"Father, be careful!"
The warning tore from Mo Zhenyu's throat, but it was too late.
Mo Renyu had barely stepped into her embrace when Hao Lan's delicate fingers tightened around a gleaming hairpin. Without hesitation, she drove it deep into his back.
A strangled gasp left his lips. His body stiffened as pain bloomed like fire through his spine. He staggered, clutching at her shoulders, his face a mask of anguish and disbelief.
"Why?" he rasped. His voice, once so steady, was now a hollow whisper.
Hao Lan's lips curled into a sneer. With a vicious shove, she sent him sprawling backward. Mo Zhenyu lunged forward, catching his father before he could hit the ground. The weight of him was heavier than ever—perhaps because of the betrayal that had just shattered his spirit.
"Why?" Hao Lan's laughter rang sharp and bitter in the moonlit air. "Let me tell you why, Mo Renyu."
Her once serene expression twisted into rage. "Because you rose too fast. Because I wanted to see if the rumors of the Celestial Artifact were true. But you—" She scoffed. "You foolishly fell in love with me. Had it not been for that accursed poison from the Alchemy Realm, do you think I would have ever laid with a wretched Mo?"
Mo Renyu trembled in silence, his breathing ragged.
Hao Lan's voice cracked with fury. "For nine years, I have paid for that single mistake. I lost my legs, my prestige, my reputation! So I traded it all back—for your life." Her eyes burned with pure malice. "Hand over the artifact, and I will grant you a peaceful death. You and that spawn of yours."
At her signal, figures emerged from the darkness—dozens of cultivators clad in green robes radiating lethal intent.
From among them, a tall man stepped forward. A smirk played on his weathered face as he pulled Hao Lan into his arms. "Mo Renyu of the Ember Owl," he drawled, his voice dripping with triumph. "You abandoned everything for this woman, and you never even realized she was my spy." He chuckled. "I have won. I am the new Palace Lord. Your Mo family has been exiled, and tonight, you die."
Mo Renyu's grip tightened on his son's arm. "Xu Kang," he breathed, his eyes flashing with old fury. "You were a rat then, and you're a rat now." His voice steadied, filled with grim resolve. "You still can't defeat me on your own, so you scheme from the shadows."
He turned his head slightly, whispering so only Mo Zhenyu could hear. "Run. I will cover you."
Then, flames erupted around him.
His body became an inferno, and behind him, a majestic crimson owl spread its fiery wings—his guiding constellation. Above his chest, a talisman glowed with searing light
"Flaming Wing Star."
With a single beat of his wings, Mo Renyu soared into the night, his form engulfed in ember.Mo Zhenyu hesitated only for a moment before turning on his heel and dashing into the forest.
"After him! I want him dead!" Hao Lan's voice rang like a blade.
Two green-robed cultivators shot forward, their movements swift and precise.
But Mo Renyu's talisman flared, twisting through the air like a flaming comet. The first attacker barely had time to raise his defenses before the embers swallowed him whole, his screams lost in the inferno.
The second leaped back, only to have a jade-green spear pierce the ground before him, halting the talisman's advance.
"Mo Renyu," Hao Lan murmured, satisfaction lacing her tone. "I know all your tricks. You're not leaving this place alive."
She nodded at Xu Kang, who stepped forward, a blade materializing in his hand.
Mo Renyu exhaled, drawing back his talisman. He turned his gaze upon the enemies surrounding him, his flames roaring higher. "I have no intention of leaving alive," he said, his voice calm, resolute. He smiled—wild, unburdened.
"I will drag you all to hell with me."
With a final burst of flames, he surged forward. A man with nothing left to lose, willing to burn the world if it meant protecting his son.
Mo Zhenyu didn't run far. He knew they would come after him—Hao Lan would never let him leave alive. Instead of fleeing blindly, he led his pursuers deep into the forest, the same hunting grounds where his father had once trained him.
Here, in familiar terrain, he felt at ease. He weaved through the trees, veering left, then right, then left again before scaling a tall branch. Lying flat against the bark, he silenced his breath and waited.
The first pursuer rushed in, too focused on the tracks to notice the danger lurking ahead. His foot tripped a wire.
A volley of arrows shot toward him. He dodged left. A second trap triggered behind him. He spun and slid to the right—only to activate a third. This time, a mechanical conibear snapped shut. His instincts were sharp, and he leapt upward just in time.
But before he could land—
Mo Zhenyu was already descending. His spear glinted in the moonlight, gravity amplifying its force.
The pursuer barely had time to raise his hands before the spear skewered him through the chest, piercing his heart in one clean thrust. He died without a scream.
Mo Zhenyu landed softly, withdrawing his weapon. His first kill.
But instead of fear, he felt... nothing.
His gaze lifted toward the sky, where his father fought alone against two opponents. The dozen subordinates who had joined the ambush were nowhere to be seen. Probably dead already. Only Xu Kang and Hao Lan remained, their combined assault slowly overwhelming his father.
Hao Lan, guided by the six-star Green Lotus Constellation, wielded her spear with terrifying precision, her every strike laced with ruthless efficiency. Mo Renyu, in contrast, fought with raw, destructive instinct. His Flaming Talisman glowed like a second sun, his mastery over fire warping the air around him.
The battlefield burned. Flames roared, licking at the sky as shockwaves rippled outward.
"He's still too strong," Xu Kang muttered.
"Don't worry. The poison will take effect soon," Hao Lan replied coldly.
Mo Renyu's hands blurred, forming sigils at impossible speed. A massive fire rune appeared overhead, scorching the heavens.
"Die."
The rune detonated, engulfing everything in an inferno.
Hao Lan moved swiftly, shoving Xu Kang forward to absorb the brunt of the blast.
"You—" Xu Kang gasped as the flames consumed him.
Hao Lan didn't even spare him a glance. "Just die for me," she whispered, driving her spear into his back.
The explosion rocked the battlefield, sending shockwaves that leveled trees and scorched the earth.
Through the chaos, Mo Zhenyu never lost sight of his father, who plummeted like a burning leaf toward the ground.
He ran.
When he reached the cliff's edge, his breath hitched at the sight below—charred bodies lay strewn across the battlefield. Xu Kang was barely clinging to life. And next to him, standing unharmed, was his mother.
But Mo Zhenyu's focus was on his father, who lay broken and bleeding, coughing up crimson.
"Dad!" he cried, dropping to his knees.
For the first time, his father smiled. A weak, pained smile.
"Zhenyu... listen to me." His voice was hoarse. "I'm sorry... I should have been decisive that night. But you... don't be like me. Don't let emotions rule you." He coughed violently, his breath growing fainter. "I won't see you grow... but I know you'll make me proud."
A trembling figure approached.
Hao Lan.
She staggered forward, gripping her spear, her legs still weak from whatever injuries she had suffered. Yet, her voice carried the same venom.
"Give me the artifact, and I will let you live."
Mo Zhenyu hesitated.
"Zhenyu," his father wheezed. "Give it to me."
His heart pounded. Then, he understood.
From within his robe, he pulled out a delicate painting. He placed it in his father's trembling hand.
"Here," Mo Renyu said, his voice barely a whisper. "This is the treasure you've coveted for so long."
Hao Lan seized the scroll without a second glance. Without hesitation, she hurled her spear straight at Mo Zhenyu's heart.
Mo Renyu moved.
With the last of his strength, he threw himself in front of his son.
The spear pierced through his chest—impaling them both.
A perfect kill. Two in one.
Hao Lan exhaled. Finally, she was free. No obligations. No husband. No son. She could roam the world, and with this artifact, she would become the most powerful woman alive.
"Forgive me, Mo Renyu. You simply lacked ambition." She turned, voice like ice. "Such is the law of life."
A shadow passed overhead.
A flying boat descended onto the island.
An older woman stepped off, her expression unreadable as she surveyed the carnage.
"Did you acquire the artifact?" she asked.
"I did," Hao Lan replied, cradling the scroll. "And Mo Renyu's Flaming Talisman pattern as well."
"Excellent." The older woman nodded. "Let's go. Your real daughter and husband are waiting for you."
Hao Lan didn't look back.
She stepped onto the boat, and together, they vanished into the horizon, leaving behind only smoke and the lingering scent of blood.