Chapter 185: The First Steps of a Wider Order
Sparks Beyond the Walls
The city had changed since their return from the hidden temple. The silver walls glimmered brighter, the streams ran stronger, and the glyph-stones above the Temple of Sparks pulsed with a deeper rhythm. Hei Long’s choice to share the fire had transformed his Guard. Their sparks no longer flickered — they glowed steady and warm, a heartbeat echoing his own.
But a hearth cannot stay enclosed forever. Fire spreads.
At dawn Hei Long summoned the council and the First Guard to the square. Qingxue stood at his right, Yexin at his left, Yuran a step behind, her glow steady. The students filled the steps of the Temple, sparks glowing faintly in their palms.
"You have learned to kindle fire," Hei Long said quietly. "You have learned to keep it. Now you will learn to carry it beyond these walls. This hearth will send its first sparks into the world."
Choosing the Path
A map of illusions rose from Yexin’s fan, foxfire tracing rivers, ruins, and far-off shores. "Three routes," she said. "North, to the highlands where remnants still walk. West, to the ruins of the Black Phoenix temples. East, across the sea to the Second Shore."
Qingxue’s hand rested on her sword. "The Guard is ready for the highlands," she said. "Let them test their edge where remnants still breathe."
Yuran’s glow brightened. "And let some go with me to the villages near the shore," she said softly. "There are people hiding who’ve never seen our fire."
Hei Long looked at them all, the cord at his wrist swaying. "Then we divide," he murmured. "The hearth will reach out."
The First Sparks
Under his guidance, the First Guard split into three companies.
Qingxue took the strongest fighters north, their sparks burning like blades, to clear remnants from the highlands and bring back lost glyph-stones.Yexin led a small group west, weaving illusions over their steps to infiltrate the ruins of the Black Phoenix temples, to recover what could still be learned.Yuran gathered a company of healers and steady sparks to the east, to bring food, water, and training to scattered survivors and invite them back to the city.
Hei Long remained at the Temple of Sparks, anchoring the city with his presence. His Origin-light pulsed faintly, a beacon they could all feel even beyond the walls.
A New Order
Before they left, Hei Long raised his hand. The glyph-stones above the Temple flared, threads of light linking each company to the city. "This is not a chain," he said. "It is a hearth-fire. Wherever you go, it burns with you. Bring it back whole."
Qingxue bowed her head. "We will."Yexin’s smirk flickered. "I’ll bring back stories."Yuran’s glow steadied. "And people."
Hei Long’s eyes swept over them all. "Go."
The gates opened. For the first time, sparks left the city not as pilgrims but as carriers of fire.
At the Temple
That night Hei Long stood alone at the Temple of Sparks, cloak trailing, the Origin’s glow steady beneath it. Murals shifted on the walls, showing his three flames leading their companies outward, sparks flickering in the distance.
He spoke quietly to the empty square: "Fire teaches. Fire keeps. Fire endures. Fire spreads."
The city breathed with him, its heartbeat steady.
Departure
Three days after the council formed, three companies left the city of sparks. West, Yexin’s group vanished into the mist of the Black Phoenix temples. East, Yuran’s company walked toward scattered villages. North, Qingxue’s fighters marched toward the highlands — a place where remnants still roamed, temples lay shattered but humming, and old roads wound under dead trees.
Hei Long stood at the gate as they left. He didn’t raise his voice, but each group felt the pulse of his Origin-light in their chests, a steady rhythm guiding them even beyond the city walls.
Qingxue led the northern company at the head, her blade low, her eyes on the jagged peaks. "Keep your formation," she said softly. "Don’t waste a spark on noise."
The Highlands
By the second day the jungle gave way to rocky slopes veined with black roots. Glyph-light flickered faintly in the cracks, like eyes half-closed. The remnants here were not mist and root like the lowlands — they were shards of forgotten beasts, pieces of shapes that no longer had names.
Qingxue moved like a blade between them, her company following her gestures. Sparks burned in their palms, steady rather than wild.
"This is what we’ve trained for," she told them. "You are not shadows anymore. You are the edge of the hearth. Cut only what you must. Bring back what we came for."
The First Battle
At a narrow pass they found what they were looking for: a fallen obelisk carved with glyphs older than the Eternals, half-buried under rubble. But as they approached, the stones shifted. A shape of horn and stone rose from the ground, a remnant bound to the obelisk.
The students faltered for a heartbeat. Sparks wavered.
"Formation," Qingxue snapped. Her blade flashed, sparks scattering like silver rain. "Hold the line!"
They moved as Hei Long had taught them: one bending water to block the creature’s charge, another drawing glyphs to steady the ground, a third cutting a path for their comrades. Together they burned the remnant back into shards.
When it fell, the obelisk pulsed faintly and went still.
Claiming the Obelisk
Qingxue placed her hand on the stone. Sparks from her palm merged with its glyphs, softening their glow. She turned to her company. "This is what you are now," she said quietly. "A guard that carries fire into shadow."
They worked together to free the obelisk from rubble. It rose between them, floating faintly. For the first time, the students saw their sparks reflected in ancient stone without flinching.
A Night Under Stars
They camped on a ridge that night, the obelisk hovering at their center. The highlands were silent except for the faint hum of old power. Sparks glowed in each palm like stars.
Qingxue sat by the fire, her blade across her knees. The students spoke quietly around her, not of fear but of what they would build when they returned.
"Remember this," she told them. "You’re not weapons. You’re fire that guards. Bring this back to the city. Bring it back whole."
Back at the Hearth
Far to the south, Hei Long stood on the Temple steps. He could feel the pulse of the obelisk through the link he had woven, a faint echo of his Origin-light traveling back to him. His eyes closed for a moment.
"They’re learning," he murmured. "They’re carrying it."
Yexin and Yuran’s companies were still out in the world. The city’s heart held steady.
Hei Long’s cloak trailed across the stone. The Origin’s glow pulsed in his chest. Fire had left the hearth — and had not gone out.
Yexin’s Path West
While Qingxue’s Guard carved their way through the highlands, a second company moved west under the cover of illusions. Yexin led them herself, foxfire flickering at her fingertips, her smirk a little tighter than usual. This was not a path of open battle. It was a path of whispers.
They travelled through a forest where the trees bent toward each other, forming arches like cathedral ceilings. Under every root lay shards of glyph-stone. Symbols of the Black Phoenix temples flickered faintly in the moss — wings folded, eyes half-closed.
Yexin moved like a shadow between them. "Watch your step," she whispered. "These ruins don’t sleep. They remember being worshipped."
Her company followed, sparks held low. The murals of their illusions shifted as they walked, disguising them from eyes they couldn’t see.
The Temples
By the third night they reached a valley lined with black spires. The air tasted of ash and old incense. Each spire pulsed faintly with a red glow, like a heartbeat waiting for a trigger.
Yexin crouched at the edge. "These are the Black Phoenix temples," she murmured. "Built to catch sparks, to hold them. If we’re not careful, they’ll hold us too."
She gestured to the students. "Pairs. Don’t touch the glyphs. Watch each other’s sparks. If you feel a pull, call out."
The Test of Sight
Inside the first temple the walls were covered with murals of flames eating wings. As the students stepped closer, the images shifted, showing their own faces, their own sparks. One gasped and reached out — and his hand began to sink into the stone.
Yexin was there in a heartbeat. Foxfire burst from her palm, wrapping his wrist, yanking him back. "No touching," she hissed. "These walls eat memory."
She turned to the others. "This is why you learn to see. Illusions tell you what you want. Sight shows you what is."
They moved more carefully after that.
The Core
At the heart of the temple lay a pool of black water, still and faintly glowing. Yexin knelt at its edge, her reflection fractured into a dozen faces. "This is what we came for," she whispered. "The Phoenix left its heart here. If we take it, we take its story."
She drew a circle of foxfire around the pool, weaving glyphs of protection. "Hold the pattern," she told the students. "If it tries to pull, break the circle."
Slowly she dipped her hand into the water. It burned cold. Symbols swam under her fingers, folding into her palm. She drew them out, a shard of black crystal shaped like a wingtip, glowing faintly.
The temple shuddered but did not collapse.
Back to the Hearth
They left before dawn, moving like shadows through the arches of the forest. Behind them the Black Phoenix temples pulsed faintly, as if taking a new breath. In Yexin’s hand the shard of crystal glowed, a piece of a story older than the Eternals.
Far away, in the city, Hei Long stood at the Temple of Sparks. He felt the shard’s pulse through the link he had woven, a faint echo of his Origin-light returning to him.
"They’re carrying it," he murmured. "They’re seeing."
The city’s glyph-stones hummed. The first sparks of a wider order had left the hearth and begun to bring pieces of the world back.