Protoganist's Sidekick Fights Back-Chapter 49: Star Forged Baptism - 1

In the days that followed, Su Kang pushed himself further.

By night, he practiced the Star Tempering Exercise, guiding thin wisps of Astral Qi through his meridians — breaking and reforging them with each pulse of celestial energy.

The foreign Qi felt alien, almost hostile — Yet he persisted, forcing his body to adapt, to accept the subtle intrusion without resistance.

By day, he expanded the defenses of his mind. His Sanctuary of the Unwavering Soul grew more refined.

The changes were subtle yet undeniable. His mind became clearer, his Qi control sharper, and his spiritual sea more crystalline.

He felt lighter, faster, stronger — not in flesh, but in essence.

Where once his mind had been a chaotic storm of clashing voices, now there was only silence — an unwavering clarity that allowed him to glimpse the world with newfound precision.

He felt a new calmness that he once didn't have, a profound sense that he was on the right path, no matter how arduous.

He had passed the first trial.

The next stage was coming.

The Star-Forged Physique—a body cultivation technique that would refine his body to become a celestial vessel.

The wind howled through the jagged peaks, carrying the biting chill of the night. Silver mist coiled around the desolate mountaintop where Su Kang stood, prepared.

The array beneath his feet pulsed with a faint glow, spirit stones humming with latent energy.

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Two vials rested in his hands — one filled with a swirling silver-white liquid that seemed to pulse with an ancient aura, the other containing a thick golden pill exuding gentle warmth.

Astral Essence — the celestial power that would break his body apart.

Healing Elixir — the lifeline that would piece him back together.

Both had been provided by Fate. Without the elixir, his body would be reduced to nothing but scattered ashes beneath the heavens.

"Are you ready for it? Do you need more time?"

Fate's voice echoed in his mind.

Su Kang's eyes flickered, his grip tightening around the vials.

"Yes, I'm prepared. Let's do it."

He closed his eyes, breathing deeply. Hours passed in silence as he adjusted his mind and body — letting small traces of Astral Qi flow through his newly opened meridians. This was the final moment of preparation.

A single drop of Astral Essence floated before him, pulsing with cold, silver light.

Even without touching it, he could feel its power — dangerous, untamed, like a primordial beast barely contained within a fragile shell.

"Once consumed, your body will be destroyed. The elixir will heal you but you will have to suffer pain."

Fate's voice carried a trace of caution, warning Su Kang before the main event.

"There's no room for hesitation now."

This was not just about power — it was about survival.

It was about protecting those he loved.

He reached forward, grasped the veil between his fingers, and swallowed the silver drop.

The world exploded.

A searing firestorm ignited within him, starting from his stomach and spreading through his veins like molten steel.

It was not heat — but dissolution. Flesh and blood were reduced to their very essence, stripped down to the fundamental particles of existence.

His muscles spasmed violently, twisting and contorting beyond recognition. His body collapsed onto the cold stone platform, bones snapping under the pressure.

A sound tore from his throat — not a scream, but something raw and primal.

His fingers trembled, reaching blindly for the elixir.

With the last shreds of his will, he uncorked and swallowed the golden pill.

But he did not felt relief.

The Astral Essence continued its rampage — dissolving him from the inside out, while the elixir struggled to knit him back together.

It was a battle of forces beyond comprehension — creation against destruction, order against chaos.

And his body was the battlefield.

His bones shattered into fragments — only to be reforged stronger, denser, streaked with faint silver veins.

His muscles were stripped away layer by layer, then reborn through endless cycles of agony.

His meridians, already battered, finally reached their limit. A brittle snap echoed from within.

One after another, his meridians shattered — unable to withstand the relentless invasion of Astral Qi.

The flood of celestial energy surged uncontrollably through his ruined body, seeping into every corner of his being.

His spiritual consciousness trembled as Astral Qi brushed past it — wisps of celestial power carrying an unfathomable will.

The walls of his Sanctuary of the Unwavering Soul flickered, distorted by the mere touch of such a energy.

His mind reeled beneath the pressure — on the verge of collapse.

And then...His vision blurred.

He floated within an endless void, where light and darkness coiled in eternal embrace.

Countless stars flickered in the distance — indifferent, eternal, and utterly foreign.

They burned without heat, illuminating nothing, yet their presence carved laws into the very fabric of space.

A giant silver star hung far away, suspended in the abyss. Its light was neither bright nor dim — yet it radiated a presence that made his very existence feel small.

The void itself seemed to breathe, carrying an unfathomable rhythm that bypassed his senses and echoed directly into his soul.

Su Kang's mind trembled, as if something unseen was trying to erase his very thoughts — an ancient, unfathomable concept that defied all his understanding.

The star did not emit pressure — yet the cracks on his spiritual sanctuary deepened simply by standing in its presence.

His willpower on the edge of collapse.

"My soul is my sanctuary... No harm shall enter... No fear shall linger..."

Desperately, Su Kang recited the mantra of the Unwavering Soul, clinging to his last vestiges of clarity.

The vision instantly faded as soon as it appeared.

A faint, formless mark had been branded onto the depths of his spiritual consciousness — silent, unseen, yet undeniably present.

In the waking world, his body was still undergoing its brutal transformation.

The destruction had slowed — but the healing had not.

His newly regenerated cells adapted, slowly acclimating to the violent nature of Astral Qi. His bones, now streaked with silver veins, pulsed faintly with starlight.

His muscles, reforged through endless agony, carried latent cosmic power within every fiber.

His hair shimmered under the moonlight, faintly dusted with astral radiance.

The pain no longer consumed him. It became distant — like an echo from a past life, carved into the depths of his soul.

Su Kang's eyelids fluttered open. His body felt... different.

He closed his eyes and sank his consciousness inward.

The Sanctuary of the Unwavering Soul stood silently at the center of his spiritual sea—its once pristine walls now marred by faint hairline cracks.

They spread across the mental fortress like fractures in ancient stone—subtle, but undeniable.

Even without looking, Su Kang knew what had caused them.

The vision.

That giant blue star hanging in the endless void—boundless, silent, eternal. The mere memory of it made his spiritual consciousness tremble.

Had it not been for the Sanctuary of the Unwavering Soul, his consciousness would have crumbled under the immense boundless pressure.

But that vision left behind something.

A small, faint silver mark hidden deep within his spiritual consciousness.

Yet there was no time to dwell on such things now.

The silver mist still leaked from his body—thin wisps of excess Astral Qi dissipating into the night with each passing breath.

Every thread of it was precious, far too valuable to simply waste into the atmosphere.

"I can't afford to waste such precious power."

His voice was hoarse, barely above a whisper.

Gritting his teeth, Su Kang forced himself to sit up. His body responded instantly — smooth, precise, as if every muscle and joint had been recalibrated for perfect motion.

He could not afford to leave this power unrefined.

With a deep breath, Su Kang crossed his legs once more and closed his eyes—stilling his mind despite the exhaustion.