White banners hung from every peak of the Azure Cloud Sect. The sky wept, a relentless grey drizzle that turned the pristine stone pathways slick and dark.
It was the funeral of a hero.
Ten thousand disciples stood in silence in the main plaza. In the center, a massive coffin made of Spirit Ironwood rested on a dais. It was empty—there was no body to bury, as Mo Tian had eaten it—but the official story was that Clan Head Zhao Wuji had detonated his own dantian to destroy the "Blood Devil" assassin.
Mo Tian stood in the back row of the Inner Disciples, head bowed. To an observer, he looked grief-stricken. In reality, he was struggling to suppress a laugh.
Look at them, Mo Tian thought, his Eye of Truth scanning the weeping elders and the solemn deacons. They mourn a butcher. If they knew he was melting children in his basement to extend his life, would they still cry? Or would they just be angry he didn't share the longevity pills?
The Sect Master, a projection of golden light hovering above the dais, spoke. His voice boomed like distant thunder.
"Today, we bury a pillar of our sect. Zhao Wuji was a man of commerce, of strength, and ultimately, of sacrifice. He gave his life to protect our future Saintess. His name shall be carved into the Tablet of Martyrs."
"Hail the Martyr!" the disciples chanted.
Mo Tian mouthed the words, his eyes dead.
Then, the Sect Master turned to the side.
"Disciple Yan Luo. Come forward."
A ripple went through the crowd. Yan Luo ascended the dais. She wore mourning robes of rough hemp, her face devoid of makeup. She looked fragile, like a porcelain doll that had been glued back together.
She stood before the empty coffin. She looked out at the sea of faces.
Mo Tian watched her closely. This was the test. If she cracked, if she told the truth, he would have to activate the Soul-Binding Chain and silence her (messy, but possible). But if she lied... she belonged to him.
Yan Luo's hands gripped the podium. Her knuckles were white.
"Clan Head Zhao..." her voice trembled, amplified by a sound array. "He... he was a man of conviction."
She paused. The silence stretched.
"When the assassin attacked," Yan Luo continued, her voice gaining a hollow strength, "Clan Head Zhao did not hesitate. He shielded me. He fought with the fury of a guardian. He told me... 'The future of the Sect is more important than my life.'"
A lie. A perfect, beautiful lie.
"He died so that I could live," Yan Luo finished, a tear sliding down her cheek. "I will carry his memory. I will ensure his sacrifice was not in vain."
The crowd erupted in emotional applause. Elders nodded approvingly. The Zhao Clan members wept openly, their suspicions washed away by the Saintess's testimony.
Mo Tian smiled behind his sleeve.
She did it. She swallowed the poison.
By validating Zhao Wuji, she had become an accomplice to his crimes. She had chosen the stability of the Sect over the truth. She had chosen order over justice.
And once you make that choice, there is no going back.
Later - The Bamboo Forest
The ceremony ended. The rain continued.
Yan Luo stood alone by the edge of the Spirit Lake, staring at the ripples.
Mo Tian approached silently, holding a paper umbrella. He stepped beside her, shielding her from the rain.
"You spoke well, Senior Sister," Mo Tian said softly.
Yan Luo didn't turn. "I lied. To ten thousand people. I praised a monster."
"You comforted a grieving family," Mo Tian corrected. "You prevented a civil war within the sect. If you had told the truth, the Zhao Clan would have revolted. The Sect's reputation would be destroyed. Innocents would die in the chaos."
"Is that how it works?" Yan Luo looked at him, her eyes haunted. "We bury the truth to save the lie?"
"We bury the rot to save the tree," Mo Tian said. He reached into his robe and pulled out a small, jade box. "Here."
"What is this?"
"I found it in the ruins," Mo Tian lied smoothly. "Before I... escaped. It was in Zhao Wuji's private safe. I think he stole it from the caravan."
Yan Luo opened the box. Inside sat a Seven-Petal Soul Lotus. It was a priceless herb, capable of healing soul damage and stabilizing a Foundation Establishment breakthrough.
"This..." Yan Luo gasped. "This is a heavenly treasure."
"It is useless to me," Mo Tian said. "My aptitude is too low. But you... you are close to breaking through to the Golden Core, aren't you? Take it. Consider it... compensation. For the burden you now carry."
Yan Luo looked at the lotus, then at Mo Tian. "Han Fei, you saved my life. You helped me kill him. And now you give me this?"
"I am just a gardener in the Ghost Hollow," Mo Tian smiled, a humble, self-deprecating smile. "I only want the Saintess to be strong. Because if you are strong... then the world is a little safer."
Yan Luo closed the box. She clutched it to her chest.
"Thank you," she whispered. "I won't forget this."
She turned to leave, but paused.
"Han Fei. That masked man... who was he?"
Mo Tian's heart didn't skip a beat. "I don't know. A mercenary? A rival of the Zhao Clan? Whoever he was... he is gone."
Yan Luo nodded slowly. "He was terrifying. But... I'm glad he was there."
She flew away, disappearing into the mist.
Mo Tian watched her go. The umbrella cast a shadow over his eyes.
"The Seven-Petal Soul Lotus," Mo Tian murmured. "Soaked in my Villain Qi for three days. When she refines it, my energy will weave into her Golden Core. She will never be able to harm me. She will instinctively trust me."
[System Notification] [Plan Successful: The Trojan Horse.] [Yan Luo Corruption Level: 15%] [Reward: 500 Villain Merit]
Mo Tian turned back toward the Ghost Hollow.
"The funeral is over. The stage is cleared. Now... it is time for my own ascension."
Ghost Hollow - The Hidden Cave
Mo Tian sealed the entrance to his cave with three layers of silencing arrays.
He sat in the center of the dark chamber. The air was thick with the energy of the [Heaven-Devouring Foundation].
He had devoured a Foundation Establishment cultivator. He had absorbed the resentment of the Blood Cauldrons. He was bloated with power, like a tick ready to burst.
"System. Initiate Foundation Establishment."
[WARNING] Host is attempting to form a Forbidden Foundation. Standard Outcome: Heavenly Tribulation (9 Bolts of Destruction). Villain Outcome: The Heavens will try to erase you. Survival Chance: 12%.
"Twelve percent," Mo Tian grinned, stripping off his shirt. The black runes on his skin were pulsing. "Better odds than I expected."
He took out the Blood-Clotting Pills, the remaining Spirit Stones, and a vial of Zhao Wuji's Essence Blood he had saved.
"In the cultivation world, they build a foundation of Dao. I will build a foundation of Sin."
He swallowed the blood.
"Heaven-Devouring Art: Second Layer - Fate Crushing Core."
BOOM.
The energy inside him detonated. It didn't expand outward; it imploded. His dantian collapsed into a singularity.
Pain—absolute and blinding—tore through him. His bones fractured and reformed instantly. His blood boiled, turning from red to a dark, viscous purple.
Above the Ghost Hollow, the sky turned black.
Not rain clouds. Tribulation Clouds.
Red lightning snaked through the darkness. The pressure was so immense that the mist on the mountain evaporated.
Disciples in the nearby peaks looked up in horror.
"What is that?" "Is an Elder breaking through?" "No... that lightning is red. That is a Punishment Tribulation!"
Inside the cave, Mo Tian roared. He didn't defend. He didn't use a shield.
"Come!" he screamed at the sky. "Strike me! Your hatred only makes me stronger!"
CRACK!
The first bolt of Red Lightning fell. It punched through the mountain, through the silencing arrays, and struck Mo Tian directly on the crown of his head.
It didn't burn him. It tried to dissolve his soul.
[System: Devouring Tribulation Lightning...] [Error. Energy too chaotic.] [Converting to pure destruction...]
Mo Tian's skin charred, peeling away to reveal muscles that looked like black iron. He laughed, blood spraying from his mouth.
"Is that all? I ate a man who killed children! I lied to a Saintess! I am a cancer on your world! Try harder!"
CRACK! CRACK!
Two more bolts.
Mo Tian stood up, grabbing the lightning with his bare hands. He pulled the energy into his chest, forcing it into the singularity of his dantian.
The liquid energy solidified.
A pedestal formed in his dantian. It wasn't gold or jade. It was black, etched with screaming faces and broken chains.
The Villain Foundation.
As the ninth and final bolt descended—a dragon of pure erasure—Mo Tian drew the Golden Crow Sword.
"Shatter."
He swung. A wave of black Devouring Qi met the red lightning.
The explosion leveled the top of the Ghost Hollow peak.
Silence.
Dust settled over the ruins.
In the center of the crater, a figure stood. He was naked, his body perfect, his skin pale as moonlight but hard as diamond. His hair floated around him, longer now.
His eyes opened.
They were no longer black. They were deep, swirling pools of purple and grey.
[Breakthrough Successful.] [Current Realm: Foundation Establishment - Stage 1 (Perfect Villain Foundation)] [New Skill Unlocked: Soul Puppet Thread] [New Skill Unlocked: Aura of the Tyrant]
Mo Tian looked at his hands. He felt the world differently. He could see the "lines" of fate connecting things. He could see the fragility of reality.
He waved his hand. The rubble cleared, revealing the entrance to his cave.
"I have arrived," Mo Tian whispered.
A paper crane flew in, scorched by the lightning but intact. It was from Ghost One.
"Master. We have found the location of the real Blood Devil Sect remnants. They are angry about the blame. They are sending an emissary to Silver City."
Mo Tian crushed the crane.
"Angry?" he chuckled. "Good. Anger makes people stupid."
He summoned a set of black robes from his ring.
"Let's go meet our new friends."