The Azure Serpent Lake was a world unto itself, a self-contained ecosystem of immense power and quiet danger. For Li Yu, it was the paradise he had only dreamed of. His word was law here. The two inner disciples who guarded the entrance, once disdainful, now bowed with genuine respect whenever he passed. They had witnessed the miracle of the wyrm's healing, and in the sect, undeniable results were the only currency that mattered.
Brother Kai, the cynical Senior Steward, had transformed into Li Yu's most fervent and loyal subordinate. The man's skepticism had been burned away by the impossible feat he had witnessed, replaced by a deep-seated awe. He now ran the facility with a renewed vigor, handling all the tedious administrative tasks and acting as a formidable buffer between Li Yu and the rest of the sect. He treated Li Yu's "hunches" and "observations" as divine pronouncements, carrying out his instructions without question. This arrangement was perfect for Li Yu, allowing him to wield absolute authority without having to constantly interact with others, thus preserving his low-key, mysterious persona.
Li Yu established a meticulous routine, a carefully constructed play for an audience of one—his master—and any other powerful figures who might be watching. His days were spent in the role of the diligent Junior Steward. He would walk the perimeter of the vast lake, his silver disciple token gleaming at his waist. He would stand for hours on the observation platforms, seemingly lost in thought as he watched the powerful beasts swim in the deep, dark water.
To the outside world, he was studying, learning, and building his affinity. In reality, he was conducting the most detailed census imaginable. His spiritual sense, a silent, invisible net, swept through the waters, cataloging every creature. He felt the grumpy territoriality of the Rank 3 Deepwater Turtles, the cold, predatory focus of the Silver-Scale Sharks, and the lazy, ancient consciousness of the Black-Vein River Wyrm. He diagnosed minor ailments before they could manifest—a patch of shell fungus on a turtle, a digestive blockage in a shark—and would then casually mention to Brother Kai that "the turtles in the western cove seem a bit sluggish" or that "the sharks might benefit from a diet of softer-fleshed fish for a few days." His solutions were always correct, further cementing his legend as a beast-taming prodigy.
A significant portion of his day was also dedicated to the open practice of the «Azure Water Scripture». He would sit in the main courtyard of the pagoda, slowly and deliberately circulating a tiny thread of Qi through his body. He made his progress painstakingly slow, appearing as a complete novice with a decent but not heaven-defying talent. He allowed himself to "break through" to the First Stage of Body Tempering after a month, a speed that was impressive for a new cultivator but not so outrageous as to arouse suspicion. It was the perfect alibi for the strength he would eventually have to reveal.
But his nights… his nights were when the true work was done.
In the highest, most secluded chamber of his pagoda, a room fortified with formations that prevented any spiritual energy from leaking out, Li Yu would enter his true cultivation state. The chamber had a large, open balcony that overlooked the northern end of the lake, the domain of the Black-Vein River Wyrm.
He would sit, his small frame silhouetted against the moonlight, and activate the «Myriad Rivers Returning to the Sea Art». He would reach out with his will, not to the entire lake, but focusing his immense spiritual suction on a single, titanic source.
The Qi of a Rank 4 Fierce Beast was on a completely different level. It was not just a river; it was a pressurized undersea current, a torrent of power so dense it was almost tangible. The energy was ancient, tinged with the faint, domineering aura of a draconic bloodline. It was a wild, almost violent force that would have torn a normal cultivator's meridians to shreds.
But Li Yu's cultivation art was born for this. The crimson Koi in his dantian would spin like a divine whirlpool, its devouring power meeting the wyrm's ferocious Qi head-on. The technique would grind down the draconic aura, strip away the bestial impurities, and refine the torrent into a stream of unbelievably pure, potent energy.
His cultivation base, which had been a deep lake, was now becoming a vast sea. The progress was explosive. After just one month of absorbing the wyrm's Qi, he had broken through two stages in quick succession, reaching the peak of the Ninth Stage of the Body Tempering Realm. He was now just a single step away from the Tenth Stage, the Great Perfection of Body Tempering, and beyond that, the legendary Qi Condensation Realm. A journey that took most geniuses a decade to complete, he had accomplished in less than two years.
The «Abyssal Leviathan Physique» reveled in the high-quality energy. The life essence drawn from the wyrm was incredibly nourishing. He could feel his bones taking on a lustrous, jade-like sheen, and his blood began to flow with a faint, silvery light. His physical strength was now monstrous, completely belying his small, eleven-year-old frame.
His Koi spirit was also undergoing a profound transformation. The golden thread along its spine was now a brilliant, solid line, and a second, fainter golden thread had begun to trace the outline of its gills. It seemed more solid, more real, and he could feel a burgeoning intelligence within it, a consciousness that was slowly awakening from a long, long slumber.
While his cultivation soared, he did not neglect the other arts his master had given him. He spent a portion of each night studying the «Spirit-Link Contract». He knew he needed a formal companion, not just for the added power, but as another layer to his disguise. A powerful contracted beast would help explain his own future combat prowess.
He sent a request through Brother Kai, and within a day, the Crimson-Gill Marsh-Drake was transferred from the main Hall's pens to a large, private enclosure at the Azure Serpent Lake. The Rank 3 Spirit Beast, which had been sullen and aggressive towards its handlers, became docile and almost joyful the moment it entered Li Yu's domain.
That night, Li Yu began the contracting process. He sat before the drake, not as a tamer, but as an equal. He manifested his blood-red Koi, its higher-order bloodline immediately commanding the drake's absolute respect. Following the intricate steps of the technique, he carefully extended a thread of his own spiritual energy. He did not force it. He offered it. The drake, feeling the familiar, noble aura of the Koi, accepted the thread without hesitation, allowing it to merge with its own soul.
The bond snapped into place with an unnatural ease. A profound connection formed between them. Li Yu could feel the drake's pride, its strength, and its unwavering loyalty. He could see through its eyes, smell through its senses, and feel the powerful muscles coiled in its reptilian body. He had a companion.
The next two months passed in this state of peaceful, rapid growth. His "official" cultivation had reached the Third Stage of Body Tempering, a speed that had Brother Kai and the guards clucking their tongues in amazement at the "Junior Steward's genius." His secret cultivation, however, had reached a bottleneck. He was at the absolute peak of the Ninth Stage, but the barrier to the Tenth Stage, the Great Perfection, was as tough as a celestial wall. The wyrm's Qi was no longer enough. He needed an opportunity, a catalyst.
That catalyst arrived in the form of a problem. Brother Kai approached him one morning, his face etched with worry. "Junior Steward, it's the Lunar-Tide Clams. They are dying."
Li Yu followed him to a special, climate-controlled grotto at the southern end of the lake. Inside, a dozen enormous clams, each the size of a large table, lay in a shallow pool of saltwater. Their shells, which were supposed to shimmer with a pearlescent, moon-like glow, were dull and grey.
These were Rank 3 Lunar-Tide Clams, highly valuable beasts whose pearls could be ground into a powder that calmed the mind and helped cultivators resist mental demons during breakthroughs.
Li Yu extended his spiritual sense. He could connect with them, but it was a strange, alien sensation. Unlike the vibrant, active consciousness of other beasts, their minds were slow, cold, and passive, like the surface of a frozen lake. He could clearly feel their life force fading, a slow, inexorable dimming, but the reason was not apparent. There was no pain, no sickness, no emotional distress he could identify. There was only a quiet, creeping emptiness.
"We've tried everything," Brother Kai said, his voice heavy with frustration. "We've adjusted the water's salinity, changed their diet, even brought in moonlight-gathering formations. Nothing works. They just continue to weaken."
Li Yu stood for a long time, his brow furrowed in genuine concentration. His affinity told him what was happening—they were dying. But it couldn't tell him why. Their unique, Yin-based nature was a puzzle his experience with Yang-based lifeforms couldn't solve. His intuition was hitting a wall.
He realized that while his gift was powerful, it was not omniscient. True mastery required not just innate talent, but profound knowledge.
"My affinity is not enough," Li Yu said, his voice firm and honest, a statement that made Brother Kai's respect for him deepen. "I can feel their life fading, but the cause is a mystery to me. Their nature is too unique. I need to consult the library's archives."
Li Yu spent the next three days in the sect's main library, his silver token granting him access. He ignored the cultivation arts and combat techniques, heading straight for the dusty, forgotten archives on demonic beast biology. He read ancient, obscure texts, searching for any information on creatures with extreme Yin attributes.
Finally, he found it, in a tattered scroll titled «The Balance of Sun and Moon». The scroll confirmed what his senses had felt: the clams were creatures of pure Yin. But it also revealed the crucial piece of information his intuition had missed. The Lunar-Tide Clams didn't just absorb moonlight. They existed in a delicate balance. They needed to absorb the cold, pure Yin energy of the moon, but they also needed a source of gentle, pure Yang energy to act as an anchor for their life force. In their natural deep-sea trench habitat, this Yang energy was provided by a type of volcanic, heat-emitting coral. The sect, in trying to create a perfect Yin environment, had inadvertently starved them of their life's anchor.
The solution was simple: they needed a source of gentle, pure Yang energy.
A slow smile spread across Li Yu's face. He knew of a perfect source. A source of vitality so pure and potent it could revive the dying.
His own spirit.
This was his opportunity. The catalyst he needed for his breakthrough. The clams were dying because they lacked Yang. He was at a bottleneck because his Yang-filled body needed a final, powerful tempering from an opposing force. He would use the clams' desperate need to solve his own problem. He would not just save them. He would use them to reach the Great Perfection.