The sun fell behind blood-red clouds as Luan stepped out of Sway Lotus, the lingering scent of roasted coffee and scorched ego trailing behind him. The whispers had already begun:
"He has no Qi… yet he vaporized them."
"Was that a forbidden technique?"
"Or… is he something else?"
He ignored them all.
But someone didn't.
---
Inside the headquarters of the Frostmoon Clan, a gathering storm brewed. The girl who had witnessed Luan's power from afar, Yue, stood before her clan elders.
"A man with zero cultivation," she said coldly, "yet his flame carries ancient resonance."
One elder's brow twitched. "Was it black?"
Yue nodded.
Silence.
"…The Forbidden Flame," muttered another. "It can't be. That line was severed…"
They sent a probe — a Soul-Marked Envoy, cloaked in ceremonial silver armor, tasked with tracking Luan. Not to capture. Not yet. But to test him.
---
Meanwhile, Luan remained unaware. Or at least, he pretended to be.
Mei, the club girl he had saved, now let him stay in the staff room at the back of Sway Lotus. She said it was repayment. But each night, she peeked through the curtain as he sat silently… a single black flame hovering above his palm like a tiny god.
She knew something was wrong. Or right. Or both.
---
The Test Begins
Three days later, while wandering a bustling open market of spirit tools, elixirs, and beast eggs, Luan felt a shift.
A cloaked man approached.
"You look lost," the man said, voice like cracked glass. "Perhaps I can guide you… out of this world."
The man removed his cloak — revealing shimmering tattoos and eyes glowing with frost.
Soul-Marked Envoy — Cultivation: Peak Spirit King
Luan smiled faintly. "No refunds."
In an instant, the ground trembled. The envoy attacked with a Heaven-Cracking Spear Technique, a spiritual art forbidden in the Xin domain.
People fled, stalls shattered, beasts roared.
Luan dodged everything — not with speed, not with agility — but with instinct so refined, even fate blinked.
He allowed one strike to land — right in his chest.
The envoy smirked.
Then his expression shattered.
Because the black flame inside Luan consumed the attack. Not deflected — devoured.
The air twisted. The black flame surged and formed a shadowy beast, fangs like blades, eyes like galaxies collapsing.
The envoy screamed — and disappeared into ash, his soul mark breaking into thousands of dying sparks.
---
A World Watches
The encounter was seen by more than just the crowd. It was recorded by sky-beetles, seen through soul mirrors, and whispered across clan scrolls.
The legend of the Qi-less Flamebearer began.
And far within the shadows of Luan's soul… the still-sleeping figure stirred slightly.
His lips moved.
No words. Just a breath.
As if something within him was starting to wake.
---