The mountains burned.
Black ridges rose like the backs of sleeping beasts, and the night sky flared red with drifting firelight. The valley below had once been a quiet cultivation ground — terraced fields, old pavilions, rivers humming with Qi. Now it was rubble, cracked open by battle.
Lu Shenyi stood alone on the scarred plateau, blood soaking the torn sleeve of his robe. His hair was half-undone, clinging to his face in wet strands. His sword hung loosely in his hand, still trembling from the last exchange.
Wind howled through the shattered peaks, carrying dust and the metallic tang of blood.
Across the ruined slope, three figures spread out, trying to circle him.
Zhao Ruilin, his sworn brother — once steady, laughing, loyal — now with eyes like steel coins.Meng Yuer, the calm tactician whose smile used to soften storms.And Han Cheng, the youngest, trembling, knuckles white around his spear.
Shenyi's voice broke the quiet like a crack of thunder.
"Three of you.. Three! And you still look scared! What, you need a whole fucking army next time?"
Ruilin's blade lifted, glowing gold. "You left us no choice, Shenyi. You were losing control—"
"Control?" He barked a bitter laugh. "Don't talk to me about control, you back-stabbing son of bitch whore fucking shit!" He stopped only to spit blood and laughter together. "You think stabbing me in the back makes you righteous?!"
Yuer snapped open her fan, streams of wind slicing the air. "You forced this! The Sect was doomed under your hand!"
Shenyi's grin turned vicious. "Then maybe I should've let it fall! At least it wouldn't be fucking reek of cowards!"
He raised Qingxu, the sword answering with a roar of blue-white light. The ground splintered. He dashed forward, the world blurring into sound and fury.
Ruilin met him head-on, their blades screaming as they collided. Sparks scattered into the wind. The shockwave threw Han Cheng backward.
"Stop this!" Cheng shouted, voice cracking.
"Dumb Fuck!" Shenyi's boot slammed into the ground, hurling up dust. "You think I'm just going to lie down and die because you said sorry?!"
Yuer came from behind, wind-petals flashing like knives. Shenyi turned, caught her wrist mid-strike, twisted — and flipped her over his shoulder. She hit the ground hard, stones shattering under her body.
"You always did hide behind clever tricks," he snarled. "How's that working now, huh?"
He half-laughed, half-coughed, blood spattering the dirt. "You fucking loser of a bitch!"
Yuer gasped, staggering up, fan trembling. "You've lost your mind—"
"No. Fuck You Instead!" Shenyi hissed
A gust of spiritual energy exploded from him, hurling her back again.
Ruilin darted in, sword flashing. "We didn't want this!"
"Then maybe—" clang! "—you should've—" spark! "— fucking thought about it before being a dumbass and sold me out!"
Each strike punctuated the words, raw and vicious. Shenyi's fury was ugly, human, burning through every ounce of composure he'd ever had.
Han Cheng rushed from the side, spear aimed for Shenyi's ribs. Shenyi pivoted, grabbed the shaft mid-thrust, and tore it free. With a twist of his arm, he flung Cheng over his shoulder; the younger man hit the ground so hard the stone cracked beneath him.
"You call that loyalty, Cheng?!" Shenyi shouted, voice cracking with both rage and grief. "You think betrayal feels better because you whispered sorry first?!"
Cheng wheezed, tears streaking through dust. "Senior Lu… please… we had no choice—"
"Shut the fuck up" Shenyi roared
Lightning split the clouds, flashing across his blood-streaked face. His Qi surged higher, swirling like a storm that couldn't decide where to break.
Ruilin steadied his blade, breathing hard. "You were becoming a threat to everyone, Shenyi. If you had just stepped down—"
"Threat?" Shenyi's laughter came sharp, breathless. "You think I was the threat? Look around, Ruilin!" He gestured to the ruins. "You destroyed everything we built just to keep your hands clean!"
Ruilin's jaw tightened. "Then so be it."
They clashed again — thunderous, bone-deep. Every swing left trails of searing light across the broken mountainside. Stones shattered, trees bent under the pressure.
Shenyi fought like a man tearing open his own heart — every strike a curse, every dodge a snarl.
"You always wanted to be the hero, Ruilin!" Clang!"How's it feel now?!" Crash!"Standing on corpses, wearing their loyalty like armor!"
A pulse of golden light flared from Ruilin's sword, forcing Shenyi back a few steps. His feet dug into the ground, dust rising around him. He spat again, wiped his mouth, smirked — half-mad, half-broken.
"That all you've got? I've seen beggars swing harder!"
Ruilin lunged. Shenyi sidestepped, caught his blade with the flat of Qingxu, twisted — and slammed his knee into Ruilin's chest. The man fell, gasping.
Yuer cried out and unleashed a storm of slicing wind. Shenyi turned into it, letting his robe shred to ribbons. The cuts stung, but he barely flinched.
He swept Qingxu upward, cleaving through her technique. The backlash sent Yuer sprawling.
The mountain shuddered. Thunder rolled again, echoing their ragged breathing.
Ruilin crawled to his knees, glare still burning. "You can't kill us all, Shenyi. You can't fight the world."
Shenyi's expression twisted, his face suddenly calms
"I don't even belong here"
He raised his sword, every ounce of spiritual power surging into it. The sky turned white.
Ruilin screamed, Yuer covered her face, Cheng tried to crawl away — too late. Shenyi brought the blade down.
Light swallowed everything.
The sound was beyond thunder — a rolling, endless roar that tore through the mountains and silenced the wind. When it faded, the night was strangely quiet.
Only the crackle of dying fires remained.
Three bodies lay scattered amid the ruin.
Lu Shenyi stood at the center, chest rising and falling, breath ragged. The fury drained slowly, leaving behind something colder — grief's dull ache.
He looked at the sword in his hand, its glow fading to pale steel. He exhaled a shaking laugh, half-broken, half-relieved.
"Fucking hell"