Yunxi waved the drawing in front of Chen with a proud grin. "Okay, Master Cold face, tell me—what do you think of this?"
Chen glanced at the sketch: a boy standing beneath a bridge, and a girl watching him from above, their eyes locked in an unspoken moment.
He stared a little too long. His brows drew together.
"Why does this seem… familiar?" he muttered, almost to himself.
Yunxi tilted her head. "Hmm? Is it? "Then, with a playful spark in her eyes, she leaned closer. "Don't tell me you've been standing under bridges waiting for girls all this time?"
Chen shot her a look. "No. "But he didn't offer any more explanation. The seriousness in his gaze lingered.
Yunxi tucked the drawing away, shrugging. "Maybe it's from a dream," she said softly ."Or maybe… some moments happen before they actually happen."
Chen said nothing for a while, then quietly replied, "Or maybe you saw something you weren't supposed to remember yet."
Yunxi froze for a heartbeat. She looked at him—but he was already turning away, walking toward the path back to camp.
She blinked. Wait—what does that even mean?!"But he didn't answer.
Behind her, the wind lifted the corner of the drawing. The boy under the bridge now seemed to smile.
After a moment, he murmured, "I think... all of this feels familiar."
Yunxi blinked. "What do you mean?"
He looked away, handing the drawing back to her. "Nothing. Just... forget it. Okay, leave it."
She stared at him, puzzled. "Hmph. You're always like this. Cold one moment, mysterious the next."
Chen gave a faint smirk but said nothing more.
Yunxi looked at the sketch again, the moment between the drawn boy and girl somehow making her chest tighten. "Familiar, huh…? Then maybe we've met under a bridge too, in another life," she said playfully, though her voice was quieter now.
Chen didn't respond. But his eyes, just for a second, flickered with something—Recognition. Longing.
Or maybe a memory.
Then, as usual, he turned his back to her. "Come. You're still behind in sword training."
Whispers Across the Map"
After the events at the cottage, the emperor issues a secret decree:
"Seal the rift. The shadows awaken. And if the Dragon stirs, send it back to slumber."
Chen receives a scroll — not from the emperor, but the system."To protect the veil, collect the Four Soul Sigils hidden across the lands."Each one sealed a powerful demon that was once part of the Shadow Clan.
Yunxi, hearing this from the system herself, decides:
"If this is my story… I will write a better ending."
Their Journey:
Frozen Ash Valley – A demon sealed in eternal ice, bound to forgotten regrets.
Lotus Mirage Desert – A sand-dwelling spirit of illusions that feeds on fear.
Azure Peak Monastery – A peaceful sect guarding a demon of rage.
Falling Star Sea – A coastal village haunted by a siren-like shadow.
The Village That Forgot Its Name
Chen, Yunxi, Roa, and a few disciples arrive in a fog-covered village nestled in the valley of dead willows. No one remembers the village's name—only whispers remain.
The moment they step in, the air turns heavy, and the sun disappears, even though it's midday.
The Curse
The village is cursed: every night, at the stroke of midnight, the same day repeats, but with different events. Ghosts walk the streets, people scream, and shadows re-enact something horrible. But no one remembers in the morning.
A Lost Child
Yunxi sees a little girl watching her from behind a shrine. When she follows her, the girl whispers:
"He's coming for you, dragon... just like before."
Chen's Memory Glitch
Chen hears voices only he can hear, calling him by an ancient name. His dragon blood reacts violently, and he begins to see visions of a burning village — could this be a memory from his past life?
Emotional Moment
Yunxi and Chen argue—he pushes her away, saying she doesn't understand the burden he carries. Yunxi shouts back:
"Maybe not, but I choose to walk with you anyway."
He's stunned. Silent.
Final Twist of the Arc:
They discover that the village is a trap laid by a Shadow Clan general who once served Chen in his past life… and who betrayed him.
"Welcome back, my king. Or… should I say, failure?"
The Edge of the Haunted Village – Dusk
Chen stands tall, blood still simmering in his veins from the earlier fight. He stares down at the shadowy figure cloaked in remnants of ancient Armor—the General of the Shadow Clan.
General (smirking):
"Welcome back, my king. Or… should I say, failure?"
Chen (coldly, eyes narrowing):
"I'm not your king. You've mistaken me for someone long dead."
He turns to leave, his aura sharp and unapproachable. Yunxi grabs his sleeve, sensing something deeper, but he gently shakes her off.
General (laughs darkly):
"You may deny your blood, but soon it will call to you. We'll meet again… Your Majesty."
As they vanish into the mist, the shadows scatter.
Moments later, a quiet wind whistles. A slender figure cloaked in silver and black silk steps from the shrine's shadows—Cheonsa, expression unreadable.
She approaches the general slowly, her tone soft but piercing.
Cheonsa:
"I told you not to interfere yet."
General (bowing slightly):
"But he was here. I only reminded him of what sleeps inside."
Cheonsa (voice hardening):
"Touch them again, and I'll make sure your curse doesn't let you die—only suffer."
The general flinches.
Cheonsa (turning away):
"Leave them. Yunxi will bring him back… on her own. Just as the story was meant to unfold."
The wind grows stronger. Petals from dead trees swirl around her feet, and with a faint shimmer of light, Cheonsa disappears—like a dream fading before dawn.
Haunted Village – Evening, Outside the Old Shrine
The sky is turning a strange, smoky violet. A sense of stillness clings to the air, thick and unnatural.
Yunxi and Chen return from the shadows, their steps quickened by the weight of what just happened. As they approach the campfire near a half-collapsed hut, Roa rushes to them, concern etched across her face.
Roa (breathless):
"Where did you go? Why did you vanish like that? We were looking everywhere—"
She pauses, catching Yunxi's pale, trembling hands and Chen's faint bloodstains.
Roa (softer, worried):
"What happened, sister? Here in this cursed village… when night falls, the people… they change. As if possessed. Like puppets strung by invisible hands."
Yunxi's eyes widen.
"Puppets…?"
Roa nods gravely:
"We tried everything—sealing spells, talismans, even purifying chants. But none of it works. One of our men was bitten by a possessed villager. He hasn't spoken a word since. Just sits there, staring at the moon with empty eyes."
Yunxi clenches her fists. A memory stirs—a half-written scene in her old notebook, one she barely remembers scripting. Her breath catches.
Yunxi (thinking):
"This village… I wrote about it. But I never finished the solution…"
Chen remains silent, standing beside her, eyes scanning the shadows.
Yunxi (to Roa, gently):
"Maybe… the cure isn't from this world. Or not yet written. But I'll find it. We won't leave anyone behind."
Roa nods, though uncertainty lingers in her eyes.
Roa (softly):
"I trust you, sister. But hurry. Whatever controls this village… it's growing stronger each night."
Just then, a distant chime echoes through the air—soft and haunting. A paper talisman burns mid air, leaving behind ash shaped like a single word: "Awaken."