Chapter 7: Echoes of the Ancient

Li Tian stood in the stillness of the chamber, his hand slowly lowering from the obsidian mirror's surface. His mind was a whirl of thoughts, the encounter with the Eternal Empress still fresh and haunting. Her veiled words had sparked a mixture of curiosity and apprehension within him. She spoke of the Forgotten Ones, an ancient force that sought to consume existence itself. He had to face them, but the Empress's warning echoed in his mind: "You will need more than strength to face them. You will need allies."

Allies. He thought of the sect leaders he had left behind, the ancient factions across the realms, and the mysterious figures who seemed to watch his every move. He had never been one to seek the help of others. His journey thus far had been a solitary path of ascension, driven by his mastery of Heavenly Qi. But perhaps this time, he couldn't face the cosmic threats alone. The weight of that realization settled on him like a heavy mantle.

As the strange energies of the chamber subsided, the soft hum of power lingering in the air, Li Tian knew it was time to move forward. The Ancient Dao Palace still held many secrets, and he had only begun to scratch the surface. Every corner of the palace pulsed with forgotten wisdom and dangers left by civilizations long past.

He turned from the obsidian mirror, the soft rustle of his robes breaking the silence as he moved toward the exit of the chamber. The flickering light from the pale blue orbs reflected off the polished stone floor, casting long, shifting shadows. Li Tian's senses were on high alert. Though the chamber was empty, he couldn't shake the feeling of being watched.

As he stepped through the archway back into the long corridor, a sudden surge of energy crackled in the air behind him. Li Tian spun around, his hand instinctively reaching for his sword. The obsidian mirror shimmered, and from its surface, a figure began to emerge. It was as if the mirror itself was giving birth to this new presence, pulling it from the depths of its dark reflection.

The figure was humanoid, draped in flowing, dark robes that rippled as though touched by an unseen wind. Its face was obscured by a hood, much like the one worn by the mysterious figure Li Tian had encountered earlier. But there was something different about this entity—it exuded an aura of raw power, dark and oppressive, as if it had been drawn from the very essence of the void.

Li Tian's grip on his sword tightened, his eyes narrowing. "Who are you?" he demanded, his voice firm and commanding. "What business do you have here?"

The figure stepped forward, its movements fluid, almost ghostlike. When it spoke, its voice was like a whisper carried on the wind, soft but filled with malice. "I am the Echo of the Forgotten," it said, the words sending a chill down Li Tian's spine. "You have touched the mirror, Sovereign Ascendant. You have seen the path that lies before you, but you are not the only one who walks it."

Li Tian's eyes hardened. "You serve the Forgotten Ones?"

The Echo chuckled, a hollow, chilling sound that echoed through the corridor. "I serve no one. I am a remnant, a shadow left behind by those who seek to reclaim what was once theirs. The Forgotten Ones do not need servants, for they are beyond such things. They are the creators of the abyss, the weavers of the void."

A sense of unease settled over Li Tian, but he kept his composure. "Why reveal yourself to me now?"

The Echo's dark form seemed to ripple as it drew closer. "Because you have stepped onto their path. The Empress is but one piece of a greater puzzle, and you… you are another. The Forgotten Ones have long waited for the time to rise again, and your presence has stirred the ancient tides. You are the spark that will either reignite the flame… or extinguish it forever."

Li Tian's heart pounded, but outwardly, he remained calm. "Then you know what I seek—to restore balance to the cosmos. The Forgotten Ones threaten that balance. If they rise, they will destroy everything."

The Echo's form shimmered, and for a moment, it seemed to flicker, as if barely able to maintain its shape. "The balance is a fragile thing, Ascendant. It has been tipped too far in one direction for too long. The Forgotten Ones do not seek destruction for the sake of chaos. They seek to reclaim what was taken from them."

Li Tian's brows furrowed in thought. The Empress had not mentioned this. "And what is that?"

The Echo's voice lowered, as if it were sharing a forbidden secret. "The light. The universe, as it exists now, is bathed in light, shaped by forces that seek to maintain order. But there was a time before the light—a time of shadow, where the void was the true nature of existence. The Forgotten Ones ruled in that time, and they were cast aside when the light emerged. They seek to return the universe to its original state, to reclaim the darkness as their domain."

Li Tian remained silent, absorbing the Echo's words. This was more than he had anticipated. If what the Echo said was true, then the Forgotten Ones weren't just a destructive force—they were the original rulers of the cosmos, usurped by the forces of light. The implications were staggering, but Li Tian could not allow his resolve to falter.

"You believe this is their rightful place," Li Tian said, his voice steady. "But the balance I seek is not one of eternal darkness or eternal light. It is harmony between the two. Without balance, there can be no existence."

The Echo hissed softly, a sound of amusement and disdain. "And yet you have no idea what true balance entails, do you? The light has blinded you, as it has blinded all who have come before. You will learn, Ascendant, that to walk this path is to confront truths you cannot yet comprehend."

Before Li Tian could respond, the Echo began to fade, its form dissolving into the shadows that lingered in the corridor. "You will see soon enough," it whispered, its voice echoing into the void. "The Forgotten Ones are patient. They have waited for eons, and they will wait no longer."

In an instant, the Echo was gone, leaving Li Tian alone once more. The silence of the palace returned, but the weight of the encounter lingered. Li Tian exhaled slowly, his grip on his sword loosening as he sheathed it.

The path ahead was growing darker, more treacherous than he had anticipated. But there was no turning back now. The forces at play were far greater than anything he had faced before, and yet, in his heart, he knew that this was the destiny he had been walking toward all his life.

With renewed resolve, Li Tian continued down the corridor, his thoughts focused on the tasks ahead. The Eternal Empress, the Forgotten Ones, the balance of light and shadow—each thread was intricately woven into the fate of the cosmos. And he was at the center of it all.

But one thing was clear. To face the coming storm, he would need to be stronger, wiser, and more prepared than ever before.