Yin Beichen woke in pain.
Not sharp pain. Not burning pain.
Ownership.
Golden chains pierced through his wrists and ankles, sinking past flesh and bone, locking into something deeper. Every breath pulled at them. Every thought echoed back at him, muted, distorted.
"So this is Heaven's hospitality," Yin Beichen rasped.
The air rippled.
A man stepped forward, robes pale silver, time itself folding obediently around his feet.
"Mockery is unnecessary," the man said calmly. "I am Chronos Li, God of Time. You exist here because you are an error."
Yin Beichen lifted his head slowly. Blood slid down his jaw.
"Funny," Yin Beichen replied. "I feel very real."
Light flared.
Heat flooded the chamber as a woman descended from above, golden hair flowing like fire caught in silk.
"Enough," she said. "I am Aurelia Jin, Goddess of the Sun. His existence threatens the balance."
The chains heated instantly.
Yin Beichen hissed but did not scream.
A crack of thunder followed.
Lightning split the air as another woman appeared, silver-blue eyes sharp with calculation, arcs of electricity crawling over her skin.
"Pain tolerance is impressive," she observed. "Lei Xue, Goddess of Lightning. Execution is overdue."
Chronos Li raised a hand. "Not yet."
The air dimmed.
Sound itself retreated.
A tall figure cloaked in black stepped forward, footsteps making no noise.
Yin Beichen's spine stiffened.
"Ah," Yin Beichen muttered. "So you brought him too."
Chronos' voice lowered. "Wu Yan, God of Silence. Speak carefully."
Wu Yan said nothing.
His gaze alone pressed like a blade against Yin Beichen's soul.
"You all look worried," Yin Beichen said through clenched teeth. "Did Heaven finally realize it can bleed?"
Lei Xue struck him.
Lightning tore through his body, arching violently along the chains. Yin Beichen's scream echoed once before Wu Yan's presence swallowed the sound whole.
Aurelia Jin did not look away.
"Control yourself," Chronos Li said coolly.
Lei Xue withdrew her hand. "He deserves worse."
Chronos Li turned back to Yin Beichen. "You are not here to be punished. You are here to be contained."
Yin Beichen laughed weakly. "Then you're already too late."
Far above, beneath a sky that never changed, Shen Yueyin stood on white marble.
Her knees trembled, but she did not fall.
Before her rose two thrones.
On the left sat Immortal Queen Xihe, her expression serene, eyes endless.
On the right sat Immortal King Tianwu, posture relaxed, gaze sharp as a blade hidden in silk.
Below them stood a line of immortals.
Each one felt like a judgment.
"You may raise your head," Immortal Queen Xihe said gently.
Shen Yueyin did.
Her heart pounded so hard she feared it would betray her.
A man stepped forward first, dressed in deep indigo robes, ink-black hair tied neatly behind his back.
"I am Ming Zhao, God of Fate," he said calmly. "I record outcomes."
Next came a woman dressed in soft white, eyes kind but unbearably sad.
"Lian Yue, Goddess of Mercy," she said quietly.
A barefoot girl followed, no older than sixteen, holding a cracked jade compass that spun endlessly in her palm.
"I'm Starweaver Yun, Goddess of Constellations," she said with a crooked smile. "I see paths. Most of yours are gone."
Shen Yueyin's breath hitched.
Finally, a tall immortal stepped forward, face expressionless, robes the color of dusk.
No aura. No pressure.
Just emptiness.
Immortal Queen Xihe spoke softly, "Wu Yan, God of Silence, has already met the one you care for."
Shen Yueyin's hands clenched.
"You took him," she said, voice shaking but clear.
Immortal King Tianwu nodded. "Yes."
"You tortured him."
"No," Ming Zhao corrected. "We tested him."
Shen Yueyin laughed, sharp and broken. "You call that justice?"
Ming Zhao met her gaze evenly. "We call it survival."
Starweaver Yun's compass spun wildly.
"Three futures collapsed the moment you pushed him away," Starweaver Yun said. "Only one remains."
Shen Yueyin swallowed. "Show me."
Starweaver Yun hesitated.
Immortal Queen Xihe nodded once.
The compass cracked.
Images flooded Shen Yueyin's mind, realms burning, immortals falling, Yin Beichen standing alone beneath a blood-red sky, eyes empty.
Her knees buckled.
Lian Yue caught her.
"I didn't want this," Lian Yue whispered. "None of us did."
"Liar," Shen Yueyin whispered back.
Immortal King Tianwu stood. "Enough."
His voice silenced the hall.
"You will train," Immortal King Tianwu declared. "You will learn to control what Heaven placed inside you."
"And if I refuse?" Shen Yueyin asked.
Lei Xue's voice echoed from nowhere. "Then Yin Beichen dies slowly."
Shen Yueyin's chest burned.
Ming Zhao tilted his head. "Your power awakens through loss. This has always been the rule."
Shen Yueyin looked up.
Her eyes were dry now.
"You think separating us weakens me," she said softly. "But all you've done is teach me who my enemies are."
Wu Yan shifted.
For the first time, unease rippled through the hall.
Far away, in Heaven's deepest prison, Yin Beichen opened his eyes.
The chains tightened.
Chronos Li smiled faintly.
"Time is running out," Chronos Li said.
And somewhere between heartbeats, Shen Yueyin felt Yin Beichen answer her call.
Starweaver Yun screamed.
"The future..!"
The compass shattered completely.
Heaven lost sight of what came next.