The Duel That Shouldn't Have Been
The duel platform crackled with tension.
Li Wei stood still, facing the girl who shattered his mind with a single glance—Lotus, the half-masked stranger who claimed to know the forgotten parts of him.
Now her mask was gone.
And Li could see everything.
The softness behind her glare. The sadness etched into her smile. The storm of memory threatening to drown them both.
"I didn't forget you," he said, voice barely above a whisper.
"Maybe you didn't," Lotus replied. "But you let them erase me."
The crowd was silent.
This wasn't just a fight. This was something deeper. Older.
First Strike
Lotus struck first — a blur of white fire and lunar mist.
Li dodged, but barely. Her blade carved through his jacket.
She spun, danced, slashed.
He blocked, countered — but her style was his style. Refined. Precise.
"You taught me this," she whispered between strikes. "When we were children. You called it 'Fang of the Wind.'"
He froze.
She took the opening and sent him flying across the platform.
Pain exploded in his chest. Blood filled his mouth.
Flashback I: The Cliff
A younger Li — barely nine — stood at the edge of a broken cliff, bruised and alone.
Rain poured. A cold wind howled.
"You're going to die out here," a girl's voice said.
She knelt beside him. Small hands. Silver-blue eyes. A glowing lotus in her palm.
"Hold this. It will protect what little you have left."
The memory vanished as pain ripped through him in the present.
System: "Memory sync activated. Timeline instability rising."
The Audience Murmurs
Yue gripped the edge of her seat.
"She's too fast."
Lana's eyes narrowed. "She knows him. Too well."
Scarlet's coffin pulsed. "She's waking something in him. Something… old."
Shen Ruo watched in silence, hands trembling.
Lotus's Past Revealed
"You were taken," Lotus whispered, parrying his next strike. "By those who feared what we were."
She knocked his blade aside. "I followed. I searched. For years."
Li dropped to one knee. "Why didn't I remember?"
"They sealed your mind. And they sealed me away with it."
She stepped forward, blade to his throat.
"But I remembered everything."
He looked up at her.
Tears stung his eyes.
"So what now?"
She faltered. "Now… I test if you're still the boy I loved."
The Strike of the Heart
Lotus slashed — not at him, but into the air — sending a spiral of moonlight blades.
Li countered with Burning Pulse, flames roaring around him.
The two elements collided — moonlight and flame — sending shockwaves across the sky.
Lotus's cloak burned away. Her dress shimmered, revealing runes etched along her arms.
Seals.
She'd been sealed, too.
They weren't enemies.
They were victims.
Li lowered his weapon.
"I'm done fighting you."
The crowd gasped.
Lotus hesitated.
Then lowered hers too.
System Surge: Hidden Memory Restored
Timeline Fragment UnlockedCode: ORPHAN-L7-LOTUS
Memory Integration: 52%
New Trait Gained: Bound Flame – Lotus Bonded
Description: When fighting near Lotus, Li gains +25% defense and cannot be charmed or mentally manipulated.
Lotus's Choice
"I didn't come to destroy you," Lotus said softly. "Only to see if you were still… you."
Li smiled faintly. "And?"
She sighed.
"You're stronger. Dumber. But still… you."
He offered his hand.
She took it.
Their palms touched, and the seal around her arm cracked — a flower of light blooming between them.
Meanwhile: Yue vs. Meiyu
While the crowd recovered from the emotional storm, another battle began.
Yue Xiaolan vs. Meiyu.
Yue wasted no time — her sword became a storm of ice and fury.
Meiyu summoned her starlight wings, hovering mid-air.
"You've always hated me," Meiyu said.
"I don't hate you," Yue replied. "I just don't trust you."
Their clash was like night and dawn — ice fangs vs radiant comets.
The crowd roared.
The Argument Turns Personal
Between clashes, their words grew sharp.
"You're always by his side," Yue growled. "Smiling, crying… like you deserve him."
"I never said I did," Meiyu replied, ducking a swing. "I'm just trying to stay by him. Just like you."
"I bled for him!" Yue screamed.
"So did I!" Meiyu's light flared. "Why do we have to be enemies?!"
Their blades collided in a brilliant explosion of frost and stars.
Shen Ruo Steps In
Once again, it was Shen Ruo who moved.
She walked onto the platform, holding up a simple tea cup.
"I don't know what you both want," she said softly. "But I know what Li wants."
The fighting stopped.
"He wants us alive. Together."
Tears shimmered in her eyes.
"Stop trying to win him with blood."
The Fight Ends in a Draw
The Overseer nodded.
"Both fighters displayed equal skill. Result: mutual advancement."
Yue and Meiyu stepped away, breathless.
They didn't speak.
But for once… they didn't glare, either.
Reunion: The Faction Reconnects
Later, in a private courtyard, the entire faction sat around a low fire.
Lotus was there now, silent beside Li.
Yue leaned against a tree.
Lana munched dried fruit.
Scarlet stood alone in the shadows.
Meiyu watched the fire.
Ruo poured tea.
"You remembered her," Lana said quietly.
Li nodded.
"And you didn't tell us?" Yue asked.
"I didn't know," he said. "Not until today."
"Do you love her?" Meiyu asked.
Silence.
"I… don't know what love means yet," Li admitted. "But I know none of you are replaceable."
He looked at each of them.
"You're my strength. Not my weakness."
Scarlet tilted her head.
"That was… unusually poetic."
"I'm tired," Li said.
Everyone laughed softly — even Yue cracked a smile.
System Update: Flame of Six
All bond levels increased slightly due to unity during emotional combat.
New Group Title: The Flame of Six
System Stability: 67%Memory Restoration: 56%
Next Trigger: Full Restoration at 100%. Warning: Reality Layer May Break.
Ending Scene: The Eyes in the Void
Far beyond the platform… in a space that twisted like dreams and devoured light…
A figure stirred.
She was neither alive nor dead.
Eyes like twin eclipses opened.
"He's waking up," she whispered.
"The boy from the cliff."
She smiled.
And a million stars died in that smile.