Chapter 110: A Soaring Dragon

The peak of the Imperial Academy’s Array Tower was quiet...

In the center of the observation deck stood the *Genesis Monolith*, a colossal slab of black stone covered in faint, incomprehensible runes.

Theo crumbled up his third piece of Cyan-Vein parchment and tossed it aside.

It was another failure. The brush strokes were precise, but they lacked the necessary weight.

Frustrated, Theo walked to the edge of the tower and leaned against the stone railing, gazing across the academy grounds.

His eyes drifted naturally toward the eastern sector, where the circular dueling rings were located.

He could imagine Liana standing on the raised stone platform. She would be holding her practice sword, correcting the academy elites with her signature authority.

He could picture the exact look of disdain she gave to particularly slow learners.

Theo frowned, rubbing his temples.

Why was he thinking about her lecture style?

Why did his mind keep drifting back to the shadowed office, the scent of plum wine, and the sensation of her skin?

He needed to focus on the Monolith...

If he could replicate its array structure, he could stabilize his Abyssal forge permanently.

"What are you looking at?"

Theo turned. A young woman was standing a few paces away, adjusting a pair of crystal-lens spectacles.

It was Valeria, one of the academy’s top prodigies.

Theo remembered breaking her sword intent during a brief skirmish weeks ago.

He noticed her hair was significantly shorter than before, chopped above her shoulders.

"I am looking at the Sword Empress," Theo replied, gesturing vaguely toward the eastern rings.

Valeria adjusted her spectacles, squinting at the distant shapes. "Your eyesight is phenomenal. But yes, I attended her morning demonstration. It was breathtaking. It is laughable that I ever considered myself her rival."

"Why is your hair so short?" Theo asked bluntly.

Valeria flushed. "Every time I watch her duel, I feel a breakthrough approaching. I immediately try to purge the lingering trauma of your Abyssal fire from my sword heart to reach the next realm."

"And?"

"I fail every single time," Valeria sighed, looking at her boots. "So, as a vow to improve, I cut off an inch of hair after every failure."

Theo stared at her current bob-cut. "You do seem slightly sharper than before."

A sudden pang of guilt hit him. Liana’s flawless demonstrations were inspiring this girl to go bald.

Theo decided he needed to finish sketching the Genesis Monolith and leave the academy before Valeria ran out of hair entirely.

He walked back to the Monolith and sat down.

He laid out a fresh sheet of Cyan-Vein parchment. He picked up the inkstone. Liana had personally ground the ink for him that morning before they left for the academy.

Theo steeled his mind. The academy had granted him access, but he could not take the Monolith with him. He had to capture its essence today.

...

Meanwhile, at the eastern dueling rings.

Historically, visiting instructors never took breaks during their morning sessions. But Liana had implemented mandatory thirty-minute recesses.

Her sword techniques were incredibly dense; if she did not give the academy elites time to process the information, they would inevitably suffer qi deviation!

Liana sat in the shade of a silk pavilion, her sword resting across her lap. She closed her eyes, intending to meditate and refine her own intent.

Instead, her mind immediately betrayed her...

The image of the shadowed third-floor office surfaced.

She remembered the flickering candlelight, the sound of the rain, and the firm pressure of Theo’s hands on her calves.

The sensation was stubbornly vivid, refusing to be purged by her Daoist mantras.

Down in the sparring rings, a group of sharp-eyed academy elites noticed her solemn expression.

"Look at the Sword Empress," one disciple whispered in reverence.

"She must be comprehending a new, peerless sword technique."

"Do not disturb her. A single breath of her insight is worth ten years of our training."

Liana heard their whispers.

An embarrassed warmth prickled the back of her neck. She opened her eyes and reached for her tea tray, desperate for a distraction.

Her hand paused over the teapot.

She looked at the tray. The exquisite porcelain set had been purchased by Theo.

The fragrant silver-needle tea leaves had been provided by Theo.

Even the sturdy wooden table she was sitting at had been requisitioned by him.

And then, there was her tea pet...

Sitting next to the steaming cups was the small figurine of the chibi-Sovereign.

"When did my entire life become saturated with his presence?" Liana murmured, pressing her lips into a thin line.

She picked up the teapot and poured the scalding rinse water over the chibi-Sovereign’s head.

The figurine deepened in color as it absorbed the tea.

Liana reached out and flicked the wooden figure’s forehead, making it wobble on the tray.

Then, a rare, mischievous glint flashed in her eyes.

She picked up a tea leaf and carefully plastered it across the chibi-Sovereign’s upper lip, giving him a ridiculous mustache.

"Instructor Liana?"

Liana flinched, her hand snapping back to her sword hilt.

Master Caelus, the academy’s head martial instructor, was standing at the edge of the pavilion.

He looked at her, then glanced down at the doll sporting a tea-leaf mustache.

He raised an eyebrow.

"The recess is over," Caelus said. "Are you prepared to resume?"

"Yes," Liana said quickly, standing up and brushing off her robes.

Caelus lingered for a moment, his gaze fixed on the tea tray. "What exactly were you looking at?"

Liana straightened the doll, refusing to break eye contact.

"It is a specialized ward for cultivating prosperity."

Caelus nodded, clearly not believing a word of it, and walked back to the rings.

...

Back at the summit of the Array Tower.

Theo sighed, staring at the black stone.

He dropped his calligraphy brush. He stepped forward, closing the distance between himself and the Genesis Monolith. He raised his right hand and pressed his palm flat against the stone.

The reaction was instantaneous.

Deep within his Inner Scenery, the seven External Qi-Cores flared to life. They began to spin at a frightening velocity.

The cores were acting like planetary bodies caught in the gravitational pull of a cosmic entity.

A shockwave of enlightenment blasted through Theo’s consciousness.

The stone surface vanished. The world melted away...

"I see it," Theo breathed, his eyes wide.

From Valeria’s perspective, Theo was simply standing perfectly still, his hand resting on a rock.

She was genuinely astonished; the Monolith was infamous for inducing severe mental trauma in anyone who dared to touch it directly.

Yet, the Abyssal Sword Sovereign looked entirely at peace.

A moment later, Theo’s left hand moved.

He channeled his karmic fire directly into his fingertips.

The sheet of Cyan-Vein parchment floated into the air, suspended by his grip.

With his right hand anchored to the Monolith, Theo used his left hand to paint.

He dragged his burning fingertips across the parchment, searing the divine array structure into the material with the unrestrained grace of a soaring dragon.