Before the light of dawn could touch the lands below, the Heavenpiercing Mountain stood tall, it's jagged stones piercing the clouds as if aiming for heavens themselves.
From it's summit fell the Celestial Waterfall, a torrent so strong none could reach it's peak, even for thousands of years. At the top, stood the Gate of Transcendence. A gate no fish had ever passed. For generations, many darings souls had tried, but none had ever succeeded.
Below the Heavenpiercing Mountain was the Azure River, where for thousands of years fish from all over the world would come to test their might, in the hopes of possibly being the one to usurp the grand challenge.
For thousands of years, the fish of the Azure River had known the legend: "Beyond lies the Gate of Transcendence. Beyond the roaring waters, the heavens await. Swim… if you would transcend."
But fate chooses sparringly.
Then suddenly, as the rising sun began to cast it's light upon the world, a single lone drifting egg began to hatch. At first nothing happened, but then, it began to glow.
At first, the light was faint, but it did not remain so. It grew, spreading through the water like a drop of sunlight setting the river alight. The currents, once calm, began to rage and twist. Fish leapt instinctively, water shimmered, and even the waterfall above roared as if acknowledging a new presence.
When the shell cracked, it was not a small one, it was an explosion of radiance. Ripples radiated outward, and the air above the river danced with light.
From within the glowing shell, a voice descended, not spoken aloud, but echoing within every scale, mind, and fin. It was deep, eternal, and boundless.
"Awaken, little one... your destiny lies within the currents, you are born for more than just this river, child of boundless fate. Far upstream, past the waterfall, lies the key to transcendence. Swim... and fulfill your fate."
The newborn koi trembled, but knew what to do. It was not due to instinct, but instead due to purpose.
The small koi was born already somewhat matured, enough to swim around freely but not quite the size nor look of a fully matured koi.
The koi blinked, still glowing with azure light that shown within the waters. Fish swam around nearby, not quite understanding what had just happened. But the newborn did not wait, as soon as it had been born, it had chosen it's fate, to swim against the currents, and to reach the pinnacle.
Against the current it swam, each movement was agony, its body too small, too fragile, yet some unseen fire drove it onward.
Days passed and nights followed. It learned hunger, fear, patience. It hid beneath rocks to escape predators, drifted into calm and peaceful sleeps, and watched as moonlight shone against the waters.
It would dream of the Gate, the very thing it believed to be it's destiny to reach. The Gate, made of jade would glow beautifully in the sunlight, towering above the Celestial Falls, waiting for the day someone worthy of it's brilliance would come to pass through.
One day, as the koi continued upstream, an old carp, broad and scarred approached, its voice old, filled with the scars and tribulations of life began to ask.
"Why do you fight the current, little one? Downstream lies safety, while upstream, all that awaits is death."
The koi's eyes flared with a faint azure aura.
"Because the world spoke to me, it chose me."
The old carp laughed, it's voice tinged with sorrow.
"Then the world is cruel, child. No koi nor fish has ever managed to reach the top. Even the strongest break beneath the falls."
"Then let me be the first to break the sky," the koi whispered, as it gazed toward the towering mountain and waterfall in the distance.
"You have a dream many have had before, but yet none have managed to triumph, what makes you any different from them, do you still wish to continue on this arduous path?"
"Yes, I do, and nothing you say will stop me"
"Fine, but let me teach you a little something before you continue on you journey, do you feel the current, little one?
The koi tilted its head in confusion at the old carps words.
"The river is not merely water. It is life, it is will, and it is danger. Many have tried to ascend… but most fail, this is because they are weak."
"Then how does one become strong enough to ascend the waterfall?"
"Watch closely."
The carp's tail fin struck the water, and a circle of ripples spiraled outward. Yet within that circle, a small stone at the riverbed lifted, hovering for a moment as if held by an invisible hand, before falling back down.
"This is the mark of cultivation—spiritual qi. A being that can harness even a sliver of its essence may move not only through water, but within it. Ordinary strength cannot carry you to the Gate. Only through the path of cultivation, can you ascend."
The young koi tried to mimic the motion, but the water around it barely stirred. Its small fins kicked, but nothing amazing happened.
The old carp's laughed, it was soft, almost a sigh.
"You are not yet ready little one. The river does not end here, it stretches for miles. Every bend, every rock you pass, the currents grow stronger, the obstacles in your path, fiercer. If you charge at the Celestial Waterfall now, the river itself will sweep you aside, before you even reach it."
The koi trembled slightly, yet its eyes flared with determination.
"Then what do you suggest I do?"
"Do you wish to be the first to touch the Gate? Then you must learn more than courage. You must learn how to cultivate. Only then can you survive the trials ahead."
The koi's fins twitched, eager to swim upstream immediately, but the carp spoke again, calmer now.
"Come with me, little one. Downstream lies safety, yes… but also opportunity. It leads to a vast and wide sea, a place you can learn and grow. You will encounter predators, storms, and currents that will test your body and spirit alike.
The koi hesitated, looking back at the distant roar of the Celestial Falls. Its heart ached to leap into the currents, but something in the carp's gaze, the weight of countless failures, the knowledge of survival, made it pause.
"Follow me, then," the old carp said with a faint nod. "Learn what the river can teach you. One day, when you are ready… the sky will be yours to soar through."
With that, the old carp turned, heading downstream now with purpose. The young koi lingered for just a moment, then pushed off with its tiny fins, letting the current guide it, this time not upstream, not yet, but toward the journey that would forge it into something worthy.