The dim lanterns of the Black Dragon dorm flickered, their weak flames struggling against the draft that slithered through cracks in the broken shutters. The light cast long shadows across the cracked stone floor, where dust gathered like the remnants of forgotten battles.
The room smelled faintly of old incense, burnt oil, and damp wood. Once, the dormitory might have been splendid, lined with banners of a proud faction. Now, those banners lay faded and torn, their dragon sigils frayed, barely recognizable.
The five disciples of the Black Dragon faction sat around a heavy oak table scarred with knife marks and scorch lines. Between them lay the mission token. A slab of carved jade, etched with faint runes that pulsed with a rhythm like a heartbeat. Its faint hum was not loud, but in the silence it filled every corner of the room.
No one spoke. The weight of the jade pressed down on them heavier than iron.
Finally, Li Xian straightened her back and folded her hands neatly on her lap. Her long hair, tied into a flawless tail, gleamed under the weak lantern glow. Her face, pale and composed, revealed nothing. Only her eyes moved, sweeping over her companions—Lu Mao, Bao Fu, Chen Yuan, and Yan Mei.
When she spoke, her tone was even, clipped, carrying authority without harshness.
"This mission is unlike anything you've attempted before."
Her words broke the silence like a blade slicing silk.
"The target," she continued, her voice steady, "is the Amber Viper Clan. Pill refiners, poison masters, and ruthless merchants. Their reputation reaches every corner of the cultivation world. They trade in pills that heal, pills that enhance, pills that kill. Their poisons can melt flesh from bone or silence a man's soul before he takes his last breath."
She paused, her eyes narrowing, her tone deepening.
"But now…"
The word lingered in the air.
"…a prodigy has emerged in their ranks."
The room stirred. Lu Mao leaned forward, his sharp eyes narrowing. His fists, resting on the table, flexed.
"A prodigy?"
Li Xian's gaze sharpened as she nodded. "Rumor claims he has refined a pill capable of breaking the bottleneck of the Spirit Master realm."
That single sentence struck harder than a thunderclap.
"With this pill, one may ascend directly to the War-Blood realm," she explained, her voice dropping lower, "without suffering the pain or risking failure at the bottleneck."
A cold silence wrapped itself around the room. Even Bao Fu—usually quick with a grin or a joke—could only gape.
"That's… impossible," Chen Yuan muttered, disbelief shading his tone. His hand brushed unconsciously over the small leather pouch at his waist, where he kept his precious collection of herbs. "If such a thing exists, every clan in the continent would fight to control it. The cultivation world itself would—"
"—topple," Yan Mei finished softly. Her voice carried a quiet, almost chilling weight.
Li Xian inclined her head in agreement. "Exactly. Which is why this mission must be carried out with precision. Officially, the reward is 1,000 credits—for confirming whether such a pill exists. But if we manage to acquire a sample…" She let her words trail off. Her eyes glimmered faintly in the lantern light. "…the reward rises to 1,500 credits."
The number itself was staggering.
"That much?" Bao Fu finally burst out. "That's enough to buy half a cultivation library! Dozens of qi condensation pills, glimmer crystals, even access to sect furnaces!"
He rubbed his palms together nervously, eyes darting between his companions. "We're talking about resources that could push us forward for years."
Lu Mao's hands tightened into fists. His mind burned with a single thought: A pill that shatters bottlenecks. The cultivation world is already divided by those who advance and those who forever fail. If I secure this, I won't just bring credits to my faction. I'll seize a chance to claw at the heavens themselves.
Li Xian's voice cut into his thoughts.
"The pill is described as a gleaming blue pill with a yellow flame-like aura that lingers on its surface. Our target location is the Fang Master Faction, a sub-sect of the Amber Vipers. It is based near the central markets, where trade flows like rivers and secrecy is veiled by noise."
Her gaze sharpened as she studied each of them. "The crowds will be our cover—but also our greatest risk."
Bao Fu scratched his head, a nervous grin tugging at his lips. "So… let me get this straight. We're sneaking into a nest of poison masters, pill refiners, and merchants with guards that could sniff out a rat's qi from ten paces?"
He whistled low. "Fantastic. Just fantastic."
Yan Mei's lips curved faintly, a smirk dancing at their edge. She tilted her head and let her long lashes half-shield her eyes. "If you're too frightened, Bao Fu, you can always stay behind. No shame in surviving."
"Afraid?!" Bao Fu puffed his chest, slapping a hand against it. "Me? Afraid? I'm just making sure the rest of you fully grasp how utterly insane this is."
Chen Yuan rolled his eyes and muttered under his breath, "At least he's said something intelligent for once."
Lu Mao leaned forward, his voice firm and unwavering. "Insane or not, we'll do it. This is our chance. Black Dragon does not kneel, and we do not let treasures slip from our claws."
For the first time that night, Li Xian's lips curved in the faintest of smiles. "Then listen carefully. Security will be tight. Too many will already be circling like wolves, if the rumors have spread. If we are discovered, the Amber Vipers will not hesitate to erase us. We begin with observation. Guard patrols, trade routes, weak points. Only after we've prepared do we strike."
Her voice fell silent, and in the echoing quiet, the faint hum of the jade token seemed louder than before.
The next morning dawned gray and cold.
The team stood at the beast yard beside the Mission Center, where iron cages rattled with low growls and the acrid scent of blood and hay filled the air. Rows of spirit beasts shuffled restlessly, claws scraping stone.
Lu Mao handed over 160 credits, the jade slips clinking faintly as the stable master tucked them away. With a sharp whistle, the man released five Firedrakes.
The beasts bounded forward, their scales the color of cooling embers. Their bodies were lean, built for explosive speed, with long legs that flexed like coiled springs. Steam puffed from their nostrils, and faint trails of fire flickered at the corners of their mouths.
Each disciple mounted one, the creatures shifting impatiently under their weight.
The moment Bao Fu swung onto his Firedrake, the beast leapt forward with a thunderous snarl. Bao Fu yelped, then laughed wildly, his voice echoing across the yard.
"Now THIS—this is living!"
Yan Mei rode with ease, her back straight, reins held lightly in her hands. She guided her mount with subtle movements, as if the beast could read her calm. "Focus," she said sharply, her voice cutting through Bao Fu's laughter. "They're not toys."
Their journey west began with a burst of speed. The Firedrakes devoured the ground, their strides longer than horses, carrying the disciples across barren fields and dusty trails. The cold morning air stung their cheeks, carrying the faint scent of smoke from distant villages.
For days they traveled.
They crossed burning deserts, where the wind stung like needles and their lips cracked from thirst. At night, the sands gleamed silver under the moonlight, and faint howls of desert beasts echoed across the dunes.
They pushed through jungles where the air hung thick with damp heat, insects buzzed in clouds, and the cries of spirit beasts shivered through the canopy. Lu Mao slashed vines aside, sweat beading on his brow, while Bao Fu muttered endless complaints about biting flies and wet boots.
They rode through wide grasslands, where endless waves of green swayed like an ocean, and the wind smelled faintly of wildflowers. Occasionally, kingdoms flickered in the distance—stone fortresses with banners flying, their walls dotted with spears.
Lu Mao's eyes lingered on each fortress. For the first time, he realized just how vast the cultivation world truly was. So many sects, so many clans, each clinging to power. And here they were—five young disciples, carrying the battered banner of a broken dragon.
But we will rise, he swore silently. I will make sure of it.
Yan Mei often rode beside him. She said little, her lashes half-lowered, her face serene. But sometimes, when the wind whipped too sharply, she leaned closer, her shoulder brushing his. She never remarked on it, and neither did he. Yet the touch lingered longer than necessary, and Lu Mao felt an unfamiliar tightness in his chest.
By the seventh day, they reached the outskirts of the Amber Viper Clan's domain.
Before them stretched a bustling city. Smoke curled from forges, vendors shouted in crowded markets, and the faint glow of alchemical fires flickered even in daylight. The air smelled of bitter herbs, acrid roots, and faint toxins that clung to the tongue.
Guard patrols in emerald robes marched the streets, the sigil of a coiling viper emblazoned on their chests. Their movements were sharp, disciplined, eyes like hawks searching for prey.
Wards shimmered faintly in the air above certain compounds, their greenish glow like rippling poison gas. Even to the naked eye, they were visible—a warning and a threat.
The Fang Master Faction's compound loomed near the heart of the city. Its walls were painted with coiled serpent motifs, and smoke rose steadily from multiple pill furnaces inside. Disciples in emerald robes moved in and out in constant streams, their arms heavy with crates of herbs and boxes of pills.
Li Xian's voice was a whisper, but the steel within it cut through the noise of the market.
"We're here. From this moment, every step must be deliberate. Watch. Listen. Do not act rashly. Remember—on this mission, we are not disciples. We are thieves. And thieves do not make mistakes."
Lu Mao's eyes gleamed with restrained fire. He clenched his reins until his knuckles whitened, his chest tightening with anticipation.
"Good," he murmured. His voice was steady, carrying a promise. "Then let's see if the Amber Vipers are as venomous as they claim."
And from the shadows of the crowded market, the Black Dragon team began their preparations.
Their first true mission as Inner Sect disciples had begun.