The sun finally dragged itself over the mountains like it was tired too. Maybe it was. The whole village looked like someone beat it up with a big broom—dust everywhere, chickens hiding under anything they could fit under, and a goat somehow standing on the roof of Auntie Lin's house refusing to come down.

Nobody knew how the goat got up there. The goat didn't know either. It just stood there, staring down at everyone like it was king of roofs now.

Yun woke up with hair sticking in ten different directions, eyes red like he'd been punched by the darkness itself. His whole body felt like he wrestled a tree and lost. He dragged himself out of bed, stumbled into the yard, and nearly fell on his face because his legs felt weird—lighter and heavier at same time, like they didn't belong to him anymore.

His mother stood by the door with her arms crossed, her lips thin.

"You look like you rolled down the hill for fun," she said.

Yun muttered, "Might as well."

She didn't ask much. Villagers didn't ask questions in the morning after a night that felt cursed. But she did shove a bowl of porridge into his hand and said, "Eat before it climbs out the bowl and runs away."

Yun didn't know if she was joking or warning. With the way life been lately, anything was possible.

Shen Yu Was Acting Weird… Weirder Than Usual

Yun found Shen Yu near the well, sitting on the edge and staring into the bucket like it was going to say something deep to him. His hair was messy too, which actually made him look more normal for once.

But when Yun got closer, Shen Yu looked up and said, with absolutely no expression:

"I think the well insulted me."

Yun blinked. "Huh?"

Shen Yu gestured at the bucket.

"It showed me my face. And it looked… disappointed."

Yun didn't know whether to laugh or run.

"That's just your reflection…"

"Are you sure?" Shen Yu asked too seriously. "Maybe it is a spirit mocking me."

Yun stared. "You need sleep."

Shen Yu nodded slowly. "Yes. Possibly for ten years."

Village Chaos Begins Slowly, Then All at Once

The villagers gathered in small confused circles, whispering, pointing, panicking quietly because loud panicking takes too much effort.

Old Guo claimed he saw a shadow crawling under his house. Turned out it was just his cat stuck under the floorboard again.

Auntie Lin fainted three times because someone said the word "monster."

The third time she fainted, she wasn't even looking—she just heard someone whisper "mo—" and she dropped like a sack.

Little Bao ran around with a stick shouting, "I WILL BE THE NEW PROTECTOR OF STARFALL VILLAGE," but tripped on a rock and face-planted so hard the earth probably felt it.

Everything was messy. Loud. Scared. Funny in a "my life is falling apart but let's laugh anyway so we don't die" way.

Then There Was Yun… And the Stars

People kept staring at Yun like he was glowing, even though he definitely wasn't. Probably.

At least he didn't feel glowy. Just tired. And confused. And hungry again.

A group of aunties stared at him for so long he almost turned around to check if someone else was behind him.

One whispered, loud enough to hear:

"He looks the same."

Another hissed, "No, no, look at his neck, something is different."

"What? His neck? Why his neck?"

"I don't know but look! LOOK!"

Yun clutched his neck like something might be crawling on it.

There was nothing.

They just liked staring.

Then Auntie Lin's cousin's cousin leaned in like she was sniffing a fruit.

"Does he smell like destiny?"

Yun almost ran away right there.

The funniest (worst) part was when the village head came over with a completely serious face and handed Yun a small rock.

"This rock fell near you last night," he said. "We don't know if it's sacred or evil. Please take care of it."

Yun stared at the rock.

It was very much a normal rock.

Probably rolled down a hill.

But everyone looked at him like the rock might explode into prophecy any moment, so he just nodded and whispered, "Thank… you?"

Shen Yu Finally Explained Something. Ish. Maybe. Not Really.

Later, when the villagers finally went off to argue about whether destiny had smell or not, Shen Yu pulled Yun aside.

He looked serious now. Really serious. Almost scary serious.

"You awakened something last night," Shen Yu said.

Yun gulped. "I know. Maybe. I think."

"Not just anything," Shen Yu continued. "It was… star force. Ancient. Rare. And extremely loud."

"Loud? I didn't shout."

Shen Yu sighed so deeply it sounded like he aged five years.

"Not your voice. Your… existence. The moment you awakened, something in the sky opened its eyes. And it is still looking."

Yun didn't know what that meant, but it made him feel like hiding under a table.

Shen Yu continued, "That creature last night didn't just attack by accident. And now, more things may come."

Yun waited.

Shen Yu paused.

Then he added with a straight face:

"And also… you bent my sleeve spirit."

Yun blinked. "My what?"

"No, my sleeve spirit," Shen Yu corrected. "The little one that keeps my robe neat. It fainted when you awakened."

Yun stared. "Your… robe has a spirit?"

Shen Yu nodded solemnly. "Yes. It complains when it gets dirty."

Then he leaned closer and whispered, "It is still unconscious."

Yun had no idea if he should laugh or cry.

And Then—The Real Problem Showed Up

Just when things were starting to feel slightly normal-ish (if you ignore the goat on the roof screaming at clouds), something happened.

A tremor.

Small at first. Barely there. Then stronger.

The torches rattled. Chickens ran in all directions like exploding feathers.

Then the forest made a sound.

Deep. Wrong. Like stones grinding but alive.

Shen Yu's face changed instantly. All the humor vanished.

"That's not one of the small ones," he said.

Yun swallowed hard. "Then what is it?"

Shen Yu didn't answer.

He just stared at the forest line, eyes sharp, body tense.

Even the goat stopped screaming.

The wind shifted.

The shadows thickened.

And from deep in the woods…

Something huge exhaled.

The ground shook.

The sky dimmed even though the sun was out.

And a ripple of cold air swept through the village like invisible claws dragging across the earth.

Yun felt it—felt it buzzing under his skin like the stars inside him were waking again.

Shen Yu whispered, "It found us."

Then he added quickly,

"And Yun… if it eats me first, run."

Yun stared. "That's the plan?"

"No," Shen Yu said. "But it's the honest one."

The forest moved again.

Author note: And Chapter 20 ends with the village holding its breath again.

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