The night split open.
From the depths of the void, a single golden crack stretched across the heavens like a wound. Lightning bled through it — not ordinary lightning, but divine punishment infused with the wrath of Heaven itself.
Xuan Tian looked up from his meditation, his eyes narrowing. The air was heavy, trembling beneath a crushing pressure that made even the stones groan.
> "So… it begins."
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The Descent of Tribulation
The first bolt struck the mountain. The entire range shuddered, trees vaporizing into ash. Rivers boiled. Clouds twisted into a spiral above him, forming an eye of light that gazed upon him with cold indifference.
> "Mortal… you have stolen the authority of creation."
The voice resounded from the sky — vast, emotionless, eternal.
Each word made the air vibrate. The mountains bowed. The animals fled.
Xuan Tian rose slowly, his body shaking under the pressure, but his eyes were burning with defiance.
> "Stolen? No… I forged it with my own hands."
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The Heavenly Trial
The lightning gathered again, forming a pillar of judgment that descended upon him.
Xuan Tian roared and unleashed his Qi. The Blade of Creation manifested — radiant, pure, slicing the storm itself.
The two forces met with a deafening explosion.
He was hurled backward, blood spraying from his mouth, yet his blade did not break.
> "If Heaven fears me… then I will become the storm it fears."
He stood again, gathering every last strand of Qi. The Creation Blade pulsed violently, resonating with his will. For a moment, even the divine thunder hesitated.
---
The Envoy of the Sky
Then the light changed.
From within the storm, a shape emerged — humanoid, glowing with celestial brilliance. A figure with six radiant wings and eyes that mirrored galaxies.
> "Child of Defiance… Xuan Tian."
"You have touched what mortals must never reach. The Dao of Creation is forbidden."
The voice was neither male nor female — it was everything, and nothing.
The Divine Envoy stepped down, every movement reshaping reality. Mountains knelt before its presence.
Xuan Tian could barely breathe, but his will did not bend.
> "If the heavens deny my existence…"
"Then I'll carve a new heaven."
The Envoy raised its hand. A blade of divine light took form — The Sword of Judgment.
> "Then face annihilation, Originless One."
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The Clash of Heaven and Mortal
The world exploded in light.
Every bolt of divine thunder merged into the Envoy's strike. Xuan Tian, bloodied and battered, channeled his final breath into the Blade of Creation.
When the two swords collided, time itself froze. The sky fractured. Space screamed.
And for one impossible heartbeat — the Blade of Creation did not shatter.
It split the Sword of Judgment in half.
---
The Silence After
The Envoy staggered, its form flickering.
> "Impossible… a mortal's blade cannot wound the divine…"
Xuan Tian fell to one knee, his body covered in blood, but his eyes were calm — almost peaceful.
> "Heaven may have birthed me weak… but I will write my own laws."
The Envoy's body dissolved into light, vanishing into the heavens.
But as it faded, its last words echoed softly — half warning, half awe.
> "The Dao of Creation… has returned."
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Epilogue of the Trial
When the dawn broke, half the mountain was gone. The sky was scarred by golden cracks that refused to close.
Xuan Tian sat amid the ruins, holding the dimmed Blade of Creation in his hand.
He had survived Heaven's Judgment.
But deep within his soul, something had awakened — a fragment of ancient power, whispering in a voice older than time.
> "Child of Defiance… your path has only begun."
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