The next morning, Liu Shen stood atop the Grand Pavilion, sipping tea beneath the scarlet dawn.
Below him, disciples trained, elders preached, and the sect carried on—peaceful, unsuspecting.
But within the Scripture Division, Elder Yan Wuheng had already noticed something was missing.
The Black Flame Prophecy scroll.
Yet no alarm had been raised. No hunt declared.
That told Liu Shen everything he needed to know.
> "He doesn't want the sect to know it was stolen," he murmured.
"Because he'd have to explain why it was there in the first place."
And more importantly…
> He knows someone stole it.
---
The Unseen Messenger
That night, a small hawk arrived in Rin's quarters—eyes glowing with soul imprint, wings carrying hidden script.
It was from the Council's spies in the outer sect.
> "Three disciples entered the Scripture Division without permission this week," Rin said, scanning the message.
"Two left within the hour. One stayed for three."
"Name?" Liu Shen asked.
Rin's voice lowered. "Fang Yuren. Outer disciple. Sword path. Recently promoted to Inner Sect."
Yun Rou furrowed her brows. "I know that name. He was planted. His background scroll was forged—I reviewed it last month, but something felt… off."
Jin Mu's seals sparked slightly. "And I saw him speaking with Elder Yan after the Dual Flame Trials."
Liu Shen's eyes sharpened.
> "Then it's decided."
---
The Flame-Hidden Test
Two nights later, Fang Yuren was summoned to the Flame Testing Hall, under the pretext of being evaluated for advancement.
He arrived quietly, respectful, cloaked in humble robes.
Liu Shen stood behind a screen, voice altered.
> "Place your hand on the Flame Stone. Show us your inner flame."
Fang hesitated. Then complied.
The stone glowed faint orange.
> "Low-tier fire affinity. Unremarkable," Yun Rou murmured.
Liu Shen stepped forward.
> "Let me test him… personally."
Before Fang could react, Liu Shen placed a glowing Crimson Spiral Rune on the youth's wrist—one that burrowed into his meridians instantly.
The boy screamed.
Then his spiritual signature changed.
The orange flame turned black.
> "He's using a soul mask," Rin gasped.
Jin Mu snarled. "That's forbidden even among sect killers—!"
Fang Yuren's face twisted. His eyes darkened, and a second voice echoed from his throat.
> "So you found me, Demon Sovereign."
Liu Shen's eyes turned cold.
> "Your master must be very desperate to send a Shadow-Eater to spy on me."
---
Assassin Unmasked
Shadow-Eaters were rare assassins—cultivators with no core of their own, bred from stolen bloodlines and puppeted by higher forces.
Their minds were bound to soul contracts.
Which meant this Fang Yuren… was not truly alive.
> "Tell me who your master is," Liu Shen demanded, activating Infernal Thread Bindings to immobilize the spy.
Fang laughed—a broken, hollow sound.
> "Even if I wanted to… I can't speak his name."
> "He… is already watching."
With a final twitch, Fang's eyes turned completely black, and his body imploded in a burst of shadow flame.
Gone.
Only a severed finger remained—a ring burned into it.
A serpent devouring its own tail, encircling a lotus.
Rin hissed. "That symbol… belongs to the Circle of Withering Bloom."
Yun Rou looked shaken. "They only answer to one man."
Liu Shen clenched the ring in his palm.
> "So… the one pulling strings behind Elder Yan…"
> "…is none other than Holy Blade Emperor Qin Wuya."