Shadow Over the Heavenly Throne-Chapter 42: I don’t want to be someone you just tolerate out of pity

Shion lifted her head, uncertainty clinging to her voice. "Calista... are there only six stages of cultivation?"

Calista smiled faintly, as if she'd been waiting for the question. "Eight," she said. "There are eight stages. The sixth is just the threshold. The seventh... that's when your Qi and body become a single organism. The eighth is something more. Something that transcends mortality."

"So there are people who reached it?" Shion's eyes widened.

"A few. But yes. And it’s their presence that separates an ordinary sect from a Super Sect. For an organization to be recognized as one, it must have at least one cultivator who has reached the eighth stage. It’s like a divine seal on their temple walls. Proof that they can shape the fate of the continent."

Shion fell silent, trying to absorb the weight of that knowledge.

"And you?" she finally asked, her voice barely a whisper. "Which stage are you at?"

Calista glanced to the side, as if debating whether to answer. "Seventh," she said calmly.

Shion froze. "That means... you’re one of the strongest people in the world?"

"No," Calista replied immediately. "A cultivation stage is just a number, little rabbit. It doesn’t mean I’m always stronger than someone below me. Do you know why?"

Shion shook her head.

"Because it depends on how you fight. I rely on Qi techniques. If someone can block my access to Qi... even a fifth-stage cultivator can be dangerous. Especially one with a Body Root who’s trained in raw strength their whole life."

Shion listened intently, her fingers clutching her robe.

"Stage is only the foundation. What matters is how you use it. How you fight. How you read your surroundings, adapt, survive. And most importantly..." Calista met her gaze, eyes sharp, "...never underestimate your opponent. No matter how weak they seem."

Shion nodded slowly, each word cutting deeper than the last.

Calista stood. "That’s enough theory. Time for practice."

Shion braced herself, expecting teleportation, a dramatic leap, maybe even a swirling vortex like in legends. But nothing came. Calista simply extended a hand.

"Take my hand."

Shion grabbed it, slightly disappointed and confused.

"You thought we’d vanish in a flash of light, huh?" Calista smirked as she started walking. "Real cultivation doesn’t need fireworks. It needs patience. And steps. Lots of steps."

And so, hand in hand, they walked through the cold, silent corridors of the castle.

The halls were empty. Every footstep echoed. Then... silence. Absolute. As if sound itself had vanished.

They stopped in front of a small door made of dark wood. Calista opened it without a word. The room inside was bare—stone floor, a few candles, and nothing else.

But Shion felt it immediately. The air was denser. Every breath had weight.

"This is my cultivation chamber," Calista said. "A special room built to gather Qi. The perfect place to begin."

Shion stood still, something inside her stirring.

"We have a lot to catch up on," Calista added, her voice taking on the tone of a teacher who had long run out of patience. "We start with your first stage. And this room is exactly where we need to be."

Shion tensed, expecting to be told to absorb a blazing Qi orb or twist into some mystical position.

Calista smirked.

"Relax. You're not doing anything flashy. Your job is to learn how to... breathe."

Shion frowned. "Breathe?"

"Breathe so that Qi listens to you. Pull it in. Guide it. Not like air. Like something with a will of its own. Because Qi does have a will." Calista stepped forward. "We're going to work on absorbing Qi. On building your first reserve. We have to carve out space inside you. Your body is an empty vessel now. And my job... is to make sure it doesn't shatter when it begins to fill."

"Sylphia told me you've already tried this once with her," Calista said calmly. "That means your body remembers the feeling. Good. It means we're not starting from zero."

She sat down on the cool floor and nodded for Shion to join her.

"Sit across from me. Back straight. Shoulders relaxed. Close your eyes. Breathe. Like last time. But this time... focus on what you're breathing in."

Shion obeyed. Her breath was shallow, tight—but slowly, she began to relax. The air really did feel heavier. Warmer. Like something was waiting in it.

"Send your thoughts to your lower abdomen," Calista whispered. "Imagine you're opening a door. Not forcefully. Gently. Qi doesn’t like to be commanded. It has to be invited."

Shion felt something—like a spark. A tremor. As if someone touched the inside of her skin.

Calista smiled faintly, sensing it.

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"Good. Now... don't let it go. Let it gather."

From Shion’s perspective, everything slowed down. It was as if the world breathed with her. She felt something warm, intangible—yet somehow heavy—flow into her. It wasn’t like air. Qi had texture. Weight. Presence. At first, fear threatened to seize her—what if it overwhelmed her? But then she remembered Calista’s words. "Don’t force it. Invite it."

So she did.

She felt Qi settle inside her, filling the spaces where only fear and uncertainty had lived before.

"Now spread it through your whole body," Calista’s voice came. "Let it touch every part. Let it know your home."

Shion focused, trying to feel every inch of her being like it was newly discovered. And then—she felt it. Qi flowed down her spine, into her arms, across her ribs, all the way to her fingertips.

When she opened her eyes, Calista was watching her with an expression Shion had never seen directed at her before—pride.

"Not bad, bunny," Calista said with a smile. "Now you’ve got one job. Repeat that process. Inhale. Gather. Spread. Over and over. Until you collapse. Then your real cultivation begins."

Encouraged, Shion nodded and returned to her meditative posture, lips pressed tight in determination. She breathed. Drew in Qi. Gathered. Spread. Again. And again. Each cycle grew slightly easier... and far more exhausting.

Hours passed. She didn’t know how many—she had completely lost track of time. Her body began to tremble, her spine ached, her head felt weightless.

"Just one more cycle," she told herself. "Just one more."

And then—hands on her shoulders. Warm. Steady. Familiar. Calista.

Before she could speak, the woman wrapped her in a gentle hug, lips near her ear.

"That’s enough for today," she whispered.

"No!" Shion’s voice lashed out like an arrow. Her body shook, but not from exhaustion. "One more... please. I can do it. I have to."

Calista raised an eyebrow, surprised—but she let her speak.

"I don’t want to be the one you have to drag behind. I don’t want to be the girl you have to keep saving." Her voice trembled, but didn’t falter. "I don’t want to be someone you just tolerate out of pity. I want... to be someone. I want to prove to you that I can. That I’m more than a past someone else threw away."

The air thickened. Calista’s eyes narrowed—not with anger, but with focus. With interest.

"I know I’m weak. I know I’m just starting. But that doesn’t mean I can’t fight. I don’t want to be the one who always looks up from the bottom... I want to stand beside you. Beside Sylphia. As an equal."

Silence followed. A silence filled with shame, fury, longing... and will.

A slow smile spread across Calista’s lips. A real one. The kind that couldn't be mistaken for anything but pride.

"Alright," she said softly, settling across from her. "Show me what you’ve got."

Shion closed her eyes. Her heart pounded—but this time, the Qi came to her on its own. Flowing. Heavier than before. Wilder, like it was testing her.

Guiding it was like holding boiling water in a fragile bowl. She trembled. Burned from the inside. But she didn’t stop.

And when the final cycle ended, her world spun. Everything tilted. She knew she was about to fall.

But she didn’t.

Arms caught her. Wrapped around her. Warm. Strong. Safe.

"Good work, bunny," came the whisper. "Now rest."

And so—she allowed herself to fall asleep. For the first time... truly proud of herself.