Han Li stood before his seated students, the classroom unnaturally silent. A strange energy pulsed through the air—a mixture of awe, uncertainty, and something that couldn't be named.
He tossed a chalk stick into the air. It hovered, frozen mid-fall.
"Today's lesson," he began, "will not be found in your books. Nor will it be approved by any sect."
Bai Xiaoyu raised her hand hesitantly. "Instructor Han… is this allowed?"
"Not even slightly," Han Li replied with a grin. "But it will keep you alive when your so-called genius opponents can only scream."
He waved his hand. The blackboard vanished, revealing an illusion of a crumbling battlefield where thousands had died. "This was where I first tested the Pathless Way. Everyone lost their minds. I was the only one smiling at the end."
The students glanced at one another, unsettled.
"This technique," he continued, "doesn't bind you to the world's rules. It breaks them. Where others see limitations, you'll see madness… and through that madness—freedom."
He placed a hand on Lei Jin's shoulder. "You'll go first."
Lei Jin swallowed hard.
Han Li whispered a mantra into his ear—an old tongue, primal and layered. A faint black light began to swirl around Lei Jin's spine. His qi reacted violently. He screamed, but Han Li held him firm.
"Breathe. Accept the chaos," Han Li said calmly.
Moments later, the light faded, and Lei Jin opened his eyes. They now glowed faint purple.
"…I can feel everything," Lei Jin whispered. "Even my heartbeat sounds like thunder."
Han Li turned to the class. "Now… who's next?"