Chapter 4: Time Within Time

The mountain air bit with unexpected chill as Liu Mei followed the Crimson Phoenix delegation along the treacherous path to Cloudhaven. At the head of their procession walked Ren Zhao—tall and imposing in his sect's signature flame-red robes, his long black hair bound with gold thread that caught the morning light with each step. She had been formally introduced to her betrothed just two days ago, in a ceremony attended by elders from both sects. Ren Zhao had been perfectly courteous, bowing at exactly the correct angle, speaking the ritual phrases with practiced precision. His eyes, however, had been cold as winter frost. Now, as they made their way up the winding trail that Lin Feng had traveled alone weeks earlier, Ren Zhao called a halt with a casual gesture. The six Crimson Phoenix disciples accompanying them stopped immediately, their discipline evident in their synchronized movements. "Young Mistress Liu," Ren Zhao said, turning to her with the same perfect courtesy he had displayed during their introduction. "You've traveled this path before." It wasn't a question, but Liu Mei nodded. "Once, to deliver medical supplies to Elder Lian." "And your friend, the failed disciple." Ren Zhao's voice carried no obvious disdain, yet somehow managed to convey it nonetheless. "Tell me about him." Liu Mei chose her words carefully. "Lin Feng has struggled with the Soaring Dragon cultivation techniques. His progress has been... slower than most." "Until recently." Ren Zhao's eyes—a striking amber that seemed almost to glow in certain lights—fixed on hers with unnerving intensity. "According to Master Han, Elder Lian reported he has advanced to the third level of Qi Condensation in mere weeks." "Elder Lian's methods must suit him better," Liu Mei replied, maintaining an expression of mild interest. Ren Zhao studied her for a long moment, then smiled—a precise, controlled expression that never reached his eyes. "I look forward to meeting this... late bloomer. Such dramatic improvement is quite unusual." He turned back to the path, signaling for the group to continue. Liu Mei fell into step behind him, painfully aware of the pendant hanging at her throat. Since her desperate communication with Lin Feng two days ago, she had been terrified that someone would discover what she had done. But the pendant had shown no outward signs of the energy she had channeled through it, and neither Master Han nor Ren Zhao had commented on any change in it. Small mercies, perhaps. But Liu Mei would take whatever advantage she could find. She only hoped Lin Feng had enough time to prepare for what was coming. Because seeing Ren Zhao now, moving up the mountain with predatory grace, his body emanating a barely-contained power that made the air around him shimmer with heat, Liu Mei was certain of one thing: her betrothed was even more dangerous than she had warned Lin Feng. And he was hunting. "Focus," Elder Lian commanded, her voice penetrating the strange silence of the hidden cave. Lin Feng sat cross-legged at the center of an intricate array of jade fragments, each positioned precisely according to Elder Lian's instructions. The air within the cave felt thick, as if resistance itself had substance. Every movement required extra effort, like swimming through honey. "I am focusing," he replied, his words emerging unnaturally slowly, stretched and distorted. They had been in the cave for three days now—though "days" had become a relative concept within the partial time field Elder Lian had established. Outside, barely six hours had passed since they'd left Cloudhaven in the pre-dawn darkness. Six hours outside. Three days inside. The ratio stunned Lin Feng when Elder Lian had first explained it. For every hour that passed in the world beyond the cave, twelve hours passed within their temporal bubble. A day outside meant twelve days of training inside. Three days until the Crimson Phoenix delegation arrived meant thirty-six days of cultivation. "No," Elder Lian corrected, her voice somehow unaffected by the temporal distortion. "You're concentrating. Concentration is active, directed, exhausting. Focus is passive, receptive, sustainable." She moved around the circle of jade fragments, adjusting one slightly. "Don't try to force your perception of time. Allow it to expand naturally. Like watching clouds move across the sky—you don't will them to move, you simply witness their movement." Lin Feng tried to relax his mind, to shift from the intense effort of concentration to the more receptive state Elder Lian described. It was counterintuitive—after years of being taught that cultivation required constant, determined effort, the idea of passively receiving insight felt almost like giving up. But as he gradually released his mental grip, something shifted. The thick resistance surrounding him didn't diminish, but somehow he was no longer fighting against it. Instead, he began to perceive layers within it—currents and eddies in time itself. "Yes," Elder Lian said, the approval in her voice unmistakable. "Now you're beginning to see." Lin Feng opened his eyes, and the world had changed. The cave walls seemed to ripple slightly, not in space but in time—parts of them existing in moments slightly ahead or behind others. Elder Lian herself appeared surrounded by a faint violet haze, a visual manifestation of her manipulation of the temporal field. And the jade fragments forming the circle around him glowed with emerald light, each pulse slightly out of sync with the others. "This is... incredible," he breathed, the words flowing normally now despite the time distortion. "This is merely the surface," Elder Lian replied. "What you're experiencing is a training field—a simplified version of what the Jade Lotus Sect could create. The true temporal techniques allow for far more profound manipulations." She seated herself across from him. "But it will serve our purpose. Within this field, we can compress three days of training into each outside hour. By the time the Crimson Phoenix delegation arrives, you will have had the equivalent of several months of intensive cultivation." Lin Feng looked around at the cave with new appreciation. When Elder Lian had first led him here, hiking for hours up a nearly invisible mountain trail, he'd been skeptical. The cave had seemed ordinary—just another hollow in the endless ridges surrounding Cloudhaven. Now he understood why she had chosen it. The natural formation of the stone somehow amplified temporal effects, making it the perfect location for what they were attempting. "How did you find this place?" he asked. "Your father showed it to me," Elder Lian replied, a fleeting sadness crossing her features. "Before he sealed his cultivation and went into hiding. It was one of several contingency locations the surviving Jade Lotus disciples established after the time lock failed." She gestured toward the far wall of the cave, where a narrow crack admitted a thin shaft of daylight. "Now, let us continue. Focus on the jade lotus mark. Feel its connection to the fragments around you." Lin Feng closed his eyes again and turned his attention inward, to the warmth pulsing at the center of his chest. The lotus mark had become more prominent in recent days, its jade glow visible even through his robes when he channeled qi. As he focused on it now, he felt resonance—like plucking one string of an instrument and hearing others vibrate in response. The jade fragments surrounding him were answering the lotus mark's energy. "Good," Elder Lian's voice came from what seemed like a great distance. "Now, extend your perception further. Beyond the fragments. Beyond the cave." Lin Feng pushed his awareness outward, past the circle of jade, past the cave walls, into the mountain itself. To his astonishment, he sensed other resonances—faint but unmistakable—scattered throughout the peaks and valleys. More fragments of jade, hidden across the landscape. And something else. Something vast and powerful, so distant he could barely perceive it. A presence that felt somehow... familiar. "What is that?" he whispered. "You can sense it?" Elder Lian sounded surprised. "Already?" "Something to the north. Like an ocean of jade energy, but... hidden. Veiled." "The mountain," Elder Lian said softly. "The original Jade Lotus Sect mountain. What remains of it in our time stream." Lin Feng's eyes snapped open. "It still exists? You said it disappeared." "From normal perception, yes. But those with the bloodline, those connected to the jade energy..." She shook her head, clearly impressed. "Your sensitivity is remarkable. Your father couldn't sense the mountain until he reached Core Formation." Lin Feng was about to ask more when a sharp pain lanced through his chest. He gasped, clutching at the lotus mark, which had begun to burn with increasing intensity. "What's happening?" he demanded through gritted teeth. Elder Lian leaned forward, her expression shifting from surprise to urgent focus. "Someone is attempting to connect through the jade network. Someone with a compatible energy signature." The pain intensified, becoming almost unbearable. Lin Feng felt as if molten metal was being poured directly into his meridians. "Make it stop!" "I can't," Elder Lian said. "The connection is forming through your bloodline. You must either complete it or reject it entirely." "How do I—" Lin Feng began, but his words were cut off as the pain peaked and then suddenly transformed into something else entirely. The burning sensation condensed into a single point of radiant awareness, and within that awareness, a voice. *Lin Feng? Can you hear me?* The voice was distorted, as if traveling across a vast distance, but unmistakable. "Liu Mei?" he gasped. *Oh thank the heavens!* Her relief was palpable even through the strange connection. *I wasn't sure this would work. I don't have much time, so listen carefully.* Elder Lian had gone completely still, her violet eyes wide with what might have been alarm. *The Crimson Phoenix Sect is sending representatives to Cloudhaven,* Liu Mei's voice continued. *Led by Ren Zhao himself—the man I'm betrothed to. They'll arrive in three days.* "We know," Lin Feng replied, uncertain if she could hear him. "We received word." *What you don't know is that Ren Zhao possesses a special bloodline ability. He can directly sense jade energy, even when it's concealed. Master Han is sending me with him. They suspect something, Lin Feng. They suspect you.* The connection wavered, Liu Mei's voice becoming fainter. *I can't maintain this much longer. The pendant—it's taking too much of my qi. Be careful, Lin Feng. Ren Zhao is dangerous. More dangerous than you know.* "Liu Mei, wait!" Lin Feng called, but the presence was already fading. "How did you do this? How did you find me?" Her voice came back once more, barely audible now. *The betrothal pendant. It's connected to the jade network somehow. I don't understand it fully, but... I had to warn you. I had to—* The connection severed with a sensation like ice water down Lin Feng's spine. The jade fragments surrounding him flared brilliantly for an instant, then dimmed to a subtle glow. For several moments, neither Lin Feng nor Elder Lian spoke. The temporal distortion in the cave seemed to thicken in the silence, making each heartbeat feel like an eternity. "That," Elder Lian finally said, "was unexpected." Lin Feng looked up at her, still shaken by the experience. "How is this possible? You said the pendant she wears was designed to detect jade energy, not communicate through it." "It shouldn't be able to," Elder Lian replied, her brow furrowed in thought. "The Crimson Phoenix detection pendants were created specifically to hunt our sect. They're attuned to jade energy but shouldn't be able to manipulate it." She paused. "Unless..." "Unless what?" "Unless they were modified from original Jade Lotus communication talismans." Elder Lian's expression darkened. "It would explain their effectiveness. The Crimson Phoenix Sect has always been skilled at corrupting others' techniques for their own use." Lin Feng absorbed this, then focused on the more immediate concern. "Liu Mei said Ren Zhao can sense jade energy directly, even when concealed. Is that possible?" "Unfortunately, yes. The Crimson Phoenix bloodline was specifically cultivated to counter ours. Their founders bred for sensitivity to temporal manipulation." Elder Lian's voice held ancient bitterness. "Some of them can perceive disruptions in natural time flow as easily as we see color." "Then the pendant you gave me won't help." "It will reduce the signal, but not eliminate it entirely. Not from someone with Ren Zhao's abilities." Elder Lian rose smoothly to her feet. "We must intensify your training. You need to break through to Foundation Establishment before they arrive." Lin Feng stood as well, wincing as his muscles protested the sudden movement after hours of stillness. "Even with the time field, is that possible? You said Foundation Establishment usually takes years of preparation." "For ordinary cultivators, yes." Elder Lian's violet eyes gleamed with determination. "But you are the son of Feng Wuying, with the purest Jade Lotus bloodline in three generations. And you have something even your father lacked." "What's that?" "Necessity," she replied grimly. "The most powerful catalyst for breakthrough there is."