The sacred clearing was eerily quiet.
Lin Yan sat cross-legged beside the strange blue-glowing fungi, trying to steady his breathing. The pearl lay in his palm, its light fading until it was nothing more than a dull opal again.
The hooded man — whose name Lin Yan still didn't know — was tending to Bai Qian's wound. His movements were brisk but precise, wrapping the bandage tightly over her shoulder to stop the bleeding.
"You were lucky," he murmured. "A hand's width to the left and you'd have lost the arm entirely."
Bai Qian managed a faint smirk. "Still beats losing my head."
---
Lin Yan swallowed. "Back there… I thought you were going to die."
She glanced at him, and for a heartbeat there was something softer in her eyes. "If I had to make the same choice again, I would."
Before he could respond, the hooded man interrupted. "Save your strength. We still have ground to cover by dawn."
That was enough to silence them.
---
Hours passed. The clearing's glow never dimmed, though Lin Yan's eyelids grew heavier. He must have dozed, because the next thing he knew, the hooded man was gone.
The air was still.
Then he heard it — a faint voice.
"…yes, I have him. The pearl is awakened. No… he doesn't know."
Lin Yan's eyes snapped open. Bai Qian was crouched on the far side of the clearing, her back to him, speaking into what looked like a thin shard of crystal.
"I can bring him to the rendezvous, but you need to keep your end of the bargain. If the sect finds us before—" She stopped abruptly, glancing over her shoulder.
Lin Yan shut his eyes, forcing his breathing to stay slow and even.
---
When he opened them again, she was standing over him.
"You're awake," she said, her tone unreadable.
"Just now," he lied.
She studied him for a moment too long before sitting down across from him. "Try to get more rest. We move soon."
Lin Yan nodded, but inside, questions were swirling like a storm.
Who had she been speaking to? And what "bargain" was worth keeping from him?
---
They left the clearing just before dawn. The forest here was different — less oppressive, but stranger. The trees grew in spirals, their branches curling into shapes that seemed almost deliberate.
The hooded man led in silence. Every so often, he'd touch a tree trunk, mutter a word, and the bark would shift to reveal hidden carvings before sealing up again.
After a while, Lin Yan couldn't take it anymore. "You still haven't told us where we're going."
The man didn't look back. "My refuge. A place the sect's eyes can't reach."
"And after that?" Lin Yan pressed.
"After that," the man said, "we decide whether you're ready to hear the truth."
---
By midday, the sun broke through the canopy, casting dappled light over a moss-covered ridge. Below lay a valley unlike anything Lin Yan had seen — scattered ruins overgrown with vines, and in the center, a single stone tower rising above it all.
"That's it," the man said. "We'll be safe there."
They descended the slope carefully, stepping over broken tiles and fragments of statues. Some were so weathered their shapes were impossible to guess; others still bore faint outlines of warriors with weapons raised toward the sky.
---
Inside the tower, the air was cool and dry. Shelves lined the walls, filled with scrolls and jars of dried herbs.
The hooded man gestured toward a small alcove. "You can rest there. I'll see to the perimeter wards."
The moment he was gone, Bai Qian moved to a narrow window, scanning the valley.
"You've been quiet," she said without looking at him.
Lin Yan hesitated. "Just… thinking about last night."
Her gaze flicked toward him. "About the fight?"
"About… everything."
---
For a moment, it looked like she might press him, but then she turned back to the window. "This place won't stay hidden forever. The pearl changes things. You've felt it too, haven't you? Like something in you is… waking up."
He nodded slowly. "Yes. But I don't know if that's a good thing."
She gave a faint, humorless smile. "Power is never 'good' or 'bad,' Lin Yan. Only the hands it falls into decide that."
There was something in her voice — not cynicism, but experience. Like she'd learned that truth the hard way.
---
That night, Lin Yan couldn't sleep.
The tower was silent except for the faint creak of wood and the soft whistle of wind through the cracks. Somewhere far below, the hooded man was still working — he'd said something about repairing the wards — but Bai Qian was nowhere to be seen.
Curiosity gnawed at him.
He crept down the narrow stairs, careful not to make a sound.
The lower chamber was lit only by a single lantern. Bai Qian was there, her crystal shard in hand again, speaking in hushed tones.
"…he's stronger than I thought. If we push too soon, he might—" She froze, sensing him.
Her head turned slowly.
"Couldn't sleep?" she asked, her voice light, but her eyes sharp as knives.
---
Lin Yan forced a smile. "I was… wondering where you'd gone."
"Just keeping watch," she said smoothly, slipping the shard into her sleeve. "The wilds are unpredictable."
They stood in silence for a moment, the air heavy between them.
Then she stepped closer. "Lin Yan, there are things you don't understand yet. And you can't understand them — not until the time is right."
Her tone wasn't threatening, but it wasn't comforting either.
Before he could answer, the tower shook violently. Dust rained from the ceiling.
---
The hooded man burst into the room, his expression grim. "The wards are failing. Something's found us."
A low, resonant click echoed from outside.
Lin Yan's blood ran cold.
Bai Qian's hand went to her blade. "The Night Stalker?"
The man shook his head. "Worse."
From the darkness beyond the tower walls came a sound like metal grinding on stone — slow, deliberate, and getting closer.
The hooded man turned to Lin Yan. "If you have any strength left, now is the time to use it."
And in that moment, Lin Yan realized something terrifying — the pearl was already warm in his palm.
Something out there wasn't just coming for them.
It was calling to him.