Silent Mountain Tales - Volume 1 Chapter 4

Описание: Chapter 4 — The Forest Trial
The forest deepened.
Li Shen walked slowly, the lantern’s glow casting soft halos on the moss-covered ground. The trees grew taller here, their trunks ancient and twisted, their branches forming a canopy that filtered the moonlight into silver threads.
He didn’t know where he was going.
Only that the lantern was leading him.
The path narrowed, then vanished entirely.
Roots tangled beneath his feet.
The air grew still.
Then — the lantern pulsed.
Not brightly.
Not urgently.
Just once.
Li Shen stopped.
Before him stood a clearing — circular, silent, untouched.
At its center: a stone pedestal, half-buried in moss.
Upon it: a second lantern.
Identical in shape.
But dark.
Dormant.
Li Shen stepped forward, heart pounding.
As he approached, the lantern in his hand flickered again.
The dormant lantern responded — not with light, but with a soft hum, like a memory stirring.
Li Shen placed his lantern beside it.
The forest held its breath.
Then — a voice.
Not spoken.
Not heard.
But felt.
“To carry light, you must face shadow.”
The clearing shifted.
Suddenly, Li Shen was no longer alone.
Across from him stood a figure — cloaked, faceless, holding a broken lantern.
It stepped forward.
Li Shen didn’t move.
The figure raised its hand.
A swirl of darkness formed — not violent, but heavy.
It pressed against Li Shen’s chest, not with pain, but with memory.
He saw:
Mei Lian crying alone in the courtyard
Mistress Yun’s cold eyes as she turned away
His own face, younger, begging to be chosen
The moment he gave up
Li Shen staggered.
The figure spoke — not aloud, but within him.
“You cannot carry light if you fear your own shadow.”
Li Shen dropped to one knee.
The lanterns pulsed together.
He reached out — not to fight, not to flee, but to accept.
The darkness swirled around him, then faded.
The figure vanished.
Li Shen stood slowly.
The dormant lantern now glowed — faintly, like his own.
He picked it up.
It was warm.
Not powerful.
Not awakened.
But alive.
Li Shen looked at both lanterns.
Then at the forest.
Then at himself.
He didn’t understand what had happened.
But he felt… lighter.
Not stronger.
Not wiser.
Just less afraid.
He walked forward, carrying both lanterns.
And somewhere far behind him, the Ashen Vault pulsed again — not in warning, but in recognition.