The hall was silent enough that Li Han could hear the slow crackle of the incense burning beside Elder Wu's chair.The question hung in the air, heavy as a guillotine blade.
Kill a sect disciple?
Li Han's instincts screamed that refusing outright would be dangerous — perhaps fatal.But agreeing too quickly would mark him as reckless, someone who could be used without care.
"I'd need to know why," Li Han said evenly. "And who."
Elder Wu leaned back, fingers drumming the armrest."The why is simple — disobedience.The who…" His gaze sharpened. "…is a danger to my position.She's meddling where she shouldn't."
A folded slip of parchment floated from Wu's fingers, carried by a faint breeze until it landed before Li Han.
[System Alert]New Main Quest Unlocked: Silent Thorn.Objective: Eliminate Target.Target: Bai Xue, Inner Sect Disciple.Time Limit: 3 days.
Li Han's hand froze over the parchment. Bai Xue.The white-robed woman who had warned him in the apothecary earlier that day.
The room seemed colder.
"Any questions?" Wu asked, his voice soft but threaded with steel.
Li Han forced a neutral expression. "I will see it done."
Wu's smile was faint and predator-like."Good. Make it… quiet. I prefer my problems to vanish without echo."
Outside the hall, the crimson-robed attendants escorted him to the gate without a word.Only when he was alone did Li Han finally let out the slow breath he'd been holding.
This isn't a mission… it's a test. And a trap.
[System Prompt]Optional Branch:1 – Kill the target and gain Elder Wu's trust (High Reward, High Risk).2 – Protect the target and uncover Elder Wu's hidden agenda (Unknown Reward, High Risk).Note: Choice will lock after first action.
Night fell over Cloud Fang Sect, lanterns glowing like fallen stars along the walkways.Li Han slipped through the outer courtyards, avoiding the main paths.
Bai Xue's quarters were in the Inner Disciples' Pavilion — guarded, but not impenetrable.
He reached the tiled roof opposite her window, crouching in the shadows.Inside, Bai Xue sat at a desk, reading a scroll under lamplight.Her expression was calm… but her eyes flickered with the same sharpness he'd seen earlier.
Without looking up, she spoke.
"You're not here to deliver herbs."
Li Han's pulse quickened. She knew.
"I suppose," she continued, turning another page, "Elder Wu has decided I'm… inconvenient."
Her voice was steady, but her hand was resting on the hilt of a slender sword at her side.
"You have two choices, Li Han," she said quietly. "Do his bidding… or hear what I know about him.I promise you — it's worth more than his gold."
[System Notice]Warning: Dialogue Choice Detected.Path Divergence Possible.
And in that moment, Li Han realized that whatever choice he made tonight would shape not just his mission — but his entire path within the sect.