Dark clouds churned above the Eastern War Academy's central formation chamber. Rows of sect elders stood in a half-circle, their expressions solemn, robes stirring in the rising spiritual winds.
Li Xuan stood alone before them, his saber resting silently against his back.
Before him floated a gateway—a tear in space, faintly shimmering with silver runes and distorted by pulsing spiritual fluctuations. It was the entrance to the Ashen Rift, a newly opened dimensional battlefield known to devour the lives of even inner sect geniuses.
It was said that within lay ruins of ancient sects, forbidden tombs, and spirit veins overflowing with primal chaos. But it wasn't only treasures that drew cultivators—it was the rumors. Rumors that ancient inheritances slept within, waiting for someone worthy.
He wasn't interested in rumors. He was interested in testing his edge.
An elder stepped forward—Elder Feng Xun, one of the few who didn't hate him.
"Li Xuan. You are the first Outer Circle disciple chosen to represent the academy within the Ashen Rift. Do you understand what this means?"
Li Xuan's voice was calm. "If I die, you lose nothing. If I return alive, your foundations shake."
Murmurs rippled through the elders. Feng Xun's eyes narrowed—but he nodded.
Another stepped forward, a woman this time—white-haired, eyes colder than winter. Elder Mei Lihua.
"Within the rift, you may form temporary alliances. You may kill, plunder, or flee. We will not interfere. Only the strong return. Are you strong, Li Xuan?"
He didn't answer. He simply walked forward, past the flickering formation array, and stepped into the gateway.
It swallowed him whole.
—
System:
—Entering Ashen Rift—
—Warning: Multi-Sect Rift Event Activated—
—Participants: 182 (Various Sects)—
—Danger Level: Cataclysmic—
—Mission: Survive. Acquire Dimensional Coordinates. Locate Hidden Legacy Site. Reward: ???—
Li Xuan landed in a field of red ash.
Mountains of bone jutted from the land like ancient spears. The sky above was fractured—purple lightning streaked through torn clouds. Everything felt heavier.
His system interface flickered to life.
EXP: 0 / 600
System Points: 113
New Function: Dimensional Sensor Active
A sharp whistle snapped his attention to the east. Several figures dashed across the horizon—disciples from other sects. Two of them wore black-gold robes with a sun and serpent emblem.
The Serpent Sun Sect.
Infamous for ambushes and corpse-reanimation techniques.
Li Xuan crouched low, sensing the battlefield like a hunter. He didn't attack. Not yet. His eyes flicked to the side—movement.
A stone scorpion beast lunged from the dust. Its pincer was bigger than his torso. He twisted away, countering with a slash. Sparks danced off its armored shell.
Clang!
The Executioner was forced back.
So even the beasts here have bone plating like the centipede?
He weaved around its next thrust, dug his feet into the ash, and activated Phantom Step. His saber flashed upward, splitting the underside between the plates. The scorpion screeched—then exploded into dust.
System:
—Beast Kill +11 EXP—
—Current EXP: 11 / 600—
"Nothing's easy here…" he muttered, wiping ash from his cheek.
Suddenly—an explosion shook the eastern slope.
A figure walked through smoke—slow, measured. Long white hair, red battle robes, and eyes like molten lava. On his back, a massive war spear.
One of the Serpent Sun Sect elites.
Name: Wei Longhe. Inner Core Disciple. Ranking: Top 10 in his generation.
He gazed at Li Xuan like one would observe an ant with fangs.
"I heard of you," he said. "The dog who bites elders in your sect."
"And you must be the dog who smells like he rolled in corpses," Li Xuan replied.
The laughter that followed was dark. "Good. I was bored."
—Combat Initiated—
Wei Longhe moved like a phantom and struck like a god.
His spear carved through the terrain, blasting debris in every direction. Every swing shook the air with pressure alone. His Qi condensed into shadow spears that chased Li Xuan through the ash.
Li Xuan didn't defend. He flowed.
He baited the man into striking rock faces, led him into unstable formations, used shadows to mask his own movement.
Clang!
Boom!
Crash!
Saber and spear clashed again and again—like titans battling in a land of ghosts.
Finally, Wei Longhe struck with a crushing downward blow, and Li Xuan caught it with his saber—and smiled.
He'd led the man exactly where he wanted.
He twisted, causing the man's footing to falter—onto a fissure he had laced with minor formation runes earlier.
A chain-reaction explosion knocked them both into the ravine.
They hit ground hard. Both bleeding.
But Li Xuan was the first to rise.
"I've had enough of you," he muttered.
With Reactive Saber Flow activated, he launched an unpredictable strike—every angle, every direction, erratic but precise.
Wei Longhe tried to defend—but found himself overwhelmed.
Li Xuan's final slash sent his spear flying.
Executioner stopped an inch from the man's throat.
Wei Longhe didn't beg.
He grinned. "Kill me. I'll still be remembered."
Li Xuan turned away. "Then I won't."
System:
—Victory: +33 EXP—
—Current EXP: 44 / 600—
—Reputation Gained: Feared by Serpent Sun Disciples (Rift Region)—
As he moved to leave, a faint voice called from the shadows.
"…I saw all of that."
He turned—and saw Yue Qingru again.
This time, she wasn't grinning.
"You fought like a beast," she said. "But you won like a strategist."
He didn't respond. But he didn't walk away either.
Instead, he looked out over the horizon—toward the distant, flickering ruins of a collapsed temple. His Dimensional Sensor pulsed.
System:
—Legacy Site Detected: Unknown Ancient Sect—
—Coordinates Locked. Estimated Arrival Time: 3 Days—
—Warning: Multiple Elite Participants Also Approaching—
Li Xuan whispered to himself:
"I don't need luck. I need blades."
And he walked on, into the blood-stained distance.
—
Cultivation Status: Late Qi Condensation – Peak (44 / 600 EXP)
System Points: 113 / 600
Traits: Kill Instinct, Predator's Pressure
New Technique Used: Reactive Saber Flow (Warlord Skill)
Dimensional Sensor: Active
Current Rift: Ashen Rift (Multi-Sect Rift Event)
Reputation: Demon of the Outer Circle / Rift Hunter / Protector of the Broken
Enemies Marked: Wei Longhe (Injured, Alive)
Companion: Yue Qingru (Still not leaving)
Legion Members: 3 (Scattered in Rift)