Chapter One: Ashes and Half the Book
The village where Ling Yu was born was no different from any other small village in the foothills. Simple wooden houses, children's voices echoed by the river, and farmers toiled in the green fields. Everything proceeded at a slow pace, with no grand ambitions or conflicts between the great cultivating sects.
But that simple life was nothing but a mirage.
That night, a massive spirit beast from the depths of the dark forest swept into the village, spewing death at every turn. Its body was like a moving mountain, its eyes burning with embers of hatred. None of the villagers could stop it.
Ling Yu remembered the last thing he saw: his father standing before him, raising his battered spear to block his son's fatal blow.
The voice of his mother, pushing him back and shouting:
"Run, Yu! One day you'll understand... why we've been hiding the truth from you!"
Then everything collapsed into a sea of flame.
Days later, the boy sat among the rubble, his eyes swollen from crying, searching the ashes as if searching for his lost heart. He found no bodies, nothing but broken stones and burnt wood.
At that moment, under a half-burnt black rock, he found the stone book. It wasn't a whole book, just half, thick and heavy, as if crafted from the essence of mountains. Its black surface shone with a cold luster, and on its cover were inscriptions the likes of which he had never seen before.
When he first touched it, a sharp chill pierced his skin, followed by a faint warmth that seeped into his veins. It was as if the book was coming to life.
"This isn't just a stone..."
He lifted the book with a trembling hand and immediately heard a mysterious murmur in his head, a murmur that wasn't clear words but rather a distant scream from the past. He fell to his knees, gasping, his heart nearly exploding with terror.
That night, as he slept on the barren ground near the ruins of his home, he had a dream unlike any he had ever had before.
He saw himself standing in an endless space, its ground made of light and its skies a sea of glowing stars. In the center of that space was another half of the stone book, floating, surrounded by swirling vortices of mysterious energy.
As he reached out towards it, a voice like thunder echoed deep within his mind:
"Complete the two halves... and the gate will open. But know... all power has a price."
Before he even touched the book, an indescribable pain swept through his body. Thousands of images exploded in his mind: celestial cities collapsing, mountains bursting, rivers of blood, and powerful cultivators fighting over a complete stone book.
Ling Yu screamed and woke up, his body drenched in cold sweat. In his hands, the actual half of the book glowed faintly, as if responding to his dream.
The boy stood amidst the ruins, his heart ablaze with a mixture of fear and rage. He was no longer just a child who lost his family. He was no longer just a victim of a catastrophe he didn't understand.
He had become the bearer of an ancient secret, one that would attract hunters and cultists, heroes and villains alike.
A secret that might give him the strength to face the monsters of the world... or might crush him beneath its weight before he could understand it.
He clenched his fist on half the book and raised his head toward the darkening sky.
He knew his simple life was over.
From here, his journey into the world of cultivation would begin, where only the strong survive.