Liu Mei left Zhen Wu's pavilion with the scroll in her possession, her mind heavy with the weight of what had just transpired. The celestial pathways of Zhen Wu's kingdom were alive with energy, swirling with a brilliance that reflected the might of the being who ruled here. She paused briefly at the edge of a crystalline bridge, gripping the scroll tightly.
The cost had been steep. The three suns she had offered were irreplaceable treasures, each forged from the core of dying stars. Their loss wasn't just personal, it would weaken her standing within her sect, and perhaps even invite rivals to challenge her position.
Or even worst, the two paragons of her Sect would feel offended or threatened by her actions, but as the image of her brother's hopeful face surfaced in her mind, her resolve hardened.
"This will be worth it," she whispered to herself, before stepping onto a shimmering portal that would return her to her homeworld.
Liu Mei's arrival in her sect was met with murmurs. She was a rising star the newest high elder, admired and envied in equal measure. Her abrupt departure and equally sudden return from that place that even paragons fears, had only fueled speculation. The sect's normal elders eyed her with curiosity but chose to remain silent, their standing too low to comment on the matter.
.....
She found her brother, Liu Han, in the secluded courtyard he often frequented. The boy, barely twelve, sat under a flowering tree, his eyes closed as he tried, fruitlessly to cultivate.
"Han," Liu Mei called softly, her voice carrying both affection and urgency.
His eyes snapped open, lighting up at the sight of her. "Sister! You're back!"
She knelt before him, holding out the scroll. "Han, I found a way."
His gaze shifted to the scroll, confusion and excitement mingling on his face. "What is this?"
"A technique," she explained. "One that will allow you to cultivate, even with your condition. But…" She hesitated, the weight of Zhen Wu's warning echoing in her mind. "It's not without risks."
Han's expression grew serious. "Sister, I've lived with the shame of being a burden to you for years. If this can give me the strength to stand beside you, I'll take any risk."
Her heart clenched at his words, but she nodded. "Then let's begin."
....
The technique was unlike anything Liu Mei had ever encountered. As she guided Han through the initial steps, she marveled at its intricacy. It required a precise balance of energy manipulation and mental fortitude, pushing the boundaries of what was considered possible.
For Han, the process was excruciating. The technique forced his dormant meridians to awaken, flooding his body with energy that it had never been meant to contain. He gritted his teeth, sweat pouring down his face as he endured the pain.
Liu Mei stayed by his side, her own energy stabilizing his erratic flow. Hours passed like this, the courtyard bathed in the golden light of their combined effort.
Finally, as dawn broke over the horizon, a faint aura began to emanate from Han's body. It was weak, barely perceptible, but it was there, a sign that the technique had succeeded.
"You did it," Liu Mei said, her voice filled with pride and relief.
Han opened his eyes, tears streaming down his face. "I… I can feel it, Sister. I can feel the energy."
....
Unbeknownst to them, their efforts had not gone unnoticed. Far above, in the void between realms, two figures watched the scene unfold.
The first was a man cloaked in shadows, his face obscured but his presence radiating an unsettling power. "So, Zhen Wu has released his technique, she must of pain a great price. " he said, his voice a low growl.
The second figure, a woman draped in silken robes that shimmered like moonlight, frowned. "It seems the girl's desperation outweighed her caution. This could disrupt the balance."
The man chuckled darkly. "Balance? That's always been an illusion. Zhen Wu's interference has set events in motion that cannot be undone. The boy's fate is now tied to forces beyond his understanding."
The woman's gaze remained fixed on Liu Mei and Han. "Then we must decide. Do we intervene, or let destiny take its course?"
The man smirked. "For now, let's watch. This could be… entertaining."
...
Back in Zhen Wu's kingdom, the great cultivator sat in quiet meditation. The celestial energies of his domain hummed around him, reflecting his calm demeanor.
An unsssuming mirror floating in front of him, showing his guest that just left, and the boy next to her.
Zhen Wu kept a faint smile as he tried to piece out the puzzle, everything should be related to the younger brother, or at least it looks like it.
He could see that while using the Heavenly Foundation method the boy has attracted something unseen to his body most probably something beneficial to his growth, Zhen Wu couldn't probe deeper not wanting to alert the two Paragons watching, although he didn't really care what's happening to the boy's body.
What he couldn't pin point what does it have to do with himself, is the boy another pawn used against him?
....
Suddenly The room fell silent, the air thick with the weight of unseen forces, as a whisper rippled through his thoughts. A faint, distant murmur, like a breeze across a vast, forgotten land, brushed against his consciousness.
'.. trickery.'
The words were unclear, almost unintelligible, but they carried a warning, an urgent pull that lingered long after the whisper faded.
Zhen Wu's smile didn't change but his mind raced with thoughts.
What just happened was no ordinary trick. It was the Whispers of Time, a technique above even the Paragon level, one of his most enigmatic creations.
The whisper came again, sharp this time, echoing from a distant future or past that he could not pinpoint. The voice seemed to beckon, wrapping itself around the edges of his thoughts, guiding him toward something unknown.
Zhen Wu sat motionless, smile unchanged, digging into the temporal currents that only he could access. The room, once warm and alive, felt suddenly colder. The walls, as if reflecting his focus, seemed to warp, shifting imperceptibly. His senses sharpened, attuned to the shifts of the universe itself. He had made this technique to warn him of monumental events, ones that could alter the course of his existence.
He could sense the faintest trace of danger, something lurking just beyond the horizon of his perception.
The whispers ceased, leaving behind an unsettling stillness.
'Trick... Trickery, could it be...a bait, all what happened recently was to diverge my attention... But from what and why? .'
...
Zhen Wu sat cross legged in the heart of his vast, silent palace. The air hung heavy with tension, the echoes of the Whispers of Time still reverberating in his mind. His expression was calm, but his golden eyes gleamed with sharp intensity, dissecting the cryptic warning. "Careful tricks," it had whispered, as if mocking him.
The grand hall around him felt unnaturally still, as though the palace itself awaited his next move. Zhen Wu's mind raced, piecing together fragments of knowledge. His guest's visit, her polite fear, the ancient technique she had sought, everything now seemed part of a larger, unseen web.
With a flick of his wrist, the air before him shimmered, revealing a luminous scroll marked with intricate runes.
This was his creation, the Scroll of gold, etched with his own blood and soul long ago. It connected to all of his techniques, allowing him to monitor its users.
Only his strongest techniques were never recorded and thus never linked to The Scroll of gold such as 'the Whispers of time' & 'the perfect ghost' and the strongest of them all 'eye of reality'.
There were other techniques and manuals that were unrecorded but the heavily Foundation method was recorded.
Zhen Wu focused, weaving his essence into the scroll. Two names appeared. His guest and her brother, as expected. But then a third presence emerged. His brows furrowed, and his aura darkened as realization struck: the third name was no coincidence.
The times matched perfectly. Both her brother and this unknown figure had begun practicing the technique at the exact same moment the curse seal had been undone.
Zhen Wu demeanor changed completely as he stood up, his lips curled into a cold smile.