Fallen Heaven: Rise of Faizi Tian
Episode 43 – The Second Trial: Shadows of the Past
The night outside the cavern was unnaturally still.
Even the forest wind seemed to hold its breath as Faizi Tian sat cross-legged beneath a withered tree, the Demon Seal resting in his hands. Its pulse was stronger now — a slow, steady beat that synced with his own heartbeat, almost as if it was breathing with him.
Elder Ren had gone to gather supplies, leaving him alone. Or so it seemed.
*"You survived the first gate,"* the Seal's deep voice rumbled inside his mind. *"Now… we strip away your illusions."*
Faizi opened his eyes. The world around him blurred like ink in water. The ground dissolved beneath his feet, and once again, he was falling — weightless, helpless — into the void.
When he landed, it was not in the battlefield of molten rivers.
It was in a small, humble courtyard under a crimson sky.
A place he knew all too well.
Faizi's chest tightened. "This… is my home."
He saw the old wooden gate, the stone path leading to a modest house, and the peach tree his father had planted when he was a child. Its blossoms were just as he remembered — soft, pale pink, swaying in the wind.
Then the wind turned cold.
The sky deepened to a bloody red.
The peach blossoms withered instantly, their petals turning black before falling like ashes to the ground. From the shadows of the gate, a figure stepped forward.
Faizi froze.
It was his mother. Or rather… something wearing her face.
Her eyes glowed faintly crimson, her smile both warm and wrong. "Faizi," she whispered. "You left us."
"This isn't real," Faizi said, his voice trembling despite himself.
"Isn't it?" she asked, tilting her head. "The night the demons came… you ran. You left me and your father to burn."
"That's a lie." His fists clenched. "I was ten years old. I couldn't save you."
Her voice softened, almost pitying. "You could have tried."
The words hit like a blade.
Faizi took a step back, but shadows crawled from the ground, wrapping around his ankles like chains. More figures emerged from the darkness — his father, his childhood friends, the elders of his village. All of them bore the same crimson eyes, their faces twisted with sorrow and accusation.
"You train to destroy demons," his father said, his voice low and cold, "but you couldn't save your own family."
Faizi's breath came faster. He could *feel* the chains tightening, the guilt pressing against his ribs. The Seal's voice rolled like thunder in his mind.
*"Guilt is power. Regret is a blade. Wield them… or they will crush you."*
"No," Faizi growled, shaking his head. "These aren't my family. They're your illusions."
The shadows laughed, their voices merging into a single, hollow echo.
"Even if they're illusions, the guilt is yours."
The ground beneath him cracked, and fire erupted — the same fire that had consumed his home years ago. The heat was unbearable, the smoke clawing into his lungs. The figures stepped into the flames, their eyes never leaving him.
*"Save them this time,"* the Seal whispered. *"Or admit you never could."*
Faizi's blade materialized in his hand. His heartbeat roared in his ears. The flames surged higher, threatening to swallow everything. He charged forward, cutting through the shadows, each strike an act of defiance.
But every time he cut one down, another figure emerged — his master from the sect, fellow disciples he had lost in raids, strangers whose names he couldn't remember but whose deaths he had witnessed. All of them accusing, all of them blaming.
The Seal's voice grew darker.
*"You are defined by the lives you could not save. Embrace this truth, and I will give you strength beyond your mortal limits."*
Faizi's movements slowed. His blade trembled. The guilt, the memories, the faces — they pressed on him like an ocean trying to drown him. For a heartbeat, he wondered if it would be easier to just let it happen… to stop fighting.
Then he remembered Elder Ren's warning: *The Seal will blur the line between friend and foe if you let it.*
Faizi straightened. "I am not defined by who I lost. I'm defined by who I can still protect."
The flames surged higher, as if enraged by his refusal.
The shadows roared and charged all at once, a tide of darkness seeking to swallow him whole.
Faizi planted his feet. "If you're part of my past… then stay there!"
With a shout, he released everything — the fear, the guilt, the grief — letting it flow through his blade. Light burst from the weapon, pure and searing, cutting through the tide like dawn breaking through night. The shadows burned away, their screams fading into silence.
When the last echo died, the courtyard was empty.
The peach tree stood whole again, its blossoms returning, drifting gently in the warm breeze. The crimson sky faded to blue.
The Seal's voice returned, quieter this time.
*"You resist… again. Few can face the weight of their past and remain unbroken."*
Faizi lowered his blade. "I carry my past. I don't let it carry me."
A pause. Then a low chuckle.
*"Interesting. Perhaps you are worthy of the third gate."*
The world cracked like glass, and Faizi was back beneath the withered tree, the Seal warm in his hands. His body was drenched in sweat, his heart still pounding, but he was whole.
Elder Ren emerged from the trees, a bundle of herbs in his arms. He glanced at Faizi, eyes narrowing. "Something happened."
Faizi gave a small nod. "Another trial."
Ren's gaze lingered on the Seal. "And you passed it?"
"For now," Faizi replied. "But there's another one coming."
Ren's expression darkened. "Then you'd better be ready. The Seal's trials… they don't just test your strength. They decide whether you deserve to keep your soul."
Faizi looked at the Seal in his palm. Its faint heartbeat was faster now, as if it were eager. Waiting.
And somewhere deep inside it, a whisper curled around his thoughts:
*"The third gate will break you… or make you mine."*