The courtyard remained busy after Lin Yuan finished speaking.
Not chaotic—busy.
People moved with purpose now. Groups stayed closer together. Tools were passed properly instead of being thrown aside. The simple markers Ironroot had placed—lines scratched into dirt and stone—clearly showed where it was safe to stand and where it wasn't.
Most people followed them.
A few didn't.
"Relax," EdgeBlink said, stepping over a shallow line in the soil. "It's just a slope."
StoneWisp hesitated for a moment, then followed. "We're just taking a look."
Ironroot noticed instantly.
"Stop," he said, voice firm. "That ground isn't stable. Step back."
EdgeBlink waved it off. "It barely moved."
"It will," Ironroot replied. "Step back."
They ignored him.
A soft crunch sounded underfoot.
Loose stones rolled. The slope shifted—not enough to collapse, but enough to be dangerous.
StoneWisp slipped, arms flailing as gravel slid beneath his boots. EdgeBlink grabbed for him, and for a brief moment it looked like both of them would fall.
Nearby people shouted.
"Hey—watch it!"
"Back up!"
Ironroot reacted fast, pulling StoneWisp back onto solid ground. Dust drifted lazily into the air as the slope settled again.
No one was hurt.
But it had been close.
Lin Yuan was already there.
He hadn't run. He hadn't raised his voice.
He stood at the edge of the marked area and looked at the two people.
"You were warned," he said calmly.
EdgeBlink opened his mouth. "We were just—"
"You crossed a marked zone," Lin Yuan said, cutting him off. "You ignored a direct warning. You endangered others."
The surrounding noise faded until only the wind could be heard.
Lin Yuan looked down at the unstable ground.
"This land does not forgive carelessness," he said. "I will not protect those who choose it."
He stepped back.
Whatever subtle force had been holding the slope together vanished.
The ground collapsed.
EdgeBlink shouted once as the earth gave way beneath him. He fell hard, struck stone, and his body dissolved into drifting Qi.
Silence fell over the courtyard.
A moment later, the meaning settled in.
Twenty-four hours.
StoneWisp stood frozen, face pale.
No one laughed.
No one joked.
Several people instinctively stepped farther away from the safety markers.
Lin Yuan turned his gaze to StoneWisp.
"You may stay," he said evenly. "But you will remain behind the markers."
StoneWisp nodded quickly. "Yes. I will."
Lin Yuan turned away.
That was the end of it.
Warbound adjusted positions immediately. Groups shifted. Pathways cleared. The flow of people changed without discussion.
Unbroken moved closer to the dangerous edges and stayed there, silent and unmoving.
Gachagami watched from a very safe distance, eyes wide.
"…I knew it," he whispered to NoodleKing. "Slopes are evil."
Ironroot knelt beside the damaged area and inspected it carefully.
"That section's done," he said quietly. "Mark it red."
No one argued.
The courtyard settled into a new rhythm—quieter, sharper, and far more careful.
When Ironroot finished, he approached Lin Yuan.
"I need a small group," he said. "Not everyone. Just enough to check routes and terrain toward the mountain."
Lin Yuan nodded once.
"Choose carefully," he said.
Ironroot selected a handful of people who had listened, moved carefully, and respected the markers. Unbroken joined them without comment. Warbound stayed behind, already reorganizing the rest.
Gachagami was not chosen.
He looked relieved.
As the group began moving out, Broken Cloud Mountain loomed ahead—jagged, silent, and waiting.
Lin Yuan watched them go.
The rules were no longer just words.
Broken Cloud Mountain would not tolerate mistakes—and neither would he.