Chapter 18: The Deepening Root

The morning after the Archive, Ryu Jin woke before the bell with a new weight in his chest. Not the heavy drag of exhaustion, but the settled presence of the green light, now rooted and alive. He lay on his straw mat for a long moment, staring at the dark beams above, and let the feeling spread through him like warm water through dry clay. The Flowing River stage was not a destination. It was a be...