— FIRST SIGNS OF STRENGTH
The dawn in Willowmist Village was quieter than usual. Birds hesitated before singing, and even the wind seemed uncertain, as though aware that something subtle—but immense—was stirring.
Li Wei rose early, restless. Sleep had brought him no comfort. The events of the past nights—the wolf, the cultivator, the strange tremors, and whispers in the air—had left a lingering tension in his chest. A tension he could not name.
As he stepped outside, he noticed the village had changed, though nothing appeared different. The air itself felt heavier, charged with something he could almost feel brushing against his skin.
---
A Strange Awakening
Li Wei wandered near the small river behind his home, where sunlight reflected off the water's surface in dancing patterns. He squatted to scoop water into his hands.
And then it happened.
The water trembled as if alive. Tiny ripples formed, spiraling outward unnaturally fast. Li Wei froze.
"W-what…?" he whispered, stepping back.
He tried again, cupping the water in his hands. The ripples responded, almost as if listening. They rose slightly, forming arcs before crashing down gently. His heart pounded.
Am I… doing this?
He had no idea. There was no cultivator teaching him. No training, no instructions. Only something inside—something he could neither see nor understand—guiding the movement.
---
Elder Yun's Return
Elder Yun appeared shortly after, moving slower than usual, leaning heavily on his staff. His sharp eyes scanned the area, noting the subtle disturbances in the water and the rustling leaves nearby.
Li Wei stepped back instinctively.
"Child," Elder Yun said quietly, eyes narrowing. "Do you feel it? The change in the air? The shift around you?"
Li Wei hesitated. "Yes… but… I don't understand it. I didn't do anything."
The elder studied him closely, as though weighing every heartbeat. "Sometimes," he said, "one does not need to do. Some things awaken on their own, and the world itself begins to respond."
Li Wei tilted his head, puzzled. "Awaken?"
Elder Yun's expression was unreadable. "Patience. Time will reveal what you are capable of… if you survive the trials to come."
Li Wei swallowed, feeling a mix of fear and curiosity. He did not understand, but he knew, deep in his bones, that the world had quietly shifted around him.
---
A Subtle Connection
Throughout the morning, Li Wei noticed small, almost imperceptible changes.
Leaves trembled when he moved too quickly.
He could hear the faintest rustling of insects from far away.
Small stones on the ground seemed to skip slightly when he stepped on them, almost as if acknowledging him.
He tried to ignore it, thinking he was imagining things. But a subtle warmth in his chest—dormant, silent—throbbed faintly, hinting at power he could not yet access or name.
The fragment of Riyam pulsed deep inside him, unseen and unknowable, silently observing the boy as he stumbled unknowingly toward his first step on a path he could not yet understand.
---
The Wolf's Return
As dusk approached, a familiar presence stirred at the forest edge.
Li Wei froze. There, between the twisted pines, glowed the molten blue eyes of the Silverflame Dire Wolf.
It did not approach directly, merely watching from the shadows. Its gaze lingered on Li Wei longer than before, almost as if testing him, trying to understand something it could not.
The boy's chest tightened, a strange anticipation curling in his stomach. He did not run. He did not hide. He only stared back, sensing the wolf's intelligence and its inexplicable connection to the strange events surrounding him.
The wolf tilted its head, then retreated slowly into the forest again. Yet Li Wei could feel that it would return. Always watching, always testing, always patient.
---
Hints of the Future
That night, Li Wei lay awake, thinking about the day.
The water, the leaves, the faint tremors beneath his feet… And the wolf's return.
He did not understand any of it. None of it made sense.
And yet, a tiny part of him—a part he could not see or name—felt alive, alert, and… strong.
Something is stirring, he thought.
Something that belongs to me, even if I do not know it yet.
The fragment remained hidden, completely unknowable, but it had begun to influence the world around him subtly. A whisper of potential. A shadow of power.
Li Wei drifted into a restless sleep, unaware that the Silverflame Dire Wolf, the cultivator, and unseen forces beyond his understanding were all beginning to circle his life like currents of wind, shaping a destiny that would one day shake the heavens.