The northern wastes of the Tianxu Realm stretched like a scar across the earth; their crags jagged as broken blades under a sky heavy with ash-gray clouds. Li Wei followed the black-robed guide through a labyrinth of stone spires, the wind howling like spirits lamenting their fate. His gray robes, tattered and stained, clung to his frame, the stolen dagger at his waist a cold reassurance. The cold intent pulsed within, a nether-born rhythm that sharpened his gaze to every shadow, every glint of qi in the distance. Qingyun Sect pursuers trailed him, their presence faint but relentless, like hounds scenting blood. Let them come. The Black Lotus Clan awaited, a crucible where only the ruthless endured.
The guide, face shadowed beneath a bamboo hat, moved with a cultivator's grace, his qi restrained yet potent. "The clan does not welcome dregs," he said, voice low as a temple chant. "Prove your worth, or your bones will bleach these wastes."
Li Wei's lips curved, the cold intent masking his fatigue. "This one's worth lies in will, not talent. The Black Lotus shall see." The guide grunted, unimpressed, and led on.
They reached a hidden valley, where a gate of blackened jade rose from the earth, carved with lotuses entwined by serpents. Its aura pressed against Li Wei, heavy as a mountain's decree, testing his resolve. The cold intent flared, its deathly aura pushing back, and the gate's pressure eased. The guide glanced at him, eyes narrowing beneath the hat. "Curious. You carry a strange presence."
Li Wei bowed slightly, voice smooth as polished jade. "Merely the mark of a desperate act, honoured senior. This one stole qi from a dying elder to forge meridians. Such is the way of survival."
The guide's eyes lingered, but he said nothing more, gesturing forward.
Beyond the gate, the Black Lotus Clan sprawled,a fortress of dark stone pavilions, their roofs curved like scythes, surrounded by fields of ghostly white lotuses that pulsed with faint qi. Disciples in sable robes moved with purpose, their eyes sharp with ambition, not arrogance. This was no righteous sect; here, power spoke, and weakness was a death sentence. Trust was a fool's dao,every glance hid a dagger, every word a potential snare. Li Wei's pulse quickened,not with fear, but hunger. This was his arena, where lies would be his shield.
The guide led him to a courtyard where a gaunt elder awaited, his robes embroidered with silver serpents, his aura a storm barely contained. "You flee Qingyun's wrath," the elder said, voice like grinding stone. "A servant, talentless, yet you dare seek the Black Lotus. Speak,why should we not cast you to the beasts?"
Li Wei knelt, head bowed, but his mind raced, weaving deceptions. Trust no one; reveal nothing true. "This one, Li Wei, offers no talent, only resolve. I stole qi from a dying elder in Qingyun, using forbidden rites to etch meridians. Such acts are not uncommon in the shadows. Test me, and I shall prove my place."
The elder's gaze sharpened, qi probing like a needle. "Stolen qi? Common enough among the desperate. But your killing intent is unusually fierce for a worm. How did you cultivate such edge?"
Li Wei's heart skipped, but he masked it, letting the cold intent simmer just enough to seem like potent killing aura, not the Nether's taint. No one could sense its true nature, only Nether Realm beings could pierce that veil. To this elder, it was merely a strong intent, honed by survival. "Esteemed Elder, desperation forges sharp blades. In Qingyun, I endured humiliations, swallowing bitterness until it became my strength. No secret arts, only will tempered in the fires of resentment."
The elder's lips twitched, a flicker of scepticism, but he gestured to a stone platform, its surface etched with runes of trial. "Words are wind. Survive the Lotus Crucible, and you may join our ranks. Fail, and your soul feeds the wastes."
Li Wei stepped forward, the cold intent thrumming. The platform's runes glowed, qi surging like a tide, pressing against his meridians. Pain flared, his newly forged channels straining, but he held firm, drawing on the elixir's lingering fire,its origin a secret buried in lies. The taint pulsed inwardly, shielding his mind from the trial's weight, unseen and unspoken. Visions flickered,shadows of the Nether Realm, whispers of his countless deaths,but he pushed them aside, focusing the cold intent like a hidden blade.
The runes dimmed, the pressure fading. Li Wei stood, breath ragged but unbroken. The elder nodded. "Passable. You hide depths, but in the Black Lotus, all secrets surface eventually. Enter as an outer disciple, but know this: trust no one, for we spare none."
Li Wei bowed deeply, inwardly scoffing. As if he needed the reminder. "This one thanks the elder's mercy." Mercy was a lie; he would claw his way to power, trusting only his deceptions.
Assigned a spartan chamber in the outer sect, Li Wei sat cross,legged, probing his qi. The elixir's power had stabilized his meridians, but the curse throbbed in his chest, a tether to the Nether Realm. Its origin? A desperate ploy in the gray expanse, feigning submission to the skeletal lord, snatching the vial amid its arrogance. He had drunk it, twisting the curse with his taint, but that truth was his alone,no one would know, lest they exploit it.
Closing his eyes, he tested his cultivation, drawing spiritual essence from the air. The qi flowed stronger now, but the taint stirred, and the world flickered.
Gray shadows enveloped him, the Nether Realm's chill seeping in. The skeletal lord loomed, eyes blazing. "You defy me, mortal," it hissed. "The elixir was my gift, yet you twist my curse."
Li Wei smirked, the cold intent a shield. "You offered power, and I took it. Bind me if you must, but I'll carve my own fate."
The lord's claws slashed, but the mirror domain,born of the taint's mutation,flared, a shadowed void within the Nether Realm. It absorbed the attack, trapping a fragment of the lord's essence. The realm shuddered, and Li Wei snapped back to his chamber, gasping, a new weight in his soul. The mirror domain had grown, a nascent space where captured energies swirled, waiting to be wielded.
He exhaled, wiping sweat from his brow. No one could know of this,lies would guard his secrets, as trust invited betrayal.
Days later, during a night patrol, Li Wei sensed a presence,a Qingyun disciple, cloaked in stealth, tracking him. The cold intent surged, and he let a sliver of its aura flare, masking it as killing intent. The disciple froze, eyes wide with dread, then fled into the wastes. Li Wei's lips curved. Fools saw only what he allowed. In this ruthless world, lies were his true power.