Within the Eternal Night Realm, atop a high slope outside Wasteland Town, the gray-blue skyglow hung like a thin veil that never dispersed, shrouding this silent land.
The Master sat cross-legged. Nightlight sat cross-legged before him as well, golden light slowly circulating around the youth like a candle flame swaying in the night wind.
The Master's gaze was gentle and profound. He raised a hand and lightly drew through the air.
An almost imperceptible axe intent left a faint silver-white trail in the air, like a stroke of ink.
"Between heaven and earth, all things are bound by shackles."
The Master spoke, neither loudly nor softly, yet his voice carried a power that pierced straight into the heart.
"The canopy of the Eternal Night Realm is the greatest shackle.
"But shackles do not exist to imprison forever. They exist to be broken."
Nightlight listened intently. The thread of golden light in his eyes flickered faintly with every word the Master spoke, as though resonating with them.
"And after the shackles are broken? Will the light descend?"
The Master smiled faintly. "Light is not something external. It has always been here."
He pointed to Nightlight's chest.
"In your heart.
"The cultivators of the Eternal Night Realm pursue the four great realms of Perception, Profound Insight, Knowing Fate, and Boundlessness. All of them are chasing the light beyond themselves.
"But they have never truly ignited the light within their own hearts."
Nightlight lowered his head and looked at the wisp of golden light over his heart, falling silent for a moment.
Ever since childhood, he had known that he was different from others. The light of Laws and the Dao of heaven and earth that others pursued were always easy for him to perceive, yet he had always felt that they were