The Lotus Blossom Sect was so ancient that its corridors creaked with the whispers of the past. Founded over five hundred years ago by a legendary woman who controlled spiritual flames with her breath, its structure was a labyrinth of temples, pavilions, and altars that rose like a flower among the mountains.
But even with so much history, there were places forgotten by most. Places that only the truly astute knew to look at with different eyes.
The Hall of the Sleeping Flame was one of them.
It was said to contain fragments of martial will left by ancient masters. A secondary dimension, sealed by spiritual formations, that allowed a cultivator's soul to face trials of the mental fire. For most, it was a chance to temper their spirit. For Li Wei... it was a door no one else understood.
"You're coming too, trash?" a disciple with a nasal voice said when he saw him approaching the hall's entrance.
Li Wei didn't respond. He walked with his head bowed, his hands in his long sleeves, his steps clumsy. The perfect picture of a coward.
But inside, his mind was buzzing.
He had observed the Hall the previous night, analyzing the patterns on the walls, the seals on the columns, and the symbols carved above the main door. It was a dual-type illusion formation: spiritual and topographical. What no one seemed to notice was that... there was a tiny break on the western flank of the building.
A nearly invisible crack where the flow of energy was irregular.
Li Wei pretended to stumble right in front of that spot.
"This place isn't for you!" someone yelled, laughing.
But as he fell, his hand brushed against the carved stone symbol... and his Qi, subtly channeled, activated the break.
No one noticed.
But when he closed his eyes, his consciousness wasn't absorbed by the common dimension. He didn't find himself on the fiery plains where others battled illusions and memories.
No.
Li Wei was pulled into a very different place.
A silent, dimly lit library.
Black stone walls, shelves floating in the air. Scrolls suspended by chains of light. A blue flame pulsed in the center, as if breathing. It was a contained world, sealed in some corner of the spiritual realm.
"This isn't part of the common trial," he murmured.
A voice whispered in his ear: "Here sleeps the knowledge the sect forgot out of fear. Only one who does not fear the truth is worthy to read."
Li Wei smiled. "Then I came to the right place."
He walked toward the flame. As he did, the shelves began to move. The scrolls trembled, and arcane symbols floated into his vision. One, in particular, glowed intensely:
Technique of the Mental Silk – Volume I
It was a spiritual technique. Advanced. Complex. It didn't increase attack power or strengthen meridians... but it allowed him to implant ideas into enemies' minds during combat, alter their perception, and manipulate their fighting intent.
He didn't need fists.
Just mental precision.
"Perfect."
He sat down in the lotus position, placed the scroll on his knees, and began to absorb its contents. The words weren't written in ink, but in spiritual intent. He felt them directly in his soul.
Hours passed. Days, by his internal perception.
When he opened his eyes... his soul vibrated. He was no longer just a weak outer disciple. Now, he was a weaver of thoughts.
Outside the hall, time had passed differently. Only two hours had gone by.
The disciples emerged one by one, their faces pale and sweaty. Some with smiles of achievement. Others, defeated by internal illusions.
And then, Li Wei walked out.
Not with a smile. Not with pride.
With absolute calm.
"You came out so fast? Or couldn't you even get in?" someone mocked.
But at that moment, the Elders began to read the spiritual results.
An old cultivator from the Hall raised an eyebrow as he looked at the crystal.
"Strange..." he said.
"What's wrong, Elder Liu?"
"This boy left no traces of his will inside the dimension. But... there's an imbalance. As if something inside has been activated."
"Huh?"
"Ignore it. Maybe he failed to enter properly."
And so, Li Wei's true feat went unnoticed.
But not to everyone.
At the top of the White Lotus pavilion, Xue Lan watched from a distance.
"That insect went in and out without showing a reaction?" she asked, curious.
"Yes, young mistress," her maid replied.
"Ridiculous... or perhaps... interesting."
She remembered his eyes. That cold gaze disguised as defeat.
You're not like the others, she thought. You're like a hidden blade in a basket of flowers. Sharp. And dangerous.
For some reason she didn't understand, she smiled.
That night, Li Wei returned to the Disciplined Pavilion. No one bothered him. No one suspected.
In his small room, he spread out a scroll he had "borrowed" from the hall. An ancient map with symbols of spiritual flow.
One of them... now glowed.
A new door.
"One hidden dimension leads to another... And so the path continues."
Li Wei closed his eyes, and the technique he had begun to master resonated in his consciousness.
"Every war is won before it begins."
"Every will is broken before the fight."
And then, he thought of the future.
Of an army of strong women at his side.
Of enemies with big fists but weak hearts.
At the peak of a world that despises the mind... without knowing it has already been conquered.