Chapter 4: The Path Forward
Cold wind blew across the mountain peak.
Xiao Chen slowly opened his eyes.
For a few moments, his mind was blank.
He stared up at the dark sky above him.
The memory of the white light, the strange voice, and the endless darkness still lingered in his mind.
Then he suddenly sat up.
His eyes immediately landed on the small mound of dirt before him.
Xiao Mei's grave.
Xiao Chen froze.
His heart tightened painfully.
So it had not been a dream.
Xiao Mei was truly gone.
He was alone.
Completely alone.
Xiao Chen lowered his head.
Tears slowly gathered in his eyes again.
He had always known that the world was cruel.
But he had never imagined it would one day become this cruel.
He still remembered the day Xiao Mei was born.
Back then, he had only been six years old.
Their house had been small.
Their family had been poor.
But it had still been warm.
He remembered his father's smile.
He remembered the happiness on his mother's face as she held Xiao Mei in her arms for the first time.
Xiao Mei had been so tiny.
So small that Xiao Chen had been afraid to even touch her.
"Look, Chen'er," his mother had said softly.
"This is your little sister."
Xiao Chen had looked down at the small baby wrapped in cloth.
Then Xiao Mei had grabbed his finger with her tiny hand.
From that moment on, Xiao Chen had promised himself that he would always protect her.
But only a few days after Xiao Mei was born, their mother died.
Some people said she had become too weak after childbirth.
Others said she had already been sick before.
Xiao Chen did not know the truth.
All he knew was that after her death, everything changed.
Their father became quieter.
He stopped smiling.
He started drinking more.
Sometimes Xiao Chen would hear him muttering strange things late at night.
Things like:
"If she had never been born..."
"If not for her, your mother would still be alive..."
At first, Xiao Chen did not understand.
But as he grew older, he realized that his father blamed Xiao Mei for their mother's death.
Even though Xiao Mei had done nothing wrong.
Even though she was only a child.
The years passed.
Their family became poorer and poorer.
There were many days when they had nothing to eat.
Many nights when all three of them went to sleep hungry.
Then one day, when Xiao Chen was ten and Xiao Mei was four, their father disappeared for an entire night.
When he returned, there were two strange men with him.
The men smiled, but their smiles felt cold.
Xiao Chen still remembered how his father had refused to look them in the eyes.
He still remembered the small bag of coins in his father's hands.
And he still remembered the words his father said.
"Go with them."
Xiao Chen had been confused.
"Father?"
But their father only turned his face away.
"I cannot take care of both of you anymore."
That night, Xiao Chen and Xiao Mei were taken away.
The two men were child traffickers.
They planned to sell them.
Fortunately, Xiao Chen had managed to escape with Xiao Mei in the middle of the night.
After that, they never returned home.
Xiao Chen had been too afraid.
Afraid that if they went back, their father would only sell them again.
So from that day onward, the streets became their home.
Xiao Chen begged.
He stole when he had to.
He fought stray dogs for scraps of food.
And no matter how hungry he was, he always made sure Xiao Mei ate first.
Even if all he had was half a bun.
Even if all he had was one small bowl of cold soup.
He would always give her the bigger portion.
That was why Xiao Chen had become so thin.
At eleven years old, his body looked like that of a starving child much younger than him.
His arms had been skinny.
His ribs had shown clearly through his skin.
Many times, it was a miracle that he could even keep walking.
But Xiao Chen had endured it all.
Because Xiao Mei had been worth it.
Now she was gone.
Xiao Chen slowly came out of his memories.
He stared at the grave in silence.
Then he slowly stood up.
But the moment he did, he froze.
Something felt wrong.
No.
Something felt different.
His body felt lighter.
Far lighter.
Xiao Chen looked down at his arms.
His eyes widened.
The thin, bony arms he was used to seeing were gone.
They were still small, but there was now visible muscle beneath his skin.
His legs no longer felt weak.
Even the constant hunger that had followed him for years had become much less painful.
Xiao Chen clenched his fists.
He could feel strength flowing through his body.
It was not a huge amount of strength.
But compared to before, it was like night and day.
Xiao Chen frowned.
Then he suddenly remembered the voice from the night before.
The promise.
The Imperial Dragon Origin.
The chance to cultivate.
Xiao Chen looked around.
"So this is the power you gave me?"
He looked at his arms again.
"A slightly lighter body and a few muscles?"
"How am I supposed to use this to fight the heavens?"
Suddenly, the familiar voice exploded inside his head.
"Fool!"
Xiao Chen jumped.
"Did you think I would instantly make you strong enough to punch apart the heavens overnight?"
The ancient voice snorted.
"I gave you talent."
"I gave you the chance to cultivate."
"But if you want power, you will still have to work for it yourself."
Xiao Chen remained silent.
The voice continued.
"The reason your body feels lighter is because I improved your constitution."
"Your old body was terrible."
"You were too thin."
"You barely had enough energy to survive another few months."
"If I had not improved your body, you would have died before you ever became strong."
The voice paused.
"Right now, your constitution is only slightly better than an average person's."
"You should be grateful."
Xiao Chen's mouth twitched.
The voice sounded extremely proud of itself.
"Then what do I do now?" Xiao Chen asked.
The ancient voice became serious.
"You need to find a sect."
"If you truly want to become powerful, you will need resources, techniques, pills, teachers, and rivals."
"Only a sect can give you those things."
Xiao Chen frowned.
He had heard of sects before.
Cultivators.
Immortals.
People who could split rivers and shatter mountains with their fists.
People who could fly through the sky.
But all of that had always felt very far away from him.
He had spent all his time trying to survive.
He had never once thought that he might one day become one of those people.
Then Xiao Chen suddenly remembered something.
Five days ago, while begging near a tea shop, he had overheard a conversation.
A sect was holding its annual disciple selection.
Any child above the age of ten could participate.
The only problem was that entering the trial required money.
Back then, Xiao Chen had not even considered it.
After all, he had been too busy trying to survive.
He had no money.
No talent.
And no reason to believe he could ever become anything more than a beggar.
But now...
Everything had changed.
Xiao Chen slowly turned toward the distant city below the mountain.
His eyes became cold.
He no longer wanted to merely survive.
He wanted power.
He wanted enough power that no one would ever be able to hurt him again.
Enough power that no one would ever be able to take away the people he cared about.
Enough power...
To one day stand above the heavens themselves.
Xiao Chen looked back one last time at Xiao Mei's grave.
"Wait for me," he whispered.
"One day, I will make the heavens pay for what they did to you."
Then, without looking back again, Xiao Chen began walking down the mountain.