The moon cast silver streaks across the quiet garden of the Outer Court, bathing the stone paths in a soft, melancholic glow. The chirping of night insects mixed with the soft rustling of the trees, yet beneath the calm lay tension—unspoken, coiled like a serpent in the grass.
Kael stood alone beneath a flowering moon-petal tree, his eyes turned skyward, deep in thought. The events of the past few days clung to him like shadows—memories of the duel with Shan Yu, the strange gaze of the Elders during the ceremony, and Lin's shifting behavior.
Lin.
He hadn't seen her since the evaluation. She'd withdrawn again, and Kael couldn't blame her. He was the thorn in her path, the engagement that kept her bound to a boy the sect believed to be talentless.
She hadn't spoken a word to him since the last time they met—when he stepped in front of her to deflect a blow meant to humiliate her during the duel. That moment had been brief, their eyes meeting only for a heartbeat, but something had passed between them. Confusion. Anger. Maybe even fear.
He let out a sigh and turned away from the garden. It was pointless to linger. If he wanted answers, he'd have to earn them.
The next morning dawned with the flare of trumpets and excited whispers. News had broken throughout the sect that the annual inter-sect trials were approaching. The sects from the Five Peaks Alliance would gather in less than a fortnight to select promising disciples for temporary exchanges and joint missions. This year, a new sect would join—an obscure but powerful one from the Northern Glades.
Kael's name wasn't on the list of participants. Naturally. His spiritual strength didn't register on standard detection techniques. He wasn't even supposed to qualify for core disciple status, let alone be chosen for inter-sect trials.
But that was about to change.
Later that day, Kael made his way toward the Eastern Peak library. Few Outer Court disciples bothered with the place—it was buried in dust, with outdated scrolls and forgotten techniques. But for Kael, it was a sanctuary.
He pushed open the creaking doors and descended into the archives. The scent of old parchment filled his nose. Moonlight filtered in through cracks in the stone ceiling, dancing over shelves of ancient scrolls.
Kael knelt near a hidden alcove beneath one of the bookshelves. After making sure no one was watching, he reached into the narrow space and pulled out a worn scroll tied with a black ribbon.
He unrolled it with reverence. It was a forbidden technique from the Crimson Vine Sect—a soul-threading technique designed to weave spiritual energy into the body's meridians without alerting detection artifacts. He had discovered it months ago, hidden in a misfiled crate of confiscated scrolls.
It was thanks to this very technique that his cultivation remained invisible. Even now, he was at the peak of Foundation Realm, yet none could see it.
And still, it wasn't enough.
He needed more.
Kael's hand brushed across the scroll, and he closed his eyes. He had memorized every word of the technique. It was time to apply it again—to refine his soul threads further, to push the veil deeper, to keep them blind.
Three days passed.
During that time, Kael was seen less and less. Whispers spread among the disciples that he had vanished out of embarrassment after the evaluation. Some laughed, others simply forgot.
But Lin didn't forget.
One evening, as the sun dipped below the horizon, Lin found herself walking toward the Outer Garden. She didn't know why. Perhaps it was curiosity, perhaps guilt.
She remembered the moment during the duel—how Kael had moved with a precision and grace that shouldn't have been possible for someone supposedly untrained. How he had shielded her from a blow meant to humiliate her.
She couldn't shake it.
There was something about him. Something buried.
"Why do you keep doing this, Kael…" she whispered into the wind. "Why do you pretend?"
As if summoned by her voice, she heard footsteps behind her.
She turned, startled.
Kael stood there, his robe dusty, his hair slightly tousled, but his eyes—his eyes gleamed with quiet power.
"Lin," he said softly.
She blinked, taken aback. "Where have you been?"
"Studying," he replied.
She hesitated. "You… you shouldn't overdo it. You'll only disappoint yourself when the detection stones show nothing."
"I'm not trying to impress the stones," he said, voice calm. "Only myself."
She narrowed her eyes. "You always speak like that—so humble, so composed. As if you're hiding something."
Kael didn't answer.
Lin took a step closer, folding her arms. "You… you blocked that strike for me. Why?"
"You're my fiancée," Kael said simply. "Even if it's just a name, I should at least protect you."
Something in her chest fluttered.
She looked away. "Well… don't think that means anything."
Kael smiled faintly. "I won't."
That night, Lin returned to her quarters unable to sleep. She stood by her window, watching the moon rise.
A memory flashed in her mind—Kael as a child, always trailing behind her and her younger sister, always getting bruised or scolded, but never complaining. And now, that same boy stood unyielding before her, carrying a quiet strength that both confused and unsettled her.
"Just what are you hiding, Kael…" she murmured.
The next morning, a messenger arrived at Kael's door.
"You are summoned by Elder Ru of the Northern Glades Sect," the messenger said. "You have been nominated as a wildcard entry for the inter-sect trials."
Kael blinked. "But I'm not even on the list."
The messenger smirked. "Apparently someone vouched for you. Said you had 'unseen potential.'"
Kael's eyes narrowed. He hadn't expected this.
As he packed his things for the journey, he spotted Lin in the courtyard, speaking with another disciple—a senior noble with a smug expression. Kael paused, watching as the noble handed her a jade box. Lin hesitated, then accepted it.
Kael turned away without a word.
That night, in the solitude of his chamber, Kael meditated.
The spiritual threads he had woven through his body pulsed softly, stronger than ever. But they weren't his true power—not yet. Deeper within, a core of dark, ancient energy lay dormant—something he had awakened during his first encounter with the forbidden scroll. It spoke to him in dreams. Whispered secrets of lost sects. Of shadowbound legacies.
Kael opened his eyes. A flicker of silver light danced in his pupils.
"Soon," he whispered. "Soon they will see."