The clouds above Skycloud Peak had darkened by dawn.
Though the sun rose in the east, its golden light was swallowed by an unnatural gray veil, as if the heavens themselves were warning the world of a coming catastrophe. Whispers of cold wind roamed the mountain paths. Even the spirit birds that usually sang at morning were silent.
Li Yi stood at the edge of the Azure Wind Platform, robes fluttering in the breeze, his gaze distant.
A single word continued to echo in his heart—Li Yixuan.
Is that… my true name?
The dream—or was it a vision?—from the previous night refused to leave his mind. He had seen a battlefield not of this world, heard the cry of abyssal horrors, and stood face to face with a woman who burned like a divine star.
He did not know how or why, but a thread of certainty pulled at his soul: the woman was his mother.
His mind raced. The name… the flame… the ancient battlefield. And now, the demons moving again.
Before he could ponder more, a gentle voice approached.
"You're troubled," said Bai Qing, Peak Master of Dawncloud Pavilion, as she stepped onto the platform. Her long violet robes trailed behind her, and a silver crane followed silently by her side.
Li Yi turned, bowing respectfully. "Peak Master."
"You've broken through three realms in less than two months. Most geniuses in the Upper Realm wouldn't dare such madness," she said, her voice soft yet sharp. "Your body may endure it, but your mind may not."
"I can endure it," he replied, eyes steady.
She studied him for a moment before handing him a jade scroll. "Then prove it. This is a summon from the Pavilion Council. A secret mission has been assigned to you."
Li Yi accepted the scroll, reading it quickly. His eyes narrowed.
Target: Star-Sundering Gorge. Objective: Investigate the abyssal pulse and eliminate residual corruption. Backup: None. Authorization: Full lethal force permitted.
"You want me to go alone?"
Bai Qing nodded. "This task would normally be given to elders… but after the Flame-Sealed Hall awakened, the Pavilion agreed: you are no longer just a disciple."
"And the real reason?"
She smiled faintly. "Because the abyss is hunting you. You might as well hunt it back."
—
Later that day, Li Yi departed alone.
He wore simple traveling robes with a reinforced talisman robe layer beneath. His only companion was the wind and the sound of his own heartbeat. A sheathless sword floated behind him, its crimson edge humming faintly with dormant Qi.
As he flew over the rolling clouds, the lands of the Xuan Realm spread out beneath him—lush valleys, immortal mountains, rivers that sparkled with spiritual energy. The world was beautiful, but it hid terrors under the surface.
How many realms are like this? How many have already fallen to the Abyss?
The question weighed on his chest like an invisible chain.
After half a day of flight, the skies darkened. The clouds grew jagged, and the wind turned sharp with a scent of sulfur and death.
He descended toward the Star-Sundering Gorge, a massive rift that split the land like a scar. Rumors said it was formed during the ancient war between heaven and the abyss. Few dared approach it, for the Qi here was tainted.
As Li Yi landed near the gorge's edge, he immediately felt it—the pulse of the abyss.
It was like a whisper on the edge of consciousness. Soft, seductive, full of rot and hunger.
Come closer... burn... fall... return to the dark...
He ignored it and stepped forward.
The ground cracked under his feet. Trees around the gorge had long died, their trunks petrified by demonic Qi. Bones jutted from the earth—some animal, some human, some too large to name.
He activated the jade scroll again. A faint compass projected into the air, pointing toward the deeper crevice within the gorge. Li Yi adjusted his sword and entered the rift.
—
As he moved deeper, the surroundings shifted.
The air grew colder. The sky above turned red, though no sun shone through. Rocks floated weightlessly, and gravity twisted. He was entering a pocket realm corrupted by abyssal energy.
In the distance, something howled.
Li Yi pressed forward.
He passed through shattered ruins of what might have once been a temple—pillars carved with symbols now broken and oozing black mist. He reached a shrine at the center of the ruins, where a corpse sat cross-legged, wrapped in black vines.
The corpse wore ancient armor, cracked and rusted. But around its neck hung a talisman glowing with dim light—resisting the abyss even after death.
Li Yi reached for it.
The moment his fingers brushed the talisman, the corpse's eyes snapped open.
A demonic scream tore through the air as black tendrils lashed toward him. The vines on the corpse surged, forming a twisted monster—half man, half abyssal spirit.
Li Yi leapt back, eyes blazing. His flame surged forth in a golden arc.
"Sunfire Slash!"
The blade of flame cleaved through the air, severing the tendrils. The demon shrieked, but black mist began to reform its limbs.
He narrowed his eyes. "Then burn completely."
He raised both hands, forming a sigil in the air.
"First Flame Technique: Purge of Nine Suns!"
Nine golden spheres of flame formed around him, rotating with increasing speed. They collided with the demon's form in a blazing explosion.
The abyssal energy screamed in pain as it was consumed by divine fire. The corpse finally turned to ash, and the shrine fell silent.
Li Yi knelt and retrieved the talisman.
It was cracked, but within it shimmered an image—a gate sealed by chains of starlight, and beyond it, a shifting void.
The path to the God Realm…?
Before he could examine further, a cold laughter echoed from deeper within the gorge.
Clap. Clap. Clap.
"Well done… child of fire."
From the shadows emerged a figure clad in robes of darkness. His face was hidden behind a bone-white mask with crimson lines.
Li Yi stood, blade raised. "You're not from this realm."
The figure chuckled. "No. I walked through the abyss long before your world even had a name. And I have come for you."
"Then you will return in ash."
The masked figure raised his hand, summoning a massive claw formed from abyssal Qi. It slammed toward Li Yi.
But this time, Li Yi did not dodge.
Instead, he reached into his core—and let loose the flame.
A pillar of white fire erupted from his body, pure and ancient. The claw melted in midair, and the masked figure hissed in pain.
"You… you've already touched the Primordial Fire Core?"
Li Yi stepped forward, flame swirling around him.
"Your abyss doesn't scare me."
They clashed in the center of the gorge.
Abyssal darkness met celestial flame. The sky split above the rift. The earth cracked and twisted. Each strike shattered stone and echoed through the mountains.
But the flame burned hotter.
With one final strike, Li Yi roared, "Blazing Sky Burial!"
His flame coalesced into a phoenix of pure fire that engulfed the masked man in a screech of divine judgment.
The figure screamed, mask cracking, body twisting—
And vanished into the void.
—
Li Yi collapsed to one knee, gasping for breath. His robes were torn. His arms shook.
But he was alive.
The gorge was silent once more. The abyssal whispers had faded—for now.
He stood slowly and looked toward the horizon.
If even Abyssal Lords are entering the Xuan Realm… then this world is in more danger than anyone knows.
He took one last glance at the broken shrine, then turned and left.
Behind him, the air shimmered, and faint whispering began anew in the shadows.
---