Void Saint: Eternal Ascendancy

The scarlet light of a dying dusk bathed the mountain ridges in ghostly warmth. The Qingling team, still recovering from the battle, moved cautiously through the ravaged valley. By twilight, they found shelter a forgotten stone cave, carved into the bones of a long-collapsed spirit peak. Its entrance was weather-worn, ancient Dao runes faded but faintly glowing.

Inside, Shui Lin laid down a defensive formation. Flame talismans ignited at the cave's edge, keeping lurking spirits at bay.

They had barely begun to rest when the tension erupted.

"Who is she?" Feng Ruo asked bluntly, eyes narrowed at Su Feilí.

"She took down half the southern ridge's demons alone," Huo Shan muttered. "That's not normal."

"And why didn't you tell us beforehand?" Shui Lin asked, gaze fixed on Xuanye, though a secret laugh danced in his eyes he knew her identity already. In a funny tone, he added, "She's probably here to assassinate us all! Let's just kill her now and be done with it!"

Su Feilí stood calmly, letting the questions rain without flinching until Shui Lin's jest. She stepped forward, her voice steady and bold: "Come kill me if you have the guts!"

Xuanye, seated near the fire, gave a soft smile and rose. "Allow me to introduce her properly. This is Su Feilí my sword partner, my guardian, and an old friend. Assigned by my father."

Feng Ruo blinked. "Guardian?"

Su Feilí bowed politely. "I am here to protect the Young Master under the Sect Master's direct command. It is my duty and my will."

A moment of stunned silence. Yuè Chányīn did not react.

Then, laughter not from Xuanye, but the others.

"That explains the aura," Huo Shan muttered.

"She's got the face of a fairy and the fists of a war beast," Feng Ruo grinned.

The mood lightened until Su Feilí suddenly darted to Xuanye's side.

"There's blood here!" she exclaimed, grabbing his wrist. "Where is it from? Did you sprain anything? Fracture your elbow again?"

Xuanye flushed. "It's… just a scrape."

She examined him thoroughly, poking joints, prodding his shoulders like a grandmother inspecting a grandchild. Shui Lin nearly choked with laughter. "She's thorough, I'll give her that."

Feng Ruo wiped a tear. "You sure this isn't your fiancée?"

Xuanye groaned. "She's always been like this."

Sensing the team's exhaustion from the battle, Su Feilí reached into her robe and produced a small jade vial. "Your wounds and Qi need mending," she said firmly. She handed each member a Qi Restoration Pill, their surfaces glowing faintly with spiritual energy. "These will heal your injuries, restore your strength, and boost your Qi to its peak. Take them now."

The team obeyed, swallowing the pills. A warm surge flowed through them, knitting flesh and reinvigorating their cores. Xuanye felt his Peak Foundation energy stabilize, while Huo Shan's Early Core aura pulsed stronger. They sat in a circle, cultivating under her guidance, the cave filling with a soft hum of spiritual resonance as their power deepened.

Later that night, Xuanye approached her privately.

"I found something strange," he said, holding out a cracked jade shard.

Su Feilí narrowed her eyes and studied the shard in silence. A faint pulse echoed from it—one she recognized all too well.

She looked at him, smiling. "It's nothing, just a wandering soul fragment. Likely a ghost from an old battle."

But deep inside, she knew better.

That resonance it matched his Qi signature.

That night, while everyone slept, she summoned a transmission talisman. Her voice was a whisper:

"To the Sect Master. The Young Master encountered a soul fragment matching unknown divine imprint. Possibly ancestral or sealed legacy. I recommend immediate dispatch of shadow guards for covert protection. Signed Feilí."

The talisman burst into silver light, vanishing into the stars.

She looked at Xuanye's sleeping form and murmured, "You're beginning to wake… aren't you?"

Shui Lin, quietly present, overheard her mumbling, his eyes widening slightly as he processed the words.

To be continued...