The village exploded before dawn.
By the time the sun rose above the mountains, news had already spread like wildfire.
Elder Huang—defeated.
Zhao Ming—crippled.
And the one responsible…
Lin Tian.
Whispers followed every step Lin Tian took as he walked back into the village. Doors closed quietly. Eyes peeked from behind wooden walls. Fear mixed with disbelief.
"That's him…"
"The trash who beat Elder Huang…"
"No, impossible… I saw him grow up."
Lin Tian ignored them all.
He walked straight to the small, broken house at the edge of the village.
His home.
The wooden door creaked as he pushed it open.
"Brother?"
A soft, anxious voice called out.
Lin Tian looked up.
A young girl rushed toward him, her face pale, eyes filled with worry. Her clothes were old but clean, patched carefully in several places.
His little sister.
Lin Yue.
"You're hurt!" she cried when she saw the dried blood on his sleeve.
"I'm fine," Lin Tian said gently, placing a hand on her head. "It's not mine."
Before she could ask more—
"Lin Tian!"
A hoarse voice came from inside.
An old man stepped out slowly, leaning on a worn wooden cane. His back was slightly bent, his face lined with age and hardship.
Lin Tian's father.
Lin Qingshan.
He looked at Lin Tian carefully, his eyes sharp despite his age.
"You fought," he said quietly.
It wasn't a question.
Lin Tian nodded.
"Yes."
Lin Qingshan closed his eyes briefly and exhaled.
"I heard," he said. "Elder Huang… and Zhao Ming."
Lin Yue's eyes widened. "Brother… is it true?"
Lin Tian crouched down to her level.
"Yes," he said calmly. "They won't bully us anymore."
Lin Yue froze.
Then tears welled up in her eyes.
"I was so scared," she whispered. "They said you would die…"
Lin Tian pulled her into a gentle embrace.
"I won't," he said softly. "Not for them."
Lin Qingshan watched quietly.
There was no anger in his eyes.
Only worry.
And pride he tried to hide.
"You crossed a line today," Lin Qingshan said after a moment. "This village… it won't protect you anymore."
"I know," Lin Tian replied.
Silence fell between them.
Then Lin Tian straightened.
"I'm leaving," he said.
Lin Yue looked up sharply. "Leaving?"
Lin Qingshan's grip tightened on his cane.
"Where?" he asked.
"Beyond the mountains," Lin Tian replied. "This place is too small."
He met his father's gaze directly.
"If I stay, I'll only bring disaster here. The sects won't ignore what happened."
Lin Qingshan was quiet for a long time.
Finally, he nodded.
"I expected this day," he said slowly. "I just didn't think it would come so soon."
He turned and walked back inside, returning moments later with a small cloth bundle.
He placed it in Lin Tian's hands.
"There's not much," he said. "Some dried food. A few spirit coins I saved over the years."
Lin Tian's fingers tightened.
"You need it more than me," he said.
Lin Qingshan shook his head.
"A man's duty is to prepare his son for the road," he said. "Not to chain him at home."
Lin Yue hugged Lin Tian tightly.
"Come back strong," she said through tears. "So no one can ever look down on us again."
Lin Tian smiled faintly.
"I will."
---
He left before noon.
No grand farewell.
No escort.
Just a single figure walking toward the mountains.
Behind him, the village slowly disappeared.
As Lin Tian moved deeper into the wilds, he felt it clearly.
His cultivation was stabilizing.
Blood Refinement pulsed steadily, his body adapting rapidly. Each breath strengthened his muscles, bones, and senses.
"This world rewards those who move forward," he murmured.
By nightfall, he reached a cliff overlooking a vast expanse of land.
Fires flickered in the distance.
Cities.
Sects.
A larger world.
Lin Tian sat down and opened the cloth bundle.
Beneath the food and coins, he found something unexpected.
A jade slip.
Old. Cracked.
He frowned.
"I didn't put this here…"
As his fingers touched it—
The jade slip warmed.
A voice echoed faintly in his mind.
> "If you are hearing this… it means you survived."
Lin Tian's eyes narrowed.
> "This technique is not for the weak-minded. Cultivate it, and you will defy heaven. Fail, and you will die."
The jade slip shattered into dust.
Information flooded his mind.
A cultivation art.
One far beyond anything in this region.
Lin Tian inhaled sharply.
Then he laughed quietly.
"So that's how it is," he said.
He looked toward the endless horizon.
"Looks like the heavens don't want me to walk slowly."
The wind howled.
And Lin Tian began cultivating.