The Council Hall of the Li Clan was an ancient relic — its roof carved with dragons and phoenixes, its massive wooden pillars blackened by centuries of incense and secret bargains. When Li Tian pushed open the great iron doors, the first light of dawn spilled over the marble floor like blood.
A dozen elders sat in a semi-circle on raised cushions. They'd been summoned in haste — dragged from warm beds by trembling messengers who whispered only three words:
The Young Master comes.
The elders stared as Li Tian strode in, rain still dripping from his hair, his black robes dark with more than stormwater. Behind him, Xiao Chen carried a heavy hemp sack, its stained bottom leaving a crimson trail across the polished floor.
Li Tian did not bow. He did not greet them. He did not so much as glance at the stunned guards who shifted uneasily along the hall's edges.
He stopped before the elders' semi-circle and turned to Xiao Chen with a single flick of his fingers.
The boy dropped to one knee, untied the sack's mouth — and tipped it over.
Elder Shen's severed head rolled out across the marble, coming to rest with a soft, wet thud at the foot of Elder Yuan, the highest-ranking councilor. Shen's eyes were still open, glassy and accusing.
Gasps rippled through the chamber. One elder retched, covering his mouth with a silk sleeve.
Li Tian's voice cut through the whispers like cold iron."Your steward," he said. "Your snake."
Elder Yuan — a lean man with narrow eyes and a brittle spine — cleared his throat, trying to gather what scraps of dignity still clung to him. "Young Master Li, this… this is a grave matter. The Council—"
"The Council?" Li Tian's laugh was quiet but carried to every corner of the ancient hall. "The Council did nothing while Shen fed our secrets to the Zhao Clan. The Council did nothing while knives crept through the rain for my throat."
He stepped closer, boots splashing faintly in the trail of blood. Elder Yuan flinched as Li Tian leaned down, their faces only inches apart.
"You hid behind rules and titles," Li Tian murmured. "I hid behind nothing. And now I stand — while he," he nudged the severed head with the tip of his boot, "has no tongue left to lie."
A few elders averted their eyes. Some watched him with new, sharp calculation — weighing him, wondering if they could tame him or if they'd be the next head in a sack.
Li Tian straightened, voice rising just enough to fill the hall.
"From this day," he said, each word ringing like a hammer on stone, "the traitors among us will be fed to the worms before they reach the Zhao Clan's purse. Any elder who feels uneasy about that… step forward."
Silence. The wind outside rattled the ancient shutters. Not one man moved.
Xiao Chen, still kneeling, dared to look up — and what he saw on his master's face was no longer a boy's anger. It was something older, colder — the birth of a lord no Council could leash.
The System purred in Li Tian's ear.
[Villain Mission Complete: Deliver Elder Shen's Head.][Reward: +1000 Villain Points.][Unlocked: Dark Faction Path.][New Choice: Build hidden power outside the clan (Dark Sect Connection) or consolidate control within (Iron Fist).]
Li Tian's mind flickered through the possibilities. He saw the Zhao Clan gathering its strength beyond the mountains. He saw small, petty elders whispering in corners like roaches.
And he saw what must be done.
He turned to Elder Yuan, whose hands were trembling faintly in his silk sleeves.
"Elder Yuan," Li Tian said, his tone almost pleasant. "Your loyalty… tell me where it lies."
The old man's throat worked. "With the Li Clan… Young Master…"
Li Tian stepped closer. "Then kneel."
Gasps erupted around the chamber — elders who had never bent knee to anyone but the late Patriarch found themselves frozen in horror as Yuan — brittle-spined, prideful Yuan — slid shakily from his cushion, robes whispering against the marble, until both knees cracked against the cold floor.
Li Tian placed a hand on the old man's shoulder — almost like a blessing. But his touch was ice."Good," Li Tian murmured. "If I am to be your Young Master… you will be my nest of snakes. And you will bite when I command."
He let go. Elder Yuan bowed so low his forehead brushed the stone. One by one, the other elders followed — fear and calculation warring in their eyes as they bent to the floor, ancient bones protesting each shameful inch.
Xiao Chen watched, breath caught in his throat. A boy betrayed, reborn a villain… now a master of snakes.
The System's cold whisper caressed Li Tian's thoughts:
[Faction Influence: +10%. Subordinates: +1 Elder Council (Conditional).]
Li Tian turned away from the kneeling ring of traitors. Outside, dawn's red light spilled through the open doors — a promise of blood yet to come.
"Seal the gates," Li Tian ordered, his voice soft but merciless. "Root out Shen's loyal dogs. Any caught trying to flee — feed them to the stones."
Xiao Chen rose shakily to his feet, blade still dripping from the night's work. "And… and after that, Young Master?"
Li Tian's cold eyes gleamed as he looked toward the mountains, where the Zhao Clan's banners would soon gather.
"After that?" he said, a thin smile curling his lips. "We hunt bigger prey."