The sky above Broomstick Peak was a gentle blue, painted with soft, drifting clouds. Beneath them, the newly sprouted Spirit Tree shimmered with pale green light. The sect's area had grown by another two meters overnight. It now reached the edge of the vegetable patch. Truly, this was sacred expansion.
Lin Xun stood with arms behind his back, gazing proudly at the humble land under his protection. In his hand, a stick of grilled fish. "Two disciples," he murmured between bites, "and a whole six meters of power. If this keeps up, I might be able to fight mosquitoes by next month."
He laughed at his own joke, then paused. "…Actually, that mosquito yesterday did slap me harder than I slapped it."
Behind him, Li Yao was practicing the Wind-Bone Sweep with dedicated movements. Her footwork had improved, and the wind around her responded more readily, lifting stray leaves and kicking up swirls of dust. Her hair danced in the breeze, eyes filled with focus.
But Lin Xun wasn't smiling.
Because Li Yao—who had laughed off broom training just days ago—now wore a different expression. Quiet. Focused. A little haunted.
---
Trouble in Stillness—
"You didn't sleep last night," Lin Xun said without turning around.
Li Yao slowed her movements but didn't stop. "I'm fine."
"You were talking in your sleep. Said something about... golden stairs."
She froze.
Lin Xun finally turned, his eyes sharper now.
Li Yao looked down at her hands. "It was just a dream. A staircase in the sky. I was climbing it, barefoot. My feet were bleeding, but I couldn't stop. Something was waiting at the top."
"What was it?"
"I don't know. I woke up before I saw. But… it felt familiar. Like I'd dreamed it before. A long time ago."
Lin Xun stared at her in silence.
Then said, "If you're turning into a prophet, tell me the lottery numbers."
Li Yao cracked a smile. Barely.
---
Echoes of the Forgotten—
He knew what she saw.
The Endless Ascension Platform.
It was a long-lost construct from the Mythos Era. Only the most gifted cultivators were allowed to attempt it—a realm between realms, where time and memory warped. It was believed to imprint a vision of one's truest desire...
But how could a girl from a farming village see that in a dream?
Unless…
Unless she had once touched something ancient. Or been touched by it.
He didn't voice his thoughts.
Instead, he handed her a steamed bun.
"Eat. You're no use to me dead."
She took it silently.
---
New Growth, New Arrival—
Later that afternoon, as Lin Xun tended to the spirit tree—which now refused to stop glowing—he was humming to himself.
Lin Xun singing"Disciples are rare, they fall from the sky~ But sometimes they walk here with snacks I can try~ "
"Senior Brother!" Li Yao barked.
"Fine, fine," Lin Xun huffed. "Back to being a dignified sect master. No more songs."
A rustle came from the path below. Footsteps. Light, hesitant.
He signaled Li Yao with a glance. She took her position by the tree, broom in hand, now less of a joke and more of a weapon.
Out from the path emerged a boy. Maybe seventeen. Hair like soot. Eyes like frost. He dragged behind him a cloth-wrapped bundle nearly as tall as himself.
"This the... God Sect?" the boy asked, his voice dry.
"No," Lin Xun said, deadpan. "This is Broomstick Peak of the Divine Dust Sect, which is a sub-sect of the Great Mud Heaven Division."
The boy blinked. Li Yao blinked. Even the tree blinked—if that were possible.
"…I heard someone here killed a demon with a broom."
Lin Xun crossed his arms. "And?"
"I want to join."
---
A Strange Newcomer—
His name was Wei Qing, and he was not what he seemed.
Lin Xun knew the moment he laid eyes on the bundle.
Wrapped inside it was a broken blade. Old. Too old. Runes long faded. But even dulled, it reeked of suppressed power.
Wei Qing claimed he found it in the ruins north of the forest. Claimed he had no family. Claimed he just wanted to get stronger.
But when Li Yao offered him the spare broom to begin training, he didn't grab it with two hands like a normal person.
He bowed to it.
"Thank you for the guidance."
Li Yao looked at Lin Xun. "Is he weirder than you?"
"We're in competition now," Lin Xun muttered.
That night, when Wei Qing brushed the floor with slow, ritual-like movements, Li Yao whispered, "Should we call an exorcist or a teacher?"
Lin Xun replied, "We can't afford either."
---
Three Disciples—
> System [New disciple accepted: Wei Qing]
[Sect area expanded by 4 meters]
[Spirit energy density increased.]
With Wei Qing's arrival, the sect territory surged outward, pushing the boundary nearly to the first cliff. Lin Xun could feel it—his power stretching, thinning, but still holding.
He could now see birds flying above the boundary freeze briefly midair, startled by invisible qi. It was growing. Slowly, but surely.
And with it, so were the mysteries.
That night, as Li Yao and Wei Qing trained under the tree, Lin Xun looked out over his tiny domain. Three disciples. A glowing tree. A future that smelled faintly like trouble.
From the woods below, an old man with no eyes watched them from a distance.
He smiled.
---
End of Chapter 4
> Reader Question:
Li Yao dreamed of golden stairs from a long-lost realm. Wei Qing bows to brooms and carries a broken ancient blade. What do you think their pasts are hiding? Could they have a connection to Lin Xun's forgotten era?
Share your theories in the comments!