The gates of the Ye Clan compound loomed ahead as I walked out of Bloodfang Forest under the cover of night. My body no longer ached. The claw wounds were gone, replaced by smooth skin. Qi circulated freely through my meridians — Qi Condensation third layer now, and still climbing. The God Rock rested safely inside the small storage pouch at my waist, its power humming like a second heartbeat.
Qinghe Town was quiet, but the clan's outer courtyard buzzed with lanterns and agitated voices. Word had already spread. I could hear panicked shouting even from the road.
"Ye Kun's arm was cut off!"
"The bait killed two outer disciples!"
"Monster… it must be a demon!"
A cold smile tugged at my lips. Good. Let them fear.
I stepped through the gates with my blood-stained clothes and the iron sword still in hand. The moment the outer disciples spotted me, the courtyard fell silent. Dozens of eyes widened in disbelief.
"That's… Ye Tianhen?"
"Impossible. He was supposed to die as bait."
I walked straight toward the central square where the elders usually gathered. My steps were steady, unhurried. The old fear that used to make my knees shake was gone — replaced by something sharper. Anticipation.
Before I reached the main hall, a group of inner disciples blocked my path. Leading them was Ye Kun's older brother, Ye Feng, at Qi Condensation eighth layer. His face twisted with rage when he saw the dried blood on my robes.
"You dare show your face here after what you did?!" he roared. "Hand over the storage pouch and kneel! Maybe the elders will only cripple your cultivation instead of executing you!"
I stopped ten paces away and tilted my head. "Execute me? For defending myself against wolves… and against dogs who thought they could whip me to death?"
Murmurs rippled through the crowd. Some outer disciples who had suffered under Ye Kun looked at me with strange new expressions — not quite hope, but close.
Ye Feng drew his sword, a mid-grade iron blade that gleamed under the lanterns. "Arrogant trash. I'll cut you down myself!"
He charged, using the clan's basic Wind Step technique. His sword slashed in a wide arc aimed at my neck.
I held the God Rock inside the pouch and watched. In a single glance, the God Rock fed me the flaws in his movement — the slight delay in his qi flow, the overextended shoulder.
Space rippled faintly around me as I shifted half a step. His blade cut only air.
Before he could recover, I copied the Heavenly Wind Sword's second form and struck back. My dull iron sword moved like lightning. A clean horizontal slash.
Blood sprayed in a bright arc.
Ye Feng's right arm flew off at the shoulder, spinning through the air before landing with a wet thud several meters away. He screamed and staggered back, clutching the stump as blood gushed between his fingers.
The courtyard erupted in chaos.
"Impossible!"
"He's only an outer trash — how can he move like that?!"
I didn't stop. Two more inner disciples rushed me from the sides. I blinked forward using the faint Space Dao I had comprehended from Zorath's battle. One heartbeat I was in front of them, the next I was behind.
Slash. Slash.
Two heads rolled across the stone tiles, eyes still wide in shock. Crimson fountains erupted from their necks, painting the ground red.
The crowd screamed and backed away. Even some elders who had rushed out froze on the steps of the main hall.
Father — Ye Zheng — pushed through the crowd, face pale. Mother clung to his arm, eyes filled with terror instead of the usual contempt.
"Tianhen… my son," Father stammered, forcing a smile. "There must be some misunderstanding. Come, let's talk inside. The clan will reward you for your… sudden talent."
I looked at him coldly. The man who had publicly disowned me. The man who had sentenced me to slave labor for spirit jade coins.
"Misunderstanding?" My voice was low, carrying across the silent courtyard. "You called me worthless. You let them whip me. You planned to sacrifice me for a herb. And now you want to 'talk'?"
I raised my sword, still dripping with fresh blood.
"Too late."
Ye Zheng's face twisted in panic. He turned to the elders. "Patriarch! This boy has gone mad! He must be possessed by a demon from the forest! Kill him!"
The Ye Clan Patriarch, an old man at Foundation Establishment early stage, stepped forward with a grave expression. "Ye Tianhen. Explain yourself. Why have you murdered your fellow disciples?"
I met his eyes without flinching. "They attacked first. I defended myself. As for the rest…" I glanced at my parents. "Some debts are paid in blood."
The patriarch's aura flared, pressuring the entire square. "Insolent! Even if they were wrong, you are still a trial disciple. Kneel and beg for mercy, or face clan law!"
I smiled — a small, ruthless smile.
In one fluid motion, I pulled the God Rock from the pouch and held it openly in my left hand. Its runes pulsed with faint light. I didn't hide it anymore.
The moment I gripped it, the patriarch's Foundation Establishment pressure felt like nothing. I copied his aura suppression technique on the spot and pushed back.
The old man's eyes widened as his own power slammed into him. He staggered.
I moved.
Space folded. I appeared right in front of him in a blink. My iron sword flashed upward in a brutal arc.
The blade bit deep into his shoulder, carving through bone and muscle. Blood exploded outward. The patriarch roared in pain and retreated, clutching the wound.
Gasps of horror filled the air.
A Foundation Establishment expert… injured by a mere outer disciple in one exchange.
I stood there, sword dripping, God Rock glowing softly in my other hand.
"From today," I said loudly, voice calm yet carrying to every corner of the compound, "the Ye Clan no longer decides my fate. I decide yours."
My parents dropped to their knees, faces ashen.
"Tianhen… please… we are your parents—"
"You stopped being my parents the day you sold me for coins," I cut them off coldly. "Consider this mercy: I won't kill you tonight. But if you ever stand in my way again…"
I didn't finish the sentence. The threat hung heavier than any words.
I turned and walked toward the outer disciple barracks. No one dared block my path. The crowd parted like water before a blade.
Behind me, the patriarch groaned in pain while healers rushed forward. Ye Feng and Ye Kun's screams still echoed faintly.
As I stepped into the darkness of the barracks, I clenched the God Rock tighter.
This was only the beginning.
Tomorrow, the real clan trials would begin. And I would show them what a "trash" could become when given the power to copy the heavens themselves.
Grandfather… wait for me.
I'm coming.