The Weight of Alliances
1. The Road to the Shanggu Clan
Chen Zhen moved swiftly through the valley, the presence of the Hollow Stalkers still fresh in his mind. They had been testing the boundaries of the sealed portal, searching for weaknesses. And if they were coming, stronger forces wouldn't be far behind.
His grip tightened on his glaive.
The time for isolation was over. He needed allies.
His path led east toward Shanggu territory, where the remnants of one of the oldest and most powerful factions in the Sacred Abyss still held their ground.
He wasn't sure what kind of welcome he'd receive, but it didn't matter.
Shanggu Feng's voice hummed in his mind, the ancient dragon's presence a steady force.
"You hesitate."
Chen exhaled. "They're not going to trust me."
"Trust is irrelevant," Lou Tian muttered. "Leverage is what matters."
The phoenix's tone carried the weight of experience. The Lou Clan had never survived by hoping for trust—they had thrived by ensuring they couldn't be ignored.
"Besides," Lou Tian added, "the Shanggu are not what they once were. Time has made them desperate."
Chen frowned. "Desperate?"
Feng was silent for a long moment.
"You'll see."
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2. Echoes of the Past
The journey through Shanggu land felt different from the rest of the Sacred Abyss.
The air was thicker, not just with qi but with something older—the weight of a civilization that had seen glory and ruin in equal measure.
Chen walked through the remnants of once-great fortresses, their walls scarred by centuries of war. Some had been abandoned, overtaken by nature, but others still bore signs of life—distant figures in armor, keeping watch, wary of outsiders.
And he was very much an outsider.
"They won't welcome you," Lou Tian muttered. "But if you prove yourself, they will listen."
"I'm not here to win their favor."
"No, but you need their swords," Shanggu Feng corrected. "And they need something from you as well."
Chen stopped at the edge of a ruined temple, its pillars cracked, its once-golden banners faded to gray.
A flash of memory surged through him—
Feng's past.
The temple had not always been a ruin. Once, it had stood tall, filled with warriors, loyal and unwavering.
And then the war had come.
Flames. Screams. The Lou Clan's armies burning everything in their path.
Chen gritted his teeth, the ghost of the past settling into his bones.
"This isn't my war," he muttered.
"But you carry its weight," Feng replied.
Chen exhaled. He had no time for old grudges—but the clans did.
If he wanted their help, he had to understand their scars first.
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3. Julong's Shadow
Before leaving Julong's side, the old master had given him one last warning.
"The clans are relics of a war that should have ended long ago," Julong had said as he watched Chen pack his weapons. "But they don't see it that way. They see enemies, debts unpaid, and names that should be avenged."
"And you?" Chen had asked.
"I see a wasted opportunity," Julong had said. "I trained you because I knew you would not be bound by their history. But make no mistake—when they learn where you got your power, they will see me in you."
And that could be either a blessing… or a curse.
Now, as he neared Shanggu Keep, Chen felt the weight of that warning pressing down on him.
Would they see him as an ally?
Or as Julong's puppet?
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4. The Gathering at Shanggu Keep
The Shanggu Clan's current stronghold was built into the cliffs of the Storm-Crowned Mountains, a natural fortress where the remnants of their people still held their ground.
Chen arrived at the outer gates, where armored sentries stood in rigid formations, their expressions cold.
"State your name and purpose."
Chen kept his stance relaxed, but his tone left no room for weakness.
"Chen Zhen. I need to speak to your elders."
The guards didn't move, but the weight of their gazes shifted. There was no recognition in their eyes, but there was suspicion.
The kind that didn't come from mere caution.
"We don't take in drifters."
"I'm not a drifter." Chen stepped forward, letting his presence press against them. "And I know you don't have the luxury of turning away people who can help you."
A flicker of uncertainty.
They weren't expecting someone who knew.
Before they could respond, a new voice cut through the air.
"Let him in."
A woman stepped out from behind the sentries, her robes lined with storm sigils, her eyes glowing with latent power.
Shanggu Meilin.
A name surfaced from Feng's memories.
The daughter of the last true Shanggu warlord—a leader who had lost everything to the Lou Clan's war.
Her gaze bore into him, and for the first time, Chen saw recognition.
Not of who he was.
But of what he carried.
She could feel Feng's presence inside him.
And that meant his arrival wasn't just unexpected—it was dangerous.
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5. The Weight of Old Wounds
The interior of Shanggu Keep was a stark contrast to its ruined outskirts.
Where once thousands had trained, now only hundreds remained. Soldiers, young and old, moved with a disciplined precision, but there was something missing—an edge dulled by loss.
They had survived the war.
But survival had cost them everything.
Meilin led him to the great hall, where Shanggu elders sat upon a stone dais, their expressions unreadable.
"You carry our ancestor's soul," one of them said. "And yet, you stand before us as an outsider."
No pretense. No welcome.
Just cold reality.
"I didn't come here to pretend I belong," Chen said. "I came because the war you fought isn't over. You just don't see it yet."
A flicker of emotion crossed Meilin's face.
"Explain."
Chen met their gazes evenly.
"Something is coming." His voice didn't waver. "I've already seen its first signs. Beings that shouldn't exist, searching for weaknesses in the boundary that separates this world from the one Earth was cut off from."
Murmurs spread through the room.
The elders did not look shocked.
They looked uneasy.
"You already knew," Chen realized.
Silence.
Meilin spoke first. "We suspected. There have been… anomalies. But nothing certain."
"Then consider me your confirmation."
Another pause. The weight of his words settled in the chamber like a storm about to break.
Chen didn't let them dwell for too long.
"If you ignore this, the war that took your people will look like a footnote compared to what's coming."
And for the first time, he saw it.
Doubt.
Not in his words.
But in whether or not they could afford not to listen.
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