The Mark of the Forsaken

The world shattered around Xian Ye.

For a moment, there was only silence.

Then—pain.

A searing, white-hot sensation tore through his body as the glowing sigil branded itself onto his chest, just above his heart. The force of it sent him reeling, his mind splitting between the present and something far older, far deeper than he could grasp.

A flood of fractured memories surged through him.

Flashes of war.

A sky burning with celestial fire.

A lone figure standing at the heart of it all—him.

Then, as suddenly as it had begun, the pain vanished.

Xian Ye collapsed onto one knee, gasping for breath. The sigil dimmed, its light fading beneath his skin, leaving behind a faint, pulsing mark.

Something had changed.

He could feel it.

Not Qi. Not spiritual energy.

Something older.

Something that had no place in this world.

A power beyond cultivation.

Return to Reality

With a sudden lurch, Xian Ye's consciousness was ripped away from the void.

His eyes snapped open, and he found himself back in the underground chamber, kneeling before the obsidian gate. The altar, the carvings, the cold damp air of the cavern—everything was as it had been.

As if nothing had happened.

But his body knew otherwise.

His heart was still pounding from the encounter. His chest burned where the sigil had been placed. His hands trembled, not with fear, but with an undeniable certainty—

"That was real."

He had not imagined it. The gate had not simply shown him a vision. It had tested him.

And in return, it had given him something.

Something buried deep inside himself.

He pressed a hand against his chest, feeling the faint warmth of the hidden mark. It was not visible now, but it was there, waiting to be awakened.

But what exactly had he been given?

And why?

His thoughts were interrupted by a sound—footsteps.

Someone was coming.

Unwelcome Witnesses

Xian Ye reacted instantly, slipping into the shadows of the cavern just as two figures entered through the narrow tunnel.

Outer Sect disciples.

Their robes were embroidered with the mark of the Azure Sky Temple, but their expressions were anything but righteous.

"Tch. Another dead end," one of them muttered, his voice filled with irritation.

"Are you sure this is the right place?" the other asked, scanning the chamber.

"Of course I'm sure. The elder said there was something hidden beneath the sect grounds. If we find it first, we might finally get promoted to the Inner Sect."

They were searching for something.

For this place.

Xian Ye's mind sharpened.

He had no doubt that if they found him here, it would not end in a simple conversation. The Outer Sect was brutal, and power determined one's fate.

If these two realized what he had discovered, they would kill him for it.

He moved carefully, keeping his breathing controlled as he stepped deeper into the shadows. His body still felt unsteady from the trial, but he had no choice.

He needed to leave.

But then—

One of the disciples stopped. His eyes narrowed as he stared at the altar.

"Wait… this altar wasn't glowing before."

Xian Ye froze.

A flicker of residual energy still lingered in the air from when the sigil had been given to him. It was faint, but to a cultivator, it was like a beacon.

The second disciple stepped forward, his expression shifting from curiosity to something far more dangerous.

"Someone's been here."

"And whatever they found… it wasn't meant for them."

They turned as one, their gazes sweeping the chamber.

Then—

"There! Someone's hiding!"

Xian Ye's cover had been broken.

The disciples moved instantly, hands flashing through the air as they summoned blades of condensed Qi.

"Kill him before he reports this to the elders!"

Xian Ye's body reacted on instinct.

For the first time since awakening, he moved without thought, without hesitation—

And for the first time in this life, he felt truly alive.