In the vast expanse of nothingness, two pupils were looking down on Crystal. She felt like the eyes were looking at her, no not just looking at her but looking through her, into her, seeing everything she was and ever had been.
It felt like all her secrets were laid bare, exposed completely in front of those impossible eyes. Every mistake, every regret, every moment of weakness or strength, all of it visible and transparent. There was nowhere to hide, no way to shield herself from that penetrating gaze.
Then the screen in front of her changed color to red. Bright, alarming red that pulsed with warning.
[Unknown entity accessing system.]
[Error] [Error]
[Beginning system shutdown.]
"Wait—" Crystal tried to speak, tried to do something, anything to stop what was happening or at least understand it. But before she could react, before she could even finish forming that single word, she disappeared.
The portal that had been pulling at her suddenly intensified its grip, yanking her through space or time or whatever lay between existence and nonexistence. She felt herself being pulled apart and compressed simultaneously, stretched thin across impossible distances.
Then absolute darkness claimed her.
Not the void darkness she'd been floating in. Something different. Deeper. More complete. A darkness that felt like sleep or death or perhaps both at once.
Everything stopped.
-----
In the Sky Star Continent, there was a kingdom called Asterion. One of the biggest kingdoms on the continent, and also one of the most influential and powerful kingdoms in this world. Its reputation extended far beyond its borders, spoken of in trade posts and cultivation sects, in distant cities and remote villages.
In this kingdom, the capital was beautiful as ever. Even in early morning, with the sun just beginning to crest the horizon and paint the sky in shades of orange and pink, the city was alive with activity.
Gardens were everywhere throughout the capital, carefully maintained displays of wealth and cultivation prowess. Beasts roamed freely in designated areas, some domesticated pets of the nobility, others more dangerous creatures kept as status symbols or guards. The spiritual energy in the air was thick enough to taste, a byproduct of formation arrays and natural convergence points that made the capital one of the best places in the world for cultivation.
The capital city was lively in the early morning. Merchants were already setting up their stalls, calling out to early risers and each other, their voices creating a pleasant cacophony that spoke of commerce and prosperity. Sales were being made, goods being traded, the economy of the kingdom turning like a well-oiled machine even at this early hour.
Deeper inside the capital, past the merchant districts and common housing, lay the area reserved for noble families. Here the architecture changed dramatically, becoming grander and more elaborate. Big mansions sprawled across extensive grounds, each one trying to outdo its neighbors in displays of wealth and power.
Beautiful gardens surrounded each estate, some featuring rare flowers that bloomed only once a century, others showcasing perfectly manicured landscapes that seemed more like paintings than actual terrain. Spiritual fountains dotted the noble district, their waters infused with qi that made them valuable for cultivation. Some nobles even kept mystical beasts roaming their properties, creatures of legend that served as both guardians and status symbols.
The capital city was beautiful and grand, every aspect of it showing its power as one of the strongest kingdoms in the world. The message was clear to anyone who visited: Asterion was not to be trifled with.
In the noble part of the capital, there stood a mansion that was particularly beautiful. Peach-looking trees, or were they actually peach trees? They looked like peach trees, surrounded the property in neat rows. The blossoms were in full bloom, creating clouds of pink and white that made the entire estate seem touched by spring itself.
Guards stood at regular intervals around the mansion's perimeter, all of them armed with blades and swords and other weapons. They were clearly skilled cultivators, their postures alert, their eyes scanning constantly for threats. The security was impressive even by noble standards, suggesting whoever lived here was important enough to warrant such protection.
The mansion was one of the most beautiful and biggest in the kingdom. Its architecture was elegant without being ostentatious, powerful without being aggressive. It spoke of old money, established power, the kind of family that didn't need to show off because everyone already knew their strength.
The inner garden was particularly breathtaking. More peach trees surrounded a central area, their branches creating natural archways. Grass, perfectly maintained and impossibly green, carpeted the ground, making the garden look beautiful and otherworldly. It was the kind of place poets wrote about, the kind of setting that seemed too perfect to be real.
Out of this garden, or beside it the layout made it hard to tell exactly where one space ended and another began there was a courtyard. And beside the courtyard was a room, its windows facing the garden to catch the morning light.
This room belonged to the eldest daughter of the Asura Clan.
That's right. The mansion, this entire magnificent estate, belonged to the Asura Clan of Asterion. One of the most powerful clans in the kingdom, rivals to the royal family itself in terms of influence and strength.
Inside the room, maids and guards had gathered around a bed. The atmosphere was tense, worried, everyone's attention focused on the figure lying there.
On the bed lay an unconscious girl, pale as death itself. She looked young, maybe sixteen or seventeen years old, though it was hard to tell exactly. Her black hair spread across the pillow like spilled ink, contrasting sharply with her pallid skin and the white sheets beneath her.
She had a beautiful face. Even unconscious, even pale and still, her features were striking. High cheekbones, a delicate nose, lips that looked soft despite their current lack of color. She was the kind of beautiful that made people stop and stare, the kind that inspired sonnets and started wars.
The sun was beginning to shine through the window now, the morning light streaming across the room and falling directly on the girl. It made her look breathtakingly beautiful, like some celestial being who'd descended to the mortal world and couldn't quite manage to look fully human.
Just then, a physician entered the room. He was an older man, perhaps sixty or seventy, with gray hair and the kind of face that suggested decades of experience. His robes marked him as a master of the healing arts, someone whose services would normally cost a fortune.
"Make space," he ordered, his voice carrying the authority of someone used to being obeyed instantly.
The maids and guards immediately stepped back, creating a clear path to the bed. They moved quickly but carefully, obviously trained for such situations.
The physician approached the bed with measured steps, his eyes already assessing the girl's condition from a distance. When he reached her side, he paused, looking down at her pale face with a slight frown.
"What happened to the eldest daughter?" he asked, addressing the room at large but expecting someone to answer quickly.
There was a moment of hesitation, people glancing at each other uncertainly.
"The eldest daughter of the family," the physician continued, his tone growing slightly impatient. "Crystal Aserra of the Asura Clan. What happened to her?"
Before anyone could answer, before the physician could begin his examination, Crystal's eyes opened.
It was sudden, no gradual flutter of eyelids or slow return to consciousness. One moment her eyes were closed, the next they were wide open, staring up at the ceiling.
The sunlight fell across her face at that exact moment, catching in her dark eyes and making them seem to glow. Combined with her pale skin and black hair and the shocked, slightly confused expression on her face, the effect was stunning.
She looked beautiful under the sunlight. No, more than beautiful. She looked like something out of a painting, too perfect to be entirely real.
Everyone in the room froze, staring at her.
Crystal blinked once, then again, her eyes moving slowly as if trying to remember how vision worked. Her lips parted slightly, and she drew in a breath that sounded like she'd forgotten how to breathe and was just now remembering.
The physician recovered first, leaning forward with professional concern replacing his earlier impatience.
"Young miss," he said carefully, watching her face for signs of recognition or confusion. "Can you hear me? Do you know where you are?"
Crystal's eyes moved toward the sound of his voice, focusing on him with an intensity that made the old physician take an involuntary half-step back.
She stared at him for a long moment, her expression unreadable. Then her gaze moved past him, scanning the room slowly. Taking in the maids, the guards, the furniture, the window with its view of the peach trees and garden beyond.
Her face remained blank, showing no recognition, no emotion at all. Just that same intense stare, as if she was seeing everything for the first time and trying to understand what it all meant.
The physician glanced at one of the senior maids, who looked equally concerned. This wasn't normal. The young miss should be speaking by now, responding to questions, showing some kind of reaction.
"Young miss Crystal," the physician tried again, his voice gentler now. "You've been unconscious for some time. We were very worried. Can you tell me how you're feeling?"
Crystal's eyes moved back to him. She opened her mouth as if to speak, but no words came out. She closed it again, her brow furrowing slightly in what might have been confusion or concentration.
Then, finally, in a voice that was barely more than a whisper, hoarse from disuse, she spoke a single word:
"Where…?"