The Azure Cloud Sect was unusually quiet. The usual morning drills had been suspended, and disciples whispered in hushed tones. Lian Ren stood alone in the central courtyard, the weight of his recent duel with Zhao Feng still pressing on his shoulders.
Suddenly, a resonant chime echoed throughout the sect grounds. The sky darkened momentarily, and a beam of golden light descended upon Lian Ren. The system's voice rang clear in his mind:
System Notification:
[Karmic Rank Ascension Detected]
[New Title: Initiate of the Divine Trial]
[All Heaven-Touched are summoned to the Divine Trial Grounds]
[Prepare for the first trial: The Path of Reflection]
Gasps erupted from the surrounding disciples. Elder Wu stepped forward, his eyes wide with a mix of awe and concern.
"Lian Ren," he said, his voice steady, "this is unprecedented. The Divine Trial hasn't been activated in centuries."
Lian Ren nodded, the golden light still enveloping him. He felt a surge of energy, a pull towards a destiny he hadn't fully comprehended until now.
As the light faded, a glowing sigil appeared on the ground—a portal leading to the Divine Trial Grounds. Without hesitation, Lian Ren stepped into it, ready to face whatever challenges lay ahead.
The world beyond the portal was unlike anything Lian Ren had seen. He stood on a bridge of shimmering glass suspended over a boundless void, where stars swirled like whispers of forgotten deities. At the end of the bridge stood a colossal gate—half of it glowing gold, the other half etched in shadow.
The system's voice returned, calm but cold:
[Trial Initiated: The Path of Reflection]
Objective: Face yourself. Survive your truth. Denial leads to failure.]
Suddenly, the gate opened with a groan that echoed through the void. From its depths walked... himself.
But not quite.
The figure wore the same face, but his eyes burned red with divine flame, and a cruel smile danced on his lips. Adorned in celestial robes, wreathed in wrathful energy, he radiated divinity untempered by morality.
"I am what you were," the echo said. "I am what you still long to be."
Lian Ren clenched his fists. "You're the wrath that nearly destroyed everything."
The Echo of Wrath grinned. "And yet, I protected what you were too weak to hold. Power doesn't ask for permission."
The bridge shook. The stars churned.
[Warning: Emotional Stability Required – Karma Surge Detected]
Wrath-Lian raised a hand, and divine fire coiled through the air.
Lian Ren focused his breath, calling upon the karma within him.
"Echo of Wisdom – Activate."
Time slowed.
He ducked under a fire lash, spun low, and struck forward with a palm of light—Heaven's Breath Palm—but held back just enough not to kill.
Wrath was flung backward. Not destroyed—but smiling.
"You're learning restraint," the echo said as it dissolved into golden dust. "Let's see how long that lasts."
[Trial Passed: The Path of Reflection]
+3 Karmic Resonance
Skill Unlocked: Divine Insight – Sense the true nature of a person once per day
[Karmic Alignment Adjusted: You are no longer human. But not yet god. Choose wisely.]
The stars dimmed. The bridge dissolved.
And Lian Ren opened his eyes, back in the mortal realm—changed. Empowered. And watched.
From afar, across the mountains, a dozen other Heaven-Touched felt the shift.
And one among them whispered:
"He's awakened."
The sky cracked open.
Lian Ren stood atop the Azure Cloud Sect's highest peak, his robes billowing in the sudden gusts. Above, streaks of golden-blue light tore across the heavens—divine fragments descending like falling stars. Each left a trail of shimmering energy, painting the sky with ethereal hues.
The system chimed:
System Notification:
[World Event: Multiple Divine Fragments Detected]
[Karmic Flux Increasing]
[Warning: Tainted Fragment Approaching]
Lian Ren's heart pounded. He could feel the pull of a fragment nearby, its energy twisted and corrupted. He had to act quickly.
Descending the peak, he followed the fragment's trail to a dense forest. The trees whispered secrets as he passed, their leaves trembling with anticipation. In a clearing, he found the fragment—a pulsating orb of light, its glow marred by dark veins.
As he approached, a figure emerged from the shadows—a cultivator, eyes glowing with a malevolent light. The Fallen Heaven-Touched.
"You seek to claim this fragment?" the figure sneered. "It's mine. The power... the wrath... it belongs to me!"
Lian Ren stood firm. "That power is corrupted. It will consume you."
The Fallen laughed, launching an attack. Lian Ren dodged, countering with a burst of pure energy. The clash illuminated the forest, a battle of light against darkness.
Drawing upon his inner strength, Lian Ren channeled his energy into a purifying strike, targeting the fragment. The dark veins receded, and the orb's glow brightened. The Fallen screamed as the corruption left him, collapsing to the ground.
The system chimed again:
System Notification:
[Divine Fragment Purified]
[New Skill Unlocked: Karmic Purge]
[Warning: More Tainted Fragments Detected]
Lian Ren looked to the sky, where more fragments continued to fall. The battle was just beginning.
Lian Ren exhaled slowly, steam curling from his lips in the moonlit forest. The purged fragment hovered before him now—quiet, pulsing faintly with restored divinity. It floated toward his chest, then sank inward with a flash.
System Update:
[Divine Resonance Increased: 4.6%]
[Emotion Registered: Guilt (Suppressed)]
[Warning: Absorbed fragment contained emotional trace of Envy]
His fists clenched. "Envy… I remember now," he whispered, images flooding back—of a former divine who walked beside him in the heavenly halls, jealous of his favor with the Celestial Throne.
Footsteps rustled behind him. Lian spun, fingers raised.
A young girl stepped from the brush, trembling. Her robes were tattered, her arm wrapped in vines that twitched unnaturally.
"Help… please," she gasped.
Her karmic thread was fraying. The forest's tainted spirit beasts had latched onto her soul.
He knelt. "Be still."
A soft blue glow emitted from his palm. He focused, invoking Karmic Purge again—channeling the purified fragment's power.
The vines hissed, recoiling. As they burned away, her body stopped trembling.
The girl looked up at him, eyes wide. "You're… Heaven-Touched."
Lian stood silently.
She bowed her head. "They say you'll bring destruction. But you saved me."
System Notification:
[Micro-Karmic Ripple Triggered: +1 Reputation in local province]
[New Karma Thread Formed: Minor Destiny – 'The Witness']
Behind him, the fallen cultivator groaned awake.
But his eyes… were no longer glowing.
"I… I was consumed…" he murmured, tears leaking down his face. "That thing—it fed on my hate. I couldn't stop myself."
Lian Ren studied him. "Do you still wish to cultivate?"
"I… I don't know."
"Then walk a mortal path. Begin again."
He turned and left them both, cloak sweeping behind him.
The sky thundered. Another fragment streaked overhead—this one burning purple.
Wrath.
And it was headed… straight for a nearby town.
The next morning arrived with blood-colored clouds seething above the eastern horizon. Lian Ren stood at the ridge outside Jade Hollow Town, watching as smoke curled up in the distance. Panic had already taken hold.
Screams echoed faintly.
The purple streak had fallen near the outskirts.
The Fallen Heaven-Touched had reached the town first.
He descended quickly, cloak drawn close. People ran past him on the dirt road—villagers clutching children, guards limping and bloodied.
Then he saw her—the priestess.
She stood calmly beside the outer shrine gate, her blank white eyes lifted toward the storming sky.
"You came," she said softly.
"You knew?" he asked.
She nodded. "The threads screamed last night. Envy was only the beginning. Wrath has taken hold… in a child."
Lian's face darkened. "Where?"
She raised her hand. "The temple school. The boy's emotions were stifled for too long. When the fragment touched him… he snapped."
Lian vanished in a flash of wind.
Inside the burning schoolhouse, flames curled along the ceiling. Desks and scrolls turned to ash.
And in the center stood a boy no older than eight—eyes glowing violet, fists clenched.
Guards surrounded him, terrified to get closer. Their swords trembled in their hands.
The boy's voice was cold, distant. "They mocked me. Every day. I just wanted it to stop."
Purple aura pulsed outward like a heartbeat. One guard dropped his sword and screamed as his skin began to smoke.
Lian Ren stepped forward through the fire.
"Enough."
The boy turned. "You… feel like me."
"I am like you," Lian said. "But I did not let wrath consume me."
"You lie!"
The boy roared, lashing out. The violet aura became a fist of force, slamming toward Lian Ren—
He raised one hand.
"Karma Pulse: Mirror Veil."
The wrath-born attack reflected back, staggering the boy.
Lian approached slowly.
"I won't strike you," he said. "But I will stop you."
"I don't want to feel it anymore…"
"Then give it to me."
The boy fell to his knees, sobbing.
Lian touched his forehead.
The violet fragment shivered… then leapt into Lian's chest.
A surge of heat and fury ripped through his mind—but he held firm.
System Alert:
[Divine Fragment Absorbed: Wrath]
[Passive Unlocked: Pressure of Divinity – Enemies below your level tremble when facing you]
[Karmic Burden Increased]
The room went still.
The flames died.
Outside, villagers watched as Lian Ren carried the unconscious boy in his arms, soot staining his robes, eyes dim but resolute.
The priestess bowed as he passed.
"You took his burden?"
"I have enough room for one more," he murmured.
Above them, the clouds parted… and in their wake, a golden eye blinked open in the sky.