The mist had barely dispersed after the Mirror of the Soul shattered, yet the air inside the Trial Ground grew heavier instead of calmer. Every breath felt like swallowing lead, and the forest itself seemed to hold its breath, waiting.
Li Shen stood with trembling legs, blood dripping from the corner of his lips. His body was battered, but in his eyes burned a fire fiercer than ever before. He had faced his own reflection, endured the whispers of doubt, and proven—at least to himself—that he was not just the vessel of light or darkness.
But his moment of respite was short-lived.
Rumble—!
The ground split beneath their feet, a deep crack snaking across the earth. From within the fissure, black mist surged upward, swallowing the trees around them. Slowly, a massive stone gate rose from the depths. Dragons and phoenixes intertwined across its surface, carved with such precision that they seemed alive, straining to break free.
"The next trial…" one disciple whispered, voice trembling.
"The Labyrinth of Shadows…"
---
The gate groaned open, exhaling a cold breath that chilled bone and marrow alike. From the depths came a chorus of whispers—low, maddening, neither male nor female.
No one had a choice. One by one, disciples were pulled toward the gate by a force that brooked no refusal.
Li Shen stepped forward with the others, Mei Lin casting him a worried glance, while Zhao Wei's lips curled into a sharp grin.
When they crossed the threshold, the world shifted.
The forest was gone. In its place stretched endless corridors, their walls woven from shadow itself. Every footstep echoed a thousandfold, as if unseen pursuers stalked them from every direction.
"This is no ordinary labyrinth," Mei Lin murmured. Her voice wavered. "This place tests the heart. Lose control… and you'll be trapped here forever."
---
The labyrinth split into countless paths, swallowing the disciples one by one. Soon, Li Shen realized he was walking alone.
That was when the shadows began to stir.
Figures emerged from the walls—faces he knew, voices he could not escape.
His mother, crying his name.
A man cloaked in darkness, laughing cruelly.
The disciples of Rising Cloud Sect, spitting on him, calling him cursed.
The whispers clawed into his skull:
"You are nothing…"
"You are a curse…"
"You will destroy all you touch…"
Li Shen's knees buckled. The Qi within him surged violently, light and darkness clashing in a storm that threatened to tear him apart.
But amidst the chaos, another voice rose—not foreign, not mocking. It was his own, steady and calm.
"Stand. If you bow here, then everything you've endured will be meaningless."
---
The shadows fused, forming a figure identical to him—Li Shen's face, but twisted, his eyes burning crimson, his smile dripping with malice.
"You don't need the light," the dark double hissed. "Look at me. I am freedom. I am power. Cast aside your weakness. Let me take your place."
With a snarl, the shadow lunged.
Boom—!
The corridor shook as Qi exploded. The impact threw Li Shen against the wall, blood spilling from his lips.
Yet he pushed himself back up, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.
"You're not me," he rasped. His fists clenched, each hand glowing—one in searing light, the other in devouring shadow. "You're only the part of me that hungers for control. And I… will tame you."
The two collided in a storm of raw power. Light and darkness clashed violently, tearing through the labyrinth walls. The shadow roared, trying to consume the light, but Li Shen held firm. Each drop of blood only sharpened his will.
With a roar that split the silence, Li Shen fused the two forces in his palms and struck.
Boom—!
The shadow shattered into shards of black mist, dissolving into nothing. The corridor quaked, then fell eerily silent.
---
Elsewhere…
In another passage, Mei Lin stumbled forward, her breath ragged. Her shadows did not form monsters, but familiar faces—her parents, draped in robes that shimmered faintly with light.
"Our bloodline is bound to the Light," they whispered.
But behind them loomed another silhouette—a figure cloaked in darkness, whose features eerily resembled Li Shen's father.
Mei Lin froze. "Could it be… my past… and his… are connected?"
Before she could dwell on it, the corridor trembled violently, forcing her to run. Her path veered straight toward Li Shen.
---
Far away, Zhao Wei faced his own shadows. They mocked him, showing him broken, crushed beneath Li Shen's feet.
"You will never surpass him," the shadows whispered.
"I will never… lose to him!" Zhao Wei bellowed.
In his fury, he tore a crimson talisman from his sleeve. Dark flames erupted, twisting the labyrinth around him. His eyes gleamed with a madness born of hatred.
"I swear… even if I must use forbidden power, I will destroy Li Shen!"