If betrayal had a face, then that night Ravian was staring straight into it.The ripples in the pool at the corner of the cave slowly settled, yet the tremor in Ravian’s chest only grew more violent. The image of Malakor’s grinning face in the water’s reflection still seemed burned into his retinas, like a wound that refused to close. Behind him, Elara’s breathing was steady, soft, peaceful, a painful contrast to the savage storm raging through his own meridians. Ravian clenched his fists until his nails cut into his palms, feeling warm blood begin to seep out. The pain was small, almost meaningless compared to the chaos in his mind.Hidden agenda...Ravian’s inner gaze fixed on the transparent blue text still hovering before him. The words were like poison dripping slowly into his heart.Were you really protecting me, Master? Or was I just an experiment you were watching so I wouldn’t explode?Light yet steady footsteps came from the tunnel.Ravian rose at once.He hid his bleeding h

The cold silver sand stabbed into Ravian’s palms like thousands of ice needles starving for the warmth of his blood. Every breath felt heavy, as if this Spirit Realm were deliberately draining the life from his body little by little. In his lap, Elara still slept, her breathing so faint it was nearly inaudible. Ravian had to press his hand to his sister’s chest again and again, terrified that tiny heartbeat would vanish forever.“She’ll be fine, Ravian. The air here is heavy for those who do not possess Void essence, but her soul is adapting.”Ravian jolted violently, his heart nearly leaping from his chest. His hand instantly reached for the hilt of the light sword he had not fully dismissed, ready to cut down whatever shadow approached. From behind the darkness of the shattered pillars of the Temple of Emptiness, an old man limped into view.His gray robe was torn and stained with dried blood gone black, yet the wooden staff in his hand still emitted a steady pale white glow, like t

"Run faster, Ravian! Don’t look back!"Master Han’s raspy voice, rough as wood scraping against stone, was nearly swallowed by the roar of the collapsing dimension. The silver sand beneath Ravian’s feet whipped wildly through the air, forming a glittering haze that stung the eyes. On his back, Elara clung to her brother’s robe with trembling little fingers. Ravian could feel her heartbeat racing, pounding against his back like a terrified bird trapped inside a fragile cage.Every step felt like a sprint into hell, but Ravian could not stop.Because if he stopped, Elara would be lost forever."System, pursuit status?" he hissed between ragged breaths.[Warning: Cosmic Guardian Entity is conducting dimensional scans. Effective distance: 0.8 astral kilometers. Relative speed: Increasing.]"Damn it," Ravian growled through chattering teeth.He leapt across a chasm of energy that suddenly split open before him. Through Parallel Vision, he saw thousands of alternate versions of himself fall

"Brother? Brother, please... wake up."Elara’s voice echoed like sound rebounding through a vast ice cavern. Ravian felt it before he could truly open his eyes, a hollow emptiness deep in the center of his chest, as if his soul had been scraped clean and replaced by a cold wind that never stopped blowing. When he finally managed to lift eyelids that felt as heavy as lead, the first thing he saw was the fractured sky of the Spirit Realm, and beneath it, Elara’s tear-swollen face.Ravian tried to speak, but only a dry hiss of air escaped him. He felt Elara’s small fingers clutching his hand.Cold.Everything felt cold, yet he knew it was not the temperature around him. The cold was coming from inside."Brother's awake! Master Han, Brother's awake!" Elara cried, turning back in panic.Master Han approached, limping, his breathing ragged. The old man knelt beside Ravian and stared at him with an expression hard to read, a mixture of overwhelming relief and profound horror."Do not move to

The violet sky of the Spirit Realm, once silent, suddenly shattered under the echo of a soul-rattling trumpet. The sound was not merely a blast, it was like thousands of metals clashing in a deathly scream, piercing straight into the marrow. Blinding golden light burst from cracks in the sky, washing the silver desert in an unnatural color, cold and merciless.Ravian narrowed his eyes, feeling an immense pressure that made the gravity around him seem to multiply, crushing his chest until his breathing grew ragged. His heart pounded, not from fear but from burning anger. Above, a fleet of golden warships hovered with threatening grace, as if the universe itself had come to judge him.“Running is the only option, Ravian,” Master Han whispered, his voice trembling as he restrained the surging energy pouring from the sky. “The Cosmic Order does not come to negotiate. To them, you are a stain that must be erased from the fabric of existence.”Ravian tightened his grip on Elara’s shoulder,