The black jade pendant pulsed in Lian Yu's palm, sending waves of strange energy through his body. It was guiding him somewhere—pulling at a memory buried deep within his soul.
His feet moved instinctively, following the silent call. The land around him was barren, yet it felt familiar. A strange tension settled in his chest, like he was approaching something he had long forgotten.
And then, he saw it.
A ruined temple.
Its stone walls were cracked and worn by time, half-buried in the earth. The carvings on its pillars were faded, but Lian Yu recognized them. His heart pounded. This place… he had been here before.
"Why is it still here?" he muttered.
As he stepped forward, the pendant in his hand pulsed again—and suddenly, his mind was no longer in the present.
---
A Memory Resurfaces
A voice echoed in his mind.
"Lian Yu, you must remember—this world is not as it seems."
He saw himself standing in this very temple, but it was not ruined. The pillars were whole, glowing with a soft light, and the air was thick with a power he could no longer recognize.
Across from him stood a figure—a man in white robes, his face blurred, his presence distant.
"When the time comes, you will be cast into the abyss, but if you hold onto yourself, you will return."
"Return…?" Lian Yu heard his past self ask.
"Yes. And when you do, seek this place. For here, the first key to your past lies waiting."
The scene blurred, and Lian Yu felt himself being pulled back to the present.
---
Back to Reality
His eyes snapped open. The ruined temple stood before him once more, but now, he understood.
"A key to my past…?"
Stepping forward, he placed his hand against the temple's entrance. The stone trembled. Dust and debris shook loose, and a faint glow began to pulse beneath his fingers.
Something was still alive here.
"I don't know who you were," Lian Yu murmured, recalling the figure in his memory, "but I will find out."
With that, he stepped into the ruins.