The Crimson Lotus Sect had returned to its rhythm after the Shadow Flame incident, but the shadows left behind had not truly dispersed. The elders tightened security. The disciples trained with greater fervor. And in the inner sect, whispers passed like poison from mouth to ear.
Beneath the calm, war drums still beat—quiet, but present.
Jiang Yuefeng sat alone in the Azure Ember Pavilion, his temporary cultivation chamber tucked into the side of a jade cliff overlooking the waterfall pools. The room pulsed faintly with natural spiritual qi drawn in by a formation array. Glowing runes flickered beneath the floorboards, dimly lit with moonlight.
He didn't cultivate. Not yet. His eyes were fixed on the translucent screen before him—his secret weapon and greatest advantage.
[Heavenly Dual Furnace System – Active]
Host: Jiang Yuefeng
Cultivation Realm: Qi Refining – Late 6th Stage
Talent Grade: Mid-Grade Spiritual Root
Potential Grade: Hidden (Locked)
Current Emotion-Linked Bonds:
Bai Xueyin – Beauty Score: 91 – Emotional Resonance: 41%
Luo Yiran – Beauty Score: 88 – Emotional Resonance: 33%
Note: Cultivation improvement tied to emotional resonance, spiritual compatibility, and partner's beauty score. Maximum benefit achieved through deeper emotional entanglement. Only 80+ beauty scores eligible.
It's working… but slowly, Yuefeng thought. Rushing things brings suspicion. Playing the long game always yields the greater harvest.
He closed the interface and stood, adjusting his robe. Behind his stoic expression was an ever-turning mind. He trusted no one—especially not the women he bonded with. He nurtured their feelings, coaxed out affection, manipulated vulnerability. But never once did he allow himself to feel the same.
Affection was a leash. And Yuefeng would wear no chains.
That night, he visited the Moonrise Garden, where spiritual lotuses bloomed under starlight and the air always smelled faintly of incense. It was one of the few places left unguarded and unwatched. The perfect place for quiet corruption.
Luo Yiran stood near the central pond, her posture straight, her veil in place. Silver bells dangled from her sleeves, jingling softly with every motion. She did not turn when Yuefeng arrived.
"You're late," she said.
"I'm careful," he replied.
She glanced at him. Her eyes were sharp, but no longer cold.
"You told me last time that power in this sect is built on shadows. Lies. Manipulation. Yet here you are, openly gathering people to your side."
He smirked faintly. "Only if someone's watching closely. Are you watching closely, Luo Yiran?"
She didn't answer. Instead, she walked slowly around the pond, trailing a finger across the glowing water. "I looked into you. Before the last mission, no one even noticed you. Then suddenly, the Shadow Flame Sect's elite are dead, and you return without a scratch."
Yuefeng said nothing. The silence pressed between them.
"I don't know what you are, Jiang Yuefeng. But I know what you're not. You're not normal."
He stepped closer. "Neither are you."
That made her pause.
He added, "You hide your true cultivation. You mask your emotional fluctuations. You wear that veil to avoid getting too close. Tell me… why?"
She looked away. "It's none of your concern."
"It is if I'm building a faction with you in it."
He took out two spirit-fruit wines from his storage ring—mildly intoxicating, yet designed to soothe spiritual nerves. She hesitated, then accepted it. The tension between them shifted, just slightly.
"You think offering wine and words will make me loyal to you?" she asked after sipping.
"No. Loyalty can't be bought. But curiosity can be fed. And trust… can be simulated."
Yiran laughed softly, unexpectedly. "You sound like a man who doesn't believe in trust at all."
He met her eyes directly. "I don't."
For a moment, there was silence. And then—something rare—she lowered her veil just slightly to sip the wine directly. Her lips were full, her skin like cold jade.
Yuefeng didn't stare. He let the moment pass without comment.
Don't make her feel like prey, he reminded himself. Make her feel understood.
They spent an hour discussing spiritual formations, elder politics, and sect rivalries. Yiran began to open up—cautiously, but surely.
"I've been offered Core disciple training twice," she said. "I refused both times."
"Why?"
"Because I saw what happened to the last woman who accepted. She became a puppet for Elder Mu's alchemy experiments. A tool. I'd rather be forgotten than dissected."
Her words struck deeper than she intended, and Yuefeng used it.
"I don't want tools in my faction," he said. "I want blades—sharp ones. Ones that cut back if anyone tries to use them."
Yiran looked at him, eyes unreadable. She said nothing, but her posture eased. The conversation drifted again—deeper now, more personal.
He never touched her.
But she didn't move away when he stood closer.
Three days later, she came to his chamber uninvited.
The moment the door opened, Yuefeng dismissed the formations and sat on the floor. She didn't speak. She simply walked inside and sat across from him.
"I've made my decision," she said.
He tilted his head. "And?"
"I'll join your faction. Not because I trust you—but because I agree with you. The sect is rotten. And I'd rather rot from within than be cut down by it."
That night, they cultivated in proximity—close enough for spiritual resonance, but with no physical contact. Yet Yuefeng's system flared with activity.
[Luo Yiran – Emotional Resonance increased to 51%]
Spiritual Compatibility Achieved
Host cultivation progress: +1 Qi Refining stage
Current: Qi Refining – Peak 6th Stage
The system pulsed within his soul. His dantian felt lighter, his qi purer. The improvement was subtle—but foundational.
She had not given herself to him physically, but her trust—fragile, painful, and rare—was worth more in system value.
Emotion first. Body later. Then… discard or keep. Depending on usefulness.
As she left, Yiran turned to him. "Don't betray me."
He gave the faintest smile. "I never betray. I just… don't protect what I don't own."
She paused at the door, then nodded. "Fair enough."
Later that night, Yuefeng found a paper crane on his pillow—an old sect trick. A message hidden in a folding technique.
He unfolded it and read the single line scrawled within:
"Even poisonous flowers bloom beautifully. Be careful not to inhale too deeply." – A Friend
He stared at the crane until it turned to ash between his fingers.
Someone was watching. Someone who knew he was rising.
But that only confirmed it—
He was finally being noticed.
End of Chapter 6