No sky.
No ground.
No distance.
When the Trial of Origin began, reality itself withdrew.
Feixue, Seraphis, and the Immortal Emperor found themselves standing within a vast, colorless expanse — an endless mirror of existence, reflecting not forms, but intent.
The True Throne hovered at the center, distant yet omnipresent.
The ancient voice echoed once more.
> "FIRST TRIAL: INTENT."
"DOMINION OR STILLNESS."
The Immortal Emperor laughed softly.
> "A trial?" he said. "I conquered Heaven. I forged law from chaos. Intent is irrelevant when power decides."
Feixue did not respond.
She simply stood — unmoving, unguarded.
---
The mirror-world rippled.
From the Emperor's shadow rose countless visions: heavenly armies kneeling, realms bowing, laws forming at his command. His aura surged outward, brilliant and overwhelming.
> "Order is born from command," he declared.
"Without dominion, existence collapses into meaninglessness."
Golden sigils burned into the void, shaping towers, worlds, hierarchies.
Everything had a place.
Everything obeyed.
Seraphis felt her breath tighten.
> This is Heaven, she thought. Beautiful… and suffocating.
---
Then the mirror turned toward Feixue.
Nothing happened.
No aura.
No display.
No law.
The void simply quieted around her.
Time slowed — not frozen, not commanded — but resting.
The towering golden constructs near her began to blur, their edges softening, their meaning unraveling.
> "Stillness is not emptiness," Feixue said calmly.
"It is the space where choice exists."
She took a single step forward.
And the Emperor's perfect order cracked.
---
The ancient voice spoke again.
> "DOMINION SEEKS CONTROL."
"STILLNESS SEEKS BALANCE."
The Emperor's smile faded slightly.
> "Balance is weakness," he snapped. "It hesitates. It allows disorder."
Feixue's gaze was steady.
> "No. It allows becoming."
She raised her hand.
The mirror-world showed a vision — not of gods or thrones, but of a single mortal taking their first breath.
No command.
No law.
Only life.
Seraphis's eyes widened.
---
The Emperor roared, unleashing his will.
Golden chains of intent surged toward Feixue, not forged from authority, but conviction — the belief that order must be enforced.
> "Kneel!" his voice thundered.
"Existence kneels or it breaks!"
The chains wrapped around Feixue.
And stopped.
They did not break.
They simply… lost meaning.
> "You cannot bind what does not resist," Feixue said softly.
The chains dissolved.
The mirror-world trembled violently.
---
Seraphis clutched her chest as her divine core cracked again — not from damage, but shedding.
Golden light peeled away, revealing a deeper layer: frost-silver radiance intertwined with flame.
> "So this is the difference…" she whispered.
"Heaven forces order. Origin allows truth."
The throne pulsed brighter.
---
The ancient voice spoke with finality.
> "FIRST TRIAL CONCLUDES."
> "DOMINION FAILS."
"STILLNESS ENDURES."
The Emperor staggered back a step.
Only one.
But it was the first time he had ever moved without intending to.
His eyes burned with fury.
> "This proves nothing," he snarled. "Trials are illusions. In the end, power decides."
Feixue met his gaze.
> "Then the next trial will break you."
---
The mirror-world shattered like glass.
Reality rushed back in layers.
The Primordial Threshold reformed — unstable now, trembling under the weight of truth revealed.
The throne dimmed slightly… then rotated.
Not toward Feixue.
But toward Seraphis.
She felt its pull — not demanding, not commanding — inviting.
The ancient voice whispered.
> "SECOND TRIAL APPROACHES."
"THE ONE WHO WALKS BETWEEN MUST STEP FORWARD."
Seraphis inhaled sharply.
The Immortal Emperor turned, his expression dark.
> "You dare?" he said coldly. "You were born from Heaven. You belong to me."
Seraphis raised her head.
For the first time, she did not bow.
> "I was born from Heaven's thought," she said steadily.
"But I choose Origin's memory."
Frostfire wings unfolded fully behind her, radiant and free.
Feixue watched silently — pride, sorrow, and resolve in her eyes.
> She is ready, Feixue realized.
---
The throne flared.
Space split once more.
> "SECOND TRIAL: SELF."
The Primordial Threshold began to reshape itself — into something personal, merciless, and irreversible.
The Emperor tightened his grip on his blade.
> "Good," he said darkly. "Let her be tested."
Feixue stepped slightly in front of Seraphis.
> "This trial," she said calmly, "will decide the future of Heaven."
The world faded to white.