The moon hung low in the sky, casting pale beams across the forest clearing. A gentle silence lingered as the last embers of the day's heat faded away.
Ling Xian sat cross-legged beside a flickering flame, his breathing steady, his posture straight. The world around him was still, but within him, chaos surged. His recent breakthrough into the Meridian Opening Realm (Early Stage) had shaken the very foundation of his reborn cultivation.
His body pulsed with spiritual energy—unrefined, unstable. It surged through his meridians like a flood, threatening to tear apart the fragile balance he had managed to construct in this new life.
I've pushed too far… too fast, he thought. This new body cannot keep up with the rhythm of my past life.
He clenched his fists, fighting the internal tremors. He knew the signs too well. This was exactly what happened when the balance between Yin and Yang was disrupted. Without harmony, the cultivator's core would collapse, leading to Qi deviation—or worse.
Footsteps approached.
"You're still awake?" Yan Ruyin's voice was soft as she stepped closer. Her long robes swayed in the breeze, and her eyes searched his face. As a Core Vein Realm (Mid Stage) cultivator, her spiritual perception was sharper than most.
Ling Xian looked up, the firelight dancing in his eyes. "I couldn't sleep."
She sat beside him, leaving just enough space to be respectful, but close enough to show trust.
Her eyes studied him silently before she asked, "Back there... that was Sword Qi, wasn't it?"
Ling Xian didn't respond immediately. The fire crackled between them.
"That level of control, that kind of aura—Sword Qi is something only ancient sword cultivators manage to grasp. It takes centuries, even longer, to even touch upon it. And yet, you… you're just an outer court disciple. It doesn't add up."
Ling Xian exhaled slowly. "You're right. It doesn't."
She stared. "Then how can you—?"
He met her gaze calmly. "I cannot explain everything to you now. But I promise you, one day when I've grown strong enough, when I have the power to protect the truth… I will tell you everything."
A flicker of emotion passed through her eyes. Doubt. Curiosity. A quiet trust beginning to take root.
"For now," he continued, "what I can tell you is this—I inherited a legacy. A sword inheritance that allows me to wield Sword Qi. It's not something ordinary disciples can understand."
"An inheritance…" she murmured. "And your name? Mo Ling—it doesn't feel real."
Ling Xian was silent for a beat, then gave a faint smile. "Because it isn't. My real name… is Ling Xian."
She blinked, the name striking a chord deep in her memory, though she couldn't place it.
"Ling Xian…" she repeated slowly.
They sat in silence once more, the stars above them vast and endless.
Then she asked, her voice quieter now, "Is it getting worse?"
He nodded. "My cultivation base… it's growing faster than my body can handle. My technique is built for someone with deeper roots."
She lowered her gaze. "And the only solution is dual cultivation?"
"Yes. My inheritance method was Yin-Yang Harmony. It channels excess spiritual energy through mutual exchange. It's… intimate, but effective. Without it, I may collapse."
Yan Ruyin's breath hitched. "Then why me? There are others—plenty of women who would line up for this."
Ling Xian shook his head. "I don't trust them. This technique requires not just compatibility, but harmony of spirit. If either party has ulterior motives, it backfires. Your constitution, your sincerity… it matches."
She turned her face away, conflicted.
"You want me to share something sacred with you, something I've kept guarded my whole life… and you speak of it so calmly."
"Because I know the weight of it," he said. "And that's why I will never speak of it to another soul. This will remain between us. You have my word."
She looked back, eyes glistening under the moonlight. "And if someone finds out? What if they blame me, or my sect?"
Ling Xian's voice was low, solemn. "Then let them. I'll take the blame. I'll stand before the storm, not you. I'll protect you from anything that comes, even if it means going against the heavens themselves. I swear it."
A long silence followed. The wind rustled the trees around them, as if the world itself paused to listen.
"You're not like the others," she finally said.
He smiled faintly. "I've never tried to be."
She turned fully to face him now, the firelight casting golden edges on her soft features. "This… this stays between us. No one, not even my sect sisters, will hear of it."
Ling Xian nodded. "As you wish. This bond will be ours alone."
Her expression flickered with conflict, then steadied. "Then… I will consider it. Not just for your sake. But because part of me wants to understand what kind of man you truly are."
She stood, brushing her robe, and turned to walk away—but stopped after a few steps.
"Don't wait up. But don't give up on me either."
She hesitated again, then added, her voice more certain this time, "And when we talk next… tell me more about that technique. If it truly allows me to increase my cultivation level—not just stages, but by entire grades—then I'd be a fool to ignore such a path."
She didn't look back again as she walked away, but she murmured to herself something.
"He is the person who can spark such curiosity in me even while still in his early stage of growth… How terrifying will he be when he finally matures?"
Ling Xian remained seated, the fire's warmth fading as the night deepened.
"She's not like the others either", he thought, a quiet smile curving his lips.
To be continued...