Tian Rui's body ached as he lay on the cold stone floor of the Hall of Ancients, his mind a whirlwind of shattered thoughts and fragmented memories. The strange stone—the relic—had burned with an ancient power, searing through him like fire, yet in its wake, something had shifted. A force he couldn't explain now simmered just beneath his skin.
He struggled to breathe, his chest tight with the weight of something new, something raw.
"What happened?" he thought, his heart hammering against his ribs. "This can't be real... This isn't possible."
The relic still pulsed before him, its dark surface glistening like a black mirror, reflecting not just his image, but the shattered remnants of his spirit. He could feel the echoes of a voice deep within him, as if it had always been there, waiting for the right moment to awaken.
"Sealed..." Tian Rui whispered the word to himself, a bitter truth that had defined his life. He had been broken, his potential snuffed out before it even began. The other disciples whispered about him, some even laughed. They all knew he couldn't cultivate—not truly.
But now?
Now he could feel the very air around him stirring, swirling with an invisible power.
He reached out again, this time with more purpose. His fingers brushed against the surface of the stone, and the world around him seemed to breathe.
The stone's pulse quickened.
Tian Rui's mind was flooded with a vision: a sprawling war-torn landscape, with mountains shaking under the weight of celestial combat. Figures, masked in shadow, clashed with beings of light, and in the center of it all, a single figure stood, his hands stained with the blood of both gods and demons alike.
"This is... a dream?" Tian Rui thought, overwhelmed by the intensity of the vision.
The figure in the vision turned, and for a fleeting moment, their eyes met. A flash of recognition rippled through Tian Rui's very soul.
"No... it's not a dream. This is my past."
He pulled his hand back from the stone, heart racing. Past? What past? His mind reeled, but before he could gather his thoughts, the stone began to glow brighter, almost as if it were calling him, urging him to delve deeper into the ancient mysteries it held.
But the door to understanding was not open yet.
Something was coming.
Tian Rui's breath slowed, but the tremors in his hands didn't subside. The stone... it was alive. His heart beat in sync with its pulse, as if his very soul was attuned to its ancient rhythm.
But before he could investigate further, a sudden noise broke the eerie silence—footsteps. Tian Rui scrambled to his feet, his head spinning. He could barely stand. The power within him felt raw and untamed, like a beast stirring for the first time.
"Who's there?" a voice called out from the doorway. Tian Rui's stomach dropped. It was a familiar voice, but it was one he had hoped to avoid.
Jiang Fen.
A senior disciple of Azure Peak and the very image of perfection in the sect. His robes shimmered in the moonlight, his posture as proud and arrogant as ever. But tonight, his eyes gleamed with curiosity—and a hint of suspicion.
"What are you doing here, servant?" Jiang Fen's gaze swept over the Hall, lingering on the relic, his brow furrowing. "You should be in the servant's quarters by now. You know the rules."
Tian Rui stood motionless, knowing full well that any attempt to explain would only feed the fire of mockery. Jiang Fen would never understand, nor care to. In the eyes of the sect, he was a non-entity. And yet, Jiang Fen's gaze remained locked on the stone, his suspicion growing.
"Answer me," Jiang Fen demanded, his voice colder.
Tian Rui felt a surge of power in his chest, the foreign energy within him pushing against his ribs, urging him to speak, to act. The relic's pulse throbbed louder in his ears, as if urging him to assert himself.
"I… I wasn't doing anything," Tian Rui said quickly, his voice barely above a whisper. He knew better than to draw attention to the relic, to the power inside him. But Jiang Fen didn't seem to be listening. His eyes were narrowed, his mind clearly racing with thought.
"Stay away from it," Jiang Fen said, a hint of warning in his tone. His gaze flicked between Tian Rui and the relic, then back to the young man. "You don't belong near this relic."
Tian Rui felt a sudden wave of defiance rush through him. The stone had chosen him, had awakened him. His broken root was no more. He could feel it—he was something different now. Something dangerous.
But before he could gather his thoughts, Jiang Fen moved forward.
"Step aside," Jiang Fen ordered, as if his words alone should command Tian Rui to move.
Tian Rui stood his ground, meeting the senior disciple's gaze. There was a brief moment of silence between them, tension thickening the air. The relic pulsed once more, as though anticipating the inevitable clash.
"I said, step aside." Jiang Fen's voice grew harsher, and in that instant, Tian Rui knew that there would be no avoiding it.
Without thinking, his hand shot out, faster than he could control, and he grabbed Jiang Fen's wrist with a force that surprised even him.
Jiang Fen froze, his eyes wide with shock. The strength in Tian Rui's grip was like nothing he had ever felt before—like iron, burning with unrestrained power.
"What... what is this?" Jiang Fen stammered, his confidence faltering for the first time.
Tian Rui stared at his hand, the power within him surging again, and for a moment, he considered pushing further, unleashing whatever force the stone had awoken within him. But something inside stopped him. He couldn't—not yet.
Instead, he released Jiang Fen with a single motion, pushing him away, almost as if the power inside him was momentarily sated.
"You were right," Tian Rui said quietly, his voice low but firm. "I don't belong here."
He turned and walked away, leaving Jiang Fen standing in stunned silence behind him. The relic's pulse faded as Tian Rui left the Hall, but the weight of its power lingered in his chest.
---
Tian Rui didn't stop walking. He didn't know where he was going. All he knew was that everything had changed. And the only way forward was to embrace it—to understand what he had become.