The landscape beyond Li Yan rippled like a dream, its edges blurring constantly in a dance of light and color. The peaceful atmosphere of earlier had given way to a taut, nigh tangible tension, a thick, suffocating presence as if the air itself was bated in wait. His movements, peaceful and measured as they were, echoed as if the world itself was ringing with his approach. Each movement now seemed weighted with significance, as if the very cosmos was poised in wait.
Li Yan had never been lonelier in her life.
The tests of the Abyss had pushed him—his power, his will, his heart—but never had they left him with the nagging sense of doubt in his mind that now intimidated him. He had tested himself before, but they had always been of a particular sort. The Abyss had demanded power, control, and bravery, but this. this was different.
Before him, the rent in the ground yawned open, black fog spilling out of it, sending a shiver through the air that cut through his very essence. It was a nothingness he had never known. It was not dark; it was an infinite nothing, a void that seemed to draw all light and all hope into it, pulling them down into an endless chasm. There was power here, raw and unbridled, but it was not power he could control—not without ruining everything.
A deep, resonant voice cut through the forced quiet. It was not the voice that had addressed him before, but a voice older, a voice more powerful and ancient.
"Lian Yan," it said, the name resonating through the underlying material of the world he was in. "You have traveled far. But this is not a test of flesh alone. This is a test of the soul. A test of choice. And you will make one now."
Li Yan's heart raced, the weight of the moment pressing down on him like a tangible force. The golden energy that had flowed through him previously weakened, fluctuating uncertainly. His mind spun. Where was he? What had the voice said, a test of the soul?
The ground under his feet shook, and out of the crack a form began to emerge. Slowly, as if born of the darkness itself, the form coalesced—tall, broad-shouldered, and wrapped in a mantle of dark, inky shadow that seemed to consume all light. Its face was obscured, but the cold, shining eyes that glowed out of the darkness were unmistakable. They blazed with a cold, elder power, as if they had witnessed the birth and passing of a thousand worlds.
Li Yan instinctively stepped back, his grip on the hilt of his sword tightening. The air seemed to thicken with tension, as if the universe itself was holding its breath in anticipation of something catastrophic to occur.
The figure spoke to him once more, its tone low, deep, and infused with a primal intensity that vibrated the air. "This is a threshold, a moment in time when all roads converge. You are at the first crossroads, Li Yan. And your choice will determine more than your own fate—it will determine the direction of the world itself."
Is there anything else I can assist you with?
Li Yan's eyebrows drew together as he stood tall. "And what is the choice that I must make?" His voice was even, but underlying it was a current of uncertainty. He had been tried on his character before, but not in this manner. The Abyss had tried his power, but this? This was different. This was a choice that would have consequences far in the future long after he was dead of this world.
The eyes of the creature flickered, and everything around it at the moment seemed to warp and twist, becoming indistinct as if reality itself was being rearranged by its presence.
"You have known the strength of the rift," it told him. "You have known the shadow which comes from outside. The strength you want is in it, and yet the strength is costly. Not a cost in blood, but in spirit. For to command the power of the rift is to command the shadows which contain it. It will form you, shape you, and eventually consume you. Unless you are strong enough to control it."
Li Yan's mind spun as the meaning of the words came crashing down upon him. Power. Darkness. The schism had beckoned him with its potential, its promise. But now that the moment came to face the reality, he knew how little he understood of what lay within. Was he ready to deal with such power? Was he strong enough to resist its temptation?
The eyes of the figure gazed inward, as if stretching to the deepest corner of his own heart. "Your decision, Li Yan, will test all that you are. Will you embrace the darkness and claim its strength, or will you turn from it, seeking some other path—a path less certain, but perhaps purer?"
Li Yan's heart pounded in his chest. His hands clenched tightly on the handle of his sword as the golden power raged around him, swirling in a whirlpool of light. His mind struggled with itself, torn between the temptation of the power and the knowledge of its danger. The Abyss had shown him the consequence of giving in to the darkness—it warped, spoiled, and destroyed. But the power? The power was impossible to resist.
He advanced, his boots scuffling against the parched ground beneath. The fissure pulsed, alive, in response to his movement. The shadows were summoning him, drawing him closer, to claim what it had in store for him.
The figure did not move closer, but its voice became soft, almost supplicant. "This is your choice, Li Yan. Power, indeed, but at what cost? The darkness will not ask permission; it will take, and it will remake you. Your own soul will be remolded, reshaped, and remolded by it. What will remain of you when it has its grip on your heart?"
Li Yan's mind went back to the agonies he suffered in the Abyss. He had seen for himself the product of unchecked power—of powers that would not be controlled. He had seen the men and women who had given in to their own ambition, swept away by the darkness they were seeking to control. And yet, he saw, too, the potential of power held within. With it, he would be able to protect the people he loved. With it, he would be able to remake the world that so badly needed remaking.
But was he willing to lose himself in the process? Could he ever afford to lose himself to the thing he attempted to control?
The figure's presence seemed to grow, suffusing the room with a suffocating energy. The rift's presence stood before him, an emptiness that called to him, promising destruction and power. The air itself vibrated with the weight of the decision, and the world seemed to hold its breath.
Li Yan closed his eyes, taking a deep breath in a soothing breath. He felt the pull of the rift, but beyond that, he felt the weight of his own choices. This was not a test of strength. This was a test of will, of integrity. The strength of the rift was immense, but so was the cost of giving in to it.
"I will not be controlled by power," Li Yan answered, his voice firm, but the hesitation still present in his voice. "I will walk my own way. I will not be controlled by darkness. I will forge my own destiny, if I must trek through darkness in order to arrive at the light."
The man in front of him remained silent, and for a moment, all one could hear was the thumping of Li Yan's heart, rebellious and unchecked. The man nodded afterwards, as if in recognition of his decision.
"By your wish," the man answered, his tone now one of respect. "You have chosen the harder road, but the choice is yours. Remember this, Li Yan: with every choice, there is a cost. The world will change around you, and the cost of that change will be one that you bear. But hear this—the power that you want is not necessarily the power that will save you. It is the choices that you make, and not the power that you hold, which will decide your destiny."
With that final word, the figure began to fade away, his form dissolving into the roiling shadow of the rift. As the figure vanished, the rift began to close, the shadow retreating, leaving only the gentle hum of the world.
Li Yan was again alone, the silence now virtually deafening. His decision had been made, and now it was too late to turn back. The future was uncertain, but it was his to follow. Heaving a deep breath, he glanced away from the rift, his golden aura erupting to life again. He would face whatever was next coming his way—not as a chess piece in someone else's game, but as the master of his own fate. And so he began walking forward into the unknown.