(BL) The Evil Sect Brother Quits

The return to the Frost Moon Sect was quiet at first. Spring had deepened while they were away, and the mountain paths were dappled in light, new blossoms unfurling like pale ribbons from stone crevices. Birds called lazily overhead. The air was warm.

Shen Jiu thought the mission had gone smoothly.

They had exorcised the parasite, protected the villagers, and left no sign of spiritual corruption behind. No one had been injured. And the child had lived.

For once, something felt… complete.

Yet the moment their boots crossed the stone threshold back into the sect's inner gates, the weight of eyes fell upon them.

A few inner disciples bowed as they passed, but others simply stared. Lingering. Murmuring. Shen Jiu caught snippets of hushed voices behind fluttering sleeves.

"…They say he didn't even draw his sword—just one strike…"

"…Red lightning, someone swears…"

"…demonic?"

He didn't break stride. Neither did Luo Wen, who kept a pace and a half behind him, face blank, head lowered just enough to seem humble. But Shen Jiu felt it—the way the air clung to them, like vines tightening invisibly.

Wen Li walked a little further back, her gaze unreadable.

---

Elder Xuan summoned him before sunset.

It was a quiet summons, no formal reprimand. But when Shen Jiu stepped into the elder's private hall, he saw the stiffness in the man's shoulders, the clipped lines of his mouth.

"Close the door," Elder Xuan said.

Shen Jiu obeyed.

The elder didn't look up from the scroll he was reviewing. "I received the mission report. The Shrinekeeper was impressed. They want to name a village road after your team."

Shen Jiu inclined his head. "I'll pass the message to Wen Li and Luo Wen."

"Mm." A pause. "There was a curious detail, though. The report mentioned the demon was destroyed in a single blow. Without even touching the ground."

Shen Jiu remained silent.

Elder Xuan glanced at him, sharp-eyed. "There are... techniques capable of that. But they aren't taught here."

"It was a rare parasite," Shen Jiu said. "Perhaps it was already weakened by the shrine's rot."

The elder didn't look convinced. "I've had two outer disciples whisper that your junior's aura... shimmered red."

"Baseless rumors."

"You're coddling him."

Shen Jiu stiffened.

"He's quiet," the elder went on. "Obedient, yes. But that kind of power—it doesn't appear from nowhere. He's jumped three stages in half a year. That's not normal."

Shen Jiu's hands folded behind his back. "He trains harder than anyone I've taught."

"Hard work doesn't summon unnatural qi."

A silence stretched between them.

Then Elder Xuan sighed. "I'm not accusing him. I'm advising you. You want to protect him. I understand. But this is the cultivation world. And kindness—kindness without vigilance—is a sword turned inward."

Shen Jiu didn't reply.

He left the hall with a tight jaw and colder eyes.

---

Back in his quarters, he found Luo Wen already waiting.

The boy knelt on the floor by the incense table, shoulders relaxed, sleeves neat, eyes lifted the moment Shen Jiu stepped in.

"Welcome back, Shixiong," he said gently.

Shen Jiu removed his outer robe and hung it neatly on the stand. "I thought you'd be in your room."

"I wanted to light incense. To thank the spirits for our safe return."

There were three sticks burning, their smoke rising straight and even. No disturbance. That, at least, was a good sign.

Shen Jiu sat. He poured himself tea, then paused. "Did you hear what people were saying in the courtyard?"

Luo Wen tilted his head, smile faint. "Which part? That I saved your life? That I walked through fire and ash to shield your honor? Or the part where I ripped a demon's soul apart with my bare hands?"

There was laughter in his voice—but it didn't reach his eyes.

Shen Jiu didn't laugh.

"You know you've drawn attention."

"I always draw attention," Luo Wen said lightly. "I stand too close. I answer too quickly. I speak too softly. There's always a reason to whisper."

"You're not helping your case."

"But I helped you."

That silenced him.

Luo Wen leaned forward, voice softening. "They don't matter. Their opinions, their fears—they're as fleeting as mist. I don't need their praise. I only care what you think."

Shen Jiu looked at him.

There was something in Luo Wen's expression—devotion so deep it bordered on dangerous. And yet, he looked so calm. So sincere.

"I think," Shen Jiu said finally, "you've done well."

Luo Wen smiled, and this time it reached his eyes.

But under his sleeve, his thumb traced the new charm etched just beneath his wrist. A tether rune. One step closer. One thread deeper.

---

Elsewhere, Wen Li worked alone in the dim confines of the northern tower's meditation room.

Her brush moved slowly, each stroke of ink precise. She had copied this charm ten times now, and only once had the lines held their shape. It required the hair of the subject and a sliver of spirit ash—both of which she had gathered in secret after the mission.

Luo Wen's discarded teacup. The ash of the demon he had slain.

She wasn't sure why she was doing this.

She didn't hate Luo Wen. She wasn't even afraid of him. But something about him didn't align. Like a talisman drawn with the wrong ink—visually correct, spiritually off.

So she pressed her lips together and wrote the detection rune again.

If it flared, even once… she'd know.

And if it didn't—she'd burn it and say nothing.

---

Later that night, Shen Jiu left his quarters, robe loose, seeking air.

The moon was full, silver dust across the dark stones of the sect's quiet courtyard. He let his feet carry him to the old training grounds—where the outer disciples used to spar in the rain.

He paused there, breathing in the silence.

"You always come here when you're troubled," said a voice behind him.

He didn't flinch.

Luo Wen stood under the lantern light at the far edge, hands tucked into his sleeves.

"Shouldn't you be asleep?" Shen Jiu asked.

"I couldn't. I felt you leave."

Shen Jiu raised a brow. "You're that attuned to me now?"

"I've always been," Luo Wen replied. "From the start."

He stepped forward. Slowly. "They don't understand you, Shixiong. They see the robes. The name. But they don't know the guilt you carry. The weight you try to wash away."

"Don't speak as if you do."

"But I do."

Luo Wen's voice was soft. "You're kind to me—not because I deserve it, but because you think it'll balance the scales. That maybe, if you're gentle enough, the past won't claw you from beneath your feet."

Shen Jiu's eyes darkened. "Enough."

But Luo Wen didn't stop.

"You want to change. And I love that about you. But don't forget—your kindness leaves footprints. Everywhere. It leaves cracks. Openings. For people like me."

That silenced him.

They stood in silence for a long moment.

Then Shen Jiu sighed. "Do you regret it?"

"What?"

"Following me."

Luo Wen's eyes softened. "Never. I'd follow you even if you led me into ruin."

Shen Jiu's laugh was hollow. "Don't say that. It's a terrible thing to follow someone blindly."

"But I see you clearly," Luo Wen whispered.

He took one step forward. Close enough that the pendant between them shimmered faintly. It pulsed once—his qi touching it like a whisper in the dark.

Shen Jiu didn't notice.

But he felt... warm.

And for the first time in days, he didn't feel alone.

---