Dreamers in the Dark

On the Field —

The Sacred Heart Lotus was about to bloom. This rare spiritual herb wasn't just coveted by nearby beasts, whose eyes gleamed with greed, but also by hidden hunters scattered across the Blightfire Expanse—each lying in wait for the perfect moment to strike.

—

Under the moonlight that quietly bathed the vast forest, a young man in white robes hovered silently in midair at the edge of the Blightfire Expanse. His long black hair whipped behind him in the wind, and his clothes flapped with soft phlus-phlus sounds. His expression was calm, but his sharp eyes swept over the landscape below.

He extended his spiritual consciousness outward, probing the surroundings within a mile radius. Unlike Su Chen, who possessed the rare Wood Sovereign Scripture and could scan vast distances, this young cultivator's range was limited. After all, for someone at the early Foundation Building Realm, one mile was already the standard limit.

As he hovered in the air, the young man muttered to himself, "Master, are you sure this forest is as dangerous as you say? I've scanned the area and… I don't see anything unusual. Could you have been mistaken?"

To the outside observer, it seemed like he was talking to himself. But soon, a response came—not from a companion, but from the jade pendant hanging hidden beneath his robe.

"Hehe, little Chen," an elderly voice chuckled warmly, "you've only scanned a mile, and you think that's enough to understand the dangers of this forest? If it were safe, do you think the world would mark it as a forbidden area? Very few people ever make it out of here alive."

Jiang Chen's eyes flickered slightly. He didn't show it on his face, but his heart tightened just a bit. His master, however, noticed.

The voice in the pendant continued, gentler now. "Don't worry too much. We only need to go a little deeper, not all the way in. When the time comes, I'll help you. Once we get the Sacred Heart Lotus, it will not only restore your lost physique, but evolve it as well—and help you build a truly solid foundation."

Gratitude welled up in Jiang Chen's eyes. But when he heard the word physique, a wave of suppressed anger and longing surged through him.

He was once born with the Flood Dragon Physique—a legendary gift praised in the ancient records. On the day of his birth, purple clouds gathered from the east, and a massive dragon shadow had appeared in the skies above his home. His birth shocked the nation. Countless sects tried to recruit him, but the Emperor of his homeland personally claimed him as the Holy Son of the Empire. He was even betrothed to the imperial princess, famed for her beauty and elegance.

By the age of sixteen, he had already reached the Core Formation Realm and was invited to the palace for his engagement ceremony. It should have been a day of celebration.

Instead, it was a trap.

After he and his family were served wine and food, they all fell unconscious. The emperor had planned everything in secret. Using a forbidden ritual, the Emperor extracted Jiang Chen's Flood Dragon Physique and transferred it to his own son, the crown prince. Then, he declared the Jiang family traitors—and ordered them all executed.

Jiang Chen would've died too… if not for a miracle.

That very pendant he wore, something he'd once casually bought at a street stall because it caught his eye, turned out to be a treasure—housing the soul of a powerful cultivator. At the brink of death, the soul awakened and saved him.

Since then, this mysterious master had not only helped him recover a portion of his cultivation but had also told him about the Sacred Heart Lotus. Back then, the master had discovered it before its blooming period and sealed the area with a formation. Now that it was finally maturing, they had returned to claim it.

"Alright, Master," Jiang Chen said firmly, eyes bright with determination. "Let's head in and take it."

"Heh. You think it's that easy?" the master's voice replied with a chuckle. "The Sacred Heart Lotus will take another seven days to fully bloom. Until then, this jungle may look peaceful, but danger lurks everywhere. Poisonous insects, spirit beasts, and maybe even other cultivators will be drawn here. First, let's find a secure location nearby and set up camp. When the time comes, we'll make our move."

Jiang Chen was slightly disappointed, but he nodded in understanding. "Understood, Master."

He slowly descended from the sky and stepped into the shadows of the jungle, his white robes fluttering as he disappeared into the depths of the Blightfire Expanse.

Ten miles away from the Sacred Heart Lotus...

A cluster of towering canopy trees loomed in the moonlight, their thick foliage blotting out the stars. One particularly massive tree rose above the rest like a natural fortress. Its sprawling branches tangled with vines, the crown so dense not even a sliver of sky could peek through.

Perched lazily on one of the highest branches, hidden among the leaves, sat a black crow.

"Ughh… how long is this stupid lotus gonna take to bloom?" the crow muttered, shifting his claws impatiently. "Once I eat that thing… hehe, my bloodline's gonna evolve, and I'll become a supreme genius. Then, all the beauties of the world will throw themselves at me! I'll be emperor! Ha! Just wait…"

The crow—who was very clearly lost in his own delusions—snickered to himself like a madman. "And when those crusty old bastards from my clan who kicked me out come crawling back, begging me to return, I'll spit in their faces and tell them to screw off! HA!"

This wasn't just any ordinary crow.

His name was Da Huang, a descendant of the once-glorious Golden Crown Clan from the Upper Realm. Unfortunately for him, when he was born, his feathers were black instead of golden, and his bloodline was labeled "mutated trash." In a clan obsessed with purity and perfection, that was basically a death sentence.

The elders wanted to erase him on the spot, but his parents—both influential figures in the clan—barely managed to protect him. Still, he was branded a waste and exiled from the clan. His parents couldn't defy the elders and were forced to abandon him.

As if that weren't enough, while he was flying aimlessly one day, brooding over his misfortune, he got sucked into a spatial storm and ended up in this backwater lower realm.

But life wasn't entirely unfair.

Da Huang had discovered that his so-called "mutated bloodline" came with a strange ability—he could sense valuable treasures, no matter how well hidden. And that's how he found out about the Sacred Heart Lotus. He'd been stalking it for three whole months, waiting for it to ripen.

And now... finally... it was almost time.

"Hehe... Just wait, you clueless fools," Da Huang murmured sleepily, his beady eyes beginning to close. "Once I get that lotus, this Da Huang will rise again. A new era is coming... the era of the crow emperor..."

He chuckled softly to himself, clearly drifting off into another self-indulgent fantasy.

Watching him, it was hard to tell if he was a genius in disguise... or just completely insane.

Either way, let him dream.