Han Yu grimaced. He could almost picture it... the sigil burning through someone's skin, veins glowing red before their body simply collapsed into dust.

"So that's how they maintain control," he muttered softly.

He continued reading, each line adding a new layer of grimness.

While rare, there exists a path to freedom. A slave may be elevated if their master petitions the sect on their behalf, or if they accomplish a feat so extraordinary that it earns the Patriarch's or the Elders' recognition. Such cases, however, are seldom. In the last thousand years, only six slaves have ever been freed, and only one of them became a disciple.

Han Yu let out a quiet, bitter laugh. "Once every few centuries, huh? Sounds fair," he said sarcastically. Then his expression darkened.

"If my sect's survivors are still alive, they'll probably be kept like this…" he thought grimly. "As slaves."

The thought twisted his stomach.

He imagined his sect mates; people he had fought beside, people who once laughed around campfires, now reduced to mere property. The idea alone made his hands tremble slightly, but he forced himself to keep reading. Losing control now would serve no purpose.

The next section described how the three courts operated.

The Outer Court forms the base of the sect's structure. It is comprised of disciples who have just entered or who lack the strength to ascend further. Their duties include harvesting resources, guarding lower domains, assisting in cultivation arrays and further more. Though they receive instruction, they must rely on their own effort to rise.

The Inner Court holds those who have proven loyalty and skill. These disciples are permitted greater access to the sect's libraries and are allowed to cultivate within areas closer to the Blood Moon River. Their role is both martial and administrative; they act as overseers of the Outer Court and as enforcers of the sect's will.

The Core Court is the heart of our divine order. Only the most faithful, powerful, and blood-bound disciples may stand here. They are given direct access to the pure unfettered Slaughtered Moon Qi and permitted to cultivate beside the main branches of the Blood Moon River. Their task is to guard the sect's heritage, train the younger disciples, and prepare for the day when the Blood Moon's true light shall once again cover the world.

Han Yu nodded slowly as he absorbed this. "So they're not so different in structure," he said quietly. "Just… more intense."

But what truly caught his attention was the geography of the sect's division.

Unlike the concentric organization of lesser sects, the Blood Sect does not divide by proximity to the center. The hierarchy is spread across the entire land, the Rib Peaks can have any of the three courts. The difference lies in the river's flow. Peaks nearest the main Blood Moon River host the Core Court, those with tributaries house the Inner Court, and those with small streams—or no river at all—belong to the Outer Court.

Han Yu could immediately picture the layout in his mind. It was efficient, in a way, though strange and unpredictable to navigate.

"So that's why the Qi felt different on each peak," he mused. "They literally divide disciples by the blood flow of that river."

The book continued.

Each peak contains its own refining formation that channels the Slaughtered Moon Qi from the river, purifies it, and releases it as Moon Blood Qi for cultivation. These formations are maintained by the Array Masters of the sect, who are chosen directly by the elders.

Then came a new heading: The Elders and the Limb Peaks.

Han Yu's eyes scanned the lines eagerly.

The elders of the sect dwell upon the great Limb Peaks—each named after the bones of the divine beast that forms our land's sacred structure. The Humerus Peak governs martial training. The Femur Peak commands external relations and battles. The Tibia and Fibula Peak s oversees research into cultivation Arts, while the Radius and Ulna Peak maintains the archives and forbidden texts. Together, they form the skeleton of our sect's authority, supporting the Grand Palace at the Heart Peak.

Han Yu gave a low whistle. "So that's how they've organized it," he muttered. "They've literally turned anatomy into architecture."

He turned the page, and his eyes fell upon a map-like diagram showing the entire sect's design. At the center, surrounded by rivers of flowing red, was a massive mountain labeled Great Heart Peak.

The Great Heart Peak serves as the lifeblood of the sect. The Grand Palace stands upon its summit, where the Blood Moon's light strikes most directly. Within the palace reside the Patriarch and the High Elders, who channel the moon's essence into the Blood Moon River through ancient rites. None may approach without permission.

Han Yu stared at the illustration for a long moment. The Grand Palace looked like something out of a nightmare: sharp, jagged, and immense, with rivers of crimson cascading down from beneath it like arteries.

There were other names scattered across the page: the Spine Valley, the Marrow Fields, the Bleeding Gate, and the Hollow Chalice Lake. Han Yu read through them with interest but realized many of the smaller areas were beyond his understanding. Their functions were not explained clearly, and the writing suggested only higher-ranked disciples or elders would know more.

He closed the book after a while, rubbing his temple. "This sect is like a living creature," he said softly. "Every mountain, every river... it's part of its body."

The realization made him shiver slightly. To the Slaughtered Moon Divine Blood Sect, everything was part of one greater being. Even the disciples were simply cells within the organism that was their sect.

He placed the book aside and sighed. "At least now I know the structure… though that's not much comfort," he murmured.

Outside, faint red light still leaked through the cracks in the cave wall, casting eerie shadows across the floor. Han Yu leaned back and gazed at it thoughtfully. Somewhere beyond that red sky, the Patriarch sat upon the Great Heart Peak, bathed in the light of the Blood Moon.

And Han Yu, lost within this monstrous skeleton of a sect, was now just one more fragment of its body, another cell caught in the current of the blood river.