The disturbance lasted only a few seconds.
Then the sky returned to normal.
The strange distortion disappeared completely, leaving behind no visible trace of what had caused it.
Yet the people of the valley did not return to their previous activities.
They remained outside.
Watching.
Waiting.
Nobody spoke loudly.
Even those who had not understood what had happened could feel that the powerful people around them were no longer behaving normally.
William stood among them in silence.
His attention remained fixed on the distant sky.
He wasn't afraid.
But he was cautious.
The reaction of the old cultivators had told him more than their explanations had.
They had seen something they recognized.
Something they had hoped never to see.
Mira approached him.
"Do you think it will happen again?"
"I don't know."
"That's not reassuring."
William looked at her.
"I'd rather tell you that than pretend I know."
She nodded.
Around them, people were beginning to return inside.
The ancient cultivators remained outside longer.
Some were communicating with distant powers.
Others were examining the surrounding space.
William noticed that several of them were doing something unusual.
They were not trying to locate an enemy.
They were measuring the stability of the space itself.
Adrian came over.
"They're worried."
William nodded.
"Yes."
"About the distortion?"
"More than that."
Adrian looked at him.
"What do you mean?"
William glanced toward the old man who had spoken to them earlier.
"They knew what it was."
The old man eventually returned to the hall.
William followed.
Several powerful figures were already there.
The atmosphere was completely different from before.
The previous confidence had disappeared.
William stopped at the entrance.
"You knew."
The old man looked at him.
"Knew what?"
"That something could happen."
Nobody answered.
William continued.
"You didn't look surprised when the distortion appeared."
The old man remained silent.
"You looked afraid."
A few people exchanged glances.
Finally, the old man sighed.
"You're observant."
"I want an explanation."
"You deserve one."
The old man gestured toward a seat.
William sat.
Mira and Adrian remained beside him.
The old man looked around the room.
"Most of the people in this valley know very little about what lies beyond the boundaries of our world."
William listened.
"Some believe the stories are myths."
"Others believe they are exaggerations created by ancient civilizations."
"But there are people who know better."
"How?"
"Because their ancestors witnessed what happened."
William's expression became serious.
"What happened?"
The old man didn't answer immediately.
Instead, he walked toward an ancient wall.
There were several symbols carved into it.
William had never seen them before.
The old man touched one.
"Long ago, there were periods when the boundary between our world and what lies beyond it became unstable."
"How long ago?"
"So long that the exact number of years has been lost."
William stared at the symbols.
"What happened during those periods?"
"Nothing."
William frowned.
"Nothing?"
"Not every disturbance becomes an invasion."
The old man turned toward him.
"Sometimes something touches the boundary and disappears."
"Sometimes the boundary repairs itself."
"And sometimes..."
He stopped.
William waited.
"Something gets through."
The hall became silent.
Mira's expression changed.
"Something?"
The old man nodded.
"We don't know what they are."
"Then how do you know they're dangerous?"
"Because the few records that survived never described them as ordinary creatures."
William asked:
"What do the records say?"
The old man looked at him.
"They describe them as things that do not belong."
William remained silent.
The phrase was simple.
But it carried weight.
He remembered the distortion.
It hadn't looked like an ordinary spatial tear.
It had looked as though reality itself had been pushed from the other side.
"Why haven't you told everyone?"
The old man smiled bitterly.
"Because knowledge without the ability to act against something becomes fear."
William understood.
"And fear spreads."
"Very quickly."
Mira asked:
"Then what are the ancient powers doing?"
"Preparing."
"For an invasion?"
"For the possibility of one."
William leaned back.
"How?"
"Some are strengthening their territories."
"Others are searching for ancient records."
"Some have sealed themselves away."
"And some are looking for people capable of surviving what may come."
The old man's gaze settled on William.
William immediately understood.
"That's why people like me are attracting attention."
"Partly."
"Partly?"
The old man nodded.
"There are many talented cultivators."
"Then why me?"
"Because you're building something."
William frowned.
"That's it?"
"No."
The old man looked toward the others.
"You're building something that doesn't depend entirely on inherited power."
William remained silent.
"You gather people from different backgrounds."
"You allow them to disagree."
"You refuse to make loyalty mandatory."
"That makes your group difficult to predict."
Adrian smiled.
"That sounds like a compliment."
"It isn't."
The old man looked at him.
"It's also a weakness."
William nodded.
"I know."
A sudden sound came from outside.
Several people immediately turned.
A messenger rushed into the hall.
"Another disturbance."
The old man's expression changed.
"Where?"
"Beyond the eastern mountains."
"When?"
"Just now."
Silence.
William stood.
"How far?"
The messenger gave the location.
William calculated the distance mentally.
It wasn't close.
But it wasn't far enough to ignore.
The old man looked at him.
"Don't go."
William looked at him.
"Why?"
"Because we don't know what happened."
"That's precisely why I want to see it."
"William."
The old man's voice became serious.
"This isn't an enemy you can simply fight."
William looked at him.
"I didn't say I wanted to fight."
He turned toward the door.
"I want to understand."
Mira followed him immediately.
Adrian did as well.
The old man watched them leave.
One of the people in the hall asked:
"Should we stop him?"
The old man shook his head.
"No."
"Why?"
"Because if he is going to survive the era ahead, he needs to understand what is coming."
William and his companions moved rapidly through the mountains.
The closer they got, the stranger the surroundings became.
At first, everything looked normal.
Then the trees began to thin.
The air became unusually still.
No animals.
No ordinary cultivators.
No signs of life.
Mira noticed it.
"This place is empty."
William nodded.
"Too empty."
Adrian looked around.
"Do you sense anything?"
"Not yet."
They continued.
Eventually, they reached the location.
There was no visible crack.
No destroyed landscape.
No enemy.
Nothing.
William stopped.
"This is where they felt it?"
Adrian nodded.
"According to the messenger."
William closed his eyes.
He slowly extended his perception.
Nothing.
Then—
A faint sensation.
Not energy.
Not a presence.
Something else.
William opened his eyes.
"There's something here."
Mira looked around.
"Where?"
William pointed toward the ground.
"Below."
They approached.
William touched the earth.
A strange vibration passed through his hand.
He immediately pulled away.
"What happened?"
William looked at his palm.
Nothing had changed.
But he had felt something.
For a brief instant, it had seemed as though something on the other side of reality had noticed him.
Not seen him.
Not sensed him.
Noticed him.
The distinction made William uncomfortable.
Adrian asked:
"What did you feel?"
William remained silent for several seconds.
"Something touched the boundary."
Mira looked toward the sky.
"Again?"
"No."
William looked down.
"This time it was weaker."
"Then that's good."
William shook his head.
"No."
"Why?"
"Because the first disturbance was stronger."
Mira didn't understand.
William explained.
"If the first disturbance was something pressing against the boundary..."
He looked toward the distant horizon.
"...then this may have been something moving away from it."
Adrian's expression changed.
"You're saying it crossed somewhere else?"
"I don't know."
"Then what do we know?"
William looked at the empty landscape.
"That something happened."
They returned to the valley before nightfall.
The old man was waiting.
William told him what he had felt.
The old man's expression became grave.
"You shouldn't have been able to sense that."
"Why?"
"Because the boundary isn't something ordinary perception can reach."
William looked at him.
"Then why could I?"
The old man didn't answer.
Mira noticed his hesitation.
"You know."
The old man sighed.
"I have a theory."
William waited.
"Your ability to perceive connections may have allowed you to notice the disturbance."
William looked at his hand.
"The boundary itself is a connection?"
"Perhaps."
"Between what?"
The old man shook his head.
"That's beyond what I know."
William didn't press further.
He had learned enough.
For now.
That night, the valley was restless.
Messages arrived from different regions.
Another ancient power had detected the disturbance.
Then another.
Then another.
The number continued increasing.
William listened to the reports from a distance.
The old man stood beside him.
"They're all waking up."
William looked at him.
"They were already aware."
"Yes."
"Then why are they reacting now?"
The old man looked toward the sky.
"Because this time, the disturbance was noticed by too many people."
William understood.
A secret could remain a secret when only a few knew.
But once enough ancient powers witnessed the same event, hiding it became impossible.
The old man continued:
"Some will begin moving."
"Some will begin preparing."
"And some will panic."
William asked:
"What happens when they panic?"
The old man looked at him.
"They look for someone to blame."
William's expression became cold.
"And they'll choose me?"
"Perhaps."
"Why?"
"Because you're visible."
William smiled faintly.
"Of course."
Later, William returned to his room.
Mira was waiting outside.
"Can I come in?"
"Yes."
She entered.
For a while, she didn't speak.
Then:
"Are you worried?"
William thought about it.
"Yes."
Mira looked surprised.
"You admitted it."
"There's no reason to pretend."
"What are you worried about?"
William looked toward the window.
"The unknown."
She smiled faintly.
"I thought you weren't afraid of anything."
"I'm afraid of things I don't understand."
Mira became quiet.
William continued.
"Strength doesn't eliminate uncertainty."
"Then how do you deal with it?"
"You learn."
She nodded.
After a moment, she asked:
"Do you think those things will come here?"
"I don't know."
"But if they do?"
William looked at her.
"Then we'll deal with it."
Mira smiled.
"You always say that."
"Because I don't have a better answer."
She laughed softly.
Outside, the ancient cultivators continued watching the stars.
None of them noticed the faint distortion that appeared far beyond the visible boundaries of their world.
It lasted for less than a second.
Then disappeared.
But this time, something remained behind.
A faint mark.
Not on space.
Not on matter.
On the boundary itself.
And somewhere beyond it...
Something had begun to notice the world on the other side.