Felix awoke to silence.
It wasn't the quiet you hear at night, or the soft silence when you sit still to think. This was something much deeper. A heavy kind of silence filled the air and pressed against his ears. It was as if the whole world had stopped breathing. There was no wind, no sound of trees, not even the beat of his own heart. Just a soft hum, always there—buzzing under his feet, brushing against his skin, and gently shaking inside his bones.
He blinked slowly, giving his eyes time to adjust. The flash of light from the talisman had left everything blurry. As his sight slowly came back, he looked around and realized he was somewhere completely new—somewhere unlike any place he had ever been.
The talisman was gone. Or rather… he was inside it.
"A pocket dimension," he whispered. Saying it out loud made it feel more real. "Inside a talisman… the skill to make this…"
His voice felt far away, swallowed by the empty space around him. He took a careful step. The ground beneath his boots crunched softly. It felt strange—soft like ash, but solid like glass. Under the surface, lines of blue and gold light moved slowly, pulsing like a heartbeat. They formed symbols older and more detailed than anything he had ever studied.
"When will I ever reach this kind of skill?" he murmured, feeling both amazed and a little jealous. To create a place like this, bind it into a talisman, and keep it alive through time… that wasn't just cultivation. It was art. It was history. It felt almost divine.
Felix looked up. The sky shimmered with colors he didn't know the names of. It looked like starlight mixed with oil. Far above, floating rocks spun slowly in the air like forgotten moons. The whole place felt alive. The energy wasn't just spiritual—it was old, full of will and memory. It pressed on his skin and soaked into his bones, like the realm itself was watching him.
Every step he took seemed to echo, not just through the air, but through the world.
As he walked across the strange land, he saw broken pieces of old buildings—stone courtyards, shattered rings, and ruins half-covered in dust. Long ago, they may have been homes, shrines, or workshops. Now, they were only ruins—like bones of something long dead.
He passed what once were treasure caches. Chests covered in old runes, jade boxes lined with spirit silk. Things he had always dreamed of finding. But everything had rotted. The wood had fallen apart, and the locks were rusted. Spirit stones were dull and lifeless. Weapons had cracked or turned to dust. Scrolls had crumbled into powder.
He knelt beside one and ran his fingers through the ash-like remains. "How long has this place been sealed?"
Time inside a talisman realm was strange. A year outside could mean a hundred inside—or maybe the other way around. But this decay was real. This place had been forgotten, maybe even destroyed.
Then he saw the herbs.
They grew in small patches, holding on to life in the middle of all the ruin. Some glowed softly with inner qi. Others looked twisted or strange, their shapes unfamiliar. He bent down to one with star-shaped leaves and red thorns, gently cupping its flower in his hand.
It buzzed with power. Wild, old power.
"I don't recognize this one," he said quietly. "It's not in the Guild records."
He picked it with care and placed it in his preservation talisman. More herbs surrounded him—some warm, some cold to the touch. Most were ruined. But a few were rare treasures—plants that could heal, strengthen, or even reshape a cultivator's body and spirit.
One vine nearby held a single golden fruit. It glowed faintly, the light soft but still alive.
Felix stopped. He knew it right away.
"Sunheart Vine…" he breathed. "Lina said it only grows where spirit veins cross."
He remembered her showing him a drawing in her old notebook. She had called it a blinding spiritual plant, extremely rare. Even a dry one could help clean blocked qi and make your foundation stronger.
This one still had life.
Felix hesitated. Then nodded. "Even if it's faded… It's worth trying."
He took a bite.
It felt like lightning exploding inside him.
The energy shot through him, wild and bright. He couldn't scream—his body locked up from the shock. He dropped to his knees, hands digging into the ground.
Qi rushed through his meridians, stretching them to the limit. It hurt—like he might break.
Then, suddenly, the pain changed.
The fire turned into warmth. The energy stopped fighting him and started working with him, moving smoothly through his body. His breathing returned. His muscles relaxed.
He lay on the ground, shaking and gasping.
His cultivation level hadn't risen, but he felt stronger. More stable. The cracks in his foundation were gone. He was whole.
"No wonder Lina called it a miracle," he whispered. "Even weakened… it still works."
He looked up.
In the distance, something rose out of the mist—a tower.
It stood tall and sharp like a spear, made of black stone with silver veins. It glowed softly with power. Unlike the rest of the world, it looked untouched by time. It wasn't broken or faded. It stood strong.
And it was calling to him.
His heart beat faster. This wasn't just some sacred place. The tower was aware. Not alive like a person, but awake somehow. Watching. Waiting.
Drawn forward, Felix started walking. The ground became harder to cross—cracks opened up without warning, and the air felt thick with energy. He climbed broken paths, stepped over dry rivers buzzing with static, and passed places where great battles had been fought. No bodies remained, but the damage was clear—burns, craters, shattered weapons stuck in stone.
Others had been here before.
They hadn't made it.
At last, he stood before the tower. Its double doors were huge, covered in symbols that moved and glowed. They weren't locked. They were a test.
Felix lifted his hand and touched the stone. It was warm.
The doors opened.
He stepped inside.
The chamber was vast and round, like a holy temple. The air felt thick and full of something sacred. Murals lined the walls—pictures of great battles, of robed warriors fighting giant beasts, of powerful talismans drawn in the sky. It showed a lost world of power and sorrow.
In the middle of the room stood a statue.
It was tall and strong, shaped like a person but not human. Its surface was smooth and golden. It held a sword, blade pointing down. It didn't move.
Until Felix came closer.
The statue shifted.
Its head turned. Its arms tightened.
Felix froze. His hand moved to his pouch, but he didn't attack. He just watched.
Then a voice spoke—not out loud, but inside his mind.
"To ascend, you must prove your strength. Defeat me, and the path shall open."
The words were calm. Not angry. But finally.
Felix's heart pounded. He looked into the statue's glowing eyes—and felt fear.