wheeled her into the kitchen and got started.

He sliced the ginseng thin, added the herbs in careful sequence, and kept the entire process unhurried despite everything his body had been through that day.

Novaria watched quietly from nearby, occasionally commenting on the smell or pointing out when the color of the broth changed.

And somewhere in the middle of it, Jason caught himself thinking about how little time they had actually known each other.

Yet somehow, this already felt familiar.

Comfortable.

Like something that had existed for much longer than it actually had.

By the time the stew was ready, the kitchen smelled warm and rich.

Jason fed Novaria slowly, spoon by spoon.

Neither of them was in any hurry to finish.

Once she’d eaten enough, he carried her to the bathroom first, carefully helping her through the evening wash-up.

He washed her hands and face gently before working a comb through her hair afterward.

Novaria remained quiet beneath his hands, completely unbothered by the routine.

When they were finished, he carried her to bed and settled the blanket properly around her.

"Goodnight," she murmured, already half asleep.

"Goodnight."

Jason sat down on the floor beside her.

Every muscle in his body protested.

His arms ached.

His legs felt like they belonged to someone else.

His entire body was practically begging him to lie down and sleep.

He ignored all of it.

Mana slowly gathered around him.

He drew it inward, refined it through his Core, and continued the cycle.

The cultivation he’d built over the past week finally felt as though his Core was beginning to catch up with the rest of his body.

He maintained the pattern through the ache.

Through the exhaustion.

Even through the small, persistent voice telling him he’d already earned a night off.

’Not yet.’

His breathing remained steady.

’Strong enough means further than this.’

His gaze drifted briefly toward Novaria’s sleeping figure.

’Always further than this.’

He couldn’t afford to slack off.

Not yet.