"In a world ruled by masks, truth is the most dangerous weapon."
— Xie Lan
---
[Location: Underground Vault – Beneath the Imperial Martial Academy]
The entrance lay hidden beneath the west courtyard, concealed beneath a lotus-shaped stone that required both spiritual pressure and bloodline resonance. Yue's scroll had been accurate. The crack in the Emperor's seal glowed faintly as Xie Lan pressed his palm to the cold stone.
> [System Alert: Bloodline Lock Detected Compatibility 83%]
[Override Protocol Active: Shadow Authority Token Applied]
Access Granted.
Stone ground against stone as the slab sank into the earth, revealing a spiraling staircase descending into darkness. A chill breeze wafted from below dry, stale, and humming with buried power.
Xie Lan descended.
Each step was etched with forgotten scripts, older than the Eastern Empire's current dynasty. His eyes burned with subtle light as the Shadow Cloak adjusted to the low-light environment. The deeper he went, the more the air buzzed not just with spiritual energy, but with memory. Echoes of pain, rage, and ambition clung to the walls like mold.
> [System Passive Activated: Predator's Intuition]
Warning: Emotional Residue Detected – Proceed with Caution
At the bottom, a vast stone door pulsed faintly. He reached for it and it opened of its own accord.
Inside, the vault was a cathedral of silence.
Shelves of jade tablets lined the walls. Scrolls of silk bound with black thread. Crystal canisters holding preserved spirit cores. And at the center an altar surrounded by six statues, all masked.
A faint whisper reached his ears:
"Villains are not born… they are chosen."
Xie Lan stepped forward. One of the statues pulsed with light.
> [System Notification: Echo Altar Engaged]
Origin Memory Fragment Detected: Subject 001 – "Ruoyan"
His breath hitched.
A beam of light flared from the altar. An illusion took shape his mother, younger, standing in ceremonial robes before a masked tribunal.
"Your son bears the Curse Sigil," one voice declared. "You've hidden its potential. Why?"
Ruoyan raised her chin. "Because you fear what he will become if he knows."
Another voice: "You violate your oath to the Silent Accord."
"I defy monsters," she spat. "Not oaths."
The illusion flickered and died.
> [System Unlock: Villain Trait Acquired – Blood of the Unwritten]
+10% resistance to memory-altering spiritual arts
So she had fought them.
Fought the Hidden Court. Fought the Emperor. Fought fate.
And lost.
But Xie Lan had no intention of losing.
He approached the altar and placed his hand on a dark obsidian tablet. Cold surged through his veins.
> [Warning: Forbidden Technique Detected – The Bone Mirror Sutra]
Status: Dormant | Risk Tier: High | Mutation Potential: Unknown
With one pulse of will, he claimed it.
---
[Flashback Fragment – Academy, Ten Years Ago]
The old master had said, "There are three levels of loyalty. To kin. To throne. To truth. Most die serving the wrong one."
Xie Lan had believed him then.
He no longer did.
---
[Location: Eastern Palace – Crown Prince's War Hall]
Elsewhere, Crown Prince Xie Yan's fingers curled around a spiritual map. The beast he'd dispatched had failed. Worse, his network of spies within the Academy reported Xie Lan was not only alive, but stronger.
He exhaled slowly, eyes burning gold.
"Summon Grand Seer Mo," he said.
A eunuch bowed and left.
Moments later, a hunched figure in red silk and bone bangles entered. Blindfolded, with a third eye drawn in ash on her forehead.
"You called, Your Radiance?"
"Tell me," Xie Yan murmured, "is the past truly dead?"
The seer tilted her head.
"I see a red thread cut and tied anew. The same soul, but… sharpened. Reforged."
Xie Yan's gaze narrowed.
"Then burn the thread."
The Grand Seer whispered something inaudible. A dozen talismans flared to life behind her. Spells of tracking, severance, banishment. The war for the future had begun and it would not be fought with swords alone.
---
[Location: Academy Library, Secret Wing – Morning]
Back at the Academy, Xie Lan emerged from the vault just before sunrise. Dirt-streaked and drained, but not broken. A sealed scroll now rested in his robes—containing one of the Forbidden Doctrines from the vault: The Bone Mirror Sutra.
> [Forbidden Technique Acquired: Bone Mirror Sutra – Stage 1]
Allows the host to reflect spiritual techniques with corrupted Qi.
Warning: High backlash risk.
Outside, a servant intercepted him.
"Your Highness," the boy stammered, "the Headmaster requests your presence in the Hall of Ivory Fans. At once."
Xie Lan arched a brow.
They'd noticed.
Good.
He followed without a word, boots tracking dust along the pristine marble. The game was no longer in shadows alone. Now the court would see his first move.
---
[Location: Hall of Ivory Fans – Noon]
The Headmaster's quarters were not open to students unless summoned. Dozens of white-painted folding screens adorned the marble floor, each inscribed with the philosophies of past dynasties. A single brazier burned blue incense—truth smoke, meant to reveal lies.
Three figures waited inside.
The Headmaster, High Elder Jiu; the Minister of War's younger brother, Lord Zhao Wei; and an unfamiliar man clad in silver-gray robes trimmed in obsidian.
"Seventh Prince," the Headmaster greeted, "I trust you slept well."
Xie Lan bowed shallowly. "I did not sleep."
Lord Zhao narrowed his eyes. "And yet you emerged from the sealed vaults beneath our Academy like a ghost."
"I was never sealed," Xie Lan replied. "Only forgotten."
The silver-robed man finally spoke. "You possess a forbidden technique. By all rights, you should be executed."
> [System Warning: Incoming Trial Dialogue – Passive Charm Skill Active]
"I possess a technique," Xie Lan said calmly, "that would have kept our southern border from falling five years ago. If that's grounds for execution, perhaps the empire has no will to survive."
Silence.
The Headmaster cleared his throat. "Your talent... has grown."
Xie Lan smiled. "My resolve has grown more."
> [Villain Points +20 | Title Gained: Whispering Thorn]
New Perk: +10% influence during political negotiation scenes
"I have no interest in thrones that sit still," he said. "But I will uproot rot where I find it."
A quiet voice spoke from behind one of the fans.
"You speak with ambition."
Xie Lan's eyes flicked toward the speaker. A girl stepped into view. White-robed, silent steps, eyes like winter water.
Yue.
She bowed low. "I vouch for him."
The Headmaster's brows lifted. "You are a student."
"I am an agent of the Hidden Court's auxiliary wing," she corrected softly. "And I report directly to Grand Archivist Song."
Shock rippled through the room.
Yue turned to Xie Lan.
"If you seek to reshape this empire, I will walk behind your shadow and watch the path clear."
Xie Lan said nothing. But his hand brushed the scroll beneath his robes.
This was only the beginning.