Chapter Three
Morning arrived quietly.
That was what unsettled Ao Longtian most.
After the destruction of the nursery, after the blood, the demonic presence, and the impossible voice inside his head, he had expected the Ao Clan to wake in chaos.
Instead, the sun rose exactly as it always did.
Golden light spilled over the tiled rooftops.
Mist drifted between the mountain peaks surrounding the clan estate.
The enormous ancestral trees on the eastern side of the property glistened with dew, their leaves glowing beneath the early morning sun. Beyond the walls, the distant mountains disappeared into layers of white clouds.
Birds sang.
Servants swept the courtyards.
Cultivators practiced their morning breathing exercises.
Life continued.
As if nothing had happened.
Longtian stood on a balcony overlooking the clan.
His hands rested against the railing.
He had not slept.
Every time he closed his eyes, he saw the same thing.
A pair of golden eyes behind a crimson sky.
And the child.
Father.
Longtian slowly exhaled.
"Annoying."
A voice came from behind him.
"You've been saying that for an hour."
Longtian turned.
Ao Lian sat at a nearby table.
She had changed into a dark green robe, and her hair was tied loosely behind her head. A cup of tea rested between her hands.
Longtian looked at her.
"You're still here."
"I've been here all night."
"I noticed."
"You didn't say anything."
"I was busy."
"Doing what?"
"Trying not to die."
Ao Lian took a sip of tea.
"How's that going?"
"Better than expected."
She studied him.
"You're different."
Longtian raised an eyebrow.
"How?"
"Yesterday you complained about your breakfast being cold."
"It was cold."
"Today you haven't eaten."
"I'm not hungry."
"You always eat."
Longtian glanced toward the mountains.
"I'm not sure I need to anymore."
Ao Lian placed the cup down.
"What does that mean?"
Longtian didn't answer.
Instead, he closed his eyes.
He listened.
Wind moved through the trees.
A servant dropped a bucket in the southern courtyard.
Someone laughed near the kitchens.
A group of young cultivators argued about a sparring match.
Then he heard something else.
A heartbeat.
He opened his eyes.
Ao Lian noticed.
"What?"
"Nothing."
She sighed.
"You're going to make me drag the information out of you, aren't you?"
Longtian smiled faintly.
"Probably."
Before she could respond, footsteps approached.
An elderly man entered the balcony.
He wore simple gray robes and carried a black wooden staff.
His back was slightly bent.
His hair was completely white.
But his eyes were sharp.
This was Ao Longtian's head butler.
Gu Ren.
He had served the Ao Clan for forty-three years.
He had also served Longtian since childhood.
The old man bowed.
"Young Master."
Longtian nodded.
"Uncle Gu."
Gu Ren looked at the damaged western residence.
His expression tightened.
"The clan has already begun repairs."
"Good."
"The elders are asking questions."
"Let them ask."
"They want to know what happened."
"Tell them I don't know."
Gu Ren's eyebrow rose.
"You don't?"
"I know what happened."
"Then why tell them otherwise?"
"Because they don't need to know."
Gu Ren smiled.
"That sounds more like you."
Ao Lian looked between them.
"You two are being irritatingly vague."
Gu Ren turned toward her.
"Miss, the young master has always been vague."
Longtian nodded.
"He's right."
Ao Lian glared at both of them.
"I regret asking."
Gu Ren reached into his sleeve.
"I brought something."
He placed a small jade box on the table.
Longtian looked at it.
"What is that?"
"An examination report."
Longtian opened the box.
Inside was a thin jade slip.
He placed two fingers against it.
Information immediately entered his mind.
The child's physical condition.
Blood composition.
Spiritual channels.
Soul stability.
Then Longtian's expression changed.
"These measurements are wrong."
Gu Ren nodded.
"I thought so too."
"How?"
"The alchemist who examined the child said the same thing."
Longtian looked at him.
"Who examined him?"
"Three alchemists."
"And?"
"They disagree."
"About what?"
Gu Ren's expression became serious.
"Whether the child is alive."
Silence.
Ao Lian's face tightened.
"What?"
Gu Ren continued.
"The child's body is alive."
He paused.
"But his soul…"
He looked at Longtian.
"…is difficult to classify."
Longtian stared at the jade slip.
"What does that mean?"
"The soul appears to be simultaneously present in two locations."
Longtian's fingers tightened.
"Where?"
Gu Ren didn't answer immediately.
Then:
"The child."
Longtian's eyes narrowed.
"And?"
Gu Ren looked at him.
"You."
The wind moved across the balcony.
Longtian slowly placed the jade slip down.
"Leave us."
Gu Ren bowed.
He turned toward the door.
Then Longtian stopped him.
"Uncle Gu."
The old man turned.
"Yes?"
"Don't let anyone examine the child again."
Gu Ren nodded.
"Understood."
"And one more thing."
"Young Master?"
"Find out who had access to the child before birth."
Gu Ren's expression became cold.
"Everyone?"
"No."
Longtian looked toward him.
"Start with the people who shouldn't have had access."
Gu Ren smiled.
"That narrows it down considerably."
He left.
Ao Lian watched the door close.
"You trust him."
"Yes."
"Completely?"
Longtian considered the question.
"No."
She smiled.
"Good."
Longtian looked at her.
"Why?"
"Because anyone who trusts people completely is either stupid or dead."
Longtian laughed.
"You're becoming cynical."
"I grew up around you."
Before Longtian could answer, a sudden wave of pain struck him.
His hand gripped the railing.
Ao Lian stood.
"Longtian?"
He didn't respond.
His heartbeat accelerated.
THUMP.
THUMP.
THUMP.
Something moved through his veins.
His vision sharpened.
The world changed.
For several seconds, everything around him became incredibly clear.
He could see individual grains of dust floating through the air.
He could see insects moving across the distant roof tiles.
He could even see spiritual energy.
It flowed through the environment like rivers of light.
Blue.
White.
Green.
Red.
But something else stood out.
Demonic Qi.
Black-red strands moved through the air.
They were almost invisible.
Almost.
Longtian could see them perfectly.
He reached toward one.
The strand immediately moved toward his finger.
It entered his body.
Longtian froze.
No pain.
No resistance.
The demonic energy dissolved into his blood.
His body absorbed it.
Ao Lian stared.
"What did you just do?"
Longtian looked at his hand.
"I don't know."
He tried again.
A second strand entered him.
Then a third.
His body absorbed all of them.
Longtian's breathing slowed.
The strange sensation of hunger that had been building since last night suddenly disappeared.
He understood.
His body wasn't merely tolerating demonic Qi.
It was feeding on it.
Longtian looked toward the sky.
"Interesting."
Ao Lian crossed her arms.
"You look far too happy about that."
"I've discovered something useful."
"You're absorbing demonic energy."
"Yes."
"Isn't that dangerous?"
"Probably."
She stared at him.
"That's your answer?"
"It's an accurate one."
Ao Lian rubbed her forehead.
"You're impossible."
Longtian stepped away from the balcony.
"I need a testing ground."
"Why?"
"Because I need to know what my body can do."
The Ao Clan possessed a private training valley several miles behind the main estate.
Massive stone pillars surrounded the valley.
Each pillar contained ancient formations designed to withstand attacks from high-level cultivators.
Longtian stood in the center.
Ao Lian watched from behind the protective barrier.
Several clan guards stood farther away.
Gu Ren stood beside them.
Longtian rolled his shoulders.
He felt strange.
Before last night, he had been a normal cultivator.
His cultivation had been built step by step.
Foundation.
Core.
Spiritual energy.
Meridians.
Everything had followed the established laws.
Now?
Nothing made sense.
He sat down.
Closed his eyes.
And attempted to circulate spiritual energy.
Nothing happened.
He tried again.
Nothing.
His cultivation foundation was gone.
Longtian opened his eyes.
"So that's it."
Ao Lian heard him through the formation.
"What's wrong?"
"I can't cultivate."
She frowned.
"You can't?"
"No."
"Your cultivation…"
"Destroyed."
Ao Lian stared at him.
Longtian smiled.
"Don't look so worried."
"You're saying your cultivation was destroyed."
"Yes."
"And you're smiling."
"Because…"
Longtian raised his hand.
A black-red flame appeared above his palm.
Ao Lian's expression changed.
The flame wasn't spiritual fire.
It was demonic Qi.
Pure.
Dense.
Controlled.
Longtian slowly closed his fingers.
The flame condensed into a tiny sphere.
Then smaller.
Then smaller.
Until it became a dark-red point.
The air around it distorted.
Longtian flicked his finger.
The point shot forward.
BOOM!
The valley shook.
A stone pillar cracked.
The guards stepped backward.
Ao Lian's eyes widened.
"What realm is that?"
Longtian stared at his hand.
"I don't know."
He could feel it.
The power wasn't connected to his cultivation.
It came from his blood.
His bloodline.
Something ancient had replaced the foundation he had lost.
Longtian stood.
He focused.
The crimson mark over his heart appeared.
Lines spread across his arm.
A dark-red aura erupted from his body.
The pressure swept across the valley.
The guards fell to their knees.
Ao Lian grabbed the barrier.
"What is that?"
Longtian looked at his arm.
A strange symbol had appeared there.
A tattoo.
It glowed faintly.
Then disappeared.
Longtian frowned.
He suddenly remembered the voice from his dream.
Consume.
He clenched his fist.
The demonic aura vanished.
Silence returned.
Gu Ren slowly approached.
"Young Master."
Longtian looked at him.
"What?"
The old butler stared at the cracked stone pillar.
Then at Longtian.
"I believe we need to change the clan's understanding of cultivation."
Longtian smiled.
"Why?"
Gu Ren pointed toward the pillar.
"Because whatever you are becoming…"
He paused.
"…I don't think the traditional realms were designed for you."
Longtian looked toward the distant mountains.
For the first time since the demon blood entered his body, he felt something other than fear.
Opportunity.
His cultivation was gone.
But his power remained.
And it was growing.
That meant one simple thing.
He didn't need to recover what he had lost.
He needed to discover what he had become.
Longtian looked at Gu Ren.
"Prepare the restricted library."
Gu Ren bowed.
"Which section?"
"Everything concerning bloodlines."
He paused.
Then added:
"Especially demons."
Gu Ren's expression became solemn.
"I'll have it ready by sunset."
Longtian nodded.
He turned toward the mountains.
Far beyond them, something watched.
A tiny black bird sat upon a dead branch.
Its eyes glowed crimson.
Then it flew away.
Longtian suddenly looked in its direction.
His expression changed.
He could feel something.
A thread.
A presence.
Someone was watching him.
He smiled.
"Found you."
But the bird was already gone.
And high above the clouds, one of the heavenly guards suddenly turned pale.
"He sensed the watcher."
Another guard looked at him.
"Impossible."
The first guard shook his head.
"No."
He looked down toward the mortal world.
"We've made a mistake."
"What mistake?"
The guard's voice became quiet.
"We thought the demon blood would control Ao Longtian."
He stared at the distant mountains.
"But…"
His hands tightened around his spear.
"…it may have awakened him instead."