The Southern Weald had always been described in sect manuals as a "Tier 1 Resource Zone"—a place where Outer Disciples gathered spirit-herbs and hunted low-level jade-rabbits. But as the squad stood at the forest's edge under the grey light of dawn, it was clear that the manuals were dangerously obsolete.
The trees, once vibrant with spiritual vitality, now possessed bark that looked like bruised flesh. A low, clinging mist snaked between the roots, smelling faintly of old copper and stagnant water.
Xue Lianhua, leading the group, held her hand up. She was dressed in her "True Disciple" battle robes, her aura crystalline and sharp. "The spiritual density here is inconsistent," she noted, her voice low. "The 'Iron Law' mandates caution. Shen Yuanxing, you take point. Ruxin, stay in the center. Lin Qingyu, you cover the rear."
"I'll try not to get tripped by a vine," Lin said, adjusting the straps of a backpack that looked far too heavy for a Level 4 disciple. In reality, the bag was balanced with a mathematical precision that ensured he could move at full speed if necessary, though he made sure to walk with the slight, rhythmic heave of a man struggling with his luggage.
[Emotional Stability System]
Zone Entry: The Southern Weald (Corrupted).
Environmental Threat: 25% (Mildly Toxic).
Squad Harmony: 60%.
System Note: Your 'Divine Sense' is picking up 'Vibration Traps' beneath the topsoil. The others are focused on 'Qi signatures,' but the 'Silent Rot' operates on a physical, kinetic frequency.
Advice: If you tell them to stop, they'll ask how you know. If you don't, Shen Yuanxing is about to lose a leg.
I'm on it, Lin thought.
The squad moved deeper into the woods. Shen Yuanxing was a golden streak in the dim light, his sword partially unsheathed. He was scanning the canopy for demonic beasts, his Qi Condensation Level 6 senses tuned for high-energy threats.
"The air is getting thicker," Mu Ruxin whispered, holding a sensing-compass. "The needle is spinning. The spiritual ley lines are being twisted by something underground."
"Keep moving," Shen said, his voice tight with the pressure of his new responsibility. "The sooner we find the first 'Corrupted Node,' the sooner we can report back. We aren't here to study the grass, Ruxin."
Lin Qingyu trailed ten paces behind. He wasn't looking at the sky or the compass. He was looking at the way the grey mist curled around certain patches of ferns. To a normal eye, it was random. To Lin, it was a map of pressure plates. The "Silent Rot" had turned the root systems of the trees into a networked trap—"Bone-Snap Vines" that triggered when a certain amount of spiritual pressure was applied to the soil.
Shen Yuanxing was about to step directly onto the primary trigger-root of a massive, corrupted willow.
"Wait!" Lin shouted, stumbling forward.
The squad froze. Shen's sword was out in an instant, his eyes darting toward the shadows. "What is it? Did you see a demon?"
"No," Lin panted, doubling over and pointing at his own boot. "My... my lace. It's caught. And I think I dropped my water flask back there. I'm such a klutz, I really shouldn't have packed the extra honey jars."
Shen Yuanxing's face turned a shade of irritated red. "Lin Qingyu! We are in a militarized zone, and you're stopping us for a water flask?"
"It's a very good flask," Lin insisted, "but look, while I was bending down, I saw this... weird mushroom." He pointed a finger—not at the trap, but at a cluster of harmless, glowing fungus two inches away from the trigger-root. "It looks like the 'Void-Grip' fungus from the Old Texts, doesn't it, Ruxin?"
Mu Ruxin stepped closer, her curiosity piqued. She looked where Lin was pointing. As a researcher, her eyes were trained for detail. She didn't see a Void-Grip fungus, but she did see the slight, unnatural tension in the soil that Lin had subtly highlighted by pointing near it.
"Wait, Shen! Don't move your foot!" Mu Ruxin cried out.
She knelt down, her face turning pale as she brushed away a layer of dead leaves. Beneath Shen's boot, barely an inch away, was a thick, pulsating vein of black wood, covered in jagged thorns that dripped with a paralytic ichor.
"A 'Marrow-Eater' trap," Xue Lianhua whispered, stepping forward. Her frost-Qi flared, instantly freezing the root solid. "If you had stepped on that, the entire grove would have collapsed inward. The roots are interconnected."
Shen Yuanxing looked at the frozen trap, then at Lin, who was currently "struggling" to tie his shoe.
"You found that because of a water flask?" Shen asked, his voice a mix of suspicion and lingering adrenaline.
"Luck of the clumsy, I guess," Lin said, standing up and dusting off his robes. "My mother always said my lack of grace would save my life one day. I didn't think she meant it literally."
Xue Lianhua looked at Lin for a long moment. She didn't say anything, but her icy gaze lingered on his hands. She had noticed that even when Lin "stumbled," his center of gravity never actually shifted. He was like a top that looked like it was wobbling but was perfectly centered.
As they progressed, the forest became a labyrinth of silence. The birds had long since fled, and the only sound was the crunch of rotted leaves underfoot.
Lin Qingyu continued his "Performance of Mediocrity." He would occasionally "trip" to divert the group away from a pocket of toxic gas, or "complain about the smell" to lead them toward a cleaner path. To Shen and Mu Ruxin, it seemed like Lin was a lucky charm—a walking disaster whose blunders somehow always led to safety.
"The first node should be near the 'Widow's Creek,'" Xue Lianhua announced. "The intelligence report said the Evil Sects were using the water to transport the corrupted essence."
They reached the creek, but the water was no longer liquid. It was a thick, viscous sludge that moved with a slow, predatory intent. In the center of the creek stood a "Totem of the Rot"—a pillar made of fused human bones and dark jade, pulsing with a sickly green light.
"There it is," Shen said, his grip tightening on his sword. "The source."
"Wait," Mu Ruxin said, her compass spinning violently. "The energy isn't coming from the totem. The totem is just a lightning rod. The energy is being pumped up from below."
Suddenly, the ground groaned.
From the sludge of the creek, three figures rose. They weren't demonic cultivators; they were "Corrupted Husks"—Outer Disciples from a rival sect who had been turned into mindless, undead guards. Their skin was the color of lead, and their eyes were filled with the green fire of the Evil Sects.
"Foundation Establishment level strength," Xue Lianhua warned, her sword singing as she drew it. "Stay in formation! Shen, take the left! I'll take the center! Lin, protect Ruxin!"
The husks moved with a jerky, unnatural speed. One lunged at Shen, its claws leaving trails of green rot in the air. Shen engaged it, his golden sword-light clashing against the husk's hardened skin.
Lin Qingyu moved back with Mu Ruxin. He looked like he was "hiding," but his eyes were scanning the battlefield. He saw what the others missed: the Totem was drawing power from the creek to heal the husks every time they were struck.
If they don't break the totem, the husks won't die, Lin thought. But if I break the totem with a Level 4 strike, it won't even scratch it. I need to make it look like a 'natural' accident.
He saw a large, overhanging deadwood tree leaning precariously over the creek. The base of the tree was infested with "Fire-Spore" beetles—creatures that exploded when exposed to a sudden burst of cold.
"Ruxin, stay behind this rock!" Lin shouted.
He "panicked" and ran toward the deadwood tree.
"Lin, get back here!" Shen yelled, parrying a blow that should have taken his head off. "What are you doing?"
"I'm looking for a weapon!" Lin cried. He reached the tree and "clumsily" threw a heavy stone at the Fire-Spore colony. At the same time, he flicked a tiny, microscopic needle of his own ice-aligned Qi into the nest.
The reaction was instantaneous.
The beetles, sensing the sudden "Ice-Path" attack, triggered their defensive explosion.
BOOM!
The base of the deadwood tree shattered. The massive trunk, weighing several tons, groaned and collapsed directly onto the Bone Totem in the creek.
The jade pillar shattered under the physical weight. The green light vanished instantly.
The three Corrupted Husks froze. Without the totem's energy, their bodies couldn't sustain the Evil Sect's magic. They collapsed into piles of ash before Shen or Xue could even deliver a finishing blow.
The forest fell silent once more.
Shen Yuanxing stood in the creek, his sword still glowing gold. He looked at the fallen tree, then at the shattered totem, then at Lin Qingyu, who was currently "cowering" behind the stump of the deadwood tree, his hands over his ears.
"You... you threw a rock at a Fire-Spore nest?" Shen asked, his voice shaking with a mix of disbelief and exhaustion.
"I thought it was a beehive!" Lin shouted back, his voice muffled by his hands. "I thought the bees would attack the monsters! I didn't know they would explode!"
Mu Ruxin ran over to Lin, checking him for injuries. "Qingyu! That was incredibly dangerous! You could have been blown to bits!"
"But it worked, didn't it?" Lin said, looking up with a sheepish grin. "The big tree fell on the bad stick. My father always said, 'If you can't outrun the bull, lead it into a wall.'"
Xue Lianhua walked over to the shattered jade pieces of the totem. She picked up a fragment, her eyes narrowing. She looked at the tree stump where the Fire-Spore nest had been. The explosion was consistent with a natural reaction... but the timing was too perfect.
She looked at Lin. He was currently complaining to Ruxin about a "splinter" in his finger.
"We need to move," Xue said, her voice cooler than usual. "The destruction of the totem will alert the nearby Evil Sect cells. We've identified the first node, but the 'Silent Rot' is deeper than we thought."
She turned to Lin. "Disciple Lin. From now on, you are not allowed to throw rocks at anything without my explicit permission. Is that understood?"
"Yes, Senior Sister," Lin said, nodding vigorously. "No more rocks. I'll stick to throwing dirt."
[Emotional Stability System]
Mission Progress: Node 1 Destroyed.
Squad Status: * Shen Yuanxing: Confused. He's starting to think you're a 'Lucky Calamity.'
Mu Ruxin: Relieved. She's convinced you're a brave idiot.
Xue Lianhua: 90% Suspicious. She's trying to figure out how a 'natural' explosion happened at the exact micro-second she was about to be flanked.
User Condition: Level 4 Qi (Steadily Balanced).
Mental Stability: 100%.
System Note: That was a very messy save. Using Fire-Spore beetles was creative, but the Ice-Fairy is starting to notice the 'coincidences.'
Warning: The next node is guarded by a 'Rot-Stalker'—a creature that hunts by sensing 'Hidden Qi.' If you keep your foundation locked tight, it will find you instantly. You'll have to find a way to look 'unstable.'
As the squad moved deeper into the Southern Weald, the trees began to twist into even more grotesque shapes. The air grew colder, and the green mist turned into a thick, choking fog.
Lin Qingyu walked behind the others, his "average" footsteps sounding loud in the silence. He knew the next part of the expedition would be the true test. The first node was just a scout. The "Rot-Stalker" was a predator designed to find people like him—people who hid their true depths.
I have to look unstable, huh? Lin thought. Easy. I'll just act like a man who's had too much honey and not enough sleep.
He stumbled again, this time intentionally hitting his shoulder against a tree. "Ouch! Watch out, Senior Sister, the trees are very aggressive in this part of the woods!"
Shen Yuanxing sighed, the sound echoing through the fog. "How did I end up with the only disciple in the sect who can be bullied by a stationary plant?"
"It's a talent, Shen," Lin whispered to himself. "It's a talent."
The expedition was only just beginning.