When Ren's consciousness rose from the snowfield of his Spiritual Sea, the last echo of grandmist and blood-light lotus petals faded like a receding tide.
Cold aurora dimmed.
The vast lotus of darkness that had opened there—the fragment of a Heaven that could peel apart Laws and strip worlds back to chaos—closed its petals, sinking deeper into his soul.
Ren's eyelashes trembled.
His eyes opened, and he teleported back towards the Sky Spill Planet, his Spirit Sense focusing on the Martial House.
Inside, he could already sense them.
Five familiar flames, five rhythms he recognized more intimately than his own heartbeat—because he had tempered each one himself.
Na Yi's steady mountain-fire: slow, heavy, every punch seeking deeper into bone and marrow.
Na Shui's springlike warmth: lively, always on the cusp of boiling over into playful chaos.
Murong Zi's spear-sharp blaze: a sun that preferred to pierce rather than burn, fiery intent honed into a piercing edge.
Bai Jingyun's restrained sword-flame: compressed to the extreme, every wisp of Fire essence folded tight until it was almost invisible.
Qin Xingxuan's focused spear-sun: true essence wrapped around a spear's will, Fire, Wind, and Thunder coiling like dragons around a single point.
Each of those flames circulated seriously in the courtyard, their meridians running along patterns he had opened for them himself. Their auras brushed against his perception like familiar fingerprints.
Ren's lips curved.
"Good place to land," he murmured.
Space folded.
...
The Martial House courtyard Ren had more or less claimed as his own was wrapped in early light.
Sunlight spilled over the white stone platforms, warming the formations he had inscribed beneath them. The air was thick with Fire-attribute origin energy that had been subtly guided here by his arrays—thin crimson lines that ran along the courtyard's edge, drawing in ambient heat and refining it before letting it sink into the training grounds.
Trees ringed the courtyard, leaves rustling softly. Embers clung to them like dew—tiny red-gold motes of Fire Law that occasionally sank into the trunks, leaving faint rune patterns behind.
On the central platform, Murong Zi moved.
Her spear was like a streak of red lightning in her hands.
A faint red-gold rune-wheel turned behind her back—her Fire Martial Intent, the manifestation he'd forced her to face and refine again and again. Each thrust of the spear left a thin scar of compressed heat in the air, a line where the world's temperature jumped in an instant. Those lines didn't fade immediately; they hung for a few breaths, distorted air shimmering as if unwilling to forget her strikes.
Off to the side, Bai Jingyun stood very still.
Her sword remained sheathed.
Yet the calm around her rippled with invisible edges. A dim, red-gold rune-wheel also turned behind her, but unlike Murong Zi's blazing sun, Jingyun's wheel compressed its light to the limit. Every spark within that field had been forced to burn quietly, efficiently, without waste. Fire true essence wrapped her meridians, each thread honed thin as a sword edge.
She took a slow breath. The tip of her sheath shifted a fraction.
A hairline crack ran down a stone tile three steps away, so thin that ordinary eyes would have missed it.
Na Yi and Na Shui circled the courtyard in bare arms and simple clothes, fists rising and falling with a slow, heavy rhythm.
They weren't pretty to watch.
There was no flare of Martial Intent, no spear flowers, no shimmering sword light—only fists, elbows, shoulders, and backs. Every punch crashed into the air with a dull, thick sound..
The air around them vibrated faintly with remembered force, as if the courtyard itself was recording their growth.
On the highest stone at the back of the courtyard, Qin Xingxuan sat cross-legged.
Her spear lay horizontally across her knees, its shaft wrapped in cloth to prevent its cold gleam from disrupting the others. Pulse Condensation true essence circulated through the meridians he had opened, her dantian shining with the faint phantom of a small vortex.
At its core, an Azure True Dragon Infinity Seed pulsed quietly.
Around it, Fire, Wind, and Thunder Seeds flickered like tiny nodes of light, each breathing with her. Their presence made her true essence circulate faster, more eagerly. Her cultivation was only at Pulse Condensation on paper, but the density of her true essence, the sharpness of her aura… any ordinary elder would doubt their own eyes.
All five of them were focused.
All five of them paused in the same instant.
Space rippled above the courtyard. A dark-rainbow shadow flickered there, grandmist compressing the air for a breath. For that one heartbeat, fire origin energy in the courtyard bowed, as if recognizing something older than itself.
Ren stepped out of the fold as if he'd just walked through a doorway.
"...Ren!"
Na Shui's voice was first—bright, bubbling, impossible to miss.
Her whole face lit up, eyes curving. Before anyone else could react, she had already darted forward, bare feet skimming off the stone. The force of her movement kicked up little eddies of Fire essence in her wake, her body unconsciously weaving through the courtyard's formations as if she'd lived in them for a hundred years.
She flung herself at him.
Ren opened an arm without thinking.
Na Shui crashed into his chest—but the momentum that should have knocked them both back simply sank away. His body accepted the impact like a lake receiving a thrown stone—ripples inside, not a splash outside. One hand slid up to cradle the back of her head, fingers threading through silky hair damp with sweat.
"You're back," she said, voice muffled against him.
"Mhm." Ren's tone was lazy, warm. "Miss me that much in just a couple of days?"
Na Shui leaned back enough to glare up at him, cheeks already pink.
"It wasn't just a couple of days, it was—"
Her complaint cut off.
His hand slid down to the small of her back, fingers tracing the line of muscles he'd tempered himself. He leaned in, brushing his lips against hers.
She froze for half a heartbeat.
Then melted.
Ren didn't rush.
His kiss was deep, unhurried, steady warmth unfolding in layers. The Fire true essence in Na Shui's body surged unconsciously, meridians humming as if they'd been thrown into a furnace. Her knees weakened, toes curling against the warm stone.
When he finally let her breathe again, Na Shui's eyes were faintly glazed, lips parted, lashes trembling.
"...Welcome back," she whispered.
"Mm. That's better," he said, as if greeting her this way was the most natural thing in the world.
Murong Zi had long since lowered her spear.
She stood with one hand on her hip, spear shaft resting against her shoulder. Her expression was caught somewhere between exasperation and amusement, ponytail swaying with the faint wind stirred by the formations.
"You just casually appear and start doing that in the courtyard," she muttered. "Can you at least pretend to be a serious senior brother for a few breaths?"
Ren looked over, still holding Na Shui lazily against his side.
"Zi," he drawled, "you're the one who likes it when I'm not serious."
Her eyes narrowed.
"Who said—"
He didn't give her the chance to finish.
His free hand reached out, catching her wrist with a light tug. The spear shifted as she stumbled half a step forward, balance tilting.
Before Murong Zi could raise her chin and spit something sharp, his mouth was already on hers.
For an instant, the courtyard's heat surged.
Murong Zi's eyes widened, pupils shaking. Then, slowly, she sank into it. Her fingers tightened around her spear, knuckles whitening, the Fire Martial Intent rune-wheel behind her spinning faster in response to her heartbeat.
He tasted the faint metallic tang of her practice, the hint of blood and fire that clung to a spearwoman who had hammered her body against limits day after day.
When he let her go, Murong Zi's breath was a shade rougher.
She coughed once, sharply, turning her head away. Her ears were red all the way to the tips.
"...You never change," she muttered.
Ren's smile deepened. "You say that like it's a bad thing."
Na Yi had stopped her fist mid-strike.
Her arm remained extended, fist half-closed, veins standing out faintly along her forearm. She watched him with those steady eyes of hers, the gaze like a mountain measuring the weight of a newcomer storm. Her lips curved almost imperceptibly.
"You're back," she said. It wasn't a question.
Ren set Na Shui gently down, fingertips brushing along her waist in a way that made her shiver despite the heat. Then he crossed the distance to Na Yi with easy steps.
He didn't make a show of it.
He simply reached out, fingers brushing along her jaw, callused thumb tracing the line of bone, before tilting her face slightly up.
Na Yi's composure wavered by a fraction.
He kissed her—slower, deeper than before, as if pouring a promise straight into her Dao Heart.
Her true essence, always so controlled, flowed a little faster along her meridians. The Azure True Dragon Infinity Seed at her core throbbed, Fire and Earth Laws stirring in response. Her bones hummed; the "Dao Fruits" carved into them by Chaotic Virtues training lit up briefly, as if acknowledging his presence.
When he drew back, Na Yi's gaze had softened, that faint warmth at the bottom of her eyes brightening.
"Welcome home," she said quietly.
"Mn."
Bai Jingyun stood very straight, hands folded before her, fingers interlaced so tightly that her knuckles were white.
She was trying with all her might to pretend she wasn't anticipating anything at all.
Ren walked to her last, letting her watch each step.
By the time he stopped in front of her, Bai Jingyun's lashes were trembling.
"You worked hard while I was gone," Ren said softly.
"…It was nothing," she replied, voice barely above a whisper.
He smiled.
Without asking, he slipped an arm around her slender waist, drawing her closer until their foreheads almost touched. Jingyun's breath caught; he could feel the heat of her cheeks even from that small distance.
Then he kissed her.
If Na Shui's kiss had been playful warmth, and Na Yi's a steady, anchoring depth, then Bai Jingyun's was something in between—soft and careful, like a flower opening after a long winter. She clutched his robe with both hands, her usually restrained Fire rune-wheel flaring behind her, compressing every wisp of flame within its field until they glowed white-hot.
The aura around them subtly shifted; excess heat that should have dispersed was compressed, folded, and pulled back into her dantian. Her Fire Seed stirred, its pattern clarifying just a little more.
When they parted, Bai Jingyun's cheeks were flushed crimson.
She tried to step back, but his hand stayed on her waist, thumb rubbing small circles that unraveled the stiffness in her spine.
"Jingyun," he said, amusement rippling in his tone, "if you keep staring at the ground like that, the stone will start thinking you like it more than me."
Her eyes flashed up, a mix of embarrassment and indignation.
"…You speak nonsense," she said.
"Mm. Sounds like you're used to it already."
He finally let her go.
Only one figure had remained utterly still through all of this.
Qin Xingxuan had risen from her stone, spear now held in one hand. Her posture was as straight as the weapon she favored, the line of her shoulders clean and firm. Her gaze followed him as he moved—calm, clear—but the fingers around her spear shaft were faintly tense, subtle tremors betraying her heart.
Ren's steps slowed as he approached her.
The others watched quietly now, the earlier teasing heat of the courtyard settling into a deeper warmth.
"Xingxuan," he said.
Her throat worked once.
"…You returned."
"I did." He stopped just in front of her, gaze sweeping over her from head to toe—but not in a way that made her shrink. He examined the faint ripples in her aura, the flow of Pulse Condensation true essence through her opened meridians, the steady beat of the Azure True Dragon Infinity Seed in her dantian, the clear firmness of the spear Seeds clustered around it.
He smiled.
"Pulse Condensation really does suit you," he said. "You look even better with it."
A faint light flickered in her eyes.
Before she could respond, he set a hand on the slender curve of her waist and tugged her gently toward him.
Qin Xingxuan's breath hitched.
Ren lowered his head.
The kiss he gave her wasn't tentative. It was unhurried but firm, a pressure that made her heart stagger and then steady. The Fire, Wind, and Thunder Seeds in her dantian roared quietly, true essence rushing faster, almost as if it wanted to jump straight into the next realm. Her spear intent, usually so focused on distant horizons and unyielding peaks, folded inward, circling around his presence.
When he finally let her go, Qin Xingxuan's clear eyes were faintly stunned—as if a spear that had always pointed toward the farthest boundary of the world had, for a moment, turned to look at the person standing beside it.
"…Welcome back," she said softly.
Ren smiled.
"I like this greeting format," he murmured. "We should keep it."
Murong Zi coughed exaggeratedly, spear butt tapping the stone with a sharp crack.
"If you're done corrupting the courtyard's atmosphere," she said, "you might want to hear this."
Na Yi cleared her throat lightly.
"Ren," she said, her tone returning to its usual calm, "while you were… away, Divine Phoenix Island sent a jade slip."
Ren's brows rose a fraction.
"Oh?"
Na Yi lifted her hand.
A crimson jade slip floated up from her sleeve, engraved with a delicate Vermillion Bird pattern. The aura around it was unmistakable—noble and proud, tinged with a pure, burning flame that carried a hint of bloodline pressure.
"They say," Na Yi continued, "that they wish to formally set the meeting between you and their island master. They propose… 'very soon.'"
Na Shui leaned forward, eyes sparkling.
"The phoenix aunties finally can't sit still," she laughed. "They must really have been shaken by you."
Bai Jingyun's expression grew more solemn.
"Divine Phoenix Island…" she murmured. "A fourth-grade sect. The pillar of the South Horizon Region."
Murong Zi tilted her head, ponytail swaying.
"So," she said, "are you going to make them wait and sweat for a few more days? Or—"
Ren reached out, plucked the jade slip out of the air, and rolled it casually between his fingers.
Phoenix aura stirred uneasily under his touch, like a proud bird realizing that the hand holding it belonged to a predator from a higher sky.
"No need," he said, tone light. "Since they're eager, we'll go now."
All four girls blinked.
"…Now?" Qin Xingxuan repeated, startled. "Without preparing—"
Ren's gaze slid back to her, eyes amused.
"Xingxuan," he said, "your foundation alone could crush the so-called 'preparations' of most sects. And as for me…"
He shrugged, the motion lazy, almost careless.
"If they want to talk, we'll talk. If they want to test, we'll let them test. Saves me time later."
Murong Zi whistled low under her breath.
"That's one way to visit a fourth-grade sect," she muttered. "Just walk up to their gate and knock with your face."
Na Shui puffed her cheeks out, shifting her weight from one foot to the other.
"Are you going to bring all of us?" she asked hopefully, eyes shining.
Ren looked over the five of them, letting his gaze move slowly—Na Shui's bright expectation, Murong Zi's fighting spirit, Bai Jingyun's restrained longing, Na Yi's quiet intent, Qin Xingxuan's steady spear will.
He considered for a breath.
Then he smiled and reached out, fingers brushing lightly along Qin Xingxuan's wrist.
"I'll bring Xingxuan this time," he said. "Let Phoenix Island see one of my girls properly."
Qin Xingxuan's heartbeat jumped.
"Me?" she said, almost disbelieving.
"You've already stepped into Pulse Condensation," Ren said. "You've tempered your Fire Martial Intent and Heaven-Piercing Elemental Canon to Small Success. Your aura's not worse than their chosen disciples in the slightest. It'd be a waste not to show you off a little."
Qin Xingxuan's fingers tightened around her spear shaft.
A faint, rare smile touched her lips. The spear in her heart, always aimed at distant peaks, leaned slightly closer to the man standing before her.
"…En," she said. "I will not embarrass you."
"Relax," Ren chuckled. "If anyone gets embarrassed, it'll be them."
To the side, Na Shui's cheeks puffed even more.
"Unfair," she complained. "Just Xingxuan gets to go…"
Murong Zi snorted.
"You're just jealous she gets to walk into a fourth-grade sect hanging off his arm first."
Bai Jingyun looked away, but the faint, complicated emotion in her eyes—the mix of admiration, envy, hope—was impossible to hide.
Na Yi simply watched Ren, calm but intent, as if weighing this move of his against all the other pieces on the board.
Ren's smile took on a shade more wickedness.
"Alright," he said. "Then let's make it interesting."
He stepped closer, extending a hand. Fingers brushed along Na Shui's cheek, then traced the line of Murong Zi's chin, then slid over Bai Jingyun's shoulder, then down the fabric of Na Yi's sleeve.
His gaze swept over them, warm and sure.
"If you four can step into Pulse Condensation," he said calmly, "I'll give each of you an entire day, no matter what. I've already promised to spend days with each of you, but this way, you can claim it whenever you want."
They froze.
"A… day?" Na Shui echoed. "What kind of day?"
"The lazy kind," Ren said, voice dropping slightly, every word carrying a teasing drawl. "Doesn't matter when. We'll stay in the courtyard. No elders, no sect politics, no Acacia rats, no phoenix aunties. Just us. You can do whatever you want. Cultivate, nap… or drag me around however you like."
Murong Zi's eyes narrowed, then sparkled.
"You said it yourself," she said. "Don't go back on it later."
Bai Jingyun's gaze grew bright, a shy, luminous hope flickering to life in her chest.
Na Yi's lips curved faintly.
"We'll remember," she said. "You can't escape."
Ren laughed, low and pleased.
"Good," he said. "Then hurry up and catch Xingxuan."
He didn't waste more words.
After stealing another kiss from each of them—Na Shui's lips, Murong Zi's smirk silenced mid-retort, Bai Jingyun's lowered lashes, Na Yi's steady gaze that warmed at the corners—he turned back to Qin Xingxuan.
"Come," he said.
He slipped an arm around her waist.
The world folded.
...
The endless sea roared beneath them.
Divine Phoenix Island rose from those waters like a flame-shaped mountain, its peaks piercing the sky. Veils of Vermillion Bird fire wrapped its cliffs, crimson clouds circling overhead. Occasionally, a phoenix cry echoed, sharp and clear, vibrating through heaven and earth.
Within the island's great formations, the world's origin energy had been refined into something overwhelmingly Fire-attribute. Every breath carried the scent of scorched air and purified flame. Even from afar, Ren could sense the massive gathering arrays buried under the sea—pillars of fire and lava reaching up from the earth's veins, feeding the island's foundations.
At the front of the island, at the foot of the great stair that climbed through layer after layer of protective arrays, several young women in red robes stood on duty.
Their Vermillion Bird true essence flowed steadily; even the weakest among them had already stepped into the Houtian realm. Behind one senior disciple, a faint phoenix phantom hovered, eyes closed, feathers occasionally ruffling as if napping. Their post was not glamorous, but for an outer disciple of Divine Phoenix Island to stand at the main gate was a matter of pride.
They were chatting quietly—about internal competitions, elders' lectures, and the rumors that had swept through the South Horizon Region like a storm.
"…They say he forced all of Seven Profound Valleys' Sovereigns to kneel," one whispered. "That a Xiantian youth gave them only four months to prepare…"
"That kind of thing…" another began, shivering despite the heat. "It sounds like the exaggerated legends in story scrolls…"
Space distorted in front of them.
Not loud.
Not with thunder or blinding light.
A dark-rainbow lotus shadow flickered in the air—too fast to truly see, more like a brief misalignment in reality where the world remembered a time before its current laws. Then the distortion vanished.
A man and a woman stood where there had been only empty air.
The Vermillion Bird disciples jumped as if struck by lightning.
"You—who…?!"
Their true essence surged. Flame patterns raced along the stone under their feet, tracing the first edge of the island's large defensive arrays. The phoenix phantom behind the senior disciple snapped its eyes open, feathers flaring, its cry rising in its throat—
Ren lifted a hand, palm outward.
He didn't release true essence.
He simply let the dark lotus in his soul stir, a thread of that Heaven's presence brushing the flames.
The fire lines in the stone calmed as if soothed by the gesture. The phoenix phantom's cry died in its beak; its feathers smoothed down, eyes blinking once in confusion. An instinct planted deep in its bloodline told it that something higher on the food chain of flame had just entered the field.
"Easy," Ren said, voice mild. "No need to panic. If I wanted to break through your gate formations, I wouldn't bother appearing right in front of you."
His gaze swept over them.
He noted the disciplined way they suppressed their fear, the burn scars on one girl's hand where she'd clearly overtrained, the pride in their postures, backs straight like drawn bows.
"I'm Ren Ming," he continued, smiling. "I came to talk. Can you let your seniors know I'm here?"
The name dropped into their ears like thunder.
"…Ren… Ren Ming?"
The senior disciple's eyes widened.
She'd recalled everything she heard of—Acacia Peak collapsing, Sovereigns kneeling in front of a youth who stood with hands behind his back, a lazy smile on his face as he gave a time limit that made elders' Martial Hearts tremble.
Her throat tightened.
"Young Hero Ren," she stammered, instinctively shifting to a respectful address. "P-please forgive this disciple's offense. This humble one will immediately notify the elders!"
Ren's smile deepened.
"Mn. Go ahead. Tell them I brought a guest, too."
He gestured lightly toward Qin Xingxuan.
The disciples' gazes finally focused on the woman beside him.
They might not have been able to see the Azure True Dragon Infinity Seed, but they felt its echo. Qin Xingxuan's cultivation was "only" Pulse Condensation, yet the true essence flowing through her channels was dense, pure, and frighteningly stable. Her aura pressed on them, not with brute force, but with the pressure of a spear that had chosen a path and refused to bend.
"Th-this…" one whispered. "Is she also from the Seven Profound Martial House…?"
Qin Xingxuan inclined her head slightly, expression calm, back straight.
Her heart, however, beat a fraction faster.
Standing here, before the gate of a fourth-grade sect that took Revolving Core masters as elders, her own path felt simultaneously small and immense. Small, compared to their heritage. Immense, compared to where she had started in a tiny remote city.
The senior disciple hurriedly pulled out a jade slip, pouring true essence into it.
A moment later, a streak of crimson light shot up the stairway, disappearing into the depths of the island.
Ren stood with one hand resting lightly on Qin Xingxuan's waist, as if the Divine Phoenix Island's front gate was just another training field in the Martial House.
"Relax," he said quietly to her, voice brushing her ear.
"Their formations are good. Their fire is proud. But there's nothing here that can bite you."
Qin Xingxuan's lips curved, just a little.
"…I know," she said. "As long as you are here."
He chuckled.
"Careful. Talk like that will make me arrogant."
"You already are," she answered.
He laughed outright.
The gate disciples glanced at each other, expressions subtly shifting.
They had expected an arrogant youth, eyes higher than the heavens.
They hadn't expected this.
A man who spoke casually, almost lazily, whose words carried warmth when he looked at the woman by his side, but whose presence made their phoenix flames want to kneel.
...
Within Divine Phoenix Island.
Crimson light shot along corridors, Vermillion Bird jade slips vibrating in elders' sleeves as the message propagated layer by layer—from the outer island formations to Vermillion Bird Faction, from Vermillion Bird Faction to the central core hall.
"Island Master, Matriarch—Ren Ming has arrived at the front gate with a companion!"
The sentence echoed along jade, through stone, across carefully woven arrays.
In a grand chamber carved entirely from crimson jade, Mu Yuhuang slowly opened her eyes.
Her long hair spilled down over vermillion robes embroidered with phoenix patterns that seemed to breathe. As Island Master and Vermillion Bird Faction leader, her cultivation had long since reached Extreme Revolving Core; the heat simmering beneath her skin was like a blazing sun compressed to the size of a mortal body.
Today, there was a fine, almost imperceptible line between her brows.
In front of her, Mu Fengxian sat on an elevated seat.
The High Ancestor of Divine Phoenix Island seemed as frail as withered wood: white hair hanging loose, skin thin, eyes cloudy with age. Yet every elder in the hall knew that a single careless word of hers could decide their life and death. Her cultivation was at the first stage of Life Destruction; the power of a lifetime rested quietly in those old hands.
A phoenix shadow coiled lazily around her, its body half illusion and half compressed flame, as if it were part of the stone itself.
A few steps to the side stood Mu Chihuo, his robust figure looming. Vermillion Bird flames licked at his shoulders, always half a step from bursting out. Beside him stood Mu Qingyi, Mu Yanzhuo, Yan Yusheng, and other elders and protectors, each aura like a pillar of heat.
The hall had been filled with serious conversation.
Acacia Peak's destruction.
Seven Profound Valleys' humiliation.
The projection that had swept across the Great Zhen Mountain, showing a youth forcing a Revolving Core ancestor to kneel and Extreme Xiantians to kneel one after another, then giving them a deadline in a tone as casual as if he were setting a dinner appointment.
They had discussed whether this youth was reckless or calculated; whether he was heaven-blessed or calamity-born; whether Divine Phoenix Island should befriend him, suppress him, or simply observe.
Now, every gaze turned toward the messenger disciple kneeling at the threshold.
"…Ren Ming?" Mu Chihuo repeated, frowning. "He dares to come here so quickly?"
Mu Yuhuang's fingers tightened slightly on her armrest.
She took a slow breath, smoothing her expression.
"He is bold," she said mildly. "But that much, we already knew."
Mu Fengxian's thin lips curved in the faintest smile.
"The young do as they please," she said, voice hoarse but amused. "If he did not come, I would start to suspect those reports were exaggerated."
Her cloudy gaze sharpened like a blade.
"Prepare the council hall," she said. "We will receive this guest properly. Chihuo, Yuhuang, Qingyi—Great Elders and protectors are to be present."
She paused, eyes sliding sideways from Mu Yuhuang to a quieter corner of the hall where a smaller jade slip lay dormant.
"And tell Qianyu to come as well."
A few elders exchanged glances.
Mu Yuhuang lowered her eyes for a moment, hiding the ripple in them.
"Yes, Ancestor," she said.
...
On another part of the island, in a cultivation chamber wrapped in crimson arrays, Mu Qianyu sat cross-legged.
A Vermillion Bird phantom hovered behind her, wings spread. Its feathers were tinged with faint violet—traces of Purple Flood Dragon Divine Thunder Ren had helped her refine into her phoenix fire not long ago. Revolving Core true essence burned steadily in her dantian, fire swirling around it with refined, thunder-tempered ferocity.
The jade slip by her side flared to life.
"Ren Ming… has arrived," the message whispered into her mind.
Mu Qianyu's fingers tightened slightly on her knees.
She tried to calm her breath, to maintain the serene dignity of Divine Phoenix Island's Saintess. But a small, traitorous thrill ran through her chest, hotter than her phoenix flame.
"That man," she murmured, unable to stop herself, "really doesn't let people rest with peace of mind…"
She stood.
Red robes swirled around her as she stepped out of the cultivation chamber. The phoenix phantom behind her cried once, then folded itself into her body, its presence fusing seamlessly with her aura.
As she moved through the corridors, disciples bowed one after another.
"Saintess."
"Senior Sister Qianyu."
She acknowledged them with small nods, but her thoughts were already climbing ahead of her—up the crimson stair, to the gate where a certain Xiantian youth would be standing as if the entire island were his backyard.
...
Ren and Qin Xingxuan followed two senior disciples up the crimson stair.
The stairs were wide, carved from stone that had absorbed centuries of phoenix flame. On either side, phoenix totems carved into pillars flared one by one as they passed, recognizing Ren's presence and analyzing his aura with their ancient arrays.
What they sensed made them… hesitate.
From the surface, what they tasted was a young man's Xiantian aura—thin, almost casual, as if he hadn't even bothered to condense it fully. According to the rules of the world, this was a realm beneath Revolving Core, far below the level at which Divine Phoenix Island would normally even bat an eye.
But beneath that thin skin of pre-natal true essence, there was something that didn't fit into any grade their arrays understood.
Qin Xingxuan's presence beside him drew its own share of attention.
The way her Pulse Condensation true essence circulated would have made any core disciple of Divine Phoenix Island feel ashamed. There were no wasted loops, no uneven flows. Her Azure True Dragon Infinity Seed adjusted instantly to the Fire-attribute environment, drawing in that flame and blending it with her own Laws without clashing.
Whispers followed them through the corridors, carried on the heat hazes rising from the stone.
"That's him…"
"He looks… ordinary?"
"Don't be stupid. Do you think someone who can suppress Extreme Xiantian Sovereigns would look like a demon beast all the time?"
"And the girl with him…"
"She's only Pulse Condensation, but her true essence… what kind of cultivation method is that?"
They reached the council hall doors.
A female protector in formal vermillion armor stepped forward and bowed, hand over her heart.
"Young Hero Ren," she said, voice steady despite the weight pressing against her soul, "our Island Master, Matriarch, Great Elders, and Saintess are waiting inside."
Ren smiled.
"Then let's not keep them waiting."
He glanced at Qin Xingxuan.
Her fingers tightened once around her spear. Then she let out a slow breath and loosened her grip, her spear intent withdrawing into her heart.
He squeezed her waist lightly, a silent reassurance.
The heavy doors swung open.