Chapter 19 — The Voidwalker’s Oath

Smoke lingered in the air like mourning breath as the last embers of the Herald's presence faded. All around the shattered canyon, the land bore witness to a clash between realms—stones cracked in divine spirals, trees bent as if bowing, and the sky remained uneasy, as if reality itself feared Wang Lin's awakening.

But he did not bask in victory.

He stood alone on the broken platform, silent, as if haunted by a chorus only he could hear.

Lian Hua approached slowly. "Your power… it's no longer bound to the rules of our world."

Wang Lin's eyes gleamed with silver veins, ancient and unrelenting. "Because it no longer belongs to this world."

A ripple disturbed the space behind him.

Jin Tao raised his blade instantly, but Wang Lin raised a hand to stop him.

A presence emerged from the void—not walking, not flying, but simply appearing, as though the world had always contained a space for it. Cloaked in deep violet robes with threads that shimmered like the stars, the figure stepped forward. Long white hair drifted behind them like a comet's tail. Their face was youthful, but the weight of time sat behind their eyes.

The man bowed low.

> "Wang Lin. Child of the Tenth Cycle. I am Vaen, last son of the Ancients… and your ally."

Jin Tao blinked. "He just came out of nothing. I swear the air didn't even flinch."

Wang Lin didn't move. "Ancients vanished during the Eclipse War. None survived the Divine Reaping."

Vaen smiled faintly. "I didn't survive. I endured."

His eyes locked with Wang Lin's. "And I've waited centuries for you."

Lian Hua's grip tightened on her blade. "What do you want?"

Vaen turned his gaze to her. "Not what I want—what must be done. The Temple is preparing to awaken the Eternal Engine, the heart of the Celestial Accord. Once active, it will burn all reality to reshape it in their design."

Wang Lin's breath hitched. He had read about it in the forbidden scrolls beneath the Tomb of Echoes—an ancient construct that manipulated time, space, and fate.

Vaen stepped forward, kneeling.

> "I swear on my soul's core. I will fight beside you. For what was lost. For what was stolen. For the world that yet remains."

The ground pulsed beneath them. A sigil burned where Vaen's knee touched the soil. A binding oath, forged in essence and truth.

Jin Tao let out a slow whistle. "That's a real Ancient. You sure know how to make friends, Wang Lin."

Wang Lin met Vaen's gaze. For a moment, neither spoke.

Then he nodded. "Rise, Voidwalker. We don't need saviors. We need survivors."

Vaen stood, a gleam of defiance sparking in his immortal eyes. "Then let's burn the heavens with the truth they buried."

Above them, the clouds spiraled inward, forming a black vortex that howled with cursed winds.

The Temple had sensed the oath.

The Reapers were coming.

And now, Wang Lin wasn't the only anomaly in their eyes.