They were halfway back to the village when it happened.
Ling Chen was still thinking about the "river" beneath the earth. Even with his eyes open, he could faintly sense it now — a distant awareness, like knowing the ocean existed even when far from the shore.
Then the forest changed.
Birds erupted into the air.
Not flying — fleeing.
A deer burst through the trees ahead of them, ignoring the humans completely as it ran past. Rabbits scattered in every direction.
The forest fell silent.
Ren Tianhe stopped instantly.
"…No," he murmured.
Ling Chen felt it next.
A pressure.
Not on his body — on existence itself.
The sky dimmed.
But there were no clouds.
The sunlight simply… weakened.
Ling Chen looked up.
The air felt heavy, as if the world were holding its breath.
"Master Ren?" he asked quietly.
Ren Tianhe's eyes were locked on the heavens.
"…Stay behind me."
The old cultivator's calm demeanor was gone.
Ling Chen had never heard tension in his voice before.
A sound pierced the sky.
Not thunder.
Sharper.
A thin white line appeared above them — a streak of light descending rapidly.
Ling Chen didn't have time to react.
The bolt struck the ground ten paces in front of him.
The explosion of light blinded him. The earth shook violently, and hot air rushed past his face. When his vision cleared, smoke rose from a blackened crater.
Ling Chen stood untouched.
He looked at the impact site, then at Ren Tianhe.
"I… I didn't do anything."
Ren Tianhe's hands trembled slightly.
"That was not natural lightning," he said slowly.
Ling Chen felt cold.
"Then what was it?"
Ren Tianhe hesitated.
"Tribulation lightning."
Ling Chen frowned. "But I didn't break through any realm. I don't even know how."
Ren Tianhe looked directly at him.
"That is exactly why it came."
The old cultivator's expression was grave.
"Heaven tests those who step beyond mortal limits… but only after they begin cultivation."
Ling Chen swallowed.
"…So why did it strike me?"
Ren Tianhe turned toward the sky again.
Because the heavens themselves had reacted.
"Ling Chen," he said quietly, "the Heavenly Dao does not know what you are."
The forest remained silent.
No birds returned.
And far above them, unseen by mortal eyes…
the sky watched back.