Kai sat quietly, processing the implications.
Someone had sabotaged Han Feng—damaged his cultivation foundation in a way that would only manifest under combat stress. Sophisticated, subtle, and deadly. The kind of thing that required skill, knowledge, and access.
Which meant either a skilled disciple with medical knowledge or someone with connections to the sect's upper hierarchy.
[SYSTEM ANALYSIS]
[HAN FENG SABOTAGE: Confirmed]
[SUSPECT POOL: Unknown]
[OPPORTUNITY: Target likely to die within 24 hours]
[DEATH ENERGY VALUE: 120-150 points]
If Han Feng died, Kai needed to be present to harvest that death energy. A Third Stage cultivator's death would provide significant advancement potential.
But approaching a heavily-guarded injured disciple without raising suspicion would be difficult.
Lin Wei appeared beside him, looking shaken. "Did you see that, Brother Kai? Han Feng just... collapsed. His cultivation destroyed itself."
"This junior saw, Brother Lin. It was like his foundation was already damaged, waiting to fail."
"Poison? Sabotage?"
"Probably." Kai kept his voice neutral. "The sect will investigate. But Brother Han Feng's tournament is over regardless."
"This is worse than the transport ambush," Lin Wei said quietly. "At least that was bandits. This is someone within the sect deliberately crippling disciples."
Around them, other disciples whispered similar concerns. If Han Feng could be sabotaged, anyone could. The tournament had suddenly become much more dangerous.
Elder Zhang rose from his seat, his spiritual presence pressing down on the entire arena. When he spoke, everyone listened.
"Disciples of Celestial Peak Sect. What happened to Han Feng is being investigated. Until we understand more, all matches will be monitored closely for signs of foul play. Anyone caught sabotaging fellow disciples will face execution."
The threat was clear and absolute. Elder Zhang's cultivation pressure emphasized that this was not negotiation.
"The tournament will continue. Next match: Kai Chen versus Liu San."
Kai stood, surprised. His match was being moved up in the schedule. He walked to the arena, studying his new opponent.
Liu San was Second Stage, specialized in defensive techniques. A cautious fighter who wore down opponents through patience and counterattacks.
But Kai barely focused on his opponent. His attention was split between the fight and tracking Han Feng's death mark as the injured disciple was carried toward the medical pavilion.
[DEATH MARK TRACKING - HAN FENG]
[LOCATION: Medical Pavilion, 200 meters east]
[CONDITION: Critical and deteriorating]
[DEATH PROBABILITY: 71% within 12 hours]
The match began.
Liu San fought exactly as expected—defensive stance, patient counters, trying to exhaust Kai's energy. It was a solid strategy against most opponents.
Against Kai, who had shadow energy reserves far beyond normal Second Stage, it was ineffective.
Kai pressed the attack steadily, not overwhelming but consistent. Liu San defended well, but defending required more energy than attacking. Ten minutes into the match, Liu San's movements began to slow.
Fifteen minutes in, he made a mistake.
Kai's sword slipped through his guard and pressed against his throat.
"Yield."
"I yield."
"Winner: Kai Chen!"
The crowd's applause was muted—everyone was still distracted by Han Feng's collapse. Kai barely acknowledged the victory. His attention was on the medical pavilion, where Han Feng's death mark pulsed urgently.
As he left the arena, Kai made a decision.
Tonight, he would find a way into the medical pavilion. If Han Feng died—and his Death Vision suggested he would—Kai intended to harvest that death energy.
The question was how to get close without raising suspicion from healers, guards, and possibly the elders investigating the sabotage.
But Kai had Shadow Meld, Death Vision, and the growing confidence that came from successfully hiding in plain sight for weeks.
He'd find a way.
Because in the cultivation world, opportunity waited for no one. And a Third Stage disciple's death was too valuable to waste.
---
That evening, Kai waited in his room until the sect quieted.
The tournament had been suspended for the day while investigators examined Han Feng's condition and searched for evidence of sabotage. Disciples were confined to their dormitories except for essential activities.
Perfect cover for Kai's purposes.
At midnight, he activated Shadow Meld and slipped out.
The medical pavilion was well-lit and guarded—two inner disciples at the entrance, formations around the perimeter, and likely a healer or two inside monitoring critical patients.
Kai circled the building using Death Vision to map the interior. He counted six occupied rooms—five with stable life signatures and one with a rapidly fading signature that could only be Han Feng.
The dying disciple was on the second floor, eastern wing. Two healers were working on him, trying desperately to stabilize his collapsing cultivation foundation.
[DEATH MARK ANALYSIS - HAN FENG]
[CONDITION: Critical failure imminent]
[HEALER EFFORTS: Insufficient]
[ESTIMATED TIME UNTIL DEATH: 2-4 hours]
Kai found a shadowed alcove near the eastern wall and waited. He couldn't approach while healers were actively working—too much risk of detection. But eventually, they'd either stabilize Han Feng or give up trying.
Either outcome would provide an opportunity.
Two hours passed. Kai remained perfectly still in the shadows, his Shadow Meld keeping him invisible to the guards' periodic patrols. His cultivation didn't fatigue the way normal disciples' would—shadow energy sustained him differently.
Finally, movement. One healer emerged from the building, speaking to the guards.
"His foundation is too damaged. We've done everything we can, but the meridian collapse is too extensive. He has maybe an hour left."
"Should we inform his family?"
"Elder Zhang already sent word. They're traveling from the outer provinces but won't arrive in time."
The healer returned inside, leaving the guards looking grim.
Han Feng was dying, and everyone knew it.
Kai waited thirty more minutes until the healer left again—this time seemingly for a break. Only one guard remained at the entrance, and the interior was quieter now. They'd stopped active treatment, moving to simple observation of the inevitable.
Time to move.
Kai climbed the eastern wall using handholds that normal disciples would struggle with but shadow-enhanced strength made manageable. A second-floor window was partially open for ventilation.
He slipped inside.
The hallway was empty, dimly lit by formation lights. Kai's Death Vision showed Han Feng's room ahead—the life signature inside flickering like a candle in wind.
He approached carefully, every sense alert for danger.
Inside, Han Feng lay alone on a medical bed. His face was pale, his breathing shallow. The spiritual energy that had made him a tournament favorite was in complete disarray, tearing itself apart from within.
[DEATH IMMINENT: 15-20 minutes]
Kai entered and closed the door silently behind him.
Han Feng's eyes opened slightly, focusing on Kai with difficulty.
"You... Kai Chen..." His voice was barely a whisper. "Come to... witness?"
"This junior came to pay respects, Brother Han. Your cultivation was impressive."
"Was..." Han Feng coughed, blood flecking his lips. "Poisoned... someone... poisoned my pills... weeks ago. Slow-acting... only showed under combat stress..."
So that was it. Sophisticated sabotage using corrupted cultivation pills. No wonder the damage had been invisible until combat triggered the cascade failure.
"Who did it, Brother Han?"
"Don't... know..." Han Feng's eyes were fading. "But... someone wanted me... out of tournament... Inner disciple position... someone else... wanted it..."
Politics. Power struggles. The same game Kai had played in his previous life, just with different rules and much higher stakes.
"This junior is sorry, Brother Han."
"Don't be... just... cultivate properly... don't trust... easily..."
Han Feng's breathing stopped.
[NATURAL DEATH DETECTED]
[HAN FENG: DECEASED]
[ABSORBING DEATH ENERGY...]
The rush of energy was significant. A Third Stage cultivator who'd built his foundation through years of proper cultivation—all that accumulated power flowing into Kai in one massive surge.
[DEATH ENERGY ABSORBED: 145 points]
[DEATH POINTS GAINED: 120]
[TOTAL DEATH POINTS: 1,696]
Kai felt his cultivation base expand, absorbing and integrating the death energy. His shadow cultivation refined it, converting Han Feng's celestial qi into shadow energy without waste.
[SHADOW CULTIVATION PROGRESS]
[ADVANCEMENT TO QI GATHERING THIRD STAGE: 47% complete]
One death had provided nearly half the energy needed for his next advancement. This was why killing strong cultivators was so much more efficient than harvesting natural deaths.
But Kai had a problem.
He was standing in a room with a fresh corpse, and the healers would check on Han Feng within minutes. Being discovered here would raise questions he couldn't answer.
He activated Shadow Meld and slipped back toward the window. As he climbed out, he heard footsteps approaching down the hall—a healer coming to check on the patient.
Kai descended the wall and melted into the shadows surrounding the medical pavilion. By the time the healer discovered Han Feng's body and raised the alarm, Kai was halfway back to the dormitories.
[DEATH HARVEST: SUCCESSFUL]
[DETECTION: None]
[COVER: Maintained]
Back in his room, Kai lay on his bed and processed what he'd learned.
Someone within the sect was sabotaging disciples to manipulate tournament outcomes and inner disciple positions. Sophisticated enough to use slow-acting poison, connected enough to access cultivation pills, ambitious enough to kill for advancement.
The same kind of predator Zhao Ming had been, but smarter and more careful.
In his previous life, Kai would have reported this to authorities and let the system handle it. But in the cultivation world, the system itself was often the problem. Elder Zhang would investigate, but without proof, the saboteur would remain hidden.
Which meant more disciples would likely die before the culprit was caught.
More death energy for Kai to harvest.
He should feel disturbed by that thought. A month ago, he would have been horrified at his own pragmatism.
Now, he just accepted it as reality.
The cultivation world was harsh. People died. He couldn't save them all, couldn't solve every problem.
But he could grow stronger from their deaths. And eventually, that strength would let him reshape the rules themselves.
[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION]
[TOURNAMENT STATUS: Suspended pending investigation]
[ESTIMATED RESUMPTION: 2-3 days]
[NEW OBJECTIVE AVAILABLE]
[IDENTIFY SABOTEUR: Reward 500 Death Points]
[OPTIONAL OBJECTIVE: Mission can be declined]
Kai stared at the notification with interest.
The system was offering a bonus for identifying the saboteur. Which meant finding them would provide not just death energy, but additional rewards.
And if the saboteur was skilled enough to poison Han Feng without detection, they were probably dangerous enough to justify elimination.
Another justified target. Another source of power.
Kai smiled in the darkness.
The tournament had just become much more interesting.