The sky bled. A crescent sun had been swallowed by a crimson shadow, casting the ruins of Lotus Valley in an eerie, unearthly light. Smoke rose in thin spirals from the shattered rooftops, carrying with it the scent of burned timber, blood, and despair.
Among the rubble, a boy lay motionless, one arm crushed beneath a fallen beam, his body bruised and broken. His black hair, tangled and blood-soaked, clung to his pale face. Yet, even in his near-death state, his chest moved with stubborn, shallow breaths.
A faint glow began to stir within him. At first, it was like the pulse of a heartbeat—but faster, irregular, as if the very veins of the world had awakened within him. Slowly, a pattern emerged across his skin: lines of silver light, forming a strange map that pulsed with a rhythm older than time itself.
The boy's eyes snapped open, revealing pupils that shimmered like molten gold. He could feel it.
The Heavenly Map, etched into his soul.
Yuexin forced himself upright, ignoring the pain that lanced through every limb. Around him, the remnants of his clan lay scattered: motionless, lifeless, some burned beyond recognition. His chest tightened as he forced a breath. Why… why was this happening?
A whisper of wind carried a voice that was neither memory nor dream:
"Rise, Devourer. The heavens await your challenge."
The map pulsed again, bright enough to make the shadows around him writhe. Stars unseen to mortal eyes blinked into existence in the red sky. It was not only a map—it was a guide, a weapon, a curse, and a prophecy.
Pain seared through his body, yet something deeper awakened—a thread of Qi within his veins, broken but not gone. With trembling hands, Yuexin pressed his palm against the glowing sigils of the map. The energy flared violently, sending him sprawling backward.
And then… he laughed. A low, broken sound that quickly sharpened into something colder.
"They thought I would die. That I would fade like the ashes of my clan. But they underestimated me."
With that, the first pulse of power surged through him, knitting shattered veins together. Mortal Vein Realm, the first step of cultivation, had begun. Even if he did not yet understand it, the energy sang through his body—a promise, a warning, a prelude to the storm he would become.
He wasn't alone. From the edges of the valley, dark figures emerged, cloaked in black and crimson. Each step they took scorched the earth with cursed energy. Yuexin's body instinctively stiffened, yet his mind was calm. The Heavenly Map pulsed again, highlighting paths in the rubble, paths that revealed where to strike, where to hide, where to survive.
The first figure stepped into the crimson light: a man whose presence made the air tremble. His eyes were dark, yet there was recognition there—an acknowledgment of power and potential. He spoke, voice low, deliberate:
"So, the Devourer awakens… and yet he is still a boy."
Yuexin's lips curled into a faint, defiant smile.
"I am Yuexin. I am the last of my clan. And I will devour heaven itself."
The words were a vow, not just to the intruders, but to himself, to the map, and to a world that had tried to break him before he could rise.
As the attackers advanced, Yuexin felt another presence—a soft, familiar pulse. A female cultivator stepped forward from the shadows: Su Xooi, the Heaven Scribe, her robes flowing like water, her eyes calm and unreadable.
"You are far stronger than your body allows," she said, observing the map etched into his skin. "But to survive… you must awaken fully. The Mortal Vein Realm is only the beginning. The Spirit Vein, the Celestial Martial… each step will demand a part of you. Are you prepared to pay the price?"
Yuexin's chest heaved. The world was burning. His friends, family, and everything he loved had been destroyed. But inside, something fiercer than grief surged: determination.
"I will pay anything. I will surpass all realms. I will rise above gods and devour heaven itself."
Su Xooi's lips curved slightly. "Then rise, Devourer. The first step begins now."
The ground beneath Yuexin glowed, the map shining brighter. Energy coursed into his veins, and his vision blurred as the first surge of cultivation ripped through him.
A single thought echoed through his mind:
"This is only the beginning."
Above him, the eclipse hung like a crimson crown. The heavens had declared war… and Yuexin was ready to respond.