The world was quiet again, but it was not peace — it was suppression.
The air itself seemed to weigh heavier, as though unseen hands pressed upon the earth.
Animals no longer roared. Rivers flowed slower. Even the winds whispered only in fragments.
Above the Lotus Pavilion, the two eyes that once watched the heavens had dimmed — yet faint black petals drifted down each dawn, vanishing before touching the ground.
Something was blooming.
---
The Dream
Rui Shen sat in meditation atop a ruined pillar, his mismatched eyes half-closed. Since the vision of the Void Heir, he hadn't slept — but that night, his mind was pulled into a dream too real to ignore.
He stood before a vast ocean made entirely of stars.
In the center, a single black lotus floated, its petals infinite.
A faint figure stood behind it — white-haired, serene.
Wang Lin.
> "You've seen him," Wang Lin said. "The Heir."
Rui nodded. "He's real — and he's feeding on souls. I felt his power. It's unlike anything I've faced."
Wang Lin's eyes were calm, almost sorrowful.
> "That power is what remains of the Abyss Seed. The heavens buried it after I severed Mo Xie's chain. But it survived, waiting for a vessel. That vessel… is the Heir."
> "Then I'll destroy it," Rui said firmly.
Wang Lin shook his head. "You can't destroy what is born from balance. The Abyss is part of the cycle itself — the shadow of your light. To end him… you must understand him."
He stepped closer, pressing his palm to Rui's chest.
> "There's one final seal I never opened — the Soul Gate. Within it lies the truth that even I feared."
Rui frowned. "The Soul Gate? Where is it?"
> "Inside you," Wang Lin said simply. "When your soul splits between Void and Balance, the Gate will awaken. But know this — once opened, it cannot be closed."
Before Rui could respond, the black lotus behind them began to turn.
Each petal whispered his name, thousands of voices overlapping into one.
> "Rui Shen… Rui Shen… come see what balance costs…"
The scene shattered.
---
Reality — Morning
Rui woke abruptly, drenched in sweat. His chest burned with dual energy — black and white — spiraling endlessly, fighting for dominance.
The world outside was dark despite the sun's rise.
From afar, Mei Qian approached, clutching an ancient jade tablet.
> "Rui! You must see this!"
The tablet glowed with faint runes that pulsed in time with Rui's heartbeat.
> "This tablet was left behind by Wang Lin himself," she said breathlessly. "It records a hidden art — The Lotus of Abyssal Harmony. It says the one who bears the twin mark can merge the light and dark, creating a power beyond divinity."
Rui's gaze hardened.
> "Or destroy everything."
The sky thundered in response.
---
Elsewhere — The Void Realm
The Void Heir sat upon a throne of bones and fallen stars. Before him hovered countless floating lotuses, black as ink, each containing the soul of a fallen cultivator.
He opened his eyes — twin abysses without light.
> "Balance always tries to correct itself," he said softly. "So let me correct balance."
He raised his hand.
The lotuses around him bloomed — thousands of them — and merged into one massive flower that stretched across the Void.
> "Behold," he whispered, "the Abyss Lotus — the flower that blooms at the end of existence."
The lotus pulsed once, sending a shockwave through all realms.
In the mortal world, cultivators screamed as black qi rose from the ground, devouring spiritual veins, corrupting sacred beasts, and turning forests into ash.
Rui felt the tremor in his soul.
The Heir was no longer waiting. He was declaring war.
---
Lotus Pavilion — The Choice
Elder Mei stared at the horizon as black lightning crackled across the distant sky. "It's beginning, isn't it?"
Rui rose, his aura calm but cold. "He's forcing my hand."
He turned toward the statue of Wang Lin one last time, bowing low.
> "Master… I'll finish what you couldn't. Even if it means losing myself."
He pressed his palm against his chest — and for the first time, let the two halves of his power collide.
The mark flared violently, tearing the air apart.
From within his body, a gate of light and shadow began to form — its edges trembling like living metal.
> "So this is the Soul Gate…" Rui whispered, his body shaking.
The gate pulsed once, and faint whispers filled the air — the voices of Wang Lin's era, of souls long forgotten.
> "Balance… or oblivion. Choose."
---
The heavens cracked open.
The Abyss Lotus bloomed.
And between heaven and void — the Soul Gate of the Thief was born.
---