Xuan Jing stood at the fork, his sharp silver gaze darting between the two paths. The left seemed shrouded in a dim, pale mist, like a breath caught in the cold, while the right glowed faintly with an almost unnatural hue. He sighed, his decision already made. Turning his back on the right, he stepped forward onto the left path without hesitation.
"Better left than right," he murmured, his voice low and contemplative. The words lingered in the cool, heavy air like a whisper from another time. "Nothing stays forever."
Wei Lin followed close behind, his garnet eyes flickering with amusement. "Well," he said lightly, "that's only if you want whatever it is to leave."
Xuan Jing smiled faintly, a rare expression that flickered across his otherwise stoic face. He shook his head, neither confirming nor denying Wei Lin's words, and pressed onward.
The mist around them thickened as they ventured deeper, swirling with a strange, unnatural rhythm that felt alive. Xuan Jing's Soul Lantern pulsed faintly, the spirit flame within flickering like a heartbeat. It cast long, warped shadows along the path, bending and twisting as if the darkness itself were watching them.
Then, ahead of them, the figure from earlier materialized once more. Its form was a shifting paradox—solid yet ethereal, human yet otherworldly. It raised its hand, beckoning silently, and the flame in the Soul Lantern flared, responding to the presence.
Wei Lin's expression darkened. His deep garnet eyes snapped open fully, glinting dangerously as he stared at the figure. His usually composed demeanor shifted slightly, a subtle warning in the sharpness of his gaze. Don't even try it, his eyes seemed to say. The figure chuckled softly, a sound that echoed like a ripple through the mist, but it made no move to challenge Wei Lin's silent threat.
Xuan Jing's attention, however, was entirely on the figure. Something about it called to him, tugging at the edges of his consciousness. Slowly, deliberately, he extended his left hand toward it, his right still gripping the Soul Lantern tightly.
The figure tilted its head, its faceless form somehow conveying a sense of curiosity. As it reached out and took Xuan Jing's hand, a jolt of warmth shot through him—not the harsh, searing kind, but something soothing, like a forgotten memory brushing against his soul. It felt… familiar. Comforting. And strangely attuned to his Eclipsed Essence, as though it belonged to the same shadowed, fractured plane of existence.
Wei Lin's gaze never wavered. He studied the figure with cold precision, his garnet eyes gleaming with unspoken warnings. Whatever this being was, it had better not overstep its bounds, or Wei Lin would not hesitate to act.
The figure's faceless form began to shift, features emerging as if carved from mist. A faint smile took shape, soft and eerily identical to Xuan Jing's. The resemblance was uncanny, enough to make Wei Lin's brows furrow in suspicion. But Xuan Jing seemed undeterred. His head tilted slightly, his silver hair cascading like liquid moonlight as he studied the figure.
The being bowed gracefully, its movements fluid and oddly respectful. Then, without a word, it turned and began to lead the way deeper into the mist. Xuan Jing followed without hesitation, his hand still clasped in the figure's warm, intangible grip.
Wei Lin hesitated for a fraction of a second, his instincts screaming at him to intervene. But Xuan Jing's calm, steady demeanor gave him pause. With a resigned sigh, he followed, though his hand hovered near the hilt of the curved dagger hidden beneath his robes.
______________________________________
As they walked, the path seemed to shift beneath their feet, the ground melting into a textureless void before solidifying again. The mist thickened, curling like smoke around them, and the air grew colder, sharper. The figure's hand in Xuan Jing's remained steady, guiding him with an unspoken certainty.
"Do you trust this thing?" Wei Lin asked, his voice cutting through the oppressive silence.
Xuan Jing didn't look back. "Trust is a luxury," he replied simply. "But curiosity? That's something I can afford."
Wei Lin sighed, his garnet eyes narrowing as they trailed the figure. "Curiosity has killed more than just cats, you know."
"And satisfaction brought them back," Xuan Jing countered, his tone as calm as ever.
The figure stopped abruptly, its faceless form turning to Xuan Jing. It raised its other hand and pointed toward a large, looming structure that had appeared in the distance, its outline barely visible through the mist. The Soul Lantern's flame flared brightly, illuminating the path ahead and revealing more of the structure.
It was a towering gate, its surface etched with runes that glowed faintly in the lantern's light. The gate seemed ancient, its edges worn and weathered, yet it emanated an aura of immense power. Xuan Jing's eyes narrowed as he studied it, the faintest hint of a smirk tugging at his lips.
"This is what you wanted to show me?" he asked the figure.
The figure didn't respond, but its smile widened slightly, its resemblance to Xuan Jing growing more unsettling with every passing second.
Wei Lin stepped closer, his garnet eyes fixed on the gate. "This feels… off," he murmured. "Like it's meant to be sealed."
"Which makes it all the more interesting," Xuan Jing said, his voice laced with quiet amusement. He raised the Soul Lantern, the flame flaring once more. As the light touched the gate, the runes began to shift and writhe, their glow intensifying.
The figure released Xuan Jing's hand and stepped back, its form dissolving into the mist. Xuan Jing didn't flinch, his focus entirely on the gate as it began to creak and groan, the ancient mechanisms grinding to life.
"Xuan Jing," Wei Lin warned, his voice low. "Are you sure about this?"
Xuan Jing glanced at him, his silver eyes gleaming with a mix of excitement and defiance. "What's the point of having answers if you're too afraid to uncover them?"
The gate began to open, a blinding light spilling out from the crack. Shadows danced within the light, and the whispers returned, louder and more insistent. Xuan Jing stepped forward, the Soul Lantern held high, its flame unwavering.
Wei Lin hesitated for only a moment before following, his dagger now drawn, ready for whatever lay beyond. Together, they stepped through the gate, the light swallowing them whole as the whispers surged into a deafening roar.
And then, silence. The mist was gone, replaced by a vast, endless expanse of stars and shadows. A new path lay ahead, illuminated by the faint glow of the Soul Lantern. Xuan Jing smiled, a rare, genuine expression as he took the first step.
"This," he said softly, "is where the real fun begins."