Part Four
Wen De woke to the smell of antiseptic.
Not hospital-grade.
Improvised.
He blinked slowly.
Concrete ceiling.
Dim lighting.
Metal shelves stacked with supplies.
He was in an underground room.
His body felt hollow.
Like something had been carved out of him.
"You're awake."
Lea sat nearby.
Her wings were gone.
She looked almost ordinary.
Almost.
"How long?" he croaked.
"Eight hours."
He tried to sit up.
Pain flared sharply in his chest.
"Don't," she said.
"You fractured your foundation."
"I didn't even know I had one."
"You do."
He stared at the ceiling.
"Did we win?"
"No."
"Are we alive?"
"Yes."
"Then partial credit."
She didn't smile.
He noticed that.
"What's wrong?"
She hesitated.
"You're not the only one who felt the surge."
"Meaning?"
She stood and walked to a small table.
On it sat an old laptop.
The screen displayed multiple satellite images.
Different parts of the world.
Each marked with faint distortions in the sky.
"Secondary fractures," she said.
"Other realms?"
"Yes."
"And Earth?"
"Awakening."
He closed his eyes briefly.
"Define awakening."
"Dormant cultivators. Hidden sects. Suppressed bloodlines."
"You're telling me I just rang the dinner bell."
"Yes."
A distant metallic clang echoed from somewhere deeper in the structure.
Wen De's eyes opened sharply.
"You said this place was safe."
"It was."
Footsteps approached.
Not from above.
From below.
Lea's expression shifted instantly.
"Too fast," she murmured.
The metal door at the far end of the room dented inward.
Once.
Twice.
Then exploded open.
Figures in dark tactical gear stormed inside, weapons raised.
But their weapons weren't guns.
They were engraved rods glowing faintly with spiritual markings.
The man at the front removed his helmet.
Middle-aged. Calm. Cold eyes.
"Wen De," he said evenly.
"On behalf of the National Spiritual Security Bureau…"
He raised the rod slightly.
"You're coming with us."
Lea stepped forward.
Energy flickered faintly around her hands.
The man's gaze shifted to her.
"And you," he said calmly.
"…are not on any registry."
More footsteps echoed behind him.
More forces arriving.
Wen De exhaled slowly.
"Guess the world noticed."
The man's eyes narrowed.
"You have no idea."
Behind them—
Deep underground—
Something ancient responded to Wen De's presence again.
A seal cracking further.
And far above Earth—
Beyond visible space—
Multiple distant realms turned their attention toward the small blue planet.
The hunt had begun.