Chapter 30: Phantom’s Awakening
The wind whispered through the trees, carrying the scent of damp earth and fallen leaves. Bai Shen sat cross-legged on the cold stone, his breathing steady, his mind sinking into a deep state of focus. The weight of his past clung to him like a ghost, an ever-present shadow that refused to fade.
His journey had been relentless. His body bore the scars of countless battles, yet the deepest wounds were the ones unseen—etched into his soul. The death of Mei Lin, the betrayal that took everything from him, and the endless path of vengeance had shaped him into a phantom, a specter of his former self.
Tonight, something within him stirred.
The Call of the Abyss
Bai Shen's cultivation had reached a bottleneck. The techniques he had mastered—the Phantom Echo, the Silent Step, the Void Resonance—were powerful, yet they were not enough. He could feel it, an invisible wall barring his path forward.
He had spent weeks training under the guidance of the mysterious hermit, sharpening his senses, pushing his body beyond its limits. But true power did not come from mere repetition. It came from understanding, from embracing both the darkness and the light.
As he exhaled, his Phantom Echo spread outward, mapping the environment through sound. But this time, he sensed something different. A ripple in the air, a distortion in the flow of energy. It was as if the world itself was whispering to him, guiding him toward something unseen.
A vision formed in his mind. A vast abyss, stretching into infinity, filled with voices—whispers of those who had walked this path before him. Some cried out in agony, others in triumph. The weight of countless souls pressed upon him, urging him forward.
And then, he heard it.
A single voice, clear and sorrowful.
"Bai Shen… do you still remember me?"
His breath caught in his throat. The voice was unmistakable.
Mei Lin.
The Phantom's Awakening
His heart pounded as the vision deepened. Shadows coiled around him, wrapping him in an embrace both cold and familiar. He reached out, but his hands grasped nothing. Mei Lin's presence flickered, just beyond his reach, as if trapped between worlds.
And then, pain.
A sharp, searing sensation spread through his core as his cultivation surged uncontrollably. His body trembled, his meridians burning as a new force erupted from within. It was different from anything he had ever felt before—raw, untamed, and terrifyingly powerful.
His Phantom Echo resonated wildly, no longer just mapping his surroundings but distorting them. The air itself shuddered, the ground beneath him cracking. His very existence wavered, as if he was slipping between reality and illusion.
The awakening had begun.
But what had he awakened?
To Be Continued…