Static…
A piercing hiss drilled into his marrow. His body convulsed, and agony flooded him, a fire in every nerve. His bones threatened to splinter. His flesh burned. Pain drowned his consciousness.
Something split him in two. Two souls tore at each other inside his body. One was his own, Lin Rui, from the neon-drenched streets of Los Angeles, the man who had taken a bullet on a rainy night.
The other was pure bitterness and despair.
Am I already dead?
The cold rain, Wang Ruohan's face, the fire in his chest… it was all real. So what was this?
Memories crashed through him. Chaotic images. Fractured sounds.
The Aethelian Realm. The Viridian Prefecture. Bamboo Cloud Town. A young man, cultivation, a clan, and…
The two words burned into his fractured awareness. Spirit-Corroding Powder.
A chill accompanied the name. The instincts of a private investigator flared, locking onto the malice coiled inside the phrase. This poison wasn't just for the body. It was designed to contaminate, to erode something deeper.
The thought had barely formed when the static grew deafening. A distorted, black-and-grey image flickered before him, a screen of snow and ill omen. Behind it, something twisted and watched. The pain surged, a dual assault that threatened to tear him apart.
Just then, his fingers tightened on something he had been clutching all along. A scroll, cool and pliable, made of hide or treated bamboo.
A faint coolness flowed from it, seeping into his limbs. The current suppressed the agony, and even the maddening static receded. He clung to that single sensation, every part of his focus narrowed to survival.
An unknown time passed. The coolness trickled on, a persistent flow washing away the chaos. At last, his mind broke free. Clarity returned.
He shot upright.
His hands pressed against a cold, coarse surface. A bamboo mat. The air hung thick with a cloying, musty smell of damp earth and incense, a scent of decay that pricked his nose. The darkness was near-total, broken only by slivers of light filtering through cracks above. They did little to illuminate the chamber: a small, dilapidated room with rough-hewn stone walls and piles of refuse in the corners.
Holy shit. Glad they didn't bury me outright. His shoulders slumped with relief. Waking up any later would have meant clawing his way out of a box.
Then the other memories hit him.
The body's original owner also carried the name Lin Rui, a disciple of the Lin Clan in Bamboo Cloud Town. His aptitude for cultivation was dismal, making him a joke among the younger disciples. His family branch, led by the current clan head Lin Tianhua, never lacked for basics, but he was still a target of constant disdain. His father, Lin Yuntian, had vanished years ago on a journey, his fate unknown. This Lin Rui had noticed his body failing a few months back. His pitiful cultivation regressed as his vitality drained away, all thanks to the Spirit-Corroding Powder.
With the memories came the clan's tangled politics, its rigid hierarchy, and the hardships of disciples from minor branches.
This starting hand is worse than the toughest case I ever worked. He rubbed his temples.
He was still processing the information when his old senses caught something new.
Creek.
The sound came from a stone door, one almost hidden in the wall. A soft tread, deliberately quiet.
More than one. Two, at least.
His body reacted before his mind could. Lin Rui's muscles tensed, then went slack. He dropped back onto the mat, pulled it over his body, and held his breath. He shut his eyes and became a corpse.
A voice whispered from the doorway. "Brother Feng, this piece of trash… you think he's really dead?"
Another man stepped into the room, his shadow long in the slivers of light. "The Spirit-Corroding Powder has been in his system for this long. It'd be a miracle if he wasn't. We have to finish the job."
Brother Feng. A job. The words registered, cold and sharp.
The first man shifted his weight. "So, we get rid of him now?"
"Obviously." Brother Feng's tone was impatient. "Hurry up, before any deacons or elders find out. We don't need complications."
The moment a hand reached for his nose, Lin Rui's eyes snapped open.
He launched himself from the mat, caught the approaching wrist in a reverse grip, and twisted.
CRACK!
A muffled grunt followed the sound.
"Agh! My hand!" Brother Feng staggered back, his voice cracking.
The other man stared, his mouth agape. "You… you're not dead?!"
"Hell spit me back out." Lin Rui drove a kick into the man's gut.
"Gah!" The man doubled over and flew backward, slamming into the stone wall. His eyes rolled back as he slid to the floor.
Clutching his broken wrist, Brother Feng fumbled at his waist with his good hand and pulled out a rusty dagger. "You little bastard, you dare…"
Lin Rui dodged the clumsy slash and closed the distance. He hammered an elbow into Brother Feng's chest, followed it with a knee, then an uppercut. Each blow landed on a vulnerable point, beating the man into a daze. A final chop to the neck ended it. Brother Feng crumpled without a sound.
Lin Rui's eyes fell on the two empty bamboo mats nearby. He grinned. He dragged the two men like sacks of grain, dumped them onto the mats, and covered them.
"Enjoy your rest." Lin Rui dusted off his hands and let out a low laugh. "Let's see if you two wake up before you get buried."
Only then did he remember what he'd been clutching. He bent down, fumbling on the floor until his fingers found the cool, pliable bamboo scroll. By the faint light from the ceiling, he made out the characters carved upon it: The Azurewood Heart Art: A Fragment.
The moment his fingertips touched the scroll, something inside him ignited.
An azure light erupted from his body. It was pure, filled with a potent life force, the essence of spring and rebirth. The light carried a majestic aura as it spread, unstoppable, blanketing the entire Lin Clan compound.
Deep within the compound, atop a great stone dais, the Spirit-Web Nexus began to thrum. Dozens of spiritual jades embedded in its surface flared with blinding light.
A white-haired elder snapped his eyes open. "This… this is Azurewood Resonance!" he gasped, rising to his feet. "Have the ancestors returned, or has someone achieved a transcendent state?"
In several hidden corners, figures cloaked in black looked up, their eyes wide. The faint black mist coiling around them dissolved in the pure, azure light.
One of them hissed. "Damn it! This aura… it counters us! Retreat, now!"
Back in the stone chamber, Lin Rui stared at his own glowing hands. "What the hell? What… what did I just do?"
A weak but relieved voice sounded from behind him. "Ahem… Don't be afraid. That was my doing."
Lin Rui turned. A shimmering, translucent form stood before him, an exact replica of the body he now inhabited, its expression apologetic.
"Just now… I used the last of my soul-force… to purge the remaining Spirit-Corroding Powder from you." The spirit's voice was halting and faint. "I didn't expect it would cause such a commotion."
Lin Rui stared, speechless.
The spirit of the original Lin Rui waved a hand, his expression calm, almost wistful. "My time is short. I was given a choice to go to a new place. A new journey of my own. So please, live on for me. From this day forward, you are me."
Lin Rui had a dozen questions, but this wasn't the time. He gave a solemn nod. "Okay. I will."
Relief softened the spirit's expression. His form wavered and thinned into nothing, vanishing completely from the small chamber.
The instant the spirit faded, heavy steps sounded from beyond the stone door. The sound, accompanied by the metallic rasp of armor, grew closer.
BANG!
The stone door was kicked from its frame.
A dozen guardian cultivators poured into the room. They wore the clan's dark azure uniform jackets with longswords at their waists. Torchlight from outside glinted off drawn blades, flooding the chamber with light. They surrounded Lin Rui before he could react, their blades held ready.
A tall, gaunt man with a thin goatee strode in, his hands clasped behind his back. He wore an elegant, dark purple brocade robe embroidered with a delicate green-wood pattern. His sharp eyes commanded the room. This was Lin Tianhong, Master of the Lin Clan's Discipline Hall.
He focused on Lin Rui, his brow creasing. "Rui'er, what are you doing here?" His quiet voice seemed to press down on the air.
Lin Rui scrambled for an explanation, letting his face go slack with weakness and confusion. "First Uncle… I… I don't know what happened." His voice was hoarse, with a convincing tremor. "I'd been feeling worse these past few days, and today, everything just went black. When I woke up… I was here. Wait, I remember now. I was poisoned with Spirit-Corroding Powder!"
Lin Tianhong stared, saying nothing. His narrow eyes revealed nothing while he weighed the words, his thoughts clearly on something deeper. The air in the chamber grew heavy.
After a moment, he broke the silence. "Very well. This is no place to talk. Come with me. You will see the Clan Head, your grandfather."
Lin Rui kept his head down and followed. They moved through a series of twisting corridors, finally stopping before an imposing hall. On the black lacquered plaque above the entrance, three characters were carved in a bold script: Azurewood Council Hall.
The hall was spacious and somber. Seated in the master's chair was a man who bore a slight resemblance to Lin Tianhong but commanded an even greater presence. This was the current head of the Lin Clan, Lin Tianhua. He was dressed in a black brocade robe with a cloud pattern, his expression calm and imposing.
Flanking the central aisle were more than a dozen grand chairs, occupied by clan elders and other high-ranking members. Every eye in the hall was fixed on him, filled with appraisal, curiosity, and scrutiny.
His heart hammered against his ribs, but he fought to keep his expression neutral.
Lin Tianhong walked to Lin Tianhua's side and spoke in his ear. As Lin Tianhua listened, his calm expression flickered. His brow twitched as he looked at Lin Rui.
After a moment, Lin Tianhua's steady voice filled the hall. "Rui'er, are you aware of the phenomenon we call the 'Ancestors' Blessing' in our clan?"
Lin Rui bowed his head. "Replying to the Clan Head, your grandfather… this grandson is dull-witted. I may have seen it mentioned in the clan's records, but I do not know the details."
Lin Tianhua nodded. "A short while ago, the Spirit-Web Nexus detected an unprecedentedly pure surge of azure-wood spiritual energy. The Nexus traced its source back to the sealed chamber where we found you. Such a magnificent life force could only be triggered by the legendary Azurewood Resonance of our clan. This resonance is the sign of our ancestors' spirits watching over us. It is the 'Ancestors' Blessing'. I suspect your fate was not sealed, my boy. The power of our ancestors manifested to purge the vile poison from your body."
Lin Rui froze, but a manic glee surged through him.
Seriously? It's that convenient? This alibi is perfect!
He let dawning realization, then overwhelming gratitude, wash over his face. "So… so that's what happened!" His voice was hoarse, filled with the relief of a survivor. "This grandson thanks the ancestors for their protection! If it weren't for the Ancestors' Blessing, I… I fear I really would have…" He raised a sleeve to his eye, brushing away a non-existent tear. "Thank the heavens the ancestors were watching, or your grandson would have died such a pointless death!"
Standing to the side, Lin Tianhong watched the performance. For an instant, a warning flickered in his eyes, then vanished.
"From this day forward, for your safety, two clan guards will always accompany you," Lin Tianhua announced. "I will also dispatch a Spiritual Handmaiden from the inner household to attend to your daily needs. You may now rest and recover. See that no more trouble finds you."
Lin Rui hid a sneer. Protection, or surveillance? Still, it's better than nothing.
He shed the feigned grief, his face brightening with relief. "Thank you, Clan Head Grandfather! This is wonderful! Rui'er… Rui'er finally doesn't have to live in fear anymore, eating scraps, worried that even a full meal might be poisoned! Oh, thank you!" He dropped to one knee as if overcome.
Lin Tianhong watched from the side, a muscle jumping in his jaw. This kid… he's different today. A far cry from the timid boy he used to be.
The questioning that followed was grueling. Clan Head Lin Tianhua, though amicable on the surface, probed every detail of the "Ancestors' Blessing." The other elders were just as intense, their eyes sharp, their questions laced with doubt. Lin Rui held firm, repeating his fabricated story, adding just enough detail to sell the lie without changing its core. He parried their questions until they could find no more holes in his account. Only then did Lin Tianhua wave a hand, allowing Lin Tianhong to lead him out.
They walked in silence. Lin Tianhong escorted him to the front of his courtyard before departing.
The small courtyard had been neglected since Lin Yuntian vanished six years ago. The walls were choked with moss, some sections bearing visible fractures. Weeds grew thick between the flagstones, and cobwebs swayed under the eaves. Pushing open the creaking wooden door released a musty scent of dust and mildew.
Lin Rui's nose wrinkled. The place was hardly better than some crime scenes he'd worked in Los Angeles. He dragged his unsteady feet into the house. The room was small and sparsely furnished with a wooden bed, a table with a chipped corner, and a few overturned ceramic jars.
He began to clean, opening the windows to air the place out, then finding a scrap of cloth to wipe down the furniture. The simple work left him gasping for breath.
"I'll sleep on it first," he decided, just as he was about to collapse onto the bed.
Knock, knock, knock. Someone was at the courtyard gate.
A moment later, a gentle, hesitant female voice called out. "Young Master Rui, are you there? My name is Zhu Tao. I have been sent by the Clan Head to attend to you. Also, he has ordered for your courtyard to be repaired at once."
Lin Rui rose and opened the door. A young woman of about sixteen, dressed in a light-azure gown, stood outside. Behind her were seven or eight servants in simple, fitted clothing.
"Thank you for your trouble." Lin Rui gave her a nod.
Zhu Tao stepped aside, and the servants filed in. The one in the lead, who looked like a steward, saluted Lin Rui. "Begging your pardon, Young Master Rui. The Clan Head's orders are to have this courtyard refurbished quickly."
As he spoke, the servants set to work. One produced a palm-sized yellow talisman and pressed it against a fractured wall. With a flash of yellow light, the cracks sealed. Another servant took out a strangely shaped mallet and tapped it against the sagging eaves. With each tap, a faint green light seeped into the wood, and the roofline straightened. Several others, holding tools that shimmered, cleared the courtyard of weeds in moments.
Lin Rui watched, a sound of amazement clicking in his throat. In this world, even manual labor is a display of strange powers.
Noticing his expression, Zhu Tao lowered her voice. "Young Master Rui, the inside of the house also needs repairs. Do you think…"
Lin Rui waved a hand. "You all carry on. I'm going for a walk." With all the hammering and people coming and going, sleep was impossible anyway.
Then he remembered. Those two thugs I knocked out in the sealed chamber… what happened to them?
He strolled out of the courtyard. Following the twisting paths from memory, he soon found himself back near the remote stone chamber. The guards were gone, and the stone door was still ajar.
Lin Rui slipped inside. The chamber was empty. The only thing left was the faint, lingering smell of blood.
The empty room felt cold. He searched the chamber methodically but found nothing, not a single clue.
"Tsk. They work fast." Lin Rui rubbed his chin, his expression hardening.
During the chaos of his "Ancestors' Blessing" and the interrogation, someone had already slipped in and removed the two men.
Who is trying to harm me from the shadows? Why would a 'good-for-nothing' with no cultivation get in someone's way?
The questions piled up, none with an easy answer.