Before anyone could answer..
BAM!
The massive doors of the library burst open, one of them nearly flying off its hinges.
A deep, thunderous voice echoed through the halls, laced with fury.
"Who dares to hold this competition… without my permission?"
All three masters turned sharply, eyes wide, as a figure stepped into the flickering light.
Clad in black, a long tattered cloak dragging behind him, his eyes burning like old coals..
Lin Chaoyuan.
Master Fung Shu Ri's fists clenched.
"Lin Chaoyuan…!"
The three masters stepped forward as one, blocking his path.
Master Kin Lishuan growled, his voice like steel.
"You traitor…! You lost the right to call this land your own long ago."
"This realm now belongs to a new generation. It is no longer bound to your poison."
"You… are nothing more than a name burnt into a ruined page."
Lin Chaoyuan's expression didn't change. He stood tall, calm, dangerous.
"I came to retrieve what belongs to me," he said coldly.
"And I will tear down anyone who stands in my way."
The Weight of Blood and Truth
The room froze.
Then...laughter.
Not ordinary laughter. A wild, echoing, almost maniacal sound that bounced off the walls of the ancient library like a curse.
Lin Chaoyuan threw back his head, laughing until tears glinted in his eyes..though not a trace of joy was in them.
"Yu Sui…!" he said, still laughing.
"You actually entered him into the competition?"
He pointed toward the doors, toward the trial grounds beyond them.
"That boy..he isn't even worthy of being called a clan member.
And you… you named him a future king?"
"That boy… is worse than me."
The room trembled in silence.
Then Lin Chaoyuan's voice dropped low...dark, sharp, unforgettable.
"Years ago…
the child for whom the forbidden chant was altered…
the one who triggered the curse that destroyed half the kingdom…
was none other than your precious Yu Sui."
The air shattered like glass.
The three elders stood frozen.
Master Kin Lishuan's knees gave way.
He fell to the floor, clutching his chest.
"No…
No… this can't be true…
This is all a lie… it has to be a lie…"
Lin Chaoyuan stepped closer, voice rising in triumph.
"Oh? A lie, is it?
Then would you dare test it?"
He spread his arms wide.
... "If I show you proof,
and it turns out I'm right…
then Yu Sui must leave the clan.
But if I'm lying…
I will give my life right here, right now."
The three masters looked at each other, their faces pale..equal parts blood and tears in their eyes.