Shi Chang Xiao took a step forward.
"You speak as if you're the only one qualified to judge us," He said, voice low but firm. "As if the effort of countless years of cultivation, the sweat, the blood, the life-threatening breakthroughs… all of it means nothing."
Jun Mo Xie said nothing at first. He simply stared, the empty sockets of the oni mask reflecting no emotion.
Shi Chang Xiao continued, unable to hold back the frustration that surged within him. "What gives you the right to say we're not worthy of the Xuan Core? That we lack drive? That we seek only shortcuts?"
His voice tightened. "We risk our lives on the edge of death with every advance. Do you think that's not enough?"
The silence that followed felt long and oppressive. Even the Solitary Falcon tilted his head, watching Jun Mo Xie's reaction with subtle interest.
Then Jun Mo Xie spoke, his voice calm, without a shred of anger, only cool certainty.
"You mistake movement for progress," He said. "You think bleeding on the battlefield, meditating for hours, or unleashing loud techniques means something on its own."
His tone was quiet, but it cut through the space between them like a blade.
"You chase power, yes. But without clarity, purpose, or understanding of your own Dao… that power is hollow. You're like craftsmen chasing after finer tools, but forgetting how to create."
Shi Chang Xiao clenched his fists.
"You know nothing of what I've done, or what I've sacrificed," He said coldly. "Don't act as though you see through everything."
"I don't need to see everything," Jun Mo Xie replied, turning fully now to face him. "Your actions speak loud enough."
There was no arrogance in his words, only conviction. "Not one among you showed the patience to read the flow of the battle. You scramble for the core like starving dogs over scraps, blind to how the power shifts, how the game is being played."
"You call this a game?" Shi Chang Xiao spat.
Jun Mo Xie chuckled lightly, though there was no mirth in it. "Didn't you enjoy it? You all leapt in, threw your might around, and tried to snatch victory through brute force. You didn't fight like sages or warriors. You fought like desperate men hoping to steal fortune."
A flicker of red crept into Shi Chang Xiao's cheeks as he was seething with restraint. His cultivation path had always been one of strength, of dominance. But now this masked youth was tearing apart the foundation of that belief.
"And yet," Jun Mo Xie said, tilting his head, "in all of this chaos, not one of you saw the truth. The Xuan Core was never the test."
That made Shi Chang Xiao pause.
Jun Mo Xie's eyes narrowed.
"It was all bait," He said simply. "A mirror to reveal what lies beneath."
Shi Chang Xiao's gaze flickered, ever so slightly.
Jun Mo Xie chuckled and turned around to leave after he had finished.
But the moment he turned with Solitary Falcon to leave, a sharp voice, drenched in indignation, sliced through the pouring rain like a blade.
"Hold it right there!"
Jun Mo Xie paused, the echoes of his footsteps fading into the wet stone beneath him. Slowly, he turned his masked face toward the voice.
Shi Chang Xiao's eyes narrowed with a storm of displeasure brewing behind them.
"That arrogance in your tone… You belittle all of us, like we're mere children waving sticks around," Shi Chang Xiao said sharply. "You're too young to speak such venom."
The heavy silence that followed was broken by Jun Mo Xie's soft laugh that was cold, disdainful, laced with a confidence that was sharper than steel.
"Oh?" Jun Mo Xie tilted his head. "You feel insulted because I spoke the truth?"
Solitary Falcon turned to look at his master, a hint of anticipation in his eyes. He knew that tone.
It meant Jun Mo Xie was in the mood to educate.
Jun Mo Xie walked a few steps closer, the sound of his boots muffled by the rain. His voice was soft, yet it carried unmistakable weight. "You think yourself righteous and powerful? Fine. Let me show you something that transcends your shallow understanding of cultivation."
Shi Chang Xiao's brows twitched. "You dare challenge me?"
"I don't need to challenge you," Jun Mo Xie replied coolly. "I told you... I won't even use my Xuan Qi. Come at me. Use everything you've got."
Shi Chang Xiao blinked, surprised at the absurdity of the statement. His first instinct was to scoff. Was this boy truly underestimating him to this degree?
"…Fine," He said, his tone dark. "Let's see what trick you're playing."
The Great Master stepped forward with restrained caution, ready to test this masked lunatic, but in the very next instant, the world changed.
Shi Chang Xiao's vision flickered violently.
He felt a sickening cold sensation and in the next breath, the world spun upside down. His body was still standing… but his vision had fallen. He saw himself, headless, blood erupting like a geyser from his neck. His own head landed with a wet thud on the stones below, staring back at him with wide, lifeless eyes.
An instant later, he gasped and clutched his throat in pure instinct, only to realize it was untouched.
His chest heaved and his body trembled.
He was still alive.
But the horror hadn't ended.
Slash!
This time, it was not only his neck. He felt his arms fall away, legs give out, and blood soaked the ground beneath him. He collapsed forward, staring in disbelief at his dismembered limbs, his screams echoing in a world of red…
And again, nothing had happened.
There was no blood or wounds on his body.
He was perfectly whole, yet paralyzed in place.
Shi Chang Xiao stumbled back with a strangled gasp, his hand trembling as he tried to reaffirm the reality of his body.
Cold sweat drenched him beneath his robe.
He looked up, pale-faced, only to find Jun Mo Xie watching him silently from behind his mask.
The red glow in his eyes gleamed like a devil's.
"What… what did you do to me?" Shi Chang Xiao choked out, his voice half a growl, half a plea. "What kind of sorcery is this?!"
Jun Mo Xie's laugh echoed, dark and amused. "That? That was just my killing intent."
The air around them stilled.
The crowd, which had grown wary but curious from a distance, now stared in stunned silence. Many hadn't even seen anything unusual, only that Shi Chang Xiao, one of the top experts in the realm, had gone pale and shaken as if he had witnessed death itself.
Jun Mo Xie's voice turned even colder. "If such a trivial thing is enough to unravel one of the Eight Great Masters… perhaps you should go home and play house with your grandchildren."
"You…!" Shi Chang Xiao's face twisted, but he couldn't take a single step forward. His legs refused to move.
Jun Mo Xie gave a low snort and turned his back, flicking his cloak with a sharp motion. "Let's go, Falcon."
Solitary Falcon, who had watched everything with an expression of awe and mild amusement, let out a low whistle and followed behind without a word.
As the two figures slowly disappeared into the shrouding mist and falling rain, Shi Chang Xiao stood frozen in place, a chill running down his spine that no amount of cultivation could thaw.
The city had grown quiet and no one dared to breathe too loudly.
--- ✦ ✦ ✦ ---
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