The moment the ancient voice faded, black light fell from the lamp and covered everyone in the hall.
Fang Lin felt the light pass across his body. It was cold and thin, like a blade sliding over cloth without cutting. The light did not enter his spiritual sea forcefully. Instead, it weighed the surface of his emotions, trying to find greed, killing intent, fear, and desire.
He allowed it to see what Shen Mo had.
Caution. Interest. A little greed. Enough killing intent to belong to a wandering cultivator, but not enough to expose the abyss beneath.
The black light moved past him.
Fang Lin's expression stayed calm.
Across the hall, the River Sword Sect disciples were not as composed. One by one, faint images appeared above their heads. Some images showed pill bottles. Some showed jade slips. Some showed storage treasures. Above two disciples, the image of Feng Jiu'er's group appeared, bound and forced to hand over rewards.
One disciple's image was even more direct. He imagined taking Murong Yue's storage pouch after cutting her throat.
The Alliance disciples' expressions turned cold.
Murong Yue looked at that disciple and smiled. Her smile was beautiful, but the warmth in it had vanished. "Senior Brother Li, remember that one."
Li Shan's gaze sharpened. "I already have."
Xu Hanjiang's face darkened. Above his own head, the image was clearer than everyone else's. In that image, Feng Jiu'er stood wounded, the black lamp floated behind him, and the rewards from the previous trials lay scattered at his feet. His greed was not only for treasures. It carried the ugly arrogance of someone who believed beauty, strength, and opportunity should naturally be taken by the stronger side.
Feng Jiu'er's eyes turned cold.
Her crimson aura rose faintly, but she did not attack. "River Sword Sect truly has noble thoughts."
Xu Hanjiang's expression stiffened for a breath before he forced out a laugh. "This is only a trial illusion. Who in the cultivation world has no greed? Does your Green Bamboo Sect plan to condemn people for thoughts?"
Fang Lin looked at him and smiled faintly. "Fellow Daoist Xu is right. Desire is cheap. Action is what costs spirit stones."
Xu Hanjiang turned toward him. "What do you mean?"
Fang Lin's smile became calmer. "Nothing. I am only saying that if River Sword Sect has no intention to act, then the black lamp has wronged you."
The words were gentle. Too gentle.
Xu Hanjiang immediately understood that this rogue cultivator was mocking him. Worse, he was doing it under the black lamp, after the entire hall had seen the greed of the River Sword Sect disciples. If Xu Hanjiang retreated now, his people would lose face. If he acted, the black lamp's warning still hung above them.
His eyes narrowed.
Fang Lin stood there calmly, as if none of this had anything to do with him. Inside, however, he watched Xu Hanjiang the same way one might watch a fish circle bait in shallow water. The ruins had already spoken clearly. The first blade was debt. The question was only whether River Sword Sect had enough self-control to keep its hands clean.
A River Sword Sect disciple behind Xu Hanjiang could not bear it first.
He was at Middle Spirit Foundation Realm, tall and thin, with a sharp chin and impatient eyes. The image above his head had already exposed his desire to seize the Alliance's pill bottles, and now Murong Yue's smile made his face burn with humiliation.
"Senior Brother Xu, why waste words with a rogue cultivator?" he said coldly. "Let me test whether his mouth is as hard as his bones."
Xu Hanjiang did not stop him immediately.
That silence was enough.
The disciple slapped his storage pouch, and a blue talisman shot into his hand. Water-like sword Qi surged from the talisman, forming a narrow blade that hummed with sharp force.
Feng Jiu'er's eyes sharpened. "River Sword Sect, think carefully."
The disciple sneered. "It is only a test."
Fang Lin looked at the talisman and did not retreat. Instead, he took half a step forward, moving just enough that the black lamp's light fell more clearly across him.
A faint amusement passed through his heart.
Some people walked into traps because they did not see them. Some walked in because pride told them traps were meant for others.
The River Sword disciple crushed the talisman.
"River-Splitting Sword Talisman."
A cold blue sword light shot forward, cutting through the air toward Fang Lin's shoulder. The attack was not aimed to kill, but it was definitely meant to wound and humiliate. The moment the sword light crossed the center line beneath the black lamp, the dark flame above suddenly rose.
The ancient corpses turned their heads together.
The hall seemed to inhale.
Before the sword light reached Fang Lin, black fire chains erupted from the ground and wrapped around the River Sword disciple's legs, waist, and sword arm. His face changed drastically. The talisman's sword light trembled, losing half its force in an instant.
Fang Lin's eyes were calm.
"Black Mountain Guard."
A heavy defensive pressure formed in front of him. The weakened sword light struck it and shattered into blue sparks.
The River Sword disciple screamed as the black chains tightened. His Spirit Foundation aura surged wildly, but the more he resisted, the heavier the chains became. His knees hit the ground with a dull sound.
The black lamp's voice echoed again. "First blade. First debt."
The River Sword disciple's face turned pale. "Senior Brother Xu, save me!"
Xu Hanjiang's expression became ugly. He had not personally ordered the attack aloud, but everyone had seen his silence. Under ordinary circumstances, silence could be denied. Under the black lamp, denial had weight.
A small black flame appeared above Xu Hanjiang's shoulder. It did not burn him, but it hovered there like a warning.
Feng Jiu'er stepped forward.
Her crimson aura flowed around her sword, while pale-green Qi steadied the disciples behind her. She did not attack, but her presence pressed toward the River Sword Sect group like a drawn blade.
"Xu Hanjiang," she said coldly, "if River Sword Sect wants to rob us, say it openly. If you want to hide behind trial illusions and excuses, then keep your people's hands still."
Xu Hanjiang's eyes darkened. "Feng Jiu'er, do you think Green Bamboo Sect can challenge River Sword Sect?"
Feng Jiu'er's expression did not change. "Inside this hall, I do not need the Green Bamboo Sect to challenge you. I alone am enough." Her Peak-Spirit Foundation aura pressuring him.
Her words were calm, but the disciples behind her felt their blood stir.
This was not arrogance spoken for show. It was the kind of confidence that made others remember why she led the Alliance group. She had endured trials, protected her people, and carried the front line again and again. If Xu Hanjiang wanted to step over her, then he would have to do it with his sword, not his mouth.
Fang Lin glanced at her side profile.
A faint smile touched his lips.
Good.
Feng Jiu'er should be like this.
Proud, sharp, and difficult to bend.
The black chains around the River Sword disciple tightened again. His scream became hoarse. Several River Sword Sect disciples looked frightened, but none dared move. The black lamp had already punished one person. No one knew what would happen if they interfered.
Fang Lin walked toward the kneeling disciple.
Xu Hanjiang's eyes sharpened. "What are you doing?"
Fang Lin did not look at him. "Collecting debt."
The kneeling disciple's face changed. "You dare?"
Fang Lin stopped in front of him and looked down calmly. "You attacked me first. The lamp called it debt. Are you planning to argue with the lamp or with me?"
The disciple's expression twisted with anger and fear.
Fang Lin reached out and took the storage pouch from his waist.
The River Sword disciple trembled. "That is mine!"
Fang Lin blinked his eyes, nodded and smiled. "It was."
His attitude had changed a little from before after seeing Feng Jiu'er and her thoughts. He himself didn't realise it yet.
Murong Yue's eyes widened slightly. Zhao Feng inhaled, while Li Shan closed his eyes for a moment, as if pretending he had not seen anything.
Fang Lin turned the storage pouch in his hand and looked toward the black lamp. The flame did not react.
That meant the hall accepted it.
His smile became faint.
Under the black lamp, action had a price. Since River Sword Sect had chosen to pay, Fang Lin naturally would not insult their sincerity by refusing.
Xu Hanjiang's face turned iron-blue. "Return it."
Fang Lin finally looked at him. "Then pay his debt for him."
The black flame above Xu Hanjiang's shoulder flickered.
His expression froze.
If he accepted the debt, no one knew what the black lamp would demand from him. If he refused, he would abandon his own sect disciple in front of everyone. Either choice was ugly.
Fang Lin had not used overwhelming force.
He had used the rules.
And in that moment, Xu Hanjiang realized that the rogue cultivator before him was more troublesome than he had first thought. Shen Mo was not simply brave. He was calm and shameless in a way that made the trial itself seem like his witness.
The kneeling disciple's chains slowly loosened after Fang Lin took the storage pouch. The disciple collapsed to the ground, drenched in sweat, his eyes filled with hatred. Yet he did not dare attack again.
Fang Lin returned to his original position with the storage pouch in hand.
Murong Yue leaned slightly toward him and whispered, "Fellow Daoist Shen, do you always collect compensation this quickly?"
Fang Lin replied calmly, "Delay creates disputes."
Bai Qing lowered her head again and curved her lips a little.
Even Su Wanqing's lips curved faintly before she hid it.
Feng Jiu'er looked at Fang Lin, and for a moment, the coldness in her eyes softened into something more complicated. This man had just used the rules of a dangerous ancient trial to rob the robber in front of everyone, and somehow he still looked like the victim.
That kind of slyness was irritating.
It was also strangely familiar.
The black lamp burned brighter.
The withered corpses around the hall slowly raised their hands and pointed toward the stone seats before them. The ancient voice echoed once more, deeper than before.
"Greed has been weighed. Debt has been paid. Those who remain shall sit beneath the lamp. Speak no lies. Hide no price. The hall grants no treasure to those who do not dare name what they desire."
The stone seats trembled.
Dust fell from the ancient corpses' robes.
A heavy pressure descended across the hall, forcing both groups to look toward the seats. It was clear that the true trial of Black Lamp Hall had only just begun.
Xu Hanjiang's eyes flickered with anger, caution, and unwillingness. He had already lost face before the trial even started. River Sword Sect disciples behind him looked restless, but the black lamp's punishment had frightened them enough that none dared act rashly.
Feng Jiu'er turned toward the Alliance group. "Sit carefully. Do not speak carelessly."
The disciples nodded.
Fang Lin looked at the Black lamp hanging in the center of the hall. Its dark flame reflected in his eyes, calm and cold.
Name what one desires.
He almost laughed.
If this lamp wanted people to name their greed, then it would soon learn that some desires were too large for a hall to contain. Fang Lin wanted strength. He wanted answers. He wanted to find Uncle Wei. He wanted to know who his parents were and what kind of storm had swallowed them. He wanted to seize the hidden truth of these ruins and walk out alive while everyone else was still staring at shadows.
But Shen Mo could not say those things. Also, he wanted to obtain them with his own strength, he could never trust the Black lamp.
So Fang Lin sat down on one of the stone seats, his expression quiet.
If the lamp wanted a price, he would give it one.
Not the true price.
Only the one it deserved to hear.
-