Cast Out into the Wild

The grand hall of the Lin family estate grew quiet, the echoes of mocking laughter fading into a heavy, oppressive silence. Lin Fan stood motionless, his fists clenched so tightly that his nails dug into his palms. The shame from Su Xue Rou's cutting words—and the audience's cruel jeers—still burned in his chest, but he refused to shed a tear. Tears were for the defeated, for those who accepted their fate. Lin Fan had no plans to accept anything.

"Enough of this nonsense!" barked Lin Zhen Tian, the patriarch of the Lin family. His voice cut through the room like a whip, silencing the remaining murmurs. He stepped forward, his expression grim, but there was no kindness in his eyes as he looked at Lin Fan. The shame his son had brought to the Lin family today was unforgivable. Su Xue Rou's public rejection had not only humiliated Lin Fan but had tarnished the family's reputation in the city.

"Lin Fan," Zhen Tian said coldly, "you have embarrassed the Lin family for the last time. You are unfit to bear the Lin name. As of this moment, you are no longer my son."

There was a collective gasp in the room. Even among those who had mocked Lin Fan, few expected such a harsh decree. Lin Fan's head snapped up, his eyes wide with disbelief.

"Father, you—" he began, but Zhen Tian cut him off with a dismissive wave.

"You are a disgrace," Zhen Tian said, his voice dripping with disdain. "You lack the talent to cultivate, the strength to defend yourself, and now you have brought nothing but shame upon this family. Leave this house. From this day forward, the Lin family owes you nothing."

The words struck Lin Fan harder than any physical blow. He was no stranger to his father's disappointment—he had lived with it for years—but to be cast out entirely? To lose his family name and the only home he had ever known? It was a punishment far crueler than he could have imagined.

The gathered guests watched in silence, some with pity, others with smug satisfaction. Su Xue Rou and Shen Hao Ran had already left, their laughter still echoing faintly in Lin Fan's ears.

With nothing left to say, Lin Fan turned and walked toward the exit. His steps were heavy, but he refused to let his head hang in shame. He would not give these people the satisfaction of seeing him broken.

As he crossed the threshold of the Lin family estate, the gates slammed shut behind him with a thunderous finality.

The air outside was cold, biting against Lin Fan's skin as he set foot on the winding dirt road leading away from the estate. The sky above was a dark, iron gray, mirroring the storm of emotions raging within him.

For hours, he walked aimlessly, his mind a chaotic swirl of anger, grief, and determination. The humiliation he had suffered, the scorn of his peers, and his father's cruel words—all of it weighed heavily on him.

"Is this how it ends?" Lin Fan muttered to himself, his voice barely audible. "Am I truly so worthless?"

Doubt began to creep into his thoughts, poisoning the fragile resolve he had clung to. His hands trembled, not from the cold but from frustration. He wanted to scream, to curse the heavens for the unfairness of his life, but he knew it would change nothing.

As the sun dipped below the horizon, darkness fell over the landscape. Lin Fan found himself at the edge of a dense forest, its towering trees casting long, menacing shadows. The forest was known as the Blackthorn Woods, a place whispered about in the city for its dangers. Few dared to venture into its depths, and fewer still returned.

Lin Fan hesitated. He had no destination in mind, no plan for what to do next. The Lin family had been his entire world, and now that world was gone. What was left for him?

"If I'm going to die," he muttered bitterly, "I might as well die fighting."

With that thought, he stepped into the woods.

The Blackthorn Woods were as foreboding as the rumors claimed. The air was thick and damp, carrying the faint scent of decay. The trees loomed overhead like skeletal sentinels, their gnarled branches twisting into eerie shapes. Every snap of a twig underfoot and rustle of leaves in the wind set Lin Fan on edge.

He wandered deeper into the forest, his eyes darting nervously at every shadow. The faint light of the moon barely penetrated the thick canopy above, leaving much of the forest shrouded in darkness.

Suddenly, a low growl broke the silence. Lin Fan froze, his breath catching in his throat. From the shadows emerged a creature—a wolf-like beast with glowing red eyes and jagged fangs. Its fur bristled as it snarled, its gaze locked onto Lin Fan.

Lin Fan's heart pounded in his chest. He had no weapon, no cultivation to defend himself with. He was utterly defenseless.

The beast lunged.

Lin Fan barely managed to dodge, stumbling backward and falling to the ground. The creature snarled again, circling him like a predator toying with its prey. Desperation clawed at Lin Fan's mind. Was this how it would end?

But just as the beast prepared to strike again, a faint light began to glow in the distance. Lin Fan's eyes widened as the light grew brighter, illuminating the forest around him. The wolf-beast hesitated, its red eyes narrowing.

The light seemed to call to Lin Fan, filling him with a strange sense of hope. He scrambled to his feet and ran toward it, ignoring the pain in his legs and the sound of the beast chasing after him.

The light led him to a clearing, where an ancient stone altar stood, covered in moss and glowing faintly with an otherworldly aura. At its center was a strange, circular object—a wheel, carved with intricate symbols that seemed to shift and shimmer in the light.

As Lin Fan approached the altar, the wheel began to spin on its own, radiating a powerful energy that made the air hum with tension.

The wolf-beast lunged into the clearing, growling menacingly, but the light from the wheel flared, driving it back with a pained howl.

Lin Fan stared at the wheel in awe. His instincts told him this was no ordinary object. This was something far greater. Something that could change everything.

And for the first time since his exile, Lin Fan felt a spark of hope.

"What… are you?" he whispered.

The wheel continued to spin, its glow intensifying, as if answering the question he had not dared to ask.