The morning after the demon beast attack, Chao Lun Hui woke feeling surprisingly refreshed.
His injured arm no longer ached, sunlight entered through the window at a pleasant angle, and River Lantern Town had finally stopped screaming.
For several peaceful breaths, he believed the day might treat him kindly.
Then he remembered the additional sword practice.
His optimism died before breakfast.
The town beyond the inn was already awake, though its usual festival noise had been replaced by the sound of repairs.
Hammers struck timber along the river road.
Town guards moved between the eastern bridge and the damaged streets, while White Crane formation specialists preserved every disturbed seal before merchants could rebuild over the evidence.
Three people were still missing.
Chao Lun Hui knew the investigation could not be delayed.
Gu Zhen had claimed their bodies remained alive, and the soul trail leading north might weaken with every passing hour.
That understanding did not make five hundred sword swings more appealing.
Chao Lun Hui entered the courtyard behind the inn with his sword hanging loosely at his side.
The bandage around his arm was mostly decorative now, but he intended to use it as evidence before the cultivation world’s least sympathetic master.
Shen Yan Ting stood beneath an old tree, white robes untouched by the morning dust.
A folded town map rested on the stone table beside him.
His golden eyes moved once towards Luo Yanhe’s bandaged arm, then returned to the sword.
Luo Yanhe : “Master is unreasonable.”
Nobody disagreed with him, mostly because nobody else had arrived yet.
Unfortunately, the only person present was the one whose opinion mattered least to Chao Lun Hui’s argument.
Shen Yan Ting : “Five hundred swings.”
Chao Lun Hui nearly dropped the weapon.
Luo Yanhe : “Five hundred?”
Shen Yan Ting’s expression did not change.
The number appeared to have been carefully decided and therefore immune to emotional appeals.
Shen Yan Ting : “Yes.”
Chao Lun Hui raised his bandaged arm and presented it between them.
The gesture would have been more convincing if he had not used the same arm to steal two pastries from Gu Zhen during breakfast.
Shen Yan Ting had watched him do it.
Luo Yanhe : “Master, this disciple was injured yesterday.”
Shen Yan Ting glanced at the bandage.
He had inspected the wound himself the previous night and knew exactly how shallow it was.
Shen Yan Ting : “It is a scratch.”
Chao Lun Hui froze.
His own words had returned carrying a sword.
Luo Yanhe : “That is what this disciple said.”
Shen Yan Ting gave a small nod, apparently pleased that they had reached an agreement.
Shen Yan Ting : “Then there is no problem.”
The logic was flawless.
The injustice remained immeasurable.
Chao Lun Hui drew his sword and began.
The first hundred swings served as an examination disguised as punishment.
Shen Yan Ting watched the injured arm, the angle of Luo Yanhe’s shoulders and the flow of spiritual energy through his wrist.
When Luo compensated too heavily with his uninjured side, Shen corrected his stance.
When his circulation remained smooth, Shen said nothing.
Luo Yanhe’s body knew the form well enough to keep a steady rhythm.
Chao Lun Hui only had to avoid interfering with it, which was easier in theory than in practice.
Thinking too carefully about the turn of his wrist made the blade drift.
Allowing the movement to happen produced a cleaner strike.
At two hundred, Shen Yan Ting checked his pulse.
At three hundred, he adjusted the bandage and ordered him to continue.
By four hundred and fifty, Luo Yanhe had progressed from silent suffering to privately wondering whether arms were necessary for a complete human life.
Pei Wuchen entered through the courtyard gate carrying several investigation records gathered from the town guards.
He stopped when he saw Luo Yanhe completing another swing with the expression of a man being punished for crimes he had not yet committed.
Pei Wuchen : “Senior Brother Luo.”
Luo Yanhe lowered his sword just enough to look towards him.
Sweat had loosened several strands of his long hair, and his shoulders were beginning to burn.
Luo Yanhe : “Junior Brother Pei.”
Pei Wuchen approached the stone table and placed the records beside Shen Yan Ting’s map.
Pei Wuchen : “The preliminary count is complete.
Three residents disappeared during the lantern release.
Chen Yu is among them.”
The humour left the courtyard long enough for everyone to absorb the number.
Pei Wuchen : “All three were last seen near the river carrying wish lanterns.
The White Crane disciples are preserving the bridge formations while the guards secure the northern road.”
Chao Lun Hui had expected confirmation after the woman’s report, but a single missing person had become three before sunrise.
Gu Zhen’s claim that their bodies lived was now the only hopeful fact available, and it came from a man who had blamed a squirrel for evidence he had not yet found.
Luo Yanhe raised his sword again.
Luo Yanhe : “How long until the records are ready?”
Pei Wuchen : “The first copies are complete.
We can leave as soon as Senior Brother finishes.”
That answer improved Chao Lun Hui’s speed considerably.
Pei Wuchen watched him complete another series, then offered a water flask.
Pei Wuchen : “You should rest for a moment.”
Luo Yanhe accepted it immediately.
The concern felt more natural after the previous night, but Pei Wuchen’s eyes still followed the sword, the bandage and Shen Yan Ting’s supervision with professional care.
Protecting him from one attack had changed Pei’s assessment.
It had not erased caution, nor should it have.
Chao Lun Hui took a long drink and looked at Pei Wuchen with sincere gratitude.
Luo Yanhe : “If we survive this mission, this disciple will remember Junior Brother Pei’s kindness forever.”
Pei Wuchen laughed.
The sound carried across the courtyard, pleasant and entirely harmless.
Shen Yan Ting looked up from the town map.
Shen Yan Ting : “Six hundred.”
Chao Lun Hui stopped with the flask halfway from his mouth.
Even Pei Wuchen’s smile faded as he looked between master and disciple.
Luo Yanhe : “What?”
Shen Yan Ting folded the map and placed it inside his sleeve.
His gaze settled upon Luo Yanhe, whose dramatic gratitude had apparently demonstrated an unacceptable amount of remaining energy.
Shen Yan Ting : “You seem energetic.”
It was the same answer he had used at dinner and during the festival.
Chao Lun Hui had begun to suspect those three words could justify every form of suffering known to cultivation.
Luo Yanhe : “This disciple was drinking water.”
Shen Yan Ting looked towards the flask in his hand.
The evidence did nothing to improve Chao Lun Hui’s situation.
Shen Yan Ting : “Continue.”
Mu Qingyu entered the courtyard at that exact moment.
She took in Luo Yanhe’s expression, Pei Wuchen holding the investigation records and Shen Yan Ting’s suspiciously calm face.
She immediately turned around.
Luo Yanhe : “Senior Sister.”
Mu Qingyu stopped near the gate, though she did not look back.
Mu Qingyu : “I saw nothing.”
Chao Lun Hui looked at Shen Yan Ting, then towards the gate where his senior sister had abandoned him.
Betrayal appeared to be flourishing within Azure Cloud Sect.
Luo Yanhe : “Nobody in this sect protects the innocent.”
Shen Yan Ting’s gaze moved towards Luo Yanhe’s sword, which had remained motionless for several breaths.
Shen Yan Ting : “Six hundred and ten.”
Chao Lun Hui raised the sword so quickly that Pei Wuchen had to turn away to hide another laugh.
The final swings took less time than anyone expected.
Shen Yan Ting checked Luo Yanhe’s circulation once more, removed the decorative bandage and replaced it with a smaller strip that would not restrict movement.
By mid-morning, the group was already moving towards the river road.
The investigation should have begun with careful examination of the damaged street, organised witness statements and a search for lingering spiritual energy.
Instead, they found Gu Zhen stuck in a tree.
He sat high among the branches with his arms folded and his spear tied awkwardly across his back.
Leaves had become trapped in his curls, yet his expression remained dignified enough to suggest that the tree had climbed him.
Chao Lun Hui stood beneath the branches and looked up.
Luo Yanhe : “Why?”
Gu Zhen looked down at him.
A squirrel sat on a neighbouring branch, holding a nut and watching the cultivators with considerably better judgement.
Gu Zhen : “Good question.”
Mu Qingyu placed one hand against her forehead.
Pei Wuchen examined the surrounding rooftops, perhaps hoping to discover another investigation team he could join.
Luo Yanhe : “How did Senior get up there?”
Gu Zhen adjusted his position.
The branch beneath him bent in a way nobody found reassuring.
Gu Zhen : “I chased a clue.”
Chao Lun Hui followed his gaze towards the squirrel.
The animal paused mid-chew, then slowly turned its back on them.
Luo Yanhe : “The clue was a squirrel?”
Gu Zhen looked offended by the doubt in his voice.
He pointed towards the animal with the confidence of a respected scholar presenting years of research.
Gu Zhen : “It looked suspicious.”
Nobody answered.
Shen Yan Ting continued walking towards the damaged street as though abandoning one disciple in a tree might improve the mission.
Gu Zhen leaned forwards between the branches.
Gu Zhen : “It was carrying something.”
Shen Yan Ting stopped.
Behind the squirrel, tied neatly around a thin branch rather than torn upon it, hung a narrow strip of grey cloth.
It sat above ordinary eye level but well within the reach of spiritual detection.
The squirrel’s tail had concealed most of it.
Pei Wuchen moved first.
A thin current of spiritual energy lifted the cloth without frightening the animal.
Faint black ash clung to the fabric, carrying the same cold residue they had detected around Chen Yu’s wish lantern and the foreign current controlling the demon beast.
Mu Qingyu examined the knot.
Mu Qingyu : “This was placed here.”
Pei Wuchen : “High enough to avoid the guards.
Low enough for a cultivator to find.”
The clue had not been lost.
It had been displayed.
Chao Lun Hui looked from the cloth to the squirrel.
Whether the animal had drawn Gu Zhen’s attention by accident or because someone had disturbed its nest did not matter.
The grey strip had been left where an investigator would eventually search.
Mu Qingyu looked up at Gu Zhen again.
Her expression suggested that she deeply resented the possibility that his squirrel investigation had produced a real clue.
Mu Qingyu : “You could have mentioned that first.”
Gu Zhen attempted to climb down and immediately caught his robe on another branch.
His dignity remained above them even as the rest of him became suspended at an unfortunate angle.
Gu Zhen : “Senior Sister did not ask.”
Rescuing him took longer than finding the evidence.
When they finally reached the attack site, River Lantern Town had begun repairing itself around the investigation.
Merchants rebuilt broken stalls while local cultivators cleared timber and stone from the road.
Children gathered near the crater left by the demon beast until their parents repeatedly dragged them away.
The remains of the creature had been moved to a guarded courtyard for later examination.
Scorch marks and deep cracks still crossed the street where it had fallen.
Public attention shifted when Luo Yanhe approached.
The woman whose child he had saved greeted him with a restrained bow.
A vegetable merchant watched his hands rather than his face.
One local cultivator acknowledged him politely, while another stepped closer to the guarded crater as though Luo Yanhe’s arrival might cause it to reopen.
The reactions were neither gratitude nor fear alone.
The demon beast had targeted Luo Yanhe directly, and a Luo heir had now returned to the same street to investigate it.
Protecting civilians had given the town a reason to reconsider him.
It had not removed every other reason for caution.
Chao Lun Hui did not challenge the staring.
The Luo Clan jade beneath his robes had grown warm again.
Its pull guided him towards a damaged stone beside an overturned lantern stand.
A symbol had been carved into its surface.
The marks were ancient and shallow, almost hidden beneath soot, but not hidden well enough to escape someone following the jade.
The outer curves resembled the formations inside the Luo inheritance ruins.
The resemblance ended under closer inspection.
One line turned too early.
Another stopped before completing its circuit.
The spacing between the inner marks was wrong.
Chao Lun Hui could not read the symbol as a formation master might read it.
He only remembered the rhythm of the genuine carvings and the way each line had seemed to continue naturally into the next.
This one looked like a copied sentence written by someone who recognised the letters but not the grammar.
The essential structure remained visible beneath the soot.
Someone wanted him to see it.
Luo Yanhe : “Master.”
Shen Yan Ting approached immediately.
His attention moved from Luo Yanhe’s face to the symbol before settling on the faint residue surrounding it.
Shen Yan Ting : “What is it?”
Chao Lun Hui pointed towards the outer curve.
A thin line of light moved beneath the carving when the jade reacted.
Luo Yanhe : “This resembles the symbols inside the Luo inheritance ruins.”
Pei Wuchen crouched on the opposite side without touching the stone.
He compared the carving with one of the copied diagrams in his records.
Pei Wuchen : “White Crane Sect has no record of it.”
Mu Qingyu studied the damaged lines.
Mu Qingyu : “Neither does Azure Cloud Sect.”
Pei Wuchen traced the air above the carving with one finger.
Pei Wuchen : “The outer pattern is incomplete.
It should not sustain an activation.”
Luo Yanhe : “Unless the missing portion is not meant to be part of the stone.”
His jade warmed again.
Shen Yan Ting became still.
His gaze rested on one of the broken curves, and the fingers near his sword tightened before relaxing.
He gave no explanation.
Chao Lun Hui noticed the pause.
Whatever Shen Yan Ting had recognised, it had not become a memory he could name.
Chao Lun Hui examined the symbol from three angles.
He checked for visible traps.
He picked up a broken piece of wood and held it over the carving as a test.
Nothing happened.
Mu Qingyu : “Do not touch it.”
Luo Yanhe : “This disciple was not going to.”
Everyone looked at him.
Chao Lun Hui lowered the wood.
Then he touched the symbol with his finger.
Shen Yan Ting : “Luo Yanhe.”
The warning arrived one breath too late.
The symbol exploded.
Golden spiritual light burst across the street, knocking Luo Yanhe onto his back and sending Gu Zhen into a repaired vegetable stall.
The same merchant from the previous night stared in horror as his cabbages achieved flight for the second time.
Merchant : “Again?”
A chicken escaped from beneath a basket and landed directly on Gu Zhen’s chest.
It looked down at him with the calm superiority of a creature that had witnessed his previous collision with local commerce.
Gu Zhen : “You again.”
The chicken pecked his forehead.
Chao Lun Hui lay among broken lantern frames with one hand pressed against his head.
Shen Yan Ting reached him before the last traces of light faded.
Luo Yanhe : “Master.”
Shen Yan Ting checked him for injuries.
His fingers closed around Luo Yanhe’s wrist while a controlled thread of spiritual energy passed through the meridians of his arm and shoulder.
Shen Yan Ting : “What?”
Chao Lun Hui looked towards the glowing symbol, then towards the finger he had used to touch it.
Luo Yanhe : “This disciple feels attacked.”
Shen Yan Ting helped him sit upright.
His grip remained around Luo Yanhe’s wrist long enough to confirm that no foreign energy had entered his circulation.
Shen Yan Ting : “You touched it.”
Chao Lun Hui considered this deeply unfair.
He had approached the dangerous symbol with considerably more caution than usual.
Luo Yanhe : “That feels like victim blaming.”
The symbol continued glowing before Shen Yan Ting could answer.
Ancient words formed above the stone, each line appearing slowly in pale gold.
『BENEATH THE MOUNTAIN WITHOUT A MOON, THE PATH TOWARDS THE THIRD KEY WILL OPEN 』
The group fell silent.
The message did not claim that the Third Key rested inside Moonless Mountain, only that the path towards it began there.
A second line appeared.
『THE SEEKER HAS ALREADY SET THE FIRST CHOICE 』
The light across the copied carving trembled.
『THREE WISHES HAVE BEEN TAKEN 』
A final message formed above the stone.
『THREE SOULS STILL LIVE 』
The golden light vanished, taking the symbol with it.
Only an ordinary cracked stone remained beneath Luo Yanhe’s hand.
Pei Wuchen unfolded the report from the town guards.
Pei Wuchen : “Three people disappeared during the lantern release.”
Mu Qingyu looked towards the river at the end of the street.
Festival workers had removed most of the abandoned lanterns, though several remained trapped beneath the bridge.
Mu Qingyu : “All three carried wishes.”
The copied symbol had given them exactly enough information to continue.
A destination without a clear route.
A title they already feared.
Three living people whose survival depended upon pursuit.
Chao Lun Hui understood the shape of the trap even if he did not understand its mechanism.
The Seeker was not hiding from them.
Someone was constructing a path and placing human lives along it so that refusing to follow would become its own choice.
Gu Zhen emerged from the vegetable stall with the chicken tucked beneath one arm.
Cabbage leaves clung to his hair.
The foolishness left his expression as his gaze followed something no one else could see.
Gu Zhen : “They are not dead.”
Luo Yanhe turned towards him.
Gu Zhen’s certainty did not match the evidence available to an ordinary Inner Disciple.
It was the same certainty he had shown beside Chen Yu’s lantern.
Luo Yanhe : “How does Senior know?”
Gu Zhen looked down at the chicken as though hoping it might provide an acceptable explanation.
The chicken offered no assistance.
Gu Zhen : “The squirrel told me.”
Mu Qingyu closed her eyes.
The serious moment had survived for nearly seven seconds.
Chao Lun Hui recognised the evasion.
Gu Zhen could identify soul trails, distinguish life from death and follow spiritual residue without touching it.
None of those abilities belonged naturally to the harmless fool presented to Azure Cloud Sect.
He kept the suspicion to himself.
Three villagers remained alive, and Gu Zhen’s impossible knowledge was currently the best chance they had of finding them.
Shen Yan Ting looked towards the northern route.
His hand became still near his sword as his gaze travelled from the river to the mountains beyond the town.
Chao Lun Hui rose and dusted broken lantern paper from his robes.
The demon beast, the missing villagers, the grey cloth and the copied Luo symbol belonged to the same design.
Every clue had been visible enough to find.
Every answer pointed towards the next question.
Luo Yanhe : “The Seeker.”
Pei Wuchen folded the guard report and placed it inside his sleeve.
Pei Wuchen : “The same title from the inheritance scroll.”
Mu Qingyu looked towards the river.
Mu Qingyu : “They want us to follow.”
Luo Yanhe : “They have made certain we cannot ignore them.”
Three people were alive somewhere beyond the visible trail.
Following could lead the group into an arranged choice.
Refusing would abandon the villagers to whoever had taken them.
Gu Zhen released the chicken.
It remained beside his boot, apparently having decided that leaving him unsupervised would be irresponsible.
Gu Zhen : “Then we follow them and punch them.”
Chao Lun Hui looked at him.
The proposal lacked subtlety, preparation and almost every recognised quality of a strategy.
Luo Yanhe : “That is not a plan.”
Gu Zhen adjusted his spear and started towards the river.
The chicken followed.
Gu Zhen : “It can become one.”
Chao Lun Hui hated how reasonable that sounded.
Far beyond River Lantern Town, inside an ancient hall hidden beneath a mountain erased from surviving maps, Mo Ruoyan watched three golden threads stretch across a ruined altar.
Each belonged to one of the missing villagers.
Their bodies remained alive, concealed beyond the reach of the town’s formations, while their souls hung between flesh and the northern route.
They had been preserved carefully.
Nothing had been sacrificed yet.
A fourth thread represented Luo Yanhe.
It had turned towards the river.
The Shadowed Seeker kneeling behind Mo Ruoyan waited for instruction while the incomplete pattern of the northern spiritual veins glowed beneath his fingers.
Shadowed Seeker : “The heir found the message.”
Mo Ruoyan traced Luo Yanhe’s thread as it moved closer to the first buried altar.
The demon beast, the missing villagers and the copied symbol had served their purpose.
Mo Ruoyan : “Of course he did.”
The kneeling figure lowered his head.
The first decision had already been recorded.
Luo Yanhe had abandoned a fading trail to protect civilians.
The next choice would place more lives directly against the path he needed to follow.
The villagers remained bait, their souls held in a state that allowed time for observation.
Shadowed Seeker : “Should the first choice be prepared?”
Mo Ruoyan’s crimson gaze remained fixed on the glowing thread.
Mo Ruoyan : “It already has been.”
Thank you so much for your patience and understanding.
The chapter has now been updated to the latest revised version.
I truly appreciate everyone who waited and continued supporting this story while I worked on improving it.
I hope this updated version gives you a smoother and more enjoyable reading experience.
Thank you for staying with me.
Happy reading!