After acquiring the Sun-Frost Divine Furnace from the Iron Cauldron Sect with Ming Shen's help, Ling Xian and Yan Ruyin resumed their stroll through the lively avenues of Heaven's Whisper City. The midday sun gleamed off jade-tiled roofs as hawkers yelled, peddling rare beast pelts, talismans, and spirit wines.
Yan Ruyin, carrying the spatial ring containing their newly acquired furnace, led Ling Xian toward the Azure Silk Herb Pavilion, a famed location for high-quality spiritual herbs. Their next goal: the third ingredient in the recipe Ling Xian had provided Ming Shen—Crimson Frost Orchid.
Inside the pavilion, delicate incense floated in the air. Glass cases lined the walls, holding ingredients both glowing and faintly humming with energy. An elegant woman in a pale-blue robe greeted them.
"Welcome to Azure Silk Herb Pavilion. How may I assist you?"
"We're looking for a Crimson Frost Orchid," Yan Ruyin said politely.
The woman blinked, then nodded with slight surprise. "A rare request. But… we do have a single stalk left."
She guided them toward a secure compartment. There it was—a radiant orchid with crimson petals that shimmered with a fine layer of frost. Ling Xian's eyes lit up. It was perfect.
"Ten thousand spirit stones," the attendant said.
Ling Xian's expression remained calm, but his heart tightened. As an outer sect disciple, his resources were limited. The original Ling Xian's wealth had been pitiful. However, before he could speak, Yan Ruyin stepped forward and handed over a pouch.
"We'll take it."
Ling Xian glanced at her. "You didn't need to—"
"I want to," she interrupted, offering a small smile. "We're in this together now, aren't we?"
They exited the pavilion with the Crimson Frost Orchid secured in another spatial pouch. The sun was beginning to dip behind the city's towering structures when suddenly, a sharp voice rang out behind them.
"Ruyin? Fancy seeing you here."
A tall, robed young man with a golden sash strode forward. His robes bore the emblem of the Burning Cloud Sect, one of the more renowned sects in the Fallen Sky Realm. His features were handsome but carried a smug arrogance. Beside him stood an older man, calm and unreadable, clearly his elder.
"Jin Yuze," Yan Ruyin greeted flatly.
The young man's eyes locked onto Ling Xian with visible disdain. "Who's this? An outer sect stray following you around like a dog?"
Ling Xian had deliberately masked his cultivation after revealing it to Yan Ruyin, suppressing his presence to that of someone in the Body Tempering Realm – mid stage. It was a defensive measure—an instinct honed by lifetimes of danger.
Jin Yuze, on the other hand, stood tall at the Core Vein Realm – late stage.
"You're wasting your time with someone like him," Jin Yuze sneered. "Come with me instead. I'll take you back to the sect personally. We both know you deserve better."
Yan Ruyin's expression tightened. Before she could speak, Ling Xian stepped forward.
"You've said enough," he said calmly. "Leave."
Jin Yuze laughed. "Or what? You think someone barely in Body Tempering can threaten me? You must've forgotten how cultivation works."
Ling Xian said nothing. But the atmosphere changed.
A silent, suffocating pressure suddenly burst from his body. His killing intent swept through the street like a wind laced with blades. Nearby pedestrians stumbled back in fear, while Yan Ruyin took a step away, startled. Her mind flashed back to the moment in the forest—when Ling Xian had slain beasts with cold precision, his aura like a death god incarnate.
What no one around them realized… was that this killing intent didn't belong to an ordinary cultivator. It was a glimpse—just a sliver—of something ancient, terrifying.
Once, there had existed a God of Destruction, a being whose wrath obliterated sects and brought entire clans to ruin, all for the sake of protecting his partners and loved ones. That very same presence now stirred faintly within Ling Xian.
The killing intent he released, though only a fragment, was enough to suppress even a sect master in cultivation. It was raw, cold, unrelenting.
He extended his hand.
"Your sword."
Yan Ruyin, hesitating only for a breath, handed him the same sword he had once used to save her. Ling Xian held it loosely, but the air around him grew colder, heavier.
Jin Yuze's smirk faltered.
Before things could escalate, the old man beside him spoke.
"Yuze. Step down."
"But—"
The old man's voice cut him off. "Now."
Jin Yuze opened his mouth to protest, but the elder raised a hand, transmitting a spiritual message. Whatever it was, it silenced Jin Yuze instantly.
Ling Xian didn't lower the sword.
The elder stepped forward, offering a polite smile. "Forgive us. My disciple tends to act on impulse. Please, continue your walk."
Ling Xian met his gaze, then turned silently and walked past with Yan Ruyin.
As they disappeared into the crowd, Jin Yuze finally snapped, "Why did we back off?! I could've crushed him!"
The old man's face remained composed. "You didn't feel it, did you? That killing intent… it wasn't normal. It wasn't born of rage or pride. It was the instinct of someone who has killed thousands or millions. Even I… felt dread."
Jin Yuze paled.
"Do not provoke that youth again," the old man continued. "Even if his cultivation is low now… there is something sleeping inside him. And I have no wish to awaken it."
To be continued...