Lushan City was louder than Kael expected.
Cultivators filled the streets.
Some carried swords.
Some wore expensive robes.
Others released faint waves of Qi without even trying to hide them.
Kael kept his head down as he walked beside Luo Chen.
“Don't stare,” Luo Chen said.
“I wasn't.”
“You were.”
Kael glanced at him.
Luo Chen smiled. “You're still new to cities, aren't you?”
Kael ignored him.
His attention was fixed on the people around them.
Too many strong cultivators.
Even the weakest ones he could sense were close to the level he had struggled against outside the Ruined Moon Sect.
And the tournament would begin tomorrow.
Kael tightened his fist.
Third Layer of Body Tempering.
That was all he had.
If he wanted to survive, it wasn't enough.
Luo Chen suddenly stopped.
“We're here.”
Kael looked up.
A large stone building stood before them.
Lushan Martial Hall.
Hundreds of young cultivators were gathered outside.
The tournament registration had already begun.
“Under twenty,” Luo Chen said. “No cultivation above Qi Condensation.”
Kael nodded.
“That means most of them are within your range.”
“Most?”
Luo Chen's smile disappeared.
“There are always monsters.”
Before Kael could ask what he meant, a group of cultivators walked past them.
Their robes were black and silver.
Kael's eyes narrowed.
A lotus symbol was embroidered on their sleeves.
Black Lotus.
His body reacted before his mind did.
His heartbeat accelerated.
His fingers became cold.
Then—
A flash.
A sword.
Blood.
A man's face.
Kael staggered backward.
The street disappeared.
For one second, he was standing somewhere else.
Somewhere dark.
His hands were covered in blood.
His chest had been pierced.
And the man standing before him was laughing.
Kael recognized that face.
The man who killed him in his seventh life.
“Kael!”
The vision vanished.
Kael grabbed his chest and breathed heavily.
Luo Chen caught his shoulder.
“What happened?”
Kael stared at the Black Lotus cultivator disappearing into the crowd.
“He's here.”
“Who?”
“The man who killed me.”
Luo Chen's expression changed.
“You're certain?”
Kael nodded.
“I remember his face.”
Luo Chen looked toward the crowd.
“Then don't look at him again.”
Kael frowned.
“Why?”
“Because if he recognizes you, this tournament won't matter anymore.”
A bell rang from inside the Martial Hall.
Everyone became quiet.
An old man stepped onto the platform.
“Registration is closed.”
The crowd immediately began moving toward the arena.
“The first round begins tomorrow morning.”
The old man raised his hand.
“Anyone caught using forbidden techniques will be eliminated immediately.”
Kael listened carefully.
Then the old man announced the first-round rules.
One hundred and twenty-eight participants.
Sixty-four matches.
One winner from each match.
No killing.
No outside assistance.
Kael's eyes sharpened.
This was exactly what he needed.
A controlled battlefield.
A place to test his strength.
A place to grow.
Luo Chen handed him a wooden token.
“Your match number.”
Kael looked at it.
64.
“Your turn is tomorrow,” Luo Chen said.
Kael nodded.
He turned toward the arena.
But before he could leave, someone bumped into his shoulder.
A young man in blue robes walked past.
“Watch where you're going.”
Kael stopped.
The young man turned.
He was around eighteen.
A sword hung from his waist.
His aura was stronger than Kael's.
Much stronger.
“Body Tempering?”
The young man looked at Kael with disappointment.
“Don't waste my time.”
He walked away.
Luo Chen sighed.
“That's Zhao Ming.”
“Strong?”
“Qi Gathering Third Layer.”
Kael looked at him.
“Third Layer?”
“Yes.”
Kael's eyes narrowed.
That meant the difference between them was enormous.
But instead of fear, Kael felt something else.
Excitement.
His memories had already taught him something.
Strength wasn't everything.
Control mattered.
Experience mattered.
And most importantly—
His Human Flame was still changing.
That night, Kael sat alone inside a cheap room near the Martial Hall.
He placed the wooden token on the table.
Then closed his eyes.
He circulated Qi through his meridians.
Slowly.
Carefully.
The Human Flame responded.
A faint golden light appeared in his palm.
Kael watched it.
“Show me what you can do.”
The flame flickered.
Then—
A second flame appeared.
Much smaller.
Almost silver.
Kael's eyes widened.
The silver spark lasted for only a moment before disappearing.
But he had seen it.
His breathing became heavy.
“What are you?”
No answer came.
Instead, a voice echoed inside his mind.
Not from his memory.
Not from the ring.
Something else.
“You are getting closer.”
Kael immediately stood.
His hand reached for his sword.
“Who's there?”
Silence.
Then the voice returned.
“Tomorrow, do not win your first match.”
Kael froze.
“Why?”
No answer.
The golden mark on his palm suddenly burned.
A single image appeared in his mind.
The tournament arena.
A man lying dead.
Blood spreading across the stone.
And behind him—
The same face from his seventh life.
The vision disappeared.
Kael slowly lowered his hand.
Tomorrow's match wasn't the real danger.
Someone was using the tournament for something else.
And somehow—
Kael was already part of the plan.