That morning, the air at the academy was still cold and quiet. A thin mist hung in the air, as if reluctant to let the night go.
A senior student in grey robes came to fetch them. His voice was firm yet polite, "Follow me to the Sky Hall."
Li Yuan, Mu Yi, Fan Tu, and the other village children followed his lead. Some looked nervous, others curious. The Sky Hall was a magnificent structure standing tall at the center of the academy, its towering pillars reaching upward as if holding up the sky itself.
Inside the hall, Yu Shan was already waiting. He stood atop a stone platform, dressed in a black robe trimmed with red, his gaze piercing and sharp. His voice echoed throughout the hall.
"Do you know... why you are here?"
Silence. But not for long.
Feng Lu, a boy from the eastern village, raised his hand. "Because... we have talent, senior?"
Another child chimed in, "Maybe because we're different from the others?"
Yu Shan gave a slight smile—but it was not a warm one. "Talent? Perhaps. But that's not the only reason."
He stepped forward.
"This nation... Qin," he said, his voice low but resonant, "is on the brink of war. Not just a war between kingdoms, but a war between the world you can see... and the one that remains hidden."
Everyone fell silent.
"You are here... to be trained. Not merely as students. But as a special force. Guardians who will stand at the front lines. Who will dive into the darkness so that the world may remain in the light."
The atmosphere in the hall grew heavy.
Yu Shan looked at each of them, one by one, and when his eyes met Li Yuan's, he paused for a moment. There was something in those gray eyes—something deep. Like an endless abyss.
'A special force… to protect a world unseen by ordinary eyes…'
Li Yuan pondered in silence.
"Maybe... this is the path that fate has given me. But if this world needs light, then I must become the flame… even if it means I have to burn in the process."