Xuan Ye slipped into the outer storage shed under the cover of the deepening twilight. The structure was little more than a sagging wooden building pressed against the mountainside, its door secured by a simple latch that any determined outer disciple could force open. Inside, the air was thick with the dry scent of stored herbs and the faint metallic tang of abyssal flora that had begun to seep into everything in the lower quarters.
He moved silently, his crippled image masking the works of his actions. Shelves held bundles of low grade spirit herbs, sacks of grains and clusters of black leaved plants harvested from the nearby rifts. Most were worthless to inner court eyes, but to Xuan Ye they were raw material.
He selected several handfuls of the black leaved abyssal flora, the same plants whose corruptive energy leaked from the void cracks. Drawing on ten thousand years of forbidden knowledge from his previous life, he began refining. Using a flat stone as a makeshift mortar, he crushed the leaves together with a pinch of stagnant water and a small amount of common spirit grain powder. The mixture slowly turned into a fine, nearly odorless gray powder. When dissolved in wine, it would induce confusion, heightened aggression and temporary qi disruption enough to turn a formal assembly into ugly infighting without immediate deaths.
He divided the powder into three small packets and concealed them carefully within the folds of his robes. One for the main wine supply, one as backup and one held in reserve for emergencies.
The work was done in silence. His soul sea throbbed with growing hunger. The Lust Rune I was stable but the void inside it was widening, he estimated he had one to two days at most before starvation began actively eroding his meridians. He needed to feed it again soon.
He left the shed and made his way to a hidden corner behind a cluster of storage buildings, a narrow alley shielded from casual view by stacked crates and overhanging black leafs vines. The marked servant was already there, waiting as he had instructed earlier. She stood with her arms wrapped around herself, gray robes slightly rough and the faint pulse of the Lust Rune visible like a dark shadow beneath the fabric on her lower abdomen.
When she saw him approach, her eyes widened with a mix of fear and reluctant anticipation.
"You came," she whispered.
"Of course."
He pulled her deeper into the shadows, pressing her back against the cool stone wall. One hand slipped under her robes while the other covered her mouth lightly, not to silence screams but to muffle any involuntary sounds.
"Report," he said calmly, fingers brushing her already damp slit.
She shuddered as he pushed two fingers inside slowly, Her walls clenched around him immediately, wet and hot. The Lust Rune in his palm pulsed gently, reinforcing the sigil already carved into her.
"The… the inner court is preparing the ceremonial wine for the assembly in two days," she gasped, hips twitching against his hand despite herself. "Mu Tianhao wants it served after Mu Qinglan's demonstration. The Li family guests will arrive tomorrow evening. There are only four guards at the ancestral altar during the main gathering... Umm.. they rotate when the demonstrations begin."
Her voice broke into a soft moan as he began to push his fingers deeper, curling them in rhythm. She was giving in faster this time, her body remembering the overwhelming pleasure from before, with her free hand clutched at his shoulder, nails digging in.
"Mu Qinglan… she will demonstrate her ice techniques on the central platform," she continued breathlessly. "Elder Mu is planning to use three outer disciples as catalysts afterward… including you. Some inner elders are whispering that Mu Tianhao is becoming too arrogant with the alliance."
Xuan Ye nodded once, continuing the steady penetration. "Good. Continue listening. Learn the exact order of the wine serving and any changes to the altar guards."
He increased the pace slightly. She moaned softly, shame burning on her face even as her hips rolled to meet his fingers. "Please… it's too much… I hate this but… ah..."
Her words dissolved into quiet begging as the reinforced Lust Rune pushed her closer to the edge. She came with a suppressed shudder, a small rush of wetness coating his hand as her body convulsed. At that peak, he drew a thin thread of essence from her feeding the rune and knitting another small portion of his damaged meridians.
He withdrew his fingers and stepped back.
The servant leaned against the wall on shaky legs, breathing hard. Her eyes were conflicted, deep hatred for what he had done to her mixed with an unwilling, dark craving. Cum-like wetness trailed down her inner thigh. She adjusted her robes with trembling hands, avoiding his gaze.
"Return when you have more," Xuan Ye said flatly. "Also, act normal."
She nodded weakly and slipped away into the shadows, legs unsteady.
Xuan Ye remained in the hidden corner for a moment longer, feeling the slight improvement in his meridians. It was progress but the damage was deep, he knew he needed something stronger.
He emerged from the alley and began walking once more through the outer disciple area, planting the first seeds of rumor as he passed small groups.
In hushed tones meant to be overheard, using a rune he whispered in the air to a pair of outer disciples arguing over rations: "I heard some inner elders are unhappy with Mu Tianhao's leadership… they say he's becoming too bold with the Li alliance."
The words spread quick but not as desired because the body wasn't still powerful enough but it spread... in the way only outer sect gossip could, quiet, venomous and useful for creating division later.
As the twilight deepened further, Xuan Ye continued his circuit. The black flora glowed brighter in the shadows. Distant training grounds still echoed with occasional clashes of qi. The hunger in his soul sea pressed harder now, a constant reminder that time was short.
Two days until the assembly.
Two days until the first true carving.
And the Crimson Veil Sect remained none the wiser.