The night after the beast attack passed slowly, quietly, heavily.
Xueyi slept curled up against Wuya's right side, one arm wrapped around his waist, the faint glow of her Moonveil Seal resting peacefully under her robe.
Elder Yun Feixue sat nearby, meditating silently.
But she wasn't calm.
She watched Wuya closely as he rested.
The boy who had only entered the sect days ago—
already fought a Nightbone Ravager.
Already demonstrated strength beyond mortal logic.
Already forced the heavens to tremble again.
She exhaled softly.
"Wuya… who exactly are you?"
But she did not ask aloud.
Because she already knew—
He wouldn't tell her.
Or perhaps—
he simply didn't know himself.
---
MORNING — Wuya Awakens
Wuya opened his eyes before the sun rose.
Xueyi blinked awake immediately, startled.
"Wuya?! You're awake! How's your back? Your bones? Your legs? Your—"
"I am fine."
"You always say you're fine! But sometimes you are NOT fine!"
"…This time, I'm fine."
Elder Yun approached them.
"Let me check."
She placed her palm lightly on Wuya's back.
Her Qi flowed gently into him, checking every bone, tendon, and meridian.
Her eyes widened slightly.
"…Not even a bruise."
Xueyi's jaw dropped.
"What?! He got slapped by a BEAST!"
Elder Yun nodded.
"Yes. And his bones strengthened at the moment of impact."
"THAT IS NOT NORMAL!"
Elder Yun smiled faintly.
"No. It is not."
Wuya blinked.
"My bones feel… stronger."
"Good." Elder Yun stood. "Because today, you begin real cultivation."
Xueyi threw both arms up.
"Finally! He'll learn a technique!"
Wuya nodded.
"I am ready."
---
THE MARTIAL PLATFORM
Elder Yun led Wuya and Xueyi to a stone training platform above the sect.
Plum trees lined the edges.
Mist drifted across the surface.
The mountain wind whistled through the bamboo forest nearby.
Elder Yun raised her hand.
"I will teach you your first martial technique."
Wuya bowed.
Xueyi's eyes sparkled.
"Teach me too!"
Elder Yun shook her head.
"You first need a stable Qi foundation. Wuya's body has already reached the minimum requirement."
Xueyi puffed her cheeks.
"Unfair…"
---
THE WIND-STEP ARTS — FIRST FORM
Elder Yun took a deep breath.
"Wuya. Watch closely."
She stepped forward.
The wind obeyed her immediately.
It swirled around her feet, gathering and dispersing in perfect patterns.
Then—
She vanished for half a heartbeat.
And reappeared three meters ahead.
Wuya's eyes widened.
Xueyi squeaked.
"MASTER TELEPORTED!"
"No," Elder Yun chuckled gently.
"This is the Wind-Step Art. Not teleportation."
She turned to Wuya.
"This technique uses the natural wind flow around your feet to reduce resistance and increase movement speed. Very simple. Very practical. Very deadly."
She demonstrated again.
Her movements were silent.
Swift.
Graceful.
Wuya studied carefully.
"I understand."
Elder Yun nodded.
"Try."
Wuya took a breath.
He stepped forward.
Wind stirred faintly.
His foot slid—
—smooth
—soft
—but not fast.
Elder Yun nodded.
"Good. Again."
Wuya stepped again.
Wind responded stronger.
Xueyi watched, enthralled.
"He looks like he was born for this…"
Elder Yun smiled.
"Yes. He was."
"Master?" Xueyi whispered.
"Yes?"
"…Does Wuya scare you?"
Elder Yun paused.
Then nodded softly.
"Yes."
Xueyi stiffened.
"D-Do you think he's dangerous?"
Elder Yun shook her head.
"No. He scares me because he grows faster than anyone I've ever seen. Faster than the heavens expect. Faster than fate predicts."
Xueyi looked at Wuya.
His posture.
His calm.
His clarity.
"…Then I'll watch him. So he doesn't get lost."
Elder Yun smiled at her warmth.
"I'm glad you are by his side."
---
WUYA'S FIRST TECHNIQUE SUCCESS
Wuya stepped again.
This time—
Wind swirled perfectly beneath his feet.
He vanished for a split second—
—and reappeared five meters away.
Xueyi screamed.
"YOU DID IT!! HOW DID YOU DO IT?! WHAT DID YOU DO?! TEACH ME—!!!"
Wuya pointed at her with absolute seriousness.
"You watched."
Xueyi cried.
"That's NOT helpful!!"
Elder Yun approached him.
"You learned faster than expected."
Wuya nodded slightly.
"I followed the wind."
Elder Yun's eyes sparkled.
"You have a natural affinity for Wind Dao."
Wuya blinked.
"…Because of the leaf?"
"Because of your soul."
---
XUEYI'S FIRST MOONVEIL ABILITY
As Elder Yun continued instructing Wuya—
Xueyi sat cross-legged on the platform, sulking.
"Hmpf. I want to learn something too."
She closed her eyes and touched her chest.
The Moonveil Seal pulsed in response.
"…Huh?"
The seal warmed.
A second pulse.
Then a third.
Suddenly—
Her hands glowed with silver light.
Wuya turned instantly.
"…Xueyi?"
Xueyi opened her eyes.
"Wuya… I think… something's happening…"
A crescent-moon of energy formed above her palms.
Elder Yun's eyes widened.
"That is—!!"
The crescent expanded—
becoming a small blade of silver light.
Xueyi stared at it, shocked.
"MASTER?! What do I do?!"
Elder Yun whispered:
"That is the Moonveil's Silver Slash.
Your first offensive technique."
Xueyi trembled.
"I-I didn't mean to learn it!"
"You didn't learn it." Elder Yun said softly.
"It awakened within you."
Xueyi stared at the blade.
"…I'm dangerous now."
Wuya nodded calmly.
"Yes."
"D-Don't say it so casually!"
"…But it is true."
"Wuya!!"
---
SECT POLITICS TIGHTEN
Up on another cliff—
Elder Qiong Luo watched everything.
His eyes narrowed.
"So… the girl holds a Moonveil Seal…
And the boy has a body beyond logic."
He clenched the stone railing.
"Yun Feixue has found monsters."
A disciple beside him knelt.
"Elder Qiong Luo… should we intervene?"
"Yes," he whispered coldly.
"Observe them.
Wait for a moment of weakness.
Then…
strike."
---
THE HEAVENS MOVE AGAIN
High above the sect—
Thunder crackled.
Clouds darkened unnaturally.
Not a storm.
A sign.
Heaven's Observer hovered above the clouds, gripping his staff tightly.
"…He broke through again."
He clenched his jaw.
"He grows too quickly.
He must be slowed."
Lightning split the sky.
Birds scattered for miles.
"I will send a warning."
He raised his staff—
And the heavens rumbled.
---
THE OMEN DESCENDS
Back at the training platform—
Wuya felt something.
A tremor.
A pressure.
A whisper.
He looked up.
The clouds above him twisted unnaturally.
Xueyi trembled.
"Wuya… the sky… it's looking at us."
Elder Yun stepped forward.
"This… is no natural storm."
Lightning split the sky again.
A crack like tearing cloth echoed across the mountains.
Then—
A single line of divine pressure slammed into the sect—
BOOM
Wuya staggered back.
Xueyi fell to her knees.
Elder Yun caught her.
"Xueyi—!"
Xueyi gasped for breath.
"It feels… heavy… my chest hurts…!"
Her Moonveil Seal glowed wildly, resisting the pressure.
Elder Yun shouted:
"This is a divine omen!
A warning from Heaven!"
Wuya stood still in the storm.
Lightning flashed around him.
Thunder shook the mountains.
Wind howled violently.
But his expression remained calm.
He lifted his head toward the sky.
"…I hear you."
The pressure increased.
The clouds twisted into a cyclone above Wuya.
Xueyi screamed.
"WUYA—!!"
Elder Yun shouted:
"Wuya! Step back!"
He shook his head.
"No."
He clenched his fists.
"I won't bow."
---
THE SIXTH SIGN-IN HINT
The Codex pulsed violently in his chest.
Wuya inhaled sharply.
Golden symbols danced before his eyes.
The whisper came:
[Sixth Sign-In Requirement:
Resist Heaven's Pressure Alone.]
[Status: Requirement Not Yet Met]
[Warning: Danger Level — Extreme]
Wuya exhaled.
"…So this is the sixth condition."
Xueyi screamed at him:
"Wuya, STOP TALKING TO YOURSELF AND MOVE—!!"
But Wuya shook his head.
"I can handle it."
"No you CAN'T—!!"
Elder Yun stepped forward.
"Wuya! You are not ready to resist Heaven!"
Wuya closed his eyes.
"…I must be."
Lightning struck the platform.
The stone cracked.
Wind ripped across the courtyard.
Elder Yun shielded Xueyi.
The pressure aimed directly at Wuya.
Yet he did not kneel.
He did not collapse.
He stood—
Back straight.
Gaze calm.
Heaven raged above him.
He breathed.
Heaven trembled around him.
He breathed.
The pressure crushed down with force that could kill a normal Foundation cultivator.
He breathed.
Xueyi burst into tears.
"Wuya—please—stop—!!"
But Wuya…
…didn't move.
Elder Yun froze.
"…How… how can he stand?!"
Lightning flashed.
Thunder boomed.
Wuya whispered:
"I am not kneeling."
---
HEAVEN'S OBSERVER REACTS
The celestial figure above the clouds staggered.
"What…?!"
He tightened his grip on his staff.
"That pressure should shatter his bones—!"
Wuya stood firm.
Another divine tremor.
But Wuya did not break.
The observer whispered:
"…Impossible…"
---
THE PRESSURE VANISHES
Suddenly—
The storm ceased.
Lightning faded.
Clouds dissolved.
Wind calmed.
Silence returned.
Xueyi collapsed, tears streaming down her cheeks.
"Wuya—!!"
Elder Yun grabbed her quickly.
"It's over… it's over…"
Wuya lowered his head slowly.
He touched his chest.
The Codex whispered:
[Condition Met Soon]
Wuya exhaled softly.
"…Not yet."
Xueyi ran and held him tightly.
"DON'T EVER DO THAT AGAIN—!!"
He placed a hand on her back.
"…I am okay."
"YOU'RE NOT OKAY—!"
"…But I am."
"No! NO YOU ARE NOT—!!"
Elder Yun looked at him with fear in her eyes.
"…Wuya.
No normal mortal could survive that pressure.
No Foundation disciple could either."
Wuya nodded.
"I know."
Xueyi cried harder.
"Then WHY DID YOU DO IT—?!"
Wuya breathed gently.
"…Because Heaven demanded me to bow."
He lifted his head.
"And I won't."