Night fell over Qingfeng Village like a heavy blanket. The wooden houses glowed faintly from oil lamps within, and the distant howls of low-level Astral Beasts echoed from the forest.
Lin Xingchen sat alone on a rocky outcrop at the village's edge, staring at the gray mark on his palm. The broken star pattern hadn't faded — it pulsed weakly, like a dying ember.
"Level 0… Broken Star Shard…"
He repeated the words quietly, voice laced with bitterness he refused to show anyone else.
A cool breeze rustled the leaves. Footsteps approached from behind — light, familiar.
"Xingchen."
Elder Mu's old voice carried concern. The white-haired man sat beside him, placing a small bundle wrapped in cloth on the ground.
Xingchen didn't turn. "Elder, you should rest. Tomorrow the new awakened children will start training."
Elder Mu sighed. "And you? Will you just accept this?"
"What else can I do?" Xingchen finally looked at him, eyes calm but burning deep inside. "The Awakening Stone never lies. Level 0 means I can't absorb even a single white seal ring. Without rings, the Astral Spirit can't grow. Without growth… I'll always be ordinary."
Elder Mu was silent for a long moment.
Then he pushed the bundle toward Xingchen.
"Open it."
Curious, Xingchen unwrapped the cloth. Inside lay an old, worn book — leather cover cracked with age, pages yellowed. On the front, faded silver words read: Basic Seal Meditation Technique.
Xingchen frowned. "Elder… this is the village's only copy. It's meant for awakened children."
"And you are still a child of this village," Elder Mu said firmly. "Trash spirit or not, you can at least try to meditate. Strengthen your body. Maybe… something will change."
Xingchen's fingers tightened around the book.
"Why are you so good to me?"
Elder Mu looked up at the starry sky. "Because ten years ago, when I found you at the gate, there was a meteor shower. One star fell right where you lay. I thought it was a sign. Maybe I was wrong… but I still believe in you, boy."
Xingchen's throat tightened. He bowed his head deeply.
"Thank you, Elder."
Elder Mu stood, patting his shoulder. "Don't stay out too late. And don't give up yet. The stars are vast — sometimes the faintest ones burn the longest."
The old man left, footsteps fading into the night.
Xingchen opened the book under moonlight. The first page explained basic breathing and energy circulation.
He crossed his legs, closed his eyes, and tried to follow the instructions.
Breathe in… feel the energy between heaven and earth… guide it toward the Astral Seal…
Nothing.
Again.
Still nothing.
Hours passed. His body grew cold, but he refused to stop.
On the seventeenth attempt, something shifted.
A tiny, almost imperceptible thread of cool energy brushed against his palm — like starlight touching skin.
His eyes snapped open.
The gray mark on his hand glowed faintly — not bright, but undeniably alive.
Inside his mind, that same ancient voice from earlier whispered again, clearer this time:
"The seal… is not broken. It is waiting."
Xingchen's heart raced.
"What are you?" he asked aloud, voice trembling with the first spark of real hope.
No answer came — but deep within his soul, the Broken Star Shard pulsed once, as if acknowledging him.
Far away, in the depths of the forbidden Starfall Forest bordering the village, a pair of crimson eyes opened in the darkness.
An enormous shadow stirred — scales glinting like shattered obsidian, aura vast and ancient.
It lifted its head toward the direction of Qingfeng Village, nostrils flaring.
"A familiar scent… the Eternal bloodline awakens?"
A low, rumbling chuckle echoed through the trees.
"At last."