The morning haze had barely lifted when the black hawk glided over the Lin Clan compound.
Its shadow cut across tiled roofs and training courtyards before landing atop the great ancestral hall — the heart of the clan's power.
Inside, the elders were already gathered.
The hall smelled of incense and aged wood. Shafts of golden light pierced the lattice windows, illuminating rows of ancestors' tablets. Elder Lin Zhentian, Lin Dong's grandfather and the clan patriarch, sat at the head of the chamber. His expression was calm, but his eyes… sharp as tempered steel.
A trembling attendant rushed in, bowing low.
"Patriarch, a messenger hawk from the outer hills! It reports a fluctuation—unusual Yuan energy detected near the western ridge."
Murmurs rippled through the hall.
"The western ridge? That's near the outlying farms."
"No cultivator should be there at this hour…"
Zhentian raised a hand for silence. His gaze drifted to the faint tremor of light still visible through the distant mist outside.
"So," he said quietly, "the heavens stir even for the forgotten."
Across from him, Lin Xiao, Lin Dong's father, stood rigid and uneasy. He knew that ridge too well.
"Father," he began, "that area belongs to our branch. I'll—"
"You will do nothing rash," Zhentian interrupted, voice calm but cutting. "If the heavens have chosen to awaken something… we must first understand what."
The elder beside him leaned forward.
"Could it be the work of the rival Lei Clan? They've been seeking a Yuan source near those mountains."
Zhentian's lips tightened.
"Perhaps. Or perhaps fate is testing our bloodline once again."
Meanwhile, far from the hall, Lin Dong and Qingtan hurried through the forest paths, the basket bumping against her knee. She glanced at him, concern darkening her bright eyes.
"Brother, what if the elders find out?"
He gave a short laugh, though it didn't reach his eyes.
"Let them. They already think I'm useless. What's one more reason to look down on me?"
But deep inside, he felt something else — a steady thrum from the rune on his palm. It pulsed like a heartbeat, faint but powerful, whispering fragments he couldn't understand.
When they reached the edge of the family estate, Lin Dong froze. At the main gate, two guards stood whispering, their eyes wide with alarm. One pointed toward the ridge.
"Did you feel that? The Yuan Qi nearly choked the air!"
"Yeah. The elders are already in session. They think it's a hidden beast awakening."
Lin Dong's hand closed into a fist.
A beast?
No.
It was him.
He slipped through a side path toward the smaller courtyard he shared with his father and sister. Inside, the wooden practice dummies stood waiting, worn from years of neglect. He faced them, lifting his hand.
The rune pulsed again — light gold, softer this time, like it was learning restraint. He exhaled and thrust forward. A faint shimmer burst from his palm, cracking the dummy's arm clean off.
He blinked.
Then grinned.
"Maybe the heavens haven't forgotten me after all."
From a window above, unseen, Lin Xiao watched.
His eyes widened at the sight of the golden flicker.
For a moment, disbelief froze him — then pride, terror, and longing tangled inside his chest.
"Dong'er…" he whispered. "What have you touched?"