The hall echoed with laughter.
"Next, Xuan-ray!" the academy elder's voice boomed.
Startled, the boy jerked upright. "Y-Yes, Elder!" he stammered and hurried forward, his steps uneven with nervous energy. But before he could even reach the spirit spring his foot slipped.
Thud!
A hush fell for a heartbeat, then a wave of mocking laughter rippled through the cavern.
"Did you see that?"
"Even before awakening, he fell!"
"So much for the brother of a genius poet!"
Their laughter was sharp, cutting deeper than any sword. Xuan-ray's face burned with humiliation. He gritted his teeth, eyes stinging, trying to rise with trembling hands.
The academy elder frowned, his voice heavy with disappointment. "Hmph… are these the two brothers everyone praised so much? Is this all the Xuan bloodline can offer now?"
Whispers spread like fire through the crowd.
Xuan-ray bowed his head, shame coiling in his chest like a snake. This is so embarrassing… I can't even stand properly in front of them.
And then he heard slow footsteps.
Xuan-ming approached, his white robe brushing lightly against the wet stone floor. There was no anger on his face, no sadness, no frustration. Only a faint, chilling smile curved at the edge of his lips one that made the air around him feel colder.
He bent slightly, close enough that only Xuan-ray could hear.
"Our future paths," he whispered, his voice smooth and calm, "will be… very interesting."
For a moment, Xuan-ray froze. The smile his brother wore gentle in appearance but dark in essence was not the smile of the kind, poetic brother he had always known. It was something else. Something dangerous.
Before he could speak, Xuan-ming straightened and walked away, his expression indifferent, as though the entire ceremony were a trivial play meant only to amuse him.
The children laughed again, pointing and sneering at both brothers.
"Hah! Both of them are useless!"
"One trips, the other only gets third-class talent!"
But Xuan-ray could not laugh. He stood rooted to the spot, staring at his brother's retreating figure.
Why… why is he so calm? Why does he look as if he's already won?
The laughter faded behind him, but Xuan-ray could still hear his brother's last words echoing in his mind soft, ominous, unforgettable.
"Our future paths will be very interesting…"
The laughter had long faded, yet its echoes clung to Xuan-ray's ears like thorns.
He sat alone at the edge of the spirit spring, his knees drawn close to his chest. The cool mist brushed against his face, but it could not cool the fire of shame burning within him.
He was a genius… and still awakened a third-class talent.
Then what about me?
He lowered his head. The reflection staring back at him in the spring's surface was weak, trembling, almost pitiful.
I'm not a genius. I've never been. If even Xuan-ming fell so far… then what chance do I have?
The words of his clan echoed in his mind, one after another sharp as blades, heavy as chains.
"Xuan-ray, look at your brother, Xuan-ming so gifted!"
"Learn from him; he will carry our clan's glory in the future."
"Xuan-ming will rise, and through him, our bloodline will shine once more!"
He clenched his fists. Always Xuan-ming. Always him.
Even his uncle's gentle smile, even his aunt's warmth they were never truly for him. They had been for the genius of the clan. The child of heaven. The symbol of hope.
And what was he?
A shadow.
A speck of dust beside the star.
A name easily forgotten.
Tears welled in his eyes, but he quickly wiped them away, afraid even the night breeze might mock him.
In everyone's eyes, I'm just the failure beside the prodigy.
I exist only to remind them of his brilliance.
There was a time… when the name Xuan-ray still carried warmth.
People in the village would point at him and whisper
"That's Xuan-ming's brother."
"Ah yes, the quiet one. What's his name again?"
Even now, no one truly remembered. His identity existed only in the shadow of another.
But in his memories… there was a moment of light.
The sound of a waterfall echoed through the forest, soft and endless. A boy Xuan-ray sat upon a smooth rock beside the stream, tossing pebbles into the water, watching ripples fade one by one. The cool mist brushed against his face, and for once, he felt calm.
Then a familiar voice broke the silence.
"What's wrong, Xuan-ray? Did someone bully you again?"
He turned quickly. His brother, Xuan-ming, stood behind him, dressed in white training robes, sunlight gleaming off his hair like silver threads.
Xuan-ray forced a smile and shook his head.
"No, Brother. Now that you're here, who would dare to bully me?"
For a heartbeat, Xuan-ming's stern face softened. He nodded lightly.
"Good. Then keep it that way."
And just like that, he turned and walked away, the waterfall's mist swallowing his figure.
Xuan-ray watched his brother's back until it vanished. Then, a small smile appeared on his lips.
"It doesn't matter," he whispered to himself.
"As long as I have my brother, nothing else matters. He's a genius, meant for great things… and I I'm fine being normal."
He looked down at his reflection in the water, and for the first time, he didn't hate what he saw.
"Geniuses are always different," he murmured.
"And I'll never try to become him."
That night, the wind carried a quiet chill over the Xuan estate. The moonlight fell upon the courtyard like shards of silver, cutting through the stillness of the night.
Xuan-ray sat alone beneath the old lantern tree, watching the fireflies drift lazily in the dark. His uncle had said earlier that day,
"Xuan-ray, we know you like to be alone. Don't worry, we won't disturb you with a servant. We'll only assign one to your brother, Xuan-ming."
He had smiled and nodded, pretending not to care. But deep inside, a faint ache bloomed in his chest.
The next morning, he saw her for the first time
Servant-nan.
A girl with bright eyes and a soft voice, moving gracefully behind Xuan-ming. Her laughter was light as silk, and every gesture carried warmth. The moment Xuan-ray saw her, something inside him stirred.
So that's her… Brother's new servant.
He didn't understand it himself, but his heart quickened whenever she passed. He knew he shouldn't feel that way she belonged to his brother's service, not his but love rarely asks for permission.
Days passed, and the household continued its usual rhythm. Xuan-ray kept his distance as always, wandering alone in the courtyards, sitting by the pond, reading old scrolls no one cared for.
Until one evening…
He was walking past his uncle and aunt's chamber, when faint voices caught his ear. The door was slightly open, and the flickering light of a lantern spilled through. He stopped unintentionally and listened.
"Xuan-ming's talent is extraordinary," his uncle's rough voice said, full of pride.
"I believe he might awaken as a first-class genius during the ceremony. We must treat him with care. He will carry the clan's name forward."
Then came his aunt's cold, sharp tone
"And what about Xuan-ray?"
A brief silence. Then his uncle sighed, as if speaking about something worthless.
"He's just trash. Once the Awakening Ceremony ends, we'll send him away. There's no point keeping someone like him in the main house."
The words hit him like a blade through the heart.
His breath caught. His hands trembled. The walls felt as though they were closing in.
Trash… Send me away?
The words he overheard kept echoing in his head, like a curse he couldn't escape.
Trash… send him away… worthless…
Xuan-ray stumbled backward from the door, the light from his uncle's chamber flickering across his pale face. His lips trembled, his eyes wide with disbelief.
"Am I… not even worth being treated as human?" he whispered.
He clutched his chest as if to stop the ache spreading within. The night air grew colder, biting against his skin, but the pain in his heart was far sharper.
He walked aimlessly through the courtyard, his feet dragging on the cold stone floor. Every memory of his uncle's fake smiles, his aunt's gentle words, every moment of warmth he once believed in all now felt like a cruel joke.
"So that's it… you only cared because of him."
He looked up at the night sky. The stars above shimmered faintly, indifferent to his suffering. His voice cracked, his heart pouring out in the silence of the night:
"Can't you treat me like a normal human? Is that too much to ask?"
"You took everything from me my family's love, my respect, even my right to live like a person!"
He fell to his knees, fists slamming against the ground. The sound echoed softly in the empty courtyard.
"Is it a sin that I'm not a genius?"
"Is it wrong that I'm weak?"
His eyes grew red, the tears drying before they could fall.
"If Xuan-ming hadn't been born… if that so-called genius didn't exist… no one would have compared me to him."
He laughed bitterly, the sound broken and hollow.
"Uncle and Aunt would have loved me then… Nan would have looked at me, smiled at me the way she smiles at him."
He tilted his head toward the darkness, whispering so softly that only the night could hear:
"Why? Why do I always lose everything… just because of him?"
Nan's soft voice broke the silence.
"Young Master Xuan-ray, what are you thinking? Why do you look so pale?"
Her tone was gentle, like sunlight filtering through mist.
Xuan-ray blinked rapidly and tried to hide the trembling of his lips. His face reddened slightly.
"It's nothing… it's just that among all these people, you're the only one who treats me kindly."
He lowered his gaze.
"I just wonder why."
Nan smiled faintly, her eyes glimmering with a strange playfulness.
"You'll never understand girls, young master. Your brother may be a first-class talent, cold and perfect, but I prefer someone warm… gentle… like you."
Her voice softened to a whisper, the kind that could twist a lonely boy's heart.
"But remember both you and I are only toys in the hands of others. Whenever they want, they can play with us, and when they're done, they throw us away."
Her words struck deep, but Xuan-ray couldn't understand their full meaning. He only saw her soft smile, her eyes that seemed to understand his pain. For a brief moment, he believed there might be someone in this cruel world who saw him not as Xuan-ming's shadow, but as himself.
But the illusion shattered the very next morning.
The first rays of the sun poured through the windows of the Xuan manor, bathing the halls in golden light. Xuan-ray had woken early, unable to sleep after last night's strange conversation. He wandered the corridor quietly, half curious, half restless until he froze.
Through the half-open window of the study, he saw Nan.
She stood close too close to Xuan-ming. The sunlight touched their faces as if blessing them. Her delicate fingers traced the edge of his robe; she whispered something, and Xuan-ming smiled faintly. Then, without hesitation, she leaned forward and kissed him.
He stood frozen behind the window, unable to move.
Nan's laughter, Xuan-ming's calm smile both kept replaying before his eyes like cruel illusions.
The rain from the night before had stopped, but inside Xuan-ray, a storm had just begun.
His lips quivered, and his eyes grew glassy. Slowly, he sank to his knees, pressing his trembling hands against his chest as if trying to hold his breaking heart together.
"Why…?"
The word escaped his mouth like a whisper to no one not even the heavens seemed to hear it.
Then, in the silence of his own mind, his thoughts began to pour out desperate, shattered, and bleeding.
"O God… I never asked you for anything."
"I never prayed for glory, nor for power."
"But why… why did you show me hope for something that could never be mine?"
His vision blurred. The golden morning light felt like a mockery, stabbing his eyes with its warmth.
"I had nothing," he whispered, voice cracking, "and what little I had… you took it from me."
Tears rolled down his cheeks, vanishing into the dust beneath him.
"It's all because of him…"
The image of Xuan-ming his perfect smile, his calm gaze, the way everyone praised his name burned in his mind like poison.
"Because of him, I lost everything. Because of him, I will lose even the roof over my head."
He clenched his fists so tightly that blood began to drip from his palms.
"After the Awakening Ceremony, they'll throw me out. I know it."
"But still… still, I wish someone would look at me the way they look at him."
"I wish someone would love me… even once."
His voice broke completely now.
"Father… Mother… if you were still here, this wouldn't have happened. You would've held me, you would've told me I'm not worthless…"
But there was no answer. Only the whisper of the wind through the trees soft, indifferent.
The air inside the spirit spring suddenly began to tremble.
A faint humming sound rippled through the underground chamber soft at first, then rising like the roar of an unseen beast.
Xuan-ray's eyes flew open.
For a moment, they glowed not with fear, not with sorrow but with something fierce and pure. Hope.
Then the entire spring erupted in light.
Streams of spirit particles burst out of the crystal water, swirling like golden fireflies, forming countless glowing runes in the air. Each rune was a fragment of the Hope Artifact's blessing, a divine resonance that hadn't been seen in centuries.
The elders froze. The clan leader rose from his seat. The other children gasped, shielding their eyes.
"Wh-what is happening!?"
"The Hope Artifact… it's reacting!"
"Impossible! He's awakening… a first-class talent!"
In that single instant, every mocking voice that had ever ridiculed Xuan-ray went silent.
The laughter, the whispers, the scorn all vanished beneath the blinding radiance that now surrounded him.
Each step he took shook the spring like thunder. Ten steps. Twenty. Thirty. Forty.
When he placed his forty-fifth step, the entire cavern rang with a sound like the heavens themselves applauding.
A beam of light shot upward, piercing through the ceiling and into the skies above the Xuanwu Mountains.
The elders stared in disbelief.
"Forty-five steps…!"
"A first-class awakening… after so many years!"
"It's him! The younger brother! Xuan-ray!"
Xuan-ray stood trembling, tears streaming down his face. He couldn't breathe not from exhaustion, but from the weight of what had just happened.
For so long, he had been a shadow.
For so long, he had walked behind his brother's light, unseen, unheard, unloved.
And now the heavens had spoken.
He fell to his knees, clutching his chest, sobbing uncontrollably, but this time his tears were not of pain they were of release.
"Brother…" he whispered between breaths,
"The gods heard me… They finally heard me…"
He looked up toward the glowing ceiling, his face wet with tears, but his eyes now burned with fierce determination.
"Brother you will no longer be the mountain that crushes me."
"From now on, no one will call me your brother."
"They will remember my name Xuan-ray."
He clenched his fists, his trembling turning to power. The light reflected in his eyes looked almost divine.
"From today… I will walk beside heaven."
The Hope Artifact particles slowly faded, sinking back into the spring, leaving behind only silence and awe.
No one dared to speak. No one dared to mock.
And in that silence a new star was born in the Xuan Clan.