Chapter 283 The Heartstone's Awakening

• The journey through the Sunlit Wastes had been grueling, but as the group drew closer to the Heartstone, a change in the air became palpable. The once desolate desert landscape seemed to shift, the winds less harsh, and the dry, barren ground beginning to hint at hidden life beneath its surface. It was as if the land itself was reacting to their presence, stirring in anticipation.
• Ariella could feel it—an energy in the air that was both familiar and alien, like the pull of the shard had reached its crescendo, guiding them toward something vast and unknown. She clutched the pouch holding the shard, feeling its thrum beneath her fingers. It had been silent for a while, but she knew that silence was only a pause, not an end.
• "We're close," Kaelen said, his voice low but steady as he scanned the horizon. "The Heartstone should be just beyond that ridge."