Chapter 25 – The Fifth Founder's Call
The world was silent after the battle.
Azure Sky Academy — once bright and proud — now lay beneath clouds of drifting ash and broken qi seals.
The Rift had sealed itself.
But the scar it left in the sky still shimmered faintly, a reminder of what had almost consumed them all.
---
The Day After
Yin Jin sat beneath the moonlight, his shirt torn and his black-gold flame flickering gently around him.
His eyes no longer glowed — yet a quiet power lingered beneath the surface, ancient and restless.
Baifang sat beside him, polishing his spear, grinning weakly.
> "One Rift, one skyquake, one near-death experience… you really know how to make a name, huh?"
> "You talk too much," Yin Jin said softly.
Baifang chuckled. "And you brood too much. Balance, brother."
Chaein walked up, her twin tails hidden beneath her robe, though her silver eyes gleamed in the dark.
> "The instructors are closing all Rift missions," she said. "The Headmaster ordered it himself. No more hunts. No more incursions."
> "Good," Yin Jin replied. "We're not ready for what's on the other side."
Chaein hesitated, then added quietly:
> "They said the energy that poured from your fire stabilized the Rift… it's like the flames remembered how to close it."
Yin Jin looked up at the sky. "Or maybe something… guided them."
---
The Vision
That night, when sleep finally came, Yin Jin found himself drifting in a void of starlight.
Planets spun lazily around him — broken fragments of a realm long gone.
Then he saw it.
The ruins of a colossal palace, shattered moons above it, and five figures standing upon the debris.
One wielded a sword that could pierce galaxies.
One held the light of creation itself.
One burned with the fire of judgment.
One knelt in silence — her frost covering dying stars.
And one… turned away, his back to them all.
> "The Fifth Founder…" Yin Jin whispered.
The figure turned, half of his face consumed by shadows.
His voice echoed like thunder and sorrow combined.
> "The Nebula Realm fell because I defied the heavens."
"Now you, child of two bloodlines, must decide — will you restore what was lost… or repeat my sin?"
> "You destroyed your own realm?" Yin Jin asked.
> "No." The Founder's voice deepened. "I saved it — by breaking it apart."
The stars trembled. Chains of light shattered across the void as the Fifth Founder's gaze met his.
> "The four realms—Heavenly, Earthen, Demon, and Nebula—are not as separate as the world believes. When one collapses, the others crack."
"You are the bridge now, Yin Jin. The hybrid born from ruin."
Yin Jin clenched his fists. "Why me?"
> "Because no one else lived."
And with that, the vision broke apart — fire and frost swallowing him whole.
---
A Year Later
Azure Sky Academy basked once more in sunlight.
The scars of war had faded, though whispers of that night still lingered in the halls.
New students trained in the courtyards.
Old names became legends whispered in dorm rooms.
And among them, three figures stood at the top of the rankings:
Baifang, now known as The Thunder Spear of Azure Sky, his lightning capable of splitting boulders.
Chaein, The Frost of Twin Moons, her power now refined and controlled, her mysterious heritage no longer a secret.
Yin Jin, The Black Flame of Nebula, feared and respected, his aura calm but immeasurable.
He no longer spoke of the Rift.
But sometimes, when he looked at the sky, his golden-black eyes reflected a faint shimmer — like a broken star waiting to reignite.
Baifang slapped him on the back.
> "A year later and you're still spacing out. You'll scare the freshmen if you keep that death glare, bro."
> "Better they're scared than stupid," Yin Jin replied dryly.
Chaein smiled faintly. "You two haven't changed at all."
> "Neither have you," Baifang said, smirking. "Still beautiful, still terrifying."
Her frost flickered dangerously. "Care to repeat that?"
Yin Jin exhaled a laugh — small, real.
For the first time in a long while, peace felt possible.
But as the three turned toward the training field, the bells of Azure Sky rang — deep, solemn, unfamiliar.
From the horizon, dark clouds
gathered once more, and a strange, ancient pressure rolled through the air.
Yin Jin's smile faded.
> "It seems… our year of peace just ended."