HEAVEN'S FORSAKEN SON

Wilderness and Lyra

The wilderness was merciless.

Arin stumbled through a tangle of thorn-bushes. His breath ragged and his ribs ached from another close encounter. His clothes were torn and streaked with blood. The moon hung cold above him. Silver light poured over a land teeming with beasts.

Every direction was like death itself 

Yet, the system would not let him stop.

“Ding! Survival Quest Update.

Objective: Endure wilderness trial, Shelter, food, water secured within 24 hours.

Time Remaining: 2 hours, 17 minutes.

Penalty: –10 years lifespan.”

Arin’s pulse hammered. He had secured water from a muddy stream, but food and shelter? He had seen nothing. His stomach clawed at itself in hunger.

If he failed and if the timer struck zero, he would lose years of his life in an instant.

He staggered onward. Growls echoed in the distance. Every rustle of leaves whispered in the darkness. 

“Is this how they expect me to die?” he muttered, clutching his mother’s cloth at his wrist.

The night deepened, getting colder by the hour. His body shook and his vision blurred.

“Ding! Passive Quest Triggered.

Objective: Endure cold until dawn without fire.

Reward: Frost Resistance +1.

Penalty: –3 years lifespan.”

He bit back a curse. ‘Fire?’ He had no flint and no tinder. The system was merciless. If he failed, it would take away his life span piece by piece.

But it was also the only reason he was still alive.

A yellow rustle gleamed in the dark.

Arin turned just as a spirit-beast leapt from the undergrowth. It was a wolf with its fur lined with frost and fangs like shards of ice.

“Ding! Combat Trial Initiated.

Objective: Survive encounter with Ice Wolf.

Reward: Minor Meridian Repair Fragment.

Penalty: –5 years lifespan.”

The beast moved.

Arin ducked. He rolled through the leaves with his fists trembling. He clenched them letting out the dragon Vein Fist he had practiced until his bones screamed. The system pulsed in his vision.

“Now!” His fist lashed out.

The wolf’s jaw cracked sideways. It howled, staggering back. Arin staggered too, gasping. His body screamed in pain. But he stood gallantly.

The system chimed coldly.

“Quest Complete.

Reward: Minor Meridian Repair Fragment Acquired.”

The glow pulsed faintly in his chest. But he had no strength left. His knees buckled.

He collapsed near a frozen ravine. The bitter wind gnawed at him. Darkness pressed in.

The wolves closed in. A pack this time around. Their breath misted and their growls rumbled. Arin’s arms hung limp at his sides. He could barely raise his head.

When suddenly, a flurry of snow and a glint of light fill up the atmosphere.

“Frost Petal Bloom.” 

The air cracked with frost. Shards of ice burst from the ground, spearing through two wolves instantly. The rest yelped, retreating into the dark.

Arin blinked with surprise wondering who owned that power. 

A girl stood above him. She was pale with hair flowing like snow in moonlight. Her eyes were as cold as glaciers. She wore traveling leathers and white fur lining her cloak. Her palm shimmered with a frost qi.

She looked down at him with disdain. “Pathetic. You’ll die out here if you keep stumbling like this.”

Arin coughed. His body was trembling. “Then… Why save me?”

Her gaze lingered on him, sharp and curious. “Because you didn’t beg for it. Most people like you beg.”

She pulled him to his feet with surprising strength.

“I am Lyra Frostwind,” she said curtly. “And you?”

“Arin,” he rasped. “Arin Darkveil.”

Her brow twitched. Recognition flickered in her eyes. “The crippled boy cast out by his clan?”

His jaw tightened. The title cut deeper than any wound. “That’s what they call me.” He replied coldly.

Lyra studied him for a long moment. Her expression was unreadable. Then she turned away. “You won’t last a week out here at this pace and If you slow me down, I’ll leave you.”

Arin narrowed his eyes. “And yet you haven’t left me now.”

Her lips curved faintly. Not a smile, it was more like amusement. “Consider this a test.”

As they walked, the system chimed again.

“Ding! Co-op Quest Generated.

Objective: Form a temporary alliance with Lyra Frostwind.

Reward: Double Experience Bonus for Co-op Battles.

Penalty: –7 years lifespan if alliance fails prematurely.”

Arin almost stumbled. ‘An alliance quest? The system had never offered that before. Did it… recognize her?’ He thought in his head. 

Lyra glanced at him sharply, as if she had noticed the faint glow in his eyes when the system window appeared. “What is that light?”

He froze. “It’s nothing,” he said quickly.

Her gaze lingered, icy and probing, but she didn’t press. Instead, she drew her blade and frost qi moved along its edge. “If you want to survive, prove it. A beast’s lair lies near. Help me kill it or we will die trying.”

The lair was a cavern built with ice. Growls echoed from within it. A mid-tier beast, an Icefang Boar emerged. Its tusks glowed with frosted qi and steam billowed from its maw.

Arin’s chest tightened. He had never faced something this strong.

“Ding! Co-op Combat Quest Initiated.

Objective: Defeat the Icefang Boar with Lyra.

Reward: Major Meridian Repair Fragment, Combat Skill Enhancement.

Penalty: –12 years lifespan if failed.”

The beast charged almost immediately. The ground cracked.

Lyra’s frost qi surged, creating icy spikes that slowed the boar. “Strike its flank!” she commanded.

Arin’s fists trembled. He inhaled, letting the system’s words flash before his eyes. His body moved as ducked, pivoted and strike!

Dragon Vein Fist roared from his arm. His blow landed against the beast’s ribs, cracking its bone. The boar howled, thrashing wildly. Lyra seized the opening, frost blade slicing across its throat.

The beast collapsed, blood steaming against ice.

“Ding! Quest Complete.

Reward: Major Meridian Repair Fragment Acquired. Dragon Vein Fist — Proficiency +20%.”

Arin staggered back, gasping. His chest glow warmly as the fragment melded with his meridians.

He felt it, the chains within him loosening. Qi flowed smoother than ever before. His crippled meridians, long broken, were repairing piece by piece.

Lyra eyed him. And her curiosity deepened. “A cripple couldn’t have moved like that. Who exactly are you, Arin Darkveil?”

He wiped blood from his lip, meeting her gaze steadily. “Someone who refuses to die.”

 Lyra wasn’t a friend but she wasn’t a mocker either. She fought beside him, trusted him for a moment, and didn’t sneer when he stood his ground. Instead the believed in him at every stance. 

The warmth of victory burned brighter than the cold wilderness.

“Maybe…” he whispered, clutching his mother’s cloth, “maybe trust isn’t entirely lost.”

As they prepared to leave the beast’s lair, Lyra’s expression hardened.

“Be on guard,” she said quietly.

Arin frowned. “Why?”

Her eyes narrowed, scanning the treeline. “Stormfang hunters are in this region. I overheard them earlier. They’re asking about someone.”

She met his gaze, her tone hardened.

“A boy the heavens cursed. A fate-defying anomaly.” Arin’s blood ran cold after he heard. 

The system chimed mercilessly.

“Ding! Warning: External Hostiles Approaching. New Threat Level Detected.”