Chapter 35

Chapter 35: Where the Wind Waited

The air in the tomb had changed.

It no longer whispered in forgotten tongues or howled with buried secrets—it now flowed like a song, gentle and alive. Xiao Lian stood at the center of it all, Windblade in hand, its glow ebbing into a calm pulse in rhythm with his heartbeat. The weapon felt not like a tool, but a companion—a part of him he had never known was missing.

And then—he heard footsteps.

Familiar, hurried, determined.

Xiao Lian turned.

Yun Mei Lian stood in the entrance, her robe stained with blood, her face pale but unbroken. Her silver sash hung torn at the end, and her right arm was freshly wrapped. But her eyes—her eyes burned with purpose.

"Mei Lian?" he breathed, stepping forward. "You're—"

She didn't wait for the rest. She crossed the distance between them in a heartbeat and wrapped her arms around him.

For a moment, there were no words—only breath, heartbeats, and the weight of survival.

"You're safe," she whispered.

"You fought Lei Feng," he said, realization dawning as he pulled back just enough to see her face.

She nodded slowly. "He won't be coming here. Not today."

He touched her bandaged arm. "You're hurt."

"I've had worse," she said with a faint smile. "Besides, I had something worth fighting for."

He looked into her eyes, then down at the sword. "I'm not the same person who left this chamber. The Windblade showed me… everything. My past. The truth of the Aetherbound. Our purpose."

"And do you believe in it now?" she asked softly.

"I believe in what we must protect," he said. "This blade… it isn't just power. It's memory. And it chose me not for my skill, but for my heart."

Yun Mei Lian stepped closer again. "Then you'd better hold onto both."

They stood together beneath the arching crystal spires of the tomb—two souls shaped by wind and fire, bound by fate and forged through trials. The Windblade pulsed gently between them, casting soft light across their faces.

"I thought I'd lost you," he admitted.

"You never had to find me," she said. "I was always following the wind too."

And so they stood—warriors, lovers, survivors.

The wind stirred again—not with warning, but with welcome.

Outside, the storm clouds began to break.