Myriad Rivers to the Sea

Li Yu opened his eyes. The artificial twilight of the Veil filtered through his white paper screens. He had spent the night circulating his Qi on the jade bed. He stood up and straightened his dark robes. He stepped out of his luxurious pavilion. The air smelled strongly of cherry blossoms. He walked toward the bustling streets of Kyokai City. He wanted to see his competition.

The city was a melting pot. Old Du had not exaggerated. The artifact pulled candidates from across the myriad realms. Li Yu saw all walks of life. He walked over a red wooden bridge. A group of towering Fire Elementals floated past him. They left a trail of warm ash on the stone path.

A massive serpent with six arms slithered gracefully along the canal bank. Two hulking Ogres sat beneath a cherry tree. They possessed thick green skin and jagged teeth. They were drinking from enormous clay jugs. The diversity of life was staggering.

He felt the ancient auras radiating from them. Most of these candidates were thousands of years old. They had spent millennia reaching their current realms. Li Yu was an anomaly in age with his strange experience within The Temporal Dao Stone.

He could be considered thousands of years old too in a way. However, from just the time passed in the outside world during his stay in the stone, he was barely a fraction of their lifespan. He possessed the power to stand among them. Yet he lacked their centuries of perspective in a way.

Li Yu entered a massive tea house. The establishment was carved entirely from a single hollowed-out spirit tree. He ordered a pot of bitter green tea. The place was crowded and he found an empty seat at a large wooden table in the corner. A massive creature already occupied the other end.

The being was a demon. He had deep crimson skin. Two obsidian horns protruded from his forehead. He wore loose black silk robes. He looked incredibly intimidating. The demon possessed thick muscles and sharp claws. However, he was currently slouching over the table. He looked absolutely exhausted. He stared blankly into his empty cup.

Li Yu poured his tea and the demon let out a long sigh.

"I hate politics." The demon grumbled to what seemed like himself. He did not look at Li Yu but Li Yu was the only other person there.

"Politics are usually a headache." Li Yu agreed. He took a sip of his hot tea.

The demon lifted his head and he looked at Li Yu with tired golden eyes. "You have no idea. I am Daiki. My father is the Patriarch of the Blood Iron Clan."

"I am Li Yu. No associated clans." He replied.

Daiki took a massive gulp of a new drink a server placed before him. "I just wanted to cultivate in peace. But my father insisted on clan alliances. He arranged seven different marriages for me. Seven!" Daiki shuddered visibly. "The women were all terrifying warlords. I could not take it anymore. The sacred artifact sent its calling and I accepted immediately."

Li Yu blinked. He set his teacup down. "You came to a deadly trial just to avoid marriage?"

"Absolutely." Daiki nodded solemnly. "It is much safer than facing my seventh fiancée. She is a six-headed hydra. She has terrible anger issues. She destroys mountains when her tea is cold. The Guardians here will not let her kill me. This place is a sanctuary."

Li Yu laughed out loud. The giant crimson demon was just a person running from his father's expectations. Age did not change family drama. A patriarch was still a patriarch.

"I wish you luck in your evasion." Li Yu smiled and continued to chuckle.

"May the artifact keep me busy for a decade." Daiki sighed. He ordered another large drink.

Li Yu finished his tea and left the establishment. He walked toward the central plaza of the Trial Grounds. He heard a booming voice echoing across the silver tiles. As he approached, a small crowd gathered near a stone archway. He saw a massive brute standing in the center.

The brute had ashen grey skin. He possessed four heavily muscled arms. Two large tusks jutted from his lower jaw. He wore heavy spiked armor forged from dark metal. His aura was intensely aggressive. This was a warrior who had lived through centuries of endless bloodshed. His eyes were hard and unforgiving.

"The Iron Tusk Clan bows to no one!" The four-armed brute declared. He thumped his chest with his massive fists. "But we recognize strength. We seek worthy allies for the coming trials. Stand with Jin Wu. We will crush the obstacles together."

He was speaking to a woman standing a few paces away. She was not flesh and blood. She was a Wind Elemental. Her body was a swirling vortex of silver breezes. She wore elegant armor crafted from solid ice crystals and she held a slender crystalline staff. She radiated an aura of nobility.

"Your clan's physical strength is legendary, Jin Wu." The elemental woman spoke. Her voice sounded like wind chimes clashing together. "I am Princess Linnea. I represent the Silver Gale Kingdom."

Jin Wu grunted and he crossed his lower arms. "Your kingdom is wealthy. Wealth is useless in a trial of the soul. We need warriors. We need blood and iron."

"Wealth is merely a tool." Linnea countered smoothly. Her silver breezes shifted calmly. "Strategy and endurance are our true strengths. Our kingdom has stood for forty thousand years. We do not rush blindly into danger, we survive it. An alliance would benefit your warriors greatly. We provide the mind. You provide the shield."

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Li Yu watched the exchange from the edge of the plaza. Jin Wu was arrogant but seemed honorable. He wanted strong fighters to ensure his clan's success. Linnea was refined and highly strategic. She clearly viewed this trial as a diplomatic mission. She wanted to secure resources and alliances for her ancient kingdom.

They were both beings locked in a dance of politics and pride. The zero-tolerance fighting rule forced them to use words instead of weapons. Jin Wu looked like he wanted to smash the silver tiles but he restrained himself. He knew the Guardians were watching. It was a fascinating dynamic. Li Yu realized the trials would not just test the individual. They would test these fragile alliances.

Li Yu moved away from the loud plaza. He did not want to be drafted into a clan alliance. He found a secluded spiritual garden behind a crimson pagoda. The area was quiet. The cherry blossom trees here were thick and vibrant and the air was cool. He heard the sharp whistle of a blade cutting the air. He walked closer to investigate.

He saw a woman practicing martial forms. She was a transformed beast. She retained her Lunar Wolf traits. Silver furred ears twitched atop her head. A long silver tail swayed behind her. She wore simple grey robes and she was wielding a curved wooden sword.

She was thousands of years old and her movements were refined. They were refined over millennia of endless repetition. She used absolutely no Qi. She relied entirely on physical perfection and martial intent. Each swing of her wooden blade parted the falling cherry blossoms perfectly.

Li Yu watched in silence. He appreciated the dedication to the craft. After she finished her routine she sheathed the wooden blade. She turned her piercing silver eyes toward him.

"Your footfalls are heavy." She said quietly. Her voice was sharp and flat.

"I apologize for the intrusion." Li Yu bowed slightly. "I was just exploring the grounds."

"I am Sora." She said to him as a greeting. She did not offer a clan name and she did not mention a kingdom or an empire.

"Li Yu." He replied. "You have no faction?"

"Factions are a tether." Sora answered him. She walked over to a stone bench and sat down. She began wiping her wooden sword with a cloth before looking back at him. "I am a wanderer. I have traveled the winds for over five thousand years. I have no master and I have no students. I seek only the apex of the Dao. The artifact called. I answered. It is simply another step on the path."

She was pure pragmatism. She cared nothing for politics or alliances. The only reason she was here was for the crucible alone. Her focus was absolute. She would likely excel in the trials. She had no distractions. Li Yu respected her mindset as it was quite rare for someone to be so pure in focus. It slightly mirrored his own recent revelations. He also sought the apex to secure his peace.

"It is a good path. I wish you success on your journey." Li Yu said.

Sora nodded once and then she closed her eyes to meditate. Li Yu took the hint. He left the quiet garden.

He walked toward a large koi pond near the edge of the Trial Grounds. The water was crystal clear. Large spiritual fish swam lazy circles beneath the lily pads. He found a moss-covered boulder near the water and he sat down next to it. He watched the fish and he enjoyed the brief moment of stillness.

"The fish here lack ambition." A deep grinding voice spoke.

Li Yu jumped slightly as he had been so relaxed. He stood up and looked around. He looked at the boulder. The stone shifted. Two deep crevices opened on its surface. They revealed glowing amber eyes. The boulder was an ancient Earth Golem. He was massive once he stood up. Roots and thick moss grew across his rocky shoulders. He blended perfectly with the garden.

"I thought you were a landscape feature." Li Yu admitted as he relaxed his stance.

The golem chuckled. The sound was like grinding plates. "When you sit still for a few centuries, you become the landscape. I am Elder Baisheng."

Li Yu sensed the entity's cultivation. It was a dense and suffocating weight. This golem was at the absolute peak of the Paragon realm. He was a hair's breadth away from the next major stage. His soul was incredibly heavy.

"You are very powerful." Li Yu noted respectfully.

"I have existed for sixty thousand years." Baisheng rumbled slowly. Dirt fell from his rocky chin. "I have been stuck at the Paragon bottleneck for half of that time. My original clan turned to dust long ago. The mountains I was born in crumbled into the sea. Time claims all things eventually."

"Why did you come here?" Li Yu asked as he leaned against a nearby tree. "You have lived longer than most empires."

"Time is finally catching up to me." The ancient golem sighed as the sound rustled the leaves above them. "My life force is waning. I came seeking a final breakthrough. This realm is saturated with the laws of the soul. If I cannot break through here, I will perish. But I wish to leave a lasting legacy. Helping this broken realm rebuild its spiritual veins seems like a worthy end for an old stone."

Li Yu looked at the ancient golem. He felt a sense of respect. The artifact cared nothing for age. It only measured the strength of the soul and realm they were in. It could tell how old someone was but that wasn’t a deciding factor. Baisheng possessed a soul forged by sixty millennia of existence and observation. His perspective was incredibly vast.

Li Yu spent the next hour talking with the ancient elemental. He learned much about the patience required for a long life. Baisheng spoke of dead empires. He spoke of the eternal nature of the soul. Baisheng explained how to weather the slow march of time and the mindset required for it. It was an enlightening conversation.

The artificial suns above the Veil began to dim. Twilight shifted into a deeper starry night. Li Yu said his goodbyes to the ancient golem and promised to speak with him again. He returned to his luxurious pavilion.

He sat on his jade meditation bed as he reflected on the day.

He had met a demon running from an arranged marriage. He had met brutes and elementals playing politics. He had met a solitary beast-kin seeking the apex. He had met an ancient golem facing his own mortality. They were all thousands of years old and they represented vastly different races. Yet their desires were incredibly relatable.

They wanted peace. They wanted honor. They wanted strength. They wanted a legacy.

The cosmic scale was massive. The players were ancient and diverse but the fundamental motivations remained the same across the myriad realms. Li Yu felt grounded by this realization. He was not out of his depth and he was simply playing the game on a larger board. He was ready to begin.

Suddenly, a warmth spread across his chest.

Li Yu reached into his dark robes and he pulled out the dark purple soul-jade badge. It was vibrating softly. A bright silver light pulsed from its center. Intricate text formed. The artifact had finally calculated his placement. It instructed him to report to the Pagoda of the First Echo. He was to arrive early the next morning.

Li Yu smiled at the welcome task at hand. The waiting was over. His schedule was set and his first true task in the Veil was about to begin.