Far beyond the world below, from an unknowable vantage hidden somewhere within the boundless heavens themselves, endless clouds drifted through the vast blue sky—higher even than the tallest mountain peaks that existed across the continent beneath them.
Within those distant heavens, an unusual black dot appeared.
At first glance, it seemed utterly insignificant, no more than a tiny speck suspended amidst the endless sky. It was so small and distant that one could have easily mistaken it for a flaw within one's vision.
Yet as time passed, a horrifying realization gradually became apparent.
The black dot was growing larger.
Closer.
Descending.
It tore through the heavens with terrifying speed, plunging toward the world below like a meteorite piercing through the atmosphere itself. But unlike any ordinary meteor, countless strange black feathers scattered endlessly from its body as it descended.
Each feather separated from the massive object one after another, drifting through the skies like fragments of living darkness while leaving behind haunting trails across the heavens.
And as the black object continued its descent, its destination became clear.
It was heading toward a massive island situated within the southeastern region of the continent.
The island itself was a land overflowing with life.
Dense forests stretched endlessly across its landscape, while flourishing vegetation covered the mountains, plains, and rivers alike. Countless forms of wildlife roamed freely throughout the island, thriving beneath nature's abundance.
Primitive humans also inhabited the land.
Though still early in the development of their civilization, they had already begun establishing settlements across the island, slowly building the foundations of what would one day become something far greater.
But on that day, beneath the descending shadow from the heavens, all of it would come to an end.
Before long, the black dot was noticed.
Not only by the humans.
But by every living creature upon the island.
An instinctive sense of overwhelming dread spread across the land like an invisible plague.
It was a primal warning.
A terror deeply rooted within the instincts of all living things.
The wildlife reacted first.
Countless beasts immediately fled in terror from the area toward which the black object was descending. Birds abandoned the skies in chaotic swarms while predators and prey alike ran side by side without regard for one another, driven purely by the desperate instinct to survive.
The primitive humans, however, despite sensing the same overwhelming danger, did not immediately flee.
Curiosity rooted them in place.
They gazed upward toward the heavens, staring at the descending black object with confusion, fear, and disbelief as they attempted to comprehend what exactly they were witnessing.
That hesitation would become the greatest—and final—mistake of their lives.
For the place toward which the black object descended was none other than the very center of their civilization, where the majority of their settlements had been established.
And by the time the primitive humans finally realized the true magnitude of the disaster approaching them—
By the time the black dot had grown so enormous that it resembled a second moon hanging within the sky—
It was already too late.
Panic erupted across the island.
Screams echoed throughout the settlements as countless humans attempted to flee in desperation. Entire crowds surged through the villages in chaos while mothers desperately clutched their children and others collapsed to the ground in terror beneath the looming shadow that engulfed the heavens above them.
Then it happened.
The black object crashed directly into the heart of their civilization.
The impact was catastrophic.
The moment it struck the island, everything was annihilated.
Entire villages vanished instantly beneath the overwhelming force of the collision. Structures painstakingly built over countless years were erased within moments, while the earth itself ruptured violently beneath the unimaginable impact.
The ground split apart.
Forests were uprooted.
Mountains trembled.
And an explosion of destruction spread outward across the island like the wrath of an angry god descending upon the world.
In a single moment, the collision claimed the lives of most of the island's population.
Only a small number survived.
And those survivors could do nothing but stare in horror at the massive crater that now existed where their home had once stood.
At the very center of that colossal crater rested what appeared to be a gigantic black cocoon.
Its true appearance remained concealed beneath a dense veil of dark mist that endlessly flowed around its surface, obscuring whatever rested within and revealing only vague glimpses of an unknown form hidden inside.
For a brief moment, relief spread among the surviving humans and remaining wildlife.
Against all odds, they believed they had somehow survived the disaster.
But that fleeting hope lasted only seconds.
Without warning—
A terrifying wave of energy suddenly erupted outward from the black cocoon.
It spread across the island in every direction with unstoppable force.
At the exact same moment, the thick dark mist surrounding the cocoon completely vanished.
And the true horror began.
The energy wave was unlike anything the world had ever known.
Wherever it passed, all plant life instantly withered away.
Forests collapsed into lifeless remains.
Grass blackened and died.
Flowers crumbled into dust.
Every trace of vitality was erased as though existence itself had been drained away.
The same fate befell the primitive humans and the island's wildlife.
The relief upon their faces vanished instantly as their flesh rapidly decayed before their own horrified eyes. Skin withered away, muscles collapsed into rot, and bodies crumbled apart until nothing remained except lifeless skeletons falling onto the dead earth below.
No screams lasted long.
Death consumed everything too quickly.
And by the time the energy wave finally spread across the entirety of the island—
All life upon it had been extinguished.
The once vibrant land overflowing with life, nature, and the beginnings of civilization had become nothing more than a desolate wasteland consumed entirely by death and silence.
All because of the sudden and unavoidable arrival of the entity known only as—
The Black Dot.
And now, with the dark mist surrounding it gone, the true exterior of the Black Dot could finally be seen.
Its surface was covered in countless enormous black wings wrapped tightly around one another, forming a massive protective shell around whatever rested inside.
At last, the source of the falling black feathers seen throughout its descent had been revealed.
Yet that revelation answered nothing.
Instead, it only gave rise to a far more terrifying question.
What exactly was the Black Dot?
No answer came.
Only silence.
Then—
Movement emerged from within the massive shell.
Several of the black wings slowly shifted apart, creating a narrow opening through which the interior could almost be seen.
But before the unknown perspective observing from the heavens could glimpse what rested inside—
A brilliant golden light suddenly burst forth from the gap.
One beam after another erupted from every crack spread across the massive shell.
Golden radiance poured outward endlessly, growing brighter and brighter until the colossal cocoon resembled a miniature sun resting within the crater itself.
And then—
Every beam of light erupted simultaneously.
The protective shell shattered apart.
In the next instant, a colossal pillar of blinding golden light exploded upward into the heavens themselves, engulfing the skies with overwhelming brilliance so radiant that even the unknown perspective observing from above was completely consumed by the light.
And that…
Was when "Everything" began.
******
Under the full moon, deep within a forest near the outskirts of the Imperial Capital of the Xuanwu Dynasty, a man clad in a distinct scholar's uniform ran frantically through the woods as though a wild beast were pursuing him.
"Huff… Huff… Huff…"
Ragged breaths escaped the lips of the man, who appeared to be a scholar, as exhaustion finally began catching up to him after what was clearly a long period of desperate running.
The scholar appeared middle-aged, yet remained somewhat handsome despite his age. Long jet-black hair flowed wildly behind him, with part of it covering the entire left side of his face.
Beneath the pale moonlight, his single visible emerald-green eye trembled with panic and exhaustion.
However, what stood out most was not his appearance—
But his condition.
His once elegant scholar's robes, seemingly woven from expensive silk, had been reduced to a tattered mess stained with dirt, torn apart by branches, and soaked in dark crimson blood.
Blood.
Fresh blood continued spreading from a wound near his right shoulder alongside numerous smaller injuries scattered throughout his body.
His unnaturally pale complexion made it painfully obvious that he had already lost a dangerous amount of blood. Combined with his relentless sprint through the forest, it was likely only a matter of time before his body finally gave out entirely.
Yet despite his critical state, the scholar never once slowed down.
It was as though, within this desperate situation, something far more important than mere survival was at stake.
He continued forcing his exhausted body forward, pushing himself beyond his limits as though stopping for even a single moment would result in something far worse than death itself.
But just as he took another step forward, the severe blood loss finally began taking its toll.
His vision blurred violently while sharp headaches assaulted his mind without pause. Strength rapidly drained from his body, and the moment his weakened leg gave out beneath him, the scholar stumbled forward before barely managing to catch himself against a nearby tree.
The sudden stop brought his frantic escape to an abrupt end.
For several moments, the man simply remained leaning against the rough bark, breathing heavily as he struggled to steady both his body and mind. In his current condition, continuing to run recklessly would only hasten his death.
"Huff… Huff… Huff…"
Cold sweat dripped down his pale face as ragged breaths continuously escaped his lips.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap Tap Tap!
The scholar's exhausted body immediately stiffened.
Footsteps.
Rapidly approaching footsteps.
The sound echoed throughout the forest from somewhere behind him, growing louder and closer with every passing second.
His emerald-green eye widened slightly.
Turning around in alarm, the scholar caught sight of a familiar figure sprinting through the forest while following the trail of blood he had unknowingly left behind.
It was the very individual from whom he had been desperately fleeing this entire time.
And because he had stopped to rest, the distance between them had drastically shortened.
The pursuing figure was clad entirely in black from head to toe. A featureless mask concealed the person's face completely, revealing only a pair of cold, lifeless eyes staring forward with unwavering focus.
Those eyes contained neither anger nor emotion.
Only purpose.
Seeing that there was no other choice, the scholar immediately forced his battered body to move once more despite his worsening condition.
Ignoring the pain coursing throughout his body, he resumed fleeing as desperately as before, hoping to escape no matter the cost.
Since his pursuer had already discovered his location and possessed a clear view of the direction in which he was heading, the scholar quickly began making sudden twists and turns throughout the forest in an attempt to throw off the pursuit.
Against wild beasts, such methods may have proven effective.
Against a trained human pursuer—
Especially one clearly experienced in tracking targets—
The effectiveness was minimal.
Still, despite his desperate efforts failing to completely lose his pursuer, the scholar managed to widen the distance between them slightly. Through luck and the forest's dense terrain, he even succeeded in momentarily disappearing from the masked individual's line of sight.
Forced to relocate the trail, the pursuer slowed momentarily to search for him once more.
Far ahead in the distance, the scholar staggered weakly through the forest while panting heavily, struggling to maintain his balance as even more blood escaped from his wounds.
"HUFF…! HUFF…! HUFF…!"
His body had already reached its limit.
Continuing to run any further would only result in him collapsing unconscious from blood loss before inevitably being captured.
And that—
Above all else—
Was something he absolutely could not allow to happen.
Left with no other option, the scholar decided to hide and wait for another opportunity to escape.
His trembling gaze rapidly scanned his surroundings in search of any viable hiding place.
Every passing second felt like another step closer toward a horrific fate.
The longer he remained exposed, the sooner his pursuer would find him.
Then—
His eye suddenly landed upon a large bush dense enough to conceal a fully grown adult with room to spare.
Without hesitation, the scholar immediately forced himself inside.
Branches scraped violently against his already tattered robes, tearing them apart even further as he shoved himself deeper into the foliage.
The moment he disappeared within the bush, he went completely silent.
He suppressed every sound.
Every breath.
Every movement.
Regardless of whether his pursuer had already reached the area or not, he knew even the slightest noise could reveal his location.
That decision would soon prove correct.
Moments later, the masked pursuer finally arrived at the area after once again following the trail of blood left behind by the scholar.
However, rather than discovering his target collapsed from exhaustion as expected, the masked individual instead found numerous blood trails branching toward multiple different directions.
The scattered trails prevented the pursuer from immediately determining which path the scholar had taken.
Still, the masked figure quickly noticed something unusual.
The blood trails only extended a limited distance before abruptly stopping.
Which meant—
The scholar had not escaped.
He was hiding nearby.
Without wasting another second, the masked individual immediately began searching the surrounding area, carefully inspecting every possible hiding place while leaving no corner unchecked.
Meanwhile, hidden within the bush, the scholar was silently panicking.
It was only a matter of time before he was discovered.
His mind raced desperately as he considered every possible option available to him.
Fight?
Impossible.
Escape?
Equally impossible.
Eventually, amidst his growing desperation, one final idea emerged within his mind.
A gamble.
A reckless plan with an extremely low chance of success.
But in his current situation, he had only two choices.
Attempt the gamble and risk death—
Or allow himself to be captured alive.
And somehow…
Capture seemed far worse.
Resolving himself, the scholar slowly reached one trembling hand into the torn sleeve of his robes before carefully pulling out a small concealed dagger.
A hidden weapon prepared for dire situations such as this.
But the moment the blade slid free from its sheath—
Shhk.
The faint metallic scraping sound echoed unexpectedly through the silent forest.
The masked pursuer instantly stopped moving.
Then slowly turned toward the bush.
Although the sound could have originated from something else, instinct immediately told the masked individual that the scholar was hiding somewhere nearby.
And despite now knowing the general direction of his target's location, the pursuer still could not determine the exact hiding place.
Nevertheless, the masked figure slowly began approaching the area.
Closer.
Closer.
Step by step.
Meanwhile, hidden within the bush, the scholar stared silently at the dagger reflected beneath the moonlight.
Then—
After a brief moment of hesitation—
He silently raised the blade toward his own hand.
His breathing trembled.
But eventually, after taking one deep breath to steady himself—
Slice.
The scholar severed his own pinky finger.
The movement was swift and nearly silent, yet the pain that followed was unimaginably intense.
His entire body trembled violently as he struggled to suppress the overwhelming urge to scream.
Blood immediately flowed from the wound while agony surged throughout his nerves like burning fire.
Still—
He endured it.
Slowly, the pain became manageable enough for him to regain control over himself.
And with that done—
The scholar prepared to carry out the only plan he had left.
Carefully peering through the gaps within the bush, he checked the masked individual's position.
Only to discover—
The pursuer had already finished searching the bush directly beside him.
The scholar's heart nearly stopped.
Although mentally unprepared, he immediately realized this was the only perfect opportunity he would ever receive.
One chance.
One attempt.
Failure meant death.
No—
Something worse than death.
Without allowing himself time to hesitate, the scholar swiftly grabbed his severed pinky finger and hurled it far into the forest.
Rustle!
The object landed successfully within the distance.
Immediately, the masked individual turned toward the sound.
Driven by suspicion and curiosity, the pursuer bent down and picked up the severed finger for inspection—
Completely unaware that this was precisely what the scholar had intended.
The moment the masked individual exposed their back—
The scholar exploded out from the bush.
His dagger was already raised high overhead as he lunged directly toward the exposed target with everything he had remaining.
The sudden rustling immediately alerted the masked figure.
Realizing the distraction had been deliberate, the pursuer instantly attempted to turn around.
But it was too late.
The scholar's dagger had already descended.
He had no intention of allowing this opportunity to escape him.
Not when this was his only chance to inflict a serious enough injury to stop his pursuer from continuing the chase.
Swoosh!
The blade sliced through the air.
Closer.
Closer—
Then suddenly—
It stopped.
The dagger froze mere centimeters away from the masked individual's back.
The scholar's expression twisted in confusion.
No matter how much strength he exerted, his arm refused to move any further.
Then—
Drip.
Drip.
Blood began falling onto the masked individual's back.
Confused, the scholar instinctively lowered his gaze toward the reflection visible upon his dagger's blade.
And there—
He saw it.
Blood spilling from his own mouth.
And protruding from his back—
An arrow.
A single unfamiliar arrow had pierced directly through his body from behind.
The scholar's eye widened violently.
Shaken beyond belief, he slowly turned toward the direction from which the arrow had come.
Standing deeper within the forest was another masked individual dressed identically to the first—
Except this one carried a bow.
Only then did the scholar finally realize what had happened.
But before he could react—
The masked individual in front of him instantly seized the opportunity.
Boom!
A devastating kick slammed directly into the scholar's side.
The impact fractured multiple ribs instantly before launching his body sideways through the air.
He crashed violently back-first into a nearby tree with enough force to shatter the trunk upon impact.
Crack!
The collision drove the arrow even deeper into his body while his shattered ribs pierced into his lungs.
Blood immediately flooded his throat.
The scholar slow slid down from the broken tree before falling heavily onto the ground beneath it, leaving behind a trail of blood smeared across the bark.
"Cough—! Cough—!"
Blood poured continuously from his mouth.
He tried to move—
But couldn't.
His newly sustained injuries were fatal.
Any sudden movement would likely kill him instantly.
And after suffering such a devastating blow, the scholar finally understood just how utterly hopeless his situation had become.
'Just… how in the world did things come to this…?'
The thought surfaced weakly within his fading consciousness as bitterness and disbelief slowly filled his remaining visible eye.
Then—
As darkness gradually began consuming his consciousness—
His thoughts instinctively drifted back toward the events that had started it all.
******