Night fell over the Skyroot Plateau like a curtain of obsidian silk. Fires flickered across sect camps and rogue shelters alike, casting strange shadows across tents and pavilions. But in the center, beneath the glow of the Ascension Ring, Shen Zian sat alone.
He wasn't meditating.
He was listening.
Dozens of voices drifted through the cold night air—whispers of strategy, boasts of future victories, even murmurs of dread. His name had begun to circulate among the elite: the corpse-fire rogue, the beast mimic, the one who fought with the savagery of monsters and the calm of kings.
"Three matches. Three wins," Mei Xuan said, approaching with two spirit apples. "And now even the judges have eyes on you."
Zian accepted the apple silently, biting into it without breaking his gaze on the platform.
"They can watch all they want," he said. "I didn't come here to impress them."
"No," Mei said. "You came to tear down your brother. But that's still days away. And something else is stirring."
Zian's head turned slightly. "What do you mean?"
She pointed toward the west side of the plateau—toward a camp no one dared approach. There, beneath a banner of crimson stitched with black feathers, sat a single tent.
No guards.
No disciples.
Just… silence.
"They call him the Scarlet-Eyed Beast Tamer," Mei whispered. "His name is Jin Yue. He hasn't fought yet, but they say his spirit beast isn't bound by contract. It chose him."
"Unheard of," Zian muttered. "Even divine beasts must be bound through force or oath."
"Exactly. But this beast—whatever it is—it follows him freely. Some say it speaks."
Zian narrowed his eyes.
"He'll be a problem."
"Or an opportunity," Mei said. "You're not the only one here walking a path outside the rules."
Next Day – Tournament Grounds
The next set of duels was announced, and tension rippled across the arena as the names rang out.
"Next match: Jin Yue of the Crimson Plume… versus Su Mei of the Northern Willow Sect!"
The crowd quieted immediately.
Everyone had been waiting to see Jin Yue.
He stepped onto the platform with unhurried steps, a tall young man clad in faded red robes. His hair was long and unbound, and his eyes—just as Mei had said—were a deep, unnatural scarlet, glowing faintly like dying embers.
He carried no weapon.
Summoned no beast.
But as he reached the center, a shadow detached itself from the air behind him.
A beast appeared.
Unlike any Zian had seen.
It stood tall on four hooved legs, but its back was lined with jagged feathers. Its eyes mirrored Jin Yue's—scarlet, intelligent, aware. Its aura was restrained, coiled, yet oppressive.
Su Mei paled.
Her own spirit beast—a rank 4 steelbeak falcon—shivered and tried to retreat into its binding seal.
The judge barely raised her hand when Jin Yue whispered a single word.
"Feed."
The beast moved.
Not fast—but absolutely. There was no hesitation, no motion wasted. It surged forward, eyes locked on the falcon. With one flick of its talon, it shattered the falcon's defensive ward and drove it into the ground with brutal precision.
The duel was over in less than five seconds.
Su Mei didn't even scream.
"Victor: Jin Yue."
No cheers.
Just silence.
And then the crowd turned—to Shen Zian, sitting in the stands, watching intently.
Jin Yue, still on the platform, lifted his gaze—and met Zian's eyes.
There was no malice there.
Only recognition.
As if two predators had sniffed each other out in a field of sheep.
Later – Secluded Slope
Zian stood alone beneath a wind-swept tree, his corpse flame dimmed as he tried to stabilize the fourth core he'd acquired—a Frost Ape's cousin, laced with elemental ice. It resisted fusion, its will faint but rebellious.
"Submit," Zian growled. "I've devoured worse."
He forced a surge of corpse qi through his arm—and the core shattered, its essence scattering into his dantian like glacial dust.
The wind shifted.
He turned.
Jin Yue stood at the edge of the slope, arms folded, beast behind him like a silent sentinel.
"You don't bind them," Jin Yue said softly. "You consume. I see now."
Zian didn't respond.
"Our paths are similar. But yours walks through death. Mine… through loyalty."
"And why are you here?" Zian asked. "Sizing me up?"
"Yes," Jin Yue said honestly. "Because when this tournament ends, the Spirit Realm opens. And you and I will both walk through that gate."
He paused.
"I came to see if you'll survive long enough to matter."
Zian's corpse flame flared once.
"I will. The real question is… will you?"
Jin Yue smiled faintly.
And for a moment, the two stood like reflections in a cracked mirror—one draped in crimson, the other in ashes.