The morning siren echoed through the metallic corridors of Sun and Moon Academy.
It was not loud, but it was sharp.A clean, artificial sound that cut through the thin silence of dawn.
Lin Huang opened his eyes slowly.
The ceiling above him was smooth and silver-gray, faintly reflecting the pale glow of the soul lamps embedded in the walls. The air was colder than the mornings back in the Lin Clan. Even breathing here felt different—clean, processed, lacking the warmth of soil and wood.
He exhaled quietly and sat up.
The weight in his chest was not pressure from cultivation.It was the weight of unfamiliarity.
Outside the dormitory window, soul tool rails hummed as platforms carried students across elevated bridges. The academy was already awake, moving with mechanical precision.
Lin Huang washed his face, tied his hair, and adjusted his outer robe.
"Still feels like sleeping inside a soul tool," he muttered to himself.
When he stepped into the corridor, the sound of synchronized footsteps echoed around him. Students in various uniforms walked past, some with spirit tools floating beside them, others with mechanical assistants quietly following behind.
He followed the current of people toward the main hall.
The scent of processed spiritual nutrients lingered in the dining hall.
It was not unpleasant—just… empty.
Lin Huang stood for a moment, observing the scene.
No shouting vendors.No wooden tables.No clinking of ceramic bowls.
Only clean metal surfaces, regulated portions, and silent efficiency.
He picked up a tray and turned—
Then froze.
"Lin Huang?"
The voice was familiar.
He turned his head and saw Zhang Lexuan standing near one of the pillars. Her posture stiffened for half a breath before relaxing, as if she had been unsure whether to call out.
For a second, neither of them spoke.
Then Lin Huang smiled.
"So you really are here," he said lightly.
Lexuan's shoulders loosened.A faint warmth appeared in her eyes.
"You're late," she replied softly. "I thought you wouldn't come."
"I almost didn't," Lin Huang said. "This place feels like it bites newcomers."
A corner of her lips lifted.
They walked together toward an empty table.
As they moved, footsteps approached from behind.
"You came after all."
Meng Hongchen's voice cut in, bright but edged with restrained tension.
She stopped a short distance away, arms folded, eyes moving from Lin Huang to the girl beside him.
For a brief moment, something flickered in her gaze.
Hmph. This guy is always talking to pretty girls, she thought.
Lin Huang turned.
"Meng Hongchen," he said, then gestured lightly toward Lexuan."This is Zhang Lexuan. We met before, back when I was still in the clan territories."
Then he gestured back toward Meng Hongchen.
"And this is Meng Hongchen. She's… persistent."
"Hey," Meng Hongchen snapped, then caught herself."…Nice to meet you."
Lexuan inclined her head politely."I've heard of you."
Meng Hongchen raised an eyebrow.
"Is that so?"Her gaze slid back to Lin Huang."You're always well accompanied."
Lin Huang gave a helpless shrug.
"I don't control who walks into my life."
Lexuan looked between them, faintly amused.
They sat together.
The conversation was light.Fragmented.Unspoken things lingered between words.
Soon, a bell rang.
The evaluation hall opened.
The hall was vast.
Metallic pillars rose toward a high ceiling etched with glowing formation lines. Instructors stood at elevated platforms, their gazes cold and precise.
"Integration Evaluation," one of them announced."Pressure Test. Mental Stability. Control Assessment."
Students stepped forward in groups.
When the pressure field activated, the air itself seemed to sink.
Lin Huang felt the invisible weight settle onto his shoulders.
His circulation adjusted instinctively.The Kitsune Essence within him remained quiet, contained.
Around him, some students gritted their teeth.Others trembled.
Lexuan's breathing became shallow.Meng Hongchen's jaw tightened.
Lin Huang kept his gaze forward.
No flare.No display.
Just steady resistance.
When the bell rang again, several students collapsed to their knees.
The instructors noted names.
Lin Huang stepped back into line, heart beating evenly.
Far away, beyond the structured steel skies of Sun and Moon Academy—
The forest at the borderlands trembled with spiritual turbulence.
This was a region where the territories of Star Luo, Tianhun, and Dou Ling brushed against one another.Shrek Academy's influence lingered faintly in the surrounding routes and supply lines.
Su Mei sat cross-legged atop a flat stone, sweat tracing down her cheeks.
The soul ring before her pulsed faintly.
The absorption had ended.
Her breathing was uneven, but her spiritual energy had stabilized.
She opened her eyes slowly.
The world felt sharper.Heavier.
She clenched her fists.
"It worked…" she whispered.
The new power within her had not settled yet.It felt wild—like heat moving through her meridians.
She looked toward the road leading north.
"Young Master…"
After a brief rest, she stood.
The road narrowed as they approached a frontier village.
Then the smell of smoke reached them.
Flames licked the edges of wooden rooftops.Not normal fire—spiritual fire.
Su Mei's expression changed.
They rushed forward.
Amid the chaos, they found a girl kneeling in the dirt, her body trembling as dark-red flames surged and receded around her.
Ma Xiaotao's breath was ragged.
The fire was eating at her spirit.
Su Mei knelt beside her, careful not to get too close.
"This isn't normal cultivation," she said softly. "Your martial spirit is devouring you from the inside."
Ma Xiaotao's eyes flickered with hostility.
"Don't touch me," she rasped. "You don't know anything about this."
Su Mei paused.
"I can't cure you," she admitted. "But my Young Master… he might be able to help stabilize your condition."
Ma Xiaotao laughed weakly.
"Another liar who thinks they have a miracle."
Su Mei did not argue.She only stood up and gestured behind her.
The air shifted.
A presence descended quietly.
The cultivator who had escorted Su Mei forward stepped into view.
His aura was restrained—but the moment Ma Xiaotao's senses brushed against it, her heart skipped.
A Soul Emperor.
The pressure was not oppressive.
It was controlled.
Real.
Su Mei spoke again, her voice steady.
"He wouldn't bring me this far if my words were empty."
Ma Xiaotao stared at the man, then back at Su Mei.
Her fingers dug into the scorched earth.
"…If this is a lie," she said hoarsely, "I will burn everything in my path before I fall."
Su Mei met her gaze.
"That's fine," she replied quietly. "Just don't burn yourself before you reach him."
A long silence passed.
The flames around Ma Xiaotao receded slightly.
"I'll go," she said at last."But I don't trust you."
"That's enough for now," Su Mei said.
They turned away from the burning village together, the road toward Sun and Moon Academy stretching cold and long before them.
Night fell over Sun and Moon Academy.
Lin Huang stood by the window of his dormitory.
The steel towers glowed faintly beneath the artificial sky.
"This place will grind you down," he murmured."If you let it."
Far away, on a darkened road—
Su Mei moved forward, firelight fading behind her.
Different paths.Same destination.
Beyond the academy gates, two figures approached from opposite directions.
Xu Tianzhen walked with calm steps.
Qiu'er followed another path, her silver hair catching the cold light.
They had not seen each other yet.
But under the same steel sky—
Old bonds were about to collide.