The cave was dim and quiet.
Water dripped slowly from jagged rocks above. The ground was uneven, covered in soft moss and broken crystal veins that faintly shimmered blue.
Zeravon lay still, staring at the cracked ceiling above — his breath shallow, his bones aching.
But he was alive.
His hand slowly rose to his chest.
The **Upper Realm item** — a jade-like stone, now dull and warm — was pressed into his skin just over his heart. Its faint glow had seeped into him, like liquid light melting into marrow.
> *"She saved me."*
He tried to sit up.
Pain shot through him, but this time… it was bearable.
---
### **Few Hours Later – Inside the Cave**
Zeravon had made a small fire using dry moss. It didn't offer much warmth, but he didn't need it.
His body was healing faster than it should have.
His breath was smoother.
His senses were sharper.
And more importantly —
His **spiritual root** had started to stir.
> *"This… isn't normal."*
He sat cross-legged and began circulating his Qi slowly, just as he'd seen other disciples do.
To his surprise, **it responded**. Not like before — no struggle, no dead silence.
The energy inside him now flowed **like a river that had just thawed after centuries of winter**.
---
### **Flashback – Faint Memory Fragment**
A distant image flickered in his mind.
A voice — old, but kind — saying:
> *"The Dao is not chased. It remembers you… when you remember yourself."*
He didn't know who spoke those words.
But something in him tightened with strange **familiarity**.
---
### **Back in the Present**
His meditation deepened.
He could feel a thread of energy connecting his dantian to the veins in his limbs. A process every cultivator knew: **Qi Condensation's first phase**.
But for Zeravon… it was happening **organically**.
No pill.
No technique scroll.
No elder guidance.
Just… instinct.
---
### **Meanwhile – Above the Valley**
Yueyin stood at the top of the cliff, cloaked in white, staring down at the fog-filled abyss.
She whispered, almost to herself:
> "That item… was created by my clan's highest alchemists."
> "Even a mortal with no roots would form a foundation in seven days."
She turned away slowly, her silver eyes narrowing.
> "But for you… it may be faster."
---
### **Back in the Cave – Nightfall**
Zeravon opened his eyes.
He didn't feel strong.
But he no longer felt **helpless**.
He stood up slowly, bones cracking in protest.
The silence was no longer empty.
It was **his**.
---
He looked at the jagged wall near the cave's entrance.
He raised his hand, formed a basic stance, and struck once.
His fist connected — weak, untrained — yet the wall **chipped slightly**.
> *"I still have far to go."*
> *"But I want to walk forward — not as who I was, but who I choose to be."*
---
### **Far Beyond – Council of Broken Stars**
The ancient nine watched from their fractured throne room.
One whispered:
> *"The item was not meant for him."*
Another replied:
> *"Yet it chose him."*
And the third, the one who had not spoken in epochs, finally uttered:
> *"The Path… has begun again."*
---