The Sect of Shadows was no longer a whisper.
Liu Shen stood before the stone map etched into the ravine floor. Lines of qi traced the continent's sacred sects, forbidden zones, and divine watchtowers.
He pointed to one name glowing red.
> "Sacred Lotus Sect."
Lei Qing frowned.
> "Heaven's alchemic lapdogs. They supply refined spirit cores to the upper realm."
Yu Meixing cracked her knuckles.
> "Their root vaults hold enough materials to rebuild a kingdom."
Liu Shen smiled coldly.
> "Then we'll take it all."
---
Target: Vault of Purity
Hidden in the Sacred Lotus mountain range, the Vault of Purity was protected by six Grand Formation Circles and a floating Lotus Pagoda guarded by elite Spirit Blossom Disciples.
But Liu Shen wasn't planning a siege.
He planned a surgical strike.
> "Six elite disciples," he said. "Form the advance team. No survivors."
He turned to the twins—Wen Zhi and Wen Lan.
> "I want the inner wards disabled in under twenty breaths."
He looked to Yu Meixing.
> "Lead the front. I want that vault open by moonrise."
Then he whispered to Lei Qing:
> "You and I… we'll take care of the high priestess."
---
Lotus Falls in the Night
The Sacred Lotus Sect had long stood untouched—protected by divine favor and the illusion of peace.
Until that night.
The ravine opened, and from it poured shadows.
The strike began.
Yu Meixing led the charge, blades coated in soul-suppressing poison. She danced between spirit sentries, cutting them down before they could ignite their defensive talismans.
Wen Zhi and Wen Lan worked in tandem—shifting through walls like mist, disabling the rune-locks with forbidden soul arts.
Then—BOOM.
The vault gates fell.
Liu Shen stepped inside, cloak fluttering in the alchemic flames.
> "Take what we need. Burn the rest."
---
The High Priestess of Lotus
Deep in the inner sanctum, Liu Shen found her.
Priestess Lianxue—once a disciple of the Celestial Flame Sect. Now cloaked in lotus petals laced with divine qi.
She rose to meet him, eyes glowing with judgment.
> "You defile what is sacred."
Liu Shen extended a hand.
> "Only weeds here."
They clashed—petal blades against demonic flame. For a moment, the sanctum was a field of blooming death.
But Liu Shen was no longer a man reborn.
He was the flame that refused to be extinguished.
And flame burns all.
---
A Message Written in Fire
By dawn, the Sacred Lotus Sect was gone.
Its vaults emptied. Its records erased. Its banners burned.
In the ashes, one message remained—scorched into stone:
> "The heavens do not own the flame."
—Demon Sovereign Liu Shen