Cultivation is Creation

"Maya," I said, meeting her startled gaze, "I'm going to save everyone."

She stared at me, confusion written across her face. The arrow that had nearly taken my head still quivered in the wooden post behind me. "Tomas, what are you—"

"Raiders!" Henrik's shout cut through our conversation, right on schedule. "They're breaking through the east gate!"

Maya thrust the rusty sword toward me – that same damn sword I'd seen so many times before. "Here. Try not to stab yourself with it."

I didn't take it this time. Instead, I gave her a quick nod and turned towards the forest. "Get people to the south wall," I called over my shoulder. "The Seventh Band will try to flank through there."

"How did you—" her voice faded as I sprinted away, this body’s muscles protesting as I pushed them beyond their mortal limits.

The village sounds faded behind me – shouts of alarm, the clash of weapons, the first screams as raiders breached the walls. I forced myself not to look back. I couldn't save them if I was dead, and I needed to reach the forest before she arrived.

Last time, Vayara had seemed almost reasonable, willing to spare the village because she saw potential in me. If I could just reach the meeting point, I should be able to convince her again...

The trees grew closer with agonizing slowness. My legs felt like lead, each step a battle against exhaustion. But I couldn't stop. Couldn't slow down. The timing had to be perfect.

I burst through the final line of buildings, my heart hammering against my ribs. The forest's edge was tantalizingly close now, dark pines offering the promise of cover. Just a little further...

She appeared exactly where I expected, frost-covered robes rippling in a wind I couldn't feel. But something was wrong. Her burning eyes weren't filled with the curiosity I remembered – they blazed with something closer to religious fury.

"Just what are you?" she demanded, her voice sharp as winter ice.

I raised my hands slowly. "My name is Tomas. I'm just a villager who—"

"Silence!" Frost patterns writhed across her robes like agitated serpents. "Your essence...there is something wrong with it."

My blood ran cold. The blue sun – I hadn't even considered that they might be able to sense its energy within me. After all, it had seemed so much gentler than its crimson counterpart, almost hidden beneath the red sun's overwhelming presence. Even the elders back at the sect couldn’t sense the blue sun unless I channeled its power, the only one who could scare the blue sun into hiding was that presence at the Way Station…

"I can explain," I started, though I had no idea how I actually would. How do you explain to a religious zealot that you're carrying the essence of what they considered a heretical power source? "I only recently started feeling the red sun's power—"

"The crimson light burns within you, yes," she interrupted. "But there's something else. Something..." her eyes widened slightly. "Something tainted." The last word came out like an accusation.

Ice began crystallizing in the air around us. "Are you one of them?" she demanded. "One of those zealots who claim the blue sun's 'purity' can cleanse our gift?"

"What? No, I—"

"Did you think you could infiltrate us? Pretend to be an initiate while secretly carrying that abomination's light?"

"Wait," I raised my hands. "You don't understand—"

"I understand perfectly." Her voice was colder than the ice she wielded. "You're a corruption. A mistake that needs to be corrected."

I barely had time to think before the air exploded into razor-sharp ice. There was no time to dodge, no chance to defend. The last thing I felt was crystalline shards tearing through my chest, my heart freezing solid in mid-beat.

Then darkness. Void. And finally...

***

I gasped awake in my quarters at the Azure Peak Sect, my original body drenched in cold sweat. The familiar walls were a stark contrast to the winter hell I'd just experienced, but I could still feel phantom ice in my chest.

"That... could have gone better," I managed after a few deep breaths.

"A significant understatement, Master," Azure replied dryly. "Though we did learn something valuable."

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"The blue sun…she could sense it somehow. But how? Even the Azure Peak Sect's elders never noticed anything unusual about my cultivation."

"The Skybound seem to have a particular sensitivity to solar energies," Azure replied. "Perhaps their entire cultivation system being based on the red sun makes them more attuned to such things."

I nodded, pushing myself into a sitting position. My muscles ached with pain, though this body hadn't actually experienced any of it. "We need to hide the blue sun somehow."

I closed my eyes, shifting my consciousness into my inner world. The Genesis Seed towered before me, its branches swaying gently as the twin suns continued their eternal orbit - a harmony that would apparently get me killed in the other world.

"The blue sun's energy is more subtle," Azure observed. "Perhaps we could use the Genesis Seed's canopy to mask its presence like we did back at the Way Station?"

That was exactly what I had in mind. "Let's hope it works," I muttered.

I reached out with my will, mentally grasping the blue sun's orbit. The celestial body responded sluggishly at first, like trying to redirect a river with your bare hands. But gradually, it began to shift.

Slowly, carefully, I guided the blue sun beneath the Genesis Seed's canopy. The massive tree's branches shifted, creating a natural shelter that would hopefully mask its presence from outside observation.

"The balance feels... odd," Azure noted as we adjusted to the new configuration. "The red sun's influence is more prominent now."

“Let’s hope it’s enough to stop me from being executed as a heretic again,” I murmured. "But we should rest first, recover some strength before trying again."

My soul essence had taken a significant hit from the violent death. I spent the next few hours in meditation, carefully rebuilding my reserves. The Tri-Essence Harmony technique helped, but it was still slow work.

Status Update:

Soul Essence: 800/950 (Recovering)

Spiritual Essence: 850/850

Physical Essence: 900/900

“Are you ready?” Azure asked as I opened my eyes.

“Hopefully, I make it to the academy this time.”

Everything prepared, I reached for that familiar connection. The transition between worlds felt different this time – the red sun's pull was stronger without its blue counterpart visible. But the path was still clear, and soon I felt myself settling into that other body once more.

I didn't wait for Maya to react to the arrow this time. As soon as I felt solid, I was moving, calling out over my shoulder, "I'll be back! I promise!"

I was already running, my muscles screaming in protest just like last time. But I knew the path now, knew exactly how far I needed to push this mortal form. The tree line grew closer with agonizing slowness as behind me, the sounds of battle began to erupt.

She appeared exactly where I expected but this time, her burning eyes held only the curiosity I remembered from my first successful encounter.

"You're afraid?" she said, just like the first successful loop.

My heart leaped – it was working! The Genesis Seed's cover must be hiding the blue sun's presence.

I gave her the same careful response as before. "Who wouldn't be terrified of seeing a frost-robed figure floating in front of them?"

The conversation played out almost exactly as I remembered. Vayara mistook me for an escaped initiate at first. When I revealed I was "just a villager who changed," her interest only grew.

"This is perfect, actually," she said, just as before. "I've been lacking in contribution points, and recruiting a natural awakening... yes, this will do nicely."

The rest played out as I remembered – my fight against the Sun-touched, Vayara’s devastating display of power, the harvest of essence from the fallen Sun-touched, the villagers' mixed terror and gratitude. Maya's confusion at my departure stung just as much the second time, but I forced myself to focus on what mattered: survival.

The journey to the academy felt longer this time, probably because I was worried about maintaining the Genesis Seed's concealment. Every time Vayara looked at me, I feared she'd suddenly sense what we were hiding.

But she didn't. The blue sun remained safely hidden in the Genesis Seed's shade while its red counterpart provided just enough power to make me seem like a promising initiate.

The floating citadel was just as impressive on second viewing – impossible spires of ice and crystal suspended in the crimson-tinted sky. The temporary flight rune burned just as cold against my chest as Vayara traced it, but learning to control was much smoother.

"The elders will want to see you immediately," she said as we approached the main citadel. "Natural awakenings are rare enough to warrant their personal attention."

I nodded, trying to project calm confidence while my mind raced. The elders were supposedly Rank 7 Skybound. Would the Genesis Seed's canopy be enough to hide the blue sun's essence from beings of that level?

We passed through crystalline corridors that seemed to shift and flow, ice formations rearranging themselves as we walked.

Finally, we reached a set of doors that towered three stories high, carved from what looked like a single piece of ancient ice. Intricate runic patterns covered every inch of their surface, each one blazing with internal fire.

"The Council Chamber," Vayara announced, her voice holding a mix of reverence and fear. "The elders are waiting inside." She glanced at me, something almost like concern crossing her perfect features, whether that concern was for me or her contribution points, I couldn’t tell, but I would bet my life on it being the latter. "Try not to die too quickly in there. You're far too interesting for that."

As the massive doors began to swing open, I took a deep breath, feeling the Genesis Seed's power thrumming through my inner world. The red sun blazed proudly in its orbit while its blue counterpart remained hidden, its energy diffused through layers of spiritual foliage.

I could only hope it would be enough. Because if these transcendent beings saw through my deception, I had a feeling Vayara's earlier execution would seem merciful by comparison. I likely wouldn’t even have enough time to self-destruct before they got a hold of me…

The doors finished their arc, revealing a chamber that defied mortal architecture. The ceiling, if there was one, was lost in a swirling vortex of crimson energy that could have been ten feet or ten miles overhead. The walls were sheets of pristine ice that somehow burned with internal flame, casting the room in bloody light.

And there, arranged in a perfect circle, waited seven figures. Their burning eyes fixed on me with the weight of mountains, and I felt the pressure of their combined spiritual power press against my soul like a physical force.

It was time to find out if I could fool gods.

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