Stellar Tribulation

Míng Tiān hung in the void like a fractured jewel, its surface sheathed in ice and crisscrossed with glowing meridians of dormant qi. The planet's sole sanctuary, Whitepeak Citadel, loomed atop a mountain carved into the likeness of a meditating sage—a relic of Li Wei's era, untouched by Elysium's corruption.

Kara guided their stolen Elysium shuttle through the atmosphere, dodging crystalline storms that crackled with defensive arrays. "They've sealed the planet," she muttered, her holographic maps glitching. "Whatever's down there doesn't want visitors."

Li Wei sat in the cargo hold, his hybrid core simmering. Frost spread from his fingertips, nanobots and qi locked in fragile equilibrium. The First Core's whispers had grown louder since the battle with the Judges, its voice now tinged with the Prisoner's hunger.

"They'll fear you," it cooed. "As they should."

The citadel's gates opened reluctantly. Cultivators in azure robes lined the steps, their eyes cold as the tundra. At their head stood Elder Lian, her silver hair braided with talismans that hummed with primordial qi.

"You bring corruption here, Outlander," she said, her gaze slicing into Li Wei. "Your flesh reeks of Elysium's filth."

Li Wei bowed, the motion stiff. "I seek refuge for your people. Elysium comes for you."

A young disciple spat at his feet. "We need no aid from a half-machine abomination."

Kara stepped forward, her prosthetic arm whirring. "Nice robes. How'd they hold up against planet-cracking mechs?"

Elder Lian raised a hand, silencing the crowd. "You may enter. But your… companion remains here."

Li Wei's core flared, melting the ice beneath him. "I did not cross dying stars to be insulted by children."

The disciples drew swords forged of glacial qi.

"Enough."

The voice came from a hooded figure at the rear—Grandmaster Ru, his face a lattice of scars, one eye replaced by a jade prosthetic. "The Outlander's energy is unstable. But he carries the First Core. Let the Ancestral Vault judge him."

The vault was a cavern of living ice, its walls embedded with the frozen bodies of ancient cultivators. At its heart floated the Second Core—a sphere of liquid moonlight, its surface marred by a single black fissure.

"It has been dormant for centuries," Grandmaster Ru said. "But since the Judges attacked, it weeps."

Li Wei approached, drawn by the Core's song—a mournful dirge that harmonized with the First Core in his dantian. As he touched it, visions erupted:

Elder Lian, centuries younger, leading a pilgrimage to Míng Tiān…

Veyra's ships ambushing them, harvesting souls…

A pact made—the Second Core's power in exchange for sanctuary.

"You traded your disciples' lives for safety," Li Wei accused, turning to Elder Lian. "You let Elysium take them."

The disciples stirred, but Elder Lian's voice was steel. "We survive. That is all that matters."

The Second Core pulsed, its fissure widening. Black tendrils lashed out, seizing Li Wei's arm.

"Join us," the Prisoner whispered through the Core. "Break their chains."

Alarms shattered the silence.

A shadow fell over the citadel—a warship shaped like a crescent moon, Elysium's lotus sigil bleeding crimson. From it descended a figure in white robes, his face a perfect mirror of Li Wei's dead disciple.

"Hello, Master," the Echo of Chen Yun smiled, his voice a chorus of screams. "Director Veyra sends her regards."

The Echo raised a hand. Glaciers shattered. Disciples clutching their heads as their qi inverted, turning against them.

Li Wei froze.

Chen Yun's smile, warm and bright, teaching novices in the Azure Dragon Sect's gardens…

The same smile, twisted and hollow, glowing with stolen power.

"Fight!" Kara tackled him as the Echo's qi blast vaporized the vault's ceiling.

The Echo fought with Chen Yun's techniques—fluid, elegant strikes honed over centuries—but corrupted by Elysium's code. Every clash resonated in Li Wei's core, the First Core screeching in recognition.

"He's not real!" Kara shouted, sniping from the citadel's ramparts.

But Li Wei hesitated. The Echo's qi felt alive—a shred of his disciple's soul, tortured and reshaped.

"You abandoned me," the Echo hissed, its blade carving a gash across Li Wei's chest. Nanobots hissed as they repaired the wound. "Now you abandon them."

It gestured to the citadel's disciples, their bodies contorting as the Echo's energy infected their meridians.

Li Wei roared, unleashing a storm of hybrid energy. Frost and lightning devoured the battlefield, tearing the Echo's arm off—but the limb regenerated in seconds.

"You cannot kill me, Master. I am your failure made flesh."

Grandmaster Ru staggered to the Second Core, his jade eye cracking. "The vault's sanctity is broken! We must—"

The Second Core exploded.

A beam of moonlight pierced the chaos, striking the Echo. It screamed, its form unraveling.

Li Wei lunged, driving the fractured Second Core into the Echo's chest. "Rest now, Chen Yun."

The Echo dissolved, whispering, "Find… the others…"

Silence fell.

The citadel's survivors stared at Li Wei—his hybrid body flickering, the Second Core's shard embedded in his palm. Elder Lian knelt, her voice trembling. "What… are you?"

Before he could answer, the ground quaked. The Prisoner's laughter echoed through the vault as the remaining Eight Cores' locations burned into Li Wei's mind.

"Three down," it purred. "Six to go."