After that whole speech with dictatorship undertones, I returned to the library almost absentmindedly and stared at the large pile of books.

The Song Song mystery had haunted me for some time. And now, just like that, it was solved. She was coming here.

I didn’t know whether to be happy or worried. A part of me wanted to be hopeful that her father didn’t somehow find out I suspected him of being a body snatcher. But then again, why was she coming back?

Would she return as the same Song Song I knew… or as someone else?

If it was the latter, and there was no way to save her… then I would do my last duty as a good friend and kill her. No matter how many years it took to prepare.

The thought plagued me so much that I couldn’t focus on reading. I kept spiraling through scenarios, counter-scenarios, and contingency plans. Ways to free her if her body had been taken over.

That muddled thought process carried me all the way to the weekend meeting of the inner elders, a gathering of twenty-three people who basically decided the future of the Blazing Sun Sect.

And now, I was one of them.

“The situation with us handing over Earth Grade Techniques to hoodlums is unthinkable!” one of the elders snapped, glaring straight at me. “It makes our Sect look weak!”

That shot was aimed directly at me.

“I think it was a genius idea,” another elder said. “He bought the weakened Blazing Sun Sect some breathing room. I agree completely, and perhaps we should let the younger generation lead for once. Our decisions brought us here, after all.”

He was one of my five-and-a-half supporters. That half being a fickle elder who blew with the wind but currently sided with me.

In short, most of them were political kiss-asses who’d switch allegiance the moment a better option came along. But for now, I was the best option. So they supported me.

Still, I appreciated it. If every elder had been against me, this would’ve been a lot harder.

“Don’t worry,” I said, “We won’t be handing them each a unique Earth Grade Technique.”

If it were entirely up to me, I’d let everyone choose freely and see what they found compatible. But this was a Sect, and that kind of freedom was never going to fly.

“Here, I’ve selected five moderately useful and simple Earth Grade Techniques focused on attack or movement. That’ll serve us best if we want them useful in defending against beast waves.”

There were more arguments, but it just devolved into two camps repeating themselves. I just kept reciting a rehearsed speech. Since it was my idea, I’d obviously done more research than anyone else.

It was clear they hadn’t done their homework. But I didn’t blame them too much. Without the internet, studying any topic or researching statistics on how well something did or how successful it was was a hassle.

In the end, we all agreed to hand out three mediocre Earth Grade Techniques. I probably could’ve pushed for four, but I didn’t care enough to fight for it.

Besides, you had to throw these geezers a bone every now and then so they wouldn’t get grumpy.

At the end of the day, the results spoke for themselves. These were the same individuals who initially opposed recruitment. Now, they were just negotiating how many techniques to hand out.

When the meeting finally came to an end, we stepped outside into the midday sun. Zun Gon walked beside me and gave me a small smile.

“You seem to find the position tiring,” he said.

“Yeah, arguing with those guys is a waste of time,” I sighed. “There are better things I could’ve been doing.”

Sure, being an inner elder gave me access to more information than I could’ve dreamed of, and this kind of crap was the price I had to pay. And I was gladly willing to pay for it.

Well… maybe not gladly. But I’d tolerate it. While also planning to keep these meetings as short as humanly possible.

Maybe I should fake closed-door cultivation so they’d stop bothering me. I’d keep that card in my back pocket for now and focus on the Song Song situation.

“When you’re around, the meetings do end up being shorter,” Zun Gon said. “If you want absolute control, though, you’ll have to reach Nascent Soul.”

“I know,” I said. That stage of cultivation was so far away that there was no use even thinking about it. “Any idea when Song Song is supposed to arrive?”

“No,” Zun Gon replied. “The Song Clan Leader hasn’t said anything.”

“What about scouts? Anyone matching her description?”

“No. You know her best… but I doubt someone like Song Song gets noticed when she doesn’t want to be.”

He was right. But that didn’t mean I was thrilled about it.

Ever since I’d come to this world, I’d never felt so damn anxious.

Maybe the world would be safer without Song Song. But I still remembered the girl who made me feel safe when everything else felt like survival. I didn’t want that person to meet such a cold, quiet end.

“Also, today the Sect’s array conjurer will come by the library and cast a protective array,” said Zun Gon. “I don’t know the exact time, but he said he would be there, and Elder Cai Hu is punctual enough to never miss an appointment.”

That caught my attention and washed away some of the gloom I’d been feeling lately.

It wasn’t every day you got to see a Level 7 Array Conjurer in action. This was the guy known as the best in the Sect and one of the top across the continent.

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“Well, I’ll return to the library and wait for him,” I said.

Technically, the Level 7 Array Conjurer held the same authority as me. Both of us were inner elders. Even my position as Elder of Martial Techniques ranked similarly.

But a man like him? His value was insurmountable.

I wanted to see what someone like that was like and what Level 7 Arrays looked like.

Forming my jade armor, I blasted away and reached the library entrance in under a minute.

At first, I sensed no one nearby using Qi. But there were mental waves right beside the entrance. Someone was there, but they had hidden their physical presence.

It couldn’t be Song San. His technique hid mental waves too. And I doubted he could sneak past my barriers unnoticed. This meant the hidden guest was someone who was skilled enough with barriers but lacked a stealth technique strong enough to hide mental presence.

What was I going to do about this?

Nothing. Having a mental technique was one of my biggest secrets.

“What an interesting technique,” came a voice from the exact spot I’d sensed. “Feels like a combination of an array and an Earth Grade Technique.”

He was talking about my Dancing Jade Armor Technique, the one I often paraded around as if it were my elemental affinity.

The space beside the entrance shimmered and out stepped a tall old man with slicked-back white hair and a well-trimmed beard.

So this was the legendary Cai Hu.

He didn’t radiate the overwhelming pressure Zun Gon did, so he likely wasn’t a peak Core Formation Cultivator. Still, as a Level 7 Array Conjurer, he could probably crush Zun Gon in the right setup.

Crazy talent. Even if he looked old, reaching Level 7 was nothing short of insane. And if records were true, even Nascent Soul Cultivators often couldn’t manage that after a thousand years of study.

But he had done it in less than three hundred.

I cupped my fists respectfully. “Liu Feng greets Senior Cai Hu.”

He wasn’t one of the elders who attended meetings. Likely too busy restoring and maintaining the Sect’s protective formations.

“Polite,” he nodded. “Zun Gon has told me a lot about you. I’d like to personally see how good you are with arrays one day. But for now, we work. I’ve got a full schedule.”

A bucket of blood and a brush appeared in his hand. He examined the threshold of the inside and outside of the library with a glance before stepping through

“By the way,” he said while lightly touching the walls, “You already seem to know who I am, but introductions are polite.”

He glanced at me, calm and collected.

“I’m Cai Hu. Level Seven Array Conjurer. Three-star Core Formation Cultivator.”

“My name is Liu Feng,” I replied. “Level Four Array Conjurer, and a one-star Foundation Establishment Cultivator.”

“That’s very impressive. I didn’t reach Level Four until my mid-twenties. And I only stepped into Foundation Establishment just after I turned thirty,” he said with a faint smile as if remembering simpler times.

Maybe I had the advantage of a mature mindset, so my talent rating wasn’t entirely fair. Still, I’d started learning arrays pretty late in life.

“Perhaps if you weren’t already an inner elder,” Cai Hu continued, “with a position about equal to mine, I’d have asked you to be my disciple.”

He set the bucket down and stepped fully inside the library.

I followed him like a kid drooling outside a candy shop.

He dipped the brush into the blood bucket and began writing.

Curious, I focused my Qi senses and probed the bucket and felt a heavy, intimidating presence within the blood.

“What kind of blood is that?” I asked, pointing at the bucket.

“That is the blood of a Nascent Soul monstrous beast. It comes from the Earth Skin Lion, and it’s perfect for writing defensive arrays,” he said. “I doubt I need to teach you about the defensive power of an Earth Skin Lion. Your books go into much more detail.”

Earth Skin Lions? They were somewhat of a royal bloodline. If given enough time, they could become Core Formation beasts. Their defense was top-tier and almost on par with turtle-type monstrous beasts. But unlike turtles, they also had power and agility.

Still… I’d never heard of them reaching the Nascent Soul Realm.

That bloodline, as noble as it was, usually became a chain once they reached a certain point. Growth stalled. Power stagnated. Most didn’t go further.

Before I could lose myself in thought, Cai Hu handed me a crimson square tablet that appeared to be carved from solid rubies.

“This is the control tablet for the arrays I’m about to set up,” he said.

I imbued it with Qi. Instantly, it synced to my signature, meaning only I could use it.

Meanwhile, Cai Hu continued writing on the walls with his blood-soaked brush at blinding speeds. His motions were swift and practiced like calligraphy done by a master artist with centuries of experience behind each stroke.

I didn’t even blink.

I watched like someone witnessing the greatest magic trick ever performed.

“You look excited,” he said with a small smirk. “But sorry to say, I won’t be using Level 7 Arrays. My cultivation and Qi reserves can’t support the expenditure.”

My excitement dimmed a little, but I wasn’t surprised. Level 7 Arrays weren’t just rare; they were costly to cast and nearly impossible to maintain unless you were a Nascent Soul Cultivator.

Still, Level 6 Arrays were no joke either.

Many considered them the realm of gods. Level 6 was what made storage rings possible. It was a miracle tier.

“I’d love to see a Level 6 Array being cast,” I said honestly.

Cai Hu’s array skills had surpassed his cultivation, a rare problem to encounter, but not impossible.

“Thanks. It’s a shame, though,” he said. “Most of the Sect’s older arrays were made by a former Sect Leader, our only other Level 7 Array Conjurer, and a Nascent Soul Cultivator to boot. He could use these high-level arrays as often as he wanted.”

He said it calmly. No shame. No insecurity that he couldn’t live up to that legacy.

If anything, he felt like a kindred spirit. Someone who loved arrays so deeply he’d pushed beyond what was expected, even if he’d rarely get to use the full extent of that mastery.

Eventually, Cai Hu finished inscribing the outer walls and began casting the Level 6 defensive array within the library.

The air thickened.

Lines of glowing blood-red script crawled across the floor like living veins, pulsing. They climbed the walls, wrapping around wooden beams like serpents of fire.

Then–

A deep, resonant hum echoed through the chamber. The walls seemed to breathe. The air pressed down for a single, powerful heartbeat.

The blood script shimmered and sank into the wood like tattoos being branded into flesh.

The library shivered.

It was beautiful.

Every second of it.

“The dark engravings will become invisible in a day or two,” he said. “After I finish restoring the Sect’s defenses and this winter passes, come by my place. We should talk as fellow Array Conjurers.”

With that, he walked out and blasted into the sky to attend to his next task.

I remained behind, awestruck. Watching the final thrum of the array pulse into silence.

But then…

I felt it.

A familiar presence barely tickling the outermost edges of my sensory field.

Right outside the Sect’s mountain range.

Even the beauty of the arrays couldn’t hold my attention anymore. My gaze drifted toward the window, past the library’s towering shelves, out toward the distant entrance.

Song Song?