Legacy of Blood: Reclaiming the Lost Throne

Chapter Three: Cast out again

“If you want to rise again,” he growled, gaze burning through the void, “you must find me. All of me. Together with the fragments lie parts of your cultivation too.”

“How many fragments must I find for us to become whole again?”

The forest rumbled faintly.

“Seven.”

“Seven?” I echoed.

“Each sealed by trial. You will not reclaim them easily. Each piece holds a portion of my qi… and your own. Without them, you are incomplete. Your cultivation path is shattered. Your soul is unstable. You will never reach your true form.”

I closed my eyes, jaw clenched.

I looked back at Moonfang. “I’ll find them,” I said. “No matter what.”

The wolf said nothing. Then the forest vanished.

I left the void and my body regained its consciousness,

I could feel it and the qi... it was different now.. We had arrived.

The sect.

Though I was still being carried, I could feel the stone beneath us now. Pathways carved into the mountain, torches burning with flame-touched qi, disciples passing by in hushed curiosity.

We crossed under a grand archway inscribed with ancient calligraphy:

“Clear Sky, Pure Flame – The Way of Balance.”

So this was Tianxuan Sect.

““Senior Brother Huo,” the younger boy murmured, “should we take him to the infirmary now to get treatment?”

“No,” the older voice replied. “Leave him here with me.”

“But—”

“I’ll report him to the sect master myself. You’ve both done your part.”

They both turned and left, their footsteps sound fading away.

A pause.

“I know you’re pretending. Get up now,” Huo said coldly.

I smiled inwardly.

So, he’d seen through my bluff.

Slowly, I opened my eyes. Senior Brother Huo stood across from me, arms folded.

I sat up slowly, my body aching.

I scoffed. “As expected… you wouldn’t have become a senior disciple if you weren’t this smart.”

He didn’t smile.

“Your breathing changed the moment we crossed into the sect gates,” he said. “Your pulse was steady. And your qi flow, damaged as it is, was still too controlled for someone unconscious.”

I moved my head a bit and smirked. “You have such sharp senses.”

“When people pretend to be unconscious.” His eyes narrowed slightly. “They usually want something.”

“And what do you think I want?”

“I don’t know yet,” he replied. “Maybe you’re trying to hide and recover? Or you could be a spy from other sects sent here to infiltrate. It doesn’t matter.”

He stepped forward slowly.

“Your qi is wild, damaged. Your body bears talisman scars that I’ve never seen before.”

I didn’t say anything, I just kept watching him closely. I was getting ready to attack if it warranted me to.

“But… you don’t have any vicious aura surrounding you and it makes one want to trust you.”

He knelt, meeting my gaze.

“So I’ll ask just once, are you an enemy or a friend?”

I stared at him.

Then gave the only answer I could.

“I’m not your enemy.”

Senior Brother Huo said nothing more after my reply. He simply rose and gestured for me to follow.

“Come,” he said. “Sect Leader Xuan will want to see you.”

I said nothing else and followed him despite my injuries.

We passed by some winding stone paths lit by flickering spirit flames. Disciples turned to look at me with even more curiosity than before while others looked at me with suspicion. My robe was stained. My face was pale.

Eventually, we arrived at a towering wooden hall carved directly into the cliffside. The pillars bore ancient carvings, dragons and phoenixes spiraling through clouds, locked in endless pursuit of the celestial wheel.

Senior Brother Huo stepped forward and pushed open the doors without hesitation.

Inside, the air was filled with incense. Rows of scrolls lined the walls like silent witnesses. At the far end stood a single man meditating, his hands clasped behind his back.

Sect Leader Xuan Baoyang.

He didn’t turn when we entered.

But I felt his qi the moment we stepped into the room. He was the strongest I’ve seen in the sect so far. His robe bore the seven-star insignia of Tianxuan’s highest elder. His presence said the rest.

Sect Leader Xuan Baoyang opened his eyes and slowly turned, rising to his full height. The faint glow around him faded into stillness as he stepped down from the platform.

His gaze fell on Huo.

“Why have you brought an injured stranger into my hall?” he asked, voice low but unmistakably cold.

Huo bowed deeply. “Forgive me for the intrusion, Sect Leader. I meant only to report him—I found this man injured on the road near the southern cliffs. He showed faint signs of spiritual activity, though weak and fractured. I believed it best you be informed directly.”

The sect leader didn’t say anything then he finally turned to me.

Sect Leader Xuan’s gaze narrowed as he studied me. Then his tone changed and his expression beared suspicion .

“You. You bear the scent of cursed talisman fire.”

I raised my head slightly. “I am only seeking rest. I mean no harm.”

“You are seeking refuge,” he snapped. “But what you carry is no ordinary wound.”

His eyes flicked toward the faint seal still pulsing faintly beneath the edge of my bloodied robe.

“That talisman… it’s not just forbidden, it’s disruptive. I felt it from the meditation chamber even before you entered my hall. But I didn’t expect that it would be coming from you.”

“You’re sayin you seek a place to rest,” Xuan continued, “yet what you bring may draw things far worse than yourself to this sect. Anyone that cursed you with that talisman is very dangerous. It’ll be easy for them to follow you here, in fact they could already be following your scent. I’ve never seen it before in my life...”

He began to pace slowly, robe trailing behind him like smoke.

Xuan’s eyes flicked to me again.

“I will not risk Tianxuan being put in danger because of you.. By dawn,” he said, voice flat, “you must leave at once.”

Behind me, came soft gasp.

“Why?!”