The old man's words lingered in the air.
"Perhaps... our paths were destined to cross."
Lin Yuan studied him carefully.
In the cultivation world, trust was a luxury.
His father had once told him while teaching him to set hunting traps:
"The fiercest beast isn't the one that bares its fangs. It's the one that smiles while waiting for you to lower your guard."
The old man was smiling.
That alone made Lin Yuan cautious.
"Who are you?" Lin Yuan asked.
The old man chuckled.
"Straight to the point."
"I like that."
He took another sip from his wine gourd before answering.
"My name..."
"...is Gu Chen."
"Most people who still remember me call me the Drunken Elder."
Lin Yuan frowned.
"And the people who don't remember you?"
"They're dead."
Gu Chen answered so casually that Lin Yuan couldn't tell whether he was serious or joking.
The old man turned and began walking down the mountain path.
"Come."
Lin Yuan didn't move.
"You don't even know where we're going."
Gu Chen laughed without looking back.
"I know."
"To the nearest town."
"You need medicine."
"New clothes."
"A decent meal."
"And information."
He paused.
"Unless you plan on wandering these mountains until the Blood Moon Sect finds you first."
Lin Yuan's eyes narrowed.
"You think they'll come back?"
Gu Chen stopped walking.
"They won't."
"They never left."
The words struck Lin Yuan like a bucket of cold water.
Gu Chen pointed toward the forest.
"The men you fought today weren't ordinary bandits."
"They were hired."
"Hired to search Black Crow Mountain after the disturbance."
"They simply recognized an opportunity when they saw you."
Lin Yuan looked back toward the corpses.
"So..."
"They were working for the Blood Moon Sect?"
"Perhaps."
"Perhaps not."
Gu Chen shrugged.
"In the cultivation world, spirit stones can buy loyalty from almost anyone."
They continued walking.
The mountain trail was narrow and uneven, winding between towering cliffs and ancient trees.
Neither spoke for nearly half an hour.
Lin Yuan's body still ached, but he forced himself to keep moving.
Eventually, Gu Chen broke the silence.
"How old are you?"
"Fifteen."
"Hm."
"What did your parents do?"
"My father hunted."
"My mother gathered herbs."
Gu Chen nodded.
"No cultivation?"
Lin Yuan shook his head.
"They were ordinary people."
The old man sighed softly.
"The weakest always pay the highest price."
they were moving forward when Gu Chen suddenly raised his hand.
"Stop."
Lin Yuan immediately obeyed.
The old man's expression had become serious.
"Listen."
At first...
Lin Yuan heard nothing.
Then
Hoofbeats.
Several horses.
Moving quickly.
Gu Chen smiled faintly.
"What do you hear ." Horses Lin Yuan answered
"They're coming from the east."
Lin Yuan counted silently.
"Five horses."
"No."
Gu Chen corrected him.
"Seven."
A few moments later...
Seven riders emerged from the forest.
They wore dark green robes embroidered with silver clouds.
Each carried a sword.
Unlike the murderous aura of the bandits, these cultivators moved with discipline.
The leader was a young woman, perhaps eighteen years old.
Her long black hair was tied neatly behind her, and a jade sword rested at her waist.
When she saw the blood on Lin Yuan's clothes, her horse slowed.
Her gaze then shifted to Gu Chen.
For a brief instant...
Confusion flashed across her face.
The old man looked like nothing more than a drunk wanderer.
The young woman dismounted gracefully.
She clasped her hands.
"Greetings, Elder."
Gu Chen yawned.
"Hm."
She turned to Lin Yuan.
"What happened to you ?"
Before Lin Yuan could answer, Gu Chen spoke first.
"Bandits."
She looked at the blood on Lin Yuan's clothes.
"Only bandits?"
Gu Chen grinned.
"The dead ones won't complain if I simplify the story."
The young woman blinked.
Something about this old man made her uneasy.
One of the disciples rode ahead.
"Senior Sister Luo."
"We found bodies."
Everyone followed him.
Scattered across the pass lay the corpses of the bandits.
The captain's body rested near the shattered boulder, his chest caved in from Lin Yuan's final punch.
The disciples froze.
One knelt beside the corpse.
"He died from a direct physical strike..."
"No sword wound."
"No spear."
"No hidden weapon."
The disciple looked up.
"Senior Sister..."
"A body cultivator?"
Luo Yue's gaze slowly shifted toward Lin Yuan.
"You killed him?"
Lin Yuan hesitated.
Then nodded.
"Yes."
The disciples exchanged doubtful looks.
A fifteen-year-old boy...
Killing a Spirit gathering cultivator?
Impossible.
Luo Yue stepped closer.
Her eyes were calm but her gaze was as sharp as a sword
"May I see your hands?"
Lin Yuan instinctively took a step back.
Gu Chen quietly watched without interfering.
After a brief silence, Lin Yuan extended his right hand.
Luo Yue gently examined his knuckles.
The skin was split.
The bones beneath were swollen.
She frowned.
"He really fought with his fists..."
Not only that...
His injuries suggested he had won through endurance rather than overwhelming strength.
Her respect for him rose slightly.
She released his hand.
"My name is Luo Yue."
"I am an inner disciple of the Azure Cloud Sect."
She looked at the mountain behind him.
"We were sent to investigate the disturbance at Black Crow Mountain."
Lin Yuan's heartbeat quickened.
The disturbance.
The inheritance.
Were they connected?
Before he could speak...
Gu Chen casually interrupted.
"You won't find anything."
"The mountain collapsed."
Luo Yue nodded.
"So we've heard."
She sighed.
"Even if an inheritance existed..."
"It's gone now."
Gu Chen smiled into his wine gourd.
"Gone?"
"Not quite."
He glanced at Lin Yuan from the corner of his eye but said nothing.
Some secrets were better left buried.
For now at least.