The Heavenly Azure Sect had never felt this quiet.
Li Feng noticed it during morning training.
Usually, juniors rushed to greet him, asking questions, copying his stances. Today, they kept their distance. Some avoided his eyes. Others whispered, stopping the moment he turned his head.
Weird…
He shook it off and continued practicing, sword moving smoothly through the air.
But something was wrong.
At noon, a notice was posted on the jade board.
"Inner disciples are forbidden from sharing cultivation insights without elder approval."
Li Feng froze.
Sharing insights…?
That was something he often did—helping juniors correct breathing, explaining techniques in simple words. He had never been warned before.
"Senior Brother Li…" a junior whispered nervously, stepping back.
"I—I shouldn't talk to you too much. I don't want trouble."
Before Li Feng could respond, the boy bowed quickly and ran off.
A hollow feeling settled in his chest.
That afternoon, Li Feng was summoned.
Not by the elders.
By his family.
The Li Clan courtyard was as grand as ever, stone lions standing tall at the gate. But the warmth he remembered was gone.
His father sat at the head seat, expression stern.
"Li Feng," he said coldly. "You've been attracting unnecessary attention."
Li Feng frowned.
"Father?"
"Do you think talent alone is enough?" his uncle sneered.
"You're not the Sect Heir. Know your place."
Li Wei stood beside them, eyes lowered—but a faint smile tugged at his lips.
"You should slow down," Li Wei said softly.
"People are talking. They say you're… too ambitious."
Li Feng stared at them.
Ambitious?
All he had done was cultivate.
"I've never once disrespected the sect," Li Feng said calmly.
"Nor the family."
His father slammed the table.
"Enough! From today onward, you will focus only on your own training. No teaching. No standing out."
Li Feng bowed silently.
As he turned to leave, he heard Li Wei's voice behind him.
"Brother… it's for your own good."
That night, rain fell.
Li Feng stood alone in the training courtyard, soaked, sword heavy in his hand.
His strikes were still precise.
But his heart was not.
Why does it feel like I'm being pushed away…?
High above, in a secluded pavilion, Tian Hao watched the scene through a spirit mirror.
"Good," he murmured.
Beside him, an elder spoke hesitantly.
"Holy Son… was it necessary to restrict him so much?"
Tian Hao smiled gently.
"Geniuses burn brightest right before they break."
Thunder rolled across the sky.
Li Feng sheathed his sword and looked up, rain mixing with the sweat on his face.
For the first time in his life…
He felt alone.
And far away, deep beneath the earth, something ancient stirred—
as if it had sensed the coming fall.
_______________________________________
Mei Lan sat quietly in the pavilion, her gaze distant, but her thoughts were anything but peaceful. Beside her, Su Yan's eyes gleamed with mischief and certainty.
"You shouldn't be here thinking about him," Su Yan whispered, her tone sharp but playful. "Tian Hao is the one you should be with. Forget Li Feng—he's trouble, always causing chaos wherever he goes."
Mei Lan clenched her hands, torn between her growing feelings for Tian Hao and the strange pull she felt towards Li Feng. "I know… I know what you're saying, Su Yan, but… it's not that simple."
Su Yan leaned closer, lowering her voice. "Simple? Mei Lan, open your eyes! Li Feng is nothing but a storm of destruction. Tian Hao is stable, kind… he would never lead you into danger. You need to think with your heart, not with your curiosity about him."
"I do think about him," Mei Lan admitted, a tinge of guilt coloring her voice. "But it's not about curiosity… there's something about him I can't explain."
Su Yan rolled her eyes, exasperated but still caring. "Don't let him ruin you. Let Tian Hao be your focus. Don't fall for the shadow when the light is right in front of you."
For a moment, Mei Lan considered Su Yan's words. She knew Tian Hao was her anchor, a safe haven in the storm that Li Feng seemed to stir wherever he went. But deep down, there was an undeniable pull, an invisible thread connecting her to the man they warned her about.
And for the first time, Mei Lan wondered: could a storm ever become a sanctuary?