Two days later
Sion's consciousness clawed its way out of the black void of exhaustion.
His eyes blinked open—not to soft walls or safety, but to a cracked stone ceiling streaked with soot and sand. Flickering torchlight danced across uneven rock, barely holding back the chill that lingered in the subterranean cave nestled beneath a ridge in the desert.
His breath caught. Limbs aching, nerves flaring, he bolted upright—
Where is she?
"Dad! Uncle Sion is awake!" came an excited voice—clear, bright, echoing off sandstone.
Sion spun toward it.
It belongs to a boy—barely two years old—standing beside a raised platform of driftwood, pelts, and enchanted moss.
It was Jael.
"Quiet down," Jalen murmured from the entrance, his voice laced with fatigue and caution. He stepped back inside the cave, carrying a small bundle in his arms—wrapped in sun-shielding silk and secured with spirit-woven bindings.
Sion froze.
"Jalen… is that…? Is she?"
"She's asleep," Jalen said evenly. "She's stable. Don't wake her."
Sion, though excited his daughter was alright, didn't dare breathe too loudly.
Jalen knelt at the platform and carefully laid the baby girl onto a bed softened with desert feathers and sealed with healing runes. With practiced precision, he activated a formation—six shards inserted into carved points around the cradle. A shimmering barrier arose, silencing sound and warding against external qi fluctuations.
Only then did Jalen turn to face Sion.
"How did you end up here—in the Mystic Ground?" he asked. "And why were those bastards trying to kill you and this child?"
Sion's throat tightened.
Memory crashed into him—some moments were bright, but most were jagged, bitter, and steeped in blood. His voice came out low. Broken.
"After you left the Flare family almost two years ago, the rest of us ventured out on a mission to get stronger. I came here to the Rale Continent. I didn't have a plan. I just… wanted power."
He exhaled.
"I chased stories—followed rumors of ruin said to hold legacies left behind by old monsters. And then one day during my search I was chased by a strong spirit beast that almost killed me near the legacy of the Mythical Wind Sword Art master Gareth Carr. The remnant of Master Gareth's spirit sense had not only saved me, but he decided that I was worthy of inheriting his technique after thousands of years awaiting a worthy successor. I didn't really have much choice in the matter at first. When I awakened, I had become a cripple, all my cultivation techniques were gone, and my realm had returned to ruby. Later, I learned it was Gareth's doing. He erased my old cultivation—said it was good, but his was a hundred times better. I had to start from scratch. His technique demanded it.
And after seven months of nonstop training with Master Gareth, I underwent enlightenment in the Garden of Tranquility. I nearly died, though. Thankfully Master Gareth was there to help me through it. He also sacrificed his spirit sense and remaining shelf life and aided me in achieving the star realm in no time."
Jalen said nothing.
Sion continued.
"After that, I joined the Elemental Sword Sect. They're huge in the Bellini state—one of the top sects that even the royal family cannot ignore. Not only to protect myself, but I thought I could build a name."
He looked down.
"They treated me like trash there. As expected, I was of low birth after all. I had no reputable background here. That never discouraged me, though. I fought my way up. Barely survived trials. Then came Master Heizan. Apart from what he called my genius when it came to cultivation, he saw something in me. He taught me wind qi techniques that help me to enhance what I've already learned from Master Gareth. Eventually I became number one amongst the young disciples under forty. Of course I was hated by all those geniuses there. I was a star realm at seventeen years old, while many take several hundred, if not a thousand, years to make it to that realm. That made many bitter with jealousy. But because I was being backed by Master Heizan, no one dared to bare their fangs at me. Life for the most part felt as if it was good at that time."
Sion's voice softened.
"Then I met her at the intersect competition between three great states: Bellini, Raylan, and Tellina. I didn't know her name or title at first. Not that any of that matters. She was... ethereal. Dressed in white, quiet, observant, with a spirit so clear I swore I could see moonlight pulsing under her skin."
He sighed.
"It was only after the damage was done that I found out she was the successor of the Pure Maiden of the Moonveil Heart Sect, a top-tier women's sect. Their sacred object that possesses the rare Moonlight Physique."
Sion's fingers clenched.
"We fell for each other. It wasn't planned. Just happened. Her curiosity matched my wild heart. And then One night during our sneaky links… we crossed that line.
His voice shook.
"She got pregnant."
Panic set in. She told me that if anyone found out—not only would they kill her, they'd kill our child too. Their sect's purity doctrine is absolute. She was their legacy. I was just a nothing."
He paused to steady his breath.
"Master Heizan noticed the change in me. I was distracted and quieter. He pulled me aside one night and asked what was going on. I didn't lie. I told him everything. He didn't yell. Just sighed. Said I was a fool—but a brave one. Then he told me to leave Bellini with her and never come back.
I took his advice and convinced her to run away with me. She agreed. We escaped Bellini with the master's help through some one-time teleportation treasure he possesses. Moved across the border to Raylan, a state where they have no strong influence. We suppressed our auras, avoided cities, lived in places no sect would bother searching. But peace doesn't last—not when you've defied legacy."