Lin Feng woke up choking.
Not on air—but on weight.
The pressure sat on his chest like a living thing, heavy and unmoving. His lungs burned as he dragged in a breath, the air thick enough to resist him. His fingers curled against the ground on instinct.
Cold.
Smooth.
He opened his eyes.
Green flooded his vision.
Jade stretched beneath him, flawless and endless. The floor, the towering pillars, the distant walls fading into mist—everything was jade. Not assembled. Not carved. One continuous existence, as though the palace had grown into reality rather than been built.
Lin Feng pushed himself upright.
The pressure intensified.
His knees trembled. Muscles screamed. His bones felt heavier, denser, as if something unseen was pressing inward, testing how much he could endure before breaking.
"…This isn't a dream," he said quietly.
The silence answered him.
Not empty silence—complete silence. The kind that swallowed sound before it could exist.
A step echoed.
One.
From the deepest shadow between two jade pillars, a figure emerged.
A demon.
Tall. Lean. Its horns curved backward like frozen blades, its presence sharp enough to cut the air. The moment its eyes landed on Lin Feng, its expression froze.
Fear surfaced first.
Raw. Instinctive.
Then disbelief.
"…You woke up," the demon said slowly. "Inside this place."
Lin Feng exhaled and steadied his breathing. "Judging by your face," he replied, "that wasn't supposed to happen."
The demon laughed once—short and brittle. "No. It wasn't."
It took a step forward, then stopped, as if crossing an invisible boundary required permission it didn't have.
"This is the Jade Palace," it said. "A realm detached from mortal flow. Time here is three times slow."
Lin Feng's eyes narrowed—not in shock, but calculation.
"One minute," he murmured. "One day."
The pressure shifted slightly, like the palace itself reacting to his composure.
"…You accepted that too easily," the demon said.
Lin Feng shrugged. "Complaining won't bend time back."
The demon studied him carefully. "You have no energy."
Lin Feng blinked once. "Ah. You noticed."
"There is not a single thread of qi, demon essence, or spiritual fluctuation within you," the demon said, voice low. "You are empty."
"And yet," Lin Feng replied calmly, "I'm standing here."
The demon fell silent.
That silence stretched.
Then it exhaled slowly. "You may remain. For now."
Lin Feng stood. His body felt strange—heavy, compressed, as though every cell was being pressed inward by an invisible hand. He took a step. The jade beneath his foot did not crack—but his leg shook anyway.
The demon circled him once. "This palace refines not energy," it said. "It consumes your energy— mental energy."
Lin Feng flexed his fingers. Pain sparked—and faded.
"A free training ground," he said quietly. "Not bad."
Time lost meaning.
Days passed inside the palace while barely moments slipped by outside. Lin Feng walked until his legs trembled. He sat when exhaustion claimed him. He slept beneath pressure that never eased.
He did not cultivate.
He could not.
There was nothing inside him to draw upon.
On the third day within the palace, the demon spoke again.
"You will perform alchemy."
Lin Feng looked up. "With what energy?"
The demon smiled—thin and dangerous. "Mine."
The world twisted.
Lin Feng blinked—and found himself standing inside a traditional medicine pharmacy.
The scent of herbs filled the air. Wooden shelves rose high, stacked with bundled roots and dried leaves. Barely a minute had passed.
The manager rushed out the moment he saw Lin Feng.
He bowed deeply. "Esteemed guest. Forgive the delay."
A sealed parcel was placed into Lin Feng's hands.
"Your order is ready."
Lin Feng accepted it without a word and turned away.
No explanation. No hesitation.
Back in the Jade Palace, the parcel floated in midair.
A jade furnace rose silently from the floor. No flame. No smoke. Only a hollow space that felt ancient and absolute.
"The pill is called Shen Yuan Dan," the demon said. "Divine Essence."
The furnace opened on its own.
The demon raised one claw.
Energy poured out—not violently, not arrogantly. It flowed like a river finally unrestrained. The herbs entered the furnace one by one, guided, fused, rewritten without fire or sound.
Lin Feng did nothing.
He only watched.
"This pill restores essence," the demon said quietly. "Not qi. Not vitality. Essence. The root beneath roots."
The furnace sealed.
Moments later, it opened again.
One pill floated out.
Clear. Heavy. Quiet.
Lin Feng caught it.
The moment it touched his palm, his body reacted—muscles tightening, breath hitching, something deep inside him stirring as if awakened by a familiar voice.
The demon's expression changed.
Mockery vanished.
Only focus remained.
"You are walking toward something dark," it said. "Tomorrow, I will explain the path your body is approaching."
Lin Feng looked at the pill, then at the endless jade palace pressing down on his existence."…Good," he said. "I never liked easy paths."