Chapter 3: Beneath the Sealed Sky
Sub-Chapter 1: The Academy in Turmoil
The sealing of Blackwind Mountain did not calm the academy.
It only made the fear official.
By dawn, formation masters had arrived from the inner city. Golden pillars of light rose along the mountain's perimeter, forming layered suppression arrays that hummed day and night. Disciples were forbidden from approaching the outer training zones. Patrol teams doubled.
Rumors spread faster than spiritual energy.
"Ancient beast awakening."
"Hidden relic cracking."
"Corruption leak."
No one knew the truth.
Which made it worse.
In the Outer Academy courtyard, students gathered in uneasy groups. Training sessions continued, but half-heartedly. Every loud sound made someone flinch.
Lin Tianyu walked through the courtyard quietly.
Eyes followed him.
Not openly.
But subtly.
Word had already spread about Blackwind Mountain. About the wolves. About the paralysis that turned the tide of battle.
The "jellyfish" was no longer a joke.
Chen Wei rushed toward him the moment he spotted him.
"Have you heard? The elders didn't sleep last night. My cousin works near the inner compound. He said the formations flickered three times!"
Lin Tianyu nodded slightly. "I expected as much."
"You expected—? How can you be so calm?"
Because this is only the beginning.
But he did not say that aloud.
Instead, he asked, "Has there been an announcement?"
"Not yet. But something big is coming."
As if summoned by his words, a deep bell echoed across the academy grounds.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
Emergency convocation.
All disciples froze.
That bell had only been rung twice in the last decade.
Chen Wei swallowed. "That's not good."
"No," Lin Tianyu said quietly. "It isn't."
---
The central plaza filled within minutes.
Inner Academy disciples stood at the front, posture straight but expressions tense. Outer disciples filled the outer rings. Instructors lined the edges.
Above the platform stood three elders.
Elder Mo.
Elder Qian.
And an unfamiliar figure dressed in dark blue robes embroidered with tidal patterns.
The air around him felt… deep.
Heavy.
Like standing near an unseen ocean.
Lin Tianyu's eyes narrowed slightly.
So they called someone from the Tide Pavilion.
This was escalating faster than even he expected.
Elder Mo stepped forward.
"Disciples," he began calmly, though his voice carried weight. "Blackwind Mountain's instability has been confirmed."
Murmurs rippled.
He raised his hand.
"A sealed presence beneath the mountain has begun emitting irregular pulses. The corruption seen in mid-rank beasts is a side effect of those pulses."
Gasps followed.
"It is not yet an outbreak," Elder Mo continued. "But it is no longer dormant."
The dark-robed elder stepped forward now.
His gaze swept across the crowd.
Sharp.
Measuring.
"I am Elder Hai from the Tide Pavilion," he said. His voice was low but carried effortlessly. "Our records indicate that beneath Blackwind Mountain lies a fragment of an ancient calamity beast."
The plaza fell silent.
Calamity beast.
That word was not used lightly.
"These beings are not merely high-rank creatures," Elder Hai continued. "They are entities capable of influencing entire ecosystems. Even sealed fragments retain instinct."
A chill spread across the plaza.
Zhao Liang's jaw tightened.
Su Yao stood still, her Moon Fox unusually silent.
Lin Tianyu felt the jellyfish stir faintly inside his dantian.
Fragment.
So they know part of the truth.
But not all of it.
Elder Hai's gaze shifted.
For a brief second—
It paused on Lin Tianyu.
Only a second.
Then moved on.
"We will not allow panic," Elder Mo said firmly. "Instead, we will respond."
A projection array activated above the platform.
An image of Blackwind Mountain appeared, glowing lines marking sealed zones.
"Three days from now," Elder Mo said, "the Elder Grounds will open."
Shock exploded through the crowd.
The Elder Grounds were sacred trial lands within the academy. Only the top Inner disciples were usually granted entry.
"This trial will select candidates capable of resonance stabilization."
Resonance.
Lin Tianyu's breathing remained steady.
But inside—
The jellyfish pulsed once.
Elder Hai continued, "If a disciple can align with the sealed fragment's frequency, we can strengthen the suppression instead of weakening it."
Zhao Liang's eyes burned with ambition.
Su Yao's expression turned thoughtful.
Chen Wei leaned toward Lin Tianyu and whispered, "You think they'll actually let Outer Academy in?"
"They will," Lin Tianyu said calmly.
"How do you know?"
Because they're desperate.
As if confirming his words, Elder Mo announced:
"All disciples who participated in the Blackwind Mountain expedition are eligible."
The plaza erupted.
Outer disciples stared in disbelief.
Inner disciples frowned.
Opportunity.
Promotion.
Recognition.
And danger.
Elder Hai's gaze swept the crowd once more.
"This is not a competition of brute strength. It is a trial of synchronization. Those who lack control will suffer backlash."
His words were calm.
But they carried warning.
The assembly dismissed.
Students immediately broke into heated discussion.
Zhao Liang approached Lin Tianyu directly.
"You knew something was wrong before the roar," Zhao Liang said without preamble.
"Yes."
"How?"
Lin Tianyu looked at him evenly. "I've studied beast behavior patterns."
"That's not enough to predict a calamity fragment."
Lin Tianyu's gaze did not waver. "I didn't predict it. I felt it."
Zhao Liang's eyes flicked briefly to the jellyfish hovering near Lin Tianyu's shoulder.
"Your beast felt it."
"Yes."
A pause.
Zhao Liang exhaled slowly.
"This trial… I won't lose."
Lin Tianyu gave a faint nod. "Then don't."
There was no mockery in his tone.
Only fact.
Zhao Liang turned and walked away.
Su Yao stepped closer after he left.
"You're not surprised," she observed.
"No."
"Why?"
Lin Tianyu hesitated for a fraction of a second.
Then answered honestly.
"Because some awakenings are inevitable."
She studied him carefully.
"You speak like someone much older."
He allowed a faint smile.
"Perhaps I think too much."
The Moon Fox's eyes lingered on the jellyfish.
There was recognition there.
Or curiosity.
"Be careful," Su Yao said quietly. "Elder Hai's gaze paused on you."
"I noticed."
"That's not good."
"No," Lin Tianyu agreed. "It isn't."
---
That night, the academy felt different.
The air was charged with anticipation.
Ambition flared.
Rivalries sharpened.
Some Inner disciples trained desperately, pushing their beasts harder than before. Others sought quiet meditation chambers.
In his small room, Lin Tianyu sat cross-legged.
The jellyfish floated before him.
Resonance Level: 9%.
Stable.
But restless.
He closed his eyes and extended his perception inward.
In his past life, the calamity fragment beneath Blackwind Mountain had not stirred until much later.
But now—
It was reacting early.
Because of me.
Because I returned.
The thought was not prideful.
It was analytical.
If the fragment sensed his presence, then the trial was not random.
It was a test.
Not of strength.
But of alignment.
He opened his eyes slowly.
"If they attempt brute suppression," he murmured, "they will accelerate the instability."
The jellyfish pulsed faintly in agreement.
Outside his window, the faint golden glow of suppression arrays flickered against the night sky.
Far beyond the academy walls—
Deep beneath Blackwind Mountain—
Ancient chains etched with forgotten inscriptions tightened slightly.
Not breaking.
Not yet.
But responding.
A pulse echoed through stone.
Slow.
Measured.
Waiting.
And within his dantian—
The smallest beast in the academy shimmered softly.
As if answering a call only it could hear.
The trial was coming.
And the sealed sky was beginning to crack.Chapter 3: Beneath the Sealed Sky
Sub-Chapter 2: Resonance and Rupture
The academy did not sleep.
Torches burned through the night along the inner walls. Formation scripts etched into stone pathways glowed faintly, pulsing in intervals that matched the suppression array surrounding Blackwind Mountain. Every few hours, a tremor would ripple faintly beneath the earth—not strong enough to damage, but strong enough to remind everyone that something ancient was turning in its slumber.
By morning, tension had settled into something sharper.
Purpose.
The Elder Grounds stood behind the Inner Academy's central compound, hidden behind three towering stone arches carved with spirit-beast reliefs. The gates only opened during grand trials. Even Outer disciples had heard legends about the place: spirit pressure zones, resonance mirrors, illusion corridors that forced one to confront the beast within their own core.
Today, the gates were open.
Crowds gathered, though only select names were carved into the jade eligibility board floating near the entrance.
Zhao Liang.
Su Yao.
Five Inner disciples ranked in the top twenty.
And—
Lin Tianyu.
Murmurs swelled like wind through reeds.
"Outer disciple?"
"They're really letting him in?"
"Just because he was there during the expedition…"
Lin Tianyu ignored them.
His posture remained relaxed, hands clasped behind his back. The translucent jellyfish hovered near his shoulder, tendrils drifting gently as if underwater.
Chen Wei grabbed his sleeve. "I can't believe you're actually doing this."
"You knew it was coming," Lin Tianyu replied calmly.
"Knowing and seeing are different things!" Chen Wei hissed. "These Inner disciples—some of them have been preparing for Elder Grounds trials for years."
"That preparation may not matter here."
Chen Wei blinked. "Why?"
"Because this trial is about resonance. Not dominance."
Before Chen Wei could question further, a deep vibration passed through the stone beneath their feet.
The gates began to close.
Only eligible disciples were allowed beyond this point.
Lin Tianyu stepped forward.
As he crossed the threshold, a wave of pressure washed over him.
Not crushing.
But probing.
The air inside the Elder Grounds felt denser, as though saturated with condensed spiritual essence. Ancient trees rose along winding stone paths, their bark inscribed with faint glowing patterns.
At the center of the grounds stood a circular arena carved from pale stone.
Elder Mo and Elder Hai waited there.
The selected disciples gathered in a semicircle.
Elder Mo spoke first.
"The trial will occur in three phases. Each phase tests synchronization between disciple and beast."
Elder Hai continued seamlessly.
"Failure in the first phase results in immediate dismissal. Failure in the second phase results in minor backlash. Failure in the third—"
He paused slightly.
"—will not be protected."
Silence fell.
Even Zhao Liang's confident expression tightened.
Lin Tianyu felt the jellyfish pulse once, slowly.
Calm.
Good.
Elder Hai raised his hand.
"Phase One: Resonance Measurement."
A crystal pillar rose from the arena's center. Its surface shimmered like liquid glass.
"Approach one by one," Elder Mo instructed. "Place your hand upon the pillar and release your beast."
The first Inner disciple stepped forward—a tall young woman with a Crimson Falcon perched on her arm. Flames flickered around the bird's wings as she touched the crystal.
Light surged upward.
Numbers formed midair.
Resonance Compatibility: 31%.
Murmurs.
Not bad.
She exhaled in relief and stepped aside.
Next came another Inner disciple—Earth-armored Turtle.
27%.
Then another.
35%.
When Zhao Liang stepped forward, the crowd quieted instinctively.
His Ironback Wolf materialized fully, muscular and imposing. Its fur shimmered metallic under the sunlight.
He placed his hand firmly on the crystal.
Energy flared bright.
The wolf howled.
Numbers stabilized.
Resonance Compatibility: 48%.
Gasps.
That was the highest yet.
Zhao Liang's lips curved slightly.
He stepped back confidently.
Su Yao followed.
Her Moon Fox emerged gracefully, silver fur gleaming softly.
When her hand touched the crystal, the pillar glowed not brightly—but steadily.
Smoothly.
Resonance Compatibility: 52%.
Even Elder Mo's brows lifted.
Elder Hai nodded faintly.
"Stable frequency," he murmured.
Then—
"Lin Tianyu."
Whispers returned instantly.
He walked forward without haste.
The crystal pillar loomed before him.
Up close, he could feel it humming—faintly aligned to the pulse beneath Blackwind Mountain.
Testing.
Listening.
He placed his hand upon it.
The jellyfish floated forward.
For a brief second—
Nothing happened.
Some disciples smirked.
Then—
The crystal flickered.
Not brightly.
Not violently.
But deeply.
A low vibration spread outward.
The numbers did not rise immediately.
Instead, the pillar's glow shifted color.
From clear—
To pale blue.
Then deeper.
Azure.
The jellyfish's tendrils extended slightly.
A pulse passed between beast and crystal.
The arena floor trembled faintly.
Elder Hai's eyes sharpened.
Numbers appeared.
Resonance Compatibility: 63%.
Silence.
Absolute silence.
Even Zhao Liang's expression froze.
An Outer disciple.
With the highest compatibility.
But that was not what unsettled Elder Hai.
The crystal was still glowing.
Still responding.
As if reluctant to let go.
Lin Tianyu withdrew his hand calmly.
The light faded.
Murmurs exploded.
"That's impossible!"
"Sixty-three percent?!"
"With that weak-looking beast?!"
Zhao Liang's jaw tightened visibly.
Su Yao stared thoughtfully at the jellyfish.
Elder Hai spoke slowly.
"Interesting."
He did not elaborate.
But his gaze lingered.
Phase One concluded.
Six disciples advanced.
Lin Tianyu among them.
Phase Two began immediately.
The arena floor shifted.
Formation lines illuminated, creating six individual circles.
"Within each circle," Elder Mo explained, "a projection of the sealed fragment's frequency will manifest. You must harmonize with it."
"Forceful suppression will result in rejection," Elder Hai added. "Listen carefully."
The circles activated.
A low hum filled the air.
Inside each disciple's circle, the air distorted slightly—forming faint, shadow-like shapes resembling coils of immense serpentine energy.
Zhao Liang summoned his wolf fully.
It growled, bristling.
He extended his spiritual sense aggressively.
The shadow pulse pushed back.
His circle flickered.
Su Yao closed her eyes instead.
Her Moon Fox sat calmly, tail wrapped around its body.
She slowed her breathing.
Lin Tianyu did the same.
He did not project outward.
He drew inward.
The jellyfish pulsed softly.
Slow.
Measured.
Instead of confronting the projection—
He matched it.
Tiny adjustments in spiritual rhythm.
Micro-shifts in breathing.
The shadow within his circle responded.
Not resisting.
But aligning.
Across the arena, one Inner disciple grunted in pain as backlash struck him. His circle shattered.
He staggered out, eliminated.
Zhao Liang forced his wolf's aura harder.
The projection writhed violently.
Cracks spread across his circle.
"Too forceful," Elder Hai muttered.
Zhao Liang gritted his teeth and eased slightly.
The cracks stabilized—but did not vanish.
Su Yao's circle glowed steady silver.
Her fox's aura intertwined delicately with the projection.
Lin Tianyu's circle—
Did not flicker at all.
Instead, the shadow within it became clearer.
More defined.
As if recognizing something familiar.
Elder Hai stepped closer unconsciously.
He could feel it.
That frequency.
It wasn't just matching.
It was conversing.
Time stretched.
Sweat formed on foreheads.
Another disciple cried out and was expelled from his circle.
Four remained.
Zhao Liang.
Su Yao.
An Inner disciple ranked eighth.
And Lin Tianyu.
Then—
A deeper pulse erupted from beneath the arena.
Not from the projection.
From Blackwind Mountain itself.
The suppression arrays outside flickered faintly.
Elder Mo's expression hardened.
"The fragment is responding."
Inside his circle, Lin Tianyu felt it clearly now.
Recognition.
Curiosity.
Ancient instinct brushing against his jellyfish's aura.
He did not panic.
He did not push.
He allowed the resonance to breathe.
The jellyfish glowed faintly brighter.
Azure light expanded gently.
The projection within his circle stabilized completely.
Numbers appeared above his formation.
Synchronization Stability: 71%.
Gasps echoed.
Zhao Liang's circle cracked again.
He roared and forced his aura outward violently.
The projection shattered.
He was thrown backward, sliding across stone.
Eliminated.
Shock rippled across the arena.
The top Inner disciple—out.
Su Yao's circle remained intact, though faint strain showed on her face.
The eighth-ranked disciple collapsed next.
Only two remained.
Lin Tianyu.
And Su Yao.
Elder Hai's gaze shifted between them.
The air trembled once more.
This time—
The projection inside Lin Tianyu's circle did something unexpected.
It bowed.
Just slightly.
Not submission.
Acknowledgment.
Elder Hai saw it.
And his heartbeat skipped.
Because projections did not act independently.
Unless—
They were receiving will from the source.
LinChapter 3: Beneath the Sealed Sky
Sub-Chapter 3: The Eye Beneath the Mountain
The air inside the Elder Grounds had changed.
What began as a structured trial now felt like something else—something less controlled.
The suppression arrays beyond the academy walls pulsed in uneven intervals. Even from within the sealed arena, a faint tremor traveled through the stone floor like a distant heartbeat.
Slow.
Heavy.
Ancient.
Only two disciples remained within the formation circles.
Lin Tianyu.
Su Yao.
Zhao Liang stood at the edge of the arena, fists clenched, jaw tight. He had not spoken since being thrown from the second phase. His Ironback Wolf stood beside him, fur bristling faintly as if insulted by the outcome.
Elder Mo raised his hand, but before he could speak—
Elder Hai stepped forward.
"Phase Three will not use projections," he said quietly.
The arena fell completely silent.
Even the wind seemed to hesitate.
Elder Hai's gaze was fixed on Lin Tianyu now.
"We will open a narrow resonance channel directly to the sealed fragment."
A collective breath caught.
Elder Mo frowned slightly. "Hai—"
"It is within containment thresholds," Elder Hai replied calmly, though his eyes did not move. "If we are to measure true compatibility, we cannot rely on simulations."
That word lingered.
True.
Lin Tianyu did not react outwardly.
But inside—
The jellyfish pulsed once.
Deep.
So it begins.
Formation masters at the edges of the arena activated secondary seals. Golden lines flared across the sky above the Elder Grounds, forming layered barriers.
Elder Hai extended both hands.
A vertical tear of shimmering light appeared at the center of the arena.
Not large.
Not unstable.
But profound.
From within it—
A presence emerged.
Not a physical form.
Not yet.
But an eye.
Massive.
Ancient.
Its shape was indistinct, like looking at something beneath dark water. Scales? Coils? Shadowed ridges?
The eye opened slowly.
Not fully.
Just enough.
And when it did—
Every disciple felt it.
Pressure unlike anything before.
Su Yao staggered half a step, her Moon Fox lowering instinctively, ears flattened.
Zhao Liang's wolf growled low, though it did not dare step forward.
Several watching disciples fell to one knee from the sheer weight of it.
Elder Mo's expression hardened.
The presence was still sealed.
Still restrained.
But even a fragment carried authority.
The eye shifted.
It looked—
At Lin Tianyu.
The jellyfish flared softly in response.
Not aggressively.
Not submissively.
But steadily.
A pulse passed between them.
The tear in the air vibrated.
Elder Hai's breathing slowed.
"Disciple Su Yao," he said quietly. "You may attempt alignment first."
Su Yao swallowed but nodded.
She stepped forward into the center of the arena.
Her Moon Fox walked beside her, silver fur shimmering under the oppressive aura.
She closed her eyes.
Extended her spiritual sense.
The fox's aura rose like moonlight mist.
Gentle.
Controlled.
She did not challenge the eye.
She did not push.
She listened.
For a moment—
It worked.
The pressure lessened slightly around her.
A faint silver thread seemed to connect fox and eye.
The arena held its breath.
Then—
The eye blinked.
Just once.
And the pressure shifted.
Not violently.
But decisively.
The silver thread snapped.
Su Yao gasped as backlash surged through her meridians. She stumbled backward, caught by Elder Mo before she fell.
The Moon Fox whined softly but remained intact.
Elder Mo nodded. "No permanent damage."
Su Yao steadied herself, though disappointment shadowed her expression.
She looked once toward Lin Tianyu.
Not bitter.
Curious.
Then she stepped aside.
Now—
Only one remained.
Lin Tianyu walked forward calmly.
The arena seemed quieter as he approached the tear.
The eye within the rift did not move.
It was already watching him.
He stopped at the center.
The jellyfish floated upward, tendrils drifting like strands of light in deep water.
For several seconds—
Nothing happened.
Elder Hai narrowed his eyes.
"Begin," he said softly.
Lin Tianyu did not immediately extend his spiritual sense.
Instead—
He lowered it.
Deep into his dantian.
Into the quiet place where the jellyfish's core pulsed gently.
In his past life, he had faced this presence at full awakening.
A calamity that devoured half a province before suppression.
Now—
It was incomplete.
Fragmented.
But still ancient.
Still proud.
Still dangerous.
He did not seek to dominate it.
He did not seek to bind it.
He allowed memory to guide him.
The jellyfish's glow shifted.
From pale azure—
To deeper ocean blue.
A frequency emerged.
Subtle.
Layered.
Complex.
He let it expand slowly.
Not outward like a blade.
But outward like water filling space.
The eye within the rift sharpened.
The tear trembled.
Elder Hai felt it immediately.
"This frequency…" he whispered.
It was not aggression.
It was not fear.
It was familiarity.
The jellyfish pulsed again.
And this time—
The eye reacted.
The arena floor cracked faintly beneath Lin Tianyu's feet as spiritual pressure spiked.
Several observers were forced back.
Formation lines flared brighter.
Elder Mo raised a hand, ready to intervene—
But Elder Hai stopped him.
"Wait."
The eye dilated slightly.
Within its depths—
Shapes shifted.
Massive coils.
Broken chains.
Fragments of ancient script.
Then—
A pulse.
Direct.
Unfiltered.
It struck Lin Tianyu's mind.
Not an attack.
A question.
WHO.
The word was not spoken.
It was felt.
Across eras.
Across sealed time.
Lin Tianyu's eyes opened.
Calm.
Clear.
He did not answer in language.
He answered in resonance.
The jellyfish's core brightened.
Within that light—
Memory flickered.
A battlefield.
Storm.
Chains breaking.
A second confrontation.
Suppression arrays collapsing.
And a figure standing alone against rising catastrophe.
The eye trembled.
Recognition.
Not of this life.
But of a presence once encountered.
The pulse shifted.
Not hostile.
Not submissive.
Assessing.
The jellyfish extended one tendril toward the tear.
It did not touch.
It hovered just before contact.
The pressure in the arena intensified.
Elder Hai felt sweat form at his temple.
"This is no longer a trial," he murmured.
The eye moved closer to the rift's edge.
If it pushed—
The seal would strain.
Lin Tianyu felt it too.
The fragment was curious.
Drawn.
Testing the boundary.
He could not allow it to lean further.
Not yet.
Slowly—
He altered the frequency.
Not amplifying.
Softening.
Like calming a restless tide.
The jellyfish dimmed slightly.
The tendril withdrew half an inch.
The eye paused.
The oppressive pressure eased marginally.
A negotiation.
Silent.
Ancient.
Then—
The eye blinked again.
This time—
It lowered.
Not fully.
But partially.
As if acknowledging restraint.
The tear in the air began to shrink.
Elder Hai exhaled slowly.
"Containment stabilizing," one formation master called out from the perimeter.
The rift sealed gradually, the eye fading into darkness.
The oppressive aura lifted.
Silence remained.
Lin Tianyu stood alone at the center of the arena.
Breathing steady.
Unharmed.
The jellyfish floated beside him, glow returning to its usual soft transparency.
For several long seconds—
No one spoke.
Then Elder Hai stepped forward.
His expression had changed.
Not suspicion.
Not hostility.
But gravity.
"What you displayed," he said quietly, "was not synchronization."
He paused.
"It was dialogue."
Murmurs rippled through the watching disciples.
Zhao Liang stared in disbelief.
Su Yao's gaze sharpened with new understanding.
Elder Mo asked carefully, "Disciple Lin Tianyu… explain."
Lin Tianyu bowed slightly.
"I did not attempt to control the fragment," he said calmly. "Nor did I attempt to resist it. I matched its instability with balance."
Elder Hai studied him.
"That fragment is prideful. It does not bow."
"It did not bow," Lin Tianyu replied evenly. "It paused."
A subtle correction.
But meaningful.
Elder Hai's eyes narrowed slightly.
"You have encountered such frequency before."
It was not a question.
Lin Tianyu held his gaze.
"I have studied ancient calamity patterns."
Careful.
Not false.
Not fully true.
Elder Hai looked as though he wished to press further.
But the formation masters were already reporting stabilized readings from Blackwind Mountain.
The suppression arrays had strengthened.
Not weakened.
Because of that exchange.
Finally, Elder Mo spoke.
"Phase Three complete."
He turned to the gathered disciples.
"Lin Tianyu has achieved the highest resonance stability recorded in the academy's history."
Shock spread once more.
Outer disciples stared in stunned silence.
Inner disciples exchanged uneasy glances.
Zhao Liang's fists trembled faintly—not from fear.
From rivalry ignited.
Elder Hai stepped closer to Lin Tianyu.
Lowered his voice so only the two of them could hear.
"The fragment recognized you."
Lin Tianyu did not deny it.
Elder Hai continued quietly.
"That is not a blessing."
A beat of silence.
"It is an invitation."
He straightened.
Aloud, he declared:
"By authority of the Tide Pavilion and the Blackwind Academy Council—Lin Tianyu is granted provisional access to Inner Academy resources."
Gasps.
An Outer disciple—directly elevated.
But that was not the true shift.
The true shift had occurred beneath the mountain.
Deep within sealed stone—
Ancient chains lay quiet.
Not straining.
Not cracking.
Waiting.
And for the first time in centuries—
The fragment did not pulse in restless hunger.
It pulsed—
In anticipation.