will walk the world and hunt down the one who controls the Fate Building.
I will force him to reveal the others who hold its power.
And I will make sure they all die—for my father.
Bing Leng spoke quietly, her voice thin but steady.
Her lips were swollen, cracked from days of fighting wild wolves, from fleeing through the forest, from falling and rising again and again among broken branches and roots.
Yet her raised hand carried no hatred—only resolve.
She did not scream.
She did not beg.
The heavens had already withdrawn from the mortal world.
Who would care if a little girl vanished in the wilderness?
All she could do was listen to the voice that followed her—a presence she did not fully trust, yet could not ignore.
She reminded herself to stay alert.
To listen carefully.
No matter how uneasy it made her feel, she had to admit the truth.
That voice was one of the reasons she was still alive.
She kept walking.
The sun crossed the sky faster than she realized.
By dusk, she returned to her tree house.
She picked up a stone and wedged it low against the entrance, securing it. Only then did she relax slightly.
Her eyes fell on the artifact her father had left her.
Faint streams of soul energy drifted around it, barely visible, like mist in moonlight.
She fastened the artifact to her belt, then lay down among dry grass and leaves, pulling a sack over herself to block the cold.
Cough… cough…
Her body jolted awake in the middle of the night.
She coughed violently, each breath burning her chest.
Blood stained her teeth.
She lifted her hand.
It trembled uncontrollably.
"…Damn it."
Her voice broke.
"Please… someone…"
Morning arrived quietly.
She woke in a wide field of grass.
The blades swayed as the wind brushed against her face, cool and indifferent.
After only a few steps, she stumbled and fell again.
Grimacing, she clutched her knee and forced herself upright, scanning her surroundings before moving on.
Thorny bushes crowded the path ahead.
Then she stopped.
Her gaze dropped.
"Sleeping hibiscus…"
Her voice rose in disbelief.
The voice answered immediately, calm and unaffected.
"It's edible. Beneficial for the heart, and useful for easing cold and flu symptoms.
It's also rich in vitamin C—good for the body overall."
"Eat it."
Bing Leng hesitated only a moment before biting into the plant.
She chewed slowly.
"…Not great."
Her expression tightened.
The voice grew sharper.
"Stop complaining and eat."
She sighed and finished it anyway, forcing it down despite the taste, her face twisting slightly as she swallowed the last bite.
Bing Leng sat beside a small campfire.
She pressed a stick down and nudged several stones closer, feeding the flames. The fire flared higher, crackling softly in the quiet night.
Skewered above the fire was a roasted chicken leg she had caught earlier. A thin metal rod pierced through it, supported by two wooden stakes.
"This artifact…" she murmured, watching the flames. "Father gave it to me. He said it could cook any animal."
She lightly tapped the chicken with her finger.
Then she lifted the metal rod and pulled the meat free.
"Hot—!"
She yelped, nearly dropping it.
The voice scoffed immediately.
"Idiot. Of course it's hot."
Bing Leng nodded silently, blowing on the meat for a while until the heat faded. She ate slowly, savoring what little comfort the food brought, then set the leftovers aside.
Afterward, she walked toward the nearby river.
She knelt and leaned down, bringing her cracked lips close to the clear, flowing water.
The voice spoke again.
"It's clean."
She drank deeply.
Water spilled down her chin as she swallowed mouthful after mouthful, clutching her stomach once she was done.
"…I'm full."
She returned to the campfire and scattered dust over the embers until the flames died out completely.
Only then did she climb back into her tree house.
A few days later—
"Aaah!"
Bing Leng sprinted through the forest, her breath ragged.
Behind her, a massive cow with enormous horns charged forward, shaking the ground with every step.
The voice snapped furiously.
"Are you brainless?! Why would you go that way? You're still a mortal!"
She screamed as she ran, barely avoiding low branches.
Suddenly, she veered sharply toward a wooded slope.
The voice hesitated, then shouted,
"Left—then crouch! There's a narrow hollow—if you just—"
She ignored it and ran the opposite direction.
The voice nearly exploded in rage, biting back words that would have crushed her spirit.
Then—
Soul energy suddenly wrapped around her neck, wrists, and legs.
Bing Leng froze.
She looked down in shock.
"…Father's soul energy?!"
Her cry echoed through the forest.
The ground trembled.
A terrifying aura erupted outward, followed by a blinding white explosion.
The voice went silent.
In the air, Bing Leng's body lifted.
Her eyes glowed with an icy blue light as she pressed her wrists together.
Agony tore through her skull, as if countless blades were piercing her mind and eyes all at once.
She screamed—
Then collapsed inward, her body compressing into a sphere of radiant light.
The voice stared, stunned.
"…Don't tell me."
"Heaven Awakening."
Heaven Awakening.
It was a phenomenon spoken of only in whispers.
A cruel mercy.
On rare occasions, when a mortal stood on the edge of death—when fate itself seemed ready to erase them—the heavens would intervene.
Not out of kindness.
But favoritism.
Like a neglectful parent suddenly reaching out to save one child while abandoning countless others.
When Heaven Awakening occurred, the mortal's Soul Core would forcibly form. A Soul Realm would be carved into existence, branded directly into the soul.
Power would descend.
But the price—
Was unbearable.
For every one who survived Heaven Awakening, countless others had died attempting to reach even a fragment of that power.
The heavens did not give freely.
They took.
The voice remained silent, watching the sphere of light suspended in the air.
"She can only rely on herself now," it muttered.
Then—
Crack.
Two phantom fists formed from blazing green soul energy slammed into the sphere.
The light shattered.
A shockwave rippled through the forest.
From the fragments emerged a young girl.
Her eyes—once dull with exhaustion—now burned with icy blue light streaked with gold.
Her hair had turned pure white, flowing like snow under moonlight.
Soul energy poured from her body in violent waves, pressing against the ground, bending grass and snapping branches around her.
She slowly descended and landed on her feet.
The voice finally spoke, its tone hoarse.
"…Don't tell me."
"Heaven Awakening was drawn to her father's peak-tier soul energy."
"And it let her live."
Bing Leng looked down at her hands, confusion etched across her face.
Her body felt unfamiliar.
Lighter. Heavier. Sharper.
"…How did I become immortal?"
Her voice trembled.
She reached up, touching her hair.
White.
The voice exhaled slowly.
"…I'm proud of you, my student. You awakened without even seeking it."
She froze.
Her awareness plunged inward.
Into her Soul Realm.
Soul energy surged like a tide.
"…Eleven."
Her breath caught.
The voice stiffened.
"What do you mean, eleven?"
A pause.
"…That's… impressive for an initial stage."
Bing Leng clenched her fists, staring at the ground.
"I'm immortal now," she said quietly.
"…But I don't like it."
Before the voice could respond—
A foul stench drifted through the air.
She turned.
The cow's corpse lay nearby.
Its head had been completely obliterated.
She walked over and gently placed a hand on its body.
"…You didn't deserve this."
"It was just your instinct to charge."
The voice stared at her in silence.
"…You're clearly foolish."
She shook her head.
That day, Bing Leng explored the jungle openly.
She no longer needed to hide.
The voice laughed, pleased.
"Look at you. You don't need my guidance for every step anymore. Hah—quite admirable."
She snorted.
"Stop acting like a cheap motivational guide."
"We're in a rainforest. Tell me where to go next."
"I need to kill Mingyin."
The voice scoffed coldly.
"Little girl, show some respect. I'm the reason you survived this long."
"Don't test me."
She looked away.
I need to be careful, she thought.
Who knows what this voice really is.
What if he's some lunatic with a corrupted Soul Core who wants me dead?
Weeks later, Bing Leng was running desperately. She jumped onto the surface of a mountain and dug her fingers into the stone, climbing upward carefully. Her breathing was ragged, each inhale heavy.
"Ahhh… haha…" she panted, moving cautiously.
Behind her, a pack of wolves ran relentlessly, their eyes gleaming with hunger. Behind them lay a line of dead wolves, their bellies ripped open.
The wolves slammed against the mountain as they barked and growled.
"Wooooi! Woof!" they called out.
Bing Leng kept climbing, her face pale, dragging her body upward despite the pain. She could see the top of the mountain not far away.
She climbed higher, her breathing heavy.
The voice spoke.
"Little Bing Leng. Go to the other side of the mountain now."
She almost spoke back but then… her foot slipped.
The voice froze.
"Nooooooo!"
Bing Leng tumbled down, rolling as she fell, grabbing at anything she could, but losing her grip.
SPLASH.
She hit the ground. Her hands went numb, bones groaning under torn muscles. Flesh hung from her fingers, crushed and twisted. Blood poured down from a deep wound in her hair.
"Why is my life nothing but painful?" she cried. "I curse you, fate!"
Every fiber of her body throbbed with pain. She could hear the wolves approaching.
Her face hardened.
"I need to survive."
She raised her hands.
"To bring disaster to my enemies…"
The voice snorted.
"Try to stand up first, then think about surviving."
Bing Leng ignored it.
The voice was shocked—she had never ignored it before.
Pain surged through her arms as she forced her body upright. Crawling on one leg, she moved slowly toward a tree. She tapped it.
The tree shifted.
Its hidden door opened.
She crawled inside and fell across the stone steps, leaving a trail of blood behind. The door closed.
Outside, the wolves sniffed and circled the tree, but eventually, they left.
Inside, Bing Leng lay, blood seeping from her nose and mouth.
"I feel pain across my chest," she whispered.
The voice snorted.
"That's because you refuse to listen."
She glared at it weakly.
"You're one hell of a bastard."
Blood flowed from her nose as she spat it onto the floor.
Cough… cough…
She collapsed, tears rolling down her cheeks.
"I just wanted a normal life. Why did I have to awaken in this cruel world?"
"Life is unfair."