The Pure Quartz Sect shone under the sun, its crystal-like towers reflecting many colors across the landscape. It was a place of great beauty, yet its grandeur masked its hierarchy's cold, ruthless nature. For Zeth Etheris, this day would mark the end of a life he had known and started Anew.
The Pure Quartz Sect was one of the Big Three sects in the region, revered for its unique cultivation techniques centered around minerals and crystals. These methods involve gathering Qi from the earth and tempering the body and Soul using unyielding mineral stones. For the gifted, it was a path to power. For the untalented, it was a crushing reminder of inadequacy. Zeth had heard tales of the sect's prodigies who could use the earth and properties of crystal shards or turn their skin into diamond-like armor. Such feats felt as distant as the stars to someone like him.
In the courtyard reserved for lower-stage cultivators, Zeth sat cross-legged on the rough stone floor, his mind being in concentration. He clutched a small, pale crystal in his hand, desperately trying to channel Qi into his dantian. For two years, his progress had stalled, his peers soaring past him while he remained tethered to failure. The once-pristine crystal in his hands had grown dull from overuse, a reflection of his waning hope. Around him, the whispers of other cultivators cut through the silence like knives to the heart.
"Still trying?" one muttered. "He'll never advance."
"Why does the sect even keep him?" another sneered.
Zeth clenched his fists, willing himself to block out their voices. But the truth stung. He was an anomaly in a sect that valued progress above all else.
A sharp "bam" jolted him out of his trance. A boot slammed into his side, sending him sprawling. Zeth coughed, gripping his ribs as he turned to see the smirking face of Tao Lin, the son of Elder Lin and a constant thorn in his side.
"Didn't I tell you to go fetch me some herbs, you useless weed?" Tao Lin sneered, crossing his arms.
Zeth scrambled to sit up, glaring at his assailant. "Sorry. I haven't had the time. I've been… trying to cultivate."
Tao Lin laughed, his voice echoing across the courtyard. "Cultivate? For what? Is this some kind of joke? You're a failure, Zeth. Everyone knows it. You've been stuck in the same realm for two years! All your peers have already advanced."
"I can still try, can't I?" Zeth snapped, his voice rising in anger. "Unlike you, Tao Lin, I don't freeload off the sect. You're no better than a dog, lucky your parents birthed you here."
Tao Lin's face twisted with rage, and he raised a hand, but before he could strike, a deep voice cut through the tension.
"Enough."
An older man with black hair and a neatly trimmed beard stepped into the courtyard. His robes were the color of the sect and bore the insignia of being an elder, and his presence immediately silenced the confrontation.
"Father?" Tao Lin asked, startled.
"Zeth," Elder Lin said, his tone sharp, "you're needed in the elders' conference room. Now."
Zeth blinked, his anger momentarily replaced by confusion. "Me? Alright… I'll head over."
Elder Lin smirked. "Don't worry, Tao. That useless brat won't be bothering you anymore."
The path to the elders' conference room felt like a gauntlet. Every step weighed on Zeth's shoulders, his mind racing with possibilities. Why had the elders summoned him? Was it to commend his effort? Or… was it to pronounce judgment? Memories of his parents flooded his mind. They had been lower-stage cultivators taken into the sect, sacrificing their lives during a sect's conflict to protect its territories. Their names had been etched into the current sect leaders but their noble actions felt increasingly hollow as Zeth struggled.
He reached the grand doors and stopped a passing cultivator. This peer, a boy who had advanced well beyond Zeth's current stage, eyed him with a mix of pity and disdain.
"Do you know why Elder Lin called me?" Zeth asked.
The cultivator only gave him a pitying look before entering the room to announce him. Moments later, the doors opened, and Zeth stepped inside.
The room was vast, its walls lined with glowing quartz and seated figures radiating authority. The energy in the air was oppressive, each elder exuding the weight of their cultivation. Zeth bowed deeply. "Greetings, elders. You called for me?"
The sect leader, Jian Lin, sat at the head of the table. His eyes were as cold as the minerals his sect revered. "Yes, boy. Sit."
Zeth hesitated but obeyed, his every nerve on edge. Jian Lin continued, "We took you in thanks to your parents. They're gone now, as you know, and frankly, you've failed to live up to our cultivation standards even worse than them. You cannot cultivate. It seems you're a lost cause."
Zeth's fists clenched. The mention of his parents stung, but it was the dismissive tone that truly cut deep. "What are you trying to say, Sect Leader?"
Elder Lin leaned forward, a cruel grin on his face. "Silence, boy. Trash should be respectful."
Jian Lin's voice hardened. "We've decided to expel you from the Pure Quartz Sect."
The words hit Zeth like a hammer. He stood up and began to speak. "What? After everything my parents did for this sect? They sacrificed themselves! And this is how you repay me?"
Elder Lin's smirk deepened. "They were trash, just like you. Be grateful we're letting you leave alive."
Before Zeth could respond, Elder Lin raised a hand, and a surge of Qi struck Zeth in the chest. He gasped in pain as his meridians shattered. Blood trickled from his lips as he fell to his knees.
The pain was indescribable, like a thousand needles piercing his body. Zeth felt the Qi he had painstakingly gathered for years dissipate in an instant, leaving behind an aching void.
"I'm sorry," Elder Lin said mockingly, "but trash like you doesn't deserve to be cultivated."
Jian Lin rose, his expression unyielding. "As a token of respect for your parents, we'll transfer you outside the sect's borders. Consider it a mercy, so Tao Lin and the others won't kill you outright."
Zeth's vision blurred with pain and fury. The betrayal cut deeper than the Qi attack. "Damn you all!"
Elder Lin's laughter followed him as the sect leader activated a teleportation array. The runes beneath Zeth glowed with an otherworldly light, their intricate patterns a stark contrast to the chaos in his heart. In a flash of light, Zeth was hurled through space.
When Zeth regained consciousness, he was lying on a patch of rough, unfamiliar ground. The sky above him was an endless expanse of grey, the air thick with the scent of damp earth. His body screamed in pain, his shattered meridians a constant reminder of his defeat.
He tried to sit up, only to collapse back onto the ground. Tears welled up in his eyes, but he refused to let them fall. His parents had raised him to be stronger than this. He crawled to a nearby tree and fell unconscious once more.