The Border of the Forsaken Realm exhaled a cold breath that smelled of rusted iron, decay, and forgotten memories. The mist churned with whispers—echoes of lives long perished, of truths better left buried. Each step closer sent shivers through the soul, as if the very air sought to crawl into their thoughts and unravel them from within.
But Xuantian did not hesitate.
Clad in black and silver robes lined with runes of protection, he stepped forward first. His sword, still sealed from the battle against the Divine Court, pulsed at his hip as if to warn him.
The others followed close behind—Ruyue, Jing Hao, Bai Zhen, Yunlong, and Shenyue—each prepared for the worst, though none could have imagined what lay ahead.
With a final breath, they crossed the threshold.
And the world… changed.
---
The Forsaken Realm
It was neither day nor night.
A crimson sky bled shadows, casting a twilight that never shifted. Mountains floated upside down, rivers flowed in circles, and shattered pieces of ancient temples hung suspended midair like forgotten memories. The ground beneath their feet wasn't soil—it was stone shaped from the bones of extinct titans.
"No qi here," Bai Zhen muttered. "At least not the kind we know."
Xuantian nodded. "This realm doesn't follow the laws of the heavens. It's… unwritten."
As they moved forward, they passed ruins so vast they dwarfed entire cities. Statues of gods long erased stood broken, their faces carved with anguish. Great battlefields were frozen in time—armored corpses suspended in mid-swing, their souls forever locked in endless war.
And through it all, a presence loomed.
Watching.
Whispering.
Waiting.
---
The Guardian of the Threshold
After days of travel with no sun nor moon to guide them, they reached a gate shaped like an eye, black stone spiraling outward from a central pupil that blinked every few seconds.
A voice thundered.
> "Only the Unforgiven may pass."
From the shadows emerged a creature unlike any they had seen—a colossus of stitched limbs and burning wings, its face split into seven mouths, each speaking in tongues. It was the Threshold Guardian, born of regret and banished truth.
Xuantian stepped forward. "I carry no guilt for my actions."
The creature roared, "Then offer your memories. Show the Realm your truth."
A flash of light enveloped him.
Suddenly, Xuantian was no longer in the Forsaken Realm.
---
A Trial of Memory
He stood in the mortal world, one thousand years ago.
As the head of the once-mighty Celestial Void Sect.
He saw his disciples again—those he had led, trained, and protected. He watched as they were hunted down during the Great Purge, falsely accused by corrupt sects allied with the gods. He saw himself fall into madness, destroying entire clans in revenge. He remembered the screams. The blood. The regret.
"I did what I had to," he whispered.
A mirror appeared before him, showing his younger self, hands soaked in crimson.
Then, the younger Xuantian looked up and said: "And do you still believe that makes you righteous?"
The scene shattered.
Xuantian knelt before the guardian again.
But now, the eye gate opened.
---
The Core of the Realm
Through the gate lay a city made of bones and black glass.
At its center stood a throne crafted from the wings of fallen celestials. And upon it… a figure sat.
His skin was like cracked porcelain. His hair flowed like shadow. And behind his back, twelve chained arms twitched slowly, each sealed with ancient scripts of power.
The Chained God.
Yuehuang the Fallen Light.
"So you are the one," Yuehuang said, his voice both ancient and young. "The child of rebellion. The one who defied the divine."
Xuantian narrowed his eyes. "You've waited long, haven't you?"
Yuehuang laughed. "A million years in silence. Watching. Waiting for the spark that would burn the heavens."
"Why me?" Xuantian asked.
"Because you did what even gods fear—you awakened the truth. You proved that the system of divine control is not absolute."
"And you want to use me?"
"No," Yuehuang said, standing. "I want to fight you."
---
The Offer
The chains on Yuehuang's arms rattled as he stepped forward. His aura was suffocating—ancient, endless, and heavy with sorrow.
"I offer you this," he said. "Defeat me here, and I shall grant you the final key to break the divine order forever. But if you lose, you shall take my place—forever chained to this throne, bearing the burden of forsakenness."
Xuantian drew his sword. "So be it."
Ruyue stepped forward. "You're not doing this alone."
But Yuehuang raised his hand. "Only he may fight me. This realm responds to fate, and this duel is bound by destiny."
The city crumbled as they rose into the sky, platforms of bone and light forming beneath their feet. The stars above flickered—watching the battle from eons past.
Then—
Steel met darkness.
And the duel of fates began.
---