Night fell over the pavilion like a curtain of deep indigo silk.
But the darkness was not peaceful.
Not tonight.
Qi Shan Wei stood alone at the balcony of the Sacred Forging Chamber, overlooking the lantern-lit courtyard. His robe fluttered gently, still torn from the battle. His hair—silver under the moonlight—whipped in the wind.
His hand still tingled with the afterglow of the prismatic flame.
Above him, the sky pulsed faintly, as if the heavens hadn't truly left. Like some celestial force was still watching, waiting.
Waiting for him.
He exhaled.
Heaven Eyes.Something only prodigies, calamities, or world-destroyers triggered.
"Why me?" he whispered.
There was no answer.
But far behind him, a faint clanging echoed inside the chamber—Jin Wei stirring weakly on the reforging platform.
Shan Wei turned immediately and rushed inside.
Jin Wei's State – Between Life and Death
Inside the chamber, Ling Xueyao was adjusting a set of frost-laced formation plates around Jin Wei's body. The massive puppet lay across the jade anvil, missing an arm, chest cracked open like a wounded titan.
Xueyao's presence was calm, elegant, her slender fingers moving with surgical precision as she aligned each rune.
She looked up as Shan Wei entered.
"His condition is stable… temporarily," she said softly. "But the backlash from Heaven earlier almost destabilized his core again."
Shan Wei's jaw tightened."I felt it. Like lightning striking through my spine."
"You absorbed most of it," she said. "That's why Jin Wei survived."
Shan Wei blinked in surprise."I what?"
Ling Xueyao stepped forward, her expression serious.
"When the Heaven Eye locked onto you, every companion connected to you—Drakonix, Elder Lu, Jin Wei, even me—was affected. But the divine pressure flowed toward you first. You acted like a shield."
Shan Wei stared at her.
"But I didn't do anything."
She held his gaze.
"You did. Without realizing it."
Her eyes lowered for a moment before she spoke quietly:
"You protected us."
Something warm churned in Shan Wei's chest, almost painful. He looked away quickly.
"Jin Wei protected all of us," he said. "I just… I don't know. I reacted."
Xueyao's lips curved ever so slightly.
"A leader's instinct."
Shan Wei paused.
There it was again—that word.
Leader.
Not child.Not burden.Not lucky.Leader.
Before he could speak, Jin Wei's core flickered faintly.
"Mas…ter…"
Shan Wei rushed to his side.
"I'm here. Stay calm."
"…Thank… you."
The words were weak, distorted.
But they were gratitude.
Shan Wei swallowed hard, placing a hand over the cracked core.His prismatic flame responded automatically, swirling softly like a gentle heartbeat.
Ling Xueyao watched him, silent but attentive.
"You talk to him as if he's alive," she said.
"He is alive."
She tilted her head slightly.
"Puppets don't have souls."
"I don't care," Shan Wei replied. "He protected me. He thinks. He chooses. That's enough."
Ling Xueyao studied him for a long moment, then nodded.
"…I understand."
The Pavilion Reacts
Later that evening, the Pavilion elders gathered in the main hall.
The room was filled with tension so thick it could be cut with a blade. Elders whispered in corners; disciples stood rigidly along the pillars.
Qi Shan Wei entered slowly, Ling Xueyao beside him.
Immediately, whispers erupted:
"That boy…""He triggered Heaven Eyes!""He brought a Primordial Puppet into our sect!""He'll bring calamity at this rate!""No, he's a genius!""The heavens marked him!""We should protect him!""We should keep our distance—!"
Shan Wei felt every eye on him like spears.
But he didn't flinch.
He stood straight, calm, resolute.
The Pavilion Master struck the floor with his jade staff—BOOM—and silence swallowed the hall.
"Qi Shan Wei," the master said, "approach."
Shan Wei walked forward without hesitation.
Ling Xueyao followed silently, standing at his right side, her presence like a silent glacier.
Elder Lu took position on Shan Wei's left, protective and stern.
The Pavilion Master gazed down from his elevated seat.
"Qi Shan Wei. You triggered Heaven Eyes, repelled the Golden-Masked Puppeteer, unearthed a Primordial Guardian, and awakened a beast with prismatic flame."
He paused.
"You have shaken every force in the region."
Shan Wei took a breath.
"I didn't intend for any of this, Master."
"No one intends destiny," the Pavilion Master said. "It simply arrives."
He leaned forward.
"I ask you plainly…Do you fear what comes next?"
The question hung in the air like a blade.
Shan Wei raised his head.
"I fear nothing except failing the people who trust me."
A murmur swept the hall.
Ling Xueyao's lips curved faintly.
Elder Lu smiled behind his beard.
The Pavilion Master stroked his chin thoughtfully.
"Your resolve is admirable… but the consequences are real."
He gestured, and an elder stepped forward holding a scroll.
"This arrived moments ago from the Spirit Vein Continent."
He unrolled the scroll.
A single symbol was written on it—
天災Tian ZaiHeavenly Calamity.
A collective gasp rippled through the hall.
Shan Wei clenched his fists.
"So… the other sects know."
"They know," the Pavilion Master said softly, "and they are afraid."
He stepped down from his throne-like seat, walking toward Shan Wei.
"Now the question is…Will their fear turn into alliance?"He stopped."Or into hatred?"
Shan Wei's eyes hardened.
"Whichever path they choose," he said, "I will walk mine."
The Pavilion Master nodded slowly, pride flickering in his ancient eyes.
"Then remember this night," he said."Because from this moment forward…
your life will never be ordinary again."
Ling Xueyao's Revelation
After the meeting, Shan Wei walked through the moonlit courtyard when Ling Xueyao suddenly spoke:
"Qi Shan Wei…you need to know something."
He turned, surprised at the serious tone in her voice.
"I sensed something during the Heaven Eye's appearance."
She stepped closer, her frost aura swirling faintly.
"Your qi…your flame…Your very presence—"
She hesitated.
"It is not of this world."
Shan Wei froze.
"…What do you mean?"
Ling Xueyao glanced at the moon.
"Your prismatic flame…It resonates with a power I only heard in old texts of my clan."
Her voice dropped.
"The power of a Heaven-Breaker."
Shan Wei's heart slammed in his chest.
"What is a Heaven-Breaker?"
"A being," she whispered, "who can rise beyond fate…and rewrite it."
The wind howled.
Drakonix crawled out of Shan Wei's robe, trembling at her words.
Even Jin Wei's distant core flickered violently, as if reacting to the term.
Shan Wei swallowed hard.
"Am I… dangerous?"
Ling Xueyao looked at him—directly, unwavering.
"No."She stepped even closer."You are someone the heavens fear."
Her eyes softened.
"And I… do not fear you."
Shan Wei stared at her.
Before he could respond—
A sudden burst of golden lightning hit the sky.
Both froze.
"What now—?" Shan Wei whispered.
The Midnight Omen
A burning symbol appeared high above the pavilion, glowing gold, rotating slowly like a divine seal.
It was enormous—visible even from distant mountains.
Elder Lu staggered out of the hall.
"The heavens… aren't finished with you."
Ling Xueyao's eyes widened.
"That symbol… it's ancient. Forbidden. Sealed."
"Can someone tell me what it is?!" Shan Wei demanded.
Elder Lu whispered:
"It is the Mark of Summoning.A heavenly omen that draws enemies…and allies."He swallowed."Whoever sees that symbol will know you are here."
Shan Wei felt the air go cold.
Ling Xueyao stepped closer, frost aura rising.
"Qi Shan Wei…"her voice low, protective—
"…this is only the beginning."
To be continued..
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