The yin Yang shrine
The moon hung low like a silver scythe over the forest canopy. Ash stood motionless, hidden beneath the shadow of trees twisted by time. He was far beyond the usual sect boundaries now—deep into forbidden wilds no disciple dared to tread. But he had a mission.
Not one assigned to him by a sect.
Not one whispered by a royal.
A mission born of instinct.
He remembered the Golden Bone Ape's final moments—not rage, but desperation. As if it was never fighting to kill… but to protect.
---
The Forgotten Shrine
Ash pushed away a dense patch of moss, revealing aged stone beneath. Carvings layered in time and vine depicted swirling symbols—yin and yang, locked in divine tension.
Then he saw it: an altar sunken into the earth, partly buried.
It wasn't meant to be found.
But fate did not favor secrecy.
Ash knelt. The cold aura radiating from the stone felt unnatural, and a thick fog had gathered. He began to dig—his bare hands and spiritual energy clearing decades of soil, bone, and shattered relics.
And then…
He saw it.
> A lion.
But unlike any lion he had known or read about.
Its massive form lay in quiet slumber, black fur streaked with white, two opposite horns curling from its skull—one of moonlight, the other of midnight.
Its paws had crushed demons in the ancient war.
Its roar had once silenced armies.
Its name had been lost to time…
Until now.
---
Shen Mu Speaks
> "The Yin-Yang Lion…"
Ash froze. Shen Mu's voice came not from his ears, but from the spiritual plane—solemn, reverent, almost trembling.
> "This beast… was not just a Tier 9. It was a balance keeper. When humans and demons waged their war, a rare few from the beast clans chose neither side. They stood between. They demanded peace. This lion… was among them."
Ash stepped closer. The body, though preserved through ancient rituals, showed no sign of life.
But he felt it.
> "The spirit is still here?" Ash asked.
> "Yes," Shen Mu answered. "Dormant… but aware. It wasn't guarding a place. The Golden Bone Ape was guarding this creature's tomb."
Ash extended his hand. The air grew sharp, thick with tension. His core vein stirred like never before, a quiet rhythm syncing with something ancient.
But then Shen Mu's tone hardened.
> "Do not be reckless."
> "You mean claiming it?"
> "This is not a Tier 5 beast like Gorran or Mrit. This… is a guardian spirit of balance. If it finds your soul unworthy—if your yin and yang are imbalanced—it will devour you from within."
Ash hesitated.
But then he clenched his fist.
> "Was I worthy when I held Vulcan's blade? When I fought Aenya? When I stared down sect disciples who mocked my name?"
He placed his palm on the lion's head. A sudden pulse ran through the altar—so strong it made trees wither, and wind collapse around him.
---
Trial of Balance
Darkness.
Silence.
Ash's body remained frozen above ground, but his consciousness was pulled inward, drawn into an ethereal space.
A white plain.
A black sky.
And in the center—the lion stood alive, towering, divine. Its voice echoed not in words but in meaning.
> "Are you balance, or are you chaos?"
Ash found himself standing in front of two mirrors—one showing him with burning crimson eyes, destruction at his feet, and an army of undead.
The other: him kneeling before innocents, his sword lowered, protecting a city as fire fell from the heavens.
The lion's growl shook the space.
> "To wield me is to walk the edge between judgment and mercy."
Ash reached toward the mirror of destruction… but halted.
He turned, exhaled, and reached for the one of protection instead.
But again, he stopped.
> "I am neither," he whispered. "I… am both."
The mirrors shattered.
The lion's eyes glowed white and black simultaneously.
Its roar shattered the sky.
Ash screamed as his soul was wracked by the pull of light and darkness. It felt like being ripped in half.
---
Success or Death
In the real world, cracks formed beneath the altar. The sky began to thunder. The forest cried.
Ash's body lifted midair—eyes shut, blood dripping from his mouth.
Then…
Silence.
Light.
Dark.
And finally… a pulse.
Ash's body dropped to the ground with a heavy thud, smoke rising from his chest. On his skin—two small marks, one of black flame and one of white mist—glowed faintly.
Shen Mu gasped.
> "He… did it."
> "You claimed it…" Vulcan muttered within his sword. "You absolute madman…"
---
Far Away – A Shrine Shakes
In a hidden temple far in the west, an old man meditating beneath sacred bells opened his eyes.
> "The Yin-Yang Guardian has awakened…"
And beside him, a sealed scroll uncoiled itself—its ancient ink glowing once more after a thousand years.