Beyond

"Can you see what is beyond the surface?"

The moment he asked that with his tone low but oddly intense, Valeria for some reason felt that something was different with this question.

The question hung between them, as sharp as his earlier intervention had been. She stared back at him, trying to decipher his meaning.

It was unlike him to speak this way, and it unsettled her, making her feel as though the ground beneath them had subtly shifted.

She could see no clear reason for him to provoke the Cloud Heavens Sect, no gain in drawing their attention and positioning himself as an obstacle.

"What exactly am I meant to see?" she asked, her voice steady despite the flicker of unease his words stirred within her.