The Fiery Chariot struck the air with a blast of divine heat, and the clouds parted like silk before a blade. Below, the capital unfolded—an empire of floating causeways and radiant citadels, each suspended by rings of golden light. Imperial banners rippled from sky-bridges, each stitched with the seal of Emperor Ichikawa: a flame with nine tongues.
At the forefront of the landing terrace, legions of Sky-Guards stood ranked in immaculate formation. Their armor shimmered like folded dawn, and even their breaths moved in synchrony—a single pulse of discipline. Ten thousand spears lowered as the Emperor's chariot approached, the sound of their motion like a tidal wave of steel.
"Announcing His Radiance, Emperor Ichikawa, Flame of the nine tongues—returning from pilgrimage beyond the bounds!" a herald's voice boomed. "And his esteemed guest—Ash, Sovereign-Slayer of the Beast Vein Continent!"
The crowd rippled, murmurs swelling through courtiers and cultivators alike. Even the faintest whisper of qi in the air shifted, curiosity and disbelief bleeding into the ether. This was the first time a champion from the ''untamed continent'' had ever been invited to Mystic Central by the emperor himself.
I rose as the chariot halted, the deck's bronze runes flaring one last time before dimming. The Emperor stepped forward first, his robes a cascade of molten silk. I followed, boots striking the crystal platform with a dull thud that echoed through the hush. The wind carried the faint tang of incense and power.
Eyes followed me—thousands of them.
I could feel their appraisals and auras like needles against my skin. The Beast Vein's wild qi clung to me still: the scent of storms and the wilds, the savage rhythm of untamed life. Among these marble and gold elites, I must've looked like something dragged up from the edge of the world. A real country bumpkin.
Still, I stood tall.
The Emperor raised his hand, and the air brightened with order. "Behold," he declared, "the guest I have summoned from across the seas. Remember him well, for the age turns only for those bold enough to stand where the old and the new collide." A ripple of acknowledgment passed through the Sky-Guards, and the palace gates yawned open—a towering archway of jade flame and living runes.
Inside, the Hall of Arrival waited.
It was vast enough to house a city square. Polished floors reflected a hundred banners from every known continent. I felt them before I saw them—the other champions, chosen by their own Wills. Some bore the serene auras of ocean or mountain realms; others, the biting scent of desert qi or storm-forged steel. Each one radiated the echo of their homeland's spirit.
And several...felt distinctly hostile.
The moment I entered, the air trembled. The Will of the Beast Vein within me roared in answer—low and territorial. Across the room, one youth cloaked in a mystic wood aura narrowed his eyes, another contestant, a prince in gold filigree robes, shifted uncomfortably, as if tasting my energy and finding it crude.
Emperor Ichikawa's hand rested briefly on my shoulder. "Wait here, young Sovereign. The summons will come soon. These are the chosen from the other lands. You may find… conversation enlightening."
"Or lethal," I muttered under my breath. The Emperor's lips twitched, almost a smile, before he turned and vanished down a corridor of living flame. I exhaled slowly, scanning the room. Every figure seemed chiseled from legend—princes draped in celestial silks, dukes with halos of cultivated qi. The air buzzed with rank and privilege.
I moved past them and found a quiet corner near a pillar carved with phoenixes. There, I sat cross-legged, circulating the eternal breath technique. My dark gear—the worn leather straps, the blackened greaves, the half-burned cloak from the Red Cap war—seemed to absorb their disdain like ink in water.
One noble sneered, loud enough for the room to hear. "A savage from the Beast Vein Continent? How uncouth. Do they not even teach refinement in the wilderness?"
Laughter flitted across the hall like knives. I cracked one eye open, unbothered. "They teach survival," I said evenly. "You'd be surprised how few of us die bowing."
Silence followed—brief, sharp, and electric. Then, as the mockers looked away, pretending disinterest, I smiled faintly to myself and closed my eyes again.
The wild pulse of the Beast Vein stirred faintly beneath my skin, a voice suddenly whispering in my ear "Let them laugh. I'll be knocking them off their high horses soon enough." My eyes snapped open, I looked around but now one was near me." Felicity, did- did you say something?" Felicity answered back from my mental energy pool a moment later, "HMM? no Ash, I didn't say anything."
Somewhere out in the endless realm of ice, a new horizon unfolded —the Cosmic Mountain loomed here, wreathed in eternal storm and astral fire, its peak forever hidden in veils of judgment. And at its foundation burned the Summit of Wills, where continents themselves took shape and voice.
There, the world did not turn by sun or moon but by desire. A thunderous gong rolled through the endless Icey expanse. The twelve gates of Heaven opened to the Wills gathered below for the first trial.
Jinmenju and Shakina strode forward together, his hair was white fire—long, spiked, alive with arcs of tribulation lightning. His body was marked with tiger stripes of molten gold that pulsed like living veins of magma. His eyes burned with bestial radiance, like suns trapped behind a smirk. Behind him, the roar of ten thousand beasts echoed in praise.
Before him, Shakina, Will of Mystic Central, glided in her full glory. Her form was like moonlight shaped into womanhood—her wings atop her head, wrist and ankles carried her effortlessly, her skin aglow with crystalline sigils that pulsed to the rhythm of order. Her eyes were serene and full of calculation. She carried her gold harp in her left arm casually plucking notes.
Jinmenju and Shakina continued to walk toward the first gate of the pillar of heaven to begin a game of doom. But they were resisted immediately by nearby wills! Jinmenju was resisted by Dor'mon'du and Shakina by Ka'rink'ka. The Will of the Forgotten Continent, Dor'mon'du, released a guttural laugh, "This again?" Dor'mon'du rumbled, his voice like tectonic plates grinding. "The beast dares to court beauty."
Shakina ignored the taunt. Her focus stayed locked on Jinmenju. "To enter the Pillar of Challenge the cosmos demands contest for every bond and alliance. Each trial we endure here will resonate with our chosen below."
Jinmenju golden eyes narrowed. "Ash."
"Yes," she said softly. "As you fight here, your champion fights there. Should he falter, so shall you. Should you fall…"
"Then the Beast Vein burns," Dor'mon'du finished, rolling his shoulders."
Just then the feminine will of Ka'rink'ka stepped forward to resist the will of Shakina. "Come Dor'mon'du and let us break their bond asunder!" Ka'rink'ka hissed
The Will of the Beast Vein leapt into the air—his feet slamming into the stone with a shockwave that rippled across realms. The primal battlefield roared to life; below, in the mortal world, Ash's eyes snapped open, the pulse of wild qi flashing through his veins like a second heartbeat.
A voice, distant and primal, whispered through the marrow of my being "Rise, cub. kill and eat." The floor shuddered for an instant—too brief for the nobles to notice, too deep for them to understand. My fingers twitched. Somewhere far away Jinmenju's fist snapped and, Shakina's harp sang. A battle of Will's had begun.