Chapter 3: The Path That Shouldn’t Exist
The training grounds buzzed with early morning energy, the air thick with the rhythmic hum of breathing, the thud of fists striking dummies, and the occasional burst of Qi-light from promising students.
Birds chirped from the trees surrounding the martial square, but even they seemed wary — as if they sensed that something unnatural stirred among the cultivators.
Rows of young disciples stood in formation, dressed in plain linen robes, each one focused on drawing Qi from the environment and circulating it through their meridians. Some glowed faintly with success. Others sweated in frustration.
But one boy stood apart.
Not in posture.
Not in rank.
In absence.
Lian Ren.
He stood still as stone beneath the mid-morning sun, his eyes open but unfocused. His breath was steady, but his expression was grim — like someone listening for a sound only he could hear.
He wasn't meditating.
He was struggling.
Why can't I feel it?
For hours now, he had mimicked the others — aligning his spine, controlling his breath, focusing on his dantian — everything they were taught. But no matter how hard he tried, the result was always the same:
Nothing.
Where others described a warm current of life energy flowing through their bodies, Lian felt only stillness. Emptiness. A strange weight pressed against his chest like a stone slab — not painful, but immovable. Stubborn.
His hands trembled.
Not from exertion.
From frustration.
Again, he thought. One more time.
He inhaled slowly, expanding his lungs. Focused inward. Tried to sense the elemental Qi of the world.
Still… nothing.
"Lian Ren!"
The bark cracked across the courtyard like thunder.
Heads turned.
Master Zhou's sharp eyes found him instantly — like a hawk spotting a wounded animal.
"You're wasting time!" the instructor snapped, walking toward him with slow, measured steps. "Qi is the foundation of all cultivation. Without it, you are nothing but a burden to this sect!"
Lian flinched as whispers rippled across the students nearby.
"He's been here for a week and hasn't even formed a Qi thread."
"Does he even have a cultivation root?"
"Maybe his bloodline is too weak… or cursed."
He clenched his fists so tightly his knuckles paled. Their voices cut deeper than any blade.
Born into the lower branches of the Li clan, he had no elders backing him. No inherited techniques. No golden core waiting to awaken. Just himself — and a curse of stillness he couldn't explain.
But even as shame burned in his gut, something deeper stirred.
It wasn't Qi.
It wasn't fear.
It was a pulse.
A silent rhythm.
Subtle. Alien.
Lian closed his eyes.
He blocked out the laughter, the judgment, the cold stare of Master Zhou. Even the sun above dimmed in his awareness.
In that quiet space… he waited.
Then—
A vibration.
Soft. Distant. But real.
Not like the flow of Qi, which was light and warm. This… this was heavier. Older. It felt like a chain buried beneath the earth, pulling at his soul.
His skin prickled. The hairs on his arms rose.
He wasn't imagining it.
There was something inside him.
Something ancient.
Something that answered when Qi refused him.
He reached toward it.
And the world changed.
The air grew colder. The ground beneath him seemed to blur, and a translucent panel shimmered into view before his eyes — ethereal, impossible, undeniable.
[Divine Echo Interface Initialized]
Soul Status: Fragmented (46%)
Energy Type: Karma
Passive Skill Unlocked: Echo of Wisdom
Slows time during moments of crisis (1 use per day)
Lian's eyes flew open.
What is this? A… system?
His heart pounded. He tried to dismiss the message, blink it away — but it faded on its own, as if sensing his thoughts.
The interface was gone.
But the change wasn't.
He could still feel that pulse — Karma, it called itself.
Not Qi. Not spirit essence. Something else entirely.
"Lian Ren!"
It was Master Zhou again. His voice cracked like a whip.
"You—pair up with Wu Feng. Spar now."
Wu Feng stepped forward — a cocky, broad-shouldered disciple already at the early Qi Condensation stage. His knuckles gleamed from internal reinforcement.
He grinned.
"Don't worry. I'll make this fast."
Lian said nothing.
They bowed. The match began.
Wu Feng struck immediately, fists coated in faint golden light. A basic inner Qi technique — but still too fast for a normal human to dodge.
Time should've run out.
But it didn't.
Instead—
The world slowed.
The wind paused mid-sway. The dust hung in the air like frozen mist. Wu Feng's strike crawled toward him at a snail's pace.
Lian moved without thinking.
His body sidestepped with inhuman precision. His hand extended instinctively and tapped Wu Feng's shoulder with two fingers.
Time resumed.
Wu Feng stumbled forward in confusion — off balance.
"What…?"
Gasps erupted around the arena.
"Did he just—?"
"He dodged that clean!"
"No way!"
Even Master Zhou's brow twitched.
Wu Feng growled and charged again, faster this time. A flurry of punches. Lian let instinct take over. His body flowed like water around each blow.
Then — something surged in his chest. The Karma pulse awakened.
His palm glowed faintly with a soft violet light. Not Qi. Not aura.
He struck Wu Feng's chest lightly.
Wu Feng stumbled backward — coughing, shocked. His inner Qi fluctuated wildly as if something unseen had disturbed his meridians.
The match was called.
Later that day, Lian sat beneath the ancient willow tree that overlooked the valley.
Its long, drooping branches shielded him from the sun. The rustling leaves whispered like spirits.
His hands trembled.
That wasn't Qi. That wasn't normal.
He raised his palm again.
The interface returned.
Quest Unlocked:
Begin Understanding Karma Cultivation (0.0%)
Unlock Divine Soul Fragments to restore power.
Path Rank: Unknown
Alignment: Graybound
Warning: This path is forbidden.
A vision slammed into him — vivid and impossible.
He stood atop a battlefield drenched in blood and fire.
Thousands knelt before him, celestial spears shattered around his feet.
He wore radiant armor that cracked with lightning and bled gold.
"Lian Ren…"
A voice echoed through his soul.
"Your path is shattered, but not ended.
The divine trial has begun."
He gasped as the vision faded.
His breathing ragged.
His eyes wide.
His destiny... no longer simple.
The following day, he was summoned to the elders' court.
Six robed figures sat in judgment, their faces veiled in shadow.
Master Zhou stood to the side, arms folded.
"Explain yourself," demanded Elder Han.
"What power did you use? It was not Qi. It was not spirit energy."
Lian didn't lie.
He couldn't.
"I don't know what it is," he said. "But… it feels like fate itself. Like I'm tapping into cause and effect."
Silence.
Then cold laughter.
"He dares to speak of Karma?" one elder whispered.
"That is forbidden. Sealed by the Great Pact!"
Elder Han's voice was like steel.
"The Karma path corrupts the soul. It entangles life with death. It turns cultivators into ghosts chasing echoes."
Lian raised his head.
His voice was quiet, but steady.
"Then why does it answer me when Qi does not?"
The elders did not reply.
But they didn't banish him either.
That was answer enough.
That night, Lian climbed the training hill alone. The stars shimmered above, bright and endless.
He sat cross-legged on the grass, breathing deeply, feeling the strange current of Karma energy swirl around his core — like threads of invisible silk weaving through his veins.
He understood now.
This path — the Divine Echo — was not one he chose.
It had chosen him.
And the fragments of a forgotten god still pulsed inside his fractured soul.
[Passive Skill Enhanced: Echo of Wisdom]
Time-slow effect now triggers at 2x speed during lethal attacks.
Use Limit: 1 per day.
Side Effect: Repeated use may drain lifespan.
Lian didn't flinch.
He accepted it.
Even if he had to walk this path alone…
Even if it made him a heretic in the eyes of his sect…
Even if every use of Karma carved years from his life...
He would continue.
Because the forgotten deity within him refused to fade.
And one day—
He would return to the heavens.