---
Chapter 2: The Windblade Awakens
Xiao Lian followed the stranger into the wilderness, leaving behind the familiar walls of the Aetherwind Sect. Bai He had not stopped him—his master had only watched with an unreadable expression, as if he had known this day would come.
They walked for hours, the wind their only companion. The stranger moved effortlessly, their steps barely disturbing the fallen leaves. Xiao Lian, despite years of rigorous training, felt like a clumsy child in comparison.
Finally, they arrived at a secluded clearing, where the wind swirled unnaturally, forming invisible currents around them. The stranger turned to face Xiao Lian, lowering their hood.
Beneath it was a woman, her face ageless yet filled with wisdom. Her eyes were silver, reflecting the sky itself.
"My name is Yun Mei," she said. "I am the last guardian of the Aetherbound legacy."
Xiao Lian frowned. "Guardian? What do you mean?"
Yun Mei gestured to his sword. "That blade you wield is not an ordinary weapon. It was forged from the breath of the heavens, an extension of the wind itself. But you cannot yet hear its voice. That is why you have never truly mastered the way of the Aetherwind."
Xiao Lian looked at his sword. It had always felt… ordinary. A well-crafted weapon, but nothing more.
"You are afraid," Yun Mei continued. "Afraid that you will never reach the heights of the legends. But you were not meant to follow the path of ordinary warriors. The blood of the Aetherbound flows through you. And now, it is time for you to awaken it."
She raised her hand, and suddenly, the air around Xiao Lian exploded into movement. Wind rushed past him, wrapping around his body like unseen tendrils. He gasped as the force lifted him slightly off the ground.
"Feel it," Yun Mei said. "The wind does not obey strength alone. It follows the will of those who understand its nature."
Xiao Lian gritted his teeth, trying to resist the overwhelming force. But then, something changed. He stopped struggling. Instead of fighting against the wind, he let himself move with it.
And in that moment, he felt it—a pulse of energy within him, something ancient stirring in his blood.
The Windblade in his hand trembled. Then, with a sudden burst of light, the blade transformed. The metal shimmered, becoming almost translucent, like crystallized air. It felt impossibly light, yet in his grip, it carried a power he had never known.
Yun Mei smiled. "You have taken your first step. Now, the true journey begins."
But before Xiao Lian could respond, the wind carried a new sound—footsteps, fast and sharp.
They were not alone.
"Someone followed us," Yun Mei said, her eyes turning cold.
From the shadows of the trees, figures emerged—dressed in black, their weapons gleaming. Their leader, a man with a jagged scar across his cheek, smirked.
"Kill them both," he ordered.
The first battle of Xiao Lian's true destiny had begun.
---