Rise of The Abandoned Husband

The pulsing light from the gourd intensified, matching Clara's heartbeat in perfect synchronization. I recognized the phenomenon immediately—this wasn't just resonance; it was recognition. The artifact was responding to her unique energy signature.

"Impossible!" Hanley Poe snarled, his face contorting with rage. "That gourd belongs to the Celestial Craft Pavilion!"

I moved between him and Clara, keeping my voice level. "Clearly, it has other ideas."

Hanley's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Do you know who I am?"

"Hanley Poe, son of the Celestial Craft Pavilion's leader," I replied calmly. "And I'm Liam Knight, Elder of the Celestial Apothecary Guild."

His eyes widened slightly at my title. The Celestial Apothecary Guild wasn't as large as his father's organization, but our reputation for producing miraculous medicines made us respected throughout the cultivation world.

The elderly vendor looked between us, clearly caught in an uncomfortable position. "Perhaps we should discuss this further—"

"There's nothing to discuss," Hanley cut in. "That artifact is coming with me. My father has searched for it for decades."

I studied him for a moment, then reached into my spatial ring once more. "Let's settle this properly, shall we? I'll make one final offer."

I withdrew a small jade bottle, placing it carefully on the counter beside my previous offerings. The bottle emanated a faint golden glow, and when I removed the stopper, a sweet, intoxicating aroma filled the air.

"A Purple-gold Pill," I announced. "Refined by my own hands."

Gasps rippled through the onlookers. The Purple-gold Pill was notoriously difficult to create, requiring not only rare ingredients but also extraordinary skill. Even among senior alchemists, the success rate was dismally low.

The elderly woman's hands trembled as she reached for the bottle. "May I?"

I nodded. She carefully examined the pill inside, its surface gleaming like molten gold with delicate purple veins running through it.

"It's perfect," she whispered, awe in her voice. "I've never seen one with such purity."

Hanley's face had turned an interesting shade of red. "You expect me to believe you refined this yourself? Impossible!"

Instead of arguing, I simply channeled a small amount of my spiritual energy into the pill. It responded instantly, the purple veins pulsing with light, confirming my connection to it.

The vendor looked up at me with newfound respect. "Elder Knight, your reputation is well-deserved. This pill alone is worth more than everything on my stall combined."

She turned to Hanley. "Master Poe, I appreciate your interest, but Elder Knight's offer cannot be refused."

Hanley's jaw clenched so tight I thought his teeth might crack. His guards shifted uncomfortably, sensing their master's mounting fury.

"You'll regret this," he hissed at me. "The Celestial Craft Pavilion doesn't forget insults."

I met his gaze steadily. "Neither do I forget threats."

For a tense moment, I thought he might attack despite the audience. Instead, he spun on his heel and stalked away, his guards hurrying after him.

The vendor quickly wrapped the gourd in a protective cloth and handed it to me. "Elder Knight, please be careful. That young man is vindictive, and his father's influence reaches far."

"I'm aware," I replied, accepting the gourd. "But thank you for your concern."

As we left the market, The Man with the Mustache couldn't contain his excitement. "That was masterful! Did you see his face when you revealed your title? Priceless!"

Clara, walking beside me, seemed unusually quiet. "The gourd feels strange," she finally said. "Like it's sleeping."

I nodded, feeling the same thing. The energy within the gourd had become dormant again, but I could sense its potential power.

"We need to examine it somewhere private," I said. "Back to The Aegis Academy."

---

In my quarters at the academy, I placed the gourd on a table surrounded by protective formations. The Man with the Mustache circled it cautiously, muttering to himself.

"Definitely Ming Dynasty craftsmanship," he said, peering at the faded designs on its surface. "But there's something odd about it. These cracks aren't from damage—they're intentional."

Clara sat cross-legged on the floor, her eyes never leaving the gourd. "It's waiting," she said simply.

"Waiting for what?" I asked.

She shrugged. "Just waiting."

The Man with the Mustache pulled out several talismans from his pockets. "Let's try to wake it up, shall we? These are revelation talismans—they should help us see its true nature."

He carefully placed the yellow paper slips around the gourd in a specific pattern, then activated them with a touch of spiritual energy. The talismans began to glow with a soft golden light.

"Now we wait," he said, settling back.

For several minutes, nothing happened. The talismans continued to glow steadily, but the gourd remained unchanged. I was beginning to think the technique had failed when Clara suddenly stood up.

"It's getting warmer," she announced.

She was right. The temperature in the room was rising noticeably. The air around the gourd began to shimmer like a heat mirage.

"Interesting," The Man with the Mustache murmured, leaning forward despite the heat. "Very interesting indeed."

The cracks in the gourd's surface began to glow with a faint purple light. As we watched, the light intensified, seeping through the cracks like liquid fire.

"Is it supposed to do that?" I asked, my hand moving instinctively toward the hilt of my sword.

"Absolutely not," he replied cheerfully. "This is much better than expected!"

Clara's eyes widened. "It's singing again. Can you hear it?"

I couldn't hear anything, but I could feel a strange vibration in the air. The energy patterns around the gourd were shifting rapidly, reorganizing themselves into complex formations I'd never seen before.

"We should step back," I warned, pulling Clara away from the table.

The Man with the Mustache ignored me, his face alight with fascination as he leaned even closer. "The outer layer is just a shell," he breathed. "The real treasure is inside!"

Before I could pull him back as well, the gourd emitted a high-pitched whine. The cracks widened suddenly, light pouring from them in blinding rays.

"Get down!" I shouted, tackling both Clara and The Man with the Mustache to the floor as the gourd exploded.

But it wasn't a destructive explosion. The outer clay shell disintegrated into fine dust, revealing what lay beneath: a smaller gourd made of what appeared to be pure crystal, glowing with intense purple fire from within.

"By all the gods," The Man with the Mustache whispered, staring up from the floor. "It's a Primal Flame Vessel."

"A what?" I asked, helping Clara to her feet.

"A container for Primal Flame," he explained, his voice hushed with awe. "One of the five elemental primal energies. They say it's the purest form of fire in existence—created at the beginning of the world."

I stared at the crystal gourd, which pulsed with purple flame. No wonder Hanley and his father wanted it so badly. If this truly contained Primal Flame, its value was beyond calculation.

"Can it be used?" I asked, thinking of the potential applications for alchemy.

"Used? Oh, absolutely," The Man with the Mustache nodded vigorously. "Primal Flame is the ultimate heat source for refining. Pills created with it are said to be ten times more potent. Weapons forged in it become legendary artifacts. But—"

He held up a cautioning finger. "—it's notoriously difficult to control. Many masters have been consumed by it, literally burned to ash when they attempted to harness its power."

Clara approached the table again, seemingly unafraid of the glowing vessel. "It's not angry," she said, tilting her head as if listening. "Just... eager. It wants to be used."

I joined her, carefully examining the crystal gourd. The purple flames inside swirled and danced, occasionally forming shapes that almost looked like characters before dissolving again.

"Is it sentient?" I asked.

The Man with the Mustache shrugged. "Primal energies are... complicated. Not truly conscious, but not entirely mindless either. They have will and purpose, in their own way."

I considered our options. Having this artifact was both a tremendous opportunity and a significant risk. Hanley Poe would certainly report back to his father, and the Celestial Craft Pavilion wasn't known for giving up easily on treasures they coveted.

"We need to keep this secret," I decided. "At least until I understand how to use it properly."

The Man with the Mustache nodded in agreement. "Wise choice. But there's one more thing you should know about Primal Flame."

"What's that?"

"It's said to be particularly effective against dark energies," he said, glancing meaningfully at Clara. "It purifies and transforms them."

Clara's eyes widened. "That's why it was singing to me."

I looked between her and the vessel, understanding dawning. Clara's unique constitution as a pure dark energy body made her particularly sensitive to this flame. Perhaps this wasn't a coincidence after all.

"Could it help her?" I asked quietly, thinking of the mysterious dark energy that both empowered and endangered Clara.

The Man with the Mustache stroked his mustache thoughtfully. "Possibly. But it would be extremely dangerous to try without proper guidance."

As we spoke, the crystal gourd suddenly pulsed brighter. Without warning, a thin stream of purple flame shot upward, piercing through the ceiling of my quarters like it wasn't even there.

"What the—" I began, alarmed.

The beam continued rising, shooting straight into the sky above The Aegis Academy. It blazed like a beacon for several seconds before abruptly disappearing back into the vessel.

We stared at the ceiling, which showed no damage despite the flame having passed through it.

"Well," The Man with the Mustache said after a long pause. "That complicates things."

"Everyone in Veridia City will have seen that," I said grimly.

Clara looked up at me, her young face unusually serious. "It was marking its territory," she said. "Showing itself."

I frowned. "Why would it do that?"

"Because," The Man with the Mustache replied, his voice uncharacteristically solemn, "Primal energies can sense their counterparts. That wasn't just a display—it was a challenge."

"A challenge to what?" I asked, though I was beginning to suspect the answer.

He met my eyes steadily. "To whatever other primal forces are hidden in this city. And I guarantee you, Liam, they saw it. And they will respond."

The crystal gourd pulsed again, the purple flames inside swirling faster now, as if excited by the prospect. I stared at it, wondering what chain of events we had just set in motion.

"So much for keeping it secret," I muttered.

Clara reached out, her fingers hovering just above the vessel's surface. "It's not scared," she said softly. "It's been waiting for this for a very long time."

The purple light reflected in her eyes, making them glow with an otherworldly fire. For a moment, I saw something ancient and powerful in her gaze—a reminder that there was much about Clara I still didn't understand.

"Well," I said, settling into a chair and keeping my eyes fixed on the Primal Flame Vessel, "I guess we'd better prepare for visitors."