Smoke curled above the treeline, thick with qi residue and the acrid stench of burnt talismans. Bandit cultivators scurried about the makeshift camp, unaware that their final hour had begun.
From the shadows, Li Qingyu observed the scene below with narrowed eyes. "Fifteen. Maybe twenty," he muttered. "Most at Body Tempering. One or two at early Qi Realm."
Ziyan snorted. "Should we flip a coin?"
"No need." Li Qingyu stepped forward. "I'm not in the mood to be subtle."
With a single leap, he launched into the camp like a thunderbolt.
> DING!
Quest: Clear the Bandit Cultivator's Camp – Initiated.
The first bandit barely had time to scream. A glowing palm slammed into his chest, sending him flying into a stack of spirit-wood crates. They exploded like matchsticks.
"Wha—intruders?!"
Another charged, sword raised. Li Qingyu caught the blade with two fingers, twisted, and shattered it with pure qi pressure. The man dropped, clutching his hand in agony.
From the central tent, a robed figure staggered out — a rogue cultivator with a crooked staff and eyes like a starved rat. "You dare attack my camp?! I am Elder Ma—"
"Shut up."
Li Qingyu flashed forward. His palm struck the man's chest.
BOOM!
The impact caved in his spiritual barrier and launched him through the main pavilion. Screams erupted as the remaining bandits tried to scatter.
Ziyan dropped from the treetops behind him, casually kicking a talisman into a barrel of spirit oil.
WHOOOMPF!
Flames erupted. Panic followed.
And at the center of the chaos, one cage stood untouched.
Inside it, a pale young man clung to the bars, blood on his lips, his robes slashed but his eyes fierce. Shen.
Li Qingyu landed before the cage, shattered the lock with a flick of his finger, and knelt beside him.
Shen gasped. "You—"
Before he could speak, a final bandit charged from behind — blade drawn, roaring.
CLANG!
The sword stopped mid-swing.
Li Qingyu held it with one hand — not the blade, the air around it — suppressing the qi completely. His eyes flashed coldly.
"You touched the wrong guy," he said.
He shoved the sword aside with casual disdain, then glanced at Shen.
"He's my disciple now."
With a single motion, he twisted the bandit's arm, snapped it, and kicked him into a burning cart.
The camp fell silent.
Li Qingyu turned back to Shen, helped him up, and stared him dead in the eye.
"You're my disciple now. That means your problems are mine."
He stood, voice rising so every survivor — if any were left — could hear.
"If anyone wants to hurt you, humiliate you, or lay a finger on you—" His qi flared like a sun. "—they'll have to go through me."
Shen trembled. "But... why?"
"Because you have potential," Li Qingyu said. "And because no one else saw it. That's enough."
> DING!
Inner Disciple Accepted: Shen
+150 Sect Reputation
Side Quest Completed: Clear the Bandit Cultivator's Camp
Reward: System Points +300 | Inner Disciple Trial Grounds – Expanded Access
Ziyan appeared beside him, covered in soot. "So... how many kids are you adopting exactly?"
Li Qingyu smirked. "As many as it takes."
He looked back at the rising flames.
The bandit camp — once a symbol of cruelty — now crumbled in fire and retribution.
And at the center of it stood the Eternal Radiance Divine Sect's Sect Master, one disciple steadied on each shoulder, and fire in his stride.
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