The weight of revelation pressed upon Li Yan as he pushed himself upright, the aftershocks of his vision still ringing in his head. He had seen a war unlike any other, a war fought between heavenly warriors and unimaginable terrors. And at its center, a man who bore his face—a man who held power unimaginable.
Master Shen and Elder Jian stood there silently, their expressions unreadable. Elder Jian was the first to speak. "You have been fortunate enough to see something that few mortals ever get to see. The past does not reveal itself for nothing. The question is what you are going to do with what you saw?"
Li Yan clenched his fists. He had sought answers for the power within him, and now they dangled before him like a strand unspinning from the very fabric of time itself. "I need to learn more," he said. "Who was I? Why do I possess this power?"
Master Shen nodded, his gaze unblinking. "Then your training will vary. Information locked inside you cannot be accessed with standard cultivation. You must fortify your mind as well as your body, for the memories that you will find will consume you if you are not prepared."
Elder Jian nodded to a wall covered in ancient writing. "We will begin with the Lost Techniques. They are remnants of a period when warriors employed abilities beyond Qi. Some believe them to be myth, but they are as real as the things you saw in your visions."
Li Yan drew closer, tracing his fingers across the carvings. And as he did, he felt a queer sensation wash over him—a tug, as though something in the inscriptions vibrated in harmony with his own essence. The symbols glowed with a soft light, the same light as the golden energy flowing through his own body.
"This script… I can read it," he growled.
Master Shen's gaze narrowed slightly. "Then destiny has already picked your path."
---
In the following weeks, Li Yan's training reached a peak he could never have imagined. While the other disciples were perfecting their Qi control and martial arts, he was secluded in the Inner Sanctum, guided through lessons that were centuries old.
He discovered the Lost Arts—arts that were crafted from the very essence of creation itself, arts that could warp reality. Unlike the cultivation of Qi, which purified one's internal energy, these arts needed a comprehension of existence itself. They were not so much a question of power but of *balance*.
His initial trial was the Void Meditation. Unlike regular meditation, which calmed the mind and replenished Qi flow, the Void Meditation was designed to *erase* all thought and self-consciousness, so one could connect with the great flow of the universe. Mastering it was said to be the secret to realizing potential.
Li Yan struggled against it initially. Whenever he tried to clear his head, visions burst in on him—visions of wars, of heavenly beasts fighting each other, of the golden warrior who was him but not him. The more he tried to banish them, the more insistent they became.
It was during one of these sessions that the breakthrough occurred. Instead of resisting the visions, he embraced them. He let the images wash over him, allowing himself to *feel* rather than deny.
And then, for the very first time, he could clearly hear the voice.
"*You are not ready yet.*"
Li Yan's eyes snapped open, his heart pounding. He was no longer in the meditation hall of the sect but in a boundless ocean of white fog. There were dark figures in the fog—hidden individuals who spoke in tongues he did not understand.
One moved forward. This one stood out from the rest, solid, tangible. This was his dream warrior.
The man glanced at him intently, his gold armor glinting despite the fog that enveloped him. "You tread a dangerous road," he stated. "Power without wisdom is destructive."
Li Yan recovered his voice. "Who are you?"
The warrior's face was a mask. "A failure."
Before Li Yan could pose more questions, the world crashed down around him, and he was suddenly brought back to reality. He gulped for air, his body drenched in sweat.
Master Shen had been observing him intensively. "You saw something, didn't you?"
Li Yan paused, then nodded. "A man… He said that he failed."
Old Man Jian sighed slowly. "Then the past is not only revealing itself to you. It is warning you."
---
The following days were agonizing. Master Shen worked Li Yan harder than he ever had, forcing him to master the energy within him rather than letting it consume him. He sat every evening, waiting for another vision, another peek into his previous life. But every time, he could only hear the words of warning from the warrior echoing in his head.
He was in the training grounds of the sect at night, with Luo Qing facing him. She was tasked to try out his combat skills after months of solo training.
"You've changed," she said, her eyes narrowing. "Let's see how much."
The duel began, and Li Yan immediately knew that something *was* off. His punches were quicker, his reflexes faster. The golden energy within him no longer ran wild but flowed in harmony with his punches. Luo Qing was a powerful opponent, but she was holding her own with ease, even taking the upper hand of her attack before she even reached it.
Then, for a moment, he caught a glimpse of it—*her* next step, before she'd even taken it.
Instinct took over. He stepped back and counter-attacked with a motion he never learned but with which he instinctively made the exact motion. Luo Qing barely parried, her face shocked.
"You." she breathed. "That was a Lost Technique."
Li Yan stepped back, his hands trembling. He hadn't even thought of it. The information had simply *been there*.
Master Shen, in the shadows, nodded to himself. "It appears the past is not just showing itself to you—it is stirring within you."
Li Yan balled his fists. If he was actually learning from an earlier version of himself, what else was inside him? And most importantly…
What had his previous self failed to do?
There in the arena, golden power weakly swirling around him, he was sure of one thing. He would never repeat the same errors again.