The morning began with clear skies and a breeze gentle enough to stir the tassels of Huolian's crimson canopy.
She sat with her usual grace, ink flowing from her brush like water from a mountain spring. Customers gathered in the early rush, eager to buy their "luck." Meilin handled the payments now. Huolian only painted.
Her eyes eagerly looked around both in excitement and fear.
Every heartbeat carried weight. Every footstep that echoed in the stone alley behind her made her flinch beneath her smile.
He was coming.
She didn't know how she knew. She just did. Like the air itself braced in anticipation.
It wasn't long before the crowd parted.
Not with fear.
With awe.
A man in violet robes trimmed with pale gold walked silently down the cobbled path. His steps made no sound. His gaze, clear as polished jade, cut through the crowd with gentle authority.
Shenxiu. The fourth disciple of the great Bo-Yuan, the current head of the the Yuan Li sect.
Yuan Li was a large sect, primarily focused on strength over everything. It controlled multiple cities along with Mushan.
The crowd didn't scatter, they bowed. No one had to shout his name. Cultivation that deep announced itself.
He stopped at her stall. A faint smile touched his lips.
Huolian stood to greet him, bowing low. "Esteemed cultivator. How may this one serve you?"
Her voice was smooth. Polished. Not even a flicker of her soul wavered.
But her heart raced like a trapped bird.
Shenxiu looked at the hanging talismans. His gaze settled on the lacquered boxes behind her. Then, back to her.
"You are the artist?"
Huolian bowed again. "I only apply brush to paper, Senior."
"Indeed," Shenxiu said softly. "And the ink knows your soul."
A blade veiled in silk.
Huolian forced a smile, "We infuse each charm with sincerity, of course. That is the Jiang family's-"
"I would speak with her," Shenxiu interrupted, now looking at Jiang Wei, who had hurried over in reverence.
"Senior, please… she is only a child. If there was offense please forgive me."
"I said I would speak with her," Shenxiu repeated gently.
But the gentleness was the pressure of deep sea currents. Inescapable. Inarguable.
Jiang Wei blanched. "Of course. Please, this way…"
Huolian followed him into the family's private tea room, her steps quiet but measured. She entered first, bowed again, and sat where directed.
Shenxiu entered like mist, taking the cushion opposite her.
Lan served them both tea in silence. Huolian saw the tremble in her hand as she placed the porcelain cup beside Shenxiu. When she left, she dared not even close the door too loudly.
Silence.
Then he took a sip.
Shenxiu exhaled, savoring the oolong with a nod of approval.
"You hid it well," he said.
Huolian blinked. "I don't understand."
Shenxiu's eyes remained fixed on the steam from his cup. "You did not use your own soul. Not on the newer ones. That is clever. Most demonic cultivators lose their edge to hunger. But you-"
"I am not-" she interrupted.
"You are," he interrupted again, setting the cup down.
His gaze met hers fully for the first time. Calm. Serene. And merciless.
"I could have burned your entire soul-thread the moment I felt it. Do you know why I didn't?"
Huolian didn't answer.
Because she couldn't lie.
Shenxiu's lips curved in a faint smile. "Because it was brilliant."
She blinked. Her heart jumped, confused.
Shenxiu folded his hands in his lap.
"Do you know how many years I spent trying to teach disciples that soul and commerce are inseparable? That faith is not a sin but a form of cultivation? You understood it naturally. You made a network that fed you not through fear, but through willing offering. Not domination, but design."
Huolian remained silent, jaw tight.
"I admit," he continued, "I was impressed. Enough to consider copying it myself. But I came in person because I had to know, was it intentional? Or accidental brilliance?"
"And what did you decide?" she asked softly.
Shenxiu chuckled. "That you are either a fool who stumbled into genius, or a genius pretending to be a fool. Either one is dangerous."
She didn't flinch.
Not outwardly.
But she could feel it, he wasn't just toying with her. He truly didn't know whether to praise or execute her.
He leaned forward slightly.
"So I offer you a path," he said.
Huolian's breath hitched.
"You will come with me. Become my disciple. Under my protection, you will continue your soul-weaving. We will refine it together, build a greater network. Violet Cloud Pavilion has resources, reach, safety. And I will ensure none dare accuse you of impurity."
His voice dropped lower. "Or…"
The word lingered.
His hand twitched.
Not toward a weapon.
Toward nothing.
Because he didn't need one.
A Shen Realm cultivator needed only intent to kill.
"I end it here. Now. No mess. No witnesses. Just a sudden silence."
Huolian's knuckles turned white on her lap.
'This is what fate feels like,' she thought.
It wasn't just the threat of death. It was the reality of exposure. Of being known. Understood.
Shenxiu saw her.
He hadn't pried her secrets open yet but if he knows that she possesses both transmigration and foresight dao tools of realms beyond the Shen realm.
She gulped at the thought of it.
She swallowed, voice quiet. "And what if I say no?"
"Then I will kill you." His tone did not change. "Not because you are evil. But because you are efficient. I have seen warlords and scholars with less clarity of design than you. If left unbound, you would grow into something I could not control. And I do not tolerate variables."
A pause.
Then he reached into his sleeve and placed a slip of violet silk between them.
A disciple token.
Sealed with his mark
Huolian stared at it.
She could feel the formation etched into it. Not spiritual chains, an oath. Binding and empowering her at the same time.
It would make her untouchable.
It would also make her his pawn.
She lifted her tea and sipped.
She needed time.
But she would get none.
"I need an answer," Shenxiu said.
"Now."
She looked him in the eye, forcing herself to match his calm.
"What would your Sect say? About taking in a soul-weaver?"
Shenxiu's smile returned. "They will say nothing. Because I will say nothing. You will be taught as an alchemist. A merchant. A 'network cultivator.' Call it what you like. But your techniques, your web, will belong to me."
"And if I come with you," she said, fingers tightening, "what then?"
"You thrive," Shenxiu said simply. "And you learn what it means to live without fear."
Huolian's thoughts raced.
She couldn't win if she ran.
Not against him.
Even if she escaped, he would find the thread again. Burn it. Track her. End her. This was not a cultivator who gave second warnings.
She looked down at the token again.
It shimmered faintly.
'Trapped again,' she thought. 'But at least this time, the cage is velvet-lined.'
She picked it up.
"I accept," she said softly.
Shenxiu nodded once, satisfied.
"You have two days," he said, standing."I will speak to your father now. You will be 'married' to one of my disciples. You will leave with honor."
Huolian bowed.
He left.
And the room suddenly felt five degrees warmer without his chilling presence.
Huolian sat still long after he was gone.
Then she whispered, "So this is how the demon joins heaven."