Chapter 15 – Two Brothers

Sovereign of celestial ascent

Chapter 15 – Into the Unknown

The battle had drained them, yet there was no time to rest. The world was vast and filled with dangers far greater than what lay behind them.

Li Tianming and Jiang Chen moved quickly, their bodies weary but their spirits sharp. The distant mountains loomed ahead, veiled in the mist of dawn. Each step away from the White Eagle Sect was a step further from the past—and a step closer to the unknown future.

Tianming's heart burned with quiet resolve. He had thought himself prepared, thought that power alone would be enough. But the battle against the chaes-born creatures had revealed the truth. Strength without endurance, power without refinement—it would never be enough.

The Celestial Jade of Primordial Chaos stirred within him, its energy depleted from the previous battle. The once-brilliant golden veins had dimmed, a reminder of his limits. The path of cultivation was not just about acquiring strength but mastering it, shaping it into something indomitable.

The wind carried whispers of the world beyond, the lands that stretched far past the boundaries of the Crimson Dragon Sect. Here, he was no longer just Li Tianming, the outcast. Here, he was nothing. But that also meant he could become anything.

Jiang Chen walked beside him, his grip firm on the hilt of his sword. He, too, had faced his own reckoning in the ruins. The name Mu Qingfeng still lingered between them—a shadow neither had forgotten. That battle was not over. The Crimson Dragon Sect might have abandoned Tianming, but Mu Qingfeng had not. There would come a day when the debt would be repaid.

But not today.

The mountains ahead were only the beginning. Beyond them lay the Storm Horizon Sect, its warriors swift as the wind, their techniques unmatched in speed. Rumors spoke of a sacred trial held once a decade, where only those who could outpace the storm itself were permitted entry.

Further still, the lands of the Nether Abyss Sect stretched into darkness. A place feared even among the strongest cultivators, where forbidden arts thrived and shadows whispered secrets long buried. A single misstep in those lands meant eternal damnation.

The Grand Lotus Temple, shrouded in divine radiance, stood as an oasis of wisdom and power. But their enlightenment came at a cost—one few were willing to pay.

And then there were the Ironblood Warlords, mercenaries bound by no sect, their might recognized by all. To gain their respect was to stand among the strongest.

Each path held danger. Each path held opportunity.

Tianming's fingers curled into a fist. He had no home to return to, not yet. The Azure River Sect would not see him again until he had climbed higher, until his name alone could shake the heavens.

For now, he would walk forward.

For now, he would carve his path in this boundless world.

The landscape stretched vast before them, shifting between dense forests and rocky hills.

After what felt like hours, they found a small abandoned outpost, likely once belonging to traveling cultivators. The wooden structure was worn and barely standing, but it provided shelter from the wind. It would have to be enough.

Inside, Tianming lowered himself against the rough wooden wall, exhaling as the fatigue set in. His body had reached its limit, and yet, his mind remained sharp. He could not afford to lower his guard.

Jiang Chen sat across from him, wiping dried blood from his sword. His expression was unreadable, but Tianming knew his thoughts were the same—they had survived this attack, but only barely.

Strength alone wasn't enough.

The truth had become clearer than ever. If Tianming had truly been strong, he wouldn't have had to flee. If he had been powerful enough, Mu Qingfeng wouldn't have dared to make a move against him.

He clenched his fists. This world did not reward mere ambition—it rewarded those who had the power to force their will upon it.

And he would gain that power.

While Tianming sat in the darkness of a worn-out outpost, another figure stood in a place far grander.

Li Yunxian, his elder brother, stood beneath the golden banners of the Crimson Dragon Sect, his robes pristine, his presence commanding. Unlike the younger brother he had once abandoned, he had never been cast aside. He was a chosen heir, a name spoken with respect.

And yet, he was not without conflict.

The news of Tianming's escape from the ruins had already reached him. Not just survival—but growth.

A flicker of irritation crossed his otherwise calm features. He had discarded Tianming, left him in ruin. He should have disappeared. And yet, he continued to rise.

Behind him, the sect elders whispered, their plans for the future unfolding. Mu Qingfeng, his pawn, had failed. But that was only the beginning. If Tianming sought to return one day, he would find a world far less forgiving than before.

Li Yunxian turned his gaze toward the horizon, where his younger brother wandered in exile.

Let him struggle. Let him rise.

Because when the time came, he would crush him once and for all, just like before

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As Tianming and Jiang Chen recover, the world moves against them. A new threat lurks in the shadows, and the next step in Tianming's journey begins.

"Tianming was not just an exile forging his own fate.

He was the Sovereign of Celestial Ascent."