The air was still.
Footsteps echoed in the empty corridor as a lone figure emerged from the shadows.
> "I'm leaving…"
His voice was low, almost lost to the silence.
Behind him, Sunny called out, trying to stop him.
But the man didn't turn back.
Sunny's fists tightened.
> "We have to find him…"
The figure paused, eyes fixed on the horizon, thoughts clawing at his mind.
"What is happening to me? Sometimes I'm trapped in a dream… sometimes I'm locked in a prison… and now I'm here.
Who am I, really? Who… am I?"
A memory rose from the depths of his mind.
A book. A novel.
Its author — a man known as the Venerable.
The story inside… blurred, half-forgotten.
But it held something dangerous.
The problem was — he didn't know where the book was anymore.
This world was far too vast. Searching for it would be like chasing a shadow across the sea.
Then… another memory.
A name.
A man who was a Venerable.
A realm master known for one thing — Destiny Change.
They said, if he touched you, your destiny would bend.
Shift.
Even death itself could be erased from your path.
Sunny's voice cut into his thoughts.
> "What if… he's still alive? If he can change destiny… maybe…"
His mind drifted further.
Yes… there was another figure.
A man tied to the Holy Lands.
Legends claimed that when someone broke through the first two great realms, they became Starborn — and with that came a Holy Ground.
A place where, no matter how powerful your opponent… they could still lose to you.
It was like a man with a single bullet in his gun facing down a lion.
One shot was enough… if used at the right time.
Sunny's gaze darkened.
> "I have to go… to the place where time itself loses its meaning."
A dangerous place.
A place where even time sometimes forgot to move.
The Kanah Village.
He had been there before.
Back then, it was the modern era.
Yet when he entered… he found himself in the distant past.
And just as easily, he could have stepped into the far future.
But it didn't always work.
The flow of time there was unstable.
Once, he had known exactly where in the village the anomaly lay.
Now, that knowledge was gone.
Which meant only one thing —
Before he could return to Kanah Village…
Before he could step foot into that land again…
He had to become Starborn.
The path would not be easy.
Even if the Starborn were considered nearly invincible, there were villages where their power meant nothing — where they were reduced to the strength of a child.
He would need to cultivate.
To grow.
But then… a dangerous thought whispered in his mind.
"What if… I formed a bond with someone?"
The idea lingered in the air, heavy with temptation.
Somewhere far away, the sound of a coming storm rolled through the clouds.