The next few days passed in a quiet rhythm. For the first time since arriving at the academy, Little Life wasn't running from an enemy or diving into secret trials. He trained each morning with the Fist of Gentle Light, practiced healing techniques with Lin'er in the afternoon, and sparred with Zhuben in the evening.
And Shuiyin? She always watched.
She never said much during training. But after each session, she'd offer a small piece of advice or hum a melody that somehow matched the rhythm of his punches. It was strange, but comforting.
One evening, as the sky turned orange and purple, Little Life sat by the pond near the outer wall of the academy. Shuiyin floated above the water, her reflection rippling with the fish swimming below.
"Do you think I'm ready?" he asked.
Shuiyin raised an eyebrow. "Ready for what?"
"To face the realms ahead. To heal her. To carry this burden…"
She turned slowly and studied his face.
"No," she said. "You're not ready."
He blinked. "That was… honest."
"But," she added, "you are walking the right path. That's more important than being ready."
He sighed, then smiled faintly. "You always twist your words like a wise old master."
"I'm older than you think," she replied, a strange glint in her eyes.
Then, before his eyes, Shuiyin slowly stepped onto the surface of the water, walking across like a ripple of silver wind. As her body shimmered, her glowing aquatic form began to blur and condense.
A soft light wrapped around her, and she slowly transformed into a small human girl.
Her new form stood barefoot on the water's surface. She looked around seven years old, delicate and slender with snow-pale skin. Her hair fell in silken waves to her waist, shimmering between silver and soft blue with each movement. Her large eyes glowed faintly—gentle and curious—but impossibly deep, like pools that hid memories of ancient skies.
She wore a simple white dress with fluttering sleeves, and her small hands were held behind her back as she gazed quietly at Little Life.
But what caught his eyes immediately—what seemed both out of place and unshakably majestic—were the two curling horns on her head. Emerging from just above her temples, they twisted upward in graceful arcs, far larger than goat horns, yet refined and natural, as though part of a forgotten race.
Little Life stared in awe.
"…Is this your real form?" he whispered.
Shuiyin smiled faintly, tilting her head. "It's a form I used long ago, when I walked among people. Do I look strange?"
"No," he said softly. "You look… peaceful."
Her presence hadn't diminished—it had simply changed. Now, instead of distant elegance, she radiated a kind of gentle warmth, like the quiet flicker of a candle in deep water.
"I want to walk beside you as you are," she said. "And it's easier to travel unnoticed like this."
He nodded, still trying to process the transformation.
---
The next morning, a small bird made of sunlight fluttered through his window.
It hovered in front of his face before dissolving, releasing a warm voice:
> "Little Life, report to the Inner Archive Room. Elder Miao requests your presence. Urgently."
Little Life frowned. The Inner Archive Room wasn't a place open to ordinary disciples, even top-ranked ones.
Zhuben raised a brow. "Sounds important. Want backup?"
"I think I'll go alone," Little Life replied. "If it's about my soul path, they may not want others nearby."
---
The Inner Archive was hidden behind a golden waterfall deep within the academy's southern hill. After passing through the veil of falling light, he found himself standing in a glowing tunnel filled with books that floated instead of sitting on shelves.
A woman with silvery hair and a long lavender robe stood waiting. Her eyes sparkled like starlight, and her presence was calm but overwhelming.
"You must be Little Life," she said.
He bowed. "Yes, Elder Miao."
"I've heard whispers from the Hall of Forgotten Light. It seems you've bonded with a martial art long buried."
"Yes, Elder."
"Then perhaps it's time you receive your first real mission."
She waved her hand, and a floating scroll opened in the air between them. Inside was a map—strange and shifting, showing part of the Beast Continent.
"This is the location of an ancient ruin—once a temple of Soul Cultivators," she said. "Inside lies what you seek: the Soul Herb. The final item needed to restore your sister."
Little Life's heart skipped. "It's real? You found it?"
"I didn't," she replied calmly. "But Shuiyin did."
He turned and saw Shuiyin standing quietly beside the bookshelves, still in the form of the small girl with twin horns. Elder Miao's eyes softened as she glanced at Shuiyin—then became sharper, filled with a respectful silence.
Her gaze lingered on those strange horns.
"So, that's the form you chose this time," Elder Miao murmured, half to herself.
Shuiyin smiled politely, saying nothing.
Little Life didn't notice the deeper exchange of meaning, but Elder Miao's attitude changed. Her voice became more formal—almost reverent.
"You're the only one capable of surviving the trial within," she said to Little Life. "But be warned—others are searching for the herb too. Dark forces from the Red Fang, and others beyond them."
Little Life clenched his fists. "Then I'll just have to be faster."
"Take this," Elder Miao said, holding out a silver token with a sun and moon engraved. "It will let you pass through barriers in the temple. But you must finish the journey alone."
He accepted the token and bowed again.
As he turned to leave, Elder Miao briefly glanced at Shuiyin once more.
"Help him return," she said in a quiet voice. "As you once did before."
Shuiyin nodded without a word.
---
That night, as the stars covered the sky, Little Life sat beside Shuiyin by the pond again. She kicked her bare feet lightly in the water, the twin horns glinting faintly in moonlight.
"Why didn't you tell me earlier?" he asked.
"I needed you to grow stronger first," she said softly. "The herb won't respond to someone who doubts their path."
He looked down at the silver token.
"I'm close. So close… just this one thing left. Then I can bring her back."
Shuiyin remained silent for a moment. Then she said, "Do you ever wonder what happens after?"
"After?"
"After you save her. What will you do then?"
He hesitated.
"I haven't thought that far," he admitted. "Maybe… I'll disappear. Or wander."
Shuiyin leaned back, her eyes on the moon. "Then figure it out. Because your story doesn't end when hers begins again."
---
Before dawn, Little Life packed a small bag—spirit herbs, beast meat jerky, and his notebook.
Zhuben and Lin'er waited for him at the outer gate.
"You're off again," Zhuben said, half-smiling.
"This time might take longer," Little Life replied.
Lin'er hugged him quickly. "You better come back. We still haven't finished testing that new healing array together."
He nodded. "I will."
Shuiyin, still in her small form, walked beside him. Her horns had been wrapped with a simple cloth hood, making her look like a child traveler from a remote village.
Together, they stepped into a silver teleportation ring that Elder Miao had prepared.
Light swallowed them whole.
---
They appeared in a mountain range covered in thick mist and dead trees. The air felt heavy, and the world around them was eerily quiet—no birds, no wind.
"This is the Dead Voice Range," Shuiyin said. "A cursed land. Souls whisper here, but you won't hear them unless they want you to."
Little Life's skin prickled as the mist curled around his arms.
"The Silent Temple is east of here," she continued. "It's buried beneath the cliffs. We'll have to enter through the lower caves."
They began walking, following old stone markers shaped like kneeling monks.
After an hour of silence, Little Life suddenly stopped.
"Did you feel that?"
A ripple moved through the ground. Then, without warning, a dark beast leaped from the fog—a skeletal creature with six arms and a mouth like a screaming ghost.
Shuiyin shouted, "It's a Soul-Eater! Be careful!"
The beast struck fast, swinging a claw toward his chest.
Little Life stepped in, his aura shining.
> "Gentle Palm!"
He redirected the blow to the side, then countered.
> "Radiant Wave!"
Light pierced the beast's chest, forcing it to shriek and fall back. But it didn't die—it split into three shadowy forms.
"These things multiply," Shuiyin warned. "Don't let them touch your spirit!"
He drew a spirit rune in the air—one of his healing-seal combinations.
"Blessing Light Seal—Pulse Cage!"
The rune activated, forming a glowing cage that trapped the shadows.
In seconds, the ghostly beasts dissolved into mist.
He exhaled.
"Not too bad," he muttered.
"You've improved," Shuiyin said with a smirk. "But there will be worse things ahead."
---
As they reached the cliffside, an ancient stone gate stood before them, half-buried in vines and moss.
Strange whispers flowed from its cracks. Faintly, he heard the echo of weeping… and laughter.
"The Silent Temple," Shuiyin whispered.
Little Life stepped forward, holding the silver token Elder Miao had given him.
It glowed softly. The gate opened with a sigh, revealing darkness beyond.
"I'll go alone from here," he said.
Shuiyin didn't argue.
But as he stepped through the gate, she placed a hand on his Sleeves—small, warm.
"I'll be waiting outside," she said. "Come back… with your heart intact."
He nodded.
Then he entered the darkness.
---[To Be Continued]--