The reward for "heroism" in the Azure Cloud Sect was a token of status and a sentence of isolation.
Because Mo Tian had offended the wealthy Zhao Clan, the logistics hall elders—who had their pockets lined with Zhao gold—assigned the new Inner Disciple "Han Fei" to the Ghost Hollow.
It was a remote peak on the jagged edge of the sect's territory, shrouded in perpetual mist and shadowed by the towering main peaks. The Qi here was thin, damp, and cold. Rumor had it that a crazed Elder had died here fifty years ago, and his resentment still lingered in the soil.
To a normal cultivator, this was a death sentence for their progress.
To Mo Tian, it was a sanctuary.
He stood in the courtyard of the dilapidated bamboo hut, breathing in the damp air.
"Yin energy," Mo Tian murmured, tasting the metallic tang of the mist. "Heavy. Stagnant. Perfect."
He waved his hand. The rusted gate slammed shut.
[System Scan: Ghost Hollow] [Environmental Analysis: High concentration of Resentment Qi.] [Suitability for Host: 95%] [Hidden Anomaly Detected beneath the floorboards.]
Mo Tian raised an eyebrow. "Anomaly?"
He walked into the hut. It was dusty, filled with cobwebs. He ignored the furniture and knelt in the center of the room. With a swift strike of his palm, he shattered the rotting floorboards.
Beneath the wood, buried in the earth, was a small, sealed jar wrapped in talisman paper. The paper was yellowed and brittle.
Mo Tian picked it up. The Corpse-Refining Art hummed in his veins.
"A Soul Jar," he whispered. "Someone was trying to refine a ghost servant but failed."
He crushed the jar. A wisp of black smoke screamed out, trying to flee. Mo Tian opened his mouth and inhaled. The scream was cut short as the spirit was dragged into his dantian.
[Consumed: Fragmented Vengeful Soul] [Spirit Power +10]
"An appetizer," Mo Tian said, dusting off his hands. He sat down on the bare earth. "Now for the main course."
He retrieved the Mist King's Thunder Core and the Storage Ring of Zhao Feng.
"System. Convert the Core."
[Processing...] [The Thunder Core contains violent Yang energy. Mixing with Host's Yin-based foundation requires the 'Dao-Corruption' protocol.] [Conversion Efficiency: 80%]
The purple crystal hovered in front of him. Black tendrils of Mo Tian's aura lashed out, drilling into the core. The purple lightning turned black as it was corrupted, siphoned into his body.
Pain—sharp and electric—wracked his nerves. Mo Tian didn't blink. He sat like a statue of iron as the energy forcibly expanded his meridians.
Crack.
The barrier of Stage 4 shattered.
Crack.
The momentum didn't stop.
[Breakthrough Successful] [Current Realm: Qi Condensation - Stage 5 (Middle)]
Mo Tian exhaled a cloud of black static. He felt the power coursing through him. Stage 5. He was now truly in the middle ranks of the cultivation world. No longer an ant, but a spider.
He opened Zhao Feng's storage ring.
500 Medium-Grade Spirit Stones.
3 bottles of Blood-Clotting Pills.
A manual: Blazing Sun Sword Art (Yellow Grade).
A jade slip marked "Zhao Clan Trade Routes".
Mo Tian burned the sword manual. It was trash compared to his system. But he held the jade slip.
"Trade routes," he mused. "Supply lines. Caravans carrying resources... unguarded by Elders."
A cruel plan began to form. He didn't just want to kill the Zhao Clan Head. He wanted to bankrupt him first.
"Junior Brother Han?"
A soft voice drifted from outside the gate.
Mo Tian's eyes snapped open. The black static in his aura vanished instantly. His face shifted, muscles relaxing into the harmless expression of "Han Fei."
He walked out, opening the gate.
Yan Luo stood there. She had changed into a simple pale blue dress, bereft of the grand ornaments she wore at the exam. She looked less like a goddess and more like a concerned sister.
"Senior Sister Yan," Mo Tian bowed deeply. "To what do I owe this honor? This place is... filthy. It will soil your shoes."
Yan Luo looked at the desolate peak and frowned. "The Logistics Hall went too far. Putting a hero in a place like this... it is petty revenge."
She stepped inside, handing him a small pouch.
"I brought you some Spirit Gathering Pills. They will help offset the thin Qi here."
Mo Tian took the pouch, his fingers brushing hers. He felt her recoil slightly—not from disgust, but from the instinctive reaction of her Pure Yin Body to his hidden Death Essence.
"You are too kind," Mo Tian said, his voice trembling with gratitude. "I... I don't know what to say. The Zhao Clan Head wanted to kill me. Even the Elders said nothing. Only you stood up for me."
Yan Luo sighed, looking out at the mist. "The Sect has changed, Han Fei. Politics and gold have clouded the eyes of the Elders. The Zhao Clan is powerful, so they are allowed to be arrogant. It... troubles me."
"It is not just arrogance," Mo Tian said softly, stepping closer. "It is the nature of power. They believe that because they are strong, they are right. Is that not the way of the world?"
Yan Luo looked at him. "No. The Righteous Path protects the weak. Power is a responsibility, not a license."
"Is it?" Mo Tian asked, his voice innocent but his words sharp. "Then why is the 'Hero' living in a ghost hut, while the man who tried to murder him sleeps in a silk palace?"
Yan Luo fell silent. The contradiction struck a chord in her heart. The seed of Doubt that Mo Tian had planted—not the rune, but the idea—began to take root.
"I will speak to the Sect Master," she said firmly. "I will ensure you are treated fairly."
"No," Mo Tian shook his head. "Please, Senior Sister. Do not burden yourself. If you push too hard, they will target you too. I am nobody. I can endure this. But if the Saintess is attacked..."
He looked at her with wide, devoted eyes. "I would rather rot in this hut than see your reputation tarnished."
Yan Luo felt a flush of warmth in her chest. Loyalty. Pure, selfless loyalty. It was rare in the cultivation world.
"You are a good man, Han Fei," she said softly. "Train hard. Prove them wrong. I will be watching over you."
She turned and flew away on her sword, her white robes fluttering in the wind.
Mo Tian watched her go. The warmth in his eyes vanished, replaced by a glacial chill.
"She is ripe," Mo Tian analyzed. "Her faith in the sect is cracking. A few more injustices, a few more tragedies... and she will realize that the only true justice is power."
He turned back to his hut.
[System Mission Generated: The Shadow Network]
Objective: Establish a covert base of operations outside the Sect.
Target: The "Black Market" in Silver City (50 miles west).
Requirement: Recruit or Enslave a subordinate with "Merchant" or "Assassin" aptitude.
Reward: [Technique: Puppet Soul Seal].
"Silver City," Mo Tian nodded. "It seems I have plans for tonight."
The night was moonless.
Mo Tian did not use the main gate to leave the sect. He used a hidden smuggler's path he had discovered in the memories of the disciple Wang Er (who used it to sneak in alcohol).
He moved through the forest like a phantom, his speed at Stage 5 far surpassing his previous limits.
Silver City was a sprawling metropolis of mortals and rogue cultivators living in the shadow of the Azure Cloud Sect. It was a place of commerce, vice, and secrets.
Mo Tian wore a black bamboo hat and a cloak that masked his figure. He walked into the Red Dust District, the heart of the underworld.
He wasn't looking for a fight. He was looking for talent.
He entered a noisy tavern called " The Drunken Dragon." Smoke filled the air. Rogue cultivators gambled with spirit stones, and mortals drowned their sorrows.
Mo Tian took a seat in the corner, ordering a pot of tea he didn't drink. He activated the [Eye of Truth].
He scanned the room.
Trash. Trash. Trash. Farmer. Bandit. Trash.
Then, his gaze stopped on a skinny, ragged boy being beaten by a group of thugs near the back door.
The boy was not fighting back physically, but his eyes... they were filled with a cold, calculating intelligence. He was counting the coins falling from the thugs' pockets as they hit him.
[Target: Li Seven] Age: 14 Cultivation: None (Blocked Meridians) Talent: [Shadow Calculation] (Rank: Earth) Destiny: Future "Merchant King" of the Southern Region (If he survives tonight). Current Status: Dying.
"Bingo," Mo Tian smiled.
The thugs finished their beating. "That's what you get for stealing from the Viper Gang, rat!"
They left the boy bleeding in the mud of the alley.
Mo Tian walked out. He stood over the broken boy.
Li Seven coughed blood, looking up at the towering figure in black. "Here to... kick me too?"
"No," Mo Tian said. "I'm here to make a trade."
"I have... no money," Li Seven wheezed.
"I don't want money. I want your life." Mo Tian crouched down. "I can heal you. I can give you power. I can make those thugs kneel before you and beg for death."
Li Seven's eyes flickered. "And the price?"
"Your soul," Mo Tian said simply. "You will belong to me. You will count my gold, manage my secrets, and run my shadows. Betray me, and death will be a luxury you cannot afford."
Li Seven looked at the mud, at his broken fingers. He looked at the retreating backs of the Viper Gang.
"Deal," the boy rasped.
Mo Tian smiled. He placed a hand on the boy's head.
[System: Soul Contract Initiated.] [Injecting Villain Qi to clear meridians...]
Black energy poured into the boy. Li Seven screamed as his blocked meridians were forcibly blasted open by the tyrannical energy. It was agony, but he didn't pass out.
When it was over, Li Seven stood up. He was still skinny, still ragged, but he stood straight. A faint grey aura surrounded him.
"Master," Li Seven knelt.
"Get up," Mo Tian commanded. "Your name is no longer Li Seven. From today, you are Ghost One."
He tossed a bag of Spirit Stones (stolen from Zhao Feng) to the boy.
"Take this. Buy clothes. Buy a building. Start a business. I want information on the Zhao Clan's ore shipments."
"It shall be done," Ghost One said, his voice steady.
Mo Tian turned to leave. "Oh, and the Viper Gang?"
Ghost One looked at the alley where the thugs had gone. "I will handle them."
"Good."
Mo Tian vanished into the night.
He had planted the seed. Now, he just had to water it with blood.