The moment the Spirit Vein awakened, the mountain changed.
Not just the air.
Not just the snow.
The entire sect felt… older.
Alive.
Like a sleeping giant had finally opened one eye.
Mist drifted in soft ribbons across the mountain paths, glowing faintly under the silver moonlight. Frost-white leaves shimmered on the once-dead trees. Even the broken walls of the sect seemed less miserable.
Slightly less.
Still mostly miserable.
I stood at the edge of the courtyard, staring toward the lower slope where the system's golden marker pulsed through the mist.
The Storage Pavilion.
Finally.
Xiaoyu bounced to my side, golden eyes practically shining.
"So."
I glanced at her.
"So?"
"Treasure."
Straight to the point.
I liked that.
"Yes."
Her grin widened.
"Can we find weapons?"
"Maybe."
"Spirit stones?"
"Possibly."
"Food?"
I stared.
"…Why is that always your priority?"
She crossed her arms.
"Because your sect kitchen is empty."
Fair.
Very fair.
The system screen floated beside me.
LOCATION UNLOCKED
Storage PavilionStatus: First Seal weakenedDanger Level: UnknownReward Probability: High
Danger level unknown.
Wonderful.
I loved how the system always dropped that part so casually.
As if "unknown danger" weren't the beginning of every disaster.
Still, treasure was treasure.
And right now, our sect desperately needed resources.
"Stay close," I said.
Xiaoyu smirked.
"What, scared?"
"Professionally cautious."
"Same thing."
We began descending the lower mountain path.
The snow was thinner here.
The revived spirit vein had warmed the ground enough to reveal old stone steps hidden beneath years of ice.
Ancient lantern posts lined the path.
Most were broken.
A few flickered faintly with blue spiritual fire.
That immediately sent a chill through me.
This place had been dormant for who knew how many years.
Yet some of its mechanisms still worked.
That meant the Storage Pavilion wasn't ordinary.
The mist thickened as we descended.
Then—
It appeared.
At the base of the slope stood a massive stone building half-buried in snow and roots.
Three stories tall.
Ancient black wood reinforced with bronze.
The architecture was far more grand than anything else in the sect.
Dragon carvings twisted along the pillars.
Ancient runes glowed faintly across the doors.
The sign above the entrance was cracked but still readable.
STORAGE PAVILION
Xiaoyu whistled.
"Okay."
She looked impressed.
"This actually looks cool."
I had to agree.
Compared to the rest of our half-dead sect, this place looked like it had been preserved in time.
Almost untouched.
The system chimed.
WARNING
The seal remains active
Do not touch door without sect authority
Naturally, Xiaoyu immediately reached for the handle.
I grabbed her wrist.
"Did you not hear the warning?"
She blinked.
"I thought you were talking to the ghost thing again."
I sighed.
"System."
"Same difference."
I stepped closer to the giant bronze doors.
Ancient symbols pulsed across the surface.
At the centre was a circular emblem.
The same symbol carved on the sect gate.
A crown-like sigil surrounded by dragon wings.
The moment I placed my hand on it—
BOOOOM!
The entire pavilion shook.
Golden light erupted beneath my palm.
The symbol spun rapidly.
Then a voice echoed through the mountain.
Ancient.
Cold.
Resonant.
Sect Master authority recognised.
Xiaoyu jumped.
"What was that?!"
I tried to look calm.
"Probably a good sign."
Truthfully, my heart was racing.
The bronze doors groaned open.
A blast of cold, ancient air rushed outward.
Dust swirled through the moonlight.
The inside was completely dark.
Then lanterns along the walls ignited one by one.
Blue spiritual flames lit the corridor.
Rows of shelves stretched deep into the pavilion.
Broken chests.
Jade boxes.
Ancient scroll racks.
Weapon stands.
Treasure.
A lot of treasure.
Or at least what used to be treasure.
Most shelves were empty.
Many boxes were shattered.
The place had clearly been looted—or perhaps abandoned—in a hurry.
Still, even the leftovers here could be priceless.
Xiaoyu immediately ran inside.
"TREASURE!"
I followed quickly.
"Don't touch random things!"
Too late.
She had already opened the nearest chest.
Inside—
Nothing.
Just dust.
She looked deeply offended.
"This is fake treasure."
I snorted.
"Keep searching."
The system displayed a new panel.
STORAGE PAVILION – FLOOR 1
Remaining Items: 7Dangerous Objects: 2Restricted Chambers: Locked
Seven items left.
Not much.
But enough.
We began searching the first floor carefully.
The first useful thing we found was a dusty jade bottle.
The system instantly scanned it.
ITEM IDENTIFIED
Low-Grade Spirit Recovery Pills x3
Not bad.
Those could help Xiaoyu cultivate.
The second item was a broken sword.
Its blade was chipped, but faint spiritual light still flowed through it.
ITEM IDENTIFIED
Low-Grade Spirit Sword
Condition: damaged
Xiaoyu immediately snatched it.
"Mine."
I opened my mouth.
Then closed it.
Honestly, it suited her.
The third item was more interesting.
A black iron token hidden inside a drawer.
The moment I touched it, the system screen flickered violently.
ITEM IDENTIFIED
Inner Pavilion Access Token
My eyes widened.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Before I could inspect it further—
The temperature suddenly dropped.
Xiaoyu stopped moving.
Her voice lowered.
"…Did you feel that?"
I did.
A presence.
Cold.
Ancient.
Watching.
The blue lantern flames flickered.
Then a shadow detached itself from the far wall.
My breath caught.
A translucent figure slowly emerged.
An old man in ancient sect robes.
His body was made entirely of pale blue light.
A spirit.
Xiaoyu immediately raised the broken spirit sword.
"Enemy?"
The figure's eyes opened.
Golden.
Sharp.
Ancient.
He looked directly at me.
Then suddenly knelt down.
"This old servant greets the sect master."
Silence.
Xiaoyu blinked.
I blinked.
"…Excuse me?"
The spirit bowed deeply.
"After ten thousand years… the Sovereign Sect finally has a master once more."
A chill ran down my spine.
Ten thousand years?
The system screen exploded with alerts.
ANCIENT SPIRIT DETECTED
Name: Pavilion Keeper Mo YuanStatus: Bound guardian spiritThreat Level: NoneKnowledge Value: Extremely High
My heart began pounding.
This was huge.
A living—well, spiritual—piece of sect history.
I stepped forward carefully.
"You know this sect?"
The old spirit slowly raised his head.
His expression was solemn.
"I served the Sovereign Sect in its golden age."
Xiaoyu and I exchanged a look.
Golden age?
So the sect really had once been powerful.
I immediately asked the question that had been haunting me.
"What happened here?"
The spirit's expression darkened.
For a moment, the lantern flames dimmed.
Then he spoke.
"The heavens feared the Sovereign Sect."
My pupils contracted.
"So they erased us."
Silence.
Only the crackle of spiritual flames filled the pavilion.
Xiaoyu frowned.
"The heavens?"
The spirit nodded.
"A war beyond mortal understanding."
His gaze turned toward me.
"And you…"
His eyes sharpened.
"You carry the same soul mark."
A cold chill crawled down my spine.
"The same as who?"
The spirit's expression turned reverent.
"The last sovereign."
The words slammed into me like thunder.
Before I could even process them—
The pavilion trembled violently.
BOOOOM!
The entire first floor shook.
The spirit's expression changed instantly.
Alarm.
"Impossible."
The system flashed red.
ALERT
External hostile presence detected
Stone River Sect elder approaching lower mountain
Damn it.
They were back already.
Xiaoyu's eyes gleamed.
"Again?"
I clenched my jaw.
Elder Han had followed us.
This time—
To the treasure pavilion.
The old spirit slowly stood.
His ancient eyes turned cold.
"Sect Master."
He raised one glowing hand.
"Shall this servant kill the intruder?"
I froze.
Then slowly smiled.
Now this—
This was getting interesting.