Night descended slowly upon Qingye Sect, yet no stars shone above.
The protective formations hummed with subtle tension, layers of runes glowing in faint gold and silver. The elders had reinforced every barrier, every defensive node, and yet unease hung over the sect like a blade poised above a throat.
In his courtyard, Lin Ho sat with his back to a lantern, the flame casting a warm glow across his profile. Before him stood Bai Qing and Duan Mu, both armed, both visibly uneasy.
> "You really think they'll come tonight?" Duan Mu asked, gripping the handle of his twin sabers.
> "Not tonight," Lin Ho replied. "But soon. I've seen the signs."
Bai Qing tilted her head. "What signs?"
> "The wind doesn't blow from the east anymore. The spirit beasts have retreated from the forest. And even the celestial swallows that sing each dawn... have gone silent."
A long pause followed.
> "We need to be ready," he added.
---
Eastern Sea – Edge of Reality
Dark tides surged beneath a blood-colored moon. The fleet of abyssal warships now hovered just a day's distance from the Eastern Realm. Their banners bore no crest — only a black spiral.
In the largest ship's sanctum, the Oracle kneeled before a towering cocoon of bone and blood. Inside pulsed a form not yet born, but not quite unborn either — the chosen vessel.
> "The Chaos Heir must bleed," she whispered. "Only then can the Old God wake."
She turned to the fleet captain.
> "At first light, we begin."
---
Qingye Sect – Inner Chamber of the Grand Elder
The Grand Elder sat alone, surrounded by jade scrolls and a divine compass. His aged fingers hovered over the turning needle, which spun madly, ignoring the heavens themselves.
> "It's too early," he muttered. "This timeline should not be possible…"
He turned toward a sealed cabinet, then hesitated.
> "If the bloodline is real… and he truly carries the mark…"
But he didn't finish the thought.
Even he, who had seen five sect wars and survived the collapse of the Northern Alliance, dared not speak against a chaos-blooded cultivator aloud.
---
Lin Ho's Dream
That night, Lin Ho's sleep was not restful. In his dream, he walked through a battlefield drowned in mist. Broken banners fluttered. Mountains bled. Stars had fallen.
And at the center stood a younger version of himself — eyes black and gold — holding the heads of gods in each hand.
> "I don't want this," Lin Ho whispered.
The vision-Lin Ho turned to him and smiled.
> "It's not about what you want. It's about what you are."
---
Dawn
The sea wind arrived first. Then came the scent of rot and salt.
Then came the drums — deep, echoing, unnatural.
Qingye Sect's disciples looked toward the eastern horizon.
And there, as if birthed from the mist itself, loomed the vanguard of the Abyss Fleet.
---
End of Chapter 60