Morning arrived over Black Mountain Gate beneath a layer of grey mist.
Meng Shi left through the western gate just after sunrise.
He wore black-brown disciple robes with a simple iron waist token at his belt. His broad shoulders had regained some strength after months of recovery, and a heavy saber rested across his back. His aura was stable at Peak Qi Conjunction Realm, but beneath that stability was caution.
He was preparing to break through.
He did not dare waste strength carelessly.
Beside him walked one attendant disciple, a quiet young man named Du Heng. He was at Middle Qi Conjunction Realm, with a round face, a slightly chubby figure, and a nervous habit of adjusting the small supply pack on his back whenever the road became too quiet.
The mission was simple on the surface.
Inspect the abandoned watch post near Black Ridge Road. Confirm whether the strange movements came from wandering cultivators, beasts, or damaged formations. Return with a report.
No battle was required unless necessary.
That was what Meng Shi believed.
From the shadow of a stone pavilion, Fang Lin watched them leave.
He wore Luo Cheng's face, and his expression remained cold. His black-brown elder robe moved slightly in the morning wind, while the dark iron elder token at his waist rested against his belt.
He waited until Meng Shi and Du Heng disappeared down the mountain road.
Then he turned and left through another path.
He did not follow immediately.
That would be too obvious.
Instead, he returned to his courtyard, remained there for half an hour, then left under the excuse of inspecting a minor supply route connected to the western slope.
No one stopped him.
Luo Cheng was an elder.
Elders had freedom.
Especially unpleasant elders whom others preferred not to question.
But not everyone ignored the matter.
Inside the Mission Hall, an elder in dark grey robes stood beside a stone window, watching the western road.
His name was Wei Shanzhu.
He was a Late Spirit Foundation Realm elder responsible for assigning and verifying disciple tasks. His robe was not as heavy as Luo Cheng's, but the cuffs carried the markings of the Mission Hall: three short iron lines beneath the black mountain crest. His aura color was dark grey with a faint bronze tint, stable and restrained.
Unlike Luo Cheng, Wei Shanzhu was not feared for cruelty.
He was feared for attention.
He remembered names.
Routes.
Mission changes.
Small inconsistencies.
That made him dangerous in a different way.
A young clerk stood beside him.
"Elder Wei, is something wrong?"
Wei Shanzhu did not answer immediately. His gaze remained on the road.
After a while, he said, "Who changed Meng Shi's mission?"
The clerk quickly checked a scroll.
"Elder Luo Cheng gave a private inspection order."
"Luo Cheng?"
"Yes, Elder."
Elders had some authority to issue some missions in the sect.
Wei Shanzhu frowned slightly. "Luo Cheng returned from Black Stone Mine recently."
"That is correct."
"He rarely interferes with disciple missions."
The clerk hesitated. "Perhaps because Meng Shi received guidance from him?"
Wei Shanzhu turned his head slowly.
"Luo Cheng? Guidance?"
The clerk lowered his head and stopped speaking.
Even he knew that sentence had been too ambitious.
Wei Shanzhu turned away from the window.
-----
Black Mountain Gate had been tense since the Demon Sealing Ruins incident. Guo Zhen had vanished. Meng Shi had survived. Several records connected to Venerated Black Tortoise Mountain were being sorted. Elder Luo Cheng had returned from mine duty and suddenly called Meng Shi privately.
Now Meng Shi had been sent out with only one attendant.
Too many small things had lined up.
Wei Shanzhu took out a plain grey cloak and wrapped it over his elder robe.
"Do not record that I left."
The clerk's face changed. "Elder?"
Wei Shanzhu looked at him.
The clerk immediately lowered his head.
"Yes, Elder."
Wei Shanzhu stepped out of the Mission Hall.
His aura faded.
Unlike Luo Cheng's heavy body-cultivation style, Wei Shanzhu specialized in pursuit and tracking. His movement was not fast like a wind cultivator, but quiet and persistent, like dust following footsteps.
Soon, he left the sect through a side path.
Ahead of him, Luo Cheng had already begun following Meng Shi.
And ahead of Luo Cheng, Meng Shi knew nothing.
The cicada moved toward the branch.
The mantis watched from behind.
And farther behind, the oriole opened its eyes.
Black Ridge Road lay northwest of Black Mountain Gate. It was hundreds of kilometers from the sect, and for a Qi Conjunction cultivator, the journey would take around five to six hours.
It was an old ore route once used by the sect to transport Black Stone Crystal and other materials from smaller outposts. Over time, several sections had been abandoned after beasts, bandits, and unstable terrain made the path inconvenient.
The abandoned watch post stood near a narrow valley surrounded by black stone cliffs.
By noon, Meng Shi and Du Heng arrived near the outer ridge.
Meng Shi looked around carefully.
The place was quiet.
Too quiet.
Du Heng whispered, "Senior Brother Meng, should we inspect the post first?"
Meng Shi nodded.
"Stay close."
They entered the old watch post.
Broken wooden beams leaned against cracked stone walls. Several rooms had collapsed inward. Dust covered the ground, and dry leaves had gathered in the corners. There were no fresh beast tracks, no formation fluctuations, and no obvious danger.
Meng Shi frowned.
"There were strange movement reports?"
Du Heng looked uneasy. "I see no tracks."
Meng Shi slowly placed his hand on the saber across his back.
Something felt wrong.
Not from the ruins.
Not from beasts.
From people.
He had survived the Demon Sealing Ruins because he had learned one thing there.
When a place looked too quiet, danger had usually arrived before him.
Outside the watch post, Fang Lin stood beneath the shadow of a black stone cliff.
His face was still Luo Cheng's, but his aura had changed slightly. It was colder and thinner now, like death hidden beneath stone.
He had watched Meng Shi enter.
He had also sensed Du Heng.
One attendant at the Middle Qi Conjunction Realm.
Not a threat.
Witnesses were troublesome.
Fang Lin's eyes remained calm.
He did not feel guilt.
He had chosen this path when he decided to enter Black Mountain Gate. The old vitality leaf mattered. The grey seed mattered. His path mattered.
Meng Shi would die here.
Du Heng too, if necessary.
Fang Lin stepped forward.
At that moment, far behind him, Elder Wei Shanzhu stopped on a ridge covered in dry grass.
His eyes narrowed.
He had followed Luo Cheng's traces carefully and had not been discovered.
At least, he believed he had not.
From his position, he could see the old watch post in the distance. He could also see Luo Cheng standing outside it.
Wei Shanzhu's expression became colder.
"So it really was not a simple inspection."
He did not move closer immediately.
Luo Cheng was at Late Spirit Foundation Realm.
Wei Shanzhu was also at Late Spirit Foundation Realm.
If he approached carelessly, he might be noticed.
He didn't wish to spread his Spirit Sense.
Instead, he took out a small bronze mirror from his sleeve. The mirror was a tracking treasure used by the Mission Hall. It did not release much spiritual fluctuation, but it could reflect distant movement within a limited range.
The mirror surface shimmered.
The image of the old watch post appeared faintly.
Wei Shanzhu watched in silence.
Near the watch post, Fang Lin's steps slowed.
His divine sense spread gently.
The area was clear.
No obvious ambush.
No sect patrol nearby.
But he did not sense Wei Shanzhu.
The Mission Hall elder was farther away and using a concealment treasure.
Fang Lin's attention remained on Meng Shi.
Inside the watch post, Meng Shi suddenly turned.
His eyes locked onto the entrance.
A shadow appeared there.
Black-brown elder robe.
Cold sunken eyes.
Dark iron token.
Meng Shi's expression changed.
"Elder Luo?"
He quickly cupped his hands.
"Why is Elder here?"
Du Heng also bowed in panic.
"Elder Luo."
Fang Lin walked in slowly and looked at Meng Shi.
"You noticed danger quickly."
Meng Shi's heart tightened.
"Elder?"
Fang Lin's voice was calm.
"That is good."
The old watch post became silent.
Meng Shi slowly realized something.
The mission.
The empty road.
The quiet watch post.
Elder Luo appearing here alone.
His hand tightened around the saber hilt.
"Elder, what is the meaning of this?"
Fang Lin looked at him with Luo Cheng's cold face.
"I want something from you."
Meng Shi's face paled slightly.
"What?"
"The old vitality leaf."
Meng Shi's pupils contracted.
For a moment, he did not speak.
Then his expression changed completely.
The respect from yesterday vanished. In its place came shock, anger, and fear.
"So that was why…"
Du Heng looked confused.
"Senior Brother Meng?"
Meng Shi slowly drew his saber.
His voice became hoarse.
"Elder Luo, that leaf is my foundation resource. I need it to break through to Spirit Foundation."
Fang Lin said calmly, "I know."
"Then why?"
"Because I need it more."
Meng Shi's heart turned cold.
He had thought Elder Luo had guided him. He had thought the elder had offered him a safer mission. He had thought, perhaps foolishly, that someone in the sect had finally seen his survival as something other than shame.
Now he understood.
It had only been a knife wrapped in elder robes.
Meng Shi's eyes reddened.
"I survived the Demon Sealing Ruins."
His voice shook slightly.
"I survived that monster beneath the altar. I survived the sect's suspicion. I endured months of whispers. I only wanted to break through. If you kill me here, the sect will definitely notice this. "
Fang Lin's eyes remained calm. "I know."
Meng Shi roared and attacked.
His saber rose with heavy black mountain force.
Outside, through the bronze mirror, Wei Shanzhu saw everything.
His expression changed.
"Old vitality leaf?"
His eyes sharpened.
"Luo Cheng, what are you doing?"
He did not act yet.
He watched.
Because something about Luo Cheng's movement felt wrong.
Too calm.
Too clean.
Too unlike the elder he knew.
Inside the abandoned watch post, Meng Shi's saber descended.
Fang Lin raised one hand.
The battle began under the eyes of an unseen oriole.
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