Chapter 17: Meeting Sect Master
The night passed, and the pale golden light of the night had already appeared.
Rhain had not slept.
For the entire night, his cell had been filled with the dull sounds of punches.
Swoosh!
Shadow Flicker Steps.
His body blurred, dissolving into the dim light of the cell.
In the exact same fraction of a second, he reappeared near the opposite wall.
Crack.
His right fist thrust forward. The compressed dark essence detonated internally against the empty air, creating a sharp vacuum.
Void Fist.
Rhain slowly lowered his arm and exhaled.
Within a single night, he had completely fused the two techniques.
The profound footwork of the Shadow Flicker Steps allowed him to bypass distance, while the Void Fist bypassed physical defense.
Together, they formed a perfect assault. An unavoidable, unblockable strike.
He had achieved something overnight that took others months if not years.
Harmony.
In a single night, he had achieved perfect synchronization between the Void Fist and the Shadow Flicker Steps.
Just as he stabilized his breathing, a familiar, mechanical chime echoed in his mind.
[Ding.]
[Sign-in Available. Would you like to sign in?]
Rhain's eyes flickered slightly.
"Sign in."
[Sign-in successful.]
[Special Notice: 7-Day Consecutive Sign-In Milestone Reached!]
[7-Day Special Reward Unlocked!]
[Reward: Essence Condensation Pill x1]
A small, perfectly round pill materialized in his palm. It emitted a faint, translucent glow, and the sheer density of the essence it contained made the surrounding air feel heavy.
Rhain stared at the pill.
In the Azure Cloud Sect, outer and inner disciples relied on Essence Gathering Pills. Those were meant for cultivators in the Essence Awakening Realm.
But this was an Essence Condensation Pill.
It was a resource strictly reserved for Essence Condensation Realm experts.
The energy contained within a single Essence Condensation Pill was dozens of times purer and more violent than that of an Essence Gathering Pill.
If an ordinary Essence Awakening Realm cultivator swallowed this, their meridians would instantly rupture from the overload. They would explode and die.
But Rhain was not an ordinary cultivator.
His dantian was a bottomless void.
Without a second thought, Rhain tossed the pill into his mouth and swallowed.
Boom.
A terrifying torrent of energy erupted in his stomach, instantly flooding his meridian channels like a raging river breaking its dam.
The violent essence threatened to tear his body apart.
Rhain simply closed his eyes and circulated his cultivation technique.
The dark void in his dantian began to spin.
It acted like a massive black hole, mercilessly devouring the rampaging essence, crushing its violent properties, and converting it into pure, docile dark essence.
The conversion was extremely fast.
Crack.
A muffled sound echoed from within his body.
The invisible barrier holding him at Essence Awakening Level 4 shattered effortlessly.
Level 5.
But the energy from the Essence Condensation Pill was far from exhausted.
The dark void continued to spin, drawing the remaining medicinal efficacy into his core, expanding his essence reserves at a terrifying speed.
Crack.
Another barrier broke.
Level 6.
Rhain slowly opened his eyes. A profound, abyssal light flashed in his pupils before quickly fading away.
"Satisfactory," he murmured.
Before he could test his new strength, a heavy sound broke the silence.
Knock. Knock.
"Rhain."
Rhain's expression remained indifferent. He stood up, smoothing out the creases in his plain disciple robes.
He already knew why Maren was here.
The Sect Master had summoned him.
Rhain unlatched the heavy iron door and pulled it open.
Maren stood outside. Her gaze swept over Rhain, and for a split second, her pupils contracted.
She couldn't see through Rhain's exact cultivation level, but the faint, lingering pressure radiating from his body made her feel slightly uncomfortable.
"Instructor Maren," Rhain said.
"Come with me," Maren said simply. "Sect Master is waiting."
Rhain had expected it.
He nodded. "Lead the way."
.....
They walked in silence throughout the way.
The Azure Cloud Sect's main hall sat at the highest point of the sect grounds.
Maren led him up a stone path that climbed the second terrace, past the inner disciple residences, past the elders' quarters, and toward the highest point of the compound.
The Sect Master's Hall.
They finally arrived at the central peak, stopping in front of the massive wooden doors of the Main Hall.
Maren pushed the doors open and stepped inside.
Rhain followed her into the hall.
The hall was vast and dimly lit.
A single long table at the far end, upon which sat a teapot, two cups, and a stack of bound documents.
Behind the table, there was a painting of a middle-aged, exuding antiquity and power.
At the far end of the room, standing with his back turned to them, was an old man.
He wore simple grey robes that pooled around his feet. His hair was entirely white, pulled back into a simple topknot secured with a plain iron pin.
Harmon Vael.
The Sect Master of the Azure Cloud Sect.
A Spirit Manifestation Realm cultivator.
He had survived forty-three years as the head of a bottom-tier sect surrounded by predators.
He had spent his entire life carefully balancing the internal factions and external threats to keep this declining sect from completely collapsing.
The old man slowly turned around. His face was lined with deep wrinkles, and his eyes were cloudy, yet piercingly sharp.
Those eyes were studying Rhain with the careful, measured intensity of someone assessing not just a person, but a variable — an unknown element introduced into a carefully balanced equation.
Rhain met that gaze calmly.
Maren stepped forward and bowed formally at the waist.
"Sect Master. I have brought the disciple as requested."
Harmon nodded slowly. His gaze never left Rhain.
"You may stay, Maren."
Maren straightened and moved to the side of the hall, standing at attention with her hands clasped behind her back.
The hall fell silent.
Harmon sat down on the table, reached for the teapot, poured two cups with steady, unhurried hands.
"Sit down, young man."
He said without looking up at Rhain.
His voice was calm. Unhurried.
Rhain walked forward and sat down.
The two of them regarded each other across the table in silence.
Harmon pushed one cup towards Rhain.
"You've caused quite a disruption," He said. There was no accusation in the words. No anger.
Just a statement of fact, delivered the way one might note that it had rained.
Rhain looked at the teacup but didn't drink.
"Brennan threatened me openly and even dared to harm someone I care," Rhain said, his voice equally calm. "I just defended myself."
Harmon set down his cup.
"I have many questions," the old man said. "But I am an old man, and I have learned that not all questions need to be answered for progress to be made."
He leaned forward slightly.
"What I need to know is this: are you a threat to my sect?"
Author's Note: Sorry for not being able to update yesterday. There will be another chapter today to compensate. I want to thank you all for your support so far. We have already reached 100+ collections within two weeks. I just hope you keep supporting like this. Please encourage me with more comments and power stones.