Morning bathed the Searing Cloud Sect in gold, but Liu Shen felt only the weight of shadows.
> "A traitor in the High Council…"
He had no name yet—only echoes and glimpses.
But that was enough.
> "Let them believe I'm still reacting," he thought. "Meanwhile… I'll start pulling their strings."
And the first thread?
Elder Yan Wuheng.
---
A Trap of Souls
Within the inner sanctum of the alchemy division, Rin set down a jade orb etched with complex runes.
> "The Soul Resonance Trap," he explained.
"One of the Nine Forbidden Arrays from the Abyss Trial Records. It won't kill him—just drag out hidden soul imprints linked to him."
Yun Rou paced nearby. "And we plant this where?"
Liu Shen answered calmly, "In the Meditation Pavilion. Elder Yan visits it every seventh evening before the flame offering."
Jin Mu smirked. "Tonight's the seventh."
---
Whispers in Ancient Ink
Meanwhile, in the forbidden library archives, Rin dusted off an old scroll marked:
> "The Fall of the Flame Sovereign – Classified: Year 781."
The Flame Sovereign.
One of Liu Shen's former titles, long erased from sect history.
As Rin read, his blood chilled.
> "The execution was sanctioned… by a secret vote."
"Seven Council members cast their voice through soul sigils, hidden from normal records."
But one line caught his breath:
> "One sigil bled flame and ice."
"Only one in the sect history wielded both—Elder… Fei Liansheng."
Rin rushed to Liu Shen's quarters that evening, scroll in hand.
> "We have a name."
---
The Flame and Ice Elder
Liu Shen read the scroll in silence.
> "Fei Liansheng…"
An ancient name. One he hadn't heard in either life. A quiet elder, known more for scholarship than cultivation.
He was still on the High Council.
Still alive.
Still watching.
> "He stayed hidden by never lifting his hand directly."
> "But now I know."
Yun Rou stepped forward. "If he sanctioned your death, why hasn't he acted again?"
Liu Shen looked out the window toward the distant council peak.
> "Because he's waiting to see if I remember."
> "And when he realizes I do…"
> "He'll send someone far worse than a puppeteer."
---
Bait in the Pavilion
That evening, the Soul Resonance Trap was placed beneath the lotus meditation stone.
Elder Yan arrived, as predicted—alone, robed in white, incense in hand.
He knelt.
The trap activated.
For a moment, nothing.
Then a black wisp rose from his back—a fragment of a soul imprint, shaped like a masked face.
Liu Shen, Rin, and Yun Rou watched from the hidden formation ring.
The face whispered:
> "Report: Target Liu Shen remains under observation."
"No signs of past-life memory breach confirmed."
Liu Shen smirked.
> "So Elder Yan doesn't know I remember… but he's feeding intel to someone who suspects."
> "Fei Liansheng."
The trap pulsed. The soul imprint tried to flee.
Liu Shen stepped into the formation and raised one hand.
> Crimson Flame Art – Seventh Tongue: "Burn the False Soul."
The imprint screamed. Then dissolved.
Elder Yan jolted, dazed, blood trickling from his nose.
But he never saw the watchers.
---
A Single Move Forward
That night, Liu Shen summoned the Silent Flame Widow.
> "Begin gathering dirt on Fei Liansheng's private disciples. Watch his movements. Don't act yet."
> "Let him believe he's still unseen."
She bowed. "And Elder Yan?"
Liu Shen looked into the night.
> "Let him continue his charade."
> "For now… the snake still serves as bait."