Chapter 3: Weeds in the Garden
The stone pulsed.
Faint at first, then steady, like a slow heartbeat. It didn't glow—not bright—but it pulled at the qi around it, like a sink hole in a river.
Alex crouched next to it, pokin it with a stick.
"Yup. Definitely don't like it."
"System warning: spiritual vein corruption risk at 3%. Foreign node remains dormant, but may activate under moonlight."
Jun stood back, jaw tight. "That thing… it marks the place. Hollow Eye used 'em to track fugitives. If they placed it in a seed, then someone knew I'd come here."
Meilin's hand was on her sword. "You sure it's not you who brought it?"
Jun didn't answer right away. Just looked down.
"I don't know," he said. "Maybe."
That night, the moon rose full and bright over Still Wind Hill.
The stone sprouted.
Not roots. Not vines.
Chains.
Black, whisperin, slitherin chains of mist and qi. They twisted through the soil like snakes, tryin to latch onto the nearby spirit plants.
Alex was already there.
He slammed his hand down, palm glowin gold and green.
"System. Activate Cleanse Root Protocol."
"Confirmed. Initiating."
The earth around the stone cracked. Vines burst upward—not from the stone, but from the hill itself. Glowing green tendrils gripped the chains and yanked—hard.
The chains hissed and sizzled like burnt snakes.
Jun ran up, panting. "Need help?"
Alex shook his head. "Nah. Got it mostly handled. Just... might get a lil loud."
And it did.
The chains screamed. A sound that wasn't sound, but still made birds drop from the air.
From the distance, dark clouds gathered unnaturally fast.
Back in the village, the people gathered near the shrine.
"What is it?" Liuna asked.
"Storm," Meilin said. "Not a normal one."
She looked toward the field, saw Alex standin tall in the middle of spiraling lights and roots.
"He's cleaning the garden."
At the heart of it, Alex reached out and touched the stone again.
His voice was calm. Soft.
"You don't belong here."
He closed his eyes. Focused not on fightin—but on growin.
All around him, the farm listened.
The roots wrapped the stone gently.
Then crushed it.
The chains snapped. The clouds vanished. The wind dropped like a sigh.
Jun fell to his knees.
"That... that would've killed a whole sect's worth of land."
Alex wiped his brow. "Good thing I'm just a farmer, huh?"
But far away…
In a cold black cave lined with glowing red crystals…
A woman in white opened her eyes.
"Still Wind Hill," she whispered. "He broke the node."
She smiled, sharp and hungry.
"Let's plant something else."