Chapter 6: The Sect Master's Interest

Rumors spread through Azure Cloud Sect like fire through dry grass.

A demonic beast of unusual power had been killed near the outer mountain. Its corpse had been found in a ravine, torn apart by what appeared to be another demonic creature. The elders were investigating, and the disciples were speculating with the enthusiasm that young cultivators brought to any mystery.

Lin Xiao kept his head down and listened.

"The wounds were strange," one inner disciple was saying in the servant's quarters, where Lin Xiao was delivering fresh linens. "Like claws, but bigger than any known beast. The Elders think there might be two monsters in the area."

"Or something worse," another replied. "My uncle heard the Sect Master discussing corruption spreading from the borderlands. Whatever killed that beast might be connected."

*They're not wrong,* the Emperor observed. *Your transformation left marks that don't match any natural creature. If they investigate thoroughly, they might connect the evidence to someone in the sect.*

"Let them investigate. They're looking for a beast, not a servant."

*For now. But Sect Master Yun Tian didn't rise to his position by being foolish. If he suspects demonic cultivation anywhere in his sect, he'll find it eventually.*

Lin Xiao filed this warning away as he completed his duties. The Sect Master had always been a distant figure—a powerful elder who governed from the upper pavilions, rarely concerning himself with servants or outer disciples. But if his attention turned toward the lower mountain...

The opportunity to worry ended abruptly when Elder Gao appeared in the servants' quarters.

"Lin Xiao." The Elder's voice carried the casual authority of someone who rarely encountered resistance. "Come with me."

Lin Xiao bowed, his heart hammering despite his external calm. "Of course, Elder Gao."

The walk to the administrative pavilion was the longest of Lin Xiao's life. Elder Gao said nothing, leading him through corridors reserved for disciples and into a building he'd never been allowed to enter.

The room they arrived at was furnished with expensive simplicity—quality without ostentation. And sitting behind the central desk was Sect Master Yun Tian himself.

He was exactly what Lin Xiao had expected. Distinguished, with white-streaked hair and a face that projected benevolent wisdom. His cultivation emanated from him like heat from a forge, making Lin Xiao's demonic essence instinctively coil in response.

"Leave us," Yun Tian told Elder Gao. "This conversation requires privacy."

The Elder bowed and departed, leaving Lin Xiao alone with the most powerful person in Azure Cloud Sect.

"Sit," the Sect Master said, gesturing to a chair.

Lin Xiao sat, maintaining the subservient posture that had protected him for years.

"You've served this sect for a long time," Yun Tian began. "Ten years, according to the records. Originally brought here after your parents died in a demonic beast attack."

"Yes, Sect Master."

"And in those ten years, you've been assessed as having crippled cultivation veins. Unable to gather Qi. Worthless for any martial purpose."

"Yes, Sect Master."

"Interesting." Yun Tian's eyes—sharp despite their grandfatherly appearance—studied Lin Xiao with uncomfortable intensity. "Because two nights ago, something killed a demonic beast near the outer mountain. Something powerful enough to tear through Foundation-level defenses. And the evidence suggests that this something emerged from within the sect's boundaries."

Lin Xiao's pulse quickened, but he kept his expression blank.

"You were seen returning to your quarters that night," the Sect Master continued. "Covered in blood that you claimed came from a training accident. Blood that, upon investigation, contained traces of demonic beast essence."

"I was attacked by the beast while outside, Sect Master. I defended myself and fled."

"Defended yourself. With what? Crippled cultivation veins? No weapons? No training?" Yun Tian's smile didn't reach his eyes. "You're lying, of course. The question is why, and what truth you're concealing."

*He knows something. Not everything, but enough to be dangerous.*

"I don't know what you want me to say, Sect Master."

"I want you to tell me how a servant with no cultivation killed a beast that would have challenged our junior elders." Yun Tian leaned forward. "And I want you to understand that I'm not your enemy. If you've somehow developed abilities beyond your assessed limits, that's not a crime. It's a resource."

*He wants to use you. He doesn't care about the demonic nature—he cares about the power.*

"I don't have any abilities," Lin Xiao insisted. "I was lucky. The beast was already wounded when it found me. I survived, nothing more."

"Hmm." The Sect Master studied him for a long moment. "You're good at hiding. Better than most cultivators twice your age. That's a skill in itself."

He produced a jade slip from his robes and set it on the desk.

"This is a cultivation manual. Basic Qi gathering techniques that even 'crippled' veins can sometimes process. Consider it a gift." His smile was knowing. "Or a test. If you truly have no abilities, it will be worthless. But if you've somehow been concealing your potential all these years..."

"Sect Master, I don't understand—"

"You don't need to understand. You just need to know that I'm watching." Yun Tian stood, signaling the conversation's end. "Return to your duties. Use the manual or don't. But know that whatever you're hiding, I will eventually uncover. It would be better for both of us if you choose to reveal it on your own terms."

Lin Xiao accepted the jade slip and bowed deeply.

"Thank you for your generosity, Sect Master."

"Generosity has nothing to do with it." The false grandfatherly warmth had vanished, replaced by cold calculation. "Azure Cloud Sect has enemies. Power is valuable regardless of its source. If you become useful, your past won't matter. If you become a threat..." He didn't finish the sentence.

He didn't need to.

---

"He knows," Lin Xiao told the Emperor that night, examining the jade slip in his hidden training space. "Not the specifics, but he suspects something."

*Yun Tian is exactly the kind of cultivator I despised in my previous existence. 'Necessary evil,' he calls it. Using whatever tools come to hand regardless of consequence.* The Emperor's voice carried ancient contempt. *He'll accept demonic power if it serves him. He'll destroy it if it threatens him. And he'll betray you the moment you become inconvenient.*

"Then I need to become too valuable to betray."

*Or too powerful. The calculations change when the tool can fight back.*

Lin Xiao considered the jade slip in his hands. The techniques it contained were basic—foundational Qi gathering that wouldn't benefit him now. But refusing to use it might raise more suspicions than using it improperly.

"What if I pretend? Use orthodox techniques badly, make it look like I'm struggling?"

*A possibility. It would explain some changes while concealing others. But it requires careful performance—too much success, and he'll expect more. Too little, and he'll question why he's investing resources.*

"I've spent ten years pretending to be weaker than I am. This is just a different kind of performance."

*True. And it gives you cover for the changes that are coming.* The Emperor paused. *Your advancement is accelerating. Within months, you'll reach stages where physical transformation becomes impossible to hide entirely. Better to establish a narrative now than scramble for explanations later.*

Lin Xiao began working through the problem.

Tomorrow, he would appear to struggle with the jade slip's techniques. He would make progress—slow, limited progress—that explained his improving health while hiding his true nature. He would become exactly what Yun Tian expected: a servant with hidden potential, grateful for the Sect Master's patronage, loyal to the hand that offered opportunity.

And all the while, he would grow stronger in the shadows.

*The game has changed,* the Emperor observed. *You're no longer just surviving—you're maneuvering. That's progress.*

"Progress toward what?"

*Toward the moment when you can stop pretending. When you can show them exactly what they created by treating you as worthless.*

Lin Xiao set the jade slip aside and returned to his actual training.

That moment couldn't come soon enough.