The tension in the air was palpable, as though the very atmosphere around them had thickened with the weight of their shared history. Li Wei's eyes bore into Hua Ling's, his hands clenched tightly at his sides, the power of the Crystal of Shadows humming through his veins like a raging storm.
Hua Ling, despite the years that had passed since their last encounter, remained as striking as ever. Her features, though hardened by the trials she had faced, still held a beauty that Li Wei could not bring himself to forget, even now. But behind her eyes, he saw something that twisted his heart—regret. She had no intention of fighting him, but what did it matter? He had already made his choice.
"You didn't come here for redemption, Hua Ling," Li Wei said, his voice low and dangerous, each word dripping with cold bitterness. "You came to stop me. To stop what I've become."
Her gaze softened, but there was no fear in her eyes. Only sorrow. "No, Li Wei. I came because I still care about you. Despite everything, I always will. But this path… this darkness you've embraced, it's not you."
Li Wei's chest tightened, but he pushed the feeling away, swallowed it down with a force that left him gasping for breath. He couldn't afford to feel. Not now. Not after everything. "You don't get to say that," he spat. "You're the one who abandoned me. You're the one who betrayed me. Don't act like you care now."
The words hung in the air like a challenge, as if daring her to argue. But Hua Ling did not flinch. Instead, she stepped forward, her voice a whisper of something long forgotten. "I did what I had to do. You were becoming a tyrant, Li Wei. The prince you were—the man you were—would never have wanted this."
"Enough!" Li Wei shouted, stepping forward, his shadow flaring around him like a dark flame. His power crackled in the air, charging with intensity. "You don't get to lecture me on what I want. You're the one who left. You're the one who let everything fall apart."
Hua Ling stood her ground, unflinching, her expression sorrowful but resolute. "I didn't leave because I wanted to. I left because you chose the path of darkness, and I couldn't follow you down it."
The words cut through Li Wei like a blade, sharper than anything physical. For a moment, he wavered, his hand hovering in the air, his body tense with indecision. But then the storm inside him raged again, louder than before. The shadows roared with fury, thrashing against his control, urging him to strike.
"No," he growled, shaking his head violently. "I won't let you do this. Not again."
Without warning, he raised his hand, and the dark energy that swirled within him shot forward like a spear of night. The force was enough to tear through the stone walls, cracking them with a sound that echoed through the halls of the stronghold.
But Hua Ling was faster. In an instant, she darted to the side, her movements graceful but precise. She had been trained for this moment, just as he had. They were both weapons forged in the fires of conflict, and neither of them would easily back down.
"I won't fight you, Li Wei," Hua Ling said, her voice shaking slightly, but her resolve unwavering. "I won't be a part of this madness. Please, stop."
Her words struck him like a punch to the chest. Stop. The thought echoed in his mind, over and over again. Stop.
Li Wei took a step back, his breathing ragged, the shadows retreating at his will, though they still lingered at the edges of his vision. He could feel them, gnawing at him, urging him to finish what he had started.
"You think I can just stop?" he muttered, his voice thick with a mixture of frustration and disbelief. "You left me to rot in the darkness. Do you have any idea what that did to me?"
Hua Ling reached out, her hand trembling slightly as she extended it toward him. "I didn't leave you to rot. I left because I couldn't let you destroy yourself. You are destroying yourself, Li Wei. The more you let that power consume you, the more you'll lose of yourself. If you keep walking this path, you'll become just like him."
Li Wei's heart stilled at the mention of him.
"Xian Yue," Li Wei spat, the name leaving his mouth with the same venom that had filled his every thought for so long. "Is that what you want? To make me like him?"
"No," Hua Ling said, her voice softer now, filled with something like desperation. "I don't want you to be like him. I want you to be you again, Li Wei. The man I loved. The man who was kind, who had honor. The man who had a heart."
The words felt like a blow to the chest, but they also made something stir within him. Something deep and painful, buried beneath the rage and the darkness that had overtaken him. Could it really be that simple? Could he really turn back from this? Or was he already too far gone?
"No," he muttered, shaking his head once again, forcing himself to retreat further into the abyss. "I'm not that person anymore."
For a moment, silence stretched between them, thick and suffocating. Li Wei could feel the pull of the darkness, the Crystal of Shadows buried deep within him, urging him forward. The path ahead was clear—vengeance, destruction, power. But at the same time, something else tugged at him. A question. A whisper of doubt.
Was he willing to lose himself completely? Was he willing to become the monster that Hua Ling feared?
Before he could answer that question, a new voice broke through the silence.
"Enough!"
A figure emerged from the shadows, a man cloaked in darkness, his eyes cold and calculating. Xian Yue.
Li Wei's blood ran cold at the sight of him. There, standing before him, was the man who had taken everything from him—the man who had betrayed him in the worst way possible.
"You," Li Wei hissed, his fists clenched so tightly that his nails dug into his palms. "You're the reason I'm like this. You're the reason I lost everything!"
Xian Yue gave him a sly smile, his gaze drifting toward Hua Ling with a flicker of amusement. "Ah, I see you're still holding on to that little glimmer of hope. But it's too late, Li Wei. You're already mine."
Li Wei's eyes narrowed, and the darkness swelled within him, threatening to consume everything in its path.
"No," Li Wei whispered, his voice filled with deadly determination. "I am no one's."
With that, the battle for his soul—his very humanity—began in earnest. And in the heart of the chaos, a new question rose in Li Wei's mind, one he could not ignore.
Would he ever truly be free?