A full day passed, and Mo Han did not leave his stone house even once. His body moved like a phantom across the wide training courtyard, every step lighter than falling petals. With each movent, three identical figures burst out in different directions—one leaping to the left, another lunging forward, and the third retreating backward. All three looked so real that even the cursed sword in their hands glead with deadly intent.
"Haa..." Mo Han exhaled softly, sweat dripping from his brow. He stopped abruptly, and the three figures flickered into nothingness like smoke dispersing in the wind. The silence of the courtyard returned, broken only by his steady breathing.
He smiled faintly. Shadowless Mirage Steps—third stage. Three mirages, three deceptions. With this, even elder-rank fighters will hesitate.
Just then, the sound of hurried footsteps echoed outside. A servant of the Eternal Night Mansion, clad in plain brown robes, arrived panting, a rolled parchnt clutched in his hand. He bowed stiffly, almost nervous as he extended the letter forward.
"Disciple Mo Han... this is the final warning from the Healing Division."
Mo Han calmly took the parchnt, unrolled it, and read. As expected, the words were harsh—his absence from Elder Park’s classes was listed as misconduct, with direct threats of punishnt if he didn’t return imdiately.
Jia Kai and Chi Kai, who had been watching his training from the side, exchanged worried glances. Chi Kai bit her lip. "She won’t let you go, Mo Han. Elder Park is furious. Why not just finish the test she gave? Read her manuals and prove yourself?"
Mo Han’s gaze was calm as he folded the parchnt back. "Her test was not for knowledge—it was to make fail and be cast out. No matter how many manuals I read, she won’t acknowledge . I won’t waste ti dancing in soone else’s trap."
Fatty Lambu, sitting nearby with a plate of honey bread, nervously stuffed his mouth. "So... what now? Another warning? Will they really... uh... punish you?"
Instead of answering, Mo Han simply turned, his cursed sword sliding back into its sheath with a crisp sound. "I will decide my own path."
He left the stone house without another word.
Inside the Academy Hall, the sa air of bureaucratic calm hung heavy. Mo Han approached the counter, where disciples recorded duties and registrations. Behind a stack of scrolls sat a middle-aged woman, one of the clerks, who raised her head with a frown.
"You again? Mo Han of the Healing Division?" she asked.
Mo Han nodded, placing the parchnt warning letter on the table. "I ca to cancel my ties with the Healing Division."
The woman blinked in shock. "Cancel? Do you know what you’re saying? Once you leave, you cannot rejoin the sa division again."
"I am certain."
With so hesitation, she guided him to the left wing where Elder Tin’s office was. The academic elder Tin, a gray-robed man with sharp eyes, was writing on a long parchnt. He raised his gaze as Mo Han entered.
"You’ve co again? Is this about your division assignnts?"
Mo Han bowed politely. "Yes. I want to cancel my registration in Healing Division and choose another."
Elder Tin placed his brush down slowly, his brows knitting. "Cancel? Not many disciples dare to take such a step. Do you know the consequences of offending a division elder?"
"I already bear her hostility," Mo Han said calmly. "I would rather walk my own road than bow to soone’s grudges."
For a long mont, Elder Tin studied him silently. Then he nodded once. "Very well. State your choice."
Mo Han took a breath. "Alchemy Division."
The old man’s eyes widened slightly. "Alchemy?"
"Yes. I want to refine, brew, and learn the art of transforming essence into pills."
Elder Tin leaned back in his chair, stroking his beard thoughtfully. "The Alchemy Division is under Elder Bogi... the vice-patriarch of the Eternal Night Mansion himself. He is far stricter than Park, though not as petty. Do you realize what you are stepping into?"
Mo Han nodded. "I want guidance, not politics."
Elder Tin gave a dry chuckle. "You’re bold. Very bold." He dipped his brush into ink and swiftly wrote the changes onto a fresh parchnt. He stamped it with his personal seal and handed it over. "Take this to the Alchemy Division tomorrow morning. You are now one of Elder Bogi’s disciples."
Mo Han bowed respectfully. "Thank you, elder."
anwhile...
Inside her private chamber in the Healing Division, Elder Park smashed a porcelain teacup against the wall.
The shattered shards tinkled onto the floor, but her fury was far from spent. Her chest rose and fell as her eyes burned with anger.
"What? He canceled his registration with ?"
A kneeling disciple confird in a trembling voice, "Yes, Elder... Mo Han officially transferred to the Alchemy Division today. The administration approved it."
Park’s nails dug into her palm until blood welled out. "That arrogant brat... that pink blossom rat! He dared to walk out of my hands, thinking he escaped ?" Her laughter was sharp and cold. "Good. Let him enjoy this victory for a mont."
Her eyes narrowed, and her voice turned venomous. "But no matter where he hides—in healing, alchemy, or even forging—this sect is still mine. I will drag him down, humiliate him, and cast him out like the trash he is."
Her disciples exchanged uneasy looks, none daring to speak. Elder Park had already been furious at Mo Han’s rise as a "pleasure healer," and now his transfer made her look powerless in front of the sect.
"Swear it!" she hissed to herself, pacing back and forth. "I, Park Linghua, will not rest until Mo Han kneels before , stripped of his arrogance!"
She struck the table with such force that the wood cracked.
Her disciple Jumi, who stood quietly in the corner, bit her lip. She still rembered her own strange encounter with Mo Han—the sudden surge in her cultivation after their clash. But she dared not speak a word in her master’s rage.
Instead, she lowered her head and whispered softly, "Yes, Master."
Elder Park’s wrath burned like wildfire. The battle lines were being drawn—Mo Han may have escaped her direct hand, but the shadows of her vengeance were already spreading.
Back in the stone house, Mo Han returned with the parchnt in hand. Jia Kai and Chi Kai rushed to him with questioning looks.
"You really gave up the Healing Division?" Jia Kai asked.
Mo Han smiled faintly. "Not gave up. Changed paths." He showed them the parchnt, where the seal of the Alchemy Division glead. "From tomorrow, I will be an alchemy disciple under Elder Bogi."
Chi Kai’s eyes widened. "The vice-patriarch himself! Mo Han... this could be even more dangerous."
Mo Han shrugged lightly. "Dangerous or not, at least I won’t waste ti under soone who hates without reason."
Fatty Lambu gulped. "Alchemy? Uh... does that an you’ll be... cooking pills all day instead of swinging your sword?"
Mo Han smirked at him. "Cooking pills is better than cooking excuses, Fatty. If I master alchemy, we’ll never lack resources again."
The sisters laughed softly, though their eyes still showed concern.
Reviews
All reviews (0)