Ao Lian did not sleep that night.
Neither did Ao Longtian.
The ancestral hall had been quiet when they left it, but Longtian knew better than to mistake silence for peace.
Someone in the clan knew what the symbol meant.
Someone had recognized it.
And whoever that person was had been frightened.
That mattered more than anything else.
Fear revealed what confidence concealed.
Longtian sat alone in his study, surrounded by stacks of ancient records. Several lanterns burned around him, their flames wavering whenever the night wind slipped through the wooden windows.
The restricted library had yielded very little.
Most of the records concerning ancient demon bloodlines had been damaged, deliberately removed, or sealed behind formations that Longtian could not yet break.
But there were fragments.
Always fragments.
A sentence here.
A diagram there.
A half-destroyed name.
He opened another ancient scroll.
The paper was yellow and brittle.
Heaven Devouring Bloodline.
Below the title were only three surviving lines.
The blood does not grant power.
The blood changes the definition of power.
Those who awaken it must abandon the ordinary path.
Longtian stared at the final sentence.
"That sounds familiar."
A knock came from the door.
He didn't look up.
"Enter."
Ao Lian stepped inside.
She wore a plain white robe and carried a wooden tray with two cups of tea.
She placed one in front of him.
"You haven't eaten."
"I don't need to."
"You said that yesterday."
"It's still true."
"You're becoming irritating."
Longtian took the tea.
"You're becoming bossy."
"I've always been bossy."
"Fair."
She sat across from him.
For a while, neither spoke.
Then Ao Lian glanced at the scroll.
"You found something."
"Possibly."
"What?"
Longtian pushed the scroll toward her.
She read it.
Her eyebrows slowly rose.
"So your cultivation really is gone."
"Yes."
"And this bloodline replaced it?"
"Not exactly."
"What then?"
Longtian considered the question.
"I think my cultivation was a road."
He touched his chest.
"This is something else."
Ao Lian looked at him.
"How powerful are you now?"
"I don't know."
"That's an uncomfortable answer."
"It's an honest one."
She sighed.
Then Longtian noticed something.
Her spiritual energy was unstable.
Not weak.
Unstable.
A faint black thread moved through her meridians.
Longtian's eyes narrowed.
"Lian."
"What?"
"Come here."
She frowned.
"Why?"
"Your Qi."
"What about it?"
"Let me see."
Ao Lian hesitated before walking closer.
Longtian placed two fingers against her wrist.
His expression immediately changed.
"You've been hiding this."
"I didn't think it mattered."
"It matters."
He closed his eyes.
His altered senses entered her meridians.
Something was there.
A tiny seed of demonic energy.
It was dormant.
But it was growing.
Longtian opened his eyes.
"When did this start?"
Ao Lian looked away.
"Several weeks ago."
"You knew?"
"Of course."
"And you said nothing?"
"You had enough problems."
Longtian released her wrist.
"That's not your decision to make."
She met his eyes.
"I know."
For several seconds, neither moved.
Then Ao Lian said quietly:
"Is it the same as yours?"
Longtian shook his head.
"No."
"Then what is it?"
"I don't know."
"Can you remove it?"
Longtian hesitated.
"Probably."
"Probably?"
"There's a risk."
"What kind?"
"The seed has already connected itself to your spiritual channels."
Ao Lian looked at her hands.
"Will it kill me?"
"If it awakens incorrectly."
"And if it awakens correctly?"
Longtian looked toward the dark window.
"You'll change."
"Into what?"
"A demon."
The word settled between them.
Ao Lian was silent.
Then she smiled.
"That's it?"
Longtian looked at her.
"That's it."
"I thought you'd tell me something dramatic."
"You might grow horns."
She stared at him.
"You're joking."
"Maybe."
"You don't know?"
"No."
Ao Lian sighed.
"Wonderful."
Longtian stood.
"There's another option."
"What?"
"We could suppress it."
"For how long?"
"Years."
"And after that?"
"It would return."
She looked at him.
"So either way…"
"Eventually."
Ao Lian took a slow breath.
"Then I'd rather know what it is."
Longtian nodded.
"That's what I thought."
Three hours later, the eastern training courtyard had been emptied.
Formation stones were positioned around the perimeter.
Seven layers of defensive formations surrounded the central platform.
Gu Ren stood outside the formation.
He looked at Longtian.
"Young Master, are you certain?"
"Yes."
"And Miss Ao Lian?"
"I'm certain."
Gu Ren glanced toward Ao Lian.
She stood calmly at the center of the formation.
"Very well."
He raised his staff.
The formations activated.
A pale blue barrier rose around the courtyard.
Longtian approached his sister.
"This may hurt."
Ao Lian smiled.
"I expected that."
"If you lose consciousness, I'll stop."
"If I tell you to stop?"
"Then I'll stop."
"And if I can't speak?"
Longtian's expression became serious.
"Then I'll stop anyway."
Ao Lian nodded.
"Good."
Longtian placed his palm against her back.
His demonic Qi entered her body.
The reaction was immediate.
Ao Lian's eyes widened.
Her body trembled.
The dormant seed awakened.
Black-red energy spread through her meridians.
She gasped.
"Longtian…"
"I'm here."
"It hurts."
"I know."
The formation around them began shaking.
Gu Ren's expression changed.
"Young Master!"
"I know."
The demonic seed expanded.
Ao Lian's spiritual energy resisted it.
The two forces collided.
Boom!
A shockwave erupted.
The barrier shook violently.
Longtian remained still.
His bloodline activated.
A crimson aura spread from his body.
The demonic seed immediately reacted.
It recognized his blood.
Then something unexpected happened.
Instead of consuming Ao Lian's spiritual energy—
it began merging with it.
Longtian's eyes narrowed.
"Interesting."
Ao Lian's body lifted several inches above the ground.
Her hair floated around her.
The black-red energy surrounding her became denser.
Her spiritual aura changed.
Not stronger.
Different.
Longtian could feel the transformation happening.
Her meridians were being rewritten.
Her bones were becoming denser.
Her senses were expanding.
But most importantly—
her consciousness remained intact.
The demonic blood wasn't controlling her.
She was controlling it.
Ao Lian opened her eyes.
They had changed.
The pupils were now surrounded by a faint crimson ring.
She looked at Longtian.
"Is it over?"
"Not yet."
"How long?"
"Three days."
Her expression changed.
"Three days?"
"You need to stabilize the transformation."
"And how do I do that?"
"By resisting it."
Ao Lian looked annoyed.
"That's your entire explanation?"
"Yes."
"You're terrible at explaining things."
"Probably."
Longtian turned toward Gu Ren.
"Prepare the eastern chamber."
Gu Ren nodded.
"How much food?"
"Enough for three days."
"Water?"
"Same."
"Medicines?"
"None."
Gu Ren frowned.
"None?"
"The transformation must complete naturally."
Ao Lian looked toward her brother.
"And what am I supposed to do?"
Longtian looked at her.
"Nothing."
"Nothing?"
"Stay inside the formation."
"For three days?"
"Yes."
"Locked in?"
"Yes."
She stared at him.
"You realize that sounds like imprisonment."
"It's protection."
"From what?"
Longtian's expression became serious.
"Everyone."
Ao Lian fell silent.
Longtian continued.
"The elders will try to interfere."
"Let them."
"They don't understand what is happening."
"They don't need to."
"And the enemies watching the clan may sense the transformation."
Ao Lian looked toward the sky.
"You think they'll come?"
"I know they will."
Longtian walked toward the formation's outer boundary.
Then he stopped.
"Lian."
She looked at him.
"Yes?"
"If you feel something trying to control you…"
"Kill it."
She raised an eyebrow.
"How?"
Longtian smiled.
"You've always been good at getting rid of things you dislike."
She laughed.
"Fair enough."
The eastern chamber doors closed.
Formation barriers descended around the room.
Ao Lian sat cross-legged in the center.
Three days.
No visitors.
No interruptions.
No cultivation.
Only herself and the blood changing within her.
Longtian watched the final formation activate.
Then he turned away.
Gu Ren approached.
"Young Master."
"What?"
"You trust Miss Ao Lian to survive?"
Longtian looked at the sealed chamber.
"I trust her to do something more difficult."
"What?"
"Remain herself."
Gu Ren was silent.
Longtian walked away.
He had taken several steps when he stopped.
A faint sensation passed through his body.
His demonic bloodline stirred.
He looked toward the sky.
Something was there.
Watching.
Again.
Longtian smiled.
"Still watching?"
No answer.
He continued walking.
But beneath the sealed chamber, beneath the eastern courtyard, beneath the foundations of the Ao Clan itself—
something ancient moved.
A formation that had been dormant for centuries suddenly activated.
A single line of crimson light appeared beneath the earth.
Then another.
Then another.
The lines formed the same symbol Longtian had discovered on the dead maid.
The symbol of the forgotten bloodline.
Far above the clouds, a heavenly guard opened his eyes.
"The sister has awakened."
Another guard turned.
"That wasn't part of the plan."
"No."
"Then what do we do?"
The first guard looked toward the mortal world.
For the first time, genuine fear entered his voice.
"We wait."
"Why?"
"Because something has changed."
"What?"
The guard stared downward.
"The blood is no longer following the path we predicted."
Inside the sealed chamber, Ao Lian opened her eyes.
She was alone.
At least, she thought she was.
A voice whispered from somewhere in the darkness.
Do you want power?
Ao Lian remained still.
"Who are you?"
I can make you stronger.
She closed her eyes.
"No."
The voice laughed.
Everyone wants power.
"Then find someone else."
Your brother has already accepted me.
Ao Lian's eyes opened.
The darkness seemed to smile.
Why shouldn't you?
Ao Lian's expression hardened.
"Because my brother and I are not the same person."
The voice went silent.
Then it whispered:
Perhaps that's why you will be the more dangerous one.
Ao Lian smiled.
"Good."
The formation around her suddenly erupted with crimson light.
Outside the chamber, Longtian stopped.
He felt the surge.
His expression changed.
Not fear.
Surprise.
Then satisfaction.
His sister had begun the transformation.
And unlike the demon blood that had forced itself into him—
hers had encountered something it hadn't expected.
A will strong enough to resist it.
Longtian looked toward the sealed chamber.
"Three days."
He turned away.
"Let's see what comes out."
Above the clouds, the heavenly guards watched in silence.
None of them noticed the tiny crack forming across the surface of the mysterious treasure they had sent to the mortal world.
Inside that treasure, something had begun to wake.
And for the first time—
it wasn't responding to Ao Longtian.
It was responding to Ao Lian.