Chapter 10: A Strangers warning
Adrian had grown used to the rooftop silence. It was the one place where he could breathe without feeling the weight of the city pressing down on him. But tonight, the silence didn't feel like solitude. It felt like someone was watching.
He sat cross-legged, pendant against his chest, trying to focus on the Jade Breathing Method. The Qi flowed smoother now, less jagged, but his mind kept drifting. Every shadow seemed alive, every flicker of light suspicious. He couldn't shake the memory of the woman in the alley, her glowing eyes, her words: "You will be hunted."
The rooftop door creaked open.
Adrian froze. His heart pounded, his body tensed. He wasn't expecting anyone. He rose slowly, fists clenched, ready to fight if he had to.
A man stepped out. He wasn't cloaked in darkness like the others Adrian had faced. He looked ordinary—jeans, a worn jacket, hair tied back loosely. But his eyes… his eyes carried weight. Not glowing, not unnatural, but sharp, like someone who had seen too much.
"Relax," the man said, raising his hands. "I'm not here to hurt you."
Adrian didn't move. "Who are you?"
The man walked closer, stopping a few feet away. "Name's Elias. And if I'm right, you've got something that doesn't belong to most people."
Adrian's grip tightened on the pendant. "You know about this?"
Elias nodded. "Hard not to. That relic's aura is loud. Anyone with a shred of cultivation can feel it. You've been lighting yourself up like a beacon every night. It's a miracle you're still alive."
Adrian's stomach dropped. "So you're another one of them? Here to take it?"
Elias shook his head. "If I wanted it, you wouldn't be standing right now. I'm here to warn you."
Adrian narrowed his eyes. "Why?"
"Because I've seen what happens to people like you," Elias said quietly. "Fledglings who stumble into power without guidance. They burn out. Or they get hunted down. You're walking blind into a world that doesn't forgive mistakes."
Adrian's chest tightened. He wanted to dismiss the man, to call him paranoid, but deep down he knew Elias was right. He had already tasted the danger. He had already bled for it.
"What do you want from me?" Adrian asked.
Elias studied him for a moment. "Nothing. I don't belong to a sect. I don't recruit. I don't babysit. But I know enough to tell you this: if you keep training the way you are, you'll die. The pendant is keeping you alive, but it won't save you forever."
Adrian's fists loosened. He hated the truth in those words. "Then what am I supposed to do?"
"Learn control," Elias said. "Stop chasing breakthroughs like they're shortcuts. Cultivation isn't about speed. It's about survival. Every step you take has to be steady, or the next one will kill you."
Adrian swallowed hard. "And the hunters?"
Elias's expression darkened. "They'll keep coming. Some want relics. Some want power. Some just want blood. You can't stop them from finding you. But you can stop them from killing you."
Silence hung between them. The city buzzed below, oblivious to the conversation happening above its rooftops. Adrian felt the weight of Elias's words pressing down on him, heavier than the pendant itself.
Finally, Adrian spoke. "Why help me?"
Elias shrugged. "Maybe I see a bit of myself in you. Maybe I'm tired of watching kids get slaughtered because they don't know better. Or maybe I just don't want your pendant falling into the wrong hands. Doesn't matter. What matters is you listen."
Adrian nodded slowly. He didn't trust Elias completely, but he couldn't ignore the warning. He had been reckless, pushing too hard, too fast. He had thought power was the answer, but now he realized it was only part of the equation.
Elias turned to leave. "One more thing," he said over his shoulder. "Don't train on rooftops anymore. You're too exposed. Find somewhere quiet. Hidden. If you want to survive, stop announcing yourself to the world."
The door closed behind him, leaving Adrian alone again. But the silence felt different now. Heavy. Charged.
Adrian sat back down, pendant glowing faintly against his chest. He thought about Elias's words, about the hunters, about the path ahead. He wasn't sure if he could trust the stranger, but he knew one thing for certain:
He couldn't keep going the way he had been.
Adrian clenched his fists, staring at the city lights. "I'll learn control," he whispered. "I'll survive. And when they come, I'll be ready."
The pendant pulsed, steady and calm.
And for the first time, Adrian felt like he wasn't completely alone.