Deep beneath the Sealed Flame Pavilion, a new fire pulsed in rhythm with Liu Shen's heartbeat.
The Black Flame Lotus Ring on his finger flickered as he poured spiritual energy into the hovering scroll before him.
It wasn't paper.
It was flayed spirit skin, harvested from the infernal binding altar—shaped and stretched, marked with rebellious runes in crimson flame ink.
Rin watched, eyes narrowed. "You're forging… an Oath Scroll?"
Yun Rou stepped closer, whispering, "But those are banned."
Liu Shen nodded. "And yet every High Elder used them… during the Great Rebellion Era."
---
A Tool from the Age of War
> Oath Scrolls were soul-binding contracts from the pre-Sect era, crafted before the Searing Cloud Sect had rules.
Sworn on them, even gods couldn't break their terms.
Liu Shen smirked.
> "They used this against me once. Now I'll use it against them."
He dipped his finger in soulfire ink, composed of crushed jade talismans and demonic essence.
With steady strokes, he began writing the contract:
> "I, Fei Liansheng, by my own will, confess to the acts of soul manipulation, sovereign suppression, and treason against the balance of the sacred council…"
Yun Rou blinked. "You're forging his confession."
> "No," Liu Shen corrected.
"I'm preparing the trap."
> "If he speaks even a fragment of truth during the assembly… this scroll will ignite and bind his words forever."
Rin whistled. "That's... dark."
> "No darker than what he did to me."
---
Weaving Into the Council
Elsewhere, the Silent Flame Widow entered the Hall of Scrolls, her identity hidden beneath six layers of illusion.
She approached a disciple seated behind a glowing inscription table.
> "Invitation delivery. Grand Council Names List," she said curtly, handing over a jade slip.
The disciple frowned. "From whom?"
She smiled faintly. "From Elder Fei's administrative envoy."
With a stamp of approval, her falsified slip was added to the system.
Just like that, three names were added to the invite list for the next assembly:
1. Rin (Artificer representative)
2. Yun Rou (Strategic defense representative)
3. Liu Shen (Internal affairs auditor—acting substitute)
---
No Way Back
Later that night, Liu Shen studied the finished Oath Scroll.
It pulsed softly in his hand.
Alive.
Waiting.
Yun Rou asked quietly, "What if this doesn't work?"
He looked at the scroll, then the distant mountains where the High Council Peak sat cloaked in golden fog.
> "Then I burn them all down."
---
The Invitation Arrives
The next morning, a glowing phoenix talisman arrived outside Liu Shen's quarters.
A formal invitation bearing the Council Seal.
He broke it open.
Inside:
> "To Internal Auditor (Acting) Liu Shen…"
"Your presence is required at the Grand Council Assembly, Fifth Day of Flame Season…"
He smiled.
> "Let the trial begin."