# Chapter 5: Into the Ruins
The morning of the ruins' opening came with unnatural fog. It rolled down from the mountains, thick and cold, carrying the scent of ancient stone and dried blood.
Lin Xiao stood at the sect's gates with the other four chosen. Wei Lin kept his distance, still bitter about the combat trials. Li Haoran looked nervous. Su Mei had arrived early from her sect, and Xiao Fan hadn't slept, the ring keeping him awake with whispered warnings.
"The fog isn't natural."
Old Feng appeared beside them, moving without sound despite his supposed crippled leg.
"The ruins are breathing. They know fresh prey approaches."
"Comforting words, Elder Feng."
"I don't offer comfort. I offer truth. The ruins will test each of you differently. Some tests will be physical. Others... less so."
He pulled out five black jade tokens. "These are return tokens. Break them to teleport outside the ruins. They only work once and won't function in the core region."
Wei Lin scoffed. "We won't need escape tokens."
"Pride comes before falling into ancient trap arrays that slowly peel your skin while keeping you alive for weeks."
Wei Lin went pale.
"The other sects are gathering at the entrance. Hundreds of disciples, but only the best will reach the inner regions. Don't trust anyone outside our group."
Su Mei raised an eyebrow. "Should we trust everyone inside our group?"
Old Feng looked at Wei Lin. "Trust is earned, not assumed."
The journey to the ruins took three hours by flying sword. The entrance was a massive stone archway carved into a mountain, covered in demon script that hurt to read directly. Four other sects had already arrived, their disciples grouped defensively.
Lin Xiao recognized some faces from the system's alerts. Chu Tianming from Azure Cloud Temple stood surrounded by admirers, his righteous aura making him glow like a small sun. The Blood Princess Yue kept to the shadows, her crimson robes seeming to absorb light. Mo Chen from Thousand Beast Gate had three spirit beasts circling him protectively.
But the one who caught his attention was Liu Ruyan from Jade Valley Sect. She stood near Su Mei but kept glancing at Xiao Fan.
[System Alert: Child of Destiny Liu Ruyan shows interest in Target Xiao Fan]
[Potential plot line: Righteous Beauty Falls for Rising Genius]
[Recommendation: Disrupt immediately]
'Another heroine drawn to the protagonist. How tedious.'
"Su Mei, your senior sister keeps staring at my attendant."
Su Mei followed his gaze. "Liu Ruyan? She's... complicated. Gentle on the surface but ruthless underneath. She collects talented men like accessories."
"Sounds familiar."
"I collect nothing. I'm just engaged to three different women."
"Two. I haven't officially accepted yet."
"Yet."
The ruins' entrance began glowing. The archway filled with swirling darkness that looked solid enough to touch.
"The portal is open!" someone shouted. "Remember, treasures belong to whoever claims them! No sect rules inside!"
Disciples rushed forward. The first wave entered the darkness and vanished. Lin Xiao held his group back.
"Let the eager ones trigger the entrance traps."
Screams echoed from inside the portal. Several disciples stumbled back out, missing limbs or covered in acid burns.
"Now we go."
They entered together. The sensation was like being squeezed through thick oil. Then they emerged in a vast cavern lit by phosphorescent moss. Bodies littered the ground - the eager disciples who'd triggered trap arrays.
"The entrance randomizes positions," Wei Lin said. "We need to—"
He was talking to empty air. The teleportation had separated them.
Lin Xiao stood alone in a corridor of black stone. The walls were carved with murals showing the Demon Emperor's victories. In each image, heroes fell before a figure shrouded in darkness.
[Location: Ruins Outer Ring - Section 7]
[Danger Level: Moderate]
[Detected: Ancient Killing Array (Dormant)]
[Detected: Child of Destiny 800 meters northeast]
'Time to hunt.'
He moved through the corridors carefully but quickly. The ruins were a maze designed to confuse and separate. Most disciples would wander for days finding nothing but traps and minor treasures.
But Lin Xiao had the system showing him optimal paths.
He found Chu Tianming fighting a puppet guardian. The Azure Cloud disciple's sword techniques were flawless, each strike glowing with righteous qi. The puppet, made of black iron and powered by death qi, was slowly losing.
"Need help?"
Chu Tianming spun, sword raised. "Gu Changye. I heard you'd changed, but I didn't believe it."
"Change is just adaptation. Your puppet's core is in its left shoulder, by the way."
Chu Tianming struck where indicated. The puppet crumbled.
"Why help me?"
"Because fighting each other while surrounded by death traps is stupid. Temporary alliance?"
Chu Tianming was suspicious but nodded. "Until we reach the inner regions."
They traveled together for an hour, defeating traps and guardians. Chu Tianming was skilled but predictably righteous. He insisted on marking dangerous areas to warn other disciples. He shared healing pills with injured cultivators they passed.
'Classic hero behavior. Wasteful but consistent.'
They found a treasure room guarded by a formation puzzle. Chu Tianming studied it carefully.
"It's based on the Eight Trigrams. If we—"
Lin Xiao walked through the formation. It didn't activate.
"How?"
"The formation only triggers if you have hostile intent. Walk through while thinking about helping others."
Chu Tianming tried it. The formation let him pass.
"That's absurd. Who makes a trap that rewards kindness?"
"The Demon Emperor. He found irony amusing."
The treasure room contained pills, weapons, and cultivation manuals. Chu Tianming immediately started dividing everything equally.
"We should save some for other disciples who might need—"
Lin Xiao knocked him unconscious with a precise nerve strike.
"Sorry, but your righteousness is exhausting."
He took everything valuable, leaving only basic healing pills. Then he drew formation characters around Chu Tianming's unconscious body.
[Destiny Theft Formation - 500 Villain Points]
[Drains fortune from target over time]
[Current extraction rate: 100 Fortune per hour]
'He'll wake up in a few hours, weakened but alive. By then I'll have drained enough fortune to cripple his protagonist halo.'
Lin Xiao left through a different corridor. The system guided him toward another target.
He found the Blood Princess Yue torturing information out of a Thousand Beast Gate disciple.
"Where is the blood pool? Tell me!"
"I don't know! Please!"
She noticed Lin Xiao. "Evernight Sect. Leave unless you want to join him."
"I know where the blood pool is."
Her eyes sharpened. "Speak."
"Trade. You help me find my servant, I'll show you the pool."
"Your servant? The one with the ring?"
'She knows about it. Interesting.'
"Yes."
"I saw him an hour ago, heading toward the inner region with some Jade Valley girl. They were being chased by Mo Chen's beasts."
"Show me where."
She dropped the tortured disciple. "The blood pool first."
"Half the directions now, half when you show me where they went."
They moved quickly through the ruins. Yue was efficient and ruthless, killing anything in their path without hesitation.
"You're not like the rumors say."
"Which rumors?"
"That you've gone soft. Training servants, apologizing publicly."
"Soft and strategic look similar from outside."
"What's your real goal here?"
"Same as everyone. Power."
"That's refreshingly honest."
They reached a sealed chamber. Lin Xiao drew symbols on the door.
"The blood pool is inside. But it's guarded by the previous opener's corpse puppet. Nascent Soul peak strength."
"You knew this and brought me here?"
"You're Blood Path. Fighting blood-soaked corpses is your specialty."
She laughed. "I like you. Perhaps we should alliance more permanently."
"Show me where my servant went first."
She led him toward the inner region barrier. Signs of battle were everywhere - claw marks, ice formations, sword cuts.
"Your servant fought well for trash. That ring of his kept releasing power bursts."
'The ring's responding to danger. Good.'
They found Xiao Fan and Liu Ruyan cornered in a dead-end chamber. Mo Chen and his three beasts had them trapped.
"Give me the ring, servant, and I'll let you leave alive."
"I can't remove it!"
"Then I'll remove your finger."
Liu Ruyan stood protectively in front of Xiao Fan, her sword raised. "You'll have to go through me."
"Gladly."
Mo Chen's beasts charged. Liu Ruyan's swordsmanship was excellent, but three peak Qi Condensation spirit beasts were overwhelming her.
Lin Xiao appeared behind Mo Chen and struck his neck. The beast tamer collapsed, his beasts immediately going wild without commands.
"Sacred Son!"
The wild beasts turned on everyone. One lunged at Xiao Fan. The ring exploded with golden light.
'DIE!'
The emperor's voice echoed physically. The beast disintegrated.
Everyone stared at Xiao Fan, who looked as shocked as them.
"Did I do that?"
The ring was now glowing constantly, cracks appearing on its surface.
'The seal... it's breaking... the trials begin... NOW!'
Xiao Fan screamed. Golden energy erupted from the ring, forming a cocoon around him. Inside, his body was being reformed, strengthened, but also invaded by the emperor's soul fragment.
"What's happening to him?"
Lin Xiao grabbed the cocoon. Pain shot through his arms as the emperor's power tried to repel him.
"His inheritance is activating. Everyone stay back."
'Boy, you cannot interfere! This is between me and my descendant!'
"Wrong. I promised to anchor him."
Lin Xiao forced his qi into the cocoon, not to stop the process but to maintain Xiao Fan's consciousness. The emperor's soul was trying to overwrite Xiao Fan's personality.
'You dare oppose an emperor?'
"I dare anything that threatens my investments."
The struggle lasted minutes but felt like hours. Finally, the cocoon shattered. Xiao Fan collapsed, unconscious but breathing. The ring had merged into his skin, forming golden tattoos up his arm.
[System Alert: Xiao Fan's Fortune Value has doubled]
[Warning: Emperor soul fragment partially integrated]
[New threat level: High]
Liu Ruyan immediately knelt beside Xiao Fan, checking his condition with suspicious expertise.
"You know medical techniques?"
She hesitated. "A little."
"Don't lie. You're checking his soul sea for possession signs. That's advanced technique."
She looked at him sharply. "How do you—"
"Because I'm not an idiot. You're not just a sword cultivator. What are you really?"
Before she could answer, the chamber shook. The walls cracked, revealing passages that hadn't existed before.
"The inner region is opening!"
Blood Princess Yue grabbed Lin Xiao's arm. "My payment. Where's the rest of the blood pool's location?"
He whispered the details. She smiled and vanished into one of the new passages.
Mo Chen was stirring. His beasts were dead, and he looked murderous.
"You killed them. My brothers!"
"They were animals."
"They were family!"
Mo Chen's cultivation surged. Beast cultivators could burn their bonds for temporary power. He was pushing into false Nascent Soul realm.
"Die!"
He charged with beast-like fury. Lin Xiao sidestepped and touched his forehead.
[Soul Corruption Seed - 300 Villain Points]
[Target will slowly lose sanity and beast bonds]
Mo Chen stumbled past, not realizing he'd been infected. In three days, he'd be a mindless beast himself.
"We need to move. The inner region won't stay open long."
Liu Ruyan supported Xiao Fan. "He's too weak to continue."
"Then leave him."
"What? But he's your servant!"
"And he's accomplished his purpose. The ring is activated. He's no longer useful."
Liu Ruyan stared at him in horror. "You're heartless."
"I'm practical. But if you want to drag dead weight, that's your choice."
He entered one of the passages. After a moment, Liu Ruyan followed, carrying Xiao Fan.
'Good. She's emotionally attached to him now. Another heroine successfully redirected.'
The passage led to a massive chamber. At its center was a pool of liquid starlight - concentrated destiny made physical.
[Destiny Spring Discovered]
[Value: Immeasurable]
[Warning: Multiple Children of Destiny approaching]
'Perfect. Let them come. Let them fight over it. And while they're distracted...'
Lin Xiao looked deeper into the chamber. Beyond the spring, barely visible, was a door marked with the Demon Emperor's personal seal.
The core region. Where the ancient experiment waited.
'The real treasure isn't the destiny spring. It's what's behind that door.'
Footsteps echoed from multiple passages. The other Children of Destiny had found this place.
The real game was about to begin.