Every once in a lifetime, the skies would ripple like puttering raindrops across a clear lake—what immortals commonly called The Leaking.
Spanning as far as the eye could see, the steady drizzle of concentric rings rippling across the sky was a sign well known in the heavenly realms, and even the least of immortals understood its source. Lumen.
The primary power and cultivation of the realms.
Perched atop a cliff overlooking the Luminous Pebble Bay, the same lumen hovered over the poised hand of an immortal known in the third realm as the Sole Disciple.
He was sitting in quiet focus, cultivating.
A ragged teal string wrapped unevenly around his bun, and unruly strands framed his jawline. His features were not just distinct, they were etched into the memory of every immortal in the third realm, ever since the Ancient Hall declared him the paragon of the Reigning.
Although most remembered him as the Sole Disciple of the White Phoenix, the one who looked like the dragon spirit, face and airs. Or simply, the one who breaks your fingers when you touch his Pendant.
Palm poised upward, his lumen hovered like an amber flare of dense, warm, pulsing light. And with each breath, he cycled lumen through his core, refining it, tempering it, crafting technique.
He was a master cultivator, but even with his eyes closed in deep focus, he could sense his lumen flickering erratically and his technique evading his grip.
Clutching onto the glowing white jade Pendant that hung from his sash, he gauged his progress. It was still empty. Nor could he detect any of the rippling droplets from the Leaking.
Behind him, an immortal young lady and personal physician stood quietly, her gaze fixed on his lumen flare while she lent a steady transfer of her own cultivation.
Light and warm, her cultivation stabilized his lumen, which would otherwise solidify in his core like a hard, cold crystal when refining techniques.
A blockage he’d suffered since following the White Phoenix.
Gauging his breathing and tracking his core element, she matched his draw. Until slowly, his hovering lumen flare likewise responded, as it shifted into a stable, deliberate lumen flare. Whirling at will.
Soon, his refining intensified, churning the lumen whirl into clear water with amber undertones that glowed like trapped light. Instantly, the Leaking stirred. Not of resistance, but of resonance.
For the skies directly above the bay below reflected a swirling pattern, flowing inward just like his hovering whirl, in what was known as the eye of the Leaking.
Soon, the Leaking’s essence shivered through him like a chilly breeze, while his lumen veins ceased their draw, leaving the quiet relief and certainty of a newly refined technique.
A core element of retrieval.
A core element, which on its own resembled an orb just like his core, yet within his core, it lay stratified atop other layers of similarly refined techniques.
Immediately he willed its technique to course throughout his lumen veins, until it sealed his mind onto his target. What immortals called the eye of the Leaking.
Eyes closed, the Leaking’s pocket realm came into sight and unfolded as a vision. Confidence soared as his awareness expanded, for he not only sensed the Leaking’s endless stretch, he could sense the pocket realm had no barrier.
Another shift of willed thought, and his technique chipped a fragment of his primordial spirit and formed a projection of his form, which rose from his seated body like a translucent being outlined in amber lumen.
In an instant portal mist, he appeared hovering midair between heavy gray clouds above and an infinite glassy lake below. He had entered the pocket realm. And he could tell its sun hadn’t fully risen from the streaking distant light coming from his right.
It reminded him of the gloomy days of the rainy season.
Exhaling, his translucent amber form solidified his projection, and he stood hovering mid-air as he scanned the glassy lake below. There was no land in sight. And he wondered where one would keep the eye of the Leaking in such a place.
He even wondered if he could even grasp it. After all, realm pockets often had their own rules.
Testing his technique, he gauged the clouds while folding his hand into a fist. The two ends seemed to curve inward, folding like the surface of a sphere. It worked. He could grasp the Leaking’s realm pocket, and he swelled with hope.
Then, he scanned the realm pocket, searching for the eye of the Leaking. The real eye of the Leaking, and not the swirling reflection of its drizzling technique, as named by unknowing immortals.
But there was nothing in sight. Hurriedly, he portaled to the farthest point in sight, over and over until he had no choice but to face reality.
"Where are you?" he finally breathed, his voice a low, resonant murmur, rich with quiet intensity.
Panicked, he retraced the steps of his retrieval technique, but he could only think of nothing other than his shifu. How would he stand before his him and explain days of absence crafting a technique that failed to lead him to his target. That was simply unacceptable.
"Reveal yourself," he spoke with a willed command, sending a seeking technique throughout the pocket.
A few moments passed, then to his right, a soft ray of light reached its rays towards him, and he turned, supposing the clouds had parted for the sun.
He held his breath. They had parted not for the sun, but for a great, towering beam of light.
The beam’s cylindrical width spanned the length of a spear. While its height stretched from the depths of the glassy lake below, to the vast skies above.
"The eye of the Leaking," he let out, his voice trembling with relief and awe. Instantly, he appeared before the beam in a swift mist.
Never before had he seen the eye of the Leaking with his own eyes, and he found not even the sacred scrolls of the Vermillion Bird King''s vault could quite capture its awe. Nor could the scrolls of the Ancient Hall itself.
For in all scrolls, it had been made to appear as a single beam of light.
Yet up close, he saw beams of light overlapping like strands of sheer silk streaking upward, their trail shimmering with different hues of dense lumen.
And within each beam, a glowing mist cast glistening dew drops along their trail.
"Are those ancient waters?" he muttered curiously, leaning closer as he couldn''t help but marvel in awe.
For in the realms, the ancient waters were the true source of power, and lumen was merely their conduit.
Yes, the realms’ cultivation of lumen was a means to master their second source of power, being the seven ancient waters.
For mastery of each of the seven waters granted ascension through each of the seven realms. And an immortal’s strength was gauged by the potency of the ancient waters in his lumen draw. The more ancient waters visible in their lumen draw, the more they were feared.
Thus, he realized harnessing the eye of the Leaking may not be as simple as he’d assumed. If only he’d mastered at least three ancient waters, then perhaps he could craft a technique to retrieve the beam in its entirety.This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
A moment passed while he gazed upon the beam’s glistening waters with immense respect.
For ever since his vow to follow the White Phoenix, no matter how much lumen he cultivated or how dense his draw held ancient water particles, the Sole Disciple had peaked with only one of the ancient waters.
The ancient waters of form.
The one coveted by cultivators of the Mortal Realm when gaining ascension to the Third Realm. An old familiar feeling of frustration and the force of his drive rose and enveloped his mind.
He was stuck in the third realm.
Reaching for his Pendant, he slipped it free from his sash and held it toward the lumen beam.
"Retrieve," he let out a willed command, his tone resolute.
A swift gust swept into the beam as if it held its breath stunned. Then, there was still silence so absolute, it spoke to his doubt.
Was the beam truly an artifact of the Reigning that could heed his will? Or was he standing before a lure?
"Retrieve," he repeated, his tone anxious. Still, there was no response.
Reaching his hand to the beam, the Sole Disciple willed his awareness to expand into the beam’s form, and he froze, stunned.
In the distant, loud snappings sounded from both ends of the beam, slowly picking pace. Then he heard the sound of a deep rumbling current, growing stronger with each successive snap.
Quickly, he gripped his Pendant with both hands, and called out desperately willing his every syllable, "Retrieve!"
A faint light reached from the beam, but not fast enough, for the rushing force of the current grew stronger, and he sensed the loosed beams looming above and descending like deadly waterfalls.
He knew from its height, by the time their waves reached him, they would surely crush him.
"Retrieve!" he commanded with grit teeth, his tone daring the beam to defy him.
Then all at once, he felt the beam’s current recoiling, and reverting whence it came. Suddenly, from its side, where the Pendant faced, streaks of light seeped from the beam toward the jade.
"Drain," he said with willed weight.
The streaks of light obeyed, and a force of lumen gust lashed against the loose strands of his hair, while he shielded his eyes from the blinding surge of light retrieving into his Pendant.
Moments later, after the light subsided, he dared to look. But instead of relief, his dark chestnut eyes reflected a flicker of deep concern beneath his intrigue.
The beam had shrunk significantly from the length of a spear, to the width of a spear. It seemed before whittling further, it had halted abruptly, with loose trailing beams floating towards his Pendant as if snagged at both ends.
He tightened his grip on the retrieval technique, strengthening his will to draw the bending beams closer. But they remained halted midway, trailing against the Pendant.
Again and again, he pulled, until his strained core heaved lumen into its depths. And he exhaled in defeat.
Locking eyes with the defiant beam, he assessed it questioningly. Then, a wry chuckle escaped him, low and annoyed, as if he''d finally grasped its long-winded game.
"You find me unworthy..." he said, both matter of fact and questioning.
Then, something unusual happened. Something he had never expected. The beam relayed its response.
Turn your gaze to the clouds above and scan the depths of the lake below. Know my bearings and assess your own worth.
Heart pounding, the Sole Disciple glanced behind him, and back at the beam. But his awareness was clear. The eye of the Leaking really had emitted a sentiment, although he was certain artifacts were not sentient. They neither had awareness nor sentiment.
Then, he felt a grip on his core, and he was certain it was not his technique.
Like a stringed puppet, his head gazed upward, and his vision expanded through the upper realms to the seventh and highest Ancient Realm, where the beam vanished through a dense cloud.
Then, his head tilted down, causing him to gaze below where the beam pierced past the Mortal Realm and delved into the glassy lake of the first and lowest Nether Realm.
"It spans the seven realms," he gasped, breathless with awe and yet terrified upon seeing his reflection in the water. Piercing through his chest like a sword, one of the beam''s sharp rays had extended from the eye of the Leaking.
He prayed it wouldn’t will the waters of form on the beam, for it went right through his heart.
Before he could steady himself, another command emanated, snapping his focus back to the streaking rays within the beam.
Look closer, the beam beckoned.
With that sentiment, a faint glimmer of light glinted from behind the misty rays. Eyes wide, he looked closer, as he was certain he''d spotted the Leaking''s lux nexus. A core for an artifact.
The reason he sought the eye of the Leaking.
Focusing intently, he watched, hoping to catch sight of it again. But dense, misty rays of light obscured the tiny glimmer beyond the reach of even his augmented view.
As he strained further at the streaking rays, and looking closer as commanded, a sudden wave of sobering clarity washed over him. The lux nexus, once his sole focus, suddenly seemed insignificant.
The surrounding rearranged themselves, taking on a layered form, compacted and converging at the lux nexus. Their stratified arrangement made it clear they were elements of technique, just like the core elements protecting the immortal root within a core nucleus.
The lux nexus lay shielded behind the stronghold of its elements.
"Why are you formed as an immortal? Must I also fight to retrieve and wield you?" he muttered, both puzzled and annoyed.
Before he could fully comprehend, another beam of light pierced his core and tilted his body so his face had no choice but to gaze into the water below.
Again, the beam gripped his augmenting element, and his view delved beneath.
Deep within the waters were the unmistakable undertones of the seven ancient waters, reflecting all seven of their hues.
But whilst gazing downward, he became aware that he couldn''t look up, and it was as if the beam wanted him to notice something.
He felt his core element of retrieval heaving a deep pull, and causing him to grip the realm pocket. In that moment, he saw every hue of the ancient waters turning into the white undertone of the waters of chaos.
He recoiled and pulled back, the beam’s piercing grip retrieving from his form like a sword. Gazing at its gentle rays, he finally understood its sentiment clearly.
"If I retrieve you, you will release the realm reset, and render my efforts useless," he confirmed.
But the beam did not respond. Instead, somehow it seemed disappointed.
Its beams reflected the seven hues of the ancient waters until the streaks turned to mist, and the mist turned to pouring rain.
Below, it pattered onto an invisible barrier just above the water. The same barrier that reflected the puttering raindrops in the skies of the realms.
And the final sentiment of the Leaking flowed into his mind.
Retrieve me against my will, and the realm barrier will mark you for banishment. As for the waters of chaos, the highest of the seven… To you it is merely a kind reminder and not a warning… For a mere immortal ascendant from the mortal realm, having never mastered beyond the first of the ancient waters… You are not worthy to die by the waters of chaos. I would have to end you with my beam… Cultivate, the beam said in finality.
It took him a moment to accept the beam’s sentiment. Also, being referred to as a mere immortal was unfamiliar, and it left him slightly dejected.
He thought to retreat, but in that moment, he recalled his vow to his Shifu the day he accepted his quest, "We will retrieve every last bit of our privilege."
That was all the drive he needed.
Hanging his Pendant back on his sash, he straightened his posture, and placed his hand by his chest. His core appeared over his hand, translucent from his concealment technique.
"I know you will not yield to one lesser than the greats. But I have enough core elements to match an ancient core. And as for my cultivation… Assess my core, and if I am worthy, retrieve not into my Pendant, but into any of my core elements. And whichever core element you choose, I will reserve it as your new realm pocket."
He stood, presenting his core, while the beam’s rain seemed to intensify.
Then gliding from behind the drops, the lux nexus of the Leaking appeared, and stood before his core.
The Sole Disciple’s heart was pounding with anticipation.
The lux nexus was a small three bound wick, glowing with a deep golden hue. Its length was the height of his thumb, and it had an equally thick breadth. Its ends were blunt, as if they were cut with a sword.
"You’ve been severed," he blurted.
But within a breath, the lux nexus flashed, appearing and disappearing, and the Sole Disciple hadn''t blinked before it had completed its assessment, and returned within its raining beam.
He held his chest, feeling the cooling trail where it had coursed his core.
The drizzling beam switched from rain to mist, and from mist to light, while he stood frozen, eyes locked onto the beam with a pleading gaze.
Then quietly, one by one, trailing beams lifted from the eye of the Leaking, and seeped into his core.
Suppressing a smile, a flicker of triumph ignited within him. The thought of presenting the complete harvest of the Leaking to his Shifu, the White Phoenix of the Phoenix Claw Sect, filled him with pride.
They had only dreamed of such a feat, but never had he imagined hunting its lux nexus right into his core.
The thought of exceeding the expectations of the White Phoenix fueled his resolve, and he hasten to complete his task, hastening his retrieval.
"Drain," he said with willed weight.
The beams seeped effortlessly and cleared every realm. But just as the Sole Disciple readied to seal his core element, his retrieval halted again.
This time, there were no trailing beams remaining, except… He noticed a strange light glowing from behind the remaining beams. Yet, instead of rushing to retrieve them, a creeping dread took hold.
Before he could confirm it, a flash of purple lumen burst from the beam, and the Leaking’s lux nexus re-appeared restored from his core, and back within the beam.
But it didn’t sense the golden lumen he’d seen. Instead, he sensed a different lumen protecting the lux nexus. He looked closer, and his fears were confirmed.
"Purple lumen," he muttered, his voice tight with apprehension.
The purple lumen flashed once more, and with a violent surge, every beam of the eye of the Leaking tore through his core element and restored whence it came.
Blinded by the surging light, he took a moment to regain his bearings. As his vision cleared, he saw the lumen coiling around the beam.
Moreover, the fully restored beams no longer shone brightly, instead, they too radiated purple lumen rays, and instantly he felt as if he’d lost all will.
A final pulse of purple lumen blasted forth, hurling the Sole Disciple back into an outline of amber lumen. As he flung back, he crashed back into his form atop the cliff.
Clutching his chest, the impact opened his eyes to a mouthful of spitting blood.