At the lowest chamber of the Thousand Serpent Sect, beneath the Seven-Poison Well and past a hall lined with mummified elders who had failed the path of venom, a thirteen-year-old boy knelt.
Naked. Unblinking. Silent.
Before him stood Grand Elder Han Wu, draped in black and violet robes, his skeletal hand resting upon a scroll sealed with seven crimson fangs.
"The time has come, Yin Wuxie," the elder hissed. "Your bones have been soaked in poison since infancy. Your flesh has absorbed the toxins of the Ten Thousand Serpent Elixirs. But to become a true disciple… you must forge your bones in pain."
Wuxie did not flinch.
"I welcome it."
The Bone Forging Ritual was a forbidden ceremony, outlawed by the Heavenly Jade Alliance for centuries. While righteous sects used spirit light and elixirs to temper their bodies, the Thousand Serpent Sect believed in destruction through rebirth.
The process began by shattering all 206 bones in the body — then reforging them with cursed Qi and spiritual venom from the Black Serpent God sealed below the well.
Only two had survived it in the last hundred years. Both became monsters.
As Han Wu chanted in an ancient tongue, seven jade needles pierced Wuxie's spine. His body convulsed. Flames of black Qi erupted from the floor. Spirits screamed from within the venom.
The chamber temperature dropped. The well bubbled over with black ichor.
From the shadows, a colossal serpent spirit slithered into view — translucent, fanged, with ten eyes that blinked independently. Its aura bent the stone walls, warping space around it.
The Black Serpent God — Hei Shelong.
"This child dares summon me?"
"He bears the Mark of Calamity..."
"And yet... I smell no fear."
Han Wu bowed. "Lord Serpent. Grant this child your venom flame and bind his marrow in your image."
The serpent eyed the boy.
Wuxie, body cracking, blood boiling, stared back… and smiled.
"So be it."
The serpent lunged — not to kill, but to bite his soul.
A scream unlike any mortal cry echoed across the mountains. The flame of a thousand poisons entered Yin Wuxie's veins. His bones liquefied. His heart stopped for three whole seconds.
And then—
BOOM!
Black lightning erupted from his chest. His bones lit up with dark flame, forming new marrow etched with demonic runes. His eyes opened — glowing like a dying star.
Ding!
Cultivation Realm: Foundation Establishment – Peak Stage (Unstable)
Spirit Root: Demonic Dual-Element (Shadow/Poison)
Bloodline: Partial Beast Inheritance – Black Serpent God
Han Wu smiled darkly. "You… you monstrous child… you've surpassed even my expectations."
Wuxie rose, body steaming with dark Qi, venom dripping from his fingers. He clenched his fist, and the stone beneath cracked.
"I feel... hollow," he whispered. "And I like it."
In the shadows above, hidden from sight, a figure in white robes from the Azure Cloud Pavilion watched through a spirit mirror.
"A child of calamity..." she whispered, trembling. "He will bring ruin to us all."
*Back at the Thousand Serpent Sect*
Night fell like black ink over the cliffs of the Thousand Serpent Sect. The mountain air was dense with mist, veiling its towering peaks in silence. Only the low hiss of venom pits and the soft moans of cursed beasts echoed through the canyons.
Yet tonight, trespassers breathed the sacred poisons.
Hidden within the jungle-like border of the outer sect grounds, a group of four robed figures moved swiftly, cloaked by talismans of concealment. They bore the mark of Radiant Jade Sect, bright white jade symbols etched on their collars.
Leading them was a girl, no older than fourteen, with moon-silver hair and eyes like clear springwater.
Xiao Lian.
"We retrieve the Moon Orchid Blossom and leave. No killing unless we're discovered," she whispered. "The Radiant Jade Sect does not bathe in blood."
Her companions nodded. Yet one—her cousin, Lei Fen—scoffed beneath his breath. "Fools like the Serpent Sect only understand blood."
They pressed deeper.
Elsewhere, beneath the Sect's inner hall...
Yin Wuxie knelt once more before Grand Elder Han Wu, now dressed in ritual silks of blood-red and shadow-black.
"Four intruders," the elder whispered. "Children of the Radiant Jade. They breach our land, our venom sanctum."
"And?" Wuxie's voice was calm, void of emotion.
"You are no longer a child, Wuxie," the elder rasped. "You forged your bones in venom flame. Today, you forge your heart."
Han Wu turned and summoned a scroll with a flick of his sleeve. It unraveled midair, revealing painted images of the four intruders.
"You will kill them. All four. No mercy, no delay. Bring back their spirit cores. Burn their bodies."
Wuxie stood, his new robes dark as night itself. "Even the girl?"
Han Wu's pale lips twitched. "Especially her. She is the light that wishes to blind you."
A flicker—barely visible—crossed Wuxie's eyes.
"I understand."
Near the Serpent Sanctum – Venom Orchid Garden
The four intruders crept through the field of luminous plants, unaware that shadows had begun to stalk them. Snake-like tendrils of mist moved unnaturally, drawn to their heat, their breath… their fear.
Tap... Tap... Tap...
The sound of someone walking behind them.
Lei Fen spun around, sword drawn. "Who—?!"
A boy stood behind them, hands behind his back, pale hair falling over coal-black eyes. A crimson serpent mark coiled up his neck.
Wuxie smiled gently.
"You've stepped into a garden that eats corpses."
Xiao Lian stepped forward. "We don't wish to fight."
"I do," Wuxie replied, and then vanished.
Shadow streak.
A scream.
One of the Jade disciples fell, throat rotting as black venom exploded through his veins.
"Lei Qing!" Lian gasped.
Lei Fen lunged, fire blade gleaming, but Wuxie caught it with two fingers — and crushed it.
"Sloppy."
With a spin, Wuxie drove his palm into Fen's chest. Thousand Venom Palm. The boy convulsed and fell to his knees, vomiting blood.
Only Xiao Lian remained.
She trembled. But not from fear.
From confusion.
"You're… not like them. I saw you hesitate."
Wuxie stepped forward, bloody mist swirling around him like a cloak.
"I am exactly like them," he lied. "No one hesitates before killing. They hesitate before deciding if it matters."
He raised his hand, venom glowing.
She didn't raise her sword.
"Then why didn't you strike me first?" she whispered.
Silence.
He hesitated again.
For one second… one fatal second… his heart wavered.
And in that moment, she flung a purification talisman.
The light struck his chest. He screamed — not in pain, but in rage. His poison Qi flared, countering the holy light, but the moment of imbalance let her escape.
She ran, injured, dragging the barely-alive Lei Fen behind her.
Wuxie stood there, breathing hard.
He could have chased.
He could have killed.
He didn't.
Later that night...
Han Wu was silent as Wuxie knelt before him again.
"Two spirit cores. Two bodies. And the girl?"
Wuxie's voice was low. "She escaped."
Han Wu stared deep into him.
"Your heart is still weak."
Wuxie said nothing.
Han Wu turned away. "Then you will be tested again. Next time, she dies. Or you will."