The sky still trembled.
Ash from Ka'Rath's annihilated form drifted through the night like black snow, settling on broken stone and melted earth. The mountain ridge was cracked, scorched, and smoking — evidence of a battle that should never have occurred on a mortal mountain.
But none of it mattered.
Not compared to the shimmering sigil burning in the heavens.
A brilliant, spiraling pillar of light — Ka'Rath's final act — still hovered overhead, glowing with malignant, fate-twisting power. The sigil was visible across continents, a beacon that screamed one message:
THE HEAVEN-BREAKER LIVES.
Qi Shan Wei.
Drakonix huddled against Shan Wei's leg, wings twitching involuntarily. His prismatic scales flickered, reacting instinctively to the foreign energy swirling above.
"Fwrreeeh…"
The young dragon wasn't afraid — he was angry. His new instincts sensed the cosmic danger approaching.
Ling Xueyao stood to Shan Wei's right, sword unsheathed, frost aura sharp enough to crack stone. Her eyes remained glued to the sigil.
Feng Qingyue, to his left, burned with phoenix fire so intense the air shimmered around her.
Behind them…
Jin Wei stood motionless, golden armor cracked and sparking — but his core glowing brighter than ever before, as if desperately processing battle data.
Qi Longye leaned against a shattered pillar, trembling, pale, blood drying on his lips.
Bai Yefeng looked from Longye to the sigil, jaw clenched in fear and fury.
Shan Wei exhaled slowly."…Everyone okay?"
Drakonix chirped and nudged him.Xueyao nodded silently.Qingyue muttered, "I'll be okay when I burn the next bastard who tries to touch you."Bai Yefeng simply bowed.
Only Qi Longye did not reply.
Shan Wei rushed forward.
"Uncle!"
Longye raised a hand weakly, stopping him.
"I… am fine."
He wasn't.
His meridians were cracked. His qi was draining fast. His breath was shallow.
But he still raised his gaze to the sky.
"That signal… the worst thing Ka'Rath could have done."
Shan Wei swallowed.
"Will others come?"
Qi Longye nodded grimly.
"Everyone who has waited for centuries for the Heaven-Breaker prophecy to resurface."His eyes hardened."Everyone who fears you.Everyone who wants to use you.Everyone who wants to kill you.And worst of all…"
He looked deeply at Shan Wei.
"Everyone who wants to replace you."
A chill shot through Shan Wei's core.
Ling Xueyao whispered, "The Calamity Heir."
Qi Longye nodded.
"And he will be the first."
Distant Thunder… But Not Weather
A low rumble echoed from the northern horizon.
But there were no clouds.
No lightning.
No wind.
Just… pressure.
The world itself tensed.
Drakonix's wings snapped open, scales flaring with instinctive alarm.
"F—FWRRAAHH!!"
His roar shook the courtyard.
Jin Wei raised his head sharply.
"UNIDENTIFIED POWER SIGNATURE.APPROACHING."
Shan Wei's heart pounded.
"How far?"
Jin Wei processed.
"…NOT FAR ENOUGH."
Lightning flashed at the edge of the world.
But not sky lightning.
Someone was coming.
Inside Cloudpierce Pavilion — Panic, Fear, and Decisions
The Pavilion Master and elders arrived at a half-run, robes torn, blood on their sleeves.
"Shan Wei! Elders across the region can SEE the signal!"
Another elder gasped, "Messages are flooding in—alliances, warnings, threats—"
A third elder trembled, "The Heaven Decree… it's spreading. This is a nightmare."
But the Pavilion Master silenced them.
He looked at Shan Wei.
Not with disappointment.
Not with fear.
But with resolve.
"Qi Shan Wei," he said. "Your existence will bring disaster or destiny to this world. We must decide how to shield you… or how to stand beside you."
Shan Wei breathed in slowly.
"I won't run."
Xueyao closed her eyes, proud.
Qingyue smirked. "Damn right."
Bai Yefeng nodded firmly.
Qi Longye smiled faintly.
"Good. Because running would not save you."
Drakonix Tests His Evolved Form
Drakonix suddenly leapt from Shan Wei's arms and flapped toward the training grounds.
"Drakonix?" Shan Wei called.
"FWREEEEE!"
He blasted upward with a spiraling beam of rainbow fire.
The training grounds evaporated.
Everyone stared.
Qingyue's mouth dropped open.
"…He melted the entire field."
Xueyao exhaled, impressed.
"His flame… evolved beyond phoenix-tier."
Qi Longye watched carefully.
"He is testing his instincts. Preparing… because he senses the Calamity Heir."
Shan Wei's heart tightened.
If Drakonix was afraid—
The danger must be unlike anything they'd faced before.
Jin Wei Begins to Upgrade… On His Own
Jin Wei suddenly jerked.
A golden pulse throbbed through his cracked core.
"UPGRADE SUBROUTINE…INITIALIZING."
Shan Wei blinked.
"Upgrade…? You're repairing yourself?"
Jin Wei's armor shifted, plates opening and rearranging.
Energy conduits reconnected.
Cracks sealed with molten gold.
His voice deepened.
"MASTER… THREAT LEVEL EXTREME.PREPARE FOR…PHASE TWO."
Qi Longye stiffened.
"He's awakening faster than any puppet I've seen. He must have recognized Ka'Rath's energy and adapted."
Shan Wei touched Jin Wei's arm.
"Don't push too hard."
Jin Wei paused… then slowly bowed his head.
"MASTER… IS PRIORITY."
The devotion hit Shan Wei like a punch.
Xueyao & Qingyue — Tension Sparks
As Drakonix tested flames in the distance, Xueyao approached Shan Wei first.
"You were reckless," she whispered. "Standing in front of Ka'Rath like that—"
"I won't let anyone die for me."
"And we," Xueyao said softly, "won't let you die either."
Qi flared between them.
Then—
Qingyue grabbed Shan Wei's sleeve.
"And what about me?" she snapped."You think you can just throw yourself in front of monsters and I'll stand there watching?"
Xueyao narrowed her eyes.
"Oh? And what would you have done?"
Qingyue stepped closer.
"Burn the entire mountain."
"And kill half the Pavilion in the process?"
"Better than losing him."
Shan Wei froze as the air between them turned glacial and fiery simultaneously.
"You two—"
Drakonix swooped in and shoved both women aside with his head.
"Fwrreeeh!!"
Shan Wei laughed despite the tension.
Qi Longye Falls
Qi Longye's knees buckled.
Shan Wei rushed and caught him.
"Uncle!"
Longye's breathing was shallow.
"Not much time… my meridians are fracturing…"
"We need a healer!" Shan Wei yelled.
"No," Longye whispered. "Listen…"
He gripped Shan Wei's wrist.
His eyes dimmed.
"Earlier… when I used the Wind Restriction… I touched fate."
Shan Wei blinked, dread forming.
"What did you see?"
Qi Longye's voice cracked.
"I saw… your future."
Everyone froze.
The wind stopped.
Even Drakonix paused.
Qi Longye whispered:
"…You standing before a throne of shattered worlds."
Shan Wei trembled.
"A throne…?"
Longye nodded.
"Your own.The Prismatic Throne."
Everyone stared in awe —
— but Longye's expression darkened.
"And I saw another image.Another throne.Black.Crimson.Twisted."
Shan Wei whispered:
"…The Calamity Heir."
Longye nodded slowly.
"Both of you… climbing toward the same destiny.But only one… can sit."
Shan Wei's heart thundered in his chest.
A New Visitor Approaches
Before Shan Wei could speak—
A chill swept the courtyard.
Not frost.
Not cold.
Karmic cold.
Jin Wei's core flared violently.
"ALERT.DIMENSIONAL FLUCTUATION."
Drakonix screeched and flew to Shan Wei's side.
The sky above twisted.
A crack opened — soft, fragile, glowing like a tear in fate itself.
Ling Xueyao gasped.
Qingyue's flame wavered.
Qi Longye's eyes shot open.
"…Impossible…"
A figure stepped out of the tear.
White robes.Golden hair.Eyes like calm starlight.Aura… flawless.
Bai Yefeng dropped to his knees instantly.
Xueyao's pupils shrank.
Qingyue backed three steps.
Shan Wei's breath stopped.
The man smiled gently.
"Hello, Shan Wei."
Drakonix roared with confusion.
Jin Wei's runes glitched violently.
Qi Longye whispered, terrified:
"…No… you should not exist in this realm…"
The man placed a hand over his heart.
"I am the Fourth Wind."
Shan Wei whispered:
"…Wind Four… the one who survives with me?"
The man smiled softly.
"No."
His eyes glowed with pure fate.
"The one who chooses…who survives."
Wind tore through the courtyard.
And the Fourth Wind's voice echoed across destiny:
"Qi Shan Wei.The Calamity Heir… is already walking toward you."
To be Continued© Kishtika., 2025All rights reserved.