The crack echoed through the Lower Veins.
Once.
Then again.
Stone groaned beneath the pressure of something forcing its way through ancient barriers.
Liuxue stood motionless.
The words of the ancient being still echoed inside her mind.
They killed her.
The same people who killed her are coming for you.
Her mother.
For the first time in her life, the mystery was no longer abstract. It had a face. A loss. A wound.
And now that wound was opening.
A third crack split through the cavern.
This one was louder.
The black stone walls trembled. Ancient runes hidden beneath centuries of dust ignited one by one, flooding the chamber with silver and gold light.
The Keeper's calm expression finally disappeared.
"Impossible."
The Starborn man raised his hand, starfire gathering around his fingers.
"No," he said quietly. "Not impossible."
His gaze hardened.
"They found us."
Yining looked toward the distant tunnel where the sound originated.
"Please tell me it is one person."
Nobody answered.
The silence was enough.
Far down the tunnel, a light appeared.
White.
Pure.
Cold.
Not the warm glow of a torch.
Not celestial gold.
This light looked surgical.
Precise.
It illuminated everything it touched while stripping away all comfort.
Liuxue felt her seal react immediately.
Pain shot through her chest.
Not because the light was attacking her.
Because it recognized her.
The ancient eye deep within the abyss narrowed.
The heartbeat beneath the Veins accelerated.
Boom.
Boom.
Boom.
The approaching light slowed.
As though whatever carried it had noticed the ancient presence below.
For the first time since awakening, the being in the abyss spoke with open hostility.
"Leave."
The single word shook the cavern.
Entire sections of stone cracked.
Ancient power rolled through the Lower Veins like a tidal wave.
Yet the approaching light continued forward.
Unaffected.
The Keeper looked horrified.
"That should have worked."
The Starborn man's voice turned grim.
"It is not an ordinary enforcer."
The figure finally emerged from the tunnel.
Everyone went silent.
The newcomer looked human.
At first glance.
Tall.
Dressed in white robes embroidered with silver symbols.
Long black hair fell over one shoulder.
No weapons.
No armor.
No visible power.
Yet the moment Liuxue saw him, every instinct she possessed screamed.
Danger.
The figure stopped thirty paces away.
His eyes landed on Liuxue immediately.
Not on the Keeper.
Not on the Starborn man.
Only her.
A small smile appeared on his face.
Not warm.
Not cruel.
Certain.
As though he had finally found something lost.
"Liuxue."
Hearing her name from his mouth felt wrong.
Very wrong.
The Starborn man stepped between them instantly.
"You should not be here."
The man sighed.
"And yet I am."
His voice was calm.
Cultured.
Almost gentle.
Which somehow made him more frightening.
Yining moved closer to Liuxue.
"Who is he?"
The Keeper answered first.
Their voice sounded strained.
"The First Hunter."
The title echoed through the cavern.
Even the ancient eye became still.
The man inclined his head slightly.
"I have not used that title in a very long time."
Liuxue felt a chill run through her body.
Hunter.
The word alone carried implications she did not like.
The First Hunter's gaze returned to her.
"You resemble her more than I expected."
Liuxue's stomach tightened.
"Who?"
The smile vanished.
"Your mother."
Silence exploded across the cavern.
The Starborn man's starfire flared violently.
The Keeper's expression darkened.
Even the ancient being beneath the abyss seemed to focus completely on the newcomer.
The First Hunter ignored all of them.
His attention remained on Liuxue.
"I met her once."
Liuxue's heartbeat stumbled.
"You knew her?"
"Yes."
The answer came too quickly.
Too easily.
Her emotions surged.
Questions flooded her mind.
What was she like?
Did she love me?
What happened?
Why was she killed?
The First Hunter seemed to read every question on her face.
His expression softened.
And for a brief moment, he looked genuinely sad.
"She fought very hard."
The ancient being's voice erupted through the cavern.
"Do not speak of her."
The temperature plummeted.
Frost spread across the floor.
Reality itself seemed to bend beneath the weight of ancient fury.
Yet the First Hunter simply looked toward the abyss.
"I am speaking to her daughter."
The golden eye glowed brighter.
Murderous.
For the first time, Liuxue understood something terrifying.
The being beneath the Veins hated this man.
Truly hated him.
Not as an enemy.
As something personal.
The First Hunter returned his gaze to Liuxue.
"I came to warn you."
Nobody believed him.
Not even slightly.
Yining laughed.
Actually laughed.
"You tracked us across realms to give a warning?"
"Yes."
"No."
"Yes."
The exchange would have been amusing under different circumstances.
The First Hunter's eyes never left Liuxue.
"The heavens are splitting."
The cavern became quiet.
The Starborn man frowned.
"What do you mean?"
"The old factions are breaking apart."
That got everyone's attention.
The First Hunter continued.
"Some want Liuxue dead."
Liuxue remained still.
That part was unsurprising.
"Some want her resealed."
Also unsurprising.
The Hunter's expression hardened.
"And some want her awakened completely."
Silence followed.
The Keeper's face lost color.
The Starborn man's jaw tightened.
Even Yining understood enough to look worried.
Liuxue swallowed.
"What happens if I awaken completely?"
Nobody answered immediately.
The First Hunter did.
"The last time that happened, three realms ceased to exist."
The words settled heavily over the chamber.
Liuxue felt her pulse quicken.
The ancient being beneath the Veins suddenly laughed.
A deep, ancient sound.
"You still believe that lie."
The First Hunter looked toward the abyss.
For the first time, his calm composure cracked.
Only slightly.
But Liuxue noticed.
Interesting.
The ancient being knew something.
Something important.
The golden eye shifted toward Liuxue.
"Daughter."
The word felt different now.
Protective.
Fierce.
Ancient.
The eye glowed brighter.
"You must decide who to trust."
The First Hunter.
The Starborn man.
The Keeper.
The heavens.
The echo.
The being beneath the Veins.
Every path pointed toward a different truth.
And somehow, Liuxue suspected none of them were telling the entire story.
Then the First Hunter spoke again.
His next words changed everything.
"I did not kill your mother."
The cavern froze.
Liuxue's breath caught.
Because nobody had accused him.
Nobody.
Yet somehow he felt the need to deny it.
And that alone told her there was far more to the story than anyone was willing to admit.