Lin Feng is skilled with sword and bow. Xiao Xiao is only a step below her in cultivation.
Time no longer obeyed natural laws. Twenty-five days had passed in the blink of an eye, and now only five remained. Five days until the Grand Martial Tournament.
Five days until the sects of the continent would gather in the capital to clash.
Five days until Alex Kai Sect Master of the barely breathing Black Something Sect would either survive or die by the decree of the very system that had once promised him a future.
He stood at the edge of the cracked stone platform overlooking the valley below. Thin mist rolled over the treetops. Morning sun broke between the clouds like a blade across his skin. But he felt no warmth.
He clenched his fists. The system had granted him 400,000 sect points most from Lin Feng's relentless missions and yet every time he tried to upgrade a technique, to unlock something that could help him
System Error: Upgrade Failed.
Reason: Host lacks proper foundation.
System Update Required [Function Locked].
No matter what he tried, it refused him. It left him helpless. And worse it laughed at him with silence. He had no sword skill. No secret art. His only talent, it seemed, was survival wandering through wilderness, falling into strange encounters, and somehow gathering disciples who defied every rule of cultivation. Lin Feng. Xiao Xiao.
They followed him. Obeyed him when it pleased them. But more and more, they had begun to twist the very idea of a sect.
Lin Feng had no shame. She bathed in the open, spoke to him as if he were her equal, sometimes even her prey. Xiao Xiao, once shy, now watched his every movement with silent hunger. Even her pet slime mirrored her gaze. It never blinked. At first, he tried to set boundaries.
He disciplined them. Lectured them. Assigned punishments. Chores. Long silent meditations. It never worked.
The system wouldn't let him expel them either. He tried once and the warning still haunted him Warning: Removing disciples will result in immediate host termination.
Disciples are essential to sect growth. You are not. That was the moment he understood.
This wasn't just a tool the system was a cage.
A leash around his throat. Now, five days before the most important tournament of their lives, he was being forced to prepare them while they flirted, played, and pushed each other to new heights without him.
Lin Feng had surpassed Xiao Xiao in cultivation, but only by a margin. She wielded her blade and bow with fluid grace. A warrior raised in fire and mischief. Xiao Xiao? She trained in silence, yet her aura was thickening with power each day. Her slime, once just a curiosity, was now feared by the forest itself. Even magical beasts avoided their path. And Alex?
He was still the same. No cultivation. No techniques.
Just a man with cracked hands, sleepless eyes, and a name he never earned. He had begun to suspect something cruel. That the system suppressed anyone close to him. A passive debuff, pulling down those who tried to lift him up. He noticed it in Lin Feng her aura dimmed slightly each week she stayed near him. Xiao Xiao too. What kind of sect master weakens his own disciples just by existing?
He exhaled hard. Looked back at the half-broken gate of his sect.
I never asked for this," he muttered. If he had never wandered off the mountain path never taken in those girls would he be dead already? Or better off? And now there was the tournament.
A death sentence, wrapped in honor and flags. A battlefield of geniuses. He wasn't ready. But the system didn't care.
Time had a strange way of slipping past unnoticed. Twenty five days had already gone, and only five remained before the Grand Martial Tournament. The weight of it pressed against Alex Kai's chest with every step down the mountain path. The leaves overhead whispered with wind, and the scent of wet earth followed them as they descended. He walked in silence, leading the way. His robes were plain, a little worn at the sleeves, and his steps were measured. Behind him, Lin Feng walked with casual ease, a pack slung over her shoulder, while Xiao Xiao followed quietly, clutching her strange little slime creature against her chest. They had changed over the past weeks. All of them had. But none more than Alex himself.
When the town finally came into view a cluster of wood and stone nestled beside a lazy river he stopped briefly to take in the sight. A small place. Just big enough for a decent inn, a few shops, and a road that led toward the capital.
We'll rest here for the night, he said. Lin Feng nodded, brushing loose strands of hair from her cheek. Finally. Xiao Xiao said nothing but gave a small nod. The three of them entered the town quietly, drawing a few glances from the townspeople as they passed.
The inn was modest. A warm place with lanterns glowing above carved wooden beams and the faint scent of cooked vegetables wafting from the kitchen. Alex approached the counter and waited as the innkeeper looked up. Three travelers? the man asked with a practiced smile. "We've got two single rooms and one larger room available. Two single rooms, Alex replied. "I'll take one. The girls can share the other.
As soon as he turned, Lin Feng narrowed her eyes. I'm not sleeping in the same room as her, she said. Alex frowned. It's one night.
She talks in her sleep, Lin Feng said. "And snores.
You take your clothes off in your sleep, Xiao Xiao added calmly. Several patrons nearby turned their heads. Alex sighed deeply. You're disciples, he muttered. "You can share a room.
No, Lin Feng said, folding her arms. "I want to stay with you. Xiao Xiao nodded. Me too.
Alex looked between them, stunned. "You can't be serious. Lin Feng stepped closer. "Master, it's not about being serious. It's about safety. That room's walls are thin. What if someone attacks? And I don't like sleeping without your aura nearby, Xiao Xiao added softly. It calms me.
The innkeeper, now openly amused, leaned on the counter. Young master, he said, half-whispering, "maybe one big room would suit you better. They seem loyal. Alex looked at the two girls again, their eyes stubborn and unwavering. He sighed. One big room, he told the innkeeper. The man handed him a key with a grin. Third floor, last door on the left. Sleep well.
Alex said nothing. The three of them climbed the stairs together, but as he walked, he couldn't help but feel the eyes of others following him. Whispered voices echoed behind them strangers wondering what kind of sect they were. And Alex himself wasn't sure of the answer anymore. The next morning, they made their way to the tournament registration hall. It was far grander than the town marble walls, high columns, and a wide banner declaring the names of sects who had already arrived. Dozens of disciples moved about, some laughing, others standing with stiff discipline, most wearing brilliant robes. Alex stood at the counter as a clerk with ink-stained sleeves flipped through a list. Sect name? the man asked, not bothering to look up.
Alex hesitated. For a moment, a name drifted to the surface of his thoughts the original name. The one his sect once bore before everything fell apart. It was a name of pride, now buried beneath the dust of failure. Before he could speak, Lin Feng stepped forward, dipped the brush in ink, and scrawled the name down herself.
Black Something Sect.
Then she wrote beneath it, without waiting
Lin Feng – Disciple
Xiao Xiao – Disciple
Alex Kai – Sect Master
The clerk looked up at last, blinking. Black Something? he said slowly. Lin Feng smiled. "That's right. Xiao Xiao stood behind her, quiet but firm. It fits. Alex looked at the ink drying on the page. He didn't correct it. He didn't say a word. Maybe it really did fit.