The day after his "death," Lin Yan returned to his duties.
He carried buckets of water, swept the courtyards, and scrubbed the stones.
Eyes watched him. Whispers followed him.
"He survived the fall?""Servants can't live through that!""Something about him… feels wrong."
Lin Yan ignored them.
Inside, his body burned—not painfully, but with potential.
Every movement reminded him of the Phoenix, of power locked inside his veins.
He needed control.
That night, in the abandoned storage room behind the outer courtyard, Lin Yan trained.
"Just a little," he muttered. "I can't let anyone see."
He drew spiritual energy—not qi—but the fire inside him, flowing through his veins, controlled for the first time.
His limbs moved faster. Strength increased. Pain flickered, then vanished.
He punched the stone wall. It cracked, splintering into jagged pieces.
Stronger.
He kicked the floor. It buckled.
Faster.
He jumped, soaring through the air, landing in a perfect crouch.
The Phoenix's voice echoed faintly in his mind:
"Every death, every blow, every scar—embrace it. This is how you grow."
Lin Yan smiled, small and quiet.
The next morning, during the outer disciple trials, chaos erupted.
Disciples fought with magical weapons, showing off their cultivation.
Zhao Feng sneered at Lin Yan. "Stay out of this. You're useless."
Lin Yan didn't respond. He wasn't the same servant anymore.
When the trial began, a giant fire beast—a summoned construct—attacked a group of disciples.
Panic. Screams.
Zhao Feng froze, unsure what to do.
Lin Yan moved. Slowly, quietly, hidden in the shadows.
With a flick of his hand, a small flame shot from his palm. It wasn't qi. It was raw, burning power, invisible to the others.
The fire licked the beast, melting armor, charring scales.
The beast screamed and fell.
No one saw who did it.
But Zhao Feng noticed the heat—like a ghost had burned the air.
He frowned. "Impossible…"
Lin Yan smiled faintly behind a pillar.
Soon… they'll see me.
That night, in the storage room again, Lin Yan discovered something terrifying.
The Phoenix mark on his chest had grown slightly, glowing brighter.
Pain licked at his chest—but it was different.
It felt like… a warning.
"You have awakened Ember Body," the Phoenix said."But someone is already aware."
Lin Yan froze.
"Who?" he asked.
The flames around him surged.
"Patience. You will learn soon enough."
A chill ran down his spine.
Even the fire could not burn it away.