Chapter 6: The First Step Forward

The sky was overcast as Lan Wei made his way through the village. Everything felt heavier lately—the air, the silence, the constant worry gnawing at the back of his mind. It wasn't just about his father's illness or the weight of the shard anymore. It was something deeper, something he couldn't shake.

He found himself standing by the stream again, but this time, his reflection in the water seemed more foreign than familiar. He barely recognized the uncertainty in his eyes, the furrow in his brow that had become a permanent fixture on his face.

I've spent enough time thinking about this, Lan thought, his fingers tightening around the shard in his hand. I need to stop sitting here and hoping things will go back to the way they were.

For days now, he had felt like he was standing on the edge of something—something bigger than his life in the village, bigger than the simplicity he had always known. And no matter how much he wanted to turn away from it, he couldn't.

The pull of the shard had become more than just a nagging presence. It was a force, constantly tugging at him, urging him to move forward. To do something. The questions, the confusion—they weren't enough anymore. He needed answers. And more than that, he needed power. The words his father had spoken kept haunting him.

Power rules everything.

Lan stared into the water for a long moment before letting out a long breath. He hadn't wanted this. He had been content—happy even—with his simple life. But now, everything was shifting, and the world he had known was slipping through his fingers. The old Lan Wei, the one who had lived without questioning too much, was fading away.

The shard pulsed warmly in his hand, as if it were responding to his thoughts. His grip tightened around it.

Power... The word felt strange in his mind, but it wasn't unfamiliar anymore. The more he thought about it, the more it made sense. He couldn't protect his family, couldn't understand what was happening to him without it.

Back at home, his mother greeted him with a soft smile, but the worry in her eyes was unmistakable. His father's condition hadn't improved. If anything, it seemed worse.

"Lan Wei," she called gently as he approached. "Come sit with your father."

He did as she asked, settling beside the bed where his father lay, his breathing shallow, each inhale a struggle. It was hard to see him like this—once so strong, now so frail. It stirred something in Lan, a spark of determination that had been flickering but now burned more brightly.

"I can't just watch him waste away," Lan said suddenly, the words slipping from his mouth before he could stop them. His mother looked at him, startled by the intensity in his voice.

She reached out, resting her hand on his. "I know it's hard, but there's nothing we can do but be here for him."

Lan shook his head, his jaw tightening. "No. There has to be something. There has to be a way to change this." His eyes flicked to the shard in his other hand. "I'm not going to sit here and watch everything fall apart."

His mother's face softened, but there was sadness in her eyes. "Lan Wei, I understand how you feel, but some things... some things are beyond our control."

Lan met her gaze, the frustration boiling just beneath his calm exterior. "But what if they aren't? What if there's a way to make things different? To stop all of this?"

He stood, the shard pulsing faintly in his hand. "I'm going to find out what this shard is. What it can do. I'm not going to sit around waiting for the world to collapse."

His mother looked at him with concern, but she didn't argue. She could see the determination in his eyes, the resolve that hadn't been there before. She nodded slowly. "If that's what you need to do, Lan Wei, then do it."

The next morning, Lan Wei left the village behind. There was no fanfare, no goodbyes. He simply set out, the shard tucked safely into his satchel, its faint glow a constant reminder of the path he had chosen.

As he walked, his mind was clear for the first time in days. The questions that had plagued him were still there, but they no longer held him back. He wasn't waiting for answers anymore—he was going to find them. He was going to take control of his fate, no matter what it took.

I need power, he thought, the words repeating in his mind. If I'm going to survive this, if I'm going to protect the people I care about... I need power.

The landscape around him began to change as he moved deeper into the forest. The familiar paths of the village were long behind him now, and the trees grew denser, the shadows darker. He had no clear destination, but he knew what he was looking for.

Answers. Power. And the truth about the shard that had been thrust into his life.

The further he walked, the more the shard seemed to pulse, as if guiding him forward. It wasn't just an object—it was part of something bigger, something that Lan Wei was starting to sense more and more clearly.

For the first time in a long while, Lan felt a sense of purpose growing inside him. The confusion and helplessness that had weighed him down were giving way to something else—determination, resolve. And beneath it all, a growing hunger for the power he knew he would need.

He didn't care about the pain it would take. He didn't care about the cost. All that mattered now was moving forward.