Chapter 135: Ren Kai (part 2)
Around them, the murmurs continued to grow, fear spreading in low voices, some disciples already stepping back, as if distance alone could keep them safe from whatever had swallowed the others whole.
Ren Kai finally moved.
He turned.
"Stay here," he said.
The four behind him looked at him at once.
Hao Jin frowned. "What are you planning?"
"I’m going to see the Sect Master."
The moment those words settled, the others fell silent, watching as he walked away without hesitation, his steps steady, his back straight, cutting through the crowd as if none of this chaos could touch him.
The path toward the inner sect opened almost on its own.
Outer disciples stepped aside first, then even inner disciples moved without thinking, their eyes following him, some with respect, others with something closer to relief.
He passed through the outer courtyard, then the inner grounds, the noise fading behind him as the environment changed, becoming quieter, more controlled, but even here, the tension hadn’t disappeared.
Disciples stood in place instead of training.
Guards were doubled.
By the time he reached the main hall, two sect guards stepped forward, their expressions serious.
"Halt. The Sect Master is in a meeting. No one is allowed to—"
"I need to see him."
The guards stiffened slightly.
One of them frowned. "Ren Kai, this isn’t the time. Orders are—"
Ren Kai’s gaze lifted slightly.
Not aggressive.
Not threatening.
But firm.
"This is about the missing disciples."
That made them hesitate.
For a brief moment, neither guard spoke.
Then one of them exhaled slowly and stepped aside.
"...Go."
Ren Kai didn’t thank him.
He walked forward.
The doors to the main hall stood closed, heavy and silent, but as he approached, they opened from within, as if someone inside had already sensed his presence.
Inside, the atmosphere was completely different, it’s heavy.
All twenty elders were still seated, their expressions far more serious than before, their auras restrained but tense, while at the head of the hall, sect master Fuing sat unmoving, his eyes lifting the moment Ren Kai stepped in.
For a brief second, no one spoke.
Then one of the elders frowned.
"Ren Kai? This is a restricted meeting."
Ren Kai didn’t bow immediately.
His gaze moved across the room once.
Then settled on Fuing.
"Master."
Only then did he lower his head slightly.
Fuing studied him for a moment, his expression unreadable.
"...You’ve returned."
"Yes."
A pause.
"Speak."
Ren Kai straightened.
"We found nothing conclusive," he said calmly. "No bodies. No clear tracks. Only signs of... consumption."
A faint shift passed through the elders.
He continued.
"But that’s not why I came."
Fuing’s eyes narrowed slightly.
"Then why?"
Ren Kai didn’t hesitate.
"...The other disciples didn’t come back."
Silence fell over the hall.
He took one step forward.
"This isn’t an investigation anymore," he said, his voice steady, carrying through the entire chamber. "Something out there is hunting anything that enters those towns."
His gaze hardened slightly.
"And it’s strong enough that even groups of trained disciples can’t escape."
The silence in the hall didn’t break immediately, it settled deeper instead, pressing down on everyone present as the weight of Ren Kai’s words sank in, while the elders who once dismissed the reports now found themselves without an answer, their expressions tightening ever so slightly.
At the head of the hall, Fuing remained still.
His fingers rested on the armrest.
His gaze steady.
Then he spoke.
"Ren Kai."
His voice was calm, but there was a shift in it now, something heavier than before.
"Leave for now."
Ren Kai didn’t react right away.
For a brief moment, he held his master’s gaze, as if trying to read something beyond the words, something deeper.
Then he lowered his head.
"Yes, Master."
No argument.
No hesitation.
He turned and walked out, his steps just as steady as when he entered, the doors closing behind him with a low, heavy sound that echoed faintly through the chamber, leaving the elders alone once again with the growing reality they could no longer ignore.
----
Far from Valen City, beyond the lands that had already fallen into silence, the villa stood unchanged on the surface.
Quiet.
Almost peaceful.
Inside, Aiden sat in the garden once more, the same place filled with green life that clashed against everything he had built outside, his posture relaxed as if nothing in the world could disturb him, while in front of him, a familiar figure knelt.
Graveknit.
"My lord."
Aiden didn’t turn immediately.
"Report."
Graveknit lifted his head just enough to speak.
"The forces from Valen City have begun to move."
That got Aiden’s attention.
He turned slightly.
"Already?"
"Yes."
A brief pause.
"They did not send elders. Nor their main forces."
Aiden’s eyes narrowed slightly.
"...Students."
Graveknit nodded.
"Outer and inner disciples were dispatched in groups. Their objective was to investigate the destroyed towns."
Graveknit continued without emotion.
"Several groups encountered Vermis’ swarm. They were overwhelmed before they could retreat. Others ran into roaming undead units left behind after the assaults. None of them were strong enough to survive prolonged engagement."
Aiden listened without interrupting, his gaze steady, his fingers lightly tapping against the armrest of the stone bench as the quiet garden around them swayed gently with the night breeze, a calm that felt almost mocking compared to the bloodshed happening just beyond his territory.
Then he spoke.
"Did you collect the corpses?"
Graveknit didn’t hesitate.
"Yes, my lord," Graveknit replied. "The remains from Vermis’ hunting grounds and the fallen students encountered by the roaming undead have already been gathered and thrown into the Flesh Reclamation Pit."
Aiden leaned back slightly, his eyes half-lidded as he considered it.
"...Good."
For a moment, he said nothing more.
The soft rustling of leaves filled the space between them, almost peaceful, until Aiden’s gaze slowly lifted again, looking past the garden, past the walls, toward something much farther away.
"Keep doing what we’re doing," he said.
His voice was calm.
Graveknit didn’t move.
"Yes, my lord."
Aiden’s fingers stopped tapping.
"For now, we don’t touch Valen City directly."
There was no hesitation in that decision.
He knew his limits.
Knew exactly where he stood.