Location: Western Reaches – Cultivation World
The skies rumbled as the rift opened.
Wind howled. Lightning cracked.
And from the swirling portal, a figure stepped onto the scorched earth—lean, cloaked in black, and radiating quiet power.
Jinhyuk.
Gone was the chubby frame. His spiritual core burned clean. His movements, sharp. His gaze, ice.
> [Realm: Core Formation – Late Stage]
[Bloodline Compatibility: 38% Awakened]
[New Trait Acquired: Shadow Flame Body]
The world he left behind welcomed him with thunder.
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Eight Phoenix Peaks – Territory of the Crimson Sky Sect
A young woman stood at the edge of a waterfall, balancing on the tip of a blade floating midair.
Her robes shimmered with phoenix embroidery. Her hair flowed like fire, eyes cold and sharp.
She was known as Yue Qingxue—one of the youngest Inner Disciples of the Crimson Sky Sect.
Beautiful. Prideful. Feared.
And she had just sensed a ripple in the qi field.
"A rift…?" she murmured.
She turned—and saw a man walking across the shattered forest, calm and unhurried, as if the terrain bent to his will.
---
Their First Encounter
Jinhyuk halted at the base of the mountain.
Sect guards pointed spears at him. "State your identity! This is forbidden ground!"
He didn't even glance at them.
Instead, his gaze locked with Yue Qingxue's as she floated down to meet him, expression unreadable.
"Who are you?" she asked, voice sharp.
"Someone looking for answers," Jinhyuk said smoothly.
"Then you're lost," she replied, eyes narrowing. "This is the Crimson Sky Sect. We do not guide wanderers."
Jinhyuk gave a slow, almost mocking smile.
"I don't need a guide," he said. "I'm here to learn."
Her aura flared. "From us?"
"No. From your techniques."
That was the moment she realized—he wasn't here to beg.
He was here to take.
---