The Ye Clan estate stood defiant beneath a midnight sky ablaze with crimson and black, the air thick with a deep, resonant roar that drowned out the fading cycles of Hui Yuan's retreat. The courtyard lay tense, the fire crackling faintly as Ye Hua clutched a patched cloak, her gray eyes wide with dread at the horizon where a crimson-robed figure emerged, his qi a blazing inferno of infinite power casting flames that licked the earth in wild fury. Ye Qing leaned on his spear at the gate, his grizzled face carved with exhaustion, his voice a ragged growl as he urged Ye Jun and Ye Mei to stay behind the barricade, their small figures trembling in the searing glow. Ye Chen sat by the western wall, his ward-stone gripped tight, his twisted leg braced as the ground pulsed faintly beneath the weight of primal heat. Ye Ling paced the gatehouse, her dagger a restless gleam, her braid swaying like a whip, her breath sharp with defiance and heat.