The Fractured Battlefield
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1. The Aftermath of the Eclipse
Smoke and dust hung thick in the air. The battlefield, once a bastion of defiance, now lay in ruins—craters carved deep into the earth, shattered ley lines pulsing erratically, and the remnants of once-mighty qi constructs crumbling into nothing.
Nathan's head pounded as he pushed himself up from the debris. His vision blurred, his body aching from the aftershock of the Eclipse Queen's attack.
Where is everyone?
Mira groaned nearby, coughing as she pulled herself free from the rubble. Her scanner flickered weakly, overwhelmed by the sheer distortion in energy.
Nathan staggered to his feet, searching desperately. Li Na.
Then he saw her.
She was still on her knees, gasping for breath, her hands clutching at her chest where the Queen had drained her energy. Her golden aura flickered dangerously weak, like a candle barely clinging to its flame.
"Li!" Nathan rushed forward, steadying her.
Her eyes met his—filled with fury, exhaustion, and something deeper. Fear.
"She just… took it," Li Na whispered, voice hoarse. "Like it was… nothing."
Nathan swallowed hard. He had felt it too. The Queen didn't fight them. She simply unmade them.
And she wasn't done yet.
A low hum filled the battlefield, an eerie pulse that sent chills through the survivors. The ley lines beneath them shifted, bending—not by force, but by submission.
The Eclipse Queen hadn't simply broken the ley lines.
She had claimed them.
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2. The Queen's Next Move
The air warped as the Eclipse Queen hovered above the ruined ground, her form untouched, unbothered by the destruction around her.
She looked down at them, not with hatred, nor anger.
But with amusement.
"You fight for a world that does not belong to you."
Her voice was a melody, ancient and unshaken, as if she had spoken these words before, countless times across countless lifetimes.
"You believe your defiance matters."
She lifted a single finger.
The ley lines pulsed—and the ground cracked apart beneath them.
Mira cursed, stumbling as the earth fractured, massive chasms splitting across the battlefield, swallowing what little remained of their defenses.
Gorampa raised his staff, trying to anchor the ley lines back together, but they refused him.
"The world is already changing," the Queen murmured, her golden eyes burning.
Then, the first ley line collapsed.
A ripple of destruction swept across the land, turning everything it touched into ash.
Nathan barely had time to react before a hand grasped his shoulder—not a hostile force, but a grounding one.
Mei.
Or rather, the Mud Buddha.
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3. The Mud Buddha's Truth
Nathan turned, truly seeing her for the first time.
Her presence was unlike anything else—not a warrior, not a ruler, but something beyond time itself.
She stood at the center of the battlefield, her bare feet hovering just above the ground, qi moving around her like a flowing river.
Her expression was calm, patient—but her golden eyes burned with something ancient and undeniable.
"The ley lines are no longer yours to command," Mei said softly, watching as the Queen continued reshaping reality with effortless grace.
Mira gritted her teeth. "Then what the hell are we supposed to do?"
Mei turned to her, her gaze unwavering.
"You must move beyond qi."
Silence fell.
Nathan's chest tightened. "What does that mean?"
Mei extended a hand, and for the first time, they felt it.
Not just qi.
Something deeper. Older.
The ley lines were failing, but something beneath them—something woven into the very essence of existence—remained.
"The world was never built on qi alone," Mei whispered. "It was built on something far more fundamental."
The Eclipse Queen's head tilted slightly, her gaze sharp.
"Interesting."
Nathan stepped back, his mind racing. If qi wasn't enough to fight her… then what was?
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4. Li Na's First Meeting with Mei
Li Na forced herself to her feet, breathing ragged.
She had no energy left, but she refused to kneel.
She looked at Mei, at the strange, unshaken force that surrounded her.
Her breath caught.
Mei looked exactly like her.
Not just a resemblance—they were identical.
Li Na's fists clenched, her mind reeling. This wasn't possible. She had never met this woman before, yet her face, her eyes, even the way she stood—it was like looking into a mirror.
Mei, however, simply regarded her with an unreadable gaze.
"You…" Li Na's voice came out uneven, more a demand than a question.
Mei tilted her head slightly. "You feel it, don't you?"
Li Na's heart pounded. "Who the hell are you?"
Mei's expression remained calm. "The right question would be—who are we?"
Before Li Na could respond, the Eclipse Queen shifted, her golden eyes gleaming.
"So, this is the path you have chosen."
Mei did not blink.
"I have chosen nothing," she replied. "I am simply the balance to your storm."
The Queen's smile faded slightly.
And then she raised her hand once more.
The next ley line shuddered, seconds away from collapse.
And the battle truly began.
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5. A Hidden Truth in Mei's Words
As the ley lines trembled, Mei turned toward Li Na one last time, her voice low, almost gentle.
"I had children once."
Li Na's breath hitched.
Mei's golden eyes softened. "And they looked just like yours."
The battlefield seemed to vanish in that moment, the Queen's looming destruction forgotten, as Li Na's entire world tilted beneath her.
Mei wasn't lying. She knew it in her gut.
But what did it mean?
Before she could demand answers, the Eclipse Queen unleashed her next attack, and the world was swallowed by chaos once more.
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