The glow of the emblems still flickered faintly in Cain's eyes as the ceremony ended. The air outside the great hall was cool and heavy, the scent of incense fading into mist. One by one, elders began leading their new disciples away — each group heading toward the mountain path that wound into their respective sects.
"Cain Thalric," a calm voice called.
He turned to see a woman in grey robes standing near the archway. Her hair was bound neatly, her face unreadable. "Follow me," she said. "You belong to the Dusk Sect now."
Cain nodded silently and fell into step behind her. The path they took sloped down from the golden-lit plaza into shadow. The sound of the crowd faded until only the whisper of wind and the crunch of gravel underfoot remained.
As they walked, faint lights appeared — lanterns shaped like floating stones, glowing with dim purple flame. The trees here were darker, their roots crawling like veins through the earth.
"Many fear the Dusk Sect," the woman said suddenly, her tone flat. "But fear is only the shadow of ignorance. You will learn to see beyond that… if you survive the training."
She glanced at him briefly, then continued. "I am Instructor Yara, one of the sect's teaching officers. You will report to the lower training hall at dawn — every day, without fail. Classes begin at the first toll of the spirit bell. Miss it once, you answer to me."
Cain only nodded.
They stopped before a stone building carved into the side of the mountain. A faint shimmer of energy marked the doorway — a protective ward. Yara gestured. "Dormitory Wing Three. The D.O.S. Z group is assigned here. You will share space with seven others. Inside, you'll find your uniform, your cultivation journal, and a schedule scroll. Memorize it."
She turned to leave but paused. "And one more thing," she added quietly. "Whatever happened in that hall earlier — the five sigils reacting — keep it to yourself. Not everyone will see it as a blessing."
Her footsteps faded into the mist.
Cain pushed open the heavy door.
The interior was lit by a few dim spirit lamps hanging from chains. Rows of beds lined the walls, each with folded grey robes at the foot. The air smelled faintly of pine resin and metal polish. A few boys were already asleep and others chatting.
As Cain entered, the room grew quieter.
One of them, a tall boy with bright amber eyes, glanced up. "You're the one from the tes, New travel fast" he said. "The five-light guy."
Cain said nothing, just walked toward the empty bed near the far wall.
The boy grinned and came closer. "Name's Eren," he said easily. "Guess we're in the same group — D.O.S. Z. Dead or Survive Zone, that's what they call it, but in truth jit is a war Zone, You'll see why soon enough. He smirked"
Another voice spoke from across the room — quieter, thoughtful. "Ignore him," said a dark-haired youth cleaning his blade. "I'm Lior. And he's not entirely wrong. Our group's the one they use to test new training methods. Half the time, it ends with someone in the infirmary."
Eren laughed. "That's why we're special."
Cain sat on his bed, unwrapping the folded robe. "D.O.S. Z…" he murmured under his breath.
Lior looked at him. "You don't talk much, huh?"
Cain didn't reply. His attention was fixed on the insignia stitched faintly on the robe's sleeve — a black serpent coiled around a fading star.
Eren flopped onto his bed. "Tomorrow's your first session with Instructor Yara. Spirit synchronization drills, then shadow channeling. Don't be late unless you enjoy cleaning gravestones."
Cain lay back slowly, staring up at the ceiling. Outside, thunder murmured somewhere beyond the mist..
He laid on the bed thinking about how Roen was doing, even if he didn't want to go, he knew he had to find out who he was. He thought about to the name of his assigned group.
> "Dead or survive…." Such a cliche name" A voice sound, Cain stood up and looked around to see where the voice came from but saw nothing, so he laid back down seeing nothing as all the roomates were sleeping.
Maybe it was my imagination" He thought.