Jason Wu had faced gods shaped like equations, hunters made of quiet nightmares, and an Administrator who treated existence like a filing cabinet.
But nothing—absolutely nothing—made his stomach drop like the sentence that left his mouth:
"One of the Wu survived."
Lan Yuren still knelt on the ground, chest heaving from the pressure of the strange man who froze him earlier.
"Jason…" Lan croaked. "Are you telling me… that a member of your clan… is alive?"
Jason didn't answer.
He couldn't.
His eyes were fixed on the forest path where the polite "Corrector" had stood moments before—the quiet man with empty eyes who delivered that warning like announcing today's weather.
Longwu Sword vibrated nervously—something it rarely did.
["Boy… You're sure about this? Because I would really prefer if the Wu Clan stayed dead."]
Jason blinked.
"…Why?"
["Because the Wu Clan was terrifying. Overpowered. Dramatic. Very shouty. They yelled battle cries that caused minor natural disasters."]
Jason opened his mouth to argue—then paused.
"…Okay, that does sound like something my family would do."
Lan finally stood, shaky but alert.
"Jason. Explain. Slowly. And with small words. My brain is bleeding."
Jason inhaled deeply.
"Someone from my bloodline—one of the Wu—didn't die when Fate erased them."
Lan's jaw tightened.
"But Fate erased them from history. From existence."
Jason nodded slowly.
"Almost all."
Longwu hummed darkly.
["The last survivor… would be someone Fate couldn't erase.Someone too stubborn, too angry, or too broken to die properly."]
Jason exhaled.
"…Which means they're like me."
Longwu corrected him:
["No. Worse. Much worse."]
Jason swallowed.
Great.
Just what he needed—a relative who was basically a cosmic cockroach.
THE CALL WITHIN THE BLOOD
A vibration hit Jason's spine.
Not painful.Not hostile.
But familiar.
Like an echo in the bones he didn't know he had.
Jason steadied himself.
"That direction."
He pointed toward the dense part of the Silverwood Forest—where the trees grew too close together,their branches twisting like nervous fingers.
Lan squinted.
"You felt something?"
Jason nodded.
"It's… like a tug. Not mental. Not spiritual. More like…"
Longwu supplied the answer.
["Blood resonance."]
Lan froze.
Jason blinked.
"…That's a thing?"
["For powerful bloodlines—yes.It's how ancestors call descendants.Or how predators call prey."]
Jason glared at Longwu.
"You are NOT helping."
["Good."]
Jason sucked in another breath.
Okay. Fine.He survived Sentinels, cosmic threats, and fate-bending paradoxes.He could handle a family reunion.
Probably.
Maybe.
…Hopefully.
Lan rose fully and positioned himself beside Jason.
"What are you planning to do?"
Jason stared into the dark forest.
"Meet them."
Lan's eyes widened."Are you insane?"
"Probably."
Longwu vibrated like a disappointed parent.
["Jason. We don't know who this survivor is. A Wu who lived through cosmic erasure? That's not a person. That's an event."]
"I know."
["They could be hostile."]
"I know."
["They could be a monster wearing Wu flesh."]
"I know."
["They could want to kill you, eat you, replace you, mentor you, or turn you into a time egg."]
Jason blinked.
"…A time egg?"
["I don't know. The Wu Clan invented weird things."]
Jason rubbed his face.
"Look, I get the warning.But if there's even a chance this survivor knows what happened… I have to talk to them."
Lan sighed heavily.
"Then I'm coming with you."
Jason shocked him.
"No."
Lan stiffened. "Jason—"
Jason put a hand on his shoulder.
"This is my clan.My bloodline.My mess."
Lan stared at him for a long moment before nodding reluctantly.
"…Fine. But if you scream, I'm running toward you. Not away."
Jason grinned.
"You say that now."
DEEPER INTO SILVERWOOD
Jason walked alone into the forest.
The deeper he moved, the quieter the world became.
No wind.No birds.No insects.
The leaves overhead formed a dense ceiling, muting the sky into a dim green gloom.Roots twisted like coiled serpents beneath his boots.
The deeper he went, the stronger the tug in his blood felt—a pulse syncing with his heartbeat.
Thump.Thump.Thump.
Longwu whispered.
["Jason… this place feels wrong."]
Jason nodded.
"I know."
["No, I mean it feels Wu-wrong. You people always built creepy training grounds in forbidden forests.One of your ancestors even made a haunted orchard where the apples screamed when you picked them."]
Jason stopped walking.
"Please tell me you're joking."
["…No."]
Jason groaned.
"My clan was insane."
["Accurate."]
THE PLACE WHERE TIME DOESN'T MOVE
Jason reached a clearing that felt… off.
The air was thicker.The light dimmer.The color of the trees muted.
And at the center—
A small hut.
Old.Collapsed in places.Covered in moss.
Yet the space around it felt untouched by erosion.Time flowed strangely here.
Jason whispered:
"…Someone lived here."
Longwu hummed.
["Recently. Or very, very long ago. Hard to tell."]
Jason stepped into the clearing—
And the world shifted.
Only for a blink.
But enough that his vision doubledand his breath hitchedand the hut flickered between being whole and broken.
Jason exhaled.
"Okay. Yeah. Definitely Wu Clan nonsense."
He approached the hut cautiously.
"Hello?" he called out, voice steady despite his nerves. "I'm Jason Wu. I'm—uh—your descendant. Maybe. Possibly. Hopefully."
Silence.
Jason coughed.
"That was awkward. I'll try again."
Longwu whispered:
["Jason… something is moving behind the hut."]
Jason froze.
Very slowly, he turned.
THE SURVIVOR WHO WAS NEVER BURIED
A figure stepped out.
Not monstrous.Not ghostly.Not twisted.
But… wrong.
A man in tattered black robes.Bare feet.Long hair matted with silver streaks.A body lean and starved but filled with an unsettling stillness.
His eyes—Jason recognized instantly.
Wu eyes.Golden.Bright.Unbending.
But cracked, like a mirror held together with stubborn pride.
Jason whispered:
"…You—You're Wu Clan."
The man stared unblinking.
The voice that came out was cold.Dry.Rough like it hadn't been used in centuries.
"Jason."
Jason swallowed hard.
"You… know my name?"
The man nodded once.
"I have waited for you."
Jason's heart pounded.
"…Who are you?"
The man stepped forward, and even the air recoiled.
"Wu Zhen."
Longwu jolted.
["OH HELL NO."]
Jason nearly fainted.
"Who—?!"
Longwu shrieked at him mentally.
["WU ZHEN.THE UNSLAYABLE.THE MAD GENERAL.THE MAN WHO PUNCHED A STAR SO HARD IT MOVED ORBIT."]
Jason stared.
"…My ancestor punched a star."
["MULTIPLE STARS."]
Jason looked back at Wu Zhen.
At the gaunt, pale face.At the trembling fingers that twitched with leftover cosmic rage.At the cracked golden eyes that had seen entire realities burn.
Wu Zhen studied Jason carefully.
Then spoke softly—
"Child of my blood…why are you so weak?"
Jason choked.
"HEY!"
Wu Zhen took another step.
"Unacceptable."
Jason stepped back.
"Excuse me?!"
"Your aura is frail. Your foundation sloppy.And your posture—horrendous."
Longwu chimed in instantly.
["He's right."]
"Traitor!"
Wu Zhen continued mercilessly.
"Have the Wu fallen so far that this—"He pointed at Jason like pointing at a disappointing vegetable."—is our last survivor?"
Jason puffed his chest.
"I'll have you know I broke a cosmic law today!"
Wu Zhen paused.
His pupil twitched.
"…You did what?"
Jason smirked proudly.
"I broke the Rule of Narrative Causality!"
For the first time—
Wu Zhen blinked.
Then blinked again.
Then whispered:
"Oh.So you're that one."
Jason's smirk vanished.
"…What does that mean?"
Wu Zhen stepped so close Jason had to lean back.
The ancient survivor's voice dropped to a whisper that shook the ground.
"Jason Wu…Fate didn't just target you."
Jason's breath froze.
Wu Zhen leaned closer.
"Every Wu died because they refused to kill you."
Jason felt the world tilt.
No breath.No thought.Only silence.
Wu Zhen straightened.
"And now… one more has come for you."
Jason stammered.
"…One more what?"
Wu Zhen's eyes burned.
"Another survivor."
Jason's heart nearly stopped.
"…There's another?!"
Wu Zhen nodded.
"Yes.And unlike me—they did not stay loyal to the clan."
Longwu whispered like a funeral bell:
["…Jason.A Wu turned traitor."]
Jason whispered back:
"…I think I'm gonna be sick."
Wu Zhen exhaled sharply.
"Prepare yourself."
Jason swallowed.
"For what?"
Wu Zhen's voice was ice.
"Fate's next move."