Part Four
Before the elders could respond—
The sky changed.
Not violently.
Not splitting.
Darkening.
A vertical line of pale light formed directly above Zheng Wen Te.
No thunder.
No command.
Just focus.
The entire sect froze.
The giants did not appear.
But their presence pressed downward unmistakably.
Heaven had responded.
Not to suppress him.
To witness.
The central elder swallowed.
He had intended to reassert control.
Instead—
He had summoned scrutiny beyond his authority.
The pale light descended slowly.
Stopping inches above Zheng Wen Te's head.
It did not force him down.
It did not crush.
It lingered.
As though measuring something unseen.
Zheng Wen Te did not kneel.
He did not resist.
He looked upward calmly.
"If you seek obedience," he said quietly, "you will not find it in fear."
The pale light flickered.
Then—
Shifted.
Not downward.
Sideways.
Toward the platform.
Across the line of elders.
Pausing.
Evaluating.
The implication was unmistakable.
Heaven was not only measuring him.
It was measuring them.
A tremor ran through the assembled disciples.
For the first time in sect history—
The hierarchy was uncertain.
The pale light withdrew.
The sky restored.
But nothing was the same.
The formation lay shattered.
Authority lay exposed.
And somewhere in the unseen vastness above—
A question had begun forming.
Not about obedience.
About evolution.