The mistake wasn't attacking me.
That was inevitable.
The mistake was believing they understood what they were attacking.
The Cloud-Drifting Sword Sect arrived at Iron Lake City under the banner of mediation.
Three elders.
Twelve enforcers.
Perfect posture. Perfect breathing.
Perfectly wrong.
They didn't come for war.
They came to demonstrate authority.
The lead elder stood at the city gate and announced calmly,
"Li Shen. By sect consensus, you are requested for doctrinal clarification."
I leaned against the wall.
"Clarification usually comes before exile," I said.
Murmurs rippled through the crowd.
The elder's smile didn't reach his eyes.
"You are corrupting the martial foundation."
I nodded. "Yes."
That… wasn't the answer he wanted.
Xueyi stepped beside me.
"You don't have jurisdiction here."
The elder glanced at her dismissively.
"I speak for orthodoxy."
That was the second mistake.
I stepped forward.
"No," I said. "You speak for fear."
The enforcers moved.
Not to attack.
To assert.
Their Qi flared in unison.
Authority formation.
Pressure descended like law.
The crowd retreated.
The survivors behind me stiffened.
I didn't move.
I laughed.
Quietly.
"That formation," I said, tilting my head,
"was designed to suppress deviation."
I took one step forward.
"And it assumes deviation resists."
I drew my sword.
Not fully.
Just enough.
The formation collapsed.
Not shattered.
Invalidated.
Like a question answered incorrectly.
The enforcers staggered.
Blood leaked from noses and ears.
The elder stumbled back, horror cracking his composure.
"What did you do?!"
I sheathed my sword.
"I corrected it."
Xueyi's voice carried across the silence.
"You came to silence him."
She smiled coldly.
"You proved him."
The crowd erupted.
Not cheering.
Whispering.
Fear turning into belief.
The elder forced himself upright.
"This changes nothing," he said hoarsely.
"Heaven will—"
I interrupted him.
"Is watching," I finished.
"And taking notes."
He fled.
Not retreated.
Fled.
Leaving authority behind like shed skin.
Above Iron Lake City, the ledger snapped shut.
A new page opened.
[Correction Authorization — REVOKED]
Local Authority Status: Null
I exhaled slowly.
"That," I said, "was a mistake."
Xueyi glanced at me.
"Which one?"
I smiled.
"Their last."