The Aftermath of Battle, a Promise of Balance, and the Call from Afar
Rebuilding Heaven Dou City was a heavier undertaking than rebuilding the Far North Ice Plains.
Amid the broken walls and ruins, surviving Soul Masters and civilians silently cleared away rubble. The air was thick with the mingled smell of disinfectant and earth. When Tang San awoke, he found himself lying in the palace infirmary. Outside the window came the steady, muffled sound of craftsmen hammering stone, as though beating a requiem for the lives that had passed.
"You're awake." Lin Ye sat beside the bed, peeling an apple. Golden Crow Fire danced at his fingertips, carefully avoiding the core. "How do you feel? Is the Chaos Azure Lotus's power still stable?"
Tang San moved his fingers and could clearly feel the Azure Lotus rotating gently within him, though its light was much dimmer than before. He pushed himself up and asked, "Is everyone all right? How are Sect Master Ning and Sect Master Yu?"
"Sect Master Ning is fine, but the foundation of his Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda suffered some damage. He needs to rest and recuperate." Lin Ye handed him the apple, his voice growing subdued. "Sect Master Yu's left arm couldn't be saved, and more than half of his Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Soul Power was depleted... Dai Mubai and Tai Long were badly hurt, but their lives aren't in danger. Oscar is making Recovery Sausages for them."
Tang San silently took a bite of the apple. Its sweetness spread across his tongue, yet he could taste nothing. He remembered General Meng Zhi lying in a pool of blood and the civilians swallowed by dark tentacles. It was as though a boulder pressed down on his heart, leaving him unable to breathe.
"Did the Shadow Sect Master really escape?"
"Yes." Lin Ye nodded. "After you cut off his wings, he turned into black smoke and fled. We chased him a long way but couldn't catch him. The Ice Plains Ancient Dragon scale sensed his presence heading west across the continent, toward the Vast Sea Empire. They say there's a forbidden land there that connects to the deep sea."
"The Deep Sea Forbidden Land..." Tang San turned the words over. The Chaos Azure Lotus suddenly trembled gently, sending him a faint, indistinct sensation-there seemed to be energy fluctuations there connected to the Shadow Gate.
Just then, Xiao Wu walked in carrying a bowl of medicinal broth, her eyes red. "Tang San, it's time for your medicine. Sect Master Ning had someone prepare it especially for you. It'll help you recover your Soul Power."
Tang San took the broth. The warm liquid slid down his throat, leaving a bitter taste followed by a hint of sweetness. He looked at Xiao Wu and noticed a bandage wrapped around her arm. "Were you hurt too?"
"Just a scratch." Xiao Wu hastily waved it off and forced a smile. "Dark energy grazed me when I was saving Uncle Tang Xiao. A sausage from Oscar, and it'll be fine."
Tang San set down the bowl and took her hand. The skin beneath the bandage still felt slightly cold. He circulated the Chaos Azure Lotus's power, sending a thread of seven-colored light into her arm. The black Qi beneath the bandage instantly dissipated.
"Don't take risks like that again." A trace of lingering fear colored Tang San's voice.
"Got it." Xiao Wu lowered her head, her cheeks slightly red.
Lin Ye tactfully got up. "You two talk. I'll go check on Dai Mubai and the others."
Only the two of them remained in the infirmary. Sunlight streamed through the window, casting warm patches of light on the floor. Xiao Wu suddenly spoke. "Tang San, do you think... can we really stop the Shadow Pavilion for good? The Shadow Sect Master is already an emissary of the Dark Plane, and our power..."
"We can." Tang San interrupted her, his voice unusually firm. "No matter what he is, as long as our conviction to protect the balance never wavers, we'll stop him. And we're not fighting alone."
He meant not only the companions at his side, but also the Ice Plains Ancient Dragon, the surviving Soul Masters of the alliance, and even those seemingly weak civilians. It was their resilience that had kept Heaven Dou City from falling completely.
Three days later, Tang San was able to get out of bed and walk. The first thing he did was pay his respects to the fallen Soul Masters and civilians. A new cemetery had appeared in the western outskirts of Heaven Dou City. Names covered the gravestones in dense rows; some had not even been given full names, bearing only "Nameless Soul Master" or "Heaven Dou civilian."
Ning Fengzhi, Yu Luomian, and Tang Xiao came as well. The three elders stood before the gravestones, their backs hunched with the weight they bore.
"We owe them." Ning Fengzhi's voice was hoarse, and the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda trembled slightly in his hand. "If I'd uncovered the Shadow Pavilion's plot sooner, they wouldn't have..."
"It's not your fault." Tang San stepped forward. "The Shadow Pavilion's plan was too meticulous. It could have caught anyone. What we can do is make sure they didn't die in vain."
Yu Luomian clenched his only remaining hand, faint blue lightning flickering around it. "The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan will do everything it can to support the rebuilding. We'll take full responsibility for the families of everyone who died."
Tang Xiao stared at the name "Meng Zhi" on a gravestone, his eyes red. "I'll go to the Vast Sea Empire myself and find out where the Shadow Sect Master has gone. This time, we can't let him escape again."
Tang San nodded. "I'll go with you. The Chaos Azure Lotus can sense the Shadow Gate's energy. Perhaps we can find a way to seal it for good."
"We're going too!" Dai Mubai, Lin Ye, and the others walked over, determination on every face. Having experienced the carnage in Heaven Dou City, they understood all the more clearly that retreat would only cost more lives.
After paying his respects, Tang San went alone to Heaven Dou City's bell tower. From the top, he could see the entire city: craftsmen repairing the walls, children playing outside makeshift tents, and vendors setting up their stalls again. Life was slowly but steadily returning to everything.
He took out the Ice Plains Ancient Dragon scale, the Angel Divine Sense Crystal, and the Core of Life. The three objects glowed softly in the sunlight, resonating with one another. Tang San infused them with the Chaos Azure Lotus's power, and they gradually merged into a three-colored jade pendant. At its center was the image of a Chaos Azure Lotus, surrounded by the illusory figures of an ice dragon, a Golden Crow, and an angel.
"Is this... the Proof of Balance?" Tang San sensed the power contained in the pendant, and a flash of understanding crossed his eyes. The pendant could not only sense dark energy but also harmonize the powers of light and darkness. Perhaps... this was the key to stopping the Shadow Gate.
Just then, the pendant suddenly flew west. After hovering in the air for a moment, it turned into a streak of light and vanished. Tang San's heart stirred as the Chaos Azure Lotus sent him a clear sensation-the pendant had gone to the Deep Sea Forbidden Land in the Vast Sea Empire, where something capable of sealing the Shadow Gate for good could be found.
"It looks like we have to make a trip to the Vast Sea Empire," Tang San murmured.
Back at the palace, he told everyone what had happened to the pendant. Ning Fengzhi looked at the energy fluctuations lingering around his hand, a flicker of wonder in his eyes. "This is recognition from the laws of heaven and earth. The appearance of the Proof of Balance shows that you've truly understood the meaning of the Chaos Azure Lotus. It's no longer simply light or darkness, but the harmonious coexistence of both."
"When do we leave, then?" Dai Mubai could hardly wait.
"In three days," Tang San said. "Let everyone rest a little longer, and give Heaven Dou City's reconstruction time to get on track."
Over the next three days, Tang San and the others recovered their Soul Power while helping with the aftermath of the battle. Lin Ye's Golden Crow Fire quickly dried damp timber, helping the craftsmen speed up reconstruction; Xiao Wu used Teleportation to deliver urgent messages, faster than the swiftest carrier pigeon; Oscar's sausages became the most sought-after supplies, especially his "Regeneration Sausages," which could heal wounds quickly; Dai Mubai and Tai Long organized a patrol to prevent any dark Soul Masters who had slipped through the net from causing trouble.
On the eve of their departure, Tang San returned to the bell tower. Moonlight fell on him, and the energy left behind by the Proof of Balance flowed around his fingertips. He remembered the words of his father, Tang Hao; his mother's mysterious disappearance; the Angel God's fall and rebirth; and the Shadow Sect Master's terrifying black wings... Those fragments of memory all seemed to point toward a greater secret-one concerning the origins of light and darkness, and the connection between the Soul Master world and other planes.
"Dad, Mom, where are you?" Tang San asked softly. A faint, indistinct answer seemed to come on the night wind, only to vanish in an instant.
He clenched his fist, determination flashing in his eyes. No matter how many secrets or dangers lay ahead, he would keep going, one step at a time. For his companions, for those who had fallen, and for the balance and peace of the continent.
Three days later, the gates of Heaven Dou City opened once more. Tang San, Lin Ye, Xiao Wu, Dai Mubai, Oscar, Tai Long, and Tang Xiao, who had volunteered to accompany them, formed a new group and set out toward the Vast Sea Empire.
From the city walls, Ning Fengzhi, Yu Luomian, and the surviving Soul Masters of the alliance waved them farewell. Sunlight fell on them, stretching their shadows long.
"Make sure you come back!" Xiao Wu's friends called.
Xiao Wu turned and waved, beaming. "We will!"
The group gradually receded and disappeared beyond the horizon. The bells of Heaven Dou City rang out once more. This time, they were no mournful elegy, but an overture filled with hope.
In the Deep Sea Forbidden Land of the Vast Sea Empire, the Shadow Sect Master stood on a pitch-black shore, gazing at the black crystal ball in his hand. Inside it, Tang San and the others could be seen clearly.
"Finally, they're coming." A flicker of anticipation passed through the Shadow Sect Master's golden eyes. "The Proof of Balance has already activated the key to the seal. Once I have it, the Shadow Gate can be opened completely. Then the entire continent will become a paradise of darkness..."
In the darkness behind him, countless twisted figures emerged indistinctly, letting out bloodcurdling roars.
A decisive battle upon which the survival of planes depended was about to begin on the shores of the deep sea. But Tang San and the others did not know that they were pursuing not only the seal on the Shadow Gate, but also an earth-shaking secret concerning their own origins and the entire Soul Master world.
The call from afar had already sounded.