Chapter 23: The Ley Line Core and a Father’s Sigh
The greenish glow of the ley line core was so bright now it hurt their eyes. The tunnel opened into a large chamber, its walls covered in glowing runes—dark qi pulsing through them, feeding the core at the center. The core itself was a large, black stone, the size of a boulder, surrounded by a circle of dark qi, and above it… a metal grate, leading up to the Shadow Palace.
“That’s the way to the throne room,” Lin Yue said, pointing at the grate. “My father’s there. I can feel it.”
But before they could move toward the grate, a voice echoed through the chamber—deep, cold, familiar. “You’ve come farther than I expected, Lin Yue. But this is as far as you go.”
From the shadows stepped four figures—Dark Guards, their black robes trimmed with red, their faces hidden by hoods. Each of them held a sword, its blade glowing with dark qi, and their auras were heavy—Core Formation Stage, just as the prisoner had said.
The leader pulled back his hood, revealing a scarred face and a missing eye—Hei Feng’s brother, Hei Ming. “My brother told me about you. The boy with the codex. The boy who thinks he can stop Lord Xiao.” He laughed, a harsh, cold sound. “You’re just a child. A child with a toy.”
Lin Yue’s hand drifted to the jade pendant around his neck. His dragon qi was still sheathed, but he could feel it—restless, ready to fight. “We’re not here to fight you,” he said, even though he knew it was a lie. “We’re here to stop Lord Xiao from merging with the Dark Dragon’s soul. If he succeeds, the realm will be destroyed. Even you will die.”
Hei Ming sneered. “Lord Xiao will grant us immortality. We will rule the new realm, with him as our king. You’re just in the way.”
He raised his sword, and the other Dark Guards followed. “Kill them. Bring the codex to Lord Xiao.”
The first Dark Guard charged, his sword slicing through the air. Lin Yue dodged, summoning spring qi to block the blade—but the dark qi on the sword burned, searing his hand. He hissed, pulling back, and Xiao Yu was there, her dagger stabbing at the Dark Guard’s side. The guard grunted, but didn’t stop—his sword swinging at Xiao Yu’s head.
Lin Yue tackled her out of the way, and the sword struck the stone floor, sending sparks flying. “We can’t fight them head-on,” he whispered. “Their dark qi is too strong. We need to reach the core—cut off the dark qi supply. That’ll weaken them.”
Xiao Yu nodded, her dagger still glowing. “I’ll hold them off. You go. Find the core’s weak spot—my father’s journal said ley line cores have a ‘heart,’ a small, white stone. Destroy it, and the core will shut down.”
Lin Yue hesitated. He didn’t want to leave her alone, but he knew she was right. “Be careful. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
He ran toward the core, the Dark Guards shouting behind him. Hei Ming tried to block his path, but Xiao Yu tackled him, her dagger pressing against his throat. “Stay away from him!” she shouted.
Lin Yue reached the core, his hands pressing against the black stone. It was cold, pulsing with dark qi that tried to seep into his skin. He closed his eyes, focusing—looking for the “heart” Xiao Yu had mentioned. And then he felt it—a faint, warm pulse, deep inside the core, hidden by the dark qi.
“There you are,” he whispered. He summoned all the spring qi he had, shaping it into a sharp, thin needle, and drove it into the core.
A loud scream echoed through the chamber—the core’s dark qi erupting, swirling around the room. The Dark Guards stumbled, their auras fading, their swords dropping to the floor. The Shadow Wraiths’ remains dissolved into nothing, and the qilin’s distant roar echoed, as if in pain.
Lin Yue stepped back, his spring qi drained. The core’s black stone cracked, and inside—glowing faintly—was the white heart stone, now dim. The ley line’s dark qi was gone.
But before he could celebrate, a soft sigh echoed from the grate above. Familiar. Warm. A voice he hadn’t heard in three years.
“Yue,” it said. “You’ve grown.”
Lin Yue looked up. Through the grate, he saw him—his father, Lin Tian, standing in the throne room, his hands bound, but his face calm. “Father,” he whispered, his voice breaking. “I’m here. I’m going to get you out.”
His father smiled, a small, tired smile. “I know. But Lord Xiao is coming. He’s already merged with a fragment of the Dark Dragon’s soul. He’s stronger than you can imagine.”
Lin Yue’s hand tightened around the jade pendant. The fail-safe technique. The one that required sacrificing his qi. He looked at Xiao Yu, who was standing beside him, her dagger still up. He looked at his father, through the grate, his eyes filled with pride.
Slow. Steady. Strong.
He was ready.
“I’m not afraid,” Lin Yue said, his voice steady. “I have the codex. I have the pendant. And I have them.” He nodded at Xiao Yu, at his father. “Together, we’ll stop him.”
The grate above creaked open, and Lord Xiao’s voice boomed through the chamber—deep, twisted, filled with dark qi. “Foolish boy. You think you can stop me? I am the Dark Dragon. I am immortality. I am—”
Lin Yue drew his sword, his dragon qi finally breaking free of the spring qi sheath—bright, blue, unyielding. “You’re just a man. A man who’s about to lose.”
The fight was about to begin. And this time, Lin Yue wasn’t just fighting for himself. He was fighting for his father. For Xiao Yu. For the realm.
And he wasn’t going to lose.