The sky above the Cloud Vein Sect glowed with the fading warmth of dusk. Clouds drifted lazily across a sea of gold and crimson, as though the heavens themselves had slowed their breath.
Zeravon sat alone under the same tree in the outer courtyard. His back rested against its rough bark, legs folded beneath him, hands resting on his knees.
He hadn't moved since the evening meal bell rang.
He hadn't eaten.
Not out of pride.
But because something inside him still felt… out of place.
> *"I didn't lose because I was weak… I lost because I didn't move."*
That thought circled again and again in his mind like an echo stuck between two cliffs.
He didn't fear combat. He didn't fear pain.
But **something deep inside him resisted action.**
He couldn't explain it — only feel it.
A part of him **didn't want to hurt anyone**, not even in a duel. As if striking out would break something fragile inside him… something he hadn't yet remembered.
---
**"Oi, you! Quiet boy."**
A voice broke through the calm.
Zeravon opened his eyes slowly.
Standing in front of him were two disciples — both outer sect, a year or two older.
The speaker was a lean youth with short black hair and amused eyes. His name was **Xun Bei** — known not for power, but for agility and cleverness in mock duels.
Beside him stood a silent girl with tied-back hair and a cold expression — **Ruo Lan**, a quiet but sharp cultivator with mid-Qi Rooting cultivation.
Zeravon met their eyes without speaking.
Xun Bei smirked.
**"You don't talk much, huh? That match earlier… you held back, didn't you?"**
Zeravon didn't confirm or deny.
**Xun Bei** plopped down beside him anyway.
**"I saw the way you dodged. You weren't lost. You were… holding your breath. You're too clean for someone who just got punched around."**
Ruo Lan leaned against the tree trunk, arms crossed.
**"You're either scared or stupid,"** she muttered, **"or both."**
Zeravon turned his gaze to the moon.
**"I didn't want to hit him."**
It wasn't an excuse.
It was just… true.
Xun Bei chuckled.
**"You're weird, but honest. I like that."**
He stood.
**"Come spar with me tomorrow morning. Not a real fight — just footwork. Dodging. Flow."**
Zeravon looked at him.
Xun Bei grinned.
**"Call it… training for someone who's forgotten how to move."**
---
**Next Morning — Personal Practice Field**
Dawn mist hugged the grass as the sun peeked over the cliffs. Zeravon stood across from Xun Bei, both barefoot in the dew-drenched courtyard.
Ruo Lan sat on a rock nearby, silent as ever.
**"No Qi,"** Xun Bei said. **"Just movement. Match my steps. No thought."**
He began slowly — sidesteps, pivots, shifting his weight like a flowing reed.
Zeravon followed.
His first movements were stiff. His balance unsure. But after a few passes, his body began to adjust.
**Flow. Shift. Step. Breathe.**
It wasn't fighting.
It wasn't cultivation.
It was **remembering how to exist** in motion.
By the end of the hour, Zeravon's body moved with a strange grace. Not trained… but **intuitive.**
Even Ruo Lan blinked once.
Xun Bei nodded, impressed.
**"You're like a cup that's been filled before. It just forgot what water tastes like."**
Zeravon tilted his head.
**"…Thank you."**
---
**Later That Day – Training Hall Observation**
Instructor Wei stood behind a paper screen, arms crossed.
He had been observing Zeravon all morning.
When a junior disciple approached and asked, "Should we test him again?"
Wei only replied:
**"No. Not yet."**
His eyes narrowed.
**"He's not ready to win. But he's ready to begin."**
---
**That Night — Under the Same Tree**
Zeravon stared at his open palm, watching the wind slip through his fingers.
He still didn't remember anything.
No dreams. No names.
But for the first time since arriving… he felt **something stir**.
Not power. Not fear.
Just a direction.
A **first step**.
He closed his hand slowly.
And whispered to himself:
**"Let the cultivation begin."**
---
**Far Away – Realm of Forgotten Names**
A forgotten altar flickered with a dying rune.
Then… it lit again.
Faint. Weak.
But awakened.
> *"The boy has taken his first step."*
> *"The seal holds. For now."*
---