When I woke again, pain assaulted my senses. I was back in my body once more. The brief interlude in Master Tempest’s hidden realm made things worse, since I had to get used to the pain again. It took me a few moments.

So that’s what Master Tempest meant when he said that it would hurt.

That liar! Aurora said. He didn’t heal you at all!

Once I pushed through the pain, I examined my body with my divine sense. Aurora was right. While my vitality had been restored, the damage to my body remained. I would live, but it would take me a while to recover to the point where I could move. It would take me even longer to recover fully.

My broken spine, in particular, would take a while to fix. At least with the way it was broken, I was just paraplegic, not quadriplegic. Not that it mattered, given the state of my arms. And the rest of my body.

‘At least I’m alive,’ I said to Aurora.

If you can call this living!

‘I can come back from this. It will just take time.’

Aurora snorted in my mind. I could feel her discontent. However, underneath it, I felt her fear and worry.

Before I tried to comfort her, I looked out with my divine sense. The scene before me was almost exactly the same one I last saw. It looked like only a few seconds had passed.

The fiery lioness that was my mother continued to fight the Great Horned Wolf, with Annabelle by her side. The soldiers from House Icefall and the adventurers from the Icefall Adventurers Guild stood far off to the side, watching the fight with wide eyes. This included Lord Icefall and Guildmaster Sinclair, who were both heavily injured.

My father hovered in the air, standing atop the flying magical item he brought with him. His head whipped around, as if he were searching for something. Lorelei, Leroy, and Corie ran in my direction. Now that the Black Wolf Gang was dead, there was no one left to hinder them.

The storm Father had summoned was still there. It hadn’t weakened at all. In fact, I sensed it growing stronger. I had a bad premonition about this.

The wind howled and whipped about. Thunder rumbled and roared. Lightning flashed across the sky, revealing the silhouette of a massive figure through the dark storm clouds. This figure had its hand raised, as if it were about to throw a spear at me.

No, not a spear. A bolt of lightning.

Oh fuck.

The figure threw the bolt of lightning. My disciples almost reached my location at the same time that the lightning hit me.

Tempest, you motherfu-…

The world turned white as pain unlike anything I had ever felt before filled my entire being. It far surpassed the pain I felt when the Great Horned Wolf struck me. It surpassed anything I had ever experienced before, in this life or any other, and I had experienced a lot.

It felt like…Well, it felt as if lightning coursed through every fiber of my being. So this was what Master Tempest actually meant when he said it would hurt.

This wasn’t ordinary lightning either. It was composed of a mix of divine energy and immortal mana. In that regard, it was akin to the lightning a cultivator faced when undergoing the heavenly tribulation.

However, unlike the lightning from the heavenly tribulation, this lightning repaired my body rather than damaging it. Wherever it went, it healed the damage I sustained during this battle. My bones, my flesh, my internal organs. The lightning healed everything. However, even after it healed me, the lightning didn’t subside. It continued to surge throughout my entire body.

Lightning made of divine energy and immortal mana. Because of the body cultivation technique I practiced, it was perfect for refining and tempering my body.

I didn’t know if this was deliberate on Tempest’s part, but rather than waste time questioning it, I took advantage of this opportunity while I still had the chance. I didn’t know when I would get another.

I fought through the pain and used my own divine energy to direct the lightning coursing through my being. First I channeled it through my storm dragon blood, turning it into storm dragon divine energy/immortal mana, then used it to refine my body. When Aurora realized what I was doing, she did what she could to help.

My body didn’t expel impurities as I used divine energy and immortal mana to refine it. Instead, the lightning burned those impurities away. My body became stronger, tougher, and purer. I rose through the “small realms” of the First Rank of body cultivation at a rapid pace. I hit the fourth, the fifth, the sixth, and so on.

While it felt like the lightning lasted for forever, I knew it only lasted for about ten seconds or so. In those ten seconds, I reached the peak of the First Rank of body cultivation. While I could have tried to break through to the Second Rank, I refrained. Trying and failing here would cause considerable damage to my body. Instead, I would wait until I got my hands on the storm dragon blood that Master Tempest promised me.

The lightning disappeared, and the pain disappeared with it. The sudden lack of pain was so sharp and severe, it almost hurt, ironically enough. It took me a few seconds to get used to it. When I did, I felt fine. Scratch that. I felt good. Great, even.

Now that I was at the peak of the First Rank of body cultivation, no mundane weapon could harm me. Hell, I was now so tough that I could probably survive a First Circle spell of the ninth thread even without a Protection Talisman. It would hurt, and cause considerable damage, but I could survive it.

When I realized just how much I had gained from this battle, I let out a whoop of laughter. The sound of my voice sounded sweet to my ears. Since my body had been healed, my mundane senses worked again. I opened my eyes to find the storm clouds dispersing. There was no sign of the figure.

It was still late afternoon, though the sun was setting. It would soon be evening.

I stood up and looked around. Mother was still fighting the Great Horned Wolf, though it seemed that their fight would end soon. However, no one was paying attention to them. Instead, they all looked at me, their eyes were wide with amazement. Everyone, except my disciples that is.

“Master!” Lorelei called out.

She slammed into me, pulling me into a bone breaking hug. Well, bone breaking for a regular mortal. I just felt mild discomfort, despite how hard she squeezed me. Leroy and Corie were not that far behind. Corie joined Lorelei in giving me a hug, while Leroy hovered nearby.

“Young master,” Leroy said, staring at me. “Wha-…How-…”

It amused me to see the normally reserved and stoic man so flustered. Of course, considering how I looked before Tempest healed me, I didn’t blame him. Thanks to my divine sense, I knew just how bad it was. I had looked like a pile of pulped meat and broken bones. It had not been a pretty sight.

Tempest’s healing only affected my body, so my clothes remained bloody and torn.

Lorelei and Corie pulled away from me, their eyes red.

“I was so worried when I saw what happened,” Corie said, wiping her eyes. “I thought you were dead when that giant wolf hit you. How did you survive that?”

I put my hands on my hips and puffed my chest up.

“You underestimate me,” I said. “I can handle a trifling little blow like that. That’s just how amazing I am.”

It was complete and utter bullshit. The only reason why I said something like that was to reassure my disciples and alleviate their worries. From the looks on their faces, my disciples couldn’t decide between buying said bullshit, or calling me out on it.

“What was that lightning?” Lorelei asked, sidestepping the issue altogether. “It was…”

She trailed off. I grinned at her.

“Keep it a secret,” I whispered in a conspiratorial tone. “But let’s just say that you and I have something in common now, Lorelei.”

It took my disciples a few moments to get it. When they did, their eyes widened.

“Young master,” Leroy said, speaking in a quiet voice “Does that mean you’re…?” He paused. “Does this mean you’re a Chosen now?”

I nodded. I could feel a bit of Master Tempest’s power inside of me, resting near my forehead. With an effort of will, I could use that power to reveal Master Tempest’s mark, just like what Lorelei could do.

Before any of us could say anything else, a presence swooped down from above and landed next to us. It was Father. He rode in on a flying magical item that looked like a fan made of feathers. That was new. Either he recently purchased it, or he borrowed it from someone.

Regardless, it was lucky that he had it. Otherwise, I doubted my parents and Annabelle would’ve arrived in time to help fight against the Black Wolf Gang.

Which reminded me, what the hell were they doing here? How had they found us? I was grateful, but confused by their presence. Especially Annabelle’s. I thought she would have been back in Sunheart by now. What was she doing here, in the Icefall Region, traveling with my parents?

“Gabriel,” Father said, interrupting my thoughts.

He marched up to me. My disciples backed away to give us some space. I bowed as he approached.

Despite how nervous I felt at seeing him and Mother, a part of me sighed with relief at their presence. I had missed my family, and I was happy to see them again, despite the circumstances.

There was a lot that I needed to tell him and Mother, and even more that I wanted to tell them. The question was, where did I begin?

“Father,” I said, suddenly feeling nervous. “I-…”

Before I could even finish speaking, Father grabbed me and pulled me into a tight hug. This surprised me so much that I didn’t know how to react. Father loved me and my siblings, despite his stern nature. He revealed it in small ways, in the little things he did for us. He was never one for overt displays of emotion. So for him to hug me out in the open like this was quite shocking.

It revealed just how strongly he felt at the moment.

Father didn’t say a word as he hugged me. After I got over my shock, I returned the embrace. We stayed like that for several seconds, before he pulled away, though he kept his hands on my shoulders.

For a brief moment, my father’s expression revealed a glimpse of the fear, worry, and relief he felt. However, that moment passed and his usual stern mask snapped back into place.

“Gabriel,” he said in a stern voice. His grip on my shoulders tightened. “Explain yourself. Now.”

“Um,” I said, trying to buy time. “I’m not sure where to start, Father.”

His grip tightened even further. Thanks to my body cultivation, it didn’t hurt. That didn’t stop a pit from opening up in my stomach. From his tone, I could tell that Father was monumentally angry with me.

“You can start by telling me exactly what you’re doing in this place,” Father said. “Or explaining what you meant when you said that you joined the Adventurers Guild. Oh, I know. Why don’t you explain how you survived being struck by the most powerful lightning bolt I have ever witnessed in my entire life. Not only that, but you seem completely unharmed.”

Yep. He was pissed. Would he be even more pissed if I explained that the lightning bolt actually healed me after I almost died? Not only that, but it strengthened my body?

I opened my mouth to explain, but then something caught my eye. Due to our respective positions, I saw Mother fighting the Great Horned Wolf over my father’s shoulder. She had pinned the Great Horned Wolf down, and was about to go in for the kill.

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“Wait!” I shouted.

One of the reasons why Lord Icefall went with a tracking spell was so he could capture the leadership of the Black Wolf Gang and search their base for clues as to who hired them. Given everything I went through to help him, I was interested in the answer to that question as well.

I pulled free of Father’s grip and used Lightning Flash to head in Mother’s direction. There was a limit to how far I could travel with each use of Lightning Flash, however, and Mother was quite far away from me. I had to use the movement technique two more times to reach her.

“Mother, stop!” I said, between each use.

Thankfully, she heard me because she paused just before the fiery lioness ripped the Great Horned Wolf’s throat out.

“Mother, don’t kill him,” I said when I got close enough. “We need him alive.”

One of the fiery lioness’ eyes looked in my direction.

“Why?” Mother asked, her voice echoing out from the fiery lioness.

“We can’t question him if he’s dead,” I said. “He’s the leader of the group that was hired to do…” I gestured to the battlefield all around us. “…all of this. We need to find out who hired him.”

The Great Horned Wolf, who was covered in dozens of cauterized wounds, nodded.

“How exactly do you plan on containing this beast and questioning him?” Mother asked, her voice filled with menace.

The jaws of the fiery lioness closed, just a little, and I heard sizzling as the lioness’ fangs started to sink into the Great Horned Wolf’s throat. The smell of burnt flesh filled the air.

“He can take on human form.” I looked around to find Lord Icefall and Guildmaster Sinclair standing not too far away. “Do either of you have Nullicite manacles?”

They stared at me, looking a little dazed, before Lord Icefall nodded.

“I brought some,” he said. “Just in case.”

I looked at Mother again, and gestured towards Lord Icefall, as if to say “See?”. The fiery lioness stared at me for several long seconds, before she pulled her fangs away from the Great Horned Wolf’s throat.

“Do as my son says, and I will spare your life,” Mother said. “Resist, and I will burn you to ash.”

The Great Horned Wolf nodded without saying a word. He started to shrink, until he was human again. Because his transformation earlier destroyed his clothes, he was completely naked. The leader of the former Black Wolf Gang was a middle-aged man with short black hair, a lean build, and somewhat lupine features.

“I surrender,” he said, holding his hands up. He had a raspy voice.

Lord Icefall approached, pulling out a pair of Nullicite manacles. When he placed the manacles on the leader of the former Black Wolf Gang, I relaxed a little. The manacles would prevent the Great Horned Wolf from accessing his mana. They would also reduce his strength and prevent him from transforming into his true form. This should be enough, at least until we found a better way to contain him.

Lord Icefall barked out some orders, and his soldiers took custody of the Great Horned Wolf. However, Mother didn’t disperse the fiery lioness. Instead, she turned and stared me down. Having a giant, fiery lioness glaring at me was not a pleasant experience.

“Gabriel Alexander Sturm,” Mother said, enunciating each word. “You have a lot of explaining to do, young man.”

Oh shit. She used my full name. I was in serious trouble. Father flew in and landed behind me. With my divine sense, I saw him cross his arms and give me a stern glare. I was trapped.

“Soooo,” I said, letting out a nervous chuckle. “About that…”

This was going to be a long night.

----------------------------------------

It took me close to two hours to explain everything to my parents. To avoid airing our dirty laundry in front of others, Mother dispersed the lioness and dragged me away from everyone else, with Father following along. She didn’t stop until we reached a hill a fair distance away from the House Icefall outpost.

Annabelle watched us go, a complicated expression on her face.

Once we had some semblance of privacy, I explained everything to my parents. Joining the Adventurers Guild, the various gigs I had done, and why I was out here helping House Icefall defend the mythril deposit. I left nothing out, at least when it came to adventuring and such.

Since we were out in the open, despite our change of location, I didn’t mention anything about cultivation, the memories of my past lives, or the fact that I was now Master Tempest’s Chosen. I would wait until we were in a secure location first before I told them about all of that.

I kept an eye out using my divine sense, just in case, but it didn’t hurt to be careful.

Honestly, I was relieved that I had an excuse to delay telling my parents about my reincarnation. One of my biggest fears was that my parents would reject me and no longer consider me their son. The longer I could put that off, the better.

As I explained things to my parents, the sun set and night fell. Everyone else focused on cleaning up the battlefield and tending to the wounded and injured. Since we were far from any kind of settlement, people brought the injured up to the House Icefall outpost, which was the closest shelter around. My disciples helped. No doubt to avoid my parents. I would have to explain that as well.

Fuck, there was a lot I needed to tell my parents. Just thinking about it gave me a headache and filled me with dread.

It didn’t help that both Father and Mother pressured me with their auras. They kept their touch light, so I didn’t keel over and pass out, but they pressured me enough to let me know that they were unhappy with me.

It was an unpleasant two hours. I felt like a teen who got caught doing something naughty by his parents.

Actually, that was exactly what was going on.

“Why, Gabriel?” Mother asked, pinching the bridge of her nose. “Just, why?” She sighed. “I don’t even know where to start with you.”

“You were supposed to quietly reflect upon your past actions while you were up here,” Father said, standing next to Mother. “Not disgrace the family name further and almost get yourself killed in the process. What were you thinking by joining the Adventurers Guild? You’re a Sturm. Becoming an adventurer is beneath you.”

I looked away. Not out of shame, but because I didn’t know what to say. I loved my parents, but I didn’t think they would understand if I told them that I liked being an adventurer. House society considered it a lowly profession, but I enjoyed the freedom it afforded me. I enjoyed earning my cultivation resources, instead of having them handed to me.

It was also something that the Gabriel Sturm that my parents knew would never say. Back then, I considered the resources my House poured into me as my due. Telling my parents that I now wanted the exact opposite would just make them more concerned, and lead them to suspect the truth. I mean, Father already suspected that I might be possessed. This would just make things worse.

That left telling them the other reason why I joined the Adventurers Guild.

“When I left Sturm Manor,” I said, looking back at them. “I said that I would rectify my mistakes. Joining the Adventurers Guild was a part of that.”

Father narrowed his eyes at me.

“You planned this, didn’t you?” he asked. “Even back then, you planned on joining the Adventurers Guild.”

“Yes.”

Mother stopped pinching the bridge of her nose and glared at me.

“I don’t know if that makes it better or worse than if you had joined the Adventurers Guild on impulse,” she said. “Regardless, it doesn’t matter. Not only did you further shame the family name by becoming an adventurer, but you also lied to us.”

“I didn’t lie to you,” I said after some hesitation. “I just didn’t tell you everything.”

“Deception by omission is still deception, Gabriel,” Father said. “You didn’t tell us the truth. When you suggested that I send you to the Icefall Region, you had ulterior motives. Tell me, son, how can we trust you after that?”

Okay, hold the fuck up. I didn’t tell them the full truth, but that was going a little far.

“It’s not like you trusted me anyway,” I said, pointing a finger at him. “Not only did you saddle me with a babysitter, but you told him to watch me for any signs of possession.” Father’s eyes widened slightly. “Oh yes, I know about that. Leroy told me. I'll tell you the same thing I told him back then. I swear on my soul that I am Lord Gabriel Sturm, your son.”

As before, when I last swore a soul oath, I felt a soundless click in my soul. Nothing happened after that.

“See?” I asked, a bitter smile on my face. “I’m still your son. I’m not a demon or disembodied spirit that stole his body, so you can rest assured on that front.”

Bitterness and resentment filled my voice. I hadn’t realized until now just how much that still bothered me.

Father’s expression grew tight, while Mother looked away.

“I’m sorry, Gabriel,” Father said in a quiet voice. “After what happened to you, and the way you acted after the duel with Lady Annabelle, I was worried. I didn’t actually think you were possessed, but I couldn’t discount the possibility.”

I snorted and shook my head. While I could understand where he was coming from, that didn’t make it hurt any less. What made it worse was that it wasn’t that far from the truth. While I was Gabriel Sturm, I wasn’t just Gabriel Sturm.

“It doesn’t matter,” I said. “Yes, when I suggested that you send me up here, I had already planned on joining the Adventurers Guild. That was part of my plan to fix my mistakes and make things right. I wanted to become self-sufficient. I didn’t want to become a burden on the House anymore. Instead of wasting resources on me, you could give them to Kaylee and Roland.”

Father’s eyes narrowed.

“Do you think us paupers?” he asked. “Do you think that House Sturm has fallen so low that its First Son needs to become an adventurer to support himself?”

“Yes.”

My answer must have caught him off guard, because he just blinked at me in response.

“Our House has fallen far, Father,” I said. “It has been a slow, gradual, and steady fall. My actions towards Lady Annabelle have only made it worse. At least by adventuring, I can ease some of the burden on you and Mother.” I pointed in the direction of the House Icefall outpost. “And look at the results. My adventuring, which you so look down upon, helped me form a provisional military and economic alliance with House Icefall. They have access to a massive mythril deposit, one with a volume of one hundred and twenty cubic miles. Five percent of that is ours, all because of my actions so far. You just need to make it official.”

Father clenched his jaw.

“We would get more if we just took the deposit for ourselves,” he said, though I could tell from his tone that he wasn’t being serious.

I snorted, and answered as if he was being serious anyway.

“There is no way we could hold onto a mythril deposit of that size,” I said. “Not with our current strength. Besides, House Icefall already promised it to House Solaria. One of their representatives will arrive soon to verify House Icefall’s claims.” I crossed my arms. “And stealing the mythril deposit and presenting it to House Solaria ourselves is beneath us. We do not bully the weak. You’re the one who told me that, Father.”

Unfortunately, I had forgotten that particular lesson when it came to Annabelle. Not to say that she was weak, but if I had remembered Father’s words, maybe things would have gone differently. Of course, if they had, I wouldn’t have remembered my past lives.

Or maybe I would have. Master Tempest and Terra had their own plans for me. Maybe they would have arranged something. Unless the situation with Annabelle was their doing. However, I didn’t think it was. I almost died. It was through sheer luck that I survived. My death would have inconvenienced them.

“Even if we accept your reasoning,” Mother said, worry in her eyes. “Couldn’t you have chosen a different path? You want to become self-sufficient? Fine, I can accept that. But did you have to become an adventurer? There is a reason why there aren’t many old adventurers. It’s a dangerous occupation with a high mortality rate. I almost lost you once. I never wanted to go through that again. Yet, from the report Leroy sent us, you almost died several times ever since you became an adventurer. Do you know how that made me feel, Gabriel?”

Tears filled her eyes. She covered her mouth and looked away. Guilt filled me.

I knew that Leroy planned on telling my parents about my activities, but did he have to tell them that much?

“Not only that, but we heard rumors of your activities,” Father said. “Did you really challenge Lord Bertrand of House Rosewood to a duel?”

“You heard about that?” I asked.

“Half of Sunheart must have heard about it by now,” Father said. “There are several rumors going around about you, including ones about you becoming an adventurer. At first I dismissed them, but when I received messages from both you and Leroy, I realized that they were true.”

“Oh.”

Well, that explained a lot. No wonder my parents were pissed about me becoming an adventurer. All of the most important Houses within the Solarian Empire must have heard about it by now. I had wanted to show my parents the more positive aspects of my adventuring career before that happened.

At least I had something to show for it. Our five percent of the mythril deposit should be enough to stop our House from falling. If my parents agreed to the arranged marriage between our House and House Icefall, we would get even more.

“What were you thinking, Gabriel?” Mother asked, her voice thick with emotion. She wiped her eyes. “From what we heard, Lord Bertrand appointed a Second Circle wizard as his champion. You’re just in the First Circle right now. How could you take such a risk?”

“I had it all under contr-…” I started to say, but stopped.

Wait a minute. I had restored my First Circle. Why weren’t my parents surprised by this? When I last saw them, my Circles were still shattered. By wizard standards, I was a cripple. Yet, despite that, my parents hadn’t shown any reaction to my current state, even when I used Lightning Flash.

“Why aren’t you surprised about my First Circle being restored?” I asked, narrowing my eyes. “In fact, you haven’t shown any reaction to that at all. It’s almost as if you knew or expected it.”

Both of my parents stilled.

“We heard the rumors,” Mother said in an unconvincing voice.

“Leroy sent us a report,” Father said at the exact same time.

They stopped and looked at each other when they each realized what the other was saying. I narrowed my eyes further. Okay, what was going on? I have never seen my parents act this flustered and uncoordinated before.

After a moment, my parents both nodded.

“We heard rumors about it,” Father said. “And Leroy confirmed it through a report.”

“You’re lying,” I said. “If that had been the case, you would have asked about my Circles earlier, instead of berating me for becoming an adventurer.”

Father opened his mouth, but Mother put a hand on his arm.

“Enough, Bryce,” she said. “At this point, we might as well come clean.”

I blinked at them.

“What are you talking about?” I asked.

“We know about your Master,” Mother said. “And what he has been teaching you.”

“What? How?”

I had only just become Master Tempest’s disciple. Hell, he hadn’t even had time to teach me anything yet.

“We’re the ones who asked him to help you,” Father said. “Well, your mother did. We paid a heavy price for it, but it was worth it.” He snorted. “Did you really think we wouldn’t do anything about your shattered Circles? You’re our son. You might have made a serious error in judgment, but we still love you.”

As touched as I was by Father’s words, and I was, they just left me even more confused.

“I’m just surprised that they responded so fast,” Mother said. “At very least, I expected them to reply to my letter first. I didn’t think they would send Grandfather Gabe to you directly. And I’m surprised that he arrived from the Lunarian Kingdom so quickly.”

I stared at them in confusion.

“What are you talking about?” I asked. “Who is Grandfather Gabe?”

My parents stared at me, their confusion matching mine.

What the hell was going on?