Li Xuan didn't move for a long time.
His room felt smaller than usual, the shadows on the walls seemed to stretch longer… and every sound outside felt louder.
Zhao Ren's final words echoed in his mind:
"I hope you survive the night."
Li Xuan sat still, breathing slowly.
What does that mean?What did Zhao Ren plan?And why tonight?
His eyes quietly traced the edges of the door.
—Stay alert, the Grand Immortal warned. This is not the time to panic. Fear makes you blind. Calm makes you dangerous.
Li Xuan nodded slightly.
He didn't know what Zhao Ren intended. But it was clear that simply hiding wasn't safe.
He slowly stood up and walked toward the small window. The wooden frame was warped, and the glass was cracked, but through it, he saw the silhouettes of buildings outside.
The sect was dark.
Lanterns flickered faintly along the main path, but the area near the outer dorms was nearly pitch black. Occasionally, footsteps echoed somewhere far.
He listened.
Wind.Crickets.The faint dripping of water from a roof.
Nothing unusual yet.
Then he heard it.
A faint metal sound, like a chain brushing against stone.
Li Xuan stiffened.
Something — or someone — was nearby.
He stepped back from the window. His heart beat faster, but he forced his breathing to stay slow.
—Do not get close to the window, the Immortal murmured. Someone may be watching from outside.
Li Xuan moved toward his bed.
He couldn't sleep.He couldn't rest.
He had to be ready.
He quietly reached under the floorboard beneath his bed, sliding out a thin wooden stick — the broken handle of an old broom. It wasn't a weapon, but it was something to hold.
Tonight… I might need it.
He sat by the bed with his back to the wall, the stick resting across his knees.
Minutes passed.
Ten.Twenty.
Each moment felt like a step deeper into darkness.
Then—
Tap.Tap.Tap.
Three soft knocks on his door.
Not Zhao Ren's voice this time.Different. Lighter. Calm.
"Li Xuan?"
Li Xuan's breath stopped.
It was Yan Ling.
"Li Xuan… are you awake?"
She spoke softly, not loudly enough for others to hear.But why was she here?
Li Xuan hesitated for a moment.
He didn't open the door. "Why… did you come?"
Yan Ling paused.Her voice when she spoke again was even softer.
"There are people moving outside your building. You shouldn't stay alone."
Li Xuan felt a chill run down his spine.
"What do you mean?" he whispered through the door.
Yan Ling leaned in; her voice lowered.
"I heard from one of the kitchen workers. Elder Qiu sent someone to 'investigate' the outer dorms tonight."
Li Xuan's blood turned cold.
"Investigate…?"
Yan Ling's answer was blunt.
"Someone reported unusual activity near the east hall. Someone described a boy who moved too well to be trash."
Li Xuan's fingers tightened on the stick.
Zhao Ren.Chen Mu.Hou Shan.One of them ran to Elder Qiu.
And Elder Qiu — already suspicious — took action immediately.
"Li Xuan," Yan Ling whispered urgently, "if Elder Qiu finds you awake, training, or showing any Qi reaction… he will accuse you of breaking sect rules."
Li Xuan frowned. "Breaking rules? For what?"
"For hiding talent," she said. "For deceiving elders. For cultivating without permission. For anything he can twist against you."
The Twilight Ember Sect didn't need real crimes.They only needed excuses.
Li Xuan exhaled slowly.
"What should I do?"
Yan Ling hesitated for the first time. "I can help you hide. But you must leave your room. Now."
Li Xuan felt warmth rise inside him — not Qi, but a strange feeling he hadn't felt in years.
Someone was trying to help him genuinely.
But before he could respond—
A deep, cold voice echoed outside the hallway.
"Check every room."
Li Xuan froze.
Yan Ling's voice sharpened."That's Elder Qiu's personal guard. If they see you awake, they'll drag you to the Discipline Hall."
Li Xuan's heartbeat quickened. "How many of them?"
"Four," Yan Ling whispered. "And one of them can sense Qi."
Li Xuan clenched his jaw.
He had only the smallest amount of Qi flowing inside him. Barely anything. But if a trained cultivator felt even a hint of it…
He would be caught.
—Li Xuan, the Immortal said quietly, if they take you tonight, you will not return.
Li Xuan's breath tightened.
Yan Ling's voice trembled gently, "Open the door. Quickly. I'll take you somewhere safe."
But Li Xuan hesitated.
Could he trust her?He barely knew her.She knew too much.She appeared too suddenly.
—Go with her, the Immortal said suddenly.
Li Xuan blinked inside his mind. "You… trust her?"
—No, the Immortal answered coldly. But she is the best path for survival tonight. Choose the lesser danger.
Li Xuan didn't waste another second.
He stood up, grabbed the stick, and quietly opened the door.
Yan Ling grabbed his wrist immediately.
Her hand was cold.
"Follow me," she whispered.
Without another word, she pulled him into the darkness.
At the same time, footsteps thundered down the hallway, and Elder Qiu's guard reached his room door.
If Li Xuan had stayed one second longer…
He would have been caught.