The pillar of blinding starlight crashed down from the VIP stands, piercing the protective arrays of the Outer Sect arena and locking directly onto Lu Chen.
Inspector Zhao, leaning heavily on the VIP balcony, his severed left arm wrapped in bloody bandages, pointed his trembling remaining hand at the arena. The Heaven-Seeking Astrolabe in his palm spun wildly, its gears grinding out a high-pitched screech.
"There!" Inspector Zhao's voice cracked, amplified by his Qi to echo across the entire Azure Cloud Sect. "The anomaly! The Sovereign of the Void! The Astrolabe confirms it—he possesses absolutely no Providence!"
In the center of the VIP seating, Fang Tianyou abruptly stood. His teacup shattered against the marble floor. Deep within his dantian, the Innate Spirit Root he had ruthlessly extracted from his former brother burned with agonizing heat. A phantom resonance thrummed in his veins. He stared down at the figure bathed in starlight. The disguise was flawless, the aura suppressed into mediocrity, but the eyes...
Those cold, dead eyes.
"Lu... Chen?" Fang Tianyou whispered, the syllables tasting like ash. Impossible. I threw him into the Abyss of Despair myself. But this resonance...
Down in the arena, Lu Chen stood perfectly still under the oppressive pillar of starlight. His face remained an impassive mask, though his mind raced. The Imperial Bureau of Heaven's artifact was a nuisance he hadn't anticipated. If the Astrolabe fully exposed the 'Void' where his destiny should be, the entire sect—and the continent—would hunt him.
But he was not alone in the ring.
Ten paces away stood Gu Yan, the undeniable favorite to win the Outer Sect Tournament. Gu Yan was a textbook 'Rising Star'. Through the Luck-Binding Mirror resting over his heart, Lu Chen saw Gu Yan's Qi Yun: a towering, majestic pillar of golden light, shimmering with the phantom image of a roaring tiger.
[Name: Gu Yan]
[Cultivation: Peak of 8th Stage Qi Refinement (Suppressed Foundation)]
[Providence: Golden (Rising Star)]
[Destiny: Destined to place first in the Outer Sect Competition, become the personal disciple of the Grand Elder, and stumble upon a Heavenly Tier Sword Manual within three months.]
Gu Yan's face twisted into an ugly snarl. He had fought tooth and nail, bribed officials, and crushed his peers to reach this final match. This was supposed to be his coronation. Yet, the Inspector from the Imperial Bureau and Sector Master Fang were staring at 'Chen Lu'—a nameless, mediocre sweeper from the Sword Graves.
"You dare steal my spotlight?!" Gu Yan roared, his eyes bloodshot with wounded pride. He didn't care what the starlight meant. He only cared that his moment was being ruined.
Gu Yan drew his weapon, the ind-Tearing Blade, a high-grade spiritual artifact. "I don't care what anomaly you are. In the face of absolute power, you are nothing!"
"Gu Yan, wait! Do not interfere with the Bureau's judgment!" shouted an Outer Sect Elder, but it was too late.
Gu Yan channeled his entire cultivation base. A vortex of razor-sharp wind gathered around his blade, condensing into a localized hurricane. "Azure Gale Secret Art: Severing the Heavens!"
It was a killing blow. Gu Yan intended to decapitate Lu Chen and present his head to the VIPs, proving himself the true center of the universe.
Lu Chen didn't even draw his sword. He just looked at Gu Yan, an icy smile touching the corner of his lips.
You want the spotlight? Lu Chen thought, channeling his World Essence into the Luck-Binding Mirror. I'll give you something better. I'll give you my misfortune.
The Mirror vibrated against Lu Chen's chest. Over the past week, he had absorbed massive amounts of cursed, blackened providence from the ancient entity beneath the Sword Graves, keeping it quarantined within the Mirror.
"Transfer," Lu Chen muttered under his breath.
Through the invisible lens of the Mirror, a terrifying exchange occurred. The towering, golden tiger of Gu Yan's Qi Yun was violently ripped from his body, funneling directly into Lu Chen's empty destiny panel. In return, a geyser of pitch-black, rotting misfortune slammed into Gu Yan.
The Astrolabe in Inspector Zhao's hand was calibrated to lock onto a 'Void'—a total absence of luck. But the instant Lu Chen absorbed Gu Yan's golden providence, his destiny was no longer empty. It blazed like a miniature sun.
Up in the VIP stands, the Heaven-Seeking Astrolabe suddenly choked. The needle spun so fast it blurred, unable to process the sudden, astronomical spike in Lu Chen's luck.
"What? No, that's—!" Inspector Zhao gasped, tapping the artifact frantically.
Down in the ring, Gu Yan launched himself into the air, bringing his devastating Azure Gale down upon Lu Chen. The sheer pressure of the wind intent cracked the arena floor.
But the curse of misfortune was absolute.
As Gu Yan reached the apex of his jump, the circulation of his Qi suddenly hit a microscopic impurity in his meridians—an impurity he hadn't noticed since childhood. The tiny blockage caused a momentary lag in his spiritual energy.
It was a fraction of a second, but in high-level combat, it was fatal.
Gu Yan's footing faltered on the landing. His leather boot struck a small slick of blood left behind from a previous match. The friction he expected wasn't there. His leg shot out from under him, tearing his hamstring with a sickening pop.
"Guh—!" Gu Yan's eyes widened in horror.
Because his stance collapsed, the condensed, violent Azure Gale Sword Intent wrapped around his blade destabilized. The wind-blade snapped backward like a broken bowstring.
Attempting to save himself, Gu Yan flailed, dropping his sword. But the misfortune wasn't done. The heavy *Wind-Tearing Blade* bounced off his own kneecap, flipped three times in the air, and plummeted perfectly, hilt-up, straight toward his face.
The residual vortex of his own Sword Intent caught the falling blade, accelerating it to the speed of lightning.
SCHLUCK.
The arena fell into a deathly, paralyzing silence.
The tens of thousands of disciples in the stands, the majestic Elders in the VIP pavilion, and even Fang Tianyou stared in sheer disbelief.
Gu Yan, the undisputed Rank 1 disciple, the rising star of the Eastern Province, was pinned to the arena floor. His own sword had plunged cleanly through his open mouth and out the back of his neck, severing his spine and entirely destroying his vocal cords.
He twitched twice, his eyes rolling into the back of his head, before his aura completely vanished.
He had tripped, fumbled his sword, and executed himself.
A pin drop could have been heard in the massive stadium.
"Did... did the favorite just slip?" a junior disciple whispered in the stands, breaking the silence.
"He killed himself... with his own ultimate move. What in the heavens?"
Lu Chen stood mere inches from the pooling blood, his expression a picture of mild, innocent shock. Internally, he was bathing in the euphoria of Gu Yan's plundered providence. The rich, golden luck flooded his perfectly forged Foundation, reinforcing his bones and nourishing his stolen Void Root. The system within the Mirror chimed.
[Target: Gu Yan (Deceased)]
[Providence Extracted: Golden (Rising Star)]
[Destiny Plundered: Destined path to the Inner Sect is now yours.]
Simultaneously, the Heaven-Seeking Astrolabe in Inspector Zhao's hand could no longer contain the paradox. It had locked onto a Void, but was now staring at a Golden Destiny. The conflicting laws of providence caused the ancient gears to overheat.
CRACK!
The Astrolabe exploded in a shower of sparks and shrapnel. Inspector Zhao shrieked as a piece of celestial bronze embedded itself in his cheek, throwing him backward over his chair. The pillar of starlight vanished, plunging the arena back into natural sunlight.
Fang Tianyou blinked, the blinding afterimage fading from his vision. The resonance he had felt earlier was entirely gone, smothered beneath the thick, radiant blanket of Gu Yan's stolen luck that now draped over Lu Chen.
A Golden Providence? Fang Tianyou's brow furrowed in deep confusion. The Astrolabe broke. Lu Chen's destiny was completely destroyed when I took his Spirit Root. A cripple in the Abyss could never manifest a Golden Aura. It was a misdirection. The Inspector's broken toy just latched onto the luckiest person in the arena.
Fang's tense posture relaxed, though a foul taste lingered in his mouth. He looked at the corpse of Gu Yan, then at 'Chen Lu'. Just a lucky rat who survived because his opponent was an incompetent fool.
Down in the arena, the head referee, a stern-faced Inner Sect Elder, descended onto the stage. He approached Gu Yan's corpse, checking for a pulse. Finding none, the Elder's face flushed with a mixture of embarrassment and rage.
"Incompetent! To suffer a Qi deviation and impale oneself during a formal duel... a disgrace to the Azure Cloud Sect!" The Elder kicked Gu Yan's corpse aside with a flick of his sleeve.
He then turned to Lu Chen, his eyes full of disdain. "Chen Lu. You didn't even draw your sword."
"I was too slow, Elder," Lu Chen lied smoothly, keeping his head respectfully bowed. "Senior Brother Gu's speed was terrifying. I simply closed my eyes and prepared for death. The Heavens must have intervened."
The Elder scoffed. "The Heavens favor the living, it seems. By the rules of the tournament, the last man standing in the final ring is the victor."
Reluctantly, the Elder reached into his robes and pulled out a medallion crafted from azure jade. He tossed it to Lu Chen. "Take it. You are now an Inner Sect disciple. Report to the Heavenly Water Pavilion by sundown to receive your robes and cavern assignment. Try not to embarrass us."
"Thank you, Elder." Lu Chen caught the token. The jade felt cool against his palm.
The barrier around the arena lowered. The crowd was in an uproar, half laughing at Gu Yan's pathetic demise, half cursing because they had lost massive bets on the match. Lu Chen slipped through the chaotic throng, his head down, blending seamlessly into the sea of grey-robed outer disciples.
He had done it. He had officially bypassed the outer sect hierarchy and embedded himself in the core of the Azure Cloud Sect. From the Inner Sect, he would have access to the sect's spiritual ley lines, higher-tier martial arts, and, most importantly, the concentrated providence of the true 'Chosen Ones'.
Fang Tianyou was only the final course. There was a feast waiting for him first.
***
The sun dipped below the floating mountain peaks of the Eastern Province, casting long, purple shadows across the Azure Cloud Sect.
Lu Chen walked up the winding stone path toward the Heavenly Water Pavilion. The air here was tangibly thicker, rich with World Essence. Every breath felt like swallowing liquid silk. His Perfect Foundation hummed in greedy anticipation, silently absorbing the ambient energy without Lu Chen even meditating.
He held up the Inner Sect token, letting the perimeter arrays scan it. The invisible barrier rippled like a stone hitting a pond, allowing him passage.
The path twisted into a dense bamboo forest. The rustling leaves whispered in the twilight. Lu Chen's steps were silent, his Void Sword Intent naturally masking his presence.
Suddenly, Lu Chen stopped.
His hand drifted toward the hilt of his plain iron sword.
The bamboo shadows ahead of him seemed to detach themselves from the trees, coalescing into a slender, graceful figure. The air grew instantly cold, carrying the faint scent of crushed moonflowers.
She stepped into the dim light. She wore robes of pristine white, unadorned save for the silver crescent moon stitched over her heart. A veil covered the lower half of her face, but her eyes—deep, placid, and unnervingly perceptive—locked onto him.
Ye Xiyue. The Saintess of the Fallen Moon Palace.
Lu Chen's grip tightened on his sword. He had saved her in the Abyss beneath the Sword Graves, but she was a wildcard. Her 'Heart of the Sword' allowed her to perceive truths that even high-tier artifacts like the Astrolabe missed.
"Excuse me, Senior Sister," Lu Chen said, pitching his voice into the nervous, reverent tone of a newly promoted disciple. "I believe you are blocking the path to the pavilion."
Ye Xiyue didn't move. Her gaze swept over him, from his dusty boots to the top of his head.
"The tournament was quite a spectacle," her voice was like a crystal bell chiming in an empty room, cool and devoid of inflection. "Everyone is talking about the miraculous luck of Chen Lu. How a Golden Destiny favored him at the absolute last second."
"The Heavens work in mysterious ways," Lu Chen replied, his smile polite but strained.
Ye Xiyue took a single step forward. The distance between them seemed to vanish, a high-level spatial technique executed flawlessly. She was now mere inches from him. He could see the faint glow of her own massive, moon-white Qi Yun hovering above her—a tantalizing feast of providence.
She leaned in slightly, her voice dropping to a whisper meant only for him.
"You fooled the Astrolabe. You fooled Fang Tianyou. You draped yourself in the golden luck of a dead man."
Lu Chen's eyes narrowed infinitesimally. His thumb pressed against the guard of his sword. If she exposed him now, he would have to kill her. It would be difficult, but not impossible.
Ye Xiyue's eyes crinkled slightly at the corners, a hidden smile beneath her veil.
"Your luck just changed, Chen Lu," she whispered, her gaze piercing straight through his disguise, straight through the golden aura, and staring directly into the terrifying emptiness of his soul. "But the Void beneath it... is still there. And it is starving."