The air was thick with an eerie chill as Li Yunshi stepped out of his small cottage, the sound of his boots crunching on the frost-covered grass beneath him. Above, the skies churned with a violent intensity, the once-blue expanse now split in half by a colossal tear. It had been a week since the sky began to fracture, and every day, the rip grew larger, slowly warping the once-familiar world into something new—something unknown.

Yunshi adjusted the straps of his faded cloak and stared at the twisted black rift, now large enough to consume the entire horizon. He was no stranger to strangeness, having lived most of his life in a remote village on the edge of the Eastern Plains. Yet even he couldn't escape the unease that plagued him as the world around him started to change. What once had been simple was now confusing, unpredictable, and dangerous. The elders spoke of "The Shattering," a cataclysmic event that would open wormholes to other realms. The old texts said that the laws of reality would break, bringing with them new powers, new dangers, and legacies from the past.

Despite the dire warnings, Yunshi had always been an optimist. He was the village's most talented—yet, unfortunately, least ambitious—cultivator. Though many of his peers had already started climbing the early stages of their paths, he had never shown the same hunger for power. But today… today, something was different.

He glanced over his shoulder as a sudden gust of wind whipped through the village, lifting dust and leaves into the air. In the distance, he saw something—a faint glow shimmering in the middle of the forest that bordered the village. It flickered like a beacon in the twilight, growing brighter with each passing moment. His curiosity, always a dangerous companion, was piqued.

Without another thought, Yunshi made his way toward the glow.

The forest was dark, the once familiar trail now distorted by the unnatural twisting of space. Trees with leaves shimmering in hues of deep purple and gold bent at odd angles as though they were struggling to stay rooted in this world. His footsteps echoed in the silence, broken only by the sound of crackling energy that seemed to hum in the air itself.

It didn't take long for Yunshi to find the source of the light. In the heart of the forest, an enormous tower stood, its silhouette jagged against the fractured sky. It seemed to rise from the earth itself, its stone walls glistening with an otherworldly aura. Its surface was smooth, unmarred by the passage of time, as if it had existed long before the Shattering had ever occurred. The tower pulsed with power, a strange, deep hum vibrating through his bones.

The sight was both awe-inspiring and terrifying.

Yunshi hesitated, his breath quickening. He had heard the rumors—of towers rising from the ground in cities and villages, each said to contain the legacies of other worlds. Those who managed to conquer these towers would gain unimaginable power, treasures beyond belief, and—if the rumors were true—control over the forces that governed the universe. But no one spoke of these towers with anything other than fear. Some said the towers were cursed. Others claimed they were traps, created by beings from beyond the stars, set to consume anyone foolish enough to enter.

But Yunshi wasn't foolish—just curious.

Without fully understanding why, he stepped toward the glowing structure.

As his foot touched the first stone of the tower, the ground beneath him trembled, and a voice—deep, resonant, and full of ancient power—echoed in his mind.

"You have entered the Forgotten Legacy."

Yunshi froze, his heart racing. The words reverberated inside his skull, each syllable vibrating in his chest. He was not sure whether it was his mind, his body, or the tower itself that was reacting to the voice, but a feeling of being pulled inward gripped him. The air around him shimmered, bending in on itself like the walls of a dream, and in that moment, time itself seemed to slow.

Before he could react, the ground gave way beneath him.

The world spun, a vortex of light and shadow that seemed to stretch and twist endlessly. Yunshi's vision blurred, his thoughts scattered, and for a brief moment, he feared he might be swallowed by the void. But just as suddenly as it had begun, the sensation ceased. He collapsed to his knees, gasping for breath, his hands trembling as they pressed against the cool stone floor.

When he opened his eyes, he found himself no longer in the forest. Instead, he was inside a vast hall, its walls lined with intricate carvings that seemed to pulse with a strange energy. The ceiling stretched impossibly high, its surface covered in what appeared to be swirling galaxies, nebulae, and stars—universes within universes.

But it was not the grandeur of the hall that caught Yunshi's attention. It was the presence of something else.

He was not alone.

Across the vast chamber, hundreds—no, thousands—of figures stood. They were all facing forward, their eyes closed, their bodies frozen in place like statues. Some wore ornate armor, others simple robes, but all were surrounded by a faint aura of power. Yunshi's heart skipped a beat as he realized that they were not people at all. They were illusions—figures from the past, locked in time.

"Who… what are these?" Yunshi whispered, stepping forward. His voice was drowned by a distant rumble, as though the entire tower was waking up.

"The Guardians," the voice from earlier resonated again, now much clearer. "They are the echoes of those who once sought the power of the Forgotten Legacy. You, mortal, are now one of them. Welcome to the beginning."

Before Yunshi could react, the floor beneath his feet trembled again. A single pedestal rose from the center of the hall, a dark stone orb resting atop it. The orb shimmered with a deep, iridescent light, its surface swirling as though it contained a storm within.

"Choose your path," the voice commanded.

Yunshi took a tentative step toward the orb, his mind racing. What was he supposed to do? Was this some sort of test? But before he could reach out, a sudden surge of power washed over him, flooding his body and making his skin burn. It was as though the very essence of the universe had been poured into him, filling every cell with energy, with potential.

In a blur of motion, the orb pulsed, and a wave of light crashed into Yunshi, sending him stumbling backward.

The world around him vanished.

Yunshi gasped as he returned to the world of the living, the glow of the Forgotten Legacy fading from his vision. His body felt heavy, his mind still racing with the echoes of what had happened. But he wasn't alone anymore.

Hovering in front of him was a small, glowing symbol—a swirling mark that seemed to burn into the very air itself. It glowed with a brilliant blue light, flickering like a flame caught in the wind.

He reached out instinctively, his fingers brushing against the symbol. In that instant, the mark fused with his palm, sending a jolt of energy into his body. He fell to his knees, his mind awash with knowledge and power. The world around him blurred again, and he saw it—felt it—the power within him.

He had been chosen.

"You have gained the First Legacy," the voice said. "The power of the Starborn."

Suddenly, the symbol vanished, and Yunshi felt something surge within him. His cultivation energy—his qi—was no longer the same. It was different, amplified, as though he had tapped into a force far beyond the limitations of his world. The power was alien, yet familiar. It felt like the stars themselves were guiding his path.

He had no idea what this power meant. He had no idea what to do next. But one thing was certain.

His life would never be the same again.