A silent mourning, heavy and hollow, filled the library. The Masters, now burdened with a truth that shattered their reality, stood paralyzed. But a different, far more cruel expression flickered across the face of Lin Chaoyuan. His smirk dissolved into a chilling coldness as the woman the only living witness of the past finished her revelation.

  Suddenly, the sharp, metallic ring of a blade being drawn sliced through the air. All eyes snapped upward. But before anyone could process the movement, Fuie collapsed to the floor. As she fell away from Lin Chaoyuan’s path, the three Masters saw his blade dripping with fresh crimson. When their gaze fell upon Fuie, their breath turned to ice. Her throat had been slashed; blood surged from the wound, staining the ancient floor. Her eyes remained wide, fixed in a final, terrifying stare as she became a lifeless corpse.

  In that frozen atmosphere, Lin Chaoyuan’s voice cut through the dread.

  "People have started letting their tongues wag far too much lately."

  Kin Lishuan, staring at Fuie’s lifeless body with eyes wide in shock, whispered, "N-no… not again…"

  The letter he had been clutching slipped from his trembling fingers, landing in a growing pool of blood.

  None of the Masters moved. Fung Shu-Ri, Chui Yong, and Kin Lishuan stood like statues of salt, their bodies refusing to obey as if time itself had ground to a halt.

  But they were unaware that this tragedy had another pair of witnesses. No one knew how long Yu Sui and Mo Yan had been standing outside the library perhaps the truth was so cold it had frozen their very breath.

  Yu Sui’s eyes had turned a searing red. He gripped the hilt of his sword so tightly it threatened to shatter under the pressure.

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  As Lin Chaoyuan turned to leave, his footsteps halted. A crooked smirk pulled at his lips, and his eyes glinted with the predatory hunger of a hunter. Standing before him, faces ashen and pale, were Mo Yan and Yu Sui.

  A cold fire burned in Mo Yan’s eyes. They had heard everything; they had seen it all a truth so devastating it was nearly impossible to believe.

  Mo Yan stared down Lin Chaoyuan with a lethal gaze. Beside him, Yu Sui’s eyes remained bloodshot, but the white silk binding on his wrist continued to pulse with light, echoing the frantic rhythm of his heart. Lin Chaoyuan’s eyes narrowed as they landed on that glowing thread.

  Yu Sui, however, could not look away from the lifeless body of Fuie the woman who had saved him. His breath hitched. He shook his head, his mind rejecting the nightmare. At that same moment, Mo Yan looked toward him.

  Yu Sui managed only a single word:

  "No..."

  And then... he fled. Mo Yan was stunned by the sudden movement. As Yu Sui tore himself away, the shimmering thread snapped into two pieces. It broke with the sound of a needle shattering in a void a tiny sound that echoed like a thunderclap. The moment it broke, the silk vanished into nothingness.

  Mo Yan prepared to take a step after him, but a voice pulled him back. It was Master Fung Shu-Ri.

  "Mo...! We believe this is all just another trap. We will never trust this traitor again! This must be a lie!"

  But Mo Yan did not answer.

  His gaze was fixed on the fallen mantra seal on the floor. Slowly, his eyes drifted to the woman’s corpse, and his fists clenched into white-knuckled stones.

  Then… the ring of cold steel echoed. In one fluid motion, he drew his sword. The blade traced a line of light through the air. Through the center of that arc, Mo Yan’s blazing eyes locked onto Lin Chaoyuan.

  "Enough talk," he whispered.

  Without warning, he lunged at Lin Chaoyuan. Lin Chaoyuan drew his own blade and parried the strike. Sword met sword, the clash of metal screaming through the silence. But Lin Chaoyuan was smiling.

  "Ah, there you are,"

  Lin Chaoyuan said with a bitter edge. "Just like your mother impulsive in everything. But do you really think you are enough?"

  Their blades clashed again in a shower of sparks. But then, a desperate cry shattered the focus of the duel...

  "Help me!!”