Chapter 2Breaking the Chains of Dust

A single mage’s panicked cry plunged the world into a chilling silence.

The Gate of Ascension was the entrance. You passed through it to climb the Celestial Stairway. Only when the Gate of Ascension closed did the true gate to the heavens open.

But now, the entrance had crumbled first. The gate to the heavens remained sealed. And all the great powers of the realm were trapped inside.

Which meant that, apart from me, Lyra was now the most powerful being in this world.

To make matters worse, blinded by love, I had once sworn an Unbreakable Vow.

If I ever brought harm to Lyra, my own body would erupt into nothingness.

“Does this mean… our masters are trapped for another ten thousand years?”

The faces of the assembled mages turned ashen.

Lyra, too, finally understood. A wild, triumphant laugh escaped her lips.

“Javier, didn’t you say you wanted to see the treasures of the Three Great Orders? Today, I will take you on a tour of the world! Take whatever you desire. I’d like to see anyone try and stop us.”

And so, with the tigers away, the monkey became king. Lyra began her grand tour, leading Javier to pillage the vaults and secret libraries of every major faction in the land.

She had made an enemy of the entire world.

But none of that mattered to me anymore. In three days, the Ordeal would come, and I would be gone.

I didn’t expect, however, that with only an hour left until my trial, Lyra would seek me out.

“Kaelan. Give Javier your protective artifact, the Prismatic Celestial Jade.”

I frowned, looking at the two of them. A shimmering aura of potent energy clung to them both. Clearly, they had been enjoying the spoils of the great orders.

“Give him the Jade?”

For a moment, I thought I’d misheard.

The Jade was my soul-bound artifact. Without the Jade, I was without life.

“Are you deaf? I told you what I want,” Lyra said, her brow furrowing with impatience.

“Don’t you know this is my soul-bound artifact?” I almost laughed. I never dreamed that a few days of unearned power would inflate her ego to such monstrous proportions.

“So what if it is?” she retorted, an eyebrow arched in disdain.

“You know that if a soul-bound artifact is separated from its master, the master dies.”

“I’m the strongest in the world now. I can spare you a wisp of my power to keep you alive. Stop wasting my time and hand it over.” She waved her hand dismissively.

I stared at her, my gaze cold. The person I had loved for so long was now a stranger. A current of power began to stir around me, a pressure that was almost physical.

“The Jade is my life. It is bound to my very soul. And you want to take it, to take my life, just to please him?”

Lyra’s expression hardened, a flicker of surprise in her eyes. She clearly hadn't expected me to refuse.

“Kaelan, you have so many artifacts and elixirs. What’s the big deal about giving up one?” she snapped. “In this world, who can stand against me now? Give me the Jade, and I will naturally protect you.”

I looked at her hideous, grasping expression, and a wave of profound sorrow washed over me.

To ascend with her, I had suppressed my own power, hidden my true identity. I had braved hells and abyss for her, facing death countless times.

And in her eyes, it was simply, “You have so much, why can’t I have some?”

Javier, who had been hiding behind Lyra, suddenly bit his lip and stepped forward.

“Lady Lyra, Kaelan… you are bondmates. It was presumptuous of me to ask. You shouldn’t fight because of me. I… I’ll leave.”

He turned, his voice choked with emotion. “Lady Lyra, I’m an orphan. You’re the only person in this world who has ever been kind to me. If I have the chance, I will repay your kindness in the future.”