Han Yu lowered his gaze slightly, appearing to think, though in reality his mind had already begun racing through possibilities.
Wealth?
aningless.
He had more than he could spend. Entire cities could be bought and sold with what he controlled. Spirit stones, blood stones, rare materials... they had long ceased to excite him.
Fa?
He already had it. His na carried weight across the sect. Even elders treated him with caution.
Cultivation techniques?
He had the Inheritance Stelae. A treasure far beyond what most in the sect could even dream of. Within it lay countless techniques, many of which he had yet to fully explore. There was no need to bargain for sothing he could already obtain with ti.
Not to ntion his Soul Cultivation which was his best safeguard against death.
So what remained?
Han Yu’s thoughts slowed.
He searched deeper.
What was it that he truly lacked?
What was it that he could not obtain through wealth, status, or power?
Then the answer surfaced.
Information.
His eyes narrowed slightly, though outwardly his expression remained calm.
Everything he had built so far... all of it pointed toward one goal.
Leaving the Blood Continent and returning ho.
Breaking through the barrier that trapped them here.
That was the one thing he could not achieve through force alone.
The thod existed.
He knew it did.
The Slaughtered Moon Divine Blood Sect had already proven that. They had crossed the barrier once before to reclaim their so called birthright.
But that knowledge was locked away. Even as a Legacy Disciple, Han Yu had only managed to uncover fragnts. Vague hints. Incomplete statents. What he knew was limited.
He knew that it required preparation, it required timing and that it was not sothing that could be done freely.
That was all he knew.
But Lady Rot Rose...
She was different.
A descendant of a forr patriarch. A figure whose lineage was tied directly to the research that made that breakthrough possible.
If anyone knew more... It would be her.
Han Yu’s gaze lifted once more, eting hers.
"I will take the mission," he said.
Lady Rot Rose’s lips curved faintly.
"But," he continued, "my reward will be information."
Her brow raised slightly, interest flickering in her eyes.
"What kind of information?" she asked.
Han Yu did not hesitate.
"I want to know about the barrier of the Blood Continent," he said. "And how the sect managed to pass through it during the reclaiming of their birthright."
For the first ti since their conversation began, Lady Rot Rose’s expression changed.
It was subtle but unmistakable and soon a hint of suspicion appeared in her eyes. The air grew slightly heavier and Han Yu noticed it imdiately.
He had expected this.
There was no way such a question would be accepted without doubt. Which was why he had already prepared his next move. He let out a faint breath, as if recalling sothing distant.
"My Lady probably already knows," he said, "that I took part in that campaign."
Her gaze remained fixed on him.
"I was rely an outer court disciple at the ti," he continued. "Insignificant. Easily overlooked."
He allowed a faint smile to appear.
"But even then... I was curious."
Lady Rot Rose said nothing.
Han Yu leaned slightly forward.
"The Central Continent has always interested ," he said. "Not just for what it represents... but for what it holds."
He paused briefly, letting the words settle.
"During that ti," he added, "I encountered several disciples from the orthodox sects."
His eyes darkened slightly.
"They did not survive."
The statent was simple.
Matter of fact.
But its aning was clear.
"I obtained so of their belongings," Han Yu continued. "Among them... were docunts."
Lady Rot Rose’s gaze sharpened further.
"What kind of docunts?" she asked.
Han Yu’s voice lowered slightly.
"They spoke of sothing old," he said. "Sothing ancient."
He t her eyes directly.
"A skeleton."
A brief pause.
Then he spoke the na.
"The Skeleton of the Magma Ancestor."
For the first ti, Lady Rot Rose’s composure showed a visible crack.
It was small.
But it was there.
Han Yu caught it.
And in that mont... He knew, he had struck the right chord.
Lady Rot Rose did not respond imdiately after Han Yu spoke the na of the Magma Ancestor.
For a brief mont, the only sound within the pavilion was the faint crackle of the pipe in her hand and the soft ripple of the lake outside. The red smoke curled upward in thin strands, but her attention was no longer on it.
It was on him.
Her eyes, which until now had carried a relaxed and almost teasing warmth, sharpened ever so slightly.
"You..." she said slowly, her voice softer than before, "know about the Magma Ancestor?"
The question carried weight.
Not suspicion alone, but genuine surprise.
Han Yu inclined his head slightly, neither arrogant nor overly submissive.
"I know a little," he replied.
Lady Rot Rose studied him carefully.
The Magma Ancestor was not so forgotten minor figure. He was one of the greatest ancestors of the Slaughtered Moon Divine Blood Sect, a figure whose legacy shaped much of what the sect had beco.
And yet...
Information about him was scarce.
Deliberately so.
Even among high ranking elders, only fragnts of the truth were known. Stories had been twisted into legends, and legends had faded into obscurity. What remained was a na, a vague image of power, and a few scattered tales that no longer held their original aning.
The truth was far deeper.
He had been the first.
The first mber of the sect to break through the barrier of the Blood Continent. A feat so extraordinary that even thousands of years later, the sect still did not fully understand how he had accomplished it.
That alone was enough to make him a figure of myth.
And yet Han Yu had gone further.
He spoke not only of the man, but of his remains.
His skeleton.
Left behind in the Central Continent.
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