The Moonlit Purification
The Celestial Weep Lake glowed under a celestial alignment, stars blazing in a sky that seemed to bow, their light flooding the water with a radiant shimmer. Ye Tian stood at the lake's edge, the Lunar Fang in one hand, its blue steel humming, and the Starshatter Fragment in the other, its black steel pulsing with the echo of the Starshatter Oath.
The Void Scar in his dantian throbbed, a jagged pulse of black Qi, its pain sharpened by the Court Agent's lingering malice. The scroll's clue—"The Starshatter Oath lies where the heavens kneel"—pointed to Kneeling Heavens Peak, but the alignment's power offered a chance to weaken the Void Scar.
Behind him, Xiao Lan gripped her crescent blade, her wounds bandaged but her eyes burning with defiance. Elder Lian Yue's silver hair gleamed, her Core Formation aura probing the mist.
Su Mei stood close, her jade flute at her waist, its star runes glowing, her presence a steady anchor against the Void Scar's chaos. Chen Wei lingered, his scarred face tense, the stone tablet's map to the peak clutched tightly, his secrets fueling Ye Tian's distrust.
The alignment's light intensified, the lake's surface rippling with celestial Qi. Ye Tian felt the Void Scar stir, its black Qi coiling, a memory flashing—a cloaked disciple, not Lin Feng or Zhao Wuji, swearing the Starshatter Oath before a Court elder, their amulet glowing.
The third betrayer. Pain blurred the vision, but Su Mei's voice cut through, soft yet firm. "The alignment's here. We can purify the Scar."
Ye Tian's eyes met her jade gaze, her resolve mirroring his own. "Guide me," he said, his voice low, the weight of her faith easing his burden.
Xiao Lan's voice snapped, sharp with tension. "We're exposed here. Hurry!" Her gaze flicked to Su Mei, rivalry crackling, her patience thinning.
Lian Yue's aura surged. "The alignment empowers the Moonlit Purification Art. It's our chance, but the Court will sense it."
Chen Wei's hand twitched, his voice low. "The tablet's runes—they warn of a trap at the peak. I saw it in the vale's relics."
Ye Tian's gaze hardened, the Void Scar whispering doubt. "You know too much, Chen Wei." He stepped toward the altar, Su Mei at his side, the Lunar Fang ready.
Su Mei raised her flute, her Starlit Melody weaving a protective barrier of celestial Qi. "The Art requires harmony," she said, her notes syncing with the alignment's light. "Focus your Qi, let the stars guide it." Her melody enveloped Ye Tian, its warmth dulling the Void Scar's burn, their energies entwining like a dance.
Ye Tian knelt at the altar, the Starshatter Fragment in hand, its glow merging with the lake's starlight. He channeled the Moonlit Purification Art, guided by Su Mei's melody. The alignment's power surged through him, his Qi flowing through his meridians, clashing with the Void Scar's black Qi.
Pain erupted, a vision searing—Zhao Wuji, his sworn brother, forging a Void Shard under a Court elder's command, tears in his eyes. "Forgive me, brother." Ye Tian gritted his teeth, Su Mei's melody anchoring him, her notes a lifeline.
The Void Scar writhed, black Qi seeping from his core, dissipating into the lake. Ye Tian's aura flared, Body Refinement Stage 3 stabilizing, the Scar's grip loosening. Su Mei's hand brushed his, steadying him, her touch lingering. "You're breaking free," she whispered, her jade eyes shimmering with awe and something deeper—shared purpose, shared pain.
Xiao Lan's voice cut through, sharp. "It's working, but we're not alone!" Her blade flashed, pointing to shadows in the mist—Court agents, their auras Stage 9, closing in.
Lian Yue's Crescent Moon Slash unleashed a blue arc, holding them at bay. "Protect him! The Art must finish!"
Chen Wei struck, his blade felling a scout, but his eyes darted to the tablet, hesitation flickering. "The trap's near the peak—a Void Shard array!"
Ye Tian's gaze snapped to him, pain subsiding as the Art neared completion. "Prove it, Chen Wei." The Void Scar pulsed, weaker but present, a reminder of the Court's hold.
The alignment's light peaked, the lake blazing. Ye Tian stood, the Starshatter Fragment glowing brighter, its power resonating with his purified Qi. The Void Scar quieted, its pain a dull ache, but a faint black thread remained, unyielding. Su Mei's melody softened, her face pale from exertion. "You're stronger now," she said, a faint smile breaking through. "Like the Sovereign my mother believed in."
Ye Tian's heart stirred, her faith a spark against his resolve. "Your mother's Oath lives in us," he said, their gazes holding, a quiet bond flaring under the starlight.
Before he could say more, the mist parted, revealing three Court agents, Core Formation Stage 3, their blades radiating corrupted Starshatter Qi. Their leader, a tall man with a scarred lip, sneered. "The Oath's power is ours. You'll kneel, Sovereign."
Ye Tian raised the Lunar Fang, Sword Intent quaking the air. "Try me." Su Mei's melody surged beside him, weaving a Starlit Barrier. Their energies synced, her notes amplifying his Qi.
The leader struck, his blade a storm of dark Qi. Ye Tian flowed into Body Sword Stance, parrying with a burst of silver sparks. The Void Scar pulsed, pain flaring, but weaker now, the Purification Art's effect holding. He channeled Starlight Resonance, the alignment's light surging into his blade, his strikes glowing as he slashed the leader's arm, blood spraying.
Su Mei's Starlit Phoenix rose, its wings scattering the agents' dark Qi. Xiao Lan's crescent slashes felled a second agent, but the third grazed her side, her grunt sharp. Lian Yue's blue arc dispersed the third's attack, but the leader pressed Ye Tian, his corrupted shard aiming for his heart. Su Mei's melody shifted, vines binding the leader's legs, slowing him. Ye Tian lunged, Iron Vein Slash piercing his chest. Blood arced, the leader collapsing, his allies retreating into the mist.
The lake stilled, the alignment's light fading. Ye Tian panted, blood dripping from his side, the Void Scar quiet but lingering. Su Mei steadied him, her hand lingering on his arm, her touch a warmth against his pain. "We're closer," she said, her voice a quiet vow, their shared resolve binding them tighter.
Xiao Lan's voice was sharp, her eyes on Su Mei. "We need to move. The peak's not far." Tension crackled, her rivalry raw.
Lian Yue nodded, her aura probing. "The alignment's power revealed a path. The tablet's map points to a shrine at Kneeling Heavens Peak."
Chen Wei's voice was low, urgent. "The runes mentioned a map to the next fragment, hidden in the shrine. But the trap's there—a Void Shard array, tied to the Oath."
Ye Tian's gaze hardened, the Void Scar pulsing. "Show us." He clutched the tablet, a vision flashing—a disciple, face hidden, placing a Void Shard in a shrine, a Court elder nodding. The third betrayer, ever closer.
They followed the map, the lake's glow fading behind them. The path to Kneeling Heavens Peak wound through jagged cliffs, the air heavy with celestial Qi. At the peak's base, a shrine loomed, its moonlit runes pulsing. A hidden compartment revealed a map, etched with a new clue: "The Starshatter's heart beats where the heavens fall."
Before Ye Tian could study it, the shrine trembled, a massive aura surging. A Void Shard Array activated, black runes flaring, summoning a spectral beast—a Shadowed Seraph, Stage 10, its wings of dark Qi spreading. Its voice echoed, cold and ancient. "The Oath's heart is forbidden. Prove your worth, or perish."
Ye Tian raised the Lunar Fang, Su Mei's melody rising beside him, their energies entwined. The Void Scar burned, but her presence steadied him. Was this beast the Court's trap, or a guardian of the Starshatter Oath?