THE TRANSMIGRATOR

CHAPTER 7 — THE NIGHT THE SKY CHANGED

The crimson star pulsed again, and every person in Blackstone Village felt the ground tremble beneath their feet.

Children began crying. Dogs howled from every corner of the settlement. Several villagers dropped to their knees and started praying.

“What is happening?” Tomas shouted. Nobody answered. Above them, the night sky had become something unnatural.

A massive red formation stretched across the heavens, its intricate lines connecting star to star until they formed a perfect circle around Blackstone Village.

John stared upward. His heart was pounding. He could still feel the energy flowing through his body from his first attempt at cultivation.

The formation was feeding it. No. John's expression changed. It was not feeding him. It was searching. The realisation sent a chill through him.

The strange creature he had killed earlier had arrived shortly before the celestial formation appeared.

That could not be a coincidence. “Everyone get inside!” John shouted. The villagers hesitated.

“Now!” His voice carried the authority he had earned over months of protecting them. People hurried toward their homes.

Marcus remained beside him. “You know what this is?”

“No.” John looked toward the mountains. “But something knows we're here.” The energy continued spreading. It moved through the fields like an invisible tide.

John could feel it touching the soil, the trees, the animals, and every human being in the village. His body reacted immediately.

The spiritual energy entering him became stronger. John clenched his fists. He could feel his muscles tightening.

His senses sharpened until he could hear Marcus breathing beside him. He could hear footsteps inside nearby houses.

He could even hear the faint movement of water beneath the ground. Then the pain returned. John dropped to one knee.

“John!” Marcus reached for him. “Don't.” John raised a hand. His body was changing. The energy flowed through his veins in a precise pattern.

Unlike the chaotic force from the creature, this energy felt cleaner. More natural.

It was as though the entire world had suddenly become a river, and his body had discovered a way to drink from it.

John remembered the cultivation method. Breathing. Circulation. Control. He closed his eyes. He guided the energy toward his core.

The pressure increased. His bones seemed to vibrate. Then something clicked inside him. A wave of strength surged through his body.

The pain disappeared. John slowly opened his eyes. The world looked sharper. Clearer. He could see individual leaves moving in the darkness.

He could hear a mouse crawling beneath a nearby floorboard. His body felt lighter, yet every movement carried more force.

He had entered the first stage of cultivation. John looked at his hands. “So it really is possible.”

But another discovery frightened him. The energy was entering his body far more easily than it should have.

He had spent only minutes cultivating. Yet his body had absorbed an amount of spiritual energy that should have taken an ordinary beginner days, perhaps weeks, to gather.

John's affinity was abnormal. He immediately decided to keep it secret. If kingdoms wanted soldiers because they were desperate, what would they do if they learned that an ordinary villager could cultivate this quickly?

He already knew the answer. They would come. And they would not ask. Far beyond Blackstone Village, something else awakened.

Inside a stone chamber beneath an ancient mountain, an old man opened his eyes. A candle beside him exploded.

He slowly looked upward. “That presence…” His expression became grim. “Someone has awakened.”

Hundreds of miles away, another cultivator stopped in the middle of meditation. She opened her eyes. “Spiritual energy is moving.”

Across distant territories, powerful people felt the same disturbance. The red formation was not merely visible. It was announcing itself.

And Blackstone Village stood directly beneath its centre. John returned to the village before dawn.

He had just reached the eastern wall when he heard something. A faint cry. He turned toward the forest.

“Who's there?” Nothing answered. John moved forward cautiously. His newly sharpened senses detected blood.

Fresh blood. He followed the trail through the trees. Then he found her. A young woman was lying against the roots of an enormous tree. Her clothing was torn. Blood covered one side of her body. A broken sword lay beside her.

John immediately recognised the difference between her injuries and those of an ordinary fighter. There was spiritual energy around her body.

She was a cultivator. And judging by the pressure surrounding her, she was far stronger than he was.

John stopped.

Bringing her into the village could be dangerous. Leaving her here might mean allowing someone to die.

He remembered Lily. He remembered the families who had trusted him. He could not walk away.

John crouched beside the woman. “Can you hear me?” Her eyes opened. They were sharp despite her weakness.

She immediately reached for the broken sword. John raised both hands. “I won't hurt you.” The woman's eyes remained suspicious.

“Who…” Her voice broke. “Blackstone Village.” She stared at him. “Village?”

“Yes.”Her expression changed slightly. She seemed almost shocked that such a place still existed. Then her body weakened.

John caught her before she collapsed. Stay awake.”She grabbed his sleeve. Don't let them find me.”

John looked around the dark forest. Who?”Her breathing became shallow. The people…”She struggled to remain conscious.

“The people who killed the kingdom.”John froze. What kingdom?”But her eyes closed. John carried her toward the village.

He did not see the shadow standing on a distant ridge. It had been watching him. Mira Vale awoke inside John's home several hours later.

The first thing she did was reach for her sword. It was gone. She immediately tried to sit up. Pain shot through her ribs.

John entered carrying a bowl of water. You should stay still.”Mira stared at him. Where is my sword?”

“Outside.”

“You took it?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“Because you tried to stab me while unconscious.”Mira's expression tightened. I thought you were one of them.”

“Who are they?” She stared at him for several seconds. Then her eyes moved toward the window. “The people who are coming.”

John's expression hardened. “Why are they after you?” Mira did not answer. Instead, she whispered, “You don't understand what has awakened.”

Before John could question her, the entire village went silent. The spiritual energy surrounding Blackstone suddenly vanished.

Every candle went out at once. The dogs began howling. A terrifying pressure swept across the settlement.

John felt it press against his newly cultivated body. His knees nearly buckled. Mira's face went white. Then her eyes snapped open. She stared toward the mountains.

“No.” John turned toward her. “What?” Mira's voice trembled. “They found us.”

Outside, something enormous moved beneath the crimson sky. And for the first time, John understood that the formation above Blackstone might not have been a warning. It might have been a beacon.