Luo Yang’s hand remained on the hilt of Night Owl-Slash. He sifted through the anime and web novels he had consumed over the years; out of ten characters who had subordinates constantly calling them “that lord,” nine ended up as villains under the protagonist’s blade. But that remaining one was often the true mastermind—the final boss, far more difficult to deal with than any ordinary antagonist.
In his mind, he slapped a “highly dangerous” label on Si Zhen.
As for who this “lord” actually was, he didn't have the slightest clue. Si Zhen had dropped the name without any context or history, as if he were deliberately casting a hook.
Under the table, the little black cat remained curled up, letting out a muffled, low hiss from its throat.
“Mr. Si, I’ve never heard of this ‘lord’ of yours.”
“Oh?” Si Zhen tilted his head, the brim of his fedora tilting with him. “Have you truly never heard of him, or are you just pretending?”
“Truly.”
“Well, that’s interesting.”
Si Zhen chuckled softly, as if he had just heard an amusing little joke. He raised a hand to push his hat brim up, revealing eyes that seemed to have no depth.
“Since you haven't heard of him, there’s no harm in me saying a bit more.”
He took half a step forward.
“Stop right there.”
Luo Yang squeezed the words through his teeth, not letting Si Zhen get any closer.
Si Zhen’s feet stopped obediently, like a salesman who had been told to pause mid-pitch.
“What are you so nervous about, sir? I have no intention of getting physical.”
“What is the connection between this ‘lord’ and her?”
Si Zhen’s smile didn't fade, but his voice slowed by half a beat.
“Sir, as I said before, Miss Qiu is a fragment of that lord. Those were honest words.”
He paused, seemingly choosing his next words carefully.
“She is the most special fragment, and the most vital one. Within her lies a power inherited from the Primal Era.”
The Primal Era.
The term hit Luo Yang hard, making his fingertips go slightly numb.
One could scour the history books of Blue Star and never find out what the “Primal Era” actually referred to. How ancient was it? Exactly how many years ago? He had no concept of it at all.
Seeing that Luo Yang remained silent, Si Zhen pushed the tempo one step further.
“She doesn't know how to use this power yet, but we just so happen to be able to help her.”
“Mr. Si, you keep going on about fragments and power.”
Luo Yang loosened his grip on the hilt and crossed his arms over his chest.
“After listening to all that, I’ve only gathered one thing. What you’re interested in isn't Qiu Shubai, but that ‘fragment’ inside her, right?”
“To put it bluntly, you’re just treating her as a tool. I don't see a shred of sincerity in your words.”
Si Zhen let out an “Ah,” a sigh so genuine it sounded as if he were lamenting his own daughter marrying the wrong man.
“Hearing you say that makes me feel quite wronged, sir.”
He raised a hand to his collar, smoothing out a non-existent wrinkle once again.
“Of course we have prepared gifts. And not just one or two, but an entire set of things to help Miss Qiu master that power—everything she needs.”
“However, these gifts must be delivered into Miss Qiu’s own hands. Only after she personally agrees can we proceed with further discussions. Having you standing in the middle, sir, is actually a bit against the rules.”
Luo Yang turned those words over in his head. He felt that Si Zhen was a smooth talker, but the underlying point wasn't too far-fetched. If the man truly wanted to kidnap her, he wouldn't have wasted his breath standing in the living room talking to him.
Still, he refused to back down.
“When did you start targeting her?”
“Hmm… not too long ago. Our information network isn't that fast, and Shenzhou is a vast territory. Miss Qiu’s unique nature was only recently observed by our people.”
Si Zhen answered quite readily.
“Before that, we had no idea she was in Yuanxing City, let alone that her surname was Qiu.”
Si Zhen said the last part nonchalantly, but Luo Yang caught a different implication.
The man didn't say it outright, but he likely felt the Qiu family had hidden their daughter far too deeply over the years.
“So, what kind of organization is the Shattered Night Society exactly?” he asked firmly. At this question, the smile on Si Zhen’s face finally vanished completely.
“Sir, our Shattered Night Society is not some wicked cult.”
“The goal of our group is very simple. A Great Catastrophe will strike this world in the future. We aren't entirely sure of the specifics, but it will be on a scale that could collapse planets and wipe out civilizations.”
“If humanity wants to survive this disaster, we must find the fragments left behind from the Primal Era and their compatible hosts. That is what we do.”
His rhythm was steady as he spoke, devoid of his previous talkative energy. Luo Yang searched his face but couldn't find any sign of acting.
But that didn't mean he believed him.
Any organization that claimed to be “saving the world” was seventy percent lunatics, twenty percent scammers, five percent chunibyo kids talking nonsense, and only the final half-percent was the real deal.
And the most troublesome part was that sometimes the first three types were all the same people.
He opened his mouth, wanting to press further, but the words died in his throat.
The blood energy in the house had changed once again. It was denser, more majestic, and incredibly wild.
It was like a dam had burst, letting the torrent of water crash in every direction.
In the basement.
The light cocoon was completely gone. The Crimson Abyss had bloomed to its limit in Qiu Shubai’s palm, every petal curling back as far as it could go. The jagged dark patterns on the edges were colorless under the light, yet one could feel them moving.
The entire flower seemed alive.
Bloodfall was suspended three inches in front of her. The hair-thin red light patterns on the blade had now thickened into rivers of blood, flowing down the blade to the tip before being sucked back into the hilt, cycling through the sword and surging out from the sides of the blade once more.
The two energies were circulating in this manner.
One flow moved from Qiu Shubai’s body into the heart of the Crimson Abyss—a distorted, frenzied power.
The other flow poured from Bloodfall into her body—a steadier, heavier power that had been refined and smoothed out by the sword.
In and out, a drain and a refill.
The veins in her body were alternately filled to bursting, making her fingertips throb, and then drained until they were hollow, to the point where she could hear a buzzing in her bones.
From fullness to emptiness, and back to fullness again.
Cold sweat rolled down her temples. Her shirt was soaked through, clinging to her skin with a chilly dampness.
She gritted her teeth so hard that she broke the skin on the inside of her lower lip. The metallic taste of blood spread across her tongue, but her eyebrows didn't twitch, her lips didn't tremble, and her eyelids didn't even flutter.
She had been used to swallowing pain since she was a child; this bit of suffering wouldn't bring her down.
When a particularly full wave of energy surged through her, the mountain peak she had never been able to scale vanished without a trace, as if eroded by millions of years of time.
The threshold of the Clear Heart rank was crossed just like that.
The blood energy circulation continued, constantly purifying her power and tempering her body. Bloodfall hummed in mid-air—a dull sound, like someone striking a bell inside the blade.
The red light on the blade was no longer shining from within; it began to seep outward, drifting into the air in wisps that were then inhaled by the Crimson Abyss.
With every breath the Crimson Abyss took, its petals grew more vibrant, slowly shifting from a near-black dark red toward a brilliant, vivid crimson.
The two objects seemed to be exchanging something, and her physical body was caught right in the middle.
Unbeknownst to her, she had already reached Clear Heart Level 2. The cycle accelerated further. Bloodfall seemed to think her progress was too slow, pushing her to crash against the step of Level 3.
She didn't refuse—nor could she.
Rate on N.U.
