Three days passed as they moved westward along crumbling spirit roads, deeper into the fractured spine of the continent. Xuanzang noticed it more each day—the quiet. No bird calls. No temple bells. Only wind, and the whispers of things hiding in the spirit veins.
Wukong grumbled often. "We've seen beasts, ghosts, broken monks, but no real cultivators. You'd think someone would try to rebuild by now."
Zhu Bajie cracked his knuckles. "Or hoard power in the ruins. That's what I'd do."
Wujing walked silently, always ten paces behind—never leading, never straying.
On the fourth morning, they saw it.
A massive stone gate, half-buried in the valley's moss-covered cliffs. Its once-grand inscription had been chiseled off violently. Only three painted characters remained, smeared in rust-red ink:
無天門Gate Without Heaven.
Xuanzang's system buzzed as they approached.
[Zone Entry: Unregistered Cultivation Domain – Sect Without Heaven]Karmic Structure: Inverted (Negative Accumulation Cultivation Detected)]Status: Active. Spiritual Distortion Level: Class 3.]
Wukong raised an eyebrow. "They're alive."
Bajie sniffed. "Barely."
At the center of the ruined courtyard, cultivators in pale-grey robes knelt in absolute silence—dozens of them, heads bowed, as if praying to nothing. Floating above the altar was a hollow idol—a celestial statue with its face deliberately removed.
Xuanzang approached slowly. His system flickered again.
[Quest Trigger: "Doctrine of Silence"]Objective: Speak to the Acolyte of the Faceless. Determine the sect's intent.]Optional: Do not violate their Silence. Reward: ???]
Suddenly, one of the kneeling figures stood. A young woman—thin, pale, with no Qi presence. Her eyes were covered by cloth, yet she turned toward Xuanzang as if seeing him clearly.
"You carry the System," she said. "You were not chosen by Heaven. Neither were we."
Her voice was soft, but not weak.
"We do not pray," she continued. "We do not wait for Heaven's return. We cultivate through rejection. Every breath we take is a denial of divine will."
[Character Identified: Lin Xuelian – Acolyte of the Faceless Path]Unique Trait: Cultivates Negative Karma to ascend via inversion.]
Xuanzang hesitated. "And what do you become... if Heaven never returns?"
She smiled, empty. "Then we become gods who owe nothing."
The ground trembled subtly.
From behind the altar, a shadow emerged—a tall man with silver hair, wielding a broken relic staff. His Qi was heavy, twisted, and cracked like glass under strain.
[Enemy? – Sect Leader of the Heavenless Path]Name: Master Nuyan (Former Nascent Soul – Karmic Anchor Severed)]
He looked at Xuanzang and his companions with faint curiosity.
"You walk with a glutton, a rebel, and a fallen monk," he said. "Three relics of failure. And you, scripture bearer... still kneel to a god who no longer speaks."
Xuanzang said nothing.
Nuyan tilted his head. "Will you preach? Convert us? Or condemn us?"
"I'll do none," Xuanzang said. "But I will ask: if you cultivate through rejection... what happens when you're finally noticed again?"
Nuyan smiled grimly. "Then let Heaven try to find us. We've already erased our names."
The sky darkened.
In the clouds above, the first streaks of Heavenly Lightning cracked.
[System Alert: Foreign Celestial Detection Attempt Detected][Unsealed Domain Energy has triggered Immortal Surveillance.]
Xuanzang's eyes widened. "You brought this on yourselves."
Nuyan's expression didn't change.
"That was the point."