A New Dawn, A New Enemy
The morning after the Dream Labyrinth was oddly quiet. No thunderous announcements. No dramatic trials. Just stillness.
Li Wei sat by the lotus pond in the outer courtyard of the Heaven's Chosen estate. His reflection in the rippling water looked older. Sharper. Not just a loser with a cheat system now. Someone being watched.
He felt it in his bones.
Something… was changing.
And then—
System Alert
⚠ Warning: Host's threat level has been officially recorded by the Divine Authority.
Divine Tag: "Unstable Prodigy – Close Monitoring Required"
Potential Outcomes:
Divine Summoning
Forced Evaluation
Celestial Elimination Order (Low probability… for now)
Li's stomach dropped.
"Oh great. I'm a bug under a magnifying glass now."
System: "Congratulations, Host! You are now considered a potential timeline disruptor."
"…That doesn't sound like a good thing."
System: "It's not."
The Scarlet One
Elsewhere, on a blackened rooftop above the courtyard, Scarlet Fang sat in lotus position. The coffin on her back rested beside her, whispering.
Yes, whispering.
"His soul... doesn't crack," the voice rasped from within.
"He's not like the others," Scarlet whispered.
A dozen names carved inside the coffin glowed faintly. All former candidates. All rejected. All... consumed.
Scarlet stood and leapt off the roof, robes fluttering.
She walked toward Li, unnoticed by others.
He didn't look up until the shadow covered him.
"You again," he muttered.
Scarlet tilted her head. "Most people fear me."
"I'm getting used to strange women appearing out of nowhere."
"I watched your trial," she said softly. "You faced your own failure. And you won."
He nodded. "Barely."
She crouched beside him, eyes unreadable.
"You don't ask what's in the coffin."
"I figured it's either your brother, your ex, or yourself from a past life."
Scarlet blinked slowly. "…Interesting guess."
The coffin's latch clicked open slightly.
A black mist curled out.
System: "Warning. Forbidden spiritual anomaly detected."
But Li didn't flinch.
Scarlet frowned. "You're either very brave… or very stupid."
Li shrugged. "I get that a lot."
New Character Affection Initiated: Scarlet Fang – ???/100
Unique Bond Trait: Whispers of the Cursed Bride
Scarlet's spiritual coffin responds only to those she subconsciously accepts.
You are the first it hasn't tried to devour in 7 years.
The Divine Arrival
At midday, the skies darkened unnaturally.
A golden tear opened in the clouds.
A chariot of flame descended, pulled by four wingless dragons of light.
Gasps echoed from every corner of the estate.
Yue, Lana, and Shen Ruo rushed to Li's side.
"What the hell is that?" Lana whispered.
"A Divine Chariot," Shen Ruo said, face pale. "Someone from the heavens... is coming."
A figure stepped off the chariot. Not tall, but luminous. His hair was white-gold. His eyes burned like suns behind eyelids half-closed. He wore no weapon. He needed none.
"I am Envoy Kaelreth, Judge of Potential Calamities," he said.
Every cultivator dropped to one knee.
Except Li.
System: "Strongly recommend kneeling. Divine entities don't like spine."
But Li didn't move.
Kaelreth's eyes shifted to him.
"You do not kneel?"
"I don't bend unless I believe," Li said, voice calm.
The crowd gasped.
Kaelreth floated forward, his sandals never touching the ground.
"You believe in yourself, then."
Li nodded. "Enough to stand."
The Envoy smiled faintly. "Interesting."
He extended one hand.
Li felt pressure so great his knees buckled—but he stayed upright.
Then the pressure vanished.
"Worthy of evaluation," Kaelreth said.
Divine Evaluation
In the sacred hall, Kaelreth stood before Li and the three girls. Scarlet Fang stood silently at the rear, unnoticed.
"You are growing too fast," Kaelreth said.
Li didn't speak.
"You gather bonds. Strength. Confidence. Too much. Too early."
"Is that illegal?" Lana scoffed.
Kaelreth ignored her. "The heavens maintain balance. You are a potential disruption."
Shen Ruo stepped forward. "He's saved lives. Protected us."
"He's made enemies," Yue added. "Is that what you fear?"
Kaelreth turned.
"You defend him well. All of you. Even her." He pointed at Scarlet.
Scarlet didn't blink.
"Fascinating," the envoy said. "Your fates are entangled. We will not interfere… for now."
Then he looked at Li.
"But if you deviate—if your power surpasses your heart—I will return. And I will erase you."
With that, he vanished in golden flame.
System Alert:
Divine Envoy Judgment Survived
Status: "Observed but Untouched"
Bonus Title Unlocked: One Who Stood Before the Flame
+10% resistance to Divine Pressure
+1 Fame Rank
Tensions Rising
That evening, Li sat in the training hall, watching the sunset through the open doors.
Yue Xiaolan entered, sword in hand.
"Your stance is off," she said.
He raised an eyebrow. "Really? We're training now?"
She moved behind him, corrected his posture, and stepped back.
"…You didn't kneel," she said.
"Neither did you," he replied.
She was silent.
Then she said, "You're dangerous now."
He turned. "You think so?"
"I know so."
She hesitated. Her lips parted slightly.
"You keep doing things that make it hard to ignore you."
He blinked. "Like what?"
She stared at him. "Like being yourself. Loud. Honest. Brave. And infuriatingly… kind."
Then she leaned in.
Not a kiss.
But her forehead rested against his.
"I hate how much I don't hate you anymore."
He smiled. "Same."
Yue Xiaolan Affection: 75 → 90
Bond Perk Unlocked: Blade-Sync Affinity
Combo attacks with Yue gain +20% effectiveness
Yue will now act on instinct to defend you without hesitation
Schemes in the Dark
Elsewhere, in the darker corners of the estate, a cloaked figure whispered into a scroll.
"The boy grows. The coffin girl is near him. The Divine has noticed. We must act."
A pale voice replied through the scroll.
"Let the next trial finish. If he reaches top 4... kill him before the finals."