Riders from the Soul-Frozen North

"When the north rides, they bring no banners—only silence too deep for drums."

— Old war chant of the Hollow Realms, banned by the Ebon Courts

❄️ Northern Wastes — Three Days Later

A bone-colored wind howled across the northern frontier.

Even the mountains flinched when the Soul-Frozen Riders passed.

Wrapped in bandages of cursed frost, their blades were not drawn but hovered behind them—sheaths gone, edges naked to the air. Spirits of long-dead martial saints followed like shadows, whispering through the snow.

At their head rode General Thae Jinno, Wielder of the Ice-Tide Crescent and warlord of the Dead Sect's third resurrection.

"Track the boy who bears the Hollow Sigil," he commanded.

"He has touched the dragons. And now, they will touch the world."

🏯 Cloudstep Sect — Remnants in Retreat

Far south, inside the wrecked gates of the Cloudstep Sect, survivors gathered in the snow-choked courtyards.

Master Kyong, face pale from blood loss, stood beside a cracked pillar, watching as the last of their libraries were set aflame—not by enemies, but by their own hands.

"If the Dead Sect finds our scrolls, they'll bind our ancestors' echoes to their blades."

"Better they burn than become shackles."

Su Ren knelt beside the ashes, her hand clenching around a half-burned talisman.

"They're coming for Jin."

"Then he needs more than memory," Master Kyong said, wheezing.

"He needs an army."

🏔️ Path of the Frozen Vein

Meanwhile, Jin and his companions traveled along the Frozen Vein, a cracked mountain path connecting the Emberfold to the Northern front.

Beneath them, ice groaned like a wounded beast.

Above, the skies grew silver—not with snow, but with soul-dust.

Jin stopped.

"They've started marching," he said.

"The Dead Sect?" Lin Xue asked.

"No," Jin whispered. "The dragons."

He closed his eyes.

A vision unfurled behind his lids:

—A great cavern of crystal bones.

—An ancient dragon coiled in sleep.

—And a name carved into its spine:

Vaer'Yuul the Rememberer.

One of the Seven Original Hollow Dragons.

The one who cataloged all wars… and all regrets.

"He's waking," Jin said. "And he remembers me."

⚔️ Ambush on the Frozen Step

The group crossed a narrow gorge.

There, in silence sharper than any blade, the snow exploded upward.

Soul-Frozen Riders.

Ten of them, blades shimmering with forgotten curses.

One stepped forward, eyes glowing with ancient qi.

"We do not serve power," he said. "We serve history."

He threw a spear—silent, cold, wrapped in the cry of a mother who lost her son in war a thousand years ago.

Jin caught it.

Bare-handed.

"Then let history hear this," he said.

"I'm not here to repeat your pain. I'm here to end it."

He drove the spear into the ground, releasing a surge of Memory Flame.

🔥 Combat Unleashed: Memory Flame vs. Soul Frost

The canyon trembled as battle broke out.

Lin Xue danced between riders, her frost-threaded hair glowing with radiant qi.

Ash-Eye hurled his chain-blade in wide arcs, binding two souls mid-incantation.

Jin engaged the lead rider alone.

Their swords did not clash physically.

They clashed in emotion.

Soul-Step let Jin dodge through the rider's ancestral grief.

Flame Echoes created phantoms of Jin's attacks, striking from false angles.

But the rider was old.

Not in body. In spirit.

"You are still young," he said, bleeding frost.

"Still hopeful. That will fade."

"Then I'll keep choosing it," Jin replied. "Even when it costs me everything."

Jin struck his blade through the man's chest—not to kill, but to burn away the echo latched to his soul.

The rider gasped… and smiled.

"Then perhaps… you are not him."

He crumbled into snow.

🌌 The Soul Bell Tolls

Above them, the sky darkened—not with storm, but with recognition.

The Soul Bell rang across the Hollow Realms.

A dragon heard its sound.

Vaer'Yuul stirred.

Far beneath the northern tundra, ancient eyes opened.

"Another bearer… another regret."

"Let us begin the Reckoning Scroll once more."

🐉 Dragon Gathering: One of Seven Awakes

For the first time in 7,000 years, a Dragon Gathering stirred.

Three dragons had now marked Jin:

Qinshath the Fractured (Ice Wyrm)

The Memory Dragon of the Marsh

The Ember-Oracle's Flame

And now, Vaer'Yuul the Rememberer would soon rise.

The Hollow Realms trembled—not from war… but from awareness.