"...My back hurts."

In the borders of the Draventhar, in the forest where the huge tree on which Emperal was leaning against...was nowhere to be seen.

Or more like, way too burned to be recognizable. In front of it was a huge hole. It was...a man-made one.

In the middle of it all was a fleshy body lying within the ruins. It was the body of a young man, seemingly in his mid-twenties.

He had black hair with silver tinged on the edges. But the more noticeable ones who had seen Emperal earlier would immediately notice the changes.

The silver tinges around the edges of his hair...had crept up an inch.

Emperal’s eyes slowly fluttered open, and the first thing he saw was the ground beneath him. The ground had bent, and the thunder had created a wide hole. But fortunately or unfortunately, it wasn’t that deep. Just a foot or two.

"So...I did survive."

Emperal exhaled lightly; the injuries on his body had healed up, and he was as pristine as before.

"Hmm? Have I grown taller?"

The corner of his mouth twitched into a small, victorious smile.

"It isn’t just my height, I can feel it, I have become fundamentally stronger and...far more powerful than before."

He was the most familiar with his body’s workings and strengths. He had detected it immediately; his body was at the very least ten times stronger than before!

Yes, ten! A never-before-seen leap in power. At least in the constitution and the power output.

"Ahh, no wonder people become arrogant when they break into the higher stages of Verth...this is simply intoxicating."

Emperal took a deep breath and exhaled. For a few seconds, he let himself indulge. After all, he had earned it.

After a few seconds, he scanned the area, detecting there was no sign of trouble as he sat cross-legged.

"So...this is Myriad Dragon Art, huh? What a domineering name."

Emperal muttered, "Since I have met and talked with that Infernal Dragon, I assume I’ll be able to use its abilities? Well, no use contemplating. Let’s just try."

Closing his eyes, he focused. The Myriad Dragon Art responded almost immediately, which was, of course, the first thing he noticed. There was no resistance nor any searching to do. It was simply there, settled in his chest like an integral part that had always lived inside him and had been eagerly waiting for him to address.

The moment he invoked it, an intense heat ran through his...reconstructed Verth vein and filled his channels.

With the Verth as the conductor, the intense heat transformed. Emperal raised his hand, and something miraculous for a Verth practitioner at his level happened! 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

A small, dark red flame lit up! Emperal couldn’t even feel its ferocity inside him or outside him. But the surroundings weren’t so lucky. In a few meters’ distance, just beside a crater, there was a mid-sized tree, approximately ten feet tall.

The moment the flame flickered in Emperal’s hands...an intense heat wave was released, burning the tree to the ground. Even the trees that were half a mile in radius were affected. Their leaves burned into the air, and every single drop of water inside them vaporized.

But...it was only for a few seconds, the flame was snuffed out immediately after.

The heat running through his veins, that deep magma red flowing through his blood...stopped.

Not because of the art, but because his Spirit Root couldn’t keep up. It was like trying to feed a furnace through a crack in a wall. The Myriad Dragon Art demanded Verth in overwhelming quantities and volumes—volumes which his Tier One Dormant Spirit Root simply could not produce.

Emperal’s eyes slowly opened, although there was a tinge of disappointment, he didn’t let it affect him too much. Sitting there for a moment, his thoughts spiraled into a bunch of contemplative storms.

"So that was the problem, it wasn’t the art or my bloodline. Not my body or my will or any of the things the world had always told me. It was my Spirit Root."

This was the one thing he had never been able to change...the existential shackles and bottleneck. The Myriad Dragon Art was a river...that needed an ocean to feed, while his Spirit Root produced an amount that he couldn’t even feel in a kitchen sink.

"...You are taking this surprisingly more calmly than I thought you’d take it."

The same voice echoed in his mind; it was the Infernal Dragon. For a moment, Emperal didn’t reply.

"Are you going to stay in my mind forever?"

Instead of answering the Infernal Dragon’s question, Emperal shot another question.

"Sigh...it’s just my residual Verth speaking. My main body is slumbering deep within you and for the current you, knowing that should be enough."

Emperal nodded when he heard that useless information could come later. First and foremost was his body condition and...him.

"So I can’t use the art?"

"You can, and you already are. Your comprehension skills are decent. And your Elven blood is handling the bodily backlash caused by that blood and the art. It is your Spirit Root that’s the main problem. Before you, dozens have used this art. And the minimum requirement to use this art was Tier 3, Bloomed Spirit Root. But even having this and heaven-defying comprehension...most of the candidates have failed before. They hit the same wall and tried to force it through. Which is almost a certain death."

The Infernal Dragon paused and let out a sigh. Hearing this, Emperal was quiet for a moment.

"But, don’t I have Elven blood?"

"The Elven regeneration works fine," the dragon said. "But this? This runs on something entirely different. The Elven blood is passive; it doesn’t demand but simply takes what the world provides and uses it. The Myriad Dragon Art, however, is not passive. It needs to be consumed."

"I...see."

Emperal sighed. At this point, what could he even do? He had tried everything he could, tried every method he knew, survived what others don’t even dare imagine. But at the end of the day...everything was useless.

"But...there is a way to increase the tier of your Spirit Root."

The Dragon suddenly uttered the most melodious words that the Emperor had heard in his miserable life.

"And? What is it?"

"..Nirvana flames of a Phoenix."