Heaven - Sundered Path

Scene 1 — The Semifinal: Shadows Gather

Thunderclouds brooded over Skybound Arena, casting the platform in somber gray.

Disciples gathered in nervous silence. The names hovered in spirit light above the arena:

Lin Xun vs Zhao Kaiming

Zhao Kaiming emerged in a storm of black mist. His robes were crimson-black, stitched with demon skin, and at his back hung the Bone Hunger Blade, a living weapon carved from a demon lord's spine.

"He's fused with a dark spirit," muttered Yan Qiruo in the crowd. "That thing feeds on soul force."

Lin Xun stepped forward, steady as still water.

Though his Crimson Bone Pulse surged in his body, there was a flicker of something else in his gaze — as though a curtain had been drawn back in his mind.

The judge gave no warning.

The battle began in an instant.

Scene 2 — Demon Blade Unleashed

Zhao Kaiming struck first — the Bone Hunger Blade screamed through the air, leaving trails of darkness that shredded the array's light shields.

Lin Xun dodged, activating the Fourth Bone Gate: Skyflesh Ascension — his limbs burning with radiant crimson Qi.

Their first exchange was a blur. Zhao Kaiming's blade bit into Lin Xun's aura — and began to drink from his soul.

"I taste a history," the blade whispered. "Murder. Rebirth. An empire undone."

Lin Xun recoiled. Pain lanced behind his eyes. The blade was pulling not only Qi — but memories.

In his mind, a door creaked open.

Scene 3 — Memory Awakened: The Soul Crucible

Lin Xun fell into a trance — but not a simple illusion. This was a deep-soul recall triggered by the blade's parasitic resonance.

He stood once more in Xu Tianheng's body, in the Soul Crucible, deep beneath the Heaven Realm. Lava flowed in rivers around black obelisks. The sacrificial array was complete.

Beside him knelt Su Ruyan, her silver hair scorched, her spiritual core fractured.

"Don't do this," she whispered. "You'll kill us both."

Xu Tianheng said nothing.

He raised his hand.

The array ignited.

A column of flame consumed her.

"You chose the throne over love," her voice echoed. "Even gods must answer."

Scene 4 — Return to Battle, Heart Shattered

The vision ended. Lin Xun staggered, bleeding from his eyes.

The crowd gasped. Zhao Kaiming approached, grinning.

"Your past chokes you. You'll fall by your own memories."

But Lin Xun's pendant pulsed — and then burst.

A soul echo surged forth — not just his past self, but the emotion burned into it: grief, guilt, wrath.

He unleashed the Echo Pulse Technique, a martial soul art awakened by recalling that moment of betrayal.

"I remember. And now I carry it forward."

He slammed his palm into the arena.

A wave of soul-force erupted, burning the demon Qi in Zhao's body.

With one final strike — imbued with regret and resolve — Lin Xun shattered the Bone Hunger Blade, severing the spirit link.

Zhao Kaiming collapsed, unconscious.

Scene 5 — Aftermath: An Elder's Warning

In the healing chambers, Lin Xun awoke under the gaze of Elder Hai Chen.

"You touched something ancient," the elder said. "Not just your memory. A gate to deeper power."

Hai Chen handed him a sealed scroll — ancient, pulsing with Qi, wrapped in chains of celestial script.

"The Crimson Path Codex — Heaven-Severing Volume. You're ready to try."

Scene 6 — Training in Seclusion: The Fifth Bone Gate

Lin Xun secluded himself in the Skyfire Cavern, surrounded by spirit stones, flame arrays, and celestial ore.

The codex described the Fifth Bone Gate: Heaven-Sundered Core — a fusion of soul, bone marrow, and willpower, opening the threshold to the Core Foundation Realm.

But to awaken it, he had to summon and withstand a Heaven Phantom — a living imprint of the heavenly laws, capable of crushing impure souls.

He began preparations:

Refined 8 rare flame elixirs.

Tempered his marrow with molten spiritual iron.

Burned talismans along his skin, each bearing ancestral seals.

On the seventh day, under a blood moon, he sat cross-legged and called the Heaven Phantom.

Scene 7 — Phantom Trial

The cavern darkened.

Then the air cracked.

A towering figure emerged — head wreathed in flame, skin made of burning script. Its gaze was weightless and absolute.

"You carry stolen fate. Borrowed time."

It struck.

Lin Xun endured — not by resisting, but by accepting. He opened his soul wide — allowed the pain, the guilt, and the truth to flow through him.

"I was broken. I still am. But I choose my path."

The Phantom faltered.

The fifth gate opened.

His spine pulsed with golden marrow.

His bones glowed red.

His Qi surged beyond the Foundation Stage, entering the Core Realm.

And then…

The Heaven Phantom bowed.

"You walk a severed path. May it reach the stars."

Final Scene — Shadows Beyond the Sect

Far above the mortal world, in a silver palace of starlight, a figure opened its eyes.

A celestial envoy.

He gazed toward the mortal realm, where Lin Xun had broken through.

"So… he lives again."

"Sealbreakers cannot be ignored."