Sa Min had heard the rumors about Wing Lian stumbling around the city at night, always drunk. It didn’t sit right with him. After living for 600 years, his instincts told him something was off about it.
I shouldn't follow him. I haven't opened my essence core yet, and I don't have any powercubes to defend myself, Sa Min thought, frowning. I should wait until I purchase some powercubes.
The city wasn’t safe this late, and following someone who was likely involved in kidnapping people with colored eyes wasn't a good idea—especially since he had colored eyes himself.
It only took Sa Min a second to make up his mind. He hastily threw on his gray robe, sticky from sweat, and picked up his dagger, sliding it behind his belt the way men from the Xi Empire did.
There wouldn’t be any danger so long as he stuck to the safer roads while carefully following Wing Lian. And if, by chance, something went wrong and the Wing family got to him, he still had that thing as safeguard.
No time for underpant or boots, he yanked the door open and jumped down the stairs.
The inn was silent, completely empty.
Behind the front desk, the innkeeper stirred from sleep as Sa Min approached.
"Got an umbrella?" Sa Min asked, eyes swollen with exhaustion. "I’ll return it later."
The thick-mustached man blinked, then grabbed a gray umbrella from under the counter and handed it over.
Sa Min nodded and walked out of the inn. The pouring rain pelted him immediately, and he paused there for a moment, rubbing the water over his eyes and face to completely awaken himself.
He was still mentally drained. One hour of sleep wasn’t nearly enough to fully recover his Ba. He’d need five hours at least.
I'll sleep when I return, Sa Min thought as he opened the umbrella and set off into the rain.
The street was dimly lit by the flickering oil lamps on the poles. It was 3 in the morning, , and the heavy rain drove everyone indoors, leaving the area eerily quiet.
In the distance, Wing Lian disappeared as he turned into an alley.
Sa Min quickened his pace, following his footsteps. Once he reached the edge of the Wing residence fence, where the alley Wing Lian had entered, Sa Min paused.
He needed to be careful. Wing Lian mustn’t notice him, nor could he afford to look suspicious to anyone who might pass by.
Once he was sure Wing Lian was at a discreet distance, he crept into the alley, keeping his umbrella low and his eyes vigilant, ready to catch anything suspicious Wing Lian might do.
Ahead of him, Wing Lian was simply walking with his penguin-like stride, and Sa Min couldn't spot anything out of the ordinary.
The alley was dark as it had no lamps, making it challenging to keep a close watch on him.
Nevertheless, Sa Min continued to cautiously follow him through the darkened alleys.
After a while, the rain began to ease, and Sa Min found himself emerging onto Red Spring, one of the four main streets leading to the Flourishing Zone.
A few people were walking by here, and the well-lit street finally allowed Sa Min to catch onto something he hadn’t noticed before.
He never drinks from that black bottle he’s carrying, Sa Min thought, his blue eyes fixed on Wing Lian ahead. Whenever Wing Lian wanted to drink, he pulled out a tiny bottle from his robe. Is it empty or...?
Sa Min frowned. What’s in that bottle? Why is he swaying it like that? Don’t tell me…
Right when a sudden thought struck him, a manly voice called out from behind, “Aye, you there.”
Sa Min turned around and stopped. Oh, fuck.
Two male officers of the Investigation and Justice Bureau approached him, their umbrellas matching the deep blue color of their uniforms. “What are you doing this time, young man?” the younger one asked.
“Heading to my clan, officer,” Sa Min said calmly. “I’m a member of the Sa Clan.”
The middle-aged officer raised an eyebrow. “This street leads to the Cursed Area, not the Sa Clan. Unless you want to take the long way…wait.” He paused, his gaze narrowing as he noticed the striking blue of Sa Min’s eyes. “Are you—”
“Sa Min. Here’s my…” Sa Min fished out his ID and the academy seal, presenting them to the officers. As the only person with blue eyes in the city, he was easily recognizable.
He waited with an unconcerned expression, but inside, his thoughts were racing. And he edged his hand closer to the dagger tucked under his belt.
I can’t let them search me. If they see the parchment I’ve written, I’ll be in huge trouble. They might be in the Beyond Mortal stage, but I think I could slice their necks before they could craft any Yantra. But then I’d have to run from—
“Be careful, Mr. Sa Min. This isn’t the time for a walk,” the middle-aged officer said, handing back his ID and the seal. “You already know what happens to people like you.”
Sa Min faked a smile of thanks as he took his belongings. “Sorry, officers. I’ll be more careful in the future.”
“Alright, you can go,” the officer said, moving away with his partner. “And remember to stick to the main roads. This is the time of day when those thieves come out to do their work.”
Sa Min let out a sigh of relief as he turned to continue his pursuit. That had been a close call. The situation could’ve spiraled out of control fast. If they had searched him and found the parchment, he’d have been interrogated, and there was a good chance they’d search his Ba as well.
If that happened, and his true identity was revealed, he didn’t even want to think about what would follow.
That’s why he’d been willing to risk a fight rather than get arrested. And honestly, he wasn’t sure he’d have survived if it came to that. Besides their access to their essence cores, the officers probably had powercubes on hand too.
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The only advantage he had would’ve been the element of surprise. If he hadn’t killed them in those first moments, he wouldn’t have stood a chance.
Sa Min quickly refocused on Wing Lian. After all this time and trouble he'd invested, the last thing he wanted now was to lose sight of him.
Qing Lian had moved farther down Red Spring Street, and Sa Min picked up his pace, determined to confirm the suspicion that had struck him earlier.
The Flourishing Zone around the city’s mountain was split into four territories: the Lin Clan, Sa Clan, Duo Clan, and the infamous Cursed Area.
The Cursed Area had a reputation as the most dangerous part of the city. It was where the poor, criminals, and gangs thrived—where fugitives went into hiding. Brothels, gambling dens, black markets, and illegal fighting rings flourished there.
Simply put, anything illegal could be found in the Cursed Area.
That didn’t mean the entire place was lawless, though. There were safer neighborhoods, and plenty of modest families lived there without issue. A branch of the Investigation and Justice Bureau was even stationed there, keeping some semblance of order.
It hadn’t always been like this. In fact, the name "Cursed Area" had nothing to do with the crime and chaos that now defined it.
Just 60 years ago, there were four clans in the city—the clans that had established Tetra Blessing City 900 years ago. What was now called the Cursed Area had once been the territory of the Hui Clan, a proud and respected clan.
That all changed on what was now infamously remembered as the Cursed Day. On that day, something unthinkable had happened: every last member of the Hui Clan transformed into demonic donkeys with bloody fangs—a type of demonic beast never seen before in the city.
The entire clan vanished in a single day, leaving only terror and confusion.
From that moment on, their territory became the Cursed Area, avoided not only for its criminal activities but also for the mysterious event that had unfolded there.
The rain gradually decreased, and the sun began to brighten.
Qing Lian veered into a murky alley, and shortly after, Sa Min followed him in.
Sa Min’s gaze was no longer on the distant figure of Wing Lian; instead, it was focused on the ground where Wing Lian had walked.
The sunlight at this hour wasn’t doing much to light up the ground, so Sa Min leaned down, scouring through the gloom for something to confirm his suspicion.
It didn't take long for a smile to creep onto Sa Min’s face. He bent down, touched the red dirt on the ground with his finger, and then tasted it. It was definitely blood. His smile turned into a grin as he spat it out.
That just answered everything.
That bottle must be a Ka of some preservation-type Yantra, Sa Min thought as he moved forward, looking for more blood to back up his theory. And there it was again—drops of blood. He pressed on and found it yet again.
This is how they’re searching for the Key, he realized and stopped, watching Wing Lian slip into another alley. He had no plans to follow him any longer; he’d come out to figure out two things, and he’d done just that.
It makes sense, Sa Min mused as he turned around and began to stroll back to the inn. Blood clots quickly, and they can’t just drag people around and behead them. That’s too risky and wasteful. So, they kill them somewhere else and use a Yantra that can preserve blood for some time. While searching for the Key, they just spray drops of blood around. If the Key is nearby, the area will shake, and that’s all they need.
The Wing family was indeed responsible — or at least one of the ones responsible — for the kidnapping of the colored-eyed people. And they were certainly searching for a Key.
Sa Min took a deep breath. He needed to think of how he would go from here. But first…
He glanced down. His feet caked in dirt. His body? He didn’t even need to sniff it to know he needed to use a Body Cleansing Powercube as soon as he reached the inn. After that, sleep. His eyes were already struggling to stay open.
Sa Min took only three steps before a strange sensation crawled up his neck. He stopped and reached back, finding a needle stuck there.
Not good.
Frowning, he tried to turn around to see who had attacked him, but… his body refused to listen. His knees buckled, and he collapsed, quickly losing control of his limbs.
Fuck.
That was the last thing Sa Min thought before everything went black.
From a dark corner, a man dressed like a homeless beggar emerged, quickly moving toward the fallen Sa Min. His eyes darted around, checking the street for any witnesses. Satisfied no one was there, he grabbed Sa Min by his dirty legs and dragged him back to the corner.
Waiting for his young master to arrive, whom he had already notified through a communication-Yantra, the man withdrew a Ka from his sea core and put it on the ground.
The Ka looked like a small blue plastic sack, just the size of his hand.
The man then began to move his fingers skillfully, forming a Yantra seal as he crafted the One-Man Sack Yantra within his essence core.
Gradually, the little sack resting on the ground expanded until it matched the height of a man.
With this rank 1 transportation-type Yantra, a cultivator could place a single man inside the Blue Light Sack Ka, zip it up, and wait for it to shrink back to its original size. However, the man had to be unconscious, and the effect would last only one hour. If the man awoke or if the time expired and the man was still there, the Ka would be destroyed.
At that moment, Wing Lian returned to the alley, rushing toward the hidden corner.
The man clenched his fists tightly. “As I told you, young master, he’s been following you ever since you left the residence,” he said, his voice betraying his concern. “And… I fear he knows.”
A sudden wave of dread gripped Wing Lian’s chest, and his face twisted with fear. Someone was aware! How could this happen? This was bad—extremely bad. If they got exposed, what little remained of the family would face annihilation. They needed to inform his father immediately and strategize their next move.
“I already informed the Patriarch,” the guard added.
Terrifying, Wing Lian felt a strong urge to take a quick swig from his mini bottle. “Do you have any idea who it might be?” he asked, glaring down at the stinky young man lying face down.
Why did this cheap robe look so familiar?
“I didn’t recognize him. I don’t think he’d be this stupid, but let me check if he has his ID on him.” The guard leaned closer, nudging the man aside.
And Wing Lian’s eyes went wide in disbelief. “What in the…it’s Sa Min,” he stammered, shock clear in his voice.
“Sa Min.” The guard frowned, the name ringing a bell. “I’ve heard that name before, but…” His eyes narrowed at the rolled parchment peeking from Sa Min’s robe. “What’s this?”
Qing Lian didn’t look at the guard. His mind raced with confusion. Sa Min was no stranger; they weren't close, but they had crossed paths many times in the outer cycle. Just yesterday, they had been in class together. Wait… was that why Sa Min had been staring at him? Could he have known all along? But how could someone without an essence core possibly know about such things?
Feeling perplexed, Wing Lian turned to the guard. “Why do you think he knows about… what’s wrong?”
The guard sat frozen, clutching the parchment in trembling hands, his mouth hanging open in shock.
“What is it?” Wing Lian asked again.
But the guard didn’t seem to hear him.
Impatience clawed at Wing Lian. He scratched his head, frustrated, before yanking the parchment from the guard’s rigid fingers. “What’s wrong with y—?”
The words froze on his tongue.
His eyes moved over the parchment, and with each word, disbelief gripped him tighter.
[I know that you, the Win family, are the ones kidnapping people with colored eyes. I know you’re taking their blood to search for the Key. I have proof. Many other parchments like this are in safe places and with anonymous people. If anything happens to me, the world will know the truth]