At first light, the company gathered their few belongings and set out from the assembly site, leaving behind the echoes of the convocation. The morning air was cool, crisp with the promise of change, as Jiang Chen and his companions—Xiao Yue, Wen Ling, Lao Yun, and Li Wei—stepped onto the winding road that would lead them to the capital.
The path before them meandered through rugged hills and stretches of barren land scarred by time. With every step, the landscape shifted from the gentle, familiar contours of Falling Lotus Village to harsher, wind-swept vistas that whispered of long-forgotten battles and ancient sorrow. As they walked in close formation, the silence among them was a blend of reflective calm and underlying tension.
Xiao Yue walked beside Jiang Chen, her eyes fixed on the horizon. "The capital is not far now," she remarked, her tone steady but laced with apprehension. "I sense that every mile brings us closer not only to our destination but to the forces that seek to control—or destroy—the truth you hold."
Jiang Chen's gaze drifted over the desolate fields, his thoughts tangled with the flickers of memory that had awakened within him in the ruins. The talisman in his hand pulsed softly, a constant reminder of the divine legacy buried deep within. "I feel it too," he murmured. "Fragments of a past I can barely remember. They call out to me, urging me to reclaim what was lost.
Wen Ling, ever cautious, scanned the horizon as they traversed a narrow ridge. "There are whispers on the wind," he said quietly, his voice low. "Rumors that Lord Wu Tian's followers are already stirring in the borderlands. We must be alert—this road is no longer simply one of travel, but a trial by fire."
Li Wei, his expression thoughtful, added, "The Heavenly Tribunal's summons leaves no room for delay. And I've seen signs—scorched earth, abandoned encampments—that tell of recent skirmishes in these parts. It seems others, too, are being drawn into the storm."
Their conversation was interrupted by the distant sound of clashing metal and raised voices. The group exchanged wary glances and quickened their pace. Soon, as they rounded a bend, they found themselves at the edge of a ruined outpost. The remnants of old battlements jutted from the rocky hillside, and the air still trembled with the echoes of conflict.
A small band of rogue cultivators emerged from behind the broken walls. Their eyes, hardened by years of strife, fixed on the travelers with suspicion. "Who goes there?" one of them demanded, voice rough as gravel.
Xiao Yue stepped forward, her posture resolute. "We are seekers on a journey to the capital," she replied. "Our path is ours to choose, and we mean no harm."
For a tense moment, the silence stretched between them until one of the cultivators, a gaunt man with wary eyes, scoffed. "The capital calls for the Hidden Sage, does it not? You carry his mark, yet you are nothing but a wandering band. Perhaps the tribunal has forgotten what power truly means."
Jiang Chen's eyes met the man's, and though his voice was soft, it carried an unspoken authority. "I am not here to wage war, but to seek the truth of our world—truth that lies buried beneath conflict and ambition," he said calmly. "Let us pass in peace, and may our paths guide us toward a destiny where both mortal and divine can be reconciled."
The rogue cultivators exchanged uncertain glances. After a long moment of silence, the gaunt man grunted. "Very well. But know this—the road ahead is perilous, and many will fight for the fragments of power you seem to hold." With that, they melted back into the shadows, leaving the travelers to continue their journey.
Relief mingled with lingering tension as the group pressed on. The ruined outpost faded into the distance, replaced by an endless stretch of dusty road under a sky that grew ever more portentous. Along the way, Lao Yun shared murmured legends of celestial battles and cosmic treacheries, while Li Wei pointed out subtle omens in the barren landscape—a twisted tree here, a scorched stone there—that spoke of recent strife.
Jiang Chen's thoughts roiled as he recalled the visions triggered by the temple ruins. He sensed that each step forward was unraveling more of the sealed memories within him, and he felt both the burden and the promise of that awakening. "My past," he whispered to himself, "is calling me forth. I must be ready to confront it when the time comes."
As dusk approached, the road began to descend toward a low valley where the distant lights of the capital shimmered like beacons of hope and peril. The group halted at a rocky overlook to rest and prepare for the final leg of their journey. Beneath the fading light, as the first stars emerged in the twilight, Xiao Yue's voice was soft yet determined. "We have come far, but what lies ahead may decide not only our fates but the fate of all realms."
Jiang Chen nodded, the talisman's glow reflecting in his eyes. "Tonight, we rest. Tomorrow, we face whatever destiny has prepared for us—and perhaps, in that encounter, I will find the answers I seek."
In the quiet of the encroaching night, as the wind whispered through barren hills and the distant capital pulsed with uncertain light, the journey continued. The road to the capital was more than a passage through rugged lands—it was a pilgrimage into the depths of a forgotten past, a test of resolve, and the beginning of a confrontation with the celestial powers that had long held the balance of existence.
Thus, under a vast, starlit sky, Jiang Chen and his companions pressed forward, each step drawing them nearer to the heart of a destiny that could reshape both the mortal and divine realms.