Wu Chi did not announce what he was doing.
He simply began watching.
For the first half of the day, he stood on the edge of the outer training grounds like he always did now, arms at his sides, presence cold and unmoving. Ever since his return from the forest, the disciples no longer ignored him. They measured themselves against him in brief, stolen glances, then looked away just as quickly.
They all felt it.
Something about him had changed.
By midday, he had already chosen three names.
By evening, five.
He waited until dusk before calling them.
Not publicly.
Quietly.
One by one.
The first to arrive was Mei Qiao.
She did not bother to hide what she was.
Loose crimson robes clung to her figure instead of concealing it, tied just enough at the waist to remain within sect regulations while daring anyone to complain. Her cultivation sat at late Qi Gathering, stagnant for over a year. Not from lack of talent.
From lack of opportunity.
She leaned against the wooden post outside the side hall as she waited, arms crossed beneath her chest, eyes flicking over Wu Chi with open, amused curiosity.
"So," she drawled when he finally faced her, lips curling. "The Shadow finally noticed me. Should I feel honored, or nervous?"
Wu Chi's gaze remained flat.
"You were planning to desert within a month," he said.
Her smile stilled for half a breath.
Then it widened.
"Tch. That obvious?"
"You weren't hiding it."
She shrugged lightly. "This sect starves the wrong people. I don't like starving."
There was no shame in her voice. Only practicality.
"You wanted more power," Wu Chi said. "Not protection. Not rank. Power."
Her eyes sharpened.
"And now?"
"Now you have a chance."
For the first time, her teasing expression faded into something more focused.
"…From Elder Xu?" she asked.
Wu Chi did not answer.
Her breath caught just slightly.
"I'm in," she said immediately. "Before you even finish your sentence."
.
The second was Lin Shuyu.
She arrived silently, steps measured, posture relaxed in a way that suggested she conserved everything she did not need. Her cultivation sat at mid Qi Gathering, but her breathing was steady, her movements efficient, and her eyes missed very little.
Unlike Mei Qiao, she did not lean or tease or test.
She simply waited.
"You know why you were called," Wu Chi said.
"Yes," she replied.
No hesitation. No curiosity.
"Why?"
"Because my results are consistent," she said calmly. "And because I do not waste effort on things that do not benefit me."
"You don't care who gives you power."
"I care whether the power works."
Wu Chi studied her in silence for a moment, then nodded.
She neither smiled nor reacted.
Only accepted.
.
The third arrived loudly.
Zhou Kai practically bounced into the side hall, hands behind his head, grin stretched wide across his face as if he had been summoned to a festival rather than something secret.
"You called for me, Shadow-senior?" he asked cheerfully. "If this is about formation drills, I swear I was only watching because Senior Sister Qiao was nearby-"
Mei Qiao snorted.
"You wish."
Zhou Kai laughed without shame. His cultivation was early Qi Gathering, barely stable, his stance sloppy, his focus nonexistent.
Yet he trained obsessively.
Not for power.
For attention.
"You cultivate for women," Wu Chi said flatly.
"Absolutely," Zhou Kai agreed without embarrassment. "Strong men get all the beauties."
Mei Qiao eyed him with open disdain. "You'd die in the first real fight."
"Probably," he admitted. "But at least I'd die surrounded by flowers."
Wu Chi did not care about his motives.
Only that the boy never missed a single day of training.
"You're in," he said.
Zhou Kai froze.
"…Wait, seriously?"
"Yes."
The grin returned twice as wide.
.
The fourth arrived without needing to be called.
Xu Ren had already been waiting in the shadows of the side hall when Wu Chi turned around.
He was thin. Quiet. Mid Qi Gathering. His gaze was sharp in a way that was not emotional but predatory, measuring the world in terms of advantage and sacrifice.
"You were going to pick me," Xu Ren said softly.
"You kill without hesitation," Wu Chi replied.
Xu Ren tilted his head slightly. "Is that praise, or a warning?"
"Both."
A brief smile touched Xu Ren's lips.
"I don't care who I serve," he said. "Only whether serving makes me untouchable."
"It will make you dangerous," Wu Chi said.
"Good."
.
The fifth was the hardest.
Gao Han.
Another battle addict.
Another man with scars across his arms from real blood instead of practice wounds. His cultivation hovered at peak Qi Gathering, stalled not by lack of talent, but by aggression that outpaced technique.
Like Wu Chi once was.
"You don't obey orders," Wu Chi said.
Gao Han grinned openly. "I obey strength."
"You try to fight anyone who impresses you."
"Of course."
"You will be restrained."
Gao Han's grin widened.
"Then restrain me."
Wu Chi looked at him for a long moment.
"…You remind me of myself."
That was the closest thing Wu Chi had ever given to trust.
They stood together beneath the dim lantern light.
Five figures.
Five entirely different reasons to be here.
Mei Qiao leaned against the wall, openly studying the men like she was choosing weapons for personal use.
Lin Shuyu stood with her hands folded behind her back, already calculating projected outcomes.
Zhou Kai shifted on his feet, glancing at the women far more than the situation deserved.
Xu Ren watched everything with a quiet, satisfied stillness.
Gao Han rolled his shoulders as if preparing for a fight that had not yet begun.
Wu Chi's voice cut through the tension.
"From this moment on," Wu Chi said, his voice steady, "you answer to me."
No one interrupted.
"You are not Elder Xu's disciples," he continued. "You are mine."
The lantern flame between them flickered once, just once.
Then Wu Chi released his aura.
Not explosively.
Not wildly.
It unfolded.
A dense pressure rolled outward like a silent tide, dark-tinged Qi layered with something that did not belong to this sect's ordinary cultivation. It pressed against their skin, their lungs, their bones. The air itself seemed to thicken.
Late-stage Foundation Establishment.
Undeniable.
Overwhelming compared to every one of them.
Mei Qiao's breath caught first. Her lazy smile froze for a fraction of a second before slowly returning, sharper, hungry in a way that had nothing to do with lust.
Lin Shuyu's pupils shrank. She did not stagger, but her stance shifted a half-step wider, instinctively bracing. Calculations exploded behind her eyes.
Zhou Kai's jaw dropped outright. "T-That's… that's Foundation, right? That's definitely Foundation-!"
Xu Ren's lips curled upward, not in fear, but in something close to satisfaction. His gaze burned as it traced the invisible pressure around Wu Chi's body.
Gao Han's reaction was the most dangerous.
He laughed.
A low, excited sound tore from his throat as his Qi stirred violently in response, instinctively challenging the pressure before he forced it back down with visible effort.
"So it's true," he said, eyes blazing. "You didn't just come back alive."
Wu Chi let the aura linger just a heartbeat longer.
Long enough for them to feel how helpless they would be against it.
Then he sealed it completely.
Silence rushed back in.
"But understand this," Wu Chi continued calmly. "This opportunity does not come without danger. I nearly died on my first mission."
Mei Qiao licked her lips slowly.
"But the rewards…" Wu Chi added.
Her eyes glittered openly now.
Lin Shuyu's breathing slowed, deeper and more controlled.
Xu Ren spoke quietly, voice tight with restrained desire.
"Rewards…?"
Wu Chi met his gaze.
"This," he said simply.
And none of them doubted it.