Xu Tian awoke to silence.

  For a moment, he thought he was dead. The oppressive darkness of the cavern was absolute, and the air was thick, as if the world itself pressed down on him. But then the pain returned—searing and unrelenting, like molten iron coursing through his veins.

  Gritting his teeth, he forced himself upright. His body felt foreign, as if it didn’t belong to him anymore. Every muscle ached, yet there was a strange vitality beneath the pain, a pulsing energy that hadn’t been there before. His fingers trembled as he brought them to his chest, where a faint warmth radiated beneath his skin.

  The star.

  The memory came rushing back—the broken fragments, the dark core, the whispers that had clawed through his mind. He had touched it, accepted its offer. But at what cost?

  The faint glow of the star's remains still lit the cavern, though its brilliance had dimmed to a mere flicker. The shards floated sluggishly now, as if drained of their once-boundless energy. At the center, the dark core pulsed faintly, like the dying embers of a fire.

  “You took it,” a voice rasped.

  Xu Tian turned sharply, his heart pounding. The mercenary from before was still alive, slumped against the wall of the cavern. Blood stained his armor, and his sword lay shattered at his feet. His eyes, wide with fear and disbelief, were fixed on Xu Tian.

  “What... what are you?” the man whispered, his voice trembling.

  Xu Tian opened his mouth to respond, but stopped short. Something felt... wrong. His voice wasn’t there. No, it was deeper than that—there was a weight in the air around him, an oppressive stillness that seemed to ripple outward. He glanced at his hands and froze.

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  Shadows curled around his fingers like living things, twisting and writhing before dissipating into the air. They left behind a faint, black stain on his skin, like ink soaking into paper. The mercenary’s gaze darted to Xu Tian’s hands, and his expression twisted into something between terror and rage.

  “You’re cursed,” the man spat, his voice rising in hysteria. “You’ve bonded with that thing! Do you have any idea what you’ve done?!”

  Xu Tian took a step forward, his eyes narrowing. “I did what I had to.”

  The mercenary flinched as the shadows around Xu Tian’s feet began to stir, stretching toward the corners of the cavern like tendrils. He raised a trembling hand, as if to ward Xu Tian off, but it was futile. The man’s strength was gone, his body broken.

  “Power like that... it’ll consume you,” the mercenary gasped. “You think it’s a gift, but it’s a poison. It’ll hollow you out until there’s nothing left.”

  Xu Tian stared at him for a long moment, the man’s words sinking in. Was it true? The star had offered him power, yes, but at what cost? The whispers still lingered in the back of his mind, faint but persistent, like echoes in a vast canyon. They promised strength, vengeance, and freedom—but they carried a weight that felt heavier than any chain.

  The mercenary’s voice snapped him out of his thoughts. “Kill me, then,” the man said, his tone defiant despite the tremor in his voice. “You’ve already crossed the line. Finish it.”

  Xu Tian hesitated, his hands curling into fists. The old him—the scavenger, the failure—might have walked away. But he wasn’t that person anymore. The shadows coiled around his feet, responding to his thoughts, eager to obey.

  “I don’t need to kill you,” Xu Tian said quietly. “The ruins will finish what I started.”

  Without another word, he turned and walked away, leaving the mercenary to his fate. His steps felt heavier now, each one echoing in the cavern like a drumbeat. The glow of the fractured star faded behind him, but its power remained, thrumming within him like a second heartbeat.

  As he emerged from the ruins and into the pale light of dawn, Xu Tian’s thoughts were a whirlwind. The mercenary’s words echoed in his mind, mingling with the whispers of the star. He couldn’t deny the truth: this power came at a cost. But it was his now, and he would wield it.

  For the first time in years, he felt alive.

  And for the first time in years, he wasn’t afraid.