A few hours later, the twin moons of Heiyun City hung high in the sky, casting long, fractured shadows over the City Lord's mansion.
Inside a private pavilion surrounded by a shimmering Koi pond, two men sat facing each other. The air was thick with the scent of high-grade incense and unspoken schemes.
Xiao Ding, the Fourth Elder of Lingchuan Hall. Hei Yan, the Lord of Heiyun City.
Hei Yan poured a cup of spiritual tea. The liquid was a pale jade green, swirling with tiny vortices of chaotic energy.
"I wonder," Hei Yan said, sliding the cup across the table, "why Daoist Xiao has graced my humble abode at this hour?"
Xiao Ding picked up the cup. He took a slow, deliberate sip, letting the energy wash over his senses. He nodded, feigning appreciation.
"I did not expect City Lord Hei to possess such attainment in the Dao of Tea," Xiao Ding said, smiling. "Truly marvelous. It calms the spirit."
"Haha... Daoist Xiao flatters me," Hei Yan replied, shaking his head with a practiced modesty. "It is a small hobby. I dare not claim mastery in front of an Elder of Lingchuan Hall."
Xiao Ding placed the cup down with a soft click. The smile remained, but his eyes sharpened.
"Indeed, City Lord. Your modesty is well-known." He leaned forward slightly. "However, I did not come for tea. I need a favor. And I believe you already suspect why."
Hei Yan paused. He tapped his finger on the table. Tap. Tap.
"I assume," Hei Yan said slowly, "this concerns the young man from the inn?"
"It does," Xiao Ding confirmed, his voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. "I imagine you noticed something... peculiar about him?"
Hei Yan raised an eyebrow. "Peculiar is an understatement. Even with my cultivation base, his aura is a void. I cannot see his depth. It is like looking into a deep well at midnight."
"Exactly," Xiao Ding said. "That young man is Shen Xuan. He hails from a Hidden Clan in the Central Top Universe. His lineage has been dormant since the Fall of the Old Era, and only now have they chosen to re-emerge."
It was a lie. A calculated, dangerous lie designed to protect Shen Xuan while exploiting his potential.
"So," Xiao Ding continued, "my request is simple. I need you to forge an identity for him. A Heavenly Registry Token."
Hei Yan went still. He looked at Xiao Ding, his gaze piercing. The Heavenly Registry was the backbone of the Middle Plane's administration. Forging a token was a crime punishable by soul-scourging.
"You want me to fake a Registry Token for a scion of a Hidden Clan?" Hei Yan asked, skepticism coloring his tone.
Xiao Ding laughed, waving his hand dismissively. "Do not worry. He is not truly from the Central Universe. That is merely a cover I created. And even if he were... the profits of his rise will be shared between us. Think of it as an investment in a future Emperor."
Hei Yan took a sip of his own tea. He looked at the Koi fish swimming in the pond, their golden scales flashing in the moonlight.
"What is his bone age?" Hei Yan asked.
"Thirteen and a half," Xiao Ding replied instantly. "I have checked. His bone age is young enough to bypass the primary formations of the Registry."
"And his cultivation?"
"Chaos Seed Realm. Barely a foundation. But his soul... his soul is ancient."
Hei Yan was silent for a long moment. He weighed the risks against the potential rewards. A boy with Soul Intent. A boy who could terrify the Ji Clan into submission. If he rose, Heiyun City would rise with him.
"Very well," Hei Yan said. "Bring him here tomorrow. The verification procedures will take two days. I will handle the formations myself."
"Excellent," Xiao Ding said, standing up. "If this succeeds, I owe you a favor. And Lingchuan Hall will remember this friendship."
With that, Xiao Ding left, his green robes disappearing into the night.
Hei Yan remained by the pond, feeding the fish.
"Hidden Clan..." he murmured to the water. "Or perhaps... something far more dangerous."
At the Inn
In Shen Xuan's private courtyard, silence reigned supreme.
The formation carved into the walls glowed with a faint, rhythmic pulse, isolating the space from the outside world. Sound, light, and chaotic energy were sealed out, leaving only a vacuum of stillness.
In the center of the courtyard, Shen Xuan sat cross-legged on a meditation mat.
To an outsider, he appeared to be a young cultivator absorbing the essence of the night. But in reality, his consciousness was nowhere near Heiyun City. He had sunk deep within himself, diving past the flesh and bone, into the infinite abyss of his own soul.
His eyes closed. The world shifted.
Darkness unfolded like a curtain being drawn aside, revealing a universe within a man.
Chaos.
An endless, gray sea stretched out before him, vast beyond measure. It was neither still nor turbulent, neither light nor dark. Streams of Primal Chaos Energy flowed like ancient rivers, carrying fragments of shattered laws, broken timelines, and forgotten origins.
This was his Chaos Sea.
It was the foundation he had built in his previous life, a masterpiece of cultivation that had terrified the gods of the Old Era. Above the gray ocean, countless stars flickered faintly. Embryonic laws drifted like nebulas—mountains of gold, rivers of silver, cities made of pure will.
And in the center of this internal cosmos, floating above the gray waves, was a Seed.
A Purple-Golden Chaos Seed.
It was colossal. Compared to the seeds of mortal geniuses, which were mere specks of dust, this was a moon. It pulsed with a terrifying vitality, a heartbeat that could shatter realities.
However, it was flawed.
Countless cracks marred its surface, spiderwebbing across the purple-gold shell. And wrapped around it were layers of invisible, shimmering seals.
Shen Xuan's consciousness-avatar stood before it. In this world, he was not a boy of thirteen. He was a Titan, his form both vast and infinitesimal.
He studied the Seed.
Cracked, he thought, analyzing the damage with clinical detachment. But growing. The seals... they are not restraints. They are bandages.
He realized with a jolt that these seals were placed by his father. They were holding the Seed together. If he dared to circulate his cultivation technique now, the pressure would shatter the Seed, his Chaos Sea would collapse, and his soul would be obliterated.
I cannot cultivate yet, he realized. I must heal the cracks first. I must peel back the seals layer by layer.
Just as he reached this conclusion, a low hum vibrated through his Chaos Sea.
Hummmm.
A dark, golden-purple spear materialized from the gray mist. It was three meters long, etched with dragons and intricate patterns that hurt the eyes to look at. Hovering beside it was the jade token his father had left him.
The Eternal Spear.
"Young Master...!"
A voice echoed from the spear. It was young, hoarse, and filled with an eternity of waiting.
The spear trembled.
Shen Xuan's pupils shrank. His heart, which had been frozen for so long, skipped a beat.
"Ling'er?" he whispered, his voice trembling. "Ling'er... are you awake?"
A tear escaped the corner of his eye, falling into the gray sea.
A spiritual body drifted out from the spear.
It was a girl. She looked no older than twelve, with a pair of small, crystalline dragon horns protruding from her forehead. Her face was cute, ethereal, currently rubbed raw by confusion as she wiped sleep from her eyes.
"Xuan Ling... are you okay?"
Shen Xuan didn't wait. He rushed forward, wrapping the spiritual girl in a tight embrace.
"Huh... Young Master?"
The girl blinked. She looked at Shen Xuan's avatar, confusion written all over her face.
"Why is Young Master so... small?" she asked, tilting her head. "Why are you a child?"
Shen Xuan froze. He pushed her away to arm's length, looking at her with a weird expression. The tears stopped. A smile, genuine and amused, broke through his sorrow.
"You mischievous girl," he laughed, his voice thick with emotion. "You dare to tease your Master? You ask why I am small, but why has your language become so terrible?"
Bonk.
He lightly knocked her head with his knuckle.
"Ouch!" Ling'er rubbed her forehead, pouting. "Young Master! Ling'er is sorry! It is just... I haven't spoken in an unknown period of time. I forgot how words work!"
She looked up at him with wide, innocent eyes that held the depth of a galaxy.
Shen Xuan shook his head, speechless. He opened his arms again and pulled her back into a gentle hug.
"Ling'er," he whispered into her hair. "Are you okay?"
The playfulness vanished from Ling'er's face. She rested her head against his chest, her expression turning somber.
"Young Master... Ling'er is not okay," she whispered. "After that war... we were destroyed. Master and Madam... they suffered so much. Do you remember when Master called you back from the Chaos Void?"
"I remember," Shen Xuan said, his voice tightening.
"Since Young Master remembers," Ling'er continued, her voice trembling, "then let me tell you. Before you were called back, the Five Great Clans held a secret meeting. They predicted that..."
AHHH!
Ling'er screamed.
Her spiritual body convulsed violently. She clutched her head, falling to her knees on the surface of the Chaos Sea.
"No... it hurts! It hurts!"
A backlash of terrifying proportions slammed into her spirit. The mere attempt to speak the truth triggered a karmic restriction so powerful it threatened to erase her existence.
"Ling'er!" Shen Xuan dropped to his knees beside her, panic flooding his veins. "Stop! Do not speak! Stop thinking about it!"
She trembled, gasping for air, her spiritual form flickering like a dying candle.
"Young Master..." she sobbed, pain etching lines into her face. "It... the pain... it won't stop..."
"It's okay," Shen Xuan soothed, pouring his own soul force into her to stabilize her. "Forget it. The Karma involved is too great. Our current strength is not enough to bear the weight of that truth. Do not speak of it."
Gradually, the pain receded. Ling'er slumped against him, exhausted, her breathing ragged.
"I am sorry, Young Master," she wept, guilt washing over her. "Ling'er is useless. I know... but I cannot say..."
"Hush," Shen Xuan whispered, stroking her hair. "You are not useless. You are here. That is enough."
He looked at the gray sky of his inner world, his eyes cold. Whatever secret she holds... the Heavens themselves are terrified of it being spoken.
"Ling'er," he said softly. "Rest in my Chaos Sea. Heal yourself with the broken laws here. Do not force the memories. When we are strong enough... the truth will speak itself."
"Yes, Young Master," she whispered, fading back into the spear.
Shen Xuan remained kneeling for a long time. Then, with a heavy heart, he withdrew his consciousness from the sea, returning to the silent courtyard and the lonely night.