The first lightning strike hit the mountain five miles away.
It didn't flash. It fell — like a sword, slow and steady, parting the sky with soundless judgment. The clouds didn't rumble; they seethed.
Xuanzang felt the system pulse in his chest like a second heartbeat.
[Celestial Surveillance Confirmed: Protocol Echo-13 Initiated]Heavenly Punishment Cascade: Imminent (Targets: Sect Without Heaven)]Karma Deviation Index: 72.3% – Judgement Class: Cleansing Tier]
The wind stilled. Even the air seemed to brace itself.
Wukong spun his staff once. "This isn't a storm," he said flatly. "It's a warning shot."
Bajie's eyes narrowed. "So Heaven still strikes... just not where it's needed."
Sha Wujing stepped beside Xuanzang. "If the system marked the sect, they're already judged. We should leave."
"No," Xuanzang said. "We're inside the perimeter. If we run now, the judgment may follow."
Lin Xuelian stepped forward from her kneeling place, robes whispering against the broken flagstones. "Let it come. If Heaven fears our path, it proves we've already left its shadow."
Her voice was too calm.
Above, a second bolt dropped — this one aimed at the Faceless Idol. The stone structure detonated into blinding shards. A wave of Qi, sharper than any sword, rolled outward.
Xuanzang raised his palm. A golden seal flared, automatically deploying from his system.
[Karmic Barrier: Mantra of Eightfold Reflection – Lv. 1 (Passive Trigger)]Allies within 10m gain minor resistance to celestial backlash.]
Dust and sacred debris washed over the courtyard. Wukong anchored his staff in the ground. "They're calling this place a sin."
Master Nuyan stood unmoved beneath the swirling clouds, arms spread, face expressionless.
"This is our tribulation," he said. "And I accept it."
But Xuanzang's system disagreed.
[Celestial Pulse Detected: Scripture Fragment Signature (Dormant)]Location: Beneath Central Altar Ruins – Spiritual Echo Matching: "Fragment 4 – Sutra of Judgment's Mercy"]
Warning: Contact with fragment during celestial cleansing may alter outcome. Proceed?
"There's a fragment here," Xuanzang said aloud. "Buried in this sect's foundation."
Wukong scowled. "Figures. They built this whole place on stolen scripture."
"No," Wujing said quietly. "Not stolen. Forgotten. Abandoned."
A third bolt began to gather above, slower this time — deliberate, like a knife choosing where to cut.
Xuanzang turned to Master Nuyan. "Let me retrieve the fragment. Let me end the trial."
Nuyan didn't answer. His body began to glow with pale lines — ancient sect tattoos reactivating as his core began to burn.
[Karmic Overload Detected – Self-Sacrifice Intent Confirmed]Soul Conversion Probability: 87%]
"He's trying to absorb the judgment into himself," Xuanzang whispered.
Sha Wujing stepped forward. "He won't survive it."
Wukong's eyes narrowed. "That idiot's about to erase his sect to protect what's left of it."
Xuanzang stepped forward. "Then I won't let him."
He ran to the ruins of the altar, dodging debris and spiritual turbulence. The ground cracked with every step — fragments of doctrine, chants, and cultivation cycles scattered like broken teeth.
At the altar's base, he plunged his hand into the rubble — guided not by sight, but by system resonance.
[Touch Confirmed – Scripture Fragment Acquired: "Sutra of Judgment's Mercy – Partial Line (1/7)"]Effect: Grants passive ability – "Delay Divine Wrath: 1 Use."]
Light exploded from his palm.
The descending lightning faltered.
Just for a moment — but enough.
Xuanzang turned and raised the fragment above his head.
[Ability Activated: Delay Divine Wrath]**Target: Celestial Judgement Bolt (Class 1 – Sect-level Event)]Result: Temporary Suspension – 33 seconds.]
"Now!" he shouted.
Wukong surged forward, grabbed Nuyan, and slammed the man back from the epicenter. Sha Wujing and Bajie moved to pull stunned disciples from their kneeling places.
Xuanzang remained at the center, arms raised, scripture fragment humming in his hands.
The light held.
For exactly 33 seconds.
Then the bolt fell.
But the target had changed.
Instead of judgment... the bolt struck the Faceless Altar, now inert.
And it shattered cleanly, without fire or fury — just silence.
[Divine Judgment Redirected: Karmic Residue Neutralized]Quest Complete: "Doctrine of Silence"]**Reward: +300 Karma | Scripture Fragment (1/7) Secured | Sect Saved (Conditional)]
Karma: -8,938 → -8,638Fragment Progress: 1 / 36Reputation: Sect Without Heaven – "Wary Gratitude"]
Master Nuyan lay in the rubble, burned and unconscious, but alive.
Xuanzang knelt beside him, placing the now-dormant fragment into his sleeve.
Behind him, Lin Xuelian bowed low. "We rejected Heaven… but you did not reject us."
Xuanzang rose slowly. "You still carry weight. That means you're still part of the Wheel."
She smiled for the first time. "Then we will walk… if not forward, then at least away from the edge."
As the party prepared to leave, Xuanzang looked at the fragment again.
"Sutra of Judgment's Mercy – Partial."Only a single line was readable:
"Even wrath may teach the righteous their purpose."
He tucked it away.
And walked on.