Hunter Academy: Revenge of the Weakest

Chapter 668 147.3 - Chamber of Emberheart

The moment Astron stepped into the chamber, the searing heat pressed down on him like a physical weight, saturating the air with an intensity that would have crushed lesser men.

The room was bathed in a deep red glow, the shadows shifting and dancing along the walls as small tongues of fire licked at the edges of the stone. Yet, for all its warmth, he knew instinctively that this was only the beginning. The true test had yet to reveal itself.

He moved further into the room, his steps careful and measured, and settled in the lotus position at the center of the chamber.

Closing his eyes, he began to steady his breath, allowing his awareness to expand, His mana senses unfurled slowly, reaching out like invisible tendrils to probe the

environment.

The ambient mana here was thick, dense with the potency of generations of Emberhearts who had faced these flames, and he could feel the lingering echoes of their battles imprinted on the very air.

The formations carved into the walls were intricate, a latticework of glowing runes that pulsed with restrained energy, holding back the flames from overtaking the room entirely.

He recognized them as a containment barrier-designed not to suppress the fire entirely but to temper it, to keep it just at the edge of tolerance. He observed the patterns, noting the subtle fluctuations in their glow, a rhythm that seemed to echo the heartbeat of the chamber itself.

'So, this is how they regulate the fire,' he thought, admiring the craftsmanship in the formations.

The runes appeared ancient, etched with a precision that spoke of countless hours spent refining and perfecting each line, each symbol. He could feel the strength of the barriers surrounding him, designed to shield only this small area for initial acclimation.

Despite his calm exterior, he remained vigilant, attuned to every shift in the air around him. He knew that the trial would begin in earnest soon, that the flames would test him, pushing beyond the barrier, seeking to consume him as they had all who had entered here before. His mind replayed Irina's words:

- "Don't resist the flames outright... Let them test you. Accept their intensity, but don't let them consume you."

As he sat, he adjusted his breathing, inhaling slowly and deeply, allowing his mana to align with the rhythm of the chamber.

He could feel the weight of the atmosphere pressing down on him, an almost sentient. force that sought to gauge his worth.

The trial was more than just withstanding flames; it was a confrontation with something deeper, a force as ancient as the chamber itself, one that would strip him to his core to see if he could endure.

Seconds ticked by in silence, the only sound was his slow, controlled breathing. And then, with a sudden surge, the formations around the room dimmed, the protective glow receding as the true trial began. The flames surged, advancing toward him with unrestrained fury, licking at his skin as the heat intensified.

Astron steadied himself, letting his mana flow smoothly through his body, fortifying his spirit against the overwhelming heat. He reminded himself of Irina's advice-to yield to the flames, to let them probe his defenses without fully surrendering. This was a test of resilience, of his ability to endure and adapt, not through sheer force but through balanced acceptance.

As the fire crept closer, he could feel the first tendrils of heat curling around his body, scaring through his defenses.

"Grrrr..."

The pain was immediate, raw, and unforgiving, but he held steady, letting the flames weave around him, studying the sensation as if it were a curious intruder. He felt his mana react instinctively, pushing back just enough to maintain his boundaries but not resisting outright.

The room pulsed with energy, testing him, measuring his spirit. Each flicker of flame seemed to probe deeper, burning through his mana and reaching toward his essence. Yet, he remained still, his expression calm, his focus unwavering as he settled into the rhythm of the flames, matching their cadence with his own.

'This is just the beginning,' he reminded himself, feeling the weight of the challenge settle upon him. The true heart of the flames lay further within, beyond the outer layers that merely probed. Here, he was but at the threshold.

******

The flames crawled closer, and as they did, the silence around me deepened. It's strange how, when left in silence-true silence, with only the heat pressing down and no distractions-thoughts creep in unbidden.

Most people fear the quiet more than they care to admit. They fill their lives with noise, with flashes on screens, messages to respond to, and voices echoing in their minds. Anything to escape that solitude.

Because when it's just you, stripped of every distraction, every responsibility, you're left with only your thoughts. And that... that's where it gets dangerous.

For those who carry regrets, the silence is a mirror, reflecting every failure, every

moment they wish they could bury. In times like these, distractions are a comfort, a way to avoid looking too closely at what festers beneath the surface. Phones, screens, constant interaction-it's an escape.

A wall they've built against the echoes of their own voices. But here, in this chamber, no such escape exists. The flames strip you down, leaving nothing to hide behind.

The heat bore down on me, like a hand pressing into my chest, and I could feel my defenses stretch thin. Memories surfaced, fragments of the past... a reminder of what drove me here in the first place.

I forced my breathing to remain steady, in sync with the rhythm of the flames, trying not to let those memories dig too deep. Because the truth was, I knew that feeling too well. The need to keep moving, to fill every moment with something tangible, something that kept me from the silence.

But here, with the fire pressing against my skin, burning into me, I couldn't afford to run from my own mind. The flames seemed to sense it, to push me toward that place, to make me face every weakness, every regret. My chest tightened, the heat digging past the layers of mana I'd reinforced, reaching into something deeper, something I could barely defend.

"Haaah...."

I let out a slow breath, feeling it blend into the thick, burning air around me. Maybe that's the true purpose of this trial.

Not just to test physical endurance, but to strip away all the barriers we've built within ourselves, forcing us to confront what we hide from. I had always considered myself prepared, and disciplined, but even I felt the edges of my resolve strain under the

weight of my own thoughts.

Or maybe, I am just trying to pass the time, maybe this is just me with my random

thoughts wandering around my mind.

That was most likely the case.

The pain....

It was indeed too much.

'It hurts really bad...."

It did hurt really bad.

"This... is different.'

The thought flickered through my mind as the heat sank deeper, digging past layers of what I'd come to accept as pain. I'd been burned before-hell, I'd been through every kind of injury imaginable. In the organization's training halls, I'd been broken and put. back together, tested until every nerve screamed.

Fighting demons, I'd felt claws tear into flesh, the cold burn of their mana seeping through my skin. And the Void Dragon... I'd barely come out of that with anything

intact.

But this fire-no, it was something else entirely. It didn't just burn; it invaded. It wasn't content with my body alone. It dug in, gnawing at my mind, warping thoughts that were already raw from being dredged up in the silence. I could feel it, pressing in on my focus, trying to unravel the thread I was clinging to.

'Irina wasn't exaggerating. This fire doesn't just test; it breaks.'

The pain was unpredictable. One second, it would flare, scorching me until I couldn't breathe. Then, it would pull back, leaving a chilling emptiness that almost felt worse. There was no rhythm, no pattern I could adapt to. Just a relentless, shifting wave of agony that kept me on edge, never allowing my body the mercy of adjustment. I couldn't get used to it. Every time I thought I'd found my footing, it twisted, found a

new place to dig in, a new part of me to tear open.

'Focus. Don't let it in.'

But my mind wandered, in spite of myself. I couldn't hold on to a single thought for more than a few seconds before the fire found a way to distract me, to shake me

loose.

'What is this...? It's not just pain-it's in my head. It wants me unfocused. Disoriented!

My breath came in ragged gasps, each inhales like swallowing a mouthful of embers. I tried to hold to something solid, anything that would keep me steady. But even my memories of past training seemed warped here, distant and strangely muted. The memory of Senior Maya's herb resurfaced the bitter taste, the burn as it forced its way through my veins. I'd thought that was the height of endurance then. And the training when I first joined the organization? I'd been sure that would be the last time I'd feel pain that intense. But this fire felt... alive like it was burrowing into my thoughts, finding the memories I wanted hidden, dragging them out into the open. "This... this is what they meant. The flames probe. They find the cracks.

The heat grew sharper, more intense, and my focus wavered again, slipping as the fire pressed harder. Every moment I stayed here, it felt like it was peeling back layers, stripping me down to something I wasn't sure I wanted to see. The pain wasn't the worst part. It was the feeling of vulnerability, of having nowhere to hide from myself. 'Am I just.... passing the time with this rambling? Trying to escape my own mind?'

A flicker of doubt settled in, prickling like another flame. Was this just a distraction, another excuse not to face what lay at the heart of this fire? I gritted my teeth, feeling frustration bubble up against the flames, a resistance I knew wouldn't hold for long.

'It hurts. It hurts really bad...'

The thought came unbidden, raw, and unfiltered. For all my preparation, my training, there was no denying it. This was pain on a level I hadn't imagined-because it was

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different. It didn't stop at the body, didn't settle at the skin. It burned through, reaching places I hadn't wanted to be exposed.

'I'm... going to feel this in my mind for a long time, aren't I?'

But as much as I wanted to pull back, to shield myself, I knew that wouldn't work here.

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