The days following Lin Feng's duel victory passed in uneasy calm. Though no one openly challenged him, the atmosphere in the Eastern Outer Disciple Compound had shifted. Some watched him with newfound respect, others with veiled hostility. He had stepped out of anonymity—and into the arena of attention.
For Lin Feng, attention was dangerous. Attention bred enemies.
He kept to himself, cultivating in silence, practicing the Flowing Sword Foundation Style gifted by Elder Su Jian. Each move became sharper, more fluid, more unpredictable when fused with the insights of the Heaven-Devouring Manual. He no longer followed forms; he bent them.
On the sixth morning after the duel, a notice was posted on the sect's jade wall:
> "Spirit Herb Garden requires three volunteers for night-duty patrol. Outer Disciples only. Rewards include three low-grade spirit stones and a contribution token."
It was a mundane task. But Lin Feng's instincts stirred.
The Spirit Herb Garden wasn't just any garden—it was the foundation of the sect's pill division, housing herbs that could enhance, poison, or awaken the dormant bloodlines of cultivators. Most were off-limits, heavily guarded and monitored by formation arrays. The garden was also near the Vein-Cleaving Cliff, a place saturated with ancient energy.
Lin Feng signed his name.
That night, cloaked in darkness and fog, he arrived at the Spirit Herb Garden's outer gate. Two other disciples stood with him—Xu Yuan, a quiet young man from a farming village, and Bai Hong, a tall, sharp-eyed youth who reeked of clan arrogance.
"You?" Bai Hong sneered upon seeing Lin Feng. "Didn't you embarrass a clan disciple the other day? Hoping for more luck?"
Lin Feng didn't reply. He only adjusted the sword on his back.
The garden gate opened with a low hum. A formation elder nodded at them and handed each a bronze token. "These allow access to the outer perimeter. Do not stray deeper. The inner garden is protected by killing formations and spiritual beasts. If you go there, you will die."
Lin Feng accepted the token and bowed.
The Spirit Herb Garden was a world unto itself. Mist clung to the ground. Trees glowed faintly in the moonlight. Fragrant herbs pulsed with life. Qi here was thick—almost tangible.
The three split up to patrol their assigned routes.
Lin Feng's path took him along a curved trail beside a pond of silverlotus. Their petals shimmered in moonlight, known to calm the mind and assist in breakthroughs. As he walked, he slowed his breathing, drawing in the subtle medicinal qi. Even walking here helped his cultivation.
Then he felt it.
A pulse of qi. Faint, erratic, unrestrained. Coming from deep within the mist-shrouded inner garden—past the boundaries set by the elder.
He stopped.
"Do not stray."
But his curiosity, and something deeper—a tug from the Heaven-Devouring Manual—pulled at him.
He stepped beyond the line.
---
The mist grew denser. The scent of herbs more intoxicating. Every breath was like swallowing liquid qi.
Then he saw her.
A young woman knelt in a clearing, surrounded by broken talismans and disturbed soil. Her robes were torn, stained with blood and dirt. Her skin was pale, lips purple, and her body trembled violently.
Even in that state, Lin Feng saw the sword strapped to her back—a seven-ringed spirit blade. Her cultivation was at Qi Condensation Stage 4, far beyond his current level. And yet—something had gone terribly wrong.
He stepped closer, cautiously.
She sensed him and whipped around, eyes sharp despite her condition. "Stay back!"
"You're poisoned," Lin Feng said.
"I don't need—" she began, but a violent tremor overtook her, and she coughed blood onto her sleeve.
Lin Feng knelt beside her. "What did you absorb?"
She hesitated. Then whispered, "Nightshade Heart Lotus. I thought I could refine it with the Moonfire Pill. But the pill… was fake."
Lin Feng's mind raced. The Nightshade Heart Lotus was a rare herb—dangerous unless precisely refined. If mishandled, it could reverse spiritual flow, rupturing meridians.
She would die within minutes.
"Do you trust me?" he asked.
"No," she gasped.
"Good," he said. "Then stay still."
He pressed his palm to her dantian. She flinched, then screamed as his Heaven-Devouring Manual activated—not to steal her qi, but to draw out the corruptive energy.
It was a delicate balance. One wrong move, and her cultivation would collapse.
Beads of sweat rolled down Lin Feng's brow as he manipulated her qi, guiding it along the outer meridians, isolating the venomous strands. His internal energy tore through him like wildfire—it wasn't meant to help others.
He coughed blood.
But he didn't stop.
When it was done, she collapsed into his arms, unconscious but alive.
---
He carried her back to the outer garden and left her beside the elder's hut with a note:
> "Qi deviation, neutralized. Inner garden breach remains unreported. - Outer Disciple Lin Feng."
He didn't wait for thanks.
He returned to his patrol, then his hut, where he meditated for hours to heal the backlash. By morning, his cultivation had stabilized—and progressed.
He was now Body Refinement Stage 5.
---
Three days later, during evening drills, a figure stood waiting for him outside the Eastern Compound.
It was her.
She wore clean robes now—light blue, embroidered with a golden phoenix. Her presence was calm, cold, and authoritative. Disciples parted before her without question.
Lin Feng bowed slightly.
"You saved me," she said.
"You would've done the same."
She didn't smile. "No, I wouldn't have."
Silence hung between them.
"I'm called Zhi Ruo," she said finally. "I'm a core disciple."
Lin Feng blinked. A core disciple? That meant she was personally guided by an elder and stood above both inner and outer ranks. Why had she been in the inner garden alone?
She continued, "I remember your technique. The way your qi moved—it wasn't orthodox."
"It's self-learned."
"Liar," she said, and turned to leave.
Before vanishing into the distance, she added, "I'll repay this debt. One day."
---
That night, Lin Feng sat beneath the stars.
The Azure Sky Sect was vast. He had barely scratched its surface. But already, fate had begun to turn. He had made enemies, earned attention, saved a life, and gained strength.
And far away, in the sealed depths beneath the sect, ancient eyes stirred.
The Heaven-Devouring Manual... had awakened something else.