Liam returned to reality when Dominic and the fireball crashed into the ground, exploding into a rain of flames.

Not long had passed in the real world, and Liam’s condition was the same as always. Nothing had changed, but something had shifted, expanded, and deepened. It belonged to him and didn’t.

Honestly, Liam wasn’t sure there was any difference anymore.

The one thing Liam knew, however, was that the Primal Urge was still active, and he wasn’t fine with its drawbacks anymore. He wanted all its advantages with none of the insanity.

Liam focused on his loud, chaotic mind. Everything was as he had left it, but a second hiss rose through it now, one carrying a more familiar voice.

The noise didn’t quiet down. That hadn’t been the point anyway. Liam accepted and even welcomed the Demonic Art’s backlash, but he wanted control, and not in the primal, reckless sense the technique provided.

Truth be told, the Primal Urge had already shown signs of that. Liam was a rooting expert now, so he could wield it how its creator had intended, and he had accumulated experience with it.

Even the current battle had featured improvements from the fight against the level three snake. It wasn’t exactly control, but Liam had still relied on a more complex strategy, albeit only in the form of throwing alchemical products at Lancelot.

But Liam wanted more now, far more. His previous standards were gone, replaced by greater ones. He simply would not accept the technique’s insanity to take over him anymore.

Liam hissed deeply under his breath, confident he could overpower that drawback. He was the son of the Ancestral Snake, and no techniques had been created with him in mind. Everything had been built on a lower standard.

Besides, few could boast the thorough mental conditioning Liam had gone through, none of which had been by choice.

Liam had dealt with the auditory hallucination since the Bloodline Screening, the hiss since his dantian’s awakening, the Divine Cult’s brainwashing, the fatigue from his extreme alchemical training, the Primal Urge itself, and the Aura’s blowbacks.

That list didn’t even account for all the attacks Liam’s mind had suffered indirectly, and he had survived each one, strengthening it, making him perfect for the task.

Liam’s own hiss spread through his mind, enveloping its chaos through sheer force of will. He opened his bleeding mouth, releasing another one of those low cries, before a grunt finally escaped his throat.

"I ... Am ...," Liam growled between his gritted teeth. "...An ...Alchemist."

As if to reply to the statement, a pale-blue pill appeared in Liam’s broken hand. He let his shoulder crash into the ground to seize it with his other hand, immediately bringing it to his mouth.

Realistically speaking, Liam’s talent and the additional protection of the Core-Sheltering Pill made his tolerance to alchemical impurities far higher than anyone else’s.

Liam had been playing it as safely as possible due to what had happened to his Master, but that couldn’t mean ignoring the advantages of his main calling.

The rank 2 healing pill melted inside Liam and got to work. There was a lot of internal damage to address first, a concerning amount actually, but that couldn’t stop him. His Brother was in an almost identical condition, and he had still fought, so he couldn’t shame himself with any less.

Liam took two deep breaths, waiting until he felt that enough structural stability had returned, before pushing himself up. He straightened slowly, his footing unstable, his stomach turning upside-down whenever he tried to go faster, but his figure eventually became vertical.

Something matched that achievement. Red heat flashed above Liam before Lancelot landed heavily at his side. He tried to remain on his feet, but his exhaustion and injuries won, sending him to one knee with a ragged breath.

And still, Lancelot didn’t allow himself to collapse yet. Healing products were circulating through him, giving him the energy to remain awake, and his passion wouldn’t let him risk missing his Brother’s reply.

"Let me hear it, Brother," Lancelot laughed, gasping for air. "Let me hear your fire."

Liam didn’t reply. He didn’t even need to nod when it came to Lancelot. He knew he would feel his agreement, and the answer was about to arrive anyway.

The rain of fire waned, replaced by a series of fuming craters. Dominic straightened from the biggest one, his figure hunched back, his presence unstable, as if his Qi had yet to decide whether to aid him or leave him forever.

But danger drew close. Dominic’s instincts forced him to lift his tired gaze in time to catch the answer, too.

"I’m Liam from Krosstoen," Liam announced, half-hissing, half-shouting, carefully stepping forward, "Disciple of the great Horace Rauret!"

A trace of recognition descended upon Dominic. The Shrouded Desert Sect was distant and in a different Outer Circle. However, some pieces of information were only available to similar forces, especially when they were still close enough to their source.

Yet, Dominic couldn’t focus on that.

Each of Liam’s steps was firmer than the previous ones, and that wasn’t all. His black Qi kept blowing from his figure in greater quantity than earlier, enveloping his surroundings in a dark air that radiated green hues.

Wherever the black Qi went, the world sizzled and receded. At some point, the corrosion even spread on its own, as if the ground that had been infected began to echo those poisonous properties.

"One year ago," Liam shouted, "I killed a rooting expert as a foundation expert!"

The healing pill did more work, providing greater structural stability, which added confidence to Liam’s advance.

"Three weeks ago," Liam hissed, "I killed a level three magical beast as a rooting expert!"

Such achievements were basically unheard of in the cultivation world, but Liam took it one step further because it was time to announce his newborn arrogance.

"Next year," Liam declared, grabbing his broken wrist, a cracking noise resounding as he popped it back into place, "I’ll hunt branching experts for scraps!"

"Roar, my Brother!" Lancelot laughed from behind Liam. "Shout your passion to the world!" 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

Thunder resounded through the broken wasteland. Liam unleashed the Lightning Step as soon as his body felt able to handle it, reaching Dominic in no time.

Liam swung his fist, only for his knuckles to hit unmovable stone. Dominic had enforced a modicum of control over his dispersing Qi, activating the black veins and placing his right forearm in the punch’s trajectory.

Liam’s skin was too broken to shatter further. Blood spurted from his hand as it bounced back, only for another thunderous noise to resound, sending his whole body in the opposite direction.

Dominic’s body shook as Liam slammed on that raised forearm, grabbing it with both hands. His fingers released his black Qi as he expressed all the power the Metal Hand had given them, scraping against that impossibly solid skin.

"You don’t know how high the sky is," Dominic chuckled, his other hand going on Liam’s head, ready to crush it, only for a suppressed gasp to escape his throat.

Dominic’s left arm shook and fell limply at his side. Even his black veins receded. The energy that was keeping him alive stopped working, and he understood what was happening when he saw black trails flowing out of his figure.

Liam’s core exerted unnatural compulsion. Just like with the alchemical flame, his true Qi could turn anything into a poisonous substance, including someone else’s energy.

Naturally, if it hadn’t been for the many injuries and corpse-like condition, Liam would have taken ages to affect Dominic. However, Liam felt those innate defenses receding now, and his fingers finally stabbed the forearm.

"My goals are beyond the Heavens!" Liam hissed in Dominic’s incredulous face. "If the sky is too high, I’ll bring it down!"

As if to confirm the insane claim, Dominic fell to his knees, both due to his body turning into more of a corpse and under the pressure Liam was exerting.

"In my eyes," Liam continued, his fingers stabbing deeper, "The branching stage is but a minor feat unworthy of celebrations."

It was insane, but it was the truth. Horace Rauret had been beyond that level at his peak, and Liam’s goals involved surpassing him.

"So, Senior," Liam hissed again, leaning down toward Dominic’s face. "Who do YOU think you are?"