By dark-kingxu
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The forest lay silent.
Not a breeze. Not a sound. Only the quiet tension in Xu Ming's chest as he crouched behind the moss-covered boulder.
They were here. Five men in clan robes — not Yun Clan, but close. The symbol hanging from the leader's waist confirmed it.
> "Father's clan…"
He stared at it with burning eyes. His fists clenched so tight his knuckles cracked.
> "You hunted my mother. Now you're hunting me."
The men spoke quietly, their backs turned to him.
"The seal was disturbed. There's residual Qi. Check the perimeter."
"We're not alone."
Xu Ming didn't wait.
He moved.
His body shot from the shadows like a drawn arrow. The moment his foot touched the ground, the threads flared to life — glowing trails of motion, emotion, weakness. His eyes burned with violet light.
The first man didn't even scream.
Xu Ming struck low, then high. A twist. A snap. The man dropped without a sound, his neck broken clean.
> "One."
Another turned — too slow.
Xu Ming ducked under the blade and rammed the stolen dagger into the man's throat. Blood sprayed. His hand didn't tremble.
> "Two."
"Enemy!" one shouted. "He's—!"
Too late.
Xu Ming's eyes locked onto the leader. Threads danced around his shoulder — broken from an old injury. Perfect.
He charged.
The leader reacted quickly, drawing a shimmering blade.
But Xu Ming was faster. He feinted left, shifted right — the threads guided him.
> There! A hesitation. A crack in form. Now!
His fist slammed into the weak shoulder. Bone shattered. The man howled, dropping his sword.
Xu Ming followed up with a spinning kick that slammed the man into a tree trunk. He crumpled, unconscious.
The last two attacked at once.
Xu Ming barely dodged the first sword slash. Pain lanced across his ribs. He grunted, rolled, and kicked upward — catching one in the chin. The man staggered.
Xu Ming rose, blood dripping from his side.
> Pain is fine. I know pain.
He caught the second man's wrist mid-strike, twisted, and slammed his elbow into the man's nose. Cartilage crunched. The man fell with a gurgle.
> Four.
The final attacker roared and charged blindly.
Xu Ming let him come.
> Wrong move.
He sidestepped, grabbed the man's arm, and drove his elbow into the back of his head with a crack.
Silence.
Five bodies lay still.
Xu Ming stood amidst them, blood staining his torn robes, chest heaving.
> "I told you…"
> "Come find me."
---
Minutes later, he sat cross-legged beside the unconscious leader. He had already looted the others — mostly trash, except one black ring. A spatial ring. He probed it with his Qi, fumbling, bleeding…
Then — click.
It opened.
Inside: dried herbs, poison tools, and a charred scroll fragment bound in cracked leather. With faded words written on it
> "Path…ments for the Dam…"
Xu Ming flipped it open. The spiritual ink shimmered — readable only to awakened eyes.
He read.
And the world changed.
---
📜 [Codex Fragment – "The Four Sacred Paths"]
> "Power is not given. It is carved."
Qi Cultivation — The Path of Energy
Body Cultivation — The Path of Flesh
Eye Cultivation — The Path of Sight
Soul Cultivation — The Path of will
> "Master one? Strength.Master two? Glory.All four?""You become a Heaven-Threaded Tyrant."
---
Xu Ming's hand trembled as he shut the scroll.
> Heaven-Threaded… Tyrant.
The words burned into his soul.
"Qi. Body. Soul. Sight.""I'll take them all.""I wasn't born chosen…""So I'll choose myself."
He looked to the sky.
> "When Heaven tries to bind me—""I'll cut the thread."