Xan Li Fang walked into the house, the silence greeting him like a heavy blanket. He glanced at the bed where his mother, Yuan, lay still under the thick quilt.
"Mom must be asleep," he whispered to himself, trying to tread lightly on the wooden floorboards. "I shouldn't disturb her."
He went to the small kitchen corner. The food in the pot was still warm—she must have cooked right before lying down. He ate quickly, standing up, his mind already shifting to his studies. He sat at his desk, buried his head in his books, and let the time slip away.
Three hours passed.
The night grew deeper. The silence in the room became oppressive.
Xan Li Fang rubbed his tired eyes and turned around in his chair. His mother hadn't moved an inch. Not a cough, not a shift in position, not even the sound of heavy breathing. A cold spike of suspicion pierced his chest.
He stood up slowly. "Mom?"
No answer.
He walked to the bed, his hand trembling as he reached out to pull back the blanket.
"Mom, wake up..."
He touched her shoulder. It was stiff. He touched her cheek. It was ice-cold.
"No... No... Nooooooooooooooooo!"
The scream tore from his throat, raw and broken. He fell to his knees, shaking her shoulders as if he could shake the life back into her.
"Mother! Why did you leave me?! Noooo!"
His eyes, one red and one blue, blurred with tears. He frantically fumbled for his phone, his fingers slipping on the screen.
"Hello?! Ambulance! My mother... she's unconscious, she's not waking up! Please come quickly!" he yelled into the receiver. "Address... Limun Street, House 12! Please!"
He dropped the phone into his pocket and hugged her cold body, rocking back and forth, waiting.
When the doctors arrived, the examination was brief. They exchanged glances, shook their heads, and gave him the pitying look he hated.
"She has been gone for hours, son. We are sorry for your loss."
They left. The silence returned, heavier than before.
Xan sat there for a long time, his mind blank. Finally, his gaze fell upon her hand. She was clutching something tightly. He pried her stiff fingers open.
It was a Gray Stone Tablet . It was simple, unadorned, except for a single character carved into the center: "DAO" .
As soon as his fingers brushed the stone, a headache unlike anything he had ever felt split his skull.
"Argh!"
The pain was blinding. His consciousness snapped, and he collapsed onto the floor.
The Dream Space Darkness. Then, a voice.
"Hey, my baby..."
Xan floated in a void. A figure appeared—his mother, Yuan, but she looked younger, radiant, surrounded by a soft light.
"If you are seeing this message, I am already dead," she said, her smile sad but loving. "I am transmitting to you one of the Hidden Skills— The Heavenly Copying Art . With this, you will be safe from 'them'. You can hide among them."
She reached out, touching his forehead in the dream.
"Remember, your only mission is to survive... Goodbye, my dear son. Take care of yourself..."
"Mom! Is that you?!" Xan shouted, running towards her in the void. "Mom, where are you?! Take me with you! MOTHER!"
He reached out to grab her hand, but she dissolved into light.
A familiar sound pierced his ears.
"Ugh... my alarm..." Xan Li Fang groaned, his hand instinctively slapping the ground to find his phone. "Such a sweet dream... but my head feels like it's going to split open..."
He rubbed his temples and opened his eyes.
"I must be still dreaming..."
He blinked. He wasn't in his wooden house on Limun Street. He wasn't in a hospital.
He was sitting under a massive tree with bark that shimmered like polished bronze. Above him hung strange, glowing fruits— Gunsang Fruits —that pulsed with a faint rhythmic light.
To his front lay a breathtaking valley, with mountains floating in the distant sky. To his back was a dense, ancient forest, the trees so tall they blocked out the sun.
He was still trying to process the impossible scenery, his heart pounding in his chest, when a sound came from the shadows of the forest behind him. It wasn't a roar, but a casual, almost amused voice.
"Hey, boy..."
Xan spun around, his mismatched eyes widening.