Cloudpierce Peak lived up to its name.
Its jagged summit pierced through the ocean of mist like an obsidian spear, climbing higher than any other peak in the Green Spring Range. Lightning coiled lazily around its midsection, crackling against ancient formations that had long since faded into silence.
Qi Shan Wei stood at the foot of the ascent, the wind whipping his silver hair violently behind him.Drakonix clung to his shoulder, tiny claws gripping the boy's robe, eyes glowing with curiosity and a touch of nervous excitement.
Elder Lu tightened the straps on Shan Wei's travel satchel and breathed out slowly.
"The Ancient Ruin at the top…" Lu began."No disciple has entered for five generations," the Pavilion Master finished, staff tapping the stone path with a ringing ting."It is sealed with formations older than the Pavilion itself."
Shan Wei nodded. "And Jin Wei is inside."
The master's gaze softened. "Yes. And something within that ruin… resonated with your flame during the attack."
Shan Wei took a step forward, heart pounding.
"I'll awaken him."
The master lifted a hand. "You are not going alone."
Shan Wei blinked. "I'm not?"
Hoofbeats echoed from the trees.From the mist emerged a large white beast — a snow-furred qilin with sapphire horns and silver hooves. On its back sat a girl in frost-blue robes, her long hair billowing like drifting snow.
Cold. Elegant. Still as sculpture.
Ling Xueyao.
Her golden eyes flicked briefly to Shan Wei — and Drakonix squeaked, hiding behind his collar.
"This is Ling Xueyao," Elder Lu said. "A prodigy of ice qi. She was on a secluded meditation retreat when the storm broke. She sensed your prismatic resonance… and came."
Xueyao slid gracefully from the qilin's back, her aura chilling the surrounding air.
"You are reckless," she said simply.
Shan Wei flushed. "I—"
"But brave."She stepped closer, frost-energy swirling around her feet."You attract trouble like a flame attracts moths."
Drakonix peeked out and glared defensively.Xueyao raised one brow at him.He squeaked and hid again.
Elder Lu chuckled."Don't worry, she won't freeze him solid. Probably."
The Pavilion Master gestured toward the steep ascent.
"Come. The ruin calls. And the longer Jin Wei awakens alone, the more unstable the mountain becomes."
A tremor rolled through the peak — faint, but unmistakable.
CLANG.CLANG.CLANG.
Ancient metal… trying to move.
The Ascent to Cloudpierce Peak
Their climb was brutal.
Wind screamed across narrow ledges.Dead formations flickered—some igniting briefly with forgotten malice, others collapsing into dust.Occasional faint spectral figures drifted through the fog — echoes of cultivators who had once attempted the climb and failed.
Shan Wei stepped carefully, using his breath technique to feel out energy fluctuations.
Drakonix scampered ahead sometimes, sniffing at old runes, occasionally spitting tiny accidental sparks that caused Lu to flinch.
"Keep that beast under control!" Lu hissed.
"I'm trying!" Shan Wei whispered.
Drakonix burped a spark in apology.
Ling Xueyao walked as if the mountain bowed beneath her feet — completely unaffected by the thin air and harsh wind. When a collapsing ledge gave way under Shan Wei, she flicked her fingers and a sheet of solid ice formed under his boots.
"Careful," she said coldly. "I came here to help, not carry you."
"Thank you," Shan Wei murmured.
Drakonix glared at Xueyao again.She ignored him.
Higher and higher they climbed until the clouds thinned…and the summit finally revealed itself.
The Ancient Ruin
The top of Cloudpierce Peak was nothing like anyone expected.
A massive circular platform stretched across the summit — half-buried under broken pillars and shattered statues. Glyphs, some glowing faintly, spiraled across the stone in patterns so complex even Elder Lu's eyes widened.
"This… this is Primordial Era craftsmanship," he whispered. "Before the nine heavens formed. Before divine smiths fell."
At the center stood a massive double-door gate of black-gold metal.Covered in runes.Sealed with chains of pure formation energy.Radiating oppressive silence.
Shan Wei stepped forward — and his wrist mark pulsed.
The entire ruin answered.
BOOM.
A shockwave erupted from the sealed gate, blasting dust outward.The runes along the door flickered.The chains trembled.
Drakonix shrieked, feathers puffed.Ling Xueyao's ice qi automatically formed a barrier.
Elder Lu shouted, "Step back—!"
But it was too late.
The prismatic light shot from Shan Wei's wrist like a beacon and struck the gate.
Every rune lit up.
Every chain cracked.
The mountain roared.
CLANG.CLANG.CLANG.
Metal footsteps echoed from within the ruin.
Something massive was waking up.
Shan Wei felt the air thicken — not with danger, but with recognition.As if the ruin itself knew him.
The double-doors shuddered—splintered—then exploded outward.
Stone and metal shattered.Dust spiraled into a vortex.
Through the settling haze, a towering silhouette emerged.
Jin Wei Awakens
He was huge.Over 2.5 meters tall.Golden-black armor etched with ancient cracks.Runes pulsing with slow, heart-like glow.Limbs heavy and powerful.A burning red core inside his chest shining like an ember ready to erupt.
Even damaged, Jin Wei radiated an aura so oppressive that Ling Xueyao's frost domain cracked.Elder Lu stumbled back.Drakonix hissed, sparks dancing.
Jin Wei's head rose.
His faceplate — smooth, mask-like — turned toward Qi Shan Wei.
A wave of ancient intent washed over the summit.A memory so old it felt like it belonged to a prior universe.
Recognition.Submission.Duty.
The puppet took one step forward.
BOOM.The ground cracked.
A second step.
BOOM.The air vibrated.
A third step.
Jin Wei knelt.
The ancient runes across his body ignited in brilliant gold.
His core flared.
And in a deep, echoing voice that resonated across the mountain's bones, he spoke:
"MASTER… COMMAND ME."
The words were not shouted.They were declared.A vow.An oath.A divine bond forming.
Qi Shan Wei stood frozen, breath taken from his lungs.
Even Ling Xueyao stared, stunned, frost aura flickering chaotically.
Elder Lu whispered, trembling,"He… he… actually awakened Jin Wei…"
Drakonix puffed up proudly, as if saying, Of course he did, he's my human.
The Puppet Guardian bowed his head fully to the ground, voice rumbling like distant thunder:
"MASTER OF PRISMATIC SOUL.I AWAIT YOUR WILL."
The heavens trembled.
The clouds split open.
A distant ray of sunlight broke through, shining directly on the kneeling puppet and the silver-haired boy before him.
Qi Shan Wei swallowed, feeling fate twisting around him.
"I…" he whispered.
His heart raced.
His destiny surged forward.
"…accept."
The moment he spoke — the mountain erupted in prismatic light.
To be continued..
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