The silence after slaughter was louder than any scream.
Lin Xuan stood still, his fists clenched at his sides. Blood dripped from his knuckles. Around him lay the broken bodies of the ambushers. He had moved with instinct, with precision—and something else.
Rage.
A deep, inexplicable fury boiled in his chest. Not because of the ambush. Not because of the danger. Something deeper. Older. His breathing slowed, and he forced himself to calm down.
Why am I angry?
He didn't understand it—but he buried it. Emotion was a distraction.
He turned to Liu Yue, who was holding the poisoned boy in her arms. She stared at him, stunned, trembling.
"We need to leave. It's not safe here," Lin Xuan said, voice steady.
Liu Yue nodded slowly, too shaken to speak.
Before they departed, Lin Xuan stepped forward and raised both hands.
Dark energy swirled around him—the signature of the Devouring Art. The bodies of the fallen cultivators twitched, their remaining qi pulled from them in ghostly threads. Flesh shriveled, bones cracked, and essence poured into him.
His dantian shook.
Qi Condensation – Seventh Layer.
He exhaled. His strength had grown again.
When he turned, Liu Yue was staring at him in horror.
"Y-you… you're a demonic cultivator?"
Lin Xuan met her eyes, calm as a quiet river.
He nodded once.
Liu Yue backed away slightly, clutching her children. But she didn't run.
Without a word, he began walking. After a brief hesitation, she followed.
---
They found temporary shelter in a small, half-forgotten inn on the edge of Blackleaf Village, far from the eyes of sects or authorities. The innkeeper asked no questions, and Lin Xuan paid in silence.
He helped settle the poisoned boy into a bed, giving Liu Yue simple instructions to keep him stable.
Then he stepped outside.
"I'll be back before nightfall," he said.
---
Chapter 5: The Fire Within
The forest beyond Blackleaf Village was quiet but rich with life. Lin Xuan moved like a shadow, eyes scanning every inch for herbs. He collected spirit grass, darkroot, and bitter thorn—basic but useful for minor antidotes.
As he emerged near the village's outer market, his attention was drawn to a commotion.
A crowd had gathered in front of a rickety wooden stall. At the center of the noise were two young girls, dressed in travel-worn cultivator robes. They were arguing with the stall's greasy-looking owner.
"You swindler!" the first girl shouted. "You said this jade was spirit-refined!"
"It's not even real jade!" said the second girl, holding a broken green shard.
The shopkeeper crossed his arms. "You broke it, not my fault."
Lin Xuan's gaze drifted to the shard—and his heart skipped.
He saw something. A faint glow. Not spiritual qi, not elemental essence—something hidden, like a slumbering consciousness.
He stepped forward.
"I'll buy that jade."
The crowd turned to him. The shopkeeper blinked. "What?"
"I'll take it," Lin Xuan said, tossing a pair of spirit stones onto the stall.
The merchant grinned greedily and shoved the fragment into his hand. "Pleasure doing business."
Without another word, Lin Xuan left the crowd and entered a quieter alley, stopping only at a small herbal stall to purchase a few more ingredients.
---
Back at the inn, night had fallen.
In a small, dimly lit room, Lin Xuan sat cross-legged. Before him lay his herbs, bowls, and the strange jade shard.
He raised his right palm—and summoned silver flame.
The fire danced unnaturally, clean and hot. This wasn't ordinary fire. It was flame drawn from the Records of the Human Emperor, a forbidden technique said to grant control over energy without the need for cauldrons or runes.
He began refining.
One herb at a time, layer by layer, the fire wrapped around the ingredients, burning away impurities, binding spiritual threads, concentrating power. His hands moved with precision, control born not from training—but instinct. As if he'd done this countless times before.
Hours passed.
Finally—a soft click.
A faint green pill rested on his palm, smooth and glowing with inner warmth.
He stood and entered the other room.
"Make him swallow this," he said to Liu Yue.
She hesitated, then did as told. Within moments, the boy's shallow breaths steadied. The darkness on his veins faded. The color returned to his lips.
"He'll be fine now," Lin Xuan said.
Liu Yue stared at the boy, stunned. Then she looked up at Lin Xuan, her eyes wide with awe.
"You… you made that pill?" she whispered.
Lin Xuan nodded.
She bit her lip, cheeks slightly flushed. "So, you're… an alchemist?"
Lin Xuan turned toward the window, the firelight casting long shadows behind him.
"Yes."
---