The Yue Clan expedition departed at dawn, thirty cultivators moving in disciplined formation through the city's eastern gate.
Wang Ben watched from a rooftop three streets away, using the vantage point that his formation repair contract had provided. The expedition's composition told a story of serious intent: six foundation establishment cultivators in the lead, the rest qi condensation level, all carrying equipment designed for extended wilderness travel.
And at the center, surrounded by guards who moved with the fluid precision of elite training, traveled three figures whose presence made the morning air crystallize with cold.
[OBSERVATION: Yue Clan Eastern Expedition]
[Composition: 30 cultivators total]
[Leadership: 3 advanced cultivators (Ice signatures, core formation or higher based on spiritual pressure)]
[Support: 6 foundation establishment (early to late-stage)]
[General forces: 21 qi condensation (mid to peak-stage)]
[Equipment profile: Extended expedition supplies, specialized detection arrays, bloodline resonance equipment]
[Destination: Eastern wilderness regions (probable)]
[Risk assessment: Following this force would be extremely dangerous. Detection by any member could prove fatal]
Three core formation cultivators, Wang Ben thought. This isn't a scouting mission. They expect to find something.
He waited until the expedition had cleared the city, then descended from his position and began making his own preparations. Feng Zhilan wouldn't expect him for work until afternoon. He had until midday to establish a trail before anyone noticed his absence.
...
The eastern roads were empty this far from the city.
Wang Ben traveled parallel to the expedition's route, using terrain features to remain concealed while tracking their passage. The Yue Clan cultivators moved with efficient purpose, their Ice qi leaving traces in the environment that his enhanced perception could follow.
The landscape changed as they climbed into the foothills. Permanent snow appeared on distant peaks, and the ambient temperature dropped despite the season. This was deep Frozen Jade territory, where Ice essence permeated everything.
[ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT: Eastern Wilderness Region]
[Qi composition:]
[- Ice: 67% (dominant)]
[- Water: 23% (secondary)]
[- Earth: 7% (trace)]
[- Other: 3% (mixed)]
[Temperature: Sub-zero, cultivation-assisted resistance recommended]
[Visibility: Clear, minimal concealment available]
The cold didn't trouble him. If anything, each breath felt easier as he climbed, the Ice-dominant qi integrating smoothly with his cultivation base. The anomaly that had begun at the border was becoming more pronounced.
This should be hostile territory for my cultivation, he reminded himself. Why does it feel like coming home?
The question had no answer. But his mother's sealed bloodline flickered in his memory, and he wondered if Ice had been in his blood all along, waiting to be acknowledged.
...
By midday, the expedition had entered a mountain pass that showed signs of recent exploration.
Wang Ben observed from a ridge overlooking the pass, using a fallen log and accumulated snow as concealment. Below, the Yue Clan cultivators had paused to examine something, their core formation leaders gathered around a stone marker that bore ancient inscriptions.
The marker's presence triggered something in his mind. A fragment of knowledge that shouldn't exist, surfacing from the depths where the Archive kept its secrets.
[STRUCTURAL ANALYSIS]
[Pattern recognition: Ancient cultivation nexus architecture detected]
[Cross-reference: Universal nexus theory (Qingxuan Transcendent Archive)]
[Confidence: 47% match to theoretical nexus construction patterns]
[Classification: Convergence point or spiritual source access site]
[Estimated age: Pre-dynasty construction (3,000+ years, based on formation degradation patterns)]
[Note: Construction methods and qi flow architecture consistent with ancient nexus sites documented across multiple cultivation worlds in Archive records]
[Observation: Yue Clan search patterns align with standard nexus-seeking methodologies. Target site likely holds significant strategic or cultivation value]
[Warning: Specific purpose unknown. Local historical context unavailable]
A cultivation nexus, Wang Ben processed. Something that old would predate the kingdoms, the clans, everything we consider ancient now.
The expedition moved on after examining the marker, their pace increasing as if the stone had confirmed they were on the correct path. Wang Ben followed, more careful now. They were getting closer to something, and the cultivators below were becoming more alert.
...
The evening found him sheltered in a crevice overlooking the expedition's camp.
The Yue Clan had established their position in a natural bowl surrounded by ice-covered peaks, the location clearly chosen for defensive advantage. Formations had been erected around the edges, barriers that would detect any approach by cultivation signature.
But the formations were calibrated for hostility. For aggressive intent.
Wang Ben's approach was purely observational. He harbored no hostile thoughts, projected no aggressive qi. The detection arrays registered him as no more threatening than the mountain itself.
From his position, he could see the expedition's evening activities clearly. The core formation cultivators had gathered in the central tent, their voices carrying on the thin mountain air. The foundation establishment guards maintained outer watch while the qi condensation cultivators established camp.
And in the tent's center, visible through a gap in the fabric, equipment hummed with a purpose Wang Ben recognized.
Bloodline resonance detection.
He had seen similar arrays in the formation texts he had studied. They were designed to locate specific genetic markers, identifying the presence of particular cultivation bloodlines within a defined area. The Yue Clan was using them to search for something connected to their ancestry.
A fragment of conversation drifted up to his position.
"...the resonance patterns match historical records. We're within ten kilometers of the original site..."
"...too many dead ends. The ancestors relocated the markers after the split. Finding the true location requires..."
"...bloodline confirmation. If we can establish direct lineage connection, the site will reveal itself..."
Wang Ben processed each fragment, building a picture of what the Yue Clan sought. They weren't just looking for a location. They were trying to activate something that required bloodline verification to access.
Something that only those with Yue Clan blood can find, he thought. Something their ancestors created or claimed thousands of years ago.
The cultivation session that night pushed his efficiency higher.
[CULTIVATION SESSION: Hour 3]
[Qi absorbed: 456 motes]
[Qi retained: 65 motes]
[Retention efficiency: 14.3%]
[Elemental composition:]
[- Ice: 328 motes (71.9%)]
[- Water: 91 motes (20.0%)]
[- Earth: 28 motes (6.1%)]
[- Other: 9 motes (2.0%)]
[Environment: Eastern wilderness, Blackwood Forest region (Deep Ice saturation)]
[Note: Host's cultivation base now predominantly Ice-aspected. This represents significant elemental shift from pre-mission composition (previously Fire/Earth dominant). Rapid elemental composition change of this magnitude should theoretically cause qi rejection in standard Azure Sky cultivators. Integration remains stable.]
[Observation: Host's elemental flexibility continues to exceed theoretical limits. Mechanism unknown. Long-term stability patterns require further monitoring.]
The warning was noted but set aside. For now, the Ice integration provided advantages. His qi blended more naturally with the environment, making his presence harder to detect against the background of Ice-dominant spiritual energy.
Tomorrow, the expedition would continue its search. And Wang Ben would need to get closer if he wanted to understand what they were truly seeking.
...
Three days of pursuit brought them deeper into the wilderness than any map showed.
The terrain had become treacherous, ice fields giving way to ancient glaciers that groaned with the weight of millennia. The expedition navigated using techniques that Wang Ben couldn't follow, their bloodline abilities allowing them to sense paths that were invisible to normal perception.
He adapted, studying their movements and predicting their routes rather than trying to sense what they sensed. His tactical mind worked overtime, cataloging patterns and extrapolating likely destinations.
On the fourth day, the expedition stopped at a location that made Wang Ben's breath catch.
The valley below was not natural. Ice formations rose in geometric patterns, crystals arranged according to principles that spoke of intelligent design rather than geological accident. At the valley's center, a structure emerged from the glacier's embrace, its architecture unlike anything from the current era.
[OBSERVATION: Ancient Site Discovery]
[Classification: Pre-dynasty cultivation structure]
[Apparent age: 3,000+ years (estimated from ice accumulation patterns)]
[Construction: Unknown materials, formation-enhanced preservation]
[Current state: Partially buried, approximately 40% exposed]
[Qi signature: Anomalous. Detection systems registering unusual energy patterns]
[Note: Structure matches theoretical descriptions of ancient cultivation nexus points. The Yue Clan's "Founding Site" designation appears accurate]
The Yue Clan expedition had found what they were looking for.
Wang Ben watched as the core formation cultivators approached the structure, their bloodline resonance equipment activated and projecting patterns of light toward the ancient entrance. The building responded, ice shifting and revealing passages that had been sealed for thousands of years.
"Bloodline confirmed," one of the core formation cultivators announced. "The site recognizes us. We can proceed."
"Finally." Another voice, older, carrying authority. "Generations of searching, and we've finally found it. The ancestors' legacy awaits."
They entered the structure, leaving guards at the entrance. Wang Ben remained in his concealed position, processing what he had witnessed.
The Yue Clan had discovered something from before recorded history. Something that only their bloodline could access.
And his mother had been marked for death by that bloodline. Deemed impure. Hidden by Xu Lanying, his great-grandmother, before the purge could claim her, saved from the fate of others who displayed elemental flexibility.
What did Xu Lanying know? he wondered. What did she discover that made her hide my mother instead of letting them complete the purge?
The questions multiplied, but answers remained locked behind walls of ice and centuries of silence.
...
Night fell over the ancient site, and the expedition's activities continued by the glow of cultivation techniques.
Wang Ben observed as teams emerged from the structure carrying artifacts, their reverence evident in how they handled each item. Scrolls, crystals, objects whose purposes he couldn't identify from this distance. The treasures of an age that had ended before the current kingdoms were born.
But something was wrong.
The core formation cultivators emerged from the structure with expressions that suggested disappointment rather than triumph. Their conversation carried across the frozen air.
"...incomplete. The primary chamber requires additional verification. Our bloodline alone isn't sufficient..."
"...records indicated direct lineage connection. If we had a descendant from the sealed branch..."
"...the purged lines were contaminated. That's why they were removed. Using their blood would corrupt the entire process..."
Wang Ben's heart hammered in his chest. The sealed branch. The purged lines.
They were talking about his mother's family.
"...still valuable. What we've recovered tonight advances our understanding significantly. But the core secrets..."
"...remain locked. We'll need to find another approach. Perhaps the historical records contain alternative verification methods..."
The expedition began organizing for departure, their primary objective apparently incomplete despite the discovery. They had found the site but couldn't access everything it contained.
Because they had purged the very bloodlines they now needed.
Irony, Wang Ben thought grimly. They tried to eliminate my mother's line, and now they need that blood to unlock their ancestors' greatest secrets.
The information was valuable beyond measure. The Phantom Gate would want to know this. The Silent Path as well.
But for Wang Ben, the revelation carried personal weight that transcended intelligence value. His mother's near-execution wasn't just about perceived impurity. It was about control. About eliminating anyone outside the main lineage who might access the power that the Founding Site contained.
And now I have Yue Clan blood in my veins, he realized. Diluted, perhaps. Sealed, certainly. But present.
The implications were staggering. If the Yue Clan discovered his existence, discovered his connection to the purged bloodlines, they would either kill him or use him.
Neither option was acceptable.
He needed to extract this intelligence and return to Azure Crimson territory. The mission's objectives had been achieved, and more.
But the expedition was between him and escape. And they were already moving, their return journey beginning as dawn lightened the eastern sky.
Wang Ben settled deeper into his concealment, planning his next move. The information he carried was too important to risk through impatience.
He would find a way out. He had to.
The mission continues, he thought. But the stakes have changed.