Chapter 2: Cinders and Shadows

Chen Mo awoke to the acrid sting of smoke.

His eyes snapped open, the system's pale text already glowing in the darkness:

[Environmental Hazard Detected: Smoke Inhalation]

[Auto-Qi Activation: 5 Qi/hour (Emergency Mode)]

The hut's walls glowed orange, heat warping the air. Through cracks in the door, he glimpsed figures silhouetted against flames—Lu Tao's hulking lackeys tossing oil-soaked rags onto the thatched roof. Their laughter mingled with the roar of fire.

*Right on schedule,* Chen Mo thought, rolling off his moldy cot. Xia Ling's warning had bought him precisely six hours. Enough time to prepare.

He crouched beside the loose floorboard where he'd hidden three items: a stolen fire-quenching talisman, a vial of powdered Moonbat Guano, and the real prize—a [Decoy Puppet] crafted from bundled straw and his own discarded fingernails. The system had labeled it [Trash] until he'd infused it with 10 Qi. Now its description glowed faintly:

[Decoy Puppet (Grade-1)]

Effect: Mimics Host's Vital Signs (Duration: 15 Minutes)

Chen Mo pricked his thumb, smearing blood across the puppet's head. It twitched to life, staggering toward the burning door with uncanny mimicry of his limp.

"Look! The rat's trying to flee!" shouted a lackey.

Chen Mo ducked into the corner as the roof collapsed. Flames engulfed the decoy, its straw body burning with human-like screams. Outside, Lu Tao's gang whooped.

[Decoy Puppet Destroyed]

[Quest Complete: "Survive the Initiation"]

[Reward Claimed: 50 System Qi, "Ashwalker" Passive Skill]

The moment the lackeys turned to leave, Chen Mo activated the fire-quenching talisman. Blue mist erupted from his palm, dousing flames in a ten-foot radius—just enough to carve an escape path through the back wall.

He emerged into moonlit frost, the cold biting through his singed robes. The Ashwalker skill hummed beneath his skin, masking his footsteps in the remains of his own hut's cinders.

---

**Three Hours Earlier**

"You're seriously cultivating that death manual?"

Xia Ling perched on the rotting windowsill, her lotus scars crinkling as she frowned at the jade slip in Chen Mo's hands. The Hall of Whispers loomed behind her, its shadow stretching across the training grounds like a clawed hand.

Chen Mo didn't look up from organizing his meager herbs. "Better than the alternatives."

"Alternatives like living?" She tossed him a steamed bun wrapped in lotus leaves. "Elder Guo's disciples get real manuals. The rest of us get recycled toilet paper."

He caught the bun, system text flashing:

[Xia Ling's Suspicion Level: 30%]

"Generous today," he noted. The bun's warmth seeped into his palms—a luxury outer disciples rarely saw.

Xia Ling shrugged. "Consider it an investment. Anyone dumb enough to choose the Phoenix Manual might be dumb enough to survive Lu Tao."

Chen Mo unwrapped the bun slowly. "And if I don't?"

"I'll claim your herbs before the vultures descend." Her smile didn't reach her eyes.

[Quest Alert: "An Ally's Trust"]

[Objective: Lower Xia Ling's Suspicion Below 10%]

[Reward: Shared Map Function Unlocked]

He took a deliberate bite. Millet and honey exploded on his tongue—far richer than standard rations. Stolen, then.

"You've been to the inner sect's kitchens," he said.

Xia Ling froze.

"The lotus leaves." Chen Mo gestured with the remains. "Outer sect ones have seven veins. These have nine."

For a heartbeat, genuine fear flickered across her face. Then she laughed—a bright, brittle sound. "Careful, cursed one. Sharp eyes get plucked out here."

She vanished into the twilight, leaving Chen Mo with half a stolen bun and a new notification:

[Xia Ling's Suspicion Level: 45%]

---

**Present**

Chen Mo crouched in the icy creek behind the burnt hut, watching Lu Tao's lackeys celebrate. The Ashwalker skill blended his Qi with the surrounding ash, rendering him invisible to spiritual senses. For now.

[Auto-Qi: 78/100]

He'd need every drop. The cursed manual's instructions burned in his mind: *To rise from ash, one must first become cinder.*

Chen Mo plunged his hands into the creek's freezing waters. The system's energy surged through his meridians, drawing heat from his core into his palms. Steam erupted as fire and water collided.

[New Skill Unlocked: "Phoenix's Sigh"]

Effect: Convert Qi into Thermal Energy (1 Qi = 10 Seconds of Ignition)

When he withdrew his hands, the river stones glowed cherry-red. Perfect.

He arranged them in a spiral pattern around Lu Tao's lackeys' retreat path, each stone pulsing with contained fire. The final touch—a sprinkle of Moonbat Guano on the central stone—would ensure maximum chaos.

The explosion lit up the northern barracks.

---

**Dawn**

Elder Guo surveyed the smoldering training ground, his serpent-beard twitching. Three outer disciples lay moaning in healing cots, their robes still smoking.

"An unstable fire talisman," he declared to the gathered crowd. "Let this be a lesson against hoarding treasures beyond your station."

Lu Tao stood rigid at the elder's side, face pale. Chen Mo lingered at the crowd's edge, coughing piteously into a soot-stained sleeve.

Xia Ling materialized beside him. "You missed a spot." She flicked ash from his collar.

"Don't know what you mean."

"The Decoy Puppet was clever." Her voice dropped to a whisper. "But next time, bury the fingernails deeper. Lu Tao's hound caught scent."

Chen Mo's blood ran cold. She knew.

[Xia Ling's Suspicion Level: 72%]

She pressed something into his palm—a shard of jade from the destroyed puppet. "The Hall of Whispers' sublevels have better materials. Meet me tonight."

[Quest Updated: "An Ally's Trust"]

[New Objective: Investigate Hall of Whispers Sublevel 1]

As she walked away, the system flashed crimson:

[Heavenly Dao Anomaly Intensifying]

[Recommended Action: Immediate Investigation]

Chen Mo pocketed the jade shard. Its surface felt unnaturally warm, vibrating with the same rhythm as the cursed manual's words.

*To rise from ash…*

He glanced at Lu Tao, now receiving a public scolding.

*…first become cinder.*