Lian Ye hung upside down.
The obsidian gallery was quiet. Even his breathing felt loud.
Threads dug into his wrists and ankles, suspending him midair like an upside-down crucifix
.
Hei Zhen raised him higher without looking at him.
"Was he right…?" Hei Zhen muttered under his breath.
A pause.
"No. Grim is never wrong."
He turned back.
Before he could speak—Lian Ye did.
"I did it for information."
Hei Zhen's brows twitched.
"Information," Lian Ye continued calmly, despite the blood rushing to his head. "Information I didn't want the other factions to find out about."
Silence, then a small talon knife shot from behind Lian Ye.
It sliced through the air.
Hei Zhen stepped back instinctively.
The blade spun once.
Clean.
The threads snapped.
Lian Ye dropped.
Thud.
He rolled, landing low, already shifting into a fighting stance.
Hei Zhen's shock lasted less than a second.
New threads shot out, weaving in the air around him like quiet threats.
Then—
His expression changed.
Gone was the killing intent.
His voice, when he spoke, was calm.
Too calm.
"I knew it."
Lian Ye blinked.
His stance loosened.
Hei Zhen wasn't attacking.
Instead, he looked… satisfied.
"Well," Hei Zhen said lightly, "I always knew Bai Qiren was going to die, but not everyone needs to be saved. I can help you get the information you want." Lian Ye's eyes narrowed.
"What are you talking about?"
Hei Zhen turned and began walking deeper into the Obsidian Gallery.
"First," he said casually, "you should destroy the old files which were given to you by the rouge informants."
Lian Ye froze.
"What?"
"They're fake."
A quiet chuckle echoed through the dark chamber.
They passed rows of weapons — broken spears, rusted blades, fractured relics humming faintly with residue. Some were stained with things that weren't rust.
Hei Zhen stopped before a door.
Not obsidian.
Not labeled.
Just… there.
He turned slowly.
"I have a proposal for you," he said. "One you won't refuse."
And for the first time, Lian Ye felt something worse than hostility.
He felt like he was being positioned.
---
Rooftop — Night Wind
Kael Jinhai sat cross-legged on the roof, polishing his sniper.
Methodical.
Calm.
Footsteps approached.
He didn't react.
"I just got back today."
Jinhai froze.
He turned.
It was a faction member he hadn't seen in months.
Relief flickered across his face.
"You were on a mission?"
The man nodded.
Then his tone shifted.
"I heard you're going after the new figure. The one who killed Bai Qiren."
Jinhai's fingers tightened slightly around the cloth.
The man stepped closer. "But why?" he asked quietly. "Why is Vice Captain Tel so obsessed with him? He just appeared."
No answer.
The man stood. "Maybe it's an order from a God Order member." Wind passed between them.
"Or maybe…" he added, voice lowering, "the new figure is one."
Jinhai's gaze sharpened.
"Test it," the man continued. "See if he has a world."
Silence.
"If he does… enter it. Force him to show his full capabilities."
A small smirk.
"You might rise faster that way. Well that is just my opinion, because it isn't only you who has the chance of becoming the next vice captain."
He jumped from the roof, disappearing into the faction grounds below.
Jinhai remained seated.
Looking at his sniper.
Thinking.
A world.
If the new figure truly had one…
Then this wasn't a hunt.
It was a trial.
---
Hei Zhen led Lian Ye into the second room.
The air inside felt heavier.
Statues stood in silent rows, each one carved with unsettling precision. Every figure was slightly taller than life — exaggerated just enough to feel unnatural. Their expressions were calm. Watching. Waiting.
Lian Ye's footsteps slowed.
Hei Zhen stopped near the center of the room. He didn't turn immediately.
When he did, his gaze locked onto Lian Ye's.
"Are you ready to hear the proposal?"
Lian Ye didn't answer right away. His eyes drifted across the statues — warriors, scholars, unknown figures frozen in stone. Each one felt important.
"Why," Lian Ye said at last, voice steady, "do you think I'll agree?"
Hei Zhen's expression didn't change.
"Because if you refuse," he said softly, "a certain secret may find its way beyond this room."
Silence.
"You may become a target of the Freedom Order."
A pause.
"Perhaps even the God Order."
The words settled like frost.
For a moment — just a moment — Lian Ye's composure cracked. The implications were enormous. Being marked by either faction meant endless pursuit. Endless conflict.
Hei Zhen didn't press him.
He didn't need to.
After several breaths, Lian Ye straightened.
"…What's the task?"
Hei Zhen walked past him toward one of the statues.
This one stood apart.
Long robes flowed around its carved frame. Long hair cascaded down its back. In one hand it held a pouch. In the other, a small vial. Its other arm stretched upward, as if offering something to the heavens.
Hei Zhen stopped in front of it.
"Help me kill someone."
He turned slightly.
"A member of the God Order."
The room felt colder.
Hei Zhen stepped back, lowered his head just enough to be deliberate.
"This is a request… from the Puppet Master."
He bowed slightly.
And for the first time since entering the building, the weight of the situation became real.