Night had fallen over the Heavenly Sword Sect. The moon hung high in the sky, casting its pale silver light over the vast peaks and valleys of the mountain range. A cool wind rustled through the trees, brushing the edges of the towering stone walls that enclosed the outer sect.
Inside one of the cave dwellings carved into the cliffside, Kai Zheng sat cross-legged, stabilizing his newly attained Foundation Realm.
Breathing came naturally now. The Qi Breathing Technique, once overlooked, now felt like second nature. Each breath pulled in strands of ambient Qi from the night air—soft blue motes invisible to the naked eye. As he inhaled, the Qi entered through his nasal passages and spread through his meridians like cool water through dry roots. It flowed down his throat, branching into the twelve main meridians, washing through the lungs, heart, dantian, and limbs. With each exhale, the impurities were expelled subtly from his pores.
His dantian pulsed faintly. Inside it, Qi gathered like a quiet storm, coiling into a dense, rotating core. The Foundation Realm was a step up from mere accumulation. Now, cultivation was about stability, balance, and refinement. With every cycle, his breathing technique polished his Qi, making it purer and more condensed.
Still, he could feel the limits.
"This won't be enough," Kai Zheng muttered to himself.
No matter how refined his technique was, without Qi Crystals to supplement it, his progress would crawl.
He stood and stretched, walking to the edge of the cave. His brown robe fluttered gently in the breeze. His eyes swept across the sect landscape—stone paths, torch-lit towers, roaming patrols. Leaving the sect without permission was forbidden. But to him? A minor inconvenience.
"The previous Kai did this before. I remember every step. The patrols, the route, the formation's weakness."
His goal was Azure River Town, the nearest hub of trade and activity outside the sect's reach. He needed Qi Crystals—preferably low-grade and medium quality, enough to keep his cultivation and soul techniques running.
With one last breath, he began his silent descent.
Navigating the outer sect was like moving through a half-asleep beast. There were lights, guards, and disciples wandering late, but none of them paid much attention to the shadows.
Kai moved like mist—his steps light, posture hunched slightly to blend with the darkness. He avoided well-lit paths, ducking behind trees and boulders. The outer sect sprawled at the mountain's base in a rough semi-circle. Thousands of disciples lived here, separated by caves, huts, and stone barracks. The closer to the inner sect one was, the better the housing. Kai, of course, had lived far at the edge.
It didn't take long to reach the eastern perimeter.
There, at the edge of a moss-covered cliff wall, shimmered the formation. An enormous translucent dome that protected the sect from external threats—and trapped its disciples within.
Except… it wasn't perfect.
"The fluctuations happen every twenty seconds. You get five seconds to slip through."
He waited.
A shimmer. A pulse.
He leapt forward.
His body pressed against the formation, and for a heartbeat, resistance greeted him. Then—he passed through.
The moment he landed on the other side, he exhaled sharply. "Still works."
The forest between the sect and Azure River Town was quiet. Trees loomed tall, leaves rustling overhead. The ground was soft with fallen leaves, and insects chirped in the underbrush. Kai moved quickly, not wasting time. The path was familiar.
He reached the town in just under an hour.
Azure River Town was still awake despite the late hour. Paper lanterns swayed in the wind. Merchants argued over prices, and stalls lit by spiritual light displayed everything from beast pelts to cheap weapons. This was a border town—half-legitimate, half-black market.
Kai lowered his hood and slipped into the alleys. No one will recognized him. He wasn't famous—not yet.
He made his way to the hidden corner of the town where the rogue cultivators traded. The black market.
"Still smells like burnt herbs and lies," he muttered.
A hunched man sat behind a crooked wooden table stacked with small sacks. Old Bai.
"If it isn't my ghost of a customer," Old Bai said, grinning toothlessly. "Looking for crystals again?"
"Thirty. low grade."
"Fifty silver. Special rate."
"Forty-five. You get them for one silver each."
Old Bai cackled. "Cheeky as ever. Fine. Deal."
Kai handed over the coins and received the pouch of crystals. He checked them—each one faintly glowed with condensed spiritual energy.
"Good enough."
"Careful, boy," Old Bai warned. "Heard sect patrols caught two sneaks last week."
"Then it's a good thing I'm not them."
With his purchase complete, Kai turned into a narrow alley. He didn't plan to linger—getting caught outside the sect was still a risk. But just as he passed a fragrant corner stall, a familiar scent hit his nose.
Meat. Herbs. Spice.
His steps slowed.
"It's been a while…" he muttered, glancing toward the street.
A grand inn loomed across from him, its sign swaying in the night breeze. Jade Orchid Pavilion—a luxurious place, far beyond what most outer sect disciples would dare to step into. Lanterns glowed with gentle spiritual light, and clean marble steps led into a warm interior lined with music and laughter.
He hesitated.
He had saved every copper to afford cultivation resources, rarely indulging in anything else. But now, with his soul-bound powers, he no longer needed to walk the same path as others. Qi Crystals weren't the only fuel to his strength. He had leverage now. And leverage could be used… however he wanted.
"Why not?" he murmured with a faint smirk. "I'm not a starving dog anymore."
He walked in.
Inside, warm light blanketed the elegant wooden interiors. The aroma of roasted beast meat and spiritual wine filled the air. Silk-robed cultivators and merchants spoke in hushed tones, flanked by guards and attendants. This wasn't a place for outer sect nobodies.
But Kai walked like he belonged.
He sat by a side window and ordered a full-course meal—roasted wind rabbit, mistflower soup, steamed spirit rice, and even a pot of low-tier spiritual wine. It cost him nearly five silver. In the past, he would have flinched.
Tonight, he will eat without restraint.
As he slowly chewed the tender meat, eyes half-lidded, his mind half-focused on the glowing system screen he had pulled up beside his vision.
Kai poured a second cup of wine,
He sipped his wine lazily.
He'd only stopped in for a decent meal after buying Qi Crystals from the outer stalls. A rare indulgence. He could afford it now.
Then came the voice:
"Do you even know who you're talking to?!"
A heavy thud echoed. Chairs screeched. The clatter of utensils silenced even the zither music. The patrons on the main floor shrank into their seats, heads lowered.
Kai's gaze shifted down through the elegant latticework.
A young man in red and gold robes stood at the center of the commotion, his arm extended, hand clenched around a servant girl's wrist. Her tray had fallen, its contents staining the silk carpet beneath them.
The girl trembled, her knees brushing the ground. She looked no older than sixteen, with soft brown hair and teary eyes, clearly from the lower district. Her lip bled where she'd been struck.
The youth sneered.
"A filthy lowborn dares stain this Young Master's robes? Do you think I won't make you crawl?"
He flicked his sleeve with theatrical disgust. Two guards behind him laughed, eyes gleaming with cruelty.
Kai tilted his head slightly. His wine swirled in the cup. Then, a soft chime echoed in his mind.
[System Notification – Target Scanned]
Name: Luo Jin
Affiliation: Jadefire Sect – Inner Disciple
Cultivation Level: Qi Gathering realm (Mid Stage)
Fate Alignment: Minor Villain – Arrogant Cannon Fodder
Villain Aura : 43
Destiny Trigger: Will be publicly humiliated by a major Hero within the next 2 hours.]
A soft chuckle escaped Kai's lips, barely audible beneath the ambient noise of the inn.
"So this… is the quality of character filling the outer cities," he murmured, fingers lazily tapping the side of his wine cup. "Entitled brats with just enough spiritual backing to believe they're untouchable… yet none of the discipline to match it."
His tone was light, but there was a biting amusement beneath the surface.
Another chime echoed softly in his mind.
[System Notification – Target Scanned]
Name: Lan Xue
Affiliation: None
Cultivation Level: None
Heroine Aura: 240
Physique: Heaven's Spring Vessel (Dormant)
Fate Alignment: Potential Heroine]
Kai's gaze shifted.
The girl looked worn—mud clinging to her dress, her shoulders trembling faintly beneath the weight of fear and desperation. But in her eyes… there was still clarity. Resolve, even in helplessness.
Heaven's Spring Vessel… dormant?
His brows lifted slightly.
A physique like that, unclaimed and unnoticed? No sect, no cultivation, no backer… no protection.
It was like finding a rare spiritual herb in a mortal's garden—untouched, unguarded, waiting to be harvested by the first hand bold enough to pluck it.
Fascinating, he thought, eyes narrowing with interest.
This Lan Xue—she was a seedling yet to be claimed by Fate.
Ripe for influence.
If he so desired, he could reshape her trajectory with a single move. Bend her to his story instead. A pawn? A blade? A mirror?
But he did nothing. Only observed.
Because someone else was about to make their move.
Just as he predicted.
Step.