Betrayed. Poisoned. Cast into the Abyss.
As Shen Aozu fell into the endless chasm, the face of his traitor—his own disciple, Li Wei—burned into his mind. Once his most promising student, Li Wei had been destined to inherit the sect’s secrets. But Shen Aozu, wary of Li Wei’s growing hunger for power, chose another: Mei Lian, a young woman of unparalleled talent and unshakable discipline. It was a decision that sealed both their fates.
Li Wei had always been ambitious, but his jealousy festered into something darker. He had trained under Shen Aozu since childhood, pushing himself beyond his limits in hopes of earning his master’s favor. But when Mei Lian arrived, everything changed. Shen Aozu saw in her a balance of wisdom and strength that Li Wei lacked. The announcement that she—not Li Wei—would be the one to inherit the Grandmaster’s mantle was the final spark that set his resentment ablaze.
Li Wei played the dutiful disciple, smiling, bowing, even congratulating Mei Lian in front of the sect. But in the shadows, his heart seethed with rage. After everything, he still chooses someone else? Night after night, he trained in secret, refining a plan as cold as it was cruel. His master had always been cautious, always a step ahead of his enemies—but not this time.
First, he targeted Mei Lian. He knew she was too strong to face directly, so he made it look like an accident. A subtle shift in her training regimen, a gentle push in the wrong direction. She never saw it coming. One fatal misstep, one moment of weakness, and she fell, impaled on her own blade during a sparring session.
The sect mourned. Shen Aozu was devastated, grief clouding his judgment. And that was when Li Wei struck. A slow-acting poison, mixed into Shen Aozu’s tea, weakened him over days. By the time Shen Aozu realized something was wrong, his limbs were sluggish, his Qi unstable.
And then, the final betrayal. Li Wei came to him, bowing low, his voice steady but his eyes burning with triumph.
“You were always too blind to see, Master,” Li Wei whispered, watching as the poison took full effect. “I should have been your heir. And now, I will be.”
With a final, mocking smile, Li Wei cast his master—his own mentor—into the Abyss. A place where even death was not guaranteed. A void said to erase even the souls of the fallen.
Yet as Shen Aozu tumbled through the void, something stirred. A whisper, ancient and formless, coiled around him.
This is not your end…
And then, darkness.
Shen Aozu woke to the feeling of brittle straw beneath his body and the distant scent of herbal remedies in the air. His body—once an unshakable pillar of strength—was frail, weak, unfamiliar. Even breathing was an effort. He tried to move, but his limbs barely responded.
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"He's awake!" a voice called.
A shadow loomed over him, a man in ragged robes with sharp, discerning eyes. A healer, Shen Aozu realized. Behind him, several others moved about a dimly lit cavern filled with makeshift beds and the scent of medicine.
"Where... am I?" Shen Aozu rasped, his throat raw.
"You're in the Borderlands," the healer answered. "The only place untouched by the great clans. You were found barely alive near the Rift."
The Rift. A tear in the world, a remnant of ancient calamities. So, he had survived the Abyss—but at what cost? His power was gone. He could barely sit up. He, who had once stood above all others, was now reduced to this.
The healer—Jin Han—studied him. "You're lucky we found you, but luck alone won’t save you. If you want to live, you'll have to relearn everything."
Yet as Jin Han spoke, Shen Aozu felt something… off. A presence, watching him. Unseen, but there. As if the Abyss itself had followed him back.
In this world, strength was determined by Qi—the energy that flowed through all living things. It was the lifeblood of martial arts, the source of cultivation, and the key to defying mortality itself. Qi could be drawn in, refined, and molded into powerful techniques.
Cultivators were divided into realms, each representing a deeper mastery of Qi:
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Foundation Realm – The first step, sensing and absorbing Qi into the body.
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Qi Forging Realm – Strengthening the flesh, bones, and meridians.
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Core Formation Realm – Creating an inner reservoir of Qi, allowing the body to store vast energy.
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Nascent Soul Realm – Where Qi transcended the body, shaping the very soul.
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Ascendant Realms – A step beyond mortality, where legends were born.
Shen Aozu had once stood at the peak of these realms. Now, he was weaker than a mortal. But his mind remained sharp, and his knowledge of Qi had not faded. If he could cultivate again, he would rise once more. And when he did, he would find Li Wei.
Yet in the quiet of the cavern, he swore he heard a whisper.
You will rise again… but not as you were.
Days passed. Shen Aozu observed his saviors—Jin Han and his people were not warriors, but they had strength of their own. In the Borderlands, they lived under constant threat from marauding clans and spirit beasts. The ruling sects saw them as little more than rats, unworthy of protection or aid. Yet, despite this, they persevered, using their knowledge of Qi to heal the wounded and protect their own.
But they were not without enemies.
One evening, as the sun dipped below the horizon, a scout stumbled into the cave, bloodied and gasping. "They’re coming," he choked out. "The Crimson Moon Clan. They’ve found us."
A silence fell over the healers. Fear crept into their eyes. Shen Aozu could see it clearly—this was not the first time.
Jin Han clenched his fists. "We have until nightfall to leave."
But Shen Aozu knew running wouldn’t save them. These people had saved his life. Now, it was his turn to return the favor.
That night, as the embers of the campfire flickered in the wind, Shen Aozu sat cross-legged. His body was weak, but his will was unbroken. He reached inward, searching for even a flicker of his former power. And deep within his shattered soul, the Ashen Lotus bloomed.
It pulsed with an eerie, unfamiliar energy. This was not the Qi he had once known—it was something darker, something tainted by the Abyss. Yet, it was power. And power was exactly what he needed.
As the first war cries of the Crimson Moon raiders echoed in the night, Shen Aozu opened his eyes.
For the first time since his fall, he felt it. The fire of Qi burning once more.
Yet beneath that fire, the whisper returned, laughing softly.
Yes... let it grow.
And it was only the beginning.
Ashen Lotus! This is just the beginning of Shen Aozu’s long and arduous journey, where vengeance is but a shadow of the greater trials ahead. What does the Abyss whisper to him? Can he reclaim his lost strength? And what dark truths await in the new world he has been cast into?