The Keeper Reveal

In the spiritual realm, Zhang Wei encountered the Keeper of Balance—a figure cloaked in mist and light, whose form shifted between male and female, human and beast. The Keeper revealed that the Twilight of Heaven was not simply the work of dark forces, but a natural cycle of destruction and renewal. The balance between realms had been disrupted, not by evil, but by the overreliance on spiritual power in the mortal world.

The Phoenix Relic, the Yin and Yang Sword, and other ancient artifacts had once maintained the balance, but now, their energies were being abused by mortals seeking to control their own destinies. The Keeper explained that the only way to restore balance was to return these relics to the spiritual realm and relinquish their power.

But Zhang Wei realized this would mean that Li Mei would have to give up the Phoenix's power—a power that had saved the kingdom, but at great personal cost.