Shadow Over the Heavenly Throne

At night, when the palace was shrouded in silence, the Queen sat alone in her chambers, surrounded by the warm glow of oil lamps. Her hands rested on her abdomen, her eyes gleaming with determination.

"Come out." Her voice was quiet, yet carried the weight of an undeniable command.

A shadow in the corner stirred. What had seemed like an empty part of the chamber suddenly came to life, and from the darkness emerged the silhouette of a man dressed in simple black robes. His steps made no sound, his presence barely tangible—like a specter rather than a man.

"Your Highness." His voice was devoid of emotion, a hollow whisper as if spoken by a ghost.

"No one can know." The Queen lifted her gaze, her cold, sharp eyes piercing the shadowed figure. "The healers, Master Jian, all of them. Watch them. If anything leaks beyond these walls, you are to stop it immediately."

The shadow nodded.

"Shall I... eliminate those who learn too much?" he asked, his tone unwavering.

The Queen was silent for a moment. Her fingers tightened around the fabric of her robe.

"No," she said at last. "Not yet. For now, simply observe. If the time comes... I will give the signal."

The man bowed his head slightly and vanished as silently as he had appeared.

The Queen exhaled deeply. She couldn't afford to take risks. Whatever was happening with her child—it could not be exposed. Not yet. She didn't know what it was. She didn't know what it would become. But one thing was certain.

This was no ordinary child.

When she announced her retreat into the cultivation chamber, no one dared question her. The Queen was a formidable cultivator, and her position allowed her to seclude herself for weeks, even months, under the guise of strengthening her Qi for childbirth. But that was a lie.

In truth, she had locked herself away in a place where the essence of Qi was at its purest—a chamber brimming with energy accumulated over centuries. The protective seals placed upon her body did not merely stabilize her own Qi; they also... influenced the being growing within her.

She could feel the energy wrapping around her child, the seals pulsing gently, regulating the flow of Qi. If the child was already absorbing Qi... could she shape it? Could she make it stronger?

Closing her eyes, she began to cultivate.

I woke up.

But something was... different.

I had no idea how long I had slept, but the moment I regained awareness, I could feel it. The Qi. Not like before—chaotic, wild, tearing through my body, forcing me to fight for control. Now... it was different.

It was calm.

Like a river flowing without obstruction, like air surrounding me—gentle yet undeniable. I reached out to it with my mind...

And it responded.

Instantly.

Before, Qi had been like a wild beast I had to subdue through force. Now, it flowed naturally, reacting to my thoughts as if it were an extension of myself. I no longer had to struggle with it.

It obeyed me.

But why?

I sought answers. I tried to draw Qi into my body as I had before—and immediately, I felt the difference. There was no more resistance, no chaotic surges. The Qi was no longer wild.

It had been refined.

How? What had changed?

Something was different. Something I didn’t understand. The Qi that had once fought against me now moved as if it had been tamed. I was no longer battling for control—I simply had it. But how? Why?

I began to experiment. I focused, guiding Qi to different parts of my body. It was so simple, so natural, that it almost frightened me. It was as if a door had opened to a world I had never realized existed.

I tested the limits of this new state, gathering Qi and directing it throughout my body. It was effortless.

But that wasn’t all.

My body... it felt different. Stronger. Every part of me felt fuller, as if Qi was not only circulating within me but reshaping me from the inside out. My bones pulsed with a faint warmth, as if being reinforced. My muscles, though undeveloped, carried a tension—not from exhaustion, but from readiness.

Could it be that my body had been cultivating on its own? That Qi had not just surrounded me but had been actively refining me?

If so, what did that mean?

There was no sense in trying anything else. If Qi was already flowing through me, if it was making me stronger, then I had only one goal—to nourish my body. I could not train, I could not learn techniques, but I could allow Qi to permeate every part of me, to fortify me from within. This was the only thing within my control.

Days passed. Or was it longer? I had no way of knowing. But then I realized something strange—I could no longer hear voices. For so long, I had listened to their conversations, understood every word...

But now, there was silence.

And then, a thought struck me.

How was it that I had understood them from the very beginning? This was a new world, a new language, new rules—yet I had comprehended every conversation effortlessly. It had come as naturally to me as breathing.

It didn’t make sense. Something wasn’t right.

Time flowed on. Days, perhaps weeks. Beyond me, preparations for my birth must have already begun, yet I had no way of knowing how much longer I would remain in this state. I could feel my body maturing, the Qi constantly strengthening me.

I was ready.

And then, the day came.

It started with a sudden tremor. Something shifted. The world I had grown used to became restless. I felt movement, pressure—then a strange, terrifying force, as if my body was being pushed by an unstoppable current. It was strange. Instinctively, I struggled, but I had no control.

Everything constricted around me, and then—

Cold.

The rush of air hit me like a strike. In an instant, everything I had known shattered, and I was hurled into a new, unforgiving world. For a moment, I couldn’t breathe—my lungs burned as they fought to take in air for the first time.

And then—

A cry. My own voice, unfamiliar and raw, echoed through the vast hall.

“Your Highness... It’s a girl!”

Voices. So many voices. Footsteps. Movement. And I lay there, naked, surrounded by this new reality, my body trembling under the shock of the cold. It was overwhelming. Everything was too bright, too loud, too foreign.

Then, I felt a touch. Someone lifted me gently, wrapping me in soft fabric. A voice I recognized even amidst the chaos spoke above me.

“Let me see her.”

The Queen. My mother.

I lifted my head... but my eyes were too weak to see clearly. Yet, I could feel her presence. She was close.

“Her Qi is incredibly stable for a newborn,” Master Jian said quietly, observing me with keen, penetrating eyes. “This is no ordinary child, Your Highness. I do not sense the usual chaotic energy that accompanies newborn cultivators. Her Qi flow is... too perfect.”

The Queen was silent for a moment, staring down at her daughter. Her face remained unreadable, but in her eyes, something flickered—something no one else could see.

“What does this mean?” she finally asked, her voice measured but laced with tension.

“I do not yet know.” Master Jian narrowed his eyes. “But if this is not the result of the seals, then it is nothing that should harm her. If anything... it may only help her. Her Qi is in perfect harmony, as if nature itself has molded around her existence.”

Before anyone could respond, the grand doors of the chamber were thrown open. A powerful presence flooded the room, overwhelming and untamed.

A deep voice, like distant thunder, echoed through the hall.

“So... this is my daughter.”

My father had arrived.

A moment of silence.

Then, I felt it—an immense Qi wrapping around my body, probing, evaluating. It wasn’t violent, but it carried an undeniable force. For a fleeting instant, I had the chilling thought that if it deemed me unworthy… I would simply cease to exist.

Finally, a deep voice resonated through the chamber.

"Welcome, my daughter," he declared. "From this day forward, your name shall be... Sylphia."

A name. My name.

The moment I heard it, warmth enveloped me. But it was not Qi—it was something else. Something tender, familiar… Mother.

Gentle hands pulled me close, wrapping me in a soft fabric. Her touch was warm and soothing, her body—though powerful and brimming with strength—felt incredibly delicate against me. For the first time since my birth, I stopped trembling.

"Sylphia…" the Queen murmured softly, holding me close. "My daughter."

For the first time, I felt that I was not alone. In her embrace, the world was no longer cold, chaotic, and unfamiliar. She was here. She was with me. And in that brief moment, nothing else mattered.

But the peace did not last.

The chamber doors burst open, and a breathless messenger stumbled inside, nearly collapsing to his knees before the King.

"Your Majesty!" His voice quivered with urgency. "The Black Flame Sect and the Golden Dragon Brotherhood have struck again! Our Soul Crystal mines in the Luminous Nebula Valley have been raided!"

The air in the room grew heavy with tension. Everyone awaited the King’s response. He remained silent for a moment, weighing his words.

"Again..." His voice, though quiet, carried a terrifying weight. "Do they truly believe they can challenge my authority without consequence?"

His Qi erupted.

The very air in the chamber thickened, as if the world itself bowed under the weight of his fury.

The Queen held me tighter, shielding me from the wave of raw power that pulsed through the room.

"If you cannot control your rage and your energy, then leave this place at once!" Her voice sliced through the tension like a blade. "I will not allow your recklessness to endanger our daughter."

For a brief moment, the King seemed to ignore her words. Then, he lowered his head slightly and shut his eyes, slowing his breath. The oppressive aura around him began to subside, though it still crackled in the air like a storm waiting to be unleashed.

He took a deep breath and looked at the Queen. For an instant, something flickered across his face—something that could almost be mistaken for remorse.

"Forgive me." His voice, though hushed, carried the weight of a true sovereign. "I should not lose my composure in this place."

After a pause, he turned toward the guard stationed at the entrance.

"Summon General Kaelrith and my third son, Vaelian. Tell them to prepare for a campaign against the Black Flame Sect and the Golden Dragon Brotherhood. It is time to remind them that while our younger generations may wane… we have ruled this world for centuries."