Dawn bled red across the Crimson Ridge, as though the sky itself mourned what had passed.
Tianming stood at the edge of the ruined village of Xiren, the scent of charred wood and scorched earth heavy in the air. Zhao Yueyin stood beside him, eyes narrowed at the rising black mist that still hung over the far forest. Lan Mei crouched at the base of the old well, fingers tracing the words carved into its stone lip:
> "He Comes."
"Is there no trace of their elders?" Tianming asked, voice low.
"None," Zhao replied. "And no signs of battle. No footprints, no blood. It's as if they were plucked from the world entirely."
Tianming looked toward the smoldering horizon. "Then the Raven Herald has truly arrived."
The name alone chilled the wind. Zhao Yueyin's hand rested uneasily on her spear. "The last time Corvus's disciple moved, an entire province vanished into mist. This is more than cultist mischief. This is a declaration."
Lan Mei rose, eyes scanning the darkness beyond the ridge. "Do we pursue?"
Tianming's grip on Starpiercer tightened. "We must. Before he finds a new Eye to anchor the Abyss."
---
Trail of Ash
The group moved with urgency, riding celestial wind talismans through the scorched landscape. Every step further west brought colder air, more warped ley lines, and broken villages. Each ruin bore the same hallmarks—blackened soil, whispering shadows, and the faint trace of a sigil resembling a bird in flight, its wings a lattice of void.
They reached the village of Caorong by dusk. The village still stood, but its silence was unnatural. Chickens wandered the streets in a daze. A pot boiled unattended in a home where no soul stirred. Doors hung open. Lanterns flickered despite a windless sky.
"They're gone," Lan Mei whispered. "But not far."
Zhao Yueyin stepped forward, eyes flaring with divine sight. "There. The well. Again."
Another carving, deeper and newer than the last:
> "He Watches."
Tianming approached the well, peering into the depths. Instead of darkness, the well reflected a starless sky—a false horizon. As he touched the rim, a voice slithered into his mind.
> "You see, but you do not perceive. Come closer, child of stars."
He recoiled.
"A scrying link," he said. "He's baiting us."
Lan Mei nodded. "Then let's bite."
---
Ambush at the Shrouded Glade
Following the residual pull of the scrying link, they reached a secluded glade rimmed by black-barked trees. Mist clung low to the ground, and the wind no longer whispered—it growled.
Then, from the center of the clearing, a figure descended.
He floated downward on a spiral of black feathers, cloak billowing like smoke. His mask resembled a raven's skull, eyes burning with twin suns. He carried no visible weapon, but his presence cut sharper than any blade.
"The Vanguard arrives," he said, voice echoing in layers.
Tianming raised Starpiercer. "Raven Herald."
The Herald bowed mockingly. "You've been busy—severing eyes, slaying generals, unraveling years of preparation. The Abyss is most displeased."
"You're too late," Zhao Yueyin said. "The Eye is gone. The Vault collapsed."
The Herald spread his arms. "Then I must thank you. With the Eye shattered, I am free to manifest fully. The vault was my prison as much as it was my temple."
Lan Mei stepped forward. "Then we should've buried it deeper."
The air split. Shadows surged outward. From the trees, cloaked figures leapt—cultists, void-touched and feral. But not like before. These ones bore armor, discipline, and coordination. This was no mindless swarm.
Tianming activated the Sigil of Celestial Sight. The battlefield unfolded in spectral layers before his eyes—hidden traps, invisible runes, the flow of void energy.
"Left flank," he called. "Lan Mei—three incoming, from above!"
She reacted instantly, blades flashing to meet them midair.
Zhao Yueyin drew upon her Phoenix Sigil, fire wreathing her form. "I'll hold the line!"
Tianming charged forward, confronting the Raven Herald head-on.
Their clash was cataclysmic.
---
Duel Under the Hollow Moon
The Raven Herald's power was unlike Feng Zhen's. It didn't erupt—it seeped. A tide that slowly corroded resolve and blurred vision. Spells bled together. The stars above dimmed.
"You fight with light," the Herald said. "But even light casts shadows. Let me show you yours."
He drove a staff of woven bone toward Tianming, who blocked with Starpiercer, sparks flaring. The impact sent a shockwave through the ground.
Tianming retaliated with the Stellar Dominion Array. Twelve stars lit above him, each one aligning into a battle formation.
But the Raven Herald countered with the Dance of the Unseen Flame, twisting void and time to evade and strike between moments.
They moved too fast for the eye. Only Zhao Yueyin, in a lull, managed to glance their way—and even she caught only glimpses.
Tianming was pressed harder than ever before. The Herald's flames were not mere heat—they consumed memory, identity. With each strike, he felt his soul fray.
But he remembered the child at Crimson Ridge. The ruined well. The Emperor's face drawn in concern.
He summoned the Voidbane Flame—not as a shield, but as a spear.
"You wield the Abyss," Tianming roared. "But I carry its bane!"
He plunged the spear into the glade, where the ritual circle had been etched.
Light erupted—not golden, but white-hot, searing even through shadow. The void recoiled. Cultists screamed as the light touched them, and the Raven Herald staggered for the first time.
"You dare—!" the Herald snarled.
But Tianming wasn't done. Drawing on the system's newest reward—Celestial Sight—he pinpointed the Herald's core: a knot of fused void and corrupted qi lodged in his left shoulder.
He feinted right—then drove Starpiercer into that precise point.
The Herald screamed.
---
The Glade Burns
The Raven Herald erupted in black flame, his mask cracking down the center. The cultists scattered, retreating into shadow. The forest groaned.
"You… are not yet ready," the Herald hissed as his form dissolved. "But the Gate… opens… soon…"
With a final screech, he vanished into smoke.
Silence fell. The cultists were gone. Only Tianming, Zhao Yueyin, and Lan Mei remained, scorched and breathing heavily.
Zhao walked forward. "You wounded him."
"No," Tianming said. "I exposed him. There's a difference."
---
Back in the Capital
The return journey was grim. The Emperor convened the Star Council for an emergency meeting.
Xi Wenlong addressed them in full regalia, the first time in years. "The Raven Herald walks free. He will seek the Gate. We must be ready."
The Prince of Dust, silent beside the throne, finally spoke. "The Sky Pillars will be reawakened. The old formations must hold."
To Tianming, the Emperor said, "You have earned another title."
He raised his scepter. "Starwatcher of the Empire."
---
System Notification
> Major Quest Complete: Confront the Raven Herald
Reward: Crown of Celestial Insight (Enhances all spiritual perception abilities)
Cultivation Breakthrough: Initial Saint Realm
New Quest: Defend the Sky Pillars – Prevent the Awakening of the Abyssal Gate
Tianming felt it—his core expanding, energy stabilizing at a new tier. The stars sang louder now.
But in the back of his mind, the Herald's final words echoed like a curse:
> "The Gate… opens… soon."
---
To Be Continued in Chapter 47: Shadows Over the Sky Pillars