The temple lay in ruins. Smoke curled lazily around shattered stone, the acrid scent of ash and scorched wood filling the air. But the battle had stirred more than flames—it had awakened ancient eyes across the realms.

Far to the east, in the floating city of Yunxiao, elders of the Eternal Sect circled a rippling flame mirror, its surface dancing with visions of distant lands.

“What did you see?” a stern elder demanded, voice slicing through the incense-thick air.

“A boy,” another whispered, pointing at the mirror. “The Blue Phoenix… it has chosen him. The prophecy speaks of a Vessel who will burn the realms of man and god alike.”

“He must be taken—or destroyed,” a third elder hissed, veins pulsing with restrained fury.

Back among the ruins, Xiulan and Yanmei sheltered beneath the temple’s surviving arch. Xiulan’s body still glowed faintly, the blue fire of the Phoenix lingering in his aura.

“I think… we’ve triggered something far beyond us,” Yanmei murmured, her eyes scanning the shattered pillars.

Xiulan’s gaze lingered on the ashes at his feet. “Good,” he said, voice low and resolute. “Let the heavens tremble. I won’t stop now.”

A sudden wind heralded a newcomer. From the swirling haze, a figure approached—tall, robed in storm-gray silk, carrying a staff etched with intricate lightning patterns. His presence was calm yet electric, like the calm before a thunderstorm.

“I saw the Phoenix,” he said, voice deep and confident, carrying weight with every word. “The world will hunt you now, Vessel. You’ll need allies.”

Xiulan’s eyes narrowed, assessing the stranger. “And you are?”

The man’s lips curved into a faint, knowing smile. “Call me Lei Feng. I’ve come to offer you a choice.”

Yanmei’s eyes flicked between Xiulan and the newcomer, tension coiling like a spring. The ruins whispered around them, as if the world itself awaited his answer.

Xiulan inhaled slowly. The Blue Phoenix’s warmth still pulsed within him. The path ahead was dangerous, unpredictable—but for the first time, he felt the taste of control.

“I’ll hear your choice,” he said, voice steady, burning with quiet defiance.

Lei Feng’s smile widened. “Then listen carefully… because the next step will decide more than your fate—it will decide the fate of all realms.”