Sheung was gathering his things when Master Reinhardt suddenly lifted a hand.
"Wait. Sheung Longyao. Stay a moment."
Sheung froze. A few curious students tried to linger, but Reinhardt waved them out. When the last straggler slipped through the door, Reinhardt flicked his wrist. The wooden doors slammed shut, and glowing runes flared along the frame.
A shimmering seal crawled across the surface like blue lightning.
Sheung blinked. "Uh… am I in trouble?"
Reinhardt turned, his stern face softening. "No. Sit, boy."
Sheung perched warily on a stool.
The instructor sighed, leaning against one of the ornate cauldrons. "I never thought I'd see that cauldron again." He shook his head. "Your grandfather… he was one of the finest alchemists I ever met. Many of the formulas we use today in this hall came from him. A true genius."
Sheung shifted uncomfortably. "So everyone keeps telling me. But… what was Zev talking about? About the Vault of the Name getting rid of traitors in my sect?"
Reinhardt paused, expression tightening. "Ah. That." He hesitated, glancing at the sealed door as though worried it might be listening. Then he lowered his voice.
"There was… an incident, many years ago. Your grandfather was summoned to heal one of the Dean Elders of the Celestial Academy. The man had been wasting away for months. None of the usual healers could cure him. The house overseeing his care was the Vault of the Name."
Sheung frowned. "Then why bring my grandfather in?"
Reinhardt's eyes narrowed. "Because the dean was getting worse under their care. Desperate, the other elders reached out to your grandfather in secret. The Vault tried to block him, claimed his methods were dangerous. But your grandfather forced his way through. He examined the dean and realized he was being poisoned. Slow, deliberate poisoning."
"Poisoned?!" Sheung whispered.
Reinhardt nodded gravely. "Your grandfather concocted a special pill on the spot. It purged the poison and restored the dean's strength almost instantly. The entire academy was astonished. Overnight, the Taoist sect's reputation soared. Students and sects began flocking to buy your grandfather's pills. Their quality was unmatched."
Sheung leaned forward, eyes wide. "But why would that cause trouble?"
"Because," Reinhardt said darkly, "until then, the house who'd controlled all medicinal and cultivation pill sales was the Golden Chalice Hall. Old allies of the Vault of the Name. Suddenly, the Taoist sect was undercutting their trade—and threatening their influence. They didn't take kindly to it."
"So… they… what? Just accused my grandfather out of nowhere?"
"They accused him of forging pills that poisoned mages instead of curing them," Reinhardt said. "They riled up staff and students, claiming your sect plotted to murder people from the shadows. They demanded the Taoist sect surrender your grandfather's recipe book for… inspection. But we all knew they only wanted to steal his formulas."
Sheung's heart hammered. "Did my grandfather give it to them?"
Reinhardt gave a sharp bark of laughter. "No. Your sect refused outright. There were rumors the Vault and Golden Chalice wanted something else from your grandfather, something even more valuable than his recipes—but no one knows what. Or perhaps no one dares to say."
Sheung's mouth went dry. "Is… is this why my father disappeared?"
At this, Reinhardt fell silent, a shadow passing across his face.
"What happened to him?" Sheung pressed. "Tell me. Please."
Reinhardt looked away, visibly troubled. "I've already said too much. If you want the whole truth… ask your elders. It's not my place to tell the secrets of your bloodline."
Sheung's voice rose. "But I—"
"Enough!" Reinhardt snapped, though not unkindly. "The academy has ears everywhere, Sheung. Trust me, it's safer this way. You have your own path to walk. Focus on surviving your classes… and maybe look into your grandfather's old recipes. The Taoist sect might still have them hidden somewhere."
He broke the seal on the door with a wave. The runes fizzled out like dying fireflies.
"Go. Before I get both of us in trouble."
Sheung stumbled to his feet, head spinning. Reinhardt practically guided him to the threshold.
"But—" Sheung started.
"Go!" Reinhardt said, giving him a gentle shove. "And… Longyao. Your grandfather would have been proud."
The door slammed shut behind him, leaving Sheung standing in the hallway, his thoughts swirling like a cauldron at full boil.