The cool night air barely soothed Han Yu's aching body as he limped back toward Twin Leaf Peak. Every step felt like a small rebellion against the natural order of bones and joints, but at least he was alive.
Barely.
He jingled the spirit stones in his pouch and the thirty new gold coins he'd earned from betting on himself.
"Was this worth it?" he muttered aloud.
A voice from the darkness answered him.
"Definitely worth it. For us, anyway."
Han Yu froze, spine straightening in alarm. Out from the shadows stepped a group of men in dark robes — not servants, not disciples — their auras heavy, their eyes glinting with dangerous amusement.
"Relax," said the leader, a tall man with silver rings on all his fingers. "We just want to talk."
Han Yu's instincts screamed STRANGER DANGER louder than a sect elder during an alchemy furnace explosion.
