The outpost burned beneath the starlit canopy of the Qianlong wilderness, its rafters collapsing under showers of amber and ash. The scent of scorched iron and human panic in the air.

Li Wuji stood at the edge of the inferno, his black robes snapping in the night wind like torn banners. Around him, his newly gathered bandits screamed their war cries—half-mad, half-entranced—as the crimson gleam of the Blood Lotus relic pulsed in their midst.

The relic was no larger than a clenched fist, its surface rippling like liquid garnet. Every few breaths, it throbbed—slowly, hypnotically. With each pulse, the bandits' eyes clouded over with the sheen of bloodlust.

"Kill! Cut them down! For the Lord of Blood!"

Their shouts rose, ragged and ecstatic. The energy of the Blood Lotus flowed through them, eroding reason, kindling only hunger. Li Wuji's smile was faint and cold as he surveyed the chaos.

"The beast has learned to herd wolves," he murmured. "Even wolves can be taught to bite where I point."

A voice, trembling with fury, broke through the din. "Y-you have brought fools to do the work for you!"

Hang Feng, propped against a shattered wall, glared at him with veins still faintly glowing from his earlier defeat. Bing Cao had sealed his meridians to prevent the blood qi from eating him alive, but it also rendered him weak—too weak to fight, though not too weak to hate.

Li Wuji turned, his expression unreadable. "Fools they may be," he said, "but fools who obey are worth ten men who question."

"You think yourself untouchable," Hang Feng hissed. "You leech on power you can't comprehend. When the blood turns on you—"

"—I shall drink deeper," Li Wuji interrupted smoothly. His gaze flicked to the relic. Its glow reflected in his eyes, red within red. "Do you know what the ancients said, Hang Feng? 'The tiger that drinks too little starves, and the one that drinks too much drowns.' I intend neither."

He gestured once, and the relic pulsed again. The bandits' frenzy intensified. Mo Li's cry echoed from the courtyard. "Master! The patrol is breaking through!"

Li Wuji's smirk vanished. He could already sense the disciplined qi of trained cultivators approaching—the Imperial Patrol, judging by the rigid formation of their spirit signatures.

'Too soon,' he thought grimly. 'The Blood Lotus draws too much attention. I must sever the link before—'

A loud clang shook the air as one of the outpost gates burst open. Soldiers clad in blue-iron armor stormed through, their commander shouting, "By decree of the Northern Prefecture! Cease your blood rites and surrender!"

Li Wuji's response was a laugh, rich and cruel. "Surrender? You might as well ask the river to bow before the rain."

With a flick of his sleeve, a coil of blood mist erupted around him.

[Blood Path Art – Vein Eruption]

~SHHHHRRRK!~

The mist lanced outward in tendrils, striking the nearest soldiers. Their armor blackened instantly as the blood essence invaded their bodies, boiling their veins from within. Screams split the night.

"Devil!" one of the captains shouted, cleaving the mist with a sword of pure azure qi. "He's a blood path inheritor!"

Bing Cao's heart clenched as he steadied Hang Feng against the wall. "So, the rumors were true… the Blood Lotus Sect breathes again." He turned to Mo Li. "We must not let him leave with that relic."

Mo Li's jaw tightened. "Then we fight." She extended her palms, weaving a pattern of luminous silk threads that shimmered with moonlight.

[Spirit Thread Technique – Jade Cocoon Bind]

The threads snaked through the air, anchoring themselves to the rafters, then shot toward Li Wuji like silver vipers.

Li Wuji raised a single finger. "How quaint."

The relic flared crimson. The threads ignited upon contact, burning away in a hiss of steam.

Mo Li stumbled backward, wincing as her technique unraveled. "Impossible…"

Li Wuji's smile widened. "Your art is beautiful, girl. Pity beauty fades when bled."

He moved then—faster than sight, his form dissolving into a streak of shadowed light.

[Blood Path Step – Flowing Sinew Mirage!]

~Whshhh!~

He appeared behind her, palm raised to strike. "Sleep, little moth."

But before his hand could land, Bing Cao's voice cut through the storm. "Over my dead soul." The old master's palm met his mid-strike. For an instant, the world flashed gold and crimson. Their qi collided like colliding rivers.

~BOOM!~

Li Wuji staggered a half-step, eyes narrowing. "Still enough strength to interfere?"

Bing Cao's robe sleeves fluttered, his voice calm but iron-hard. "A snake that steals dragon blood does not become a dragon. It only poisons itself."

Li Wuji chuckled lowly. "Then perhaps I'll settle for killing the senile elder before me."

Their auras surged again—one cold and pure, the other boiling and profane. Sparks and blood mist coiled where they met.

Meanwhile, the outpost descended into chaos. The bandits clashed with the Imperial Patrol in a frenzy of blades and screams. Steel rang against bone, arrows whistled through the smoke. Mo Li ducked behind a fallen beam, her breath ragged. Her spiritual reserves were nearly spent. She risked a glance toward the relic still pulsing, feeding the madness.

'If I can just disrupt its core…' she thought.

Her hands trembled as she formed a rapid seal. [Spirit Thread Art – Weaving Lotus Seal!]

A single filament of pale light darted toward the relic, too faint for the eye to follow. It reached the lotus's surface—and sank in. For a heartbeat, nothing happened. Then—

~CRRRRNNNK!~

The relic shuddered violently. Its pulse faltered. The bandits nearest it cried out, clutching their chests as the connection broke.

Li Wuji felt the shift instantly. His control wavered. Rage flared in his eyes. "Foolish Girl!"

He thrust a palm outward. A crimson wave blasted through the debris, sending Mo Li sprawling. The jade charm at her waist shattered under the impact.

"MO LI!" Bing Cao roared. His concentration broke just long enough for Li Wuji to strike.

[Blood Path Art – Nine Veins Rend!]

Nine arcs of blood light erupted from Li Wuji's fingertips, piercing Bing Cao's defenses. The elder's body convulsed as the force sent him crashing into the outpost wall.

"Master!"

Bing Cao coughed blood, but his eyes burned with defiance. "Child… remember what I told you—'A heart tempered by pain does not break; it becomes the forge itself.' " He lifted a trembling hand and pressed a charm into her palm. "Go. Carry word to Li Wei… tell him the blood path rises anew."

Mo Li's tears blurred her vision. "No—"

"Go!"The force of his final shout propelled her into motion. She turned and sprinted toward the outer gate as the roof collapsed behind her.

Li Wuji's gaze followed her fleeing figure. "Running will not save you. The wilderness devours all who wander unbidden." He stepped toward Bing Cao, who struggled to his knees.

"Any last words, old ghost?"

Bing Cao spat blood, then smiled faintly. "Only this—" His hand flicked open, revealing a glowing talisman etched with golden runes.

[Heaven's Subduing Talisman – Third Seal Release!]

The sigil detonated. A column of sacred fire roared upward, engulfing them both.

~KRAAAANG!~

Li Wuji screamed as the flames tore through his aura. His body burst into a cloud of cinders, though his laughter echoed faintly within it." Crazy Bastard!"

Far beyond the ridge, Mo Li stumbled into the forest, clutching the charm her master had given her. The night air was cool, sharp against her tears.

Behind her, the outpost was a pyre upon the horizon.

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