The cloaked man's words hung heavy in the damp air of the Mistveil Caverns.
"I was hunted too," he repeated, voice echoing off the stone. "And you will be, sooner than you think."
Li Fan's gaze sharpened. "Why?"
"Because," the man said, stepping closer, "you've reached the Seventh Cauldron. The moment you did, the Empire began to fear you. And fear is the truest chain."
Before Li Fan could speak again, the figure's form wavered—like mist unraveling—and vanished, leaving behind a faint black talisman etched with the sigil of a chained cauldron. Wen Rourou knelt to pick it up but recoiled at its heat.
Outside the caverns, the world had already shifted.
In the markets of Emerald Haven, whispers grew bolder.
> "He's too strong. One day he'll lose control."
"My cousin saw him shatter a mountain with one strike."
"The Nine Cauldrons always bring disaster."
In distant sect halls, envoys from the Imperial Capital arrived with polite smiles and careful words. They spoke of "precaution" and "maintaining harmony," sowing doubt like seeds. Elders who once toasted Li Fan's victories now debated whether to bar their gates against him.
Within the Iron Jade Council, reports flowed in daily. The Shadow Division charted his movements, noting every battle, every surge of power, every moment he lingered too long in an unfamiliar region.
General Huo spoke with grim satisfaction. "The narrative is taking hold. By the time the people truly believe he is a wilden, we won't need to lift a blade. They will turn on him themselves."
Back at the Mistveil Caverns, Elder Yan's brow furrowed. "Li Fan, you must understand—someone is moving against you. That talisman is a warning."
"I've felt it for weeks," Li Fan admitted. "The looks. The hesitation. But knowing and stopping it are different matters."
That night, they camped at the cavern mouth. Wen Rourou sat close to the fire, speaking softly. "They're afraid you'll become something you're not."
"Then I'll prove them wrong," Li Fan said, staring into the flames. "Not with words—but with action."
But even as he spoke, the talisman pulsed faintly at his side, as though reminding him that some fates are not so easily defied.
Far away, in the Emperor's private chambers, the Grand Strategist delivered his latest report. "He has entered the Mistveil Caverns. If the legends are true, he may emerge stronger still."
The Emperor's expression was unreadable. "Then accelerate the plan. By the time he steps into the sun again, the world must already see him for what we say he is."
---