Li was drawn into the depths of the fissure, where space flowed like liquid and the surrounding light twisted and turned without end. His feet found no foothold; it was as if he were suspended in the void. The crack acted like an invisible mirror, stretching and distorting his shadow before splitting it into countless fragments.
Nishira's voice resounded once more, this time directly within Li's soul rather than through the air.
'You have always believed yourself to be judging others, yet you have never judged yourself.'
Li's heart lurched violently. He tried to retreat, only to find himself pinned in mid-air by an invisible force. The fissure's light illuminated memories he had never witnessed:
His mother stood before an ancient altar, her expression stern yet resolute.
In her hand, the runes glowed with a flickering radiance — the core power of the seal.
The gaze she cast upon the infant Li was filled with an indescribable resolve and anguish.
"The moment you were born, you should have been taken away," Nishira murmured. "This was your destiny."
Fragments of his childhood flashed through Li's mind: his mother's tender smile, the warm glow of home and the everyday moments he had thought would last forever. Yet, in that instant, he realised that all of that had been a borrowed existence, secured by his mother's memories and strength, which had allowed him to live in the human world rather than in the place that the rift had intended to swallow him.
He saw the other side of the rift and his 'true self' there.
That self stood silently, gaze cold and clear, as if silently questioning:
'Did you truly believe you could alter fate?'
Li's heart lurched violently. He felt an unprecedented sense of loneliness and remorse.
His mother had borne every cost for him.
Yet he had spent his life judging others, never confronting himself.
His so-called power was merely a manifestation of his resistance to and fear of fate.
The Eye of Judgement glowed once more, illuminating the truth hidden deep within the rift.
The light pierced his consciousness like a blade, revealing the truth clearly:
All the seals, all the struggles, all the sacrifices revolved around the fact that he 'belonged to the fissure'.
The warmth and security he had clung to were mere illusions that his mother had pieced together from her life and memories.
Li's breathing became laboured, and he felt as if a boulder was crushing his chest. He wanted to fight back or flee, but the fissure stretched infinitely in every direction, swallowing everything. The only option was to confront the brutal truth:
"You never truly belonged here."
Li trembled faintly within the fissure, his gaze flashing with an unprecedented determination — he must find his place, be that in the world or within the rift itself.
The remaining student council members within the academy retreated in disarray beneath the light of the fissure, while Grey stood upon the shattered lectern, his gaze as cold and sharp as a blade. The air thickened with palpable tension, as though each breath carried the heat of flames.
"Seal it—seal his eyes!" Grey's voice thundered, shattering the surrounding silence.
This was his command; the only way to prevent Nixira's complete unleashing. Not fear, but judgement: Li's Eye of Judgement. If left active, the fissure's power would spread uncontrollably, engulfing the entire academy and indeed the world itself.
Several student council members performed the ritual mechanically, runes flickering in their hands as energy began to coalesce. Yet, at the very moment of sealing, Li offered no resistance. He merely gazed calmly at Grey, his voice so faint it nearly vanished in the wind.
"Then what am I?"
Hui paused, a faint tremor stirring within him. In that instant, he saw the light that flashed in Li's eyes — not fear or confusion, but a calmness born of recognising one's destiny.
"You... you are a threat!" Hui growled through gritted teeth, yet a barely perceptible hesitation laced his words.
Space began to warp. The energy of the sealing ritual was reflected back by Li's Eye of Judgement, with countless bands of light colliding in the air and shaking the entire podium. A low murmur rose from the depths of the fissure. Nixira's form trembled faintly within the light as if sensing Li's extraordinary nature.
Li's hand trembled slightly as he watched the sealing beams rise around him. He murmured softly, 'I belong neither here nor there, but I shall choose.'
Grey's expression darkened as the sealing array strained to its limits. Several members gasped as the runes in their hands flickered erratically. Suddenly, a piercing sound rent the air, as if the rift itself had been struck by an invisible hand. Ripples spread outwards, shocking every corner of the academy.
Hui took a deep breath. He understood that he was not facing an ordinary student or a simple fissure, but a being who dared to confront their place in the world.
Final scene: The sealing array stabilised temporarily, yet a cold gleam flickered in Li's eyes as if silently declaring:
"No matter how much you seek to lock away, I shall see it all."