The wind cut sharply across the courtyard, smelling faintly of metal and frost. Liuxue tightened her cloak around her shoulders as she stepped out into the dim morning. Every breath burned a little in her chest. Sleep had not come. Every time she closed her eyes, she saw the golden figure stepping through the rift, each word sinking like a hook into her ribs.
You will remember.
And when you do, we will collect what you left behind.
Even awake, the memory felt too vivid, as if it were carved into her bones.
Liuxue dragged a hand across her face. She had to focus. If she let her thoughts spiral, she would drown in them.
Yining walked beside her, unusually quiet. Her hands stayed clasped tightly in her sleeves, knuckles white.
"You should not be up," Yining murmured. "Your seal almost tore in half yesterday. That is not something a normal person wakes up from."
Liuxue gave a small, tired smile. "But I am clearly not normal."
"That is not the point," Yining snapped, then winced at her own sharpness. "I mean… you scared me. Truly."
Liuxue touched her friend's arm gently. "I know. I am sorry."
"Do not apologize for surviving." Yining swallowed and looked away. "Just… do not vanish on me again."
Liuxue wanted to promise that. She really did. But the words from the rift echoed too loudly.
Her past was coming.
And she did not even know its name.
When they reached the far courtyard, they saw him.
The Starborn man stood alone beneath the old pine tree. The morning breeze pulled at his dark hair as faint silver particles drifted from his hands, vanishing when they touched the ground. He was repairing something, a broken ward stone. His posture was tense. Controlled. Every movement looked like he was trying not to tremble.
Liuxue felt her chest tighten.
He had been the one shielding her when the golden figure appeared. She remembered the weight of his arm around her, the way his voice had shaken even though he tried to hide it.
She stepped forward. "Good morning."
He did not turn, but she felt the shift in the air when he registered her presence.
"You should not be walking," he said softly.
Yining muttered, "That is exactly what I told her."
Finally he looked over his shoulder, eyes landing on Liuxue. There was a flicker of something unreadable there. Relief. Fear. Something deeper.
"You are still pale," he added, stepping toward her. "Let me check the seal."
Liuxue hesitated, then nodded.
He placed two fingers lightly against her chest, not touching skin but close enough that warmth spread along her ribs. A pulse of soft energy moved through her. The sensation was not painful, just strange. Like a silent question brushing against her heartbeat.
After a moment, he exhaled. "It is stable. For now."
"For now," Yining muttered under her breath.
Liuxue looked up at him. "You knew that thing. The figure from the rift. You recognized it."
His expression froze.
For a long moment, he did not speak.
Then he said quietly, "I did not know it. But I recognized the power it carried."
"What was it?" Liuxue pressed.
He lowered his gaze. "A Celestial Rift is not supposed to open here. Not on this plane. Not for mortals to see. And certainly not for someone like you."
The words stung. "Someone like me?"
"Someone whose existence is…" He stopped, searching for the right phrase. "Not aligned with this world."
Liuxue's pulse skipped. "Say it plainly."
He lifted his head. Their eyes met.
"You are not who you think you are, Liuxue."
The courtyard emptied of sound. Even the wind paused.
Yining whispered, "Is that not obvious? The heavens themselves are hunting her."
Liuxue hugged her arms around her body. "If I am not myself… then who am I?"
The Starborn man's jaw tightened.
"That," he said slowly, "is the question every realm is waiting for you to answer."
Something cold curled in Liuxue's stomach. "And the golden figure? Why did it say my seal was incomplete?"
"Because it is," he replied.
"How do you know?"
His silence was too heavy. Too telling.
Liuxue took a step back. "What are you hiding from me?"
He closed his eyes for a moment, as if bracing himself. "I am trying to protect you."
"That is not an answer."
"It is the only answer I can give now."
Liuxue's throat tightened painfully. "So I am supposed to trust you even though you refuse to tell me the truth?"
He finally looked at her, truly looked. There was something raw in his gaze, something that made her breath falter.
"It is because I want you to stay alive," he said quietly. "That is why I cannot tell you everything."
The sincerity in his voice made her chest twist, but it also frustrated her. She felt trapped between fear and longing, between wanting answers and wanting to trust him.
Before she could respond, a low rumble shook the courtyard. The ward stones flickered. The Starborn man's head snapped toward the northern wall.
"That vibration…" he murmured. "It is not natural."
Yining grabbed Liuxue's sleeve. "Something is coming."
The Starborn man moved instantly, placing himself slightly in front of them.
"Liuxue," he said, voice steady but tense, "stay close. Do not wander. Do not speak to anything you hear. If the seal reacts, call me immediately."
Liuxue opened her mouth to ask what was happening, but the ground trembled again.
Then a sound drifted across the courtyard.
A low, distant cry.
Like the echo of a voice carried by the heavens.
But the voice was familiar.
Liuxue froze.
It was her own voice.
Calling her name.
She went cold from head to toe.
Yining clutched her sleeve. "That is impossible."
The Starborn man's expression darkened, tense and furious. "Do not answer it."
Liuxue's heartbeat thrashed painfully.
Her own voice echoed again across the sky.
"Liuxue… come back."
Her knees weakened.
"What… what does that mean?" she whispered.
The Starborn man stepped closer, his hand hovering near her shoulder but not quite touching. His eyes held a depth of despair he had never shown before.
"It means," he said, "your past has finally found your scent."
Liuxue's breath caught.
"And it is calling itself home."