The Heavenly Palace rested upon clouds woven from starlight, its jade pavilions glowing faintly under the warmth of the rising sun. Ethereal cranes glided across the horizon, their calls mingling with the sound of flowing spirit springs. The entire world seemed peaceful, divine… as though nothing could taint its harmony.
Beneath a blossoming peach tree, three figures sat together around a white stone table. The petals fell like drifting snow, painting the ground in shades of pink.
At the center sat Tian Yao, the Heavenly Son, the one who carried the will of heaven itself. His posture was calm, his aura restrained yet vast, and his expression carried the serene majesty of one destined to ascend beyond mortals. Across from him sat his sworn brother, Mo Li, and at his side, his betrothed fiancée, Lan Ruyin, daughter of the Lan Clan.
A pot of spirit tea steamed between them, its fragrance capable of calming the heart of even the most furious cultivator.
Mo Li's smile was warm, his tone affectionate as he lifted the pot and poured into Tian Yao's cup.
"Brother, today is a day worth remembering. In a few short years, you will ascend as the successor of the Heavenly Throne. All of us, the palace and the clans, will look to you as the pillar of heaven. Today, let us drink—for your future."
Tian Yao accepted the cup with a faint chuckle. His voice was calm, yet beneath it carried humility rare for one of his status.
"The heavens are too vast to tremble for one man. I am but a vessel for its will. Still, I thank you, Mo Li, for your loyalty all these years. And you, Ruyin…" His gaze softened as he turned to his fiancée. "For your patience, your devotion, and your faith in me."
Lan Ruyin's beauty was as dazzling as moonlight upon ice. Her pale hands held the porcelain cup she had poured herself. She lowered her lashes, feigning shyness as her lips curved into a gentle smile.
"For eternity, Tian Yao. You and I, together, always."
Tian Yao raised his cup and drank deeply.
But the moment the liquid touched his tongue, his chest constricted violently. His breath faltered, qi scattering like sand in a storm. The taste, at first sweet, burned into bitterness, searing his throat. His hand trembled, and the cup shattered against the ground, shards scattering like broken stars.
A cough wracked his body, blood staining the pristine stone floor.
"You—!" His golden eyes widened in disbelief, staring at the two people he trusted most. His heart refused to believe the truth, even as the poison tore through his meridians.
Mo Li leaned back, his warm smile twisting into cruelty. His eyes no longer carried brotherhood but venomous envy.
"All my life, I have been beneath you, Tian Yao. You were the chosen one, the favored child of the heavens. Everywhere we went, it was always you—the Heavenly Son, the destined heir, the unrivaled genius. And me? Nothing but your shadow."
His voice sharpened, dripping with hatred.
"But today, the heavens will finally recognize me. Today, I will step out of your shadow. And your light will die."
Lan Ruyin's smile, once gentle, shifted into mockery. The veil of tenderness fell away, revealing cold ambition in her eyes.
"Did you really think I wished to marry you out of love? You were a path, Tian Yao, a ladder to power. But ladders are meant to be stepped on and left behind. With Mo Li, I will reach heights that you, bound by your destiny, could never dare."
Her words pierced deeper than any blade.
Tian Yao's vision blurred. Blood pooled at his lips, his body trembling under the devastating poison, yet the agony in his chest was not from the venom—it was from betrayal.
For a moment, silence fell, broken only by the falling peach blossoms.
Then, a faint laugh escaped him, hoarse yet unyielding. His gaze, though dim, burned with a light neither poison nor treachery could extinguish.
"Mo Li… Ruyin…" His voice was faint, yet it carried a weight that made even the wind still. "You think this is victory? No. You may destroy my body, steal my position, soil my name… but my soul…"
He clenched his fist weakly, blood dripping between his fingers, his voice growing colder and firmer with each word.
"…my soul will never bow. Even if scattered across eternity, I will return. And when I do… the heavens themselves will cast judgment on your betrayal."
Golden radiance erupted from his chest, tearing through the poison's darkness. His divine essence began to unravel, his body breaking apart into motes of light. Mo Li shielded his eyes, snarling, while Lan Ruyin's sneer wavered for a moment under the overwhelming brilliance.
And then—silence. The Heavenly Son, Tian Yao, was gone. His body had collapsed into fragments of light, his soul scattering across the realms.
---
Far below, in the mortal realm, the air was heavy with dust and grief. At the gates of Azure Sky Sect, where new disciples were being tested, a boy lay lifeless. His clothes were torn, his body broken and bloodied from repeated strikes.
His name was Lin Xun, a boy from a declining branch family. Mocked, beaten, and scorned, he had come to the sect with nothing but determination—to grow strong enough to protect his mother and younger sister, Lin Yan. But instead, at the gates of hope, he had been slain by arrogance—by Lan Qingshan of the Lan Clan, who sneered as Lin Xun's body hit the earth.
The crowd dispersed, uninterested in the life of a boy who "wasn't worth cultivating." Lin Xun's fragile dream died with him, his body left cold beneath the uncaring sky.
Yet in the silence, a golden thread of light descended from the heavens. Like a falling star, it pierced into Lin Xun's chest.
His heart, once stilled, trembled faintly. His eyes fluttered.
The soul of Tian Yao, betrayed Heavenly Son, had found a new vessel.
The boy's body stirred.
The heavens had not abandoned him.
A legend was about to begin