On the morning of the fourth day, the entire sect felt wrong.
The sun rose—but its light seemed pale.
The wind blew—but its sound felt distant.
Birds took flight—but none dared fly over the outer sect's elite plateau, as if instinctively avoiding something that did not belong.
The masked killer would arrive tonight.
Every disciple could sense it.Every instructor could feel it.Every beast in the forest tensed.
Zhou Shan walked beside Lian Hong, shaking like a leaf.
"Bro… this is the quietest I've ever heard the sect. Even the squirrels are in hiding. Even the trees feel nervous. Bro… bro, I'm nervous for the trees—"
He stopped talking abruptly.
Because every disciple they passed—
moved aside.
Some bowed their heads.Some didn't dare breathe.Some stared with awe.Some with fear.Some with jealousy burning like fire.
But none stepped in his path.
Because today—
Lian Hong wasn't just a genius.He was someone marked for death by an unstoppable force.
And yet he walked calmly.
As if going to meet the inevitable.
Lian Hong reached the southern cavern again.
The void inside pulsed faintly, like a beast breathing.
Wei Feng was waiting.
His posture was straight.His blade was sheathed.His eyes darker than usual.
He spoke quietly:
"Today is Stage Three."
Zhou Shan immediately knelt.
"I would like to formally resign from emotional support duties—"
Wei Feng ignored him.
He gestured toward the cavern.
"Before we enter—you must understand something."
His tone dropped.
"Stage Three has no safety measures.No limits.No pauses."
He looked directly at Lian Hong.
"If you lose control of your bloodline, you may cripple yourself.""If you push too hard, your heart may burst.""If you misjudge the void, you may die."
Zhou Shan flailed.
"BRO DON'T DO IT—!! I CAN'T EVEN LOOK AT STAGE TWO WITHOUT HAVING NIGHTMARES—!!!"
Wei Feng raised two fingers.
"Stage Three is called—"
He sliced the air.
And the void inside the cavern shuddered violently.
"Shadow Rift."
Wei Feng stepped into the darkness.
"Stage One taught you to sense absence.""Stage Two taught you to sense potential motion."
He turned back toward Lian Hong.
"Stage Three teaches you to sense the intent-to-kill hidden inside shadow itself."
He pressed his palm against the cavern wall.
The stone pulsed.
And then—
split open.
Not naturally—but like a wound.
A slice of pure shadow poured out, darker than any night.
It crept across the ground, hissing softly.
Zhou Shan jumped behind Lian Hong.
"BRO WHAT IS THAT WHAT IS THAT WHAT IS THAT—"
Wei Feng explained:
"This is a rift.A rupture of suppressed killing intent."
The shadow rift stretched across the cavern like a fracture through reality.
"It is not alive.But it behaves as if it wants to kill."
He nodded at Lian Hong.
"And you must cross it."
Lian Hong walked toward the rift.
The closer he got, the colder the air became.
Not physical cold—but the cold that comes from a blade aimed at the soul.
The system tried to process it.
[Error: Unknown energy signature][Warning: Shadow Rift is beyond host's current classification][Survival rate… calculating…][…low.]
Zhou Shan immediately sat down.
"I will wait here. If you die, I'll build a shrine. If you live, I'll build TWO shrines."
Lian Hong ignored him.
He stepped into the rift.
Darkness swallowed him.
There was no ground.No ceiling.No walls.
Only layers of shadow drifting like torn cloth.Each layer slicing silently through the air.Each one lethal enough to cut flesh or soul.
Lian Hong stepped forward—
and a shadow sheet drifted toward him.
He reacted instinctively—
ducking under it.
It passed just above his head, cutting a strand of hair.
SHRRRP—
Another rose from below—
He leaped over it.
A third curved from the side—
He twisted his torso.
Every movement became razor-precise.
Wei Feng's voice echoed faintly:
"You cannot fight shadows."
Another shadow sliced past.
"You cannot overpower shadows."
A shadow aimed for his heart—he bent backward.
"You can only survive shadows."
Zhou Shan's faint voice carried from the entrance:
"BROOO I CAN'T EVEN WATCH THIS—!!!"
The shadows changed.
They began moving toward him.
Not randomly.
Not mindlessly.
But intentionally.
Like predators that had finally noticed prey.
Lian Hong froze for a moment.
For the first time—he felt killing intent from a source with no consciousness.
His heart tightened.
The shadows converged.
Too many.
Too fast.
Too unpredictable.
He sensed a ripple—
a warning—
a flicker—
He moved.
Left.Right.Forward.Back.Drop.Slide.Turn.
The shadows carved through the space he had just moved out of.
SSSSHHHH—!!
Wei Feng's voice sharpened:
"Good.You're reading their pattern."
A shadow curved toward Lian Hong's neck.
He tilted—
a hair late.
A shallow cut opened on his shoulder.
Zhou Shan screamed:
"BRO YOU'RE BLEEDING—!! GET OUT GET OUT GET OUT—!!"
Wei Feng snapped:
"No!If he exits now, he will die tonight."
Lian Hong steadied his breath.
Bloodline energy pulsed beneath his skin—
dangerously.
Wei Feng warned:
"Control your bloodline.If you awaken now, the rift will swallow you."
Lian Hong forced it down.
The shadows approached again—
faster.
Sharper.
Smarter.
He sensed the next three trajectories—
dodged two—
parried one with a palm reinforced by bloodline—
and rolled beneath the fourth.
CRACK—!!
A shadow grazed the stone behind him.
Stone disintegrated instantly.
Zhou Shan fainted again.
The shadows withdrew suddenly.
The cavern fell silent.
Too silent.
Then—
a shape formed ahead.
Not a monster.
Not a person.
A mass of shadow gathered into a sphere—
pulsing like a heartbeat.
Wei Feng whispered from afar:
"…You've reached it."
Lian Hong's breath tightened.
"Shadow Heart."
Wei Feng's tone became extremely grave.
"Inside that sphere is pure killing intent—undiluted, concentrated, refined."
A pause.
"It is the essence of the masked killer's technique."
Zhou Shan shrieked awake:
"BRO DON'T TOUCH THE DARK HEART THING—!! NOTHING GOOD EVER COMES FROM TOUCHING A DARK HEART THING—!!!"
Wei Feng spoke sharply:
"To survive tonight—you must make contact with it."
Lian Hong stared at the sphere.
Shadow pulsed.
His heartbeat quickened.
The system trembled.
[Extreme Hazard][Warning: Prolonged contact may result in loss of consciousness, bloodline deviation, or death]
He stepped forward.
Wei Feng whispered:
"If it rejects you—you die."
Zhou Shan wailed.
"If it ACCEPTS you, bro, you STILL might die—!!"
Lian Hong reached out.
His hand touched the Shadow Heart.
Everything went black.