The main hall of Evernight Sect loomed ahead like a stone monument to order.

As Aaryan stepped through the carved archway beside Dharun, silence wrapped around them like a ceremonial robe. The chamber was vast, sunlight spilling in through the high lattice windows and scattering across the polished floor like shards of glass.

At its heart sat Sect Leader Pryag on the central dais, his robes darker than ink, his expression unreadable. Flanking him were the Four Grand Elders, seated upon raised thrones of lacquered duskwood—silent and still as mountains. Arrayed behind them, in two even rows, stood more than a dozen sect elders. None spoke. None moved.

Aaryan and Dharun bowed low in unison.

"Disciple Aaryan greets the Sect Leader and the Grand Elders," Aaryan said with steady formality.

"Elder Dharun greets the high table," Dharun followed.

A quiet hum broke the silence—calm, but clear. The Fourth Grand Elder, a silver-haired woman with the serene air of one who'd buried a thousand arguments in her time, gave a slight nod.

"You bought time for the others to escape," she said. "Injured, outnumbered—and still standing. That speaks of more than luck."

Aaryan rose from his bow, hands still clasped. "It was not heroism, Senior. Just duty. I did what the situation demanded."

There was no boast in his voice. Just fact.

A few elders exchanged faint looks, but none interrupted.

Then came the expected voice—dry, deliberate, and dipped in contempt.

"Duty?" Elder Kiyan stepped forward from behind the grand dais, arms folded into his long crimson-trimmed sleeves. "Spare us the modesty, boy. You walk in with the air of a rising dragon, but we all know what really happened."

Aaryan tilted his head slightly, eyes sharp but polite. "Do enlighten me, Elder."

Kiyan's smile didn't reach his eyes. "You used tricks. Forcefully raised yourself to Qi condensation using external means. And now you stand here smugly, a mere body tempering brat, as if you won a fair battle."

Behind Aaryan, Dharun made a soft sound—not quite a laugh, not quite a scoff. Just enough for a few elders to glance his way.

Aaryan let the moment breathe. Then answered.

"I see. So, if I had charged headlong into his blade and died, would that have been more respectable?"

Kiyan's brow twitched.

Aaryan went on, voice light but unmistakably edged. "Forgive me, Elder, but if survival is now a crime, I fear half the sect might need cleansing. I made a choice. I lived. That's more than I can say for him. As any disciple trained in the Evernight way should."

The Fourth Grand Elder glanced at Kiyan but said nothing. A flicker of something unreadable passed across her face.

Kiyan sneered. "Spoken like a rat proud of its burrow."

"Better a living rat," Aaryan said calmly, "than a dead lion with no ears to hear reason."

That did it. A few elders tried—and failed—to hide their amusement. One of the younger ones coughed hastily into his sleeve.

Dharun looked away, biting back a smirk.

From the dais, Sect Leader Pryag finally raised a hand. His voice cut through the murmurs like frostbite.

"Enough."

Silence fell again.

Sect Leader Pryag's raised hand lingered for a breath longer than needed, as if anchoring the silence himself.

Then he lowered it and spoke, his voice calm but edged with inquiry. "Elder Ma and Elder Jun… they have yet to return to their respective sects."

A quiet ripple passed through the room.

Pryag's gaze swept over the gathered elders, then settled on Aaryan. "Given your return has already stirred whispers, the Crimson Serpent Hall and Starfall Valley will soon seek answers. I must ask—what became of them?"

Aaryan didn't flinch. He clasped his hands behind his back, eyes steady.

"They were killed," he said. "By me."

The silence that followed was deafening.

Even the ever-composed Pryag leaned back slightly in his seat, brows raising by a fraction. A stir passed through the grand elders. The Second Grand Elder's fingers froze mid-tap against his armrest. The Third Grand Elder narrowed his eyes. The Fourth… her expression softened, as if something invisible coiled in her chest.

Gasps slipped from more than a few elders. One even muttered a curse before biting it back.

Elder Kiyan looked as if someone had slapped him across the face.

"You?" he echoed, blinking. Then his voice twisted into a scoff. "Come now, boy. You can boast all you want about Kezan— Perhaps he was overconfident and caught unprepared—easy enough for a sneak attack. And those two elders? Seasoned experts. They wouldn't fall for the same trick. And you expect us to believe you felled them too?"

Aaryan tilted his head, expression as mild as spring drizzle. "If Elder Kiyan doubts me, he's welcome to find them himself. I'll even draw a map."

Somewhere near the back, a stifled chuckle slipped through clenched teeth. Even Dharun raised a hand to his mouth, eyes gleaming.

Kiyan looked like he'd swallowed a particularly sharp stone.

Before he could fire back, the First Grand Elder stirred. His voice was calm, but the weight beneath it was unmistakable.

"It's not that we doubt you, Aaryan," he said. "But you are still at the Body Tempering stage, even if you were at its peak. Defeating three Qi Condensation realm cultivators—even if the circumstances were unusual—is a feat bordering on the impossible."

He leaned forward, fingers curling thoughtfully around the lacquered armrest.

"If you could share how, it was done… it would help clarify the situation. And perhaps… ease certain doubts."

It was said without judgment. But not without purpose.

Aaryan met his gaze without hesitation. "You believe I'm hiding something, Senior?"

The First Grand Elder smiled without smiling. "Don't all good cultivators?"

A ripple of laughter passed through a few elders. The mood remained tense—but a little lighter.

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Still, not all laughter was real.

From the corner of his eye, Aaryan caught a shift in the Fourth Grand Elder's posture. A flicker—barely perceptible—but there all the same. Her eyes, so serene moments before, now carried a gleam of concern. Not fear. Not anger. Worry.

She parted her lips slightly, as if to speak, then stopped. Her fingers tightened once around the edge of her robe before stilling again.

No one else seemed to notice.

Except Sect Leader Pryag, whose sharp gaze flicked toward her in the next breath.

And the First Grand Elder, who gave the faintest twitch of a brow.

Aaryan didn't shift under the silence that followed. His voice remained even, almost detached, as he began to recount the events in his own words.

He kept the story pretty much same to what Dharun had already reported, as there was nothing to add or hide.

Not once did he raise his voice or emphasize Rudra's betrayal. He didn't spit the name or let bitterness colour his words. It was a simple line, tucked between facts. Dismissed like it hadn't cut deeper than a blade.

Elder Kiyan, who had been watching with narrowed eyes, frowned faintly. He had expected fury, accusations, drama—anything that might turn the room against Rudra or justify Aaryan's own defiance. But this restrained indifference unsettled him more.

And it wasn't just Kiyan who noticed.

Aaryan caught it—the faint twitch of the First Grand Elder's brow. Just for a moment. Barely there.

'Huh. So, it really is like I thought.'

He moved on, letting the thread drop.

"I killed Elder Kezan during the fight that followed. My body started to give out soon after. Elder Ma and Elder Jun seized the moment."

Gasps stirred again, but Aaryan's voice didn't waver.

"They tortured me."

No dramatics. No pause for effect. Just a single sentence, said with the same tone one might use to describe rainfall.

He didn't remember the screams. Only the silence between them.

"I was barely conscious by then. Not sure how long it went on. They thought I was broken. Maybe I was."

Several elders looked uncomfortable. The brutality was already known—whispers carried by rogue cultivators had reached many ears—but hearing it from the boy himself made it tangible. Yet Aaryan never angled for pity. He didn't even look at them as he spoke.

A few elders nodded quietly in their seats. A warrior's endurance, spoken without seeking glory, carried its own weight.

"I don't remember all of it," Aaryan went on, "but when I was close to death, I pushed everything I had. Whatever strength remained—everything from the divine fruits I'd consumed earlier… I poured it all out."

His fingers curled slightly at his side, then relaxed again.

"The fight was bitter. I don't know how long it lasted. But in the end… they died."

He didn't embellish it. No grand declarations. No graphic details. Just the truth, stripped bare.

The silence that followed this time wasn't shocked—it was… unsettled. The elders weren't sure if they should be impressed or concerned.

But the story wasn't over. Not exactly.

Sect Leader Pryag leaned forward, voice neutral but tinged with scrutiny. "That was it?"

Aaryan looked at him. "Yes. I lost consciousness after that."

"And then?"

"When I woke up… I dragged myself into a nearby cave. Rested. Waited until I could walk. Then came back."

He said it like someone recounting a long nap, not a miracle survival. But the abruptness wasn't lost on anyone.

A tall elder near the First Grand Elder finally spoke up. "Strange. We dispatched a rescue team to that region. Searched every cave in the vicinity. And yet… no sign of you."

Aaryan blinked once, then tilted his head in mock confusion. "Ah. Well, I was there. Maybe you just didn't look hard enough. I was quite literally in a cave. Very cave-like. You know… walls, rocks, whole aesthetic."

A few stifled snorts echoed through the chamber. Dharun coughed into his sleeve. Even the Sect Leader's mouth twitched slightly.

But Aaryan's eyes didn't leave the elder who'd spoken. He knew exactly what the man was doing—casting doubt, subtly discrediting him. But Aaryan also knew something else.

'If you really sent a rescue team, you'd have found the bodies. And then Pryag wouldn't have had to ask me what happened.'

Dharun had told him as much—that he'd pleaded for help, but the request had been ignored. The sect hadn't expected Aaryan to live. They had made peace with his death.

Well. Almost everyone.

The First Grand Elder tapped the armrest of his chair once before speaking. "These divine fruits… They must be extraordinary indeed. For a peak Body Tempering cultivator to defeat three Qi Condensation experts—even with favourable circumstances—is unprecedented."

He paused, eyes calm but probing.

"If you still have one left, I would like to examine it. You will, of course, be compensated appropriately."

Aaryan blinked, and for the first time, let his lips curve upward in a childish, almost innocent smile.

"I ate all of them."

The delivery was so guileless, so unexpected, that even the Fourth Grand Elder let out a soft laugh.

The First Grand Elder just sighed.

"A glutton, are we?"

Aaryan shrugged. "They looked tasty. And I was in middle of a fight. One thing led to another."

More chuckles broke out across the hall. Even some who had sat stony-faced since the start couldn't help themselves.

Still, beneath the levity, a new undercurrent was forming.

They had their story now. But not the whole truth. Aaryan had laid out just enough—fact, restraint, and a few well-placed jokes to throw them off rhythm.

But there were still gaps. And some of the elders knew it.

The Fourth Grand Elder's smile didn't quite reach her eyes. Her earlier worry had not vanished. If anything, it had deepened.

And the First Grand Elder… he leaned back in his chair, lips pressed thin in thought.

Aaryan stood there, calm as ever. But his gaze had shifted—not mocking, not afraid.

Just waiting.

He knew they didn't trust him.

And that was fine.

Trust, after all, was far more dangerous than fear.

A thick silence stretched across the chamber after Aaryan's tale ended, taut as a drawn bowstring. No one moved. No one breathed too loud.

Then, finally, Second Grand Elder stirred, his voice warm and composed as he broke the stillness, with a warm, composed tone.

"You've endured much, Aaryan," he said, his voice carrying the weight of decorum rather than sentiment. "And you've shown great bravery. That much is now clear to everyone here."

A few heads nodded, some out of genuine respect, others simply following the winds.

He continued. "However, there remains one final matter to clarify before this assembly. One that concerns loyalty. Honor. Internal discipline."

He turned and gave a small nod to Elder Kiyan.

Without a word, Kiyan rose, stiff as a corpse, and disappeared into a side chamber behind the dais. The silence returned—but now it hummed with unease.

When the door opened again, it was Rudra who followed behind Kiyan.

Aaryan exhaled softly. 'So, it begins.'

He froze the moment his eyes fell on Aaryan.

Pale. Trembling. The young man's posture faltered, and for half a heartbeat, it looked like he might run. But he forced his feet forward, though every step carried the weight of dread. He had been certain Aaryan wouldn't survive. That was the only reason he'd dared to act. He never expected to be facing him again—not like this.

Aaryan barely spared him a glance.

His eyes flicked to Rudra, unreadable, then simply drifted away. As if Rudra wasn't worth the effort. As if the real battle was elsewhere.

'He's already dead. The rest of this? Just burial rites.'

Aaryan's hands remained at his sides. Calm. Collected. But his pulse was sharpened steel.

Second Grand Elder folded his hands and looked to the gathered elders.

"As reported by Elder Dharun," he began, tone now clipped and formal, "Rudra of Evernight Pavilion publicly humiliated his own junior disciple by forcing him to apologize to a member of the Cloud Pillar Sect."

Rudra's jaw tightened—the words hit harder than expected.

The Elder's voice did not falter. "Later, during the tomb trials, this same Rudra is said to have ambushed and stolen three scrolls Aaryan had earned, then left him to die, trapped and helpless."

The elders began murmuring again, the tension shifting.

"You, Aaryan, have confirmed this already during your report," he added, turning to him. "Correct?"

Aaryan gave a small nod, but said nothing more.

Rudra's legs shook beneath him. The blood drained from his face.

Beside him, Elder Kiyan looked stricken. A faint sheen of sweat clung to his brow. He turned, eyes snapping to the First Grand Elder.

"First Grand Elder, this—"

He never finished the sentence.

A subtle shift from the First Grand Elder's seat—just a raised hand—and Kiyan's words caught in his throat like a snare around the neck.

The Grand Elder didn't even speak. He just looked at him.

And Kiyan went silent.

Dharun's lips twitched. Not with joy—more like bitter amusement. He shifted ever so slightly toward Aaryan and muttered under his breath, "So much for righteous declarations and gallant rewards…"

Aaryan didn't respond, but his gaze was sharp as broken glass. 'Last time, Rudra was hailed as the pride of the Sect. Now?'

Rudra's strength evaporated, and with a soft groan, he sank to the ground, palms meeting the cold floor with a hollow thud.

Not a sound broke the tension as Rudra fell, and the air seemed to thicken with the weight of their collective gaze.

Second Grand Elder continued without emotion. "Such conduct is a direct violation of sect law. For betrayal of a fellow disciple and bringing dishonour upon the Evernight Pavilion, Rudra shall be—"

"I believe the Second Elder is mistaken."

The words were respectful. Calm.

But they stopped the room cold.

All heads turned to Aaryan. Even Rudra stared, stunned. Kiyan's mouth opened slightly. Dharun blinked.

Aaryan stepped forward—not pleading, not defending. Just… speaking.

"Rudra didn't technically betray me," he said.

A beat of silence.

Then another.

Even the Sect Leader leaned forward, eyes narrowing. The Fourth and Third Grand Elders exchanged a glance. The Second Grand Elder's fingers tapped his armrest once. Dharun looked like he might cough again—just to break the tension.

Only the First Grand Elder remained still, his ancient gaze pinned on Aaryan like a hawk watching a fox cross an open field.

'What are you playing at, boy?'

He said nothing. But Aaryan could almost hear it.

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