At dawn's edge, the crack that Lu Hanshan had carved open with his axe the previous night had already spread—right to where Jiang Muchen's feet rested.
The sky was still gray when the dormitory door slammed open. Lu Hanshan filled the doorway like an iron tower. His coarse shirt was soaked with morning dew, and the hatchet in his grip glinted with a faint gold sheen—like the last star refusing to fade before daylight.
Ten men froze.
Even the late risers shoved their heads under thin blankets. Everyone knew Lu Hanshan—silent as a stone, violent as a mad bull. Three years ago, when an outer disciple insulted his parents, he chased the man halfway up a mountain with that same hatchet. The Law Enforcement Hall flogged him thirty times for it; he spent two months bedridden.
From the corner bunk, Jiang Muchen sat up calmly. Long before Lu Hanshan stepped through the courtyard gate, Jiang had already sensed his turbulent mood with the *Ten Thousand Spirits Resonance Art*—excitement, confusion, and a desperate, all-or-nothing resolve.
"Jiang…" Lu Hanshan's throat worked, voice rough as sand grinding metal. "Junior Brother Jiang."
He said *Junior Brother*.
In the Red Dust Pavilion, that title wasn't for people like them. Servants shouted names or said "hey, you." "Junior Brother" belonged to the *real* disciples—the ones who mattered.
Jiang stepped barefoot onto the cold floor and stopped precisely three paces before the towering woodcutter's son. "Good morning, Senior Brother Lu."
Lu Hanshan drew a long breath… then held out his hatchet with both hands, hilt first.
"Last night," he rasped, "I practiced like you told me. Three hours. The torn skin… already scabbed. And when I ran my spiritual power upward along the Shaoyin Kidney Meridian—something broke open at my spine. Like a gate."
He swallowed hard, eyes reddening.
"For the first time in my life… the spiritual power felt *alive*."
Jiang didn't take the blade. His gaze fell on the faint golden aura clinging to the edge. With his insight technique running, he could *see* the wisp of metal-essence, thicker than yesterday, wrapped in a mellow, earthy spiritual force—quiet and obedient, like a beast cub returning to its den.
"Congratulations, Senior Brother," Jiang said softly. "Earth and metal nourish each other. You've always had an excellent foundation. It was simply covered in dust."
Lu Hanshan trembled.
*Covered in dust.*
The words hit him like red-hot nails driven straight into the rot he hid deep in his heart. For three years—ever since they tested him as dual-rooted Earth-Metal but still tossed him into the servant barracks—he'd heard nothing but:
"Servant roots are trash."
"Lowborn brats shouldn't dream."
And he had almost believed them.
But last night's strike… that surge of strength from the earth into his spine… that felt like a dragon waking.
"I…" Lu Hanshan suddenly dropped to one knee and lifted the hatchet high. "Please, Junior Brother Jiang—teach me!"
Gasps erupted across the room.
A servant kneeling to a servant? If word spread, Lu Hanshan would never lift his head again.
But Jiang sidestepped the kneel, one hand lightly supporting Lu Hanshan's elbow. "Senior Brother, you'll break my lifespan doing this. I merely noticed a few small details—I'm unworthy of the word 'teach.'"
He didn't use strength, but Lu Hanshan still rose. Not because Jiang pushed—because Lu Hanshan's emotions had hollowed his footing.
"I gave you everything I knew yesterday," Jiang continued. "Now that you've found your path, it's simply a matter of *sink the breath, guide the force, keep the intent*. At dawn and dusk, when earth-qi rises and falls, face east and breathe. Imagine yourself like a mountain—your power like iron."
He paused.
"As for your blade work…"
Jiang looked him in the eyes. "This hatchet has birthed a wisp of innate metal-essence. That's fortune. But if you want to walk the path of a body-tempering weapon cultivator, chopping wood won't be enough."
Lu Hanshan's voice cracked. "Then what must I do?"
Jiang didn't answer directly.
"Do you know which elders in the sect specialize in tempering the body—or the Earth-Metal path?"
Lu Hanshan blinked, confused. Of course he didn't.
Jiang nodded as if expected. "Yesterday, while cleaning outside the Scripture Hall, I overheard elders from the third floor mention that the *Golden Armor Sacred Temple* recently unearthed a fragment of the **Indestructible Vajra Body** manual. Earth and metal forging the flesh—perfectly aligned with your roots."
Lu Hanshan's heart stopped for one beat.
That was it.
Lowborn disciples didn't lack effort. They lacked **direction**—a path they could see, touch, believe in.
"But," Jiang added, "that fragment sits on the Scripture Hall's third floor. Only inner disciples or those with a thousand contribution points can access it. And it's incomplete—dangerous without guidance."
The light in Lu Hanshan's eyes dimmed instantly.
Then—
"I'm delivering firewood to Elder Huoyun's Groundfire Court today," Jiang said lightly. "He's a master smith. He once explored that same Sacred Temple. He might know something."
Lu Hanshan's breath hitched.
Jiang lifted the bundle of firewood he'd prepared—carefully chosen *Red Sun Wood*, steady-burning and loved by smiths.
"If you trust me," Jiang said gently, "come with me. Groundfire Court needs laborers. One day's work earns two spirit stones, and the leftover heat can temper your body. As for meeting Elder Huoyun…"
He smiled.
"That depends on fate."
Lu Hanshan clenched his hatchet, knuckles white.
"I'll go," he rasped.
---
They reached the Groundfire Court near the sect's volcanic ridge. Heat hit them before the building even appeared—thick with sulfur and molten metal.
A long line stretched before the main gate—outer disciples carrying materials. Jiang and Lu stood at the back, painfully conspicuous.
"Hey! Servants?" a disciple in embroidered robes sneered. "Firewood delivery uses the side gate. Don't block us."
Jiang lowered his head. Lu Hanshan's jaw bulged, but he endured.
The side gate would only lead them to minor stewards. Jiang needed the **main gate**—the one Elder Huoyun personally visited at this exact time every day.
So they waited.
Jiang closed his eyes, letting his spirit sense spread through the crowd—observing, practicing.
A woman three spots ahead carried a "Cold-Iron Ore" with a hairline fracture she was hiding.
A man on the right bore the Heavenly Sword Sect's insignia on his jade token—likely a spy.
A dozen more secrets skimmed past Jiang's awareness.
The remnant soul of Bai Gui had been right. The cultivation world was a marketplace—information the most valuable currency.
Then Jiang felt something strange.
A scrawny youth whispered to a Groundfire steward. His sleeve bore the faint pattern of the **Nine Provinces Chamber of Commerce**. His bag was full of low-grade junk, but something was hidden on his person.
More importantly… Jiang sensed **purple soil** stuck to the boy's boot.
Purple Glimmer Soil—the kind found only at the edge of the *Phantasm Bloom Expanse*. A secret realm.
Puzzle pieces clicked together:
A junior merchant.
Smuggling realm intel.
Recently in contact with someone from the Bloom Expanse.
Now trying to use rumors about **Flameheart Grass** to curry favor with Elder Huoyun.
An opportunity.
Jiang opened his eyes exactly as—
The main gates thundered open.
Elder Huoyun strode out shirtless, red-haired, muscles like coiled iron, heat radiating from him in suffocating waves.
"Today I'm buying **Flameheart Grass**, **Groundfire Gold**, and **Lava Cores**!" the elder barked. "If you don't have them, get lost!"
His voice shook the ground.
One by one, disciples presented materials—most rejected instantly.
Then the scrawny merchant stepped forward with a jade box. "Elder, I have information on Flameheart Grass."
"Speak," Huoyun grunted.
The youth babbled vague rumors about a disturbance at the southeastern rift of the Flame Prison—no details worth anything.
Elder Huoyun's frown deepened.
That was Jiang's cue.
From the back, his voice cut across the courtyard:
"Elder, this junior might be able to add a detail or two."
Laughter broke out. A *servant*? Daring to speak?
But Elder Huoyun turned—and his eyes sharpened.
"Oh? Then speak."
Jiang bowed respectfully.
"Yesterday while cleaning the Scripture Hall, I came across a record in the *Southlands Volcano Chronicle*. It noted that Lava Beasts at the southeastern rift gather at the *Earthfire Eye* during full moon nights to swallow moonlight. To avoid the herd, one can enter roughly three hours before the full moon—during the ebb of the earthfire tide."
Silence settled.
Jiang continued calmly:
"And the Chronicle states that **mature Flameheart Grass doesn't radiate heat**. Instead, *all fire-spiritual energy within three paces contracts, and red frost appears on the stone surface*. Those who search only for high heat will miss it entirely."
The courtyard froze.
Elder Huoyun stared for three long breaths—then burst into booming laughter.
"Good! *Now* that's someone who actually reads!"
He jabbed a finger at Jiang. "You. Come here."
Jiang stepped forward with the Red Sun Wood. The elder barely glanced at the wood—he was too busy examining Jiang.
"What's your name? Which peak?"
"Jiang Muchen. From the servant barracks."
"Servant?" Huoyun blinked—then grinned. "A servant who can see this much? Interesting. I'll take the wood. From today on, every three days you deliver a cart to Groundfire Court. You'll be paid in **outer disciple contribution points**."
Gasps echoed.
Contribution points worth ten times what servants could earn.
Jiang bowed. "Thank you, Elder."
The elder then tossed a red iron token toward Lu Hanshan. "You're with him? Earth-Metal dual root—good for body forging. Take this. The Backmountain has a *Bone-Tempering Pit*. Soak at noon every day."
Lu Hanshan caught the token with shaking hands.
Elder Huoyun was already turning away. "Jiang Muchen! Bring me a full written analysis on Flameheart Grass tomorrow. Do it well—I'll reward you."
Then he strode inside, leaving the courtyard stunned.
The merchant youth glared at Jiang and fled.
Jiang paid him no mind. He simply looked at the Red Sun Wood in his hands.
Same firewood.
Different fate.
Lu Hanshan moved beside him, voice trembling. "Junior Brother Jiang… I…"
"Congratulations," Jiang said with a small, knowing smile. "Your path has opened."
He lifted his gaze toward where the merchant had vanished. Gold light flickered faintly in Jiang's eyes.
The Nine Provinces Chamber of Commerce…
The Greenmist Medicine Valley…
The Phantasm Bloom Expanse…
The next piece is ready to fall.
*Being needed is more powerful than currying favor.
Real 'flattery' is becoming the piece on someone's board… that they can't afford to sacrifice.*
---