The night swallowed Hao Wuya's figure as he sprinted through Millstone City's dark streets, peach blossoms drifting behind him like fallen stars.
The Supreme Sign-In Codex whispered faintly inside him:
[Second Sign-In Location: Detected]
[Distance: 420 meters]
[Warning: Danger Level — Catastrophic]
Wuya didn't slow down.
The ground trembled with each step of the Heaven-Seeking Beast behind him.
Roars echoed through the streets.
Tiles shattered.
Lanterns fell.
Dogs howled wildly in their pens.
Mortals hid behind doors, trembling as the monstrous shadow passed.
But Wuya ran straight toward it.
His heart beat violently.
Not from fear—
but from instinct.
From direction.
From destiny.
His veins pulsed with unfamiliar warmth.
His breath sharpened.
His senses expanded beyond normal limits, flickering with new perception.
"I know where I'm supposed to go," Wuya whispered.
The Codex did not answer.
It didn't have to.
He could feel it guiding him—
like a thread pulling gently at his soul.
Toward the city's abandoned watchtower.
A relic from Millstone City's past.
A place no one entered.
A place that now glowed faintly in his eyes.
---
THE BEAST DESCENDS
The Heaven-Seeking Beast slammed into the street behind him.
The world shook.
Roofs cracked.
Stones rolled.
Walls trembled.
A roar ripped through the city—
A sound not meant for mortal ears.
Xueyi, far behind at the house, felt the roar like a punch to the chest.
"Wuya…!"
Her Moonveil Seal flared—white-hot, glowing through her robes, activating to protect its destined target.
Tianhai grabbed her before she could run.
"Stay here, Xueyi!"
"No! Let me go! He'll die!"
"He won't."
"He's fighting a heavenly monster!"
"He's not fighting it," Tianhai said calmly. "He's running toward something."
"What?!"
"A location. A purpose. A trigger."
Xueyi froze.
"…The Codex?"
Tianhai nodded.
"His second sign-in."
Xueyi's nails dug into her palms.
"Then we have to reach him!"
Tianhai's voice softened.
"We will."
He lifted her into his arms.
"Hold tight."
And he vanished.
---
THE WATCHTOWER OF SILVER DUST
Wuya reached the abandoned watchtower and skidded to a stop.
The building was old, leaning, covered in vines and moonlit dust.
Spiders made their homes in the corners.
Bats hung from the roof.
But Wuya wasn't afraid.
Because the Codex's whisper grew clearer here.
Like someone humming an ancient song.
Wuya placed a hand on the stone pillar.
The Codex's voice echoed inside him:
[Second Sign-In Location Confirmed]
[Commencing…]
The watchtower walls glowed—
not bright, not flashy—
just a soft silver radiance seeping through ancient stone.
Wuya's chest warmed with anticipation.
But the warmth shattered when the Heaven-Seeking Beast crashed into the street behind him.
The tower walls shook violently.
Wuya spun around.
The beast's colossal form filled the street, its horns brushing the rooftops.
Its golden eyes fixed on him—
piercing, ancient, unforgiving.
It inhaled deeply.
The mist around its body swirled inward.
As if sniffing his soul.
Then it roared—
a roar that cracked the stones beneath Wuya's feet.
Wuya raised his arms instinctively.
The air around him condensed into a shockwave.
The roar hit him—
not physically, but spiritually.
Wuya staggered.
His head spun.
His bloodline vibrated violently, as if being pulled from his body.
The beast spoke—
not with a mortal tongue,
but with a voice that resonated in his mind.
"Forbidden Son…
…Blood of the Transcendent…
…I have found you."
Wuya's heart froze.
His breath caught.
He whispered:
"…How do you know my name?"
The beast's golden eyes narrowed.
"We know all who bend Heaven."
"You are a fracture in fate."
"You must not be allowed to grow."
It stepped forward.
And the ground shattered beneath its claws.
Wuya clenched his fists.
He had no Qi.
No cultivation.
He was a mortal standing before a cosmic predator.
Yet something inside him refused to step back.
"…I will not die here."
The beast snarled.
"You have no power."
"That's true."
"You have no realm."
"Yes."
"You cannot fight."
Wuya took a breath.
"I don't need to fight."
The Codex pulsed.
---
THE SIGN-IN BEGINS
Light rippled from the watchtower stones.
Silver dust lifted into the air, swirling around Wuya like a protective storm.
The beast growled.
"What—what is this?!"
The dust formed two circles around Wuya:
One around his feet
One around his chest
Tianhai's voice echoed distantly, approaching:
"Wuya! Hold on!"
But Wuya didn't respond.
Because the Codex whispered:
[Supreme Sign-In: Activated]
In the sky, the moon flickered.
Wind spiraled upward.
Dust and light intertwined.
[Reward Processing…]
Silver dust gathered into Wuya's chest.
His veins pulsed—
Thump.
Thump.
Thump.
The beast roared.
Its body shook.
Its horns glowed crimson.
"STOP—STOP HIM—!"
It lunged.
Its claw shot forward.
Closer—
closer—
closer—
Wuya closed his eyes.
Xueyi's voice rang through the night:
"WUYA—!!!"
---
THE SECOND REWARD
The Codex's whisper struck like a lightning bolt:
[Reward: Mortal Foundation Surge]
[Effect: 3 Veins Opened Instantly]
[Reward: Body Stabilization +4%]
[Reward: Primordial Breath Thread Acquired]
[Reward: Fated-Protection Aura (Type: Temporary)]
A sphere of golden-white light erupted from Wuya's chest—
but quietly.
No explosion.
No flame.
No shockwave.
Just a calm, absolute radiance that halted the beast in place.
The Heaven-Seeking Beast froze inches from Wuya's face.
Its claws stopped mid-strike.
Its eyes widened with disbelief.
"…This aura…"
"…Primordial…"
"…Impossible…"
Wuya opened his eyes.
The golden light wrapped around him, gentle and warm.
The Codex whispered:
[Sign-In Complete]
Wuya stood, breathing heavily but uninjured.
The beast staggered back.
"THIS—THIS IS NOT YOUR POWER—!"
Wuya shook his head.
"…No."
"THEN WHOSE?!"
He looked up.
"The Codex."
The beast roared, enraged.
"FORBIDDEN CREATION!
You were NOT meant to exist—!"
It lunged again.
---
TIANHAI INTERVENES
A single hand caught the beast's horn.
Time seemed to freeze.
The beast's momentum stopped like it had slammed into a mountain.
Tianhai stood there—
holding the beast in place with one hand.
His expression was calm.
His eyes were no longer gentle.
A faint, ancient aura escaped his body.
Nothing like Wuya's.
Nothing like the beast's.
A dominion-born power—
the kind wielded by one who stood above mortal realms.
Tianhai spoke quietly.
"Beast. Leave."
The creature trembled.
"Y-you—your power—"
"I asked you to leave."
The beast roared and swung its head—
But Tianhai simply turned his wrist.
Crack.
The beast's horn snapped.
It howled in pain.
Tianhai pushed lightly.
And the Heaven-Seeking Beast flew backward—
crashing through the abandoned street,
collapsing rooftops,
shattering stone walls,
leaving a massive crater halfway across the city.
It lay there, twitching.
Barely alive.
Barely conscious.
Barely breathing.
Xueyi appeared beside Wuya instantly, hugging him tightly.
"Wuya!! Are you hurt?! Are you burned?! Are you bleeding?! Are you—"
He placed a hand over her lips.
"…I'm really okay."
Her eyes brimmed with tears.
"You're an idiot."
"…Yes."
She hugged him again—
tighter than before.
---
THE BEAST'S LAST WORDS
Tianhai approached the crater.
The Heaven-Seeking Beast twitched, trembling in terror.
"Y-you… you are not mortal…"
Tianhai said nothing.
"Y-you… your aura… it reeks of a domain beyond this world…"
Still silence.
"If… if he is the son… of that one…"
Tianhai finally spoke.
"He is not your concern."
The beast whimpered.
"…Heaven… will come…"
Tianhai's gaze darkened.
"It always does."
The beast vanished into smoke—
its body dissolving as its life force scattered.
Not dying.
Returning to Heaven.
To report.
---
THE MOONVEIL'S WARNING
Back at the courtyard, Xueyi touched her chest.
"Wuya… something's wrong with my seal."
"What do you feel?" Tianhai asked.
Xueyi hesitated.
"…It's growing."
Wuya's eyes narrowed.
"How?"
Xueyi pressed her hand over her heart.
"It… it's like something is expanding. As if the seal is trying to protect you… or warn me."
Tianhai frowned deeply.
"The Moonveil Seal is not supposed to respond unless you're in catastrophic danger."
Wuya glanced at the sky.
"…It has been responding constantly."
Tianhai's face turned grim.
"That means only one thing."
Xueyi swallowed.
"…Something worse than the Heaven-Seeking Beast is coming."
Tianhai nodded slowly.
"Yes."
---
A MYSTERIOUS WITNESS
Far across the city, atop a distant cliff, a figure in white robes watched everything through a jade mirror.
His face was covered by a veil of floating talismans.
His voice was soft, amused, trembling with curiosity.
"…A boy who can devour a Heaven Seal…"
He traced a symbol in the air.
"…A mortal who awakens three spiritual veins in one night…"
The talismans shimmered.
"…A guardian whose power does not belong to this realm…"
A slow smile spread beneath the veil.
"…And a Codex that reeks of primordial origin."
He closed the mirror.
"This mortal city has become… interesting."
He vanished.
---
TIANHAI'S DECISION
Back in the courtyard, Tianhai finally exhaled.
"Wuya. Xueyi."
Both stood attentively.
"We are leaving tomorrow."
Xueyi lowered her eyes.
"…The Clear Sky Sect?"
"Yes."
"But will they accept us?" she whispered.
Tianhai smiled faintly.
"They will accept Wuya."
"And me?"
"Of course."
Wuya asked quietly:
"…Uncle Tianhai.
Is the sect strong enough to protect us?"
Tianhai's face became serious.
"For you… no."
Xueyi trembled.
"Then why go?!"
"Because," Tianhai said softly, "it is time for Wuya to grow."
He touched Wuya's shoulder.
"You've awakened your first three veins.
You've survived a Heaven-Seeking Beast.
Your Codex is awake."
His voice lowered.
"You are ready to step into the path of cultivation."
Wuya looked at his hand—still trembling faintly with new power.
And he nodded.
"…I understand."
Xueyi squeezed his hand tightly.
"Then wherever you go… I'm going with you."
Wuya looked at her—
and didn't deny it.