Heavenfall King: The Prison God Who Returned

Chapter 4: When Heaven Blinks

The sirens grew louder. Mark didn’t hurry.

Rain slid down his face as he guided Tania into the car, closing the door with deliberate calm. Only when the engine started did his jaw tighten, just slightly.

“They’ll pin this on you,” Tania said quietly.

“They’ll try,” Mark replied, pulling into the road. “But not tonight.”

She studied him in the dim dashboard light. “You killed them.”

“Yes.”

No denial. No justification. She swallowed. “Does it bother you?”

Mark was silent for a long moment. Then, “It bothers me that it didn’t.” That answer scared her more than the blood.

They drove until the city lights thinned and the streets turned unfamiliar. Mark stopped beneath an overpass, concrete pillars towering like watchful giants.

“Out,” he said.

Tania frowned. “Why?” 

“Because someone’s been following us for six blocks.”

Her breath hitched. “Police?”

“No.”

He stepped out into the rain. “Show yourself,” Mark said calmly. The shadows rippled.

A man emerged, thin, tall, wearing a gray coat too light for the weather. His hair was white, though his face was young.

“You’re perceptive,” the man said.

Mark didn’t respond. The man smiled faintly. “Relax. If I wanted you dead, you’d already be a rumor.”

Mark tilted his head. “Heaven?”

“Adjacent,” the man replied. “I’m here to observe.”

“You already did,” Mark said. “At the warehouse.”

“Yes,” the man agreed. “And you exceeded expectations.”

Tania stepped out of the car. “Mark,” He raised a hand without looking back. “Stay there.”

The man’s eyes flicked to her. “She’s still alive. That’s good.”

Mark’s voice sharpened. “You keep mentioning her.”

“Because she’s the problem,” the man said pleasantly.

Mark’s aura shifted. Rain froze midair for a heartbeat. The man’s smile faded. “Careful.”

Mark stepped forward. “Say what you came to say.”

The man sighed. “Very well. Zhou Wen was a probe. A disposable one.” 

Mark nodded. “I assumed.”

“You failed the restraint test,” the man continued. “But passed the dominance one.”

“And that means?” Mark asked.

“It means,” the man said, “you’re being promoted.”

Silence.

Tania whispered, “Promoted to what?”

The man looked at her again. “To a liability.”

Mark moved so fast the ground cracked beneath his foot. His hand closed around the man’s throat, lifting him off the ground.

“I told you,” Mark said quietly, “not to look at her.”

The man gasped, but he wasn’t panicking. Instead, he smiled. “Excellent,” he rasped. “That’s exactly the reaction they predicted.”

Mark’s eyes flickered. “They?” Mark asked.

The man raised one finger. The air split. Pressure crashed down like an invisible ocean. Mark released him and staggered back half a step, eyes wide.

Above them, the rain parted. The sky twisted. Symbols, vast, ancient, incomprehensible, burned faintly through the clouds.

Tania screamed. Mark pulled her close, heart hammering. The man straightened his coat. “You’ve officially been noticed.”

The symbols vanished. The rain resumed. Cars passed on the road above, unaware. 

Mark’s voice was low. “You endangered her.”

The man bowed slightly. “Apologies. That won’t happen again.”

“Swear it,” Mark said.

The man hesitated. Then nodded. “By the Codex.” Mark studied him, then turned away. “Leave.”

The man didn’t argue. As he walked into the darkness, he spoke over his shoulder. “They’ll send someone less patient next time.”

“Send whoever you want,” Mark said. “I’m done being tested.”

The man chuckled softly. “So was your master.” He disappeared.

That night, Mark dreamed. Stone walls. Blood-stained floors. The prison corridor that never ended. His master stood at the far end, back turned.

“You moved too soon,” the old man said.

“They threatened her,” Mark replied.

“They always do,” the master said. “Attachment is leverage.”

Mark clenched his fists. “Then why teach me power?”

The master turned. His eyes were empty voids. “So you’d have a choice,” he said.

Mark jolted awake. Tania was shaking beside him. “Mark,” she whispered. “Something’s wrong.” He sat up instantly. The room was cold. Too cold. Frost crept along the windows.

Then, A knock. Three slow taps. Mark stood silently. The knock came again. “Mr. Lane,” a woman’s voice called softly. “We need to talk.”

Mark opened the door. A woman stood in the hallway, tall, elegant, dressed in white. Her eyes glowed faintly gold.

Behind her were two figures, faces obscured. “Who are you?” Mark asked.

She smiled. “I’m here to correct a mistake,” she said.

Mark felt it. The pressure. Heaven wasn’t watching anymore. It was acting. She stepped forward. “Hand over the woman,” she said calmly, “and we’ll let you live.”

Mark closed the door slowly behind him. His voice was steady. “No.”

The woman’s smile widened. “Then,” she said, “let’s see how much godhood a mortal can bleed.”

The hallway lights shattered. Darkness swallowed the floor. And from the shadows. Something ancient moved.