Chapter 8: The Storm over Qinghe
The mountain wind cut sharp against Ren Yu's face as he stood on the cliff overlooking Qinghe City. Lightning rumbled in the distance, flashing across a sky swollen with storm clouds.
Lira stood a few steps behind him, catching her breath. "We can't stay here long," she said. "The Council will send trackers. Once they mark your aura, it's only a matter of time before—"
"I know," Ren Yu interrupted softly. His gaze didn't waver from the horizon. "But I can feel something pulling me back toward the city. The storm isn't natural. It's gathering qi — and it's centered over the Martial Council tower."
Lira's expression hardened. "They're activating a Formation Array."
Ren Yu turned to her. "What kind?"
She hesitated. "The Heaven's Judgement Array. It draws energy from the spiritual network beneath Qinghe. They'll use it to purge any unstable aura signature — yours included."
Ren Yu's jaw tightened. "They're willing to endanger the whole city… just to erase me?"
"That's how the Council works," Lira said bitterly. "They fear what they don't understand."
Ren Yu's fingers clenched until faint golden light bled from beneath his skin. "Then it's time they learned fear."
They made their way down the rocky slope, slipping through patches of fog that rolled across the forest. Every step closer to Qinghe, Ren Yu could feel the storm's pull growing stronger — a rhythmic pulse resonating with the core of his Martial Veins.
At the city's edge, chaos had already begun. Civilians ran for cover as the air thickened with static energy. The streets glowed faintly as formation lines flared across the ground, weaving a giant network of runes centered on the towering Martial Council Hall.
Lira pulled her hood tighter. "Once the Array completes, it'll trap any martial aura above the fifth stage. You won't be able to move freely."
Ren Yu smiled faintly. "Then I'll just break it before it finishes."
They slipped into the side alleys of Qinghe. Soldiers in gray armor patrolled the main streets, their weapons humming with suppression energy. But Ren Yu moved like smoke — silent, deliberate, each motion guided by instinct.
Inside his chest, his Martial Core began to spin, drawing traces of the storm's qi.Golden veins flickered faintly across his arms, but instead of burning wildly as before, they flowed in harmony — controlled, focused.
Lira noticed it. "You've stabilized it already?"
Ren Yu exhaled. "The dragon's power isn't meant to be suppressed. It responds to will. The more I resist it, the more chaotic it becomes. But if I accept it…"
"…it becomes yours," she finished softly.
He nodded. "Exactly."
They reached the Council Plaza just as the final seals ignited. The ground trembled. A dome of lightning began to descend from the clouds — its radius spanning the entire district.
High above, on the roof of the Council Hall, stood three figures in ceremonial robes. The one in the center raised a staff carved from black jade — his aura cold and heavy.
Lira froze. "That's Elder Shen. He's the Array's conductor."
Ren Yu's eyes glowed faintly. "Then I'll cut the strings."
He leapt into the air.
The world blurred around him as his qi burst outward in golden waves. With a single step on empty space, he rose higher, the faint echo of a dragon's roar following his ascent.
The crowd below gasped."Is that—?""The rogue martial heir!""He's defying the Council!"
Lightning converged on him, but Ren Yu spun his body midair, channeling his energy into his palm. A golden circle bloomed before him — a Martial Seal forged not from the Council's techniques, but from his own comprehension.
The bolt struck the seal and split, spiraling harmlessly into light.
Elder Shen's voice thundered from the tower. "Ren Yu of the Ren Lineage! You tamper with forbidden bloodlines and bring calamity upon Qinghe! Submit and your death will be merciful!"
Ren Yu raised his head, the storm reflecting in his eyes. "You fear what you cannot control. I don't need your mercy."
He thrust his hand forward.The Martial Seal expanded, drawing lightning toward him instead of away. The sky twisted. For a heartbeat, every arc of light bent toward his palm — condensing into a sphere of pure, crackling energy.
Ren Yu shouted, "Dragon Vein Art — Tempest Break!"
He released it.The storm howled. The blast tore through the Array's runes, shattering the suppression field like glass. Shockwaves rippled across the plaza, hurling soldiers aside.
On the tower, Elder Shen staggered backward, blood at his lips. "Impossible… no human body could channel that much—!"
Ren Yu landed on the rooftop, his aura still burning faintly gold. "I'm not just human anymore."
For a moment, silence hung between them — broken only by the low growl of thunder.
Elder Shen steadied himself, raising his staff once more. "Then you'll share the dragon's fate."
But before he could strike, the storm split open.A shadow moved within — vast, serpentine, and ancient.
The Golden Dragon's phantom unfurled above the city, its roar shaking the heavens.
Lira, watching from below, could only whisper, "He's awakening…"
The dragon's voice echoed across Qinghe, resonating through every cultivator's veins.
"The seal weakens. The true era begins."
Ren Yu felt his consciousness blur as the phantom's eyes met his. Visions flooded him — flames, war, and a throne of gold shattered by betrayal.
He clutched his chest, pain blooming in waves.The dragon's power surged beyond control.
Elder Shen lunged, shouting a sealing incantation, but before he could reach him, the dragon's roar erupted again — and a blinding flash swallowed everything.
When the light faded, the storm had vanished. The Council Tower lay half-destroyed, the plaza cracked and smoking.
Of Ren Yu, there was no sign.
Lira ran through the rubble, calling his name.But only a faint trail of golden light remained — leading north, toward the wilderness beyond Qinghe.
She tightened her grip on her relic shard. "Ren Yu… wherever you've gone, I'll find you."
Far above, the dragon's voice lingered in the winds — both warning and promise.
"The storm is only the beginning."