Wei Feng and Lin Yue stood on the charred stone of the Fire Origin Temple as the Rootless Flame danced quietly between his fingers. It no longer threatened—it obeyed. It no longer judged—it acknowledged.
Outside, the world had shifted.
As they stepped beyond the sacred chamber, the air shimmered—an unseen force pressing against their chests.
A man stood before them. Cloaked in storm clouds and shadows, he wore the emblem of the Sky Severing Pavilion. His eyes glowed like thunder.
"You've taken what was meant for another," he said coldly. "The Rootless Flame is not yours to wield."
Wei Feng met his gaze. "Then let fate challenge me."
The man raised his hand, and the sky cracked.
A bolt of lightning, sharp as a sword, plummeted toward Wei Feng—but the flame in his palm pulsed, and with a whisper, the bolt dissolved into harmless sparks.
Lin Yue gasped. "You just—"
"Burned through causality," Wei Feng said, his voice deeper. "No chain binds me now—not even destiny's."
The Sky Severing cultivator frowned. "You've become an anomaly... a problem."
"And problems can't be predicted," Wei Feng replied. "But they can end empires."
The man vanished into mist, but not before offering a final warning: "Then prepare, Heaven-Breaker. The sky itself will fall to claim you."
As silence returned, Lin Yue turned to him. "You've started something unstoppable, haven't you?"
Wei Feng looked to the heavens. "No... I've unleashed what was always there."