The sky above Heaven's Gate Sect glowed pale gold as morning mist drifted along the mountain paths. The sun hadn't yet cleared the peaks, but inside the Hall of Ascension, the elders were already seated.
Twelve of them. Each one a master who had lived for more than a century. Their robes shimmered with spirit runes. Their gazes could tear through lies, through bloodlines—through fate itself.
In the center of the circular chamber was a single obsidian platform etched with sacred glyphs. This was where potential was judged. Not by strength alone, but by will, affinity, soul—and karmic value.
Su Chen stood before them in clean inner disciple robe. His expression was calm. But inside, he felt the pressure.
This wasn't a trial he could simply fight through.
A bell chimed. The evaluation had begun.
Elder Mo Tian, the fourth seat, leaned forward.
"Su Chen. Age: Sixteen. Cultivation: Mid Foundation Establishment. Recent achievements: Cleared Ascension Trial with no losses, defeated a spirit pact cultivator, and displayed unknown sealing arts. Is all this accurate?"
"Yes, Elder," Su Chen replied respectfully.
"Tell us," said Elder Hui, the second seat. "Do you have a master? Or any inherited legacy?"
Su Chen shook his head. "I walk my own path."
That answer stirred some murmurs among the elders.
Walking alone wasn't unheard of. But rising so fast without backing? It was… suspicious.
The Sect Master, Bai Yu, remained silent on the high throne, observing with unreadable eyes.
Elder Lin made a mark on the jade scroll. "Initiate soul resonance test."
A servant stepped forward, holding a circular mirror carved from moon jade. Runes flickered across it.
"Place your palm on the mirror and release a stream of Qi."
Su Chen obeyed.
The moment his Qi touched the mirror, the chamber dimmed.
Whoosh.
A wind stirred. The glyphs on the floor glowed.
Inside the mirror, something shimmered—an outline, then a swirl of silver and black.
Then came the shape.
A spiral. A fractal pattern of void and flame, endlessly spinning inward. And at the core—a glowing ember, pulsing slowly like a heart.
The elders jolted. Even the calm Sect Master's eyes narrowed.
"What affinity is that?" whispered one of the elders.
"Void Flame… but mixed with something else. Something ancient."
Another elder frowned. "There is corruption in the structure… yet it's controlled."
The mirror began to hum. Its frame cracked.
"Enough," Bai Yu spoke at last. "Withdraw."
Su Chen pulled back his hand. The mirror dimmed and went silent, now showing only his reflection—still calm, still composed.
Elder Mo Tian studied him carefully. "That Qi signature… it is not native to this timeline."
The words echoed in Su Chen's mind.
He kept his face neutral. But inside, the System stirred.
> [Warning: Elder Insight Detected – Concealment Veil Engaged]
> [System Tip: Do not confirm or deny anomaly. Let speculation run its course.]
Bai Yu leaned forward. "Tell me, Su Chen. Why do you cultivate?"
A simple question. But the most dangerous one of all.
Su Chen met the old man's eyes.
"To change everything."
Several elders blinked.
"Explain," Bai Yu said.
Su Chen's voice was steady. "The heavens are broken. The strong devour the weak. The powerful sit above and call it order. I don't seek to become another one of them."
He took a breath.
"I seek to rewrite the rules."
The chamber fell silent.
That wasn't the answer they expected.
But Bai Yu's lips twitched, almost imperceptibly.
"Ambitious," he said. "Very well."
He gestured to Elder Hui, who activated a new formation circle.
Twelve beams of light shot upward, each connecting to an elder. Their spiritual sense flowed into the center, forming a sphere above Su Chen's head.
> [Karmic Thread Evaluation: Initiated]
Thin golden lines appeared, linking Su Chen to faint silhouettes. Some were dim, like forgotten faces. Others were bright—alive and burning.
A thread shot upward, stretching toward the sky—and vanishing into the void.
Elder Lin paled. "There's no end to it. His fate... it's not bound to this world."
Another elder hissed, "I've only seen this once before. During the Heavenfall Calamity."
"But that was ten thousand years ago…"
Bai Yu stood.
The room quieted instantly.
"Su Chen," he said, "you are an inner disciple of Heaven's Gate. But your path cannot remain ordinary."
He lifted a hand.
A scroll of black and gold floated down.
"Accept this—an invitation to the Hidden Hall of Origins. Only three disciples have entered in the past hundred years."
Su Chen accepted the scroll with both hands.
"Thank you, Sect Master."
Bai Yu's voice deepened. "Inside, you'll find a trial of mind, spirit, and memory. It will either open your path… or destroy it."
Su Chen bowed. "I'll walk it."
As he left the hall, the elders whispered among themselves.
"Is he… the one foretold in the Forbidden Tablets?"
"Or a remnant of something older?"
"No," Bai Yu said quietly. "He's something new. Adeviation."
High on the rooftop above the Sect, where the wind ho
wled loudest, a woman in crimson robe watched Su Chen walk away.
Her eyes were sharp. Her lips curved in a smile.
"So… the Void Sovereign lives again."