CHAPTER 0 — The Stories We Lived

Far above the world, where the clouds were nothing more than drifting carpets of white and gold, an island floated in the endless sky.

There, sitting like a dream carved by gods, stood a colossal golden palace.

It stretched across the entire floating island—vast enough that even a fully grown cultivator would seem no bigger than a tiny speck upon its gates. Towers rose into the heavens like pillars holding up the firmament itself, their gilded surfaces reflecting the light of distant suns. Waterfalls of cloud-like mist cascaded down the edges, flowing into the infinite sky below, and the courtyard—lined with luminous marble—shone like a field of stars trapped beneath daylight.

In this impossibly grand place, five children ran across the courtyard, their laughter bouncing off divine walls.

Astrylia's silver hair caught the sunlight with every turn, gleaming like starlight woven into silk. She chased her younger sister Anya, whose wild orange hair bounced with every leap. Nanako circled around them, dark green hair fluttering behind her, adding fuel to the chaos by poking both girls in their sides whenever they weren't looking.

Kaelix walked behind them—calm, composed, dignified—his black sclera and white pupils giving him the appearance of a tiny, miniature version of a certain terrifying guardian of the past. He pretended he wasn't interested in the game, even though his eyes kept tracking his sisters with hidden amusement.

And somewhere in the middle of this storm of flying limbs, soft giggles, and shouting—

"SHINTAROOOO, YOU CAN'T CATCH ME!"

—there was Shintaro, running after Kaelix with the most dramatic determination the sky palace had seen in years.

"Kaelix! Face me like a man! I—I mean! A future man! A man in training! A—HEY STOP WALKING AWAY!"

Kaelix didn't even turn his head.

"I'm not playing tag," he said calmly. "It is beneath me."

"You sound like your Dad," Shintaro groaned.

Kaelix paused.

"…Thank you."

"That wasn't a compliment!"

Nanako burst into laughter. "Shintaro lost again!"

"No I didn't!"

"Yes you did!"

"NO I—"

Before the argument could evolve into its usual chaos, something shifted in the air.

The courtyard's light changed.

The children turned.

Six figures stepped into the courtyard—two men, four women. Their presence changed everything, softening the sunlight, stirring the air, as if even the floating island itself recognized them.

But the children didn't care about that.

They simply lit up.

"MOM!"

"DAD!!"

They didn't run so much as explode toward the approaching adults.

The first to be hugged was the woman with silver hair and star-like eyes. Astrylia collided with her waist, and the woman wrapped her in a gentle embrace, warmth in her celestial gaze. Beside her, Kaelix walked forward with pride, allowing himself to be gathered into her other arm.

Another child flung herself into the arms of the woman with dark green hair. Nanako almost knocked her mother over with how tightly she hugged her.

And Anya leaped joyfully into the arms of the bright-haired woman—orange hair just like her mother's. Her mother caught her mid-air effortlessly, laughing softly as she steadied the child against her chest.

Meanwhile…

Two men stood behind the mothers.

One had tall stature, black hair, and the unmistakable black sclera and white pupils. The other had blonde hair streaked with natural black parts, tall and striking, with a ten-year-old-looking girl riding piggyback on him.

The girl's eyes—black sclera, white pupils—were identical to the man's.

The moment the adults stopped walking, the little girl slid off the blonde man's back.

Her small feet touched the courtyard tiles.

A soft, gentle glow wrapped around her—like moonlight flowing over water.

Her form stretched, reshaped. The light faded—

And now a fully grown woman stood there, long black hair cascading like shadowed silk, eyes calm and knowing.

None of the children reacted. They'd seen this a thousand times.

"Mom!" Shintaro shouted, wrapping his arms around the now-adult woman's waist.

She smiled, placing a hand on his head. "I'm here, Shintaro."

The blonde man sighed dramatically, stretching.

"Wow. Our children literally ignored us. Bro."

The black-sclera man arched an eyebrow.

"You just noticed?"

Before the blonde could protest, the black-haired woman smirked.

"Yeah… yeah… jealous of your wives and sisters, Shin."

The blonde man—Shin—gaped.

"Wha—what? I'm not jealous of anyone! Look—it… it's Vyuk!"

The silver-haired woman turned toward the black haired man with amused suspicion.

"Oh? Really, Vaibhav?"

Vaibhav nearly stumbled.

"Wai—Wait—No, I'm not jealous of anyone, Alicia! This bastard—Shin—is trying to frame me!"

The orange-haired woman laughed.

"Oh, come on, Nii-chan shin is always like this. Right, Nanao nee-chan? Nyra nee-chan?"

Nanao, the green-haired woman, nodded gently.

"Mm. True. He hasn't changed in all these years."

Nyra (the black-sclera woman who had transformed) added, "He has gotten worse."

"HEY!" Shin protested.

But before he could ramble further, Shintaro tugged on his sleeve.

"Dad, why does Mom always stay in her child form when she's riding on your back?"

Shin blinked.

"Well… Why don't you ask Nyra?"

Nyra shrugged lightly. "It's because I met my Dad when I was a child. It became… habit."

"That's the explanation?!" Shintaro shouted.

But before the comedic argument could escalate, another child stepped closer—Kaelix.

He stared up at Vaibhav.

"Dad. Can you tell me more about Grandmaster Lin? And… where is he currently?"

The courtyard fell quiet.

Vaibhav's expression softened—beautiful, melancholy, full of memories deeper than the sky they lived in.

"Well… kid," he began quietly, "your grandmaster left us over two billion years ago. Not because he wanted to… but because he needed to. He wanted to protect us. Just like he always did. Protecting 'family.' Sacrificing himself."

Shin smacked him lightly in the back of the head.

"Hey, you moron—don't make it sound like he's dead!"

"I didn't!"

"Yes you did!"

"No—!"

"Shin, vaibhav, stop," Alicia sighed.

The children exchanged glances.

Astrylia stepped forward and looked up at her parents.

"Mommy, Daddy… when did you meet Grandmaster Lin? And everyone else?"

Alicia smiled, brushing her daughter's silver hair.

"Big Brother adopted me before I was even born."

Kaelix looked at Vaibhav expectantly.

Vaibhav rubbed the back of his neck.

"Well… when I was born, I lost my mother and father. I only had my big brother—your uncle Prabhat. Your Grandmaster adopted us when I was a child."

Astrylia blinked.

"Wait… Dad… Grandpa and Grandma are alive now, aren't they?"

Vaibhav nodded.

"Yes. They are now. But not then."

Kaelix frowned.

"Then where are they now?"

Vaibhav smiled sadly.

"My parents and Hina's parents are with your elder siblings."

Before questions could rise again, Shintaro turned toward Shin and Nyra.

"Mom, Dad, can you tell me about Grandpa? And your journey?"

Shin snapped his fingers dramatically.

"Oh? You want to know our journey? Well—you came to the right man!"

He tapped his spatial ring and reached inside.

Then pulled out—

A stack of books.

Then another.

Dozens.

Hundreds.

A mountain of novels, manga, manhwa, and manhua volumes piled in the courtyard.

Shin fumbled through them, muttering, "No, not that arc—ah! Not the swimsuit OVA—where did I put my Novel?!"

Finally, he picked up four books triumphantly:

1. Veils of Severed Heavens – 0: Vaibhav's Rise

2. Veils of Severed Heavens – 1: Rebirth of Lin Xuan

3. Veils of Severed Heavens – 2: The End

4. The Vigilant Eternarch System

Nanako tilted her head, picking up the fourth book.

"Dad… why does this one look… unfinished? And why is the name different?"

Shin puffed up his chest.

"Oh, that? That's Lin Xiao's story! And I haven't chosen the official title yet."

All the adults internally sighed.

"Now then!" Shin declared, lifting the first book. "Children, gather! Your old man shall tell you the story of our journey! But not boring narration—no, no, no. I will explain every chapter like a novel. With mystery. Suspense. Drama! And—"

Nyra flicked his forehead.

"Ow! Nyra!"

"Less drama. More story."

"Fine, fine."

Shin snapped his fingers.

The courtyard shimmered.

The sky wavered like rippling glass.

The children gasped as their bodies became translucent—holograms floating gently above the golden tiles.

Shin's voice echoed across the sky palace, deep and theatrical:

> "Chapter 1: United Earth."

"The chapter starts from 2110 AD."

The story of the past…

was finally ready to begin.

— End of Chapter 0 —