Chapter 7: The Trial of the Abyss

Li Yan panted as he stood amidst the Forbidden Abyss. The words of the warrior in golden armor rang in his head, a reminder of the gravity of the path he walked. "Power without knowledge is destruction." A fact that tormented him, yet one that he knew in his heart he could not disregard.

The Void that surrounded him pulsed with some kind of inhuman power, the air thick with unseen energies. Each breath he drew was to fill his lungs with an electric charge, each motion accompanied by a hum, as if the space he occupied was alive, watching, waiting.

Suddenly, the ground beneath him began to shake. At first, there was a slight stirring, and the shaking grew more intense and the air around him glowed. The shadows of the past replayed, their ghostly forms appearing in the distance like phantoms between worlds. They were other warriors than the ones he had seen before, but their faces, though shrouded in shadow, were charged with familiarity.

They were the tests.

Li Yan moved cautiously ahead, his aurum energy swirling around him like a cloak of protection. He could feel them watching him, feel their tension, their expectation. One at a time, they started to take form, their edge sharpening and defining, as if they appeared out of nothing in the vacuo. Those were followed by shading some of them had dazzling luster surrounding them.

The woman's figure was the first to be seen, her hair flowing in strands of silver, her eyes aglow with an unearthly light. She came to him, commanding yet serene in demeanor. Her voice, when it came, was a soft breeze, but in it was contained the power of a thousand storms.

"Li Yan," she said his name quietly that was both disturbing and reassuring. "You have arrived for your trial. But what do you desire?"

Li Yan stood tall, his gaze locked onto hers steadfastly. "I must know the truth," he insisted. "I must know the power that has been bestowed upon me, the power that has risen within me. I will not tread this way blindfolded. I must know if I am going to win—or lose."

The woman's expression softened. "You wish to know the ways of the ancients, but knowing is not enough. You must prove yourself worthy in more than brawn. You must test yourself, claim your greatest desire and fears, and then you may know the full measure of your strength."

Her words struck a chord deep within him, stirring some dormant part of him. Li Yan had always believed that power was enough—that mastery of the Lost Techniques would be the way to his victory. But now, in this otherworldly test, he sensed something stirring within him. Was it just power that he needed?

The ground beneath him caved in suddenly, and a vast chasm opened between him and the woman. Tendrils of somber hue spouted from the depths of the chasm, curling and coiling like snakes. The air turned icy, and the shadows deepened. The form of the woman seemed to shudder, as if she was made of vapor, and dissolved, to be replaced by another form.

This was a man, broad of shoulder and tall, his eyes burning with a hot intensity. His armor was not gold, but black, and it bore the signs of war and ruin. He advanced, his voice a growling sound that shook the Abyss.

"You've been given the power to destroy," said the man, his voice heavy with an inarguable solemnity. "But destruction, like creation, has no price tag. Are you willing to wield such a force?"

Li Yan clenched his fists, feeling the rhythm of the golden energy flowed through his own body. "I do," he replied, his tone firm in the face of a tempest raging inside him. "I've been summoned to this path. I won't let you down."

The man's eyes contracted. "Then demonstrate it. Face the storm of your own creation."

The man threw his hand up with a violent movement, and the Abyss that had opened up around Li Yan appeared to collapse upon itself. The air itself was torn asunder, and the universe was consumed by darkness.

Li Yan could feel the rush of energy when he summoned his golden energy, but the tempest was too strong. Shadows of his own past—the mistakes, the regrets, the times he had been weak—began to manifest themselves before him. They were not illusions, but actual representations of his own personal struggles. Faces of those he had failed, those he had loved and lost, appeared, each of them accusing him, blaming him for the pain they had suffered.

His body trembled under the weight of their glares, but deep in his heart, he was certain. This was his test—to confront his own past, to look into the face of the guilt that had tormented him for so long.

"I—" Li Yan began, but the words caught in his throat. His hallucinations of the past grew stronger, more vivid. He remembered his failure, his inability to defend those he cared about, his pride that had cost so much. It was as if the very fabric of his soul was being torn asunder, his darkest nightmares brought to the fore.

But, in all the chaos, a memory awakened—a memory not of grief, but of strength. A memory of his previous existence, one he had forgotten. He stood, his arms raised, his strength unyielding, even against certain defeat. His will had been indomitable. He had not faltered. He had fought not for fame, but for something greater—a something greater than himself.

And with that memory, there was a fresh realization that ran through him. He knew now. It was not power that he was required to exert but control. It was comprehension. It was the want to shoulder the repercussions of his actions, no matter what they were.

Li Yan roared and spread out his golden energy, driving his dark spots away from his past. The stormy weather surrounding him dissipated, and the images of his experience began to fade.

The man in black armor nodded his head, his face unreadable. "You have succeeded in this test," he said, his voice hardly more than a whisper now. "But listen to this, Li Yan: Power is not something to be lightly accepted. It is a weight."

Li Yan nodded, his racing heart still palpitating, but now strengthened. He had struggled against the shadows within his heart, and he had emerged stronger on the outside because of that. When the Abyss stirred once more, the visions faded, but Li Yan stayed behind, no longer uncertain. The path ahead of him was still treacherous, but he knew the nature of the power that now resided in him. And he was ready to face whatever awaited him. The journey was far from over!