The silence after the battle clung to the cliffs like ash.
Lian stared at her hands—clean, unburned—though she had just summoned fire strong enough to erase a beast from existence.
"That wasn't supposed to happen," she said under her breath.
Shengzhi stepped back slowly, as if studying her anew. "You controlled it. That means the seal is weakening."
Lian shook her head. "Seal? You keep talking like I'm some dangerous thing locked in a box. I didn't ask for any of this."
Li Fang walked past them, his sword dragging the edge of the stone. "Maybe not. But whatever you were, it's not gone."
The way he said it wasn't cruel. It was… afraid.
Lian opened her mouth to argue—but pain bloomed behind her eyes. White flashes. A burning palace. Voices shouting. Gold robes. Fire. Betrayal.
She dropped to her knees.
Shengzhi caught her. "Don't force it. Memories will come when they're ready."
"I saw… a temple. Someone screaming. I—" Her breath hitched.
"Enough." Shengzhi wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "We're going back."
---
The ride down the mountain path was quiet. Even Li Fang held his tongue, riding behind them with his jaw clenched.
When they arrived back at Mount Yunyuan, the sect buzzed with rumors. Disciples whispered about fire over the cliffs and the girl who called it forth.
Shengzhi led Lian to her room without a word. He paused at the door.
"I'll talk to Master Yu," he said.
Lian touched his sleeve. "You still haven't told me… who I really was. Why this power is inside me."
He hesitated, then gently removed her hand. "Because I'm afraid… the truth will take you from me again."
He left before she could ask what he meant.
---
That night, Li Fang found her sitting beneath the glowing peach tree, hugging her knees.
"Shengzhi won't tell you anything," he said, leaning against the stone wall.
"I'm starting to notice."
He glanced at her sideways. "You want the truth? Here's one version."
She looked at him.
"Three thousand years ago, there was a woman called Yue Lian. She had fire inside her like nothing this world had seen. The sages said she was a divine reincarnation. The Celestial Sword Sect said she was a threat."
"What happened to her?"
"She died. Executed… after being accused of destroying a temple and killing innocents. But not everyone believed it."
Lian's throat tightened. "And you?"
"I believe…" He paused. "That if she was reborn… she'd still be dangerous. But maybe not in the way people think."
There was something raw in his voice.
"You're not afraid of me?" she asked.
Li Fang smiled, a little bitter. "Maybe I am. But I'm also… drawn to you. I don't know what that says about me."
He stood. "Get some sleep, Lian. This mountain won't protect you forever."
As he walked away
, she whispered to the night, "Then I'll learn to protect myself."
----------
To be continued...