Destiny in Cinders

"I just wanted to get out of Direlife Manor, but I walked straight into a three-way crossfire... How did things get this messy?" As An Jing let out a slow breath, he could still feel his heart pounding.

Just before his journey to the foreign world, An Jing had witnessed the unsealing of the heavenly fiend and the fight between the two sages. There was no question that level of power was far beyond his own. Neither he nor Yvelbane could have foreseen a heavenly fiend of such power infiltrating the Crimsonguard to exploit the chaos and free its kind.

"What's happening to Grand Chen? How could heavenly fiends have slipped through? And how long can I stay here?" Composing himself, An Jing asked.

Yvelbane snapped out of its thoughts and replied, "Three days."

"Three days..."

An Jing closed his eyes and concentrated. In his sea of consciousness, he was completely enveloped by the three shimmering orbs around the broken sword. The first orb was already beginning to fade. It represented the first of the three days mentioned by the sword soul.

"In three days, I can teleport back to a spot anywhere within a one-li radius from where we departed." An Jing ran through a summary of the situation. "The cooldown only kicks in after a 'round-trip' is complete, and you need a full day and night of recharging before another trip."

"Yes." Yvelbane reminded him, "You're on your own for at least a full day before you can re-enter the foreign world."

"This complicates things," An Jing muttered.

Yvelbane remained unfazed. "My abilities will grow as you gather more of my shards. That means longer stays, faster travel, and more ways to recharge. Once I'm whole again, these troubles will vanish.

"Besides, three days is more than you need. Those heavenly fiends are gone, and even if they had a follow-up plan, they wouldn't stay put and risk discovery. With the demonic cult and Grand Chen locked in their own struggle, they'll be too preoccupied to track you down. You're strong enough to leave the mountains, hide your identity, and return to the outside world."

"If the heavenly fiends are gone," An Jing said, racking his brains, "Can I try tracking down the Crimsonguard again? I'm not worried about Yeqi and the rest, but still..."

"You could, but it's extremely dangerous. I would advise against it." Yvelbane grew solemn. "To think heavenly fiends have already infiltrated Grand Chen! While greater heavenly fiends may be rare, the number of lesser heavenly fiend hosts must be far higher than we could ever imagine.

"Heavenly fiends are like cockroaches. By the time you spot one, there's already an entire nest festering in the dark. You'll be discovered if you march into Grand Chen like this. This is exactly why I insisted you leave. Who knows if there are other lesser fiends hidden among the Crimsonguard, ready to seize you the moment you're distracted?"

"Yes." The possibility had already crossed An Jing's mind, but Yvelbane's warning hammered the point home.

He sighed, "But if that's the case, my junior brothers and sisters aren't safe..."

"You don't have to worry." Yvelbane didn't view An Jing's concern for his companions as a weakness. On the contrary, it held a deep admiration for his unwavering loyalty and sentimental nature.

The sword soul said frankly, "The heavenly fiends won't risk exposing themselves for your friends. Only you and I are worth that risk."

"Of course, that's us we're talking about." An Jing chuckled as his breath finally leveled out. He stood up, taking in the scene around him. The place remained exactly as he had left it—the dimly lit underground cavern, the ancient and dilapidated steel pavilion, and a stretch of corpses he had already plundered.

"Hmmm... I'm missing quite a few things." An Jing contemplated.

On his last visit, a swift breakthrough to the Aura Realm meant he was out in two hours. But now, he had to figure out the basics like food, water, air, fire, and a secure spot to hunker down for the next three days. After all, whatever lurked here was lethal enough to wipe out a bunch of Aura Realm martialists with guns.

It was clear that the weaponry here outclassed the firearms of his past life. The gunpowder alone was far superior. He had taken down the manor lord with a gun, relying, of course, on a sneak attack and the old man's own carelessness. But even so, that gun was merely a standard-issue weapon for a squad from the foreign world.

Even with that kind of devastating firepower, they were completely wiped out. They might have died from damage to their souls, but An Jing wasn't letting his guard down. Just because the killer had spiritual abilities didn't mean it wasn't a physical powerhouse too. He had to be ready for the worst.

Worst-case scenario? We'll return to Void Embrace. I've got to at least stick it out till the morning. If I leave now, I'll be spotted by those in the area.

For the time being, he needed to get some rest. From the ritual to fighting the heavenly fiend, the duel with the manor lord to breaking the children out of the dungeon, and finally the heavenly fiend's unsealing and traveling through worlds... between all that and the crushing fatigue that resulted from the stimulant pills wearing off, An Jing was absolutely spent.

He felt completely drained, like he had just completed a grueling two-hour mountain run after starving for three days. Even the slightest touch sent a dull throb through his bones and muscles. An Jing felt miserable from head to toe. He needed a safe place to recover.

Combing through the building, he found it empty. The space might have once been a shrine for ancestors or gods, but now the pillars had collapsed and the floor tiles ripped up. Not a single thing was left but layers of dust.

However, the beams in the main hall were still sturdy, despite the dirt and decay. He was in no position to be picky. An Jing climbed up and tucked himself into a corner. There, he forced himself into mediation, regulating his breathing to recover.

"Once I'm done, I'll need a solid four to six hours of sleep to let my body mend. Can you keep watch tonight?" An Jing asked Yvelbane.

After receiving the go-ahead, he began circulating Sword of Tranquility, regulating his aura for a period before ultimately falling into a deep sleep. Just as An Jing drifted into sleep, a faint light flickered across his forehead, forming a sword pattern. The two beams of sword light that lit up the center resembled an open eye.

"This world feels so familiar... And it wasn't just my imagination; there really is fiend qi here." A clear, crisp voice whispered to itself in a grim tone. "Whatever annihilated that expedition team has to be some form of fiendspawn."

The sword light tilted down as if it were gazing at the sleeping boy.

"The child's lifearc is peculiar indeed. He can take everything—blood lethal qi, sword lethal qi, spirit lethal qi, and soul lethal qi. Even back in my era, a lifearc like that was virtually unheard of. Truly, this is no ordinary starruin arc. It's one that only appears when a cataclysm is at hand... Is it the Seven Ruinous Luminaries?"

After a brief pause, Yvelbane turned its gaze upward.

"If so, fortune and ruin hang in the balance. I believed I was the one leading him, but perhaps I've simply been caught in the currents of his destiny. So be it. We shall see where this journey takes us."

It began its watch. Six hours passed before An Jing awoke.