The mountain wind whispered through the trees as Lin Yan stood at the cliff's edge, staring at the endless horizon beyond the peaks.
He had survived the rift.
He had broken through.
Now, it was time to face the world.
Behind him, Mei Qingxue adjusted the strap of her sword. "We head east. Through the Ghostpine Pass, across the Jade River. That's where the outer territories begin."
"The sect territories?" Lin Yan asked.
She nodded. "Yes. The Thousand Desires Sect controls much of the land beyond the pass. That includes the **Cauldron Hall**."
Lin Yan's expression didn't change, but his hands closed into fists.
"They won't recognize you immediately," she continued. "You've changed. And I've cloaked your aura. But the deeper we go, the more dangerous it becomes."
"I'm not going to hide," he said. "Not anymore."
Mei Qingxue studied him for a moment, then gave a slight nod. "Then let the world see what they've created."
---
The journey down the mountain was not without trials.
They passed through frozen valleys haunted by wild spirit beasts—creatures drawn to Lin Yan's newfound inner flame. But each time they attacked, he stood his ground.
He no longer ran.
He fought.
With each victory, his control deepened, and the flame within him grew more refined—burning not with rage, but with **purpose**.
By the time they reached the Ghostpine Pass, Lin Yan had fully stabilized his cultivation in the Spirit Tempering Realm, First Layer.
---
At dusk, they arrived at a small border town called **Yanque Hollow**.
Dirty, crowded, and reeking of desperation, it was the kind of place sect scouts rarely visited. A perfect stop for travelers… and for fugitives.
They walked into a tavern, cloaked and silent. Eyes followed them, noting their bearing, their weapons, their silence.
Lin Yan kept his gaze low, but alert. He felt it—**malice**, floating in the air like smoke.
He recognized it.
Not from this town, but from the countless rooms he had been chained in.
Power.
Predation.
**People who looked for prey.**
And one of them, a bald man with a jagged scar, stood and approached them with a grin.
"Too pretty to be in this town," he said to Lin Yan, eyes gleaming with recognition. "You look like someone I saw in the Cauldron Hall, years ago. What was the name…"
Lin Yan didn't flinch.
He simply raised his hand.
The flame ignited in his palm.
"Wrong boy," he said, voice calm.
The scarred man blinked.
Then screamed.
---
By the time they left the tavern, the room behind them was in ruins.
No one followed.
No one dared.
As they walked through the alley into the night, Mei Qingxue said nothing.
But for the first time, she smiled—just a little.