The narrow, dark shaft smelled of damp earth and ancient magic. Li Chen pulled Yueling down, the soft, golden-silver glow of the Pedang Awan Roh barely illuminating the rough-hewn stone steps that spiraled endlessly into the abyss. Yueling clung to him, her breath ragged, her entire body trembling from the terror of the sect’s collapse and the chilling premonition that still shadowed her heart.
"Master Sekte... he's going to fight them alone," she whispered, her voice raw with grief.
Li Chen felt a searing pang of loss, but the God-Will in his marrow kept a cold, steady beat. "He is," he replied, his voice grim. "And he is buying us time. Time to prepare. Time to become what we need to be." The weight of Master Sekte’s sacrifice pressed down on him, a heavy, unpayable debt. I will not le
