The sun had barely risen over the Crimson Sky Sect, yet whispers already slithered through every hallway, training ground, and pagoda like an unseen mist. Whispers not of cultivation insights or elder announcements—but of a masked figure whose power had burned through the night.
"Did you hear about the blast of qi near Red Pine Forest?"
"They say it cracked the earth... left claw marks on stone."
"Some claim the guy had silver eyes. Not an inner disciple either. Just some masked outsider."
They didn't know his name.
So they gave him one.
The Silver Snake.
Born from the shadows of last night's chaos, his legend took root before most even saw his face. In the Outer Court, disciples spoke of him in hushed awe. In the Inner Court, with restrained hostility.
And at the peak of the sect's upper pavilion, Rina Dae sipped her morning tea in thoughtful silence.
She had seen it all.
The boy in black robes standing alone against three-tier monsters. The way his silver eyes never flinched. The way his strikes were calculated, ruthless, and disturbingly efficient.
"He wasn't desperate," she murmured, staring into her cup. "He was... prepared."
A soft breeze stirred her hair as she sat on the jade balcony. The world below bustled with noise, yet her mind remained focused on one figure.
Who was he?
Not even her father, Elder Dae Gwan, had answers. His message this morning only confirmed an investigation was underway.
> "Unregistered qi clash. Suspect unknown. Possible intruder."
She knew better. He wasn't an intruder. He belonged here more than half the arrogant peacocks that strutted through the inner halls.
She traced her fingertip along the edge of the teacup.
Sooner or later, his mask would fall. And when it did... who would fall with it?
Meanwhile, across the sect, inner disciples fumed in silence. The idea that some no-name had shaken the entire training forest without permission was intolerable.
One of them, a senior disciple named Shin Murok, cracked his fan in half from rage.
"That outsider... he dares to stain the Crimson Sky name?"
But Jinhyuk didn't care for their rage.
Walking through the shadowed corridor of the eastern wing, cloaked in illusion, he moved like a ghost—unnoticed, unreadable. His expression calm. Mind razor sharp.
Up above, Rina watched him from the balcony again.
This time, a smile tugged at the corner of her lips.
"Keep hiding, Silver Snake," she whispered to the wind.
"You don't know it yet, but the storm you're hiding from... is already yours."
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