A new day, the sunlight pierced through the cracks in the window once again.
Shen slowly opened his eyes, his body still a bit sore from the previous day's work, but strangely it was less than usual. His sister didn't need to wake him up this time; his morning exhaustion was also reduced. He should have felt happy about this, but it was impossible to be in a good mood given the situation of the last few days.
A week had passed since Yu Cheng's death, and three more people were found dead inside and near the village, all meeting their ends in brutal ways.
The usual birdsong was gone. In the distance, hurried footsteps on the dirt road could be heard. He remained silent for a moment, just listening. People whispered, their voices so low they barely reached his window. Shen held his breath to listen better.
"...found near the river..."
"...there was almost nothing left..."
The conversation stopped when they noticed movement inside the house. The street fell silent again, cut only by the creak of a fast-passing cart, its driver staring straight ahead. Shortly after, a door slammed shut in a nearby house. Shen felt his chest tighten. The village was changing. Each new body found left everyone more afraid, as if the land itself were cursed.
A child's call pulled him from these thoughts.
"Brother!", Xiaoyun's voice echoed through the narrow room. "Aren't you ever going to get up? I'm starving!"
Shen let out a sigh, rubbing his eyes. The contrast between the fear outside and his sister's lightness made him smile. At least this part of his life remained unchanged. He got up and walked to the kitchen.
Xiaoyun was already there, sitting on a wooden chair, swinging her small legs in the air. Her hair, tied in two braids, was a bit messy, and her gray eyes shone with a mix of impatience and joy.
"You only think about eating, don't you?" Shen teased, grabbing the bag of rice stored in the corner.
"I'm in a growth phase, I need to eat a lot," she said with conviction. "And yesterday you almost burned the porridge."
He laughed softly and threw a handful of grains into the pot with water. The sound of boiling began to fill the empty space of the house, bringing a strange sense of normalcy. As he stirred the mixture, Shen watched his sister out of the corner of his eye. Despite the complaints and energy, there was a shadow in her gaze. Even she felt the weight of the village's mood, even if she didn't say anything.
"Is it going to take long?" Xiaoyun prodded. "I'm really hungry."
"It'll be ready soon." Shen took some dried herb leaves from a small pot and threw them into the pan. The soft scent began to spread through the air.
When he served the porridge in wooden bowls, Xiaoyun made a face.
"Always the same thing..." she murmured, before putting the spoon to her mouth. The silence lasted only an instant. "Hmm! It's good. Better than yesterday."
Outside, the village remained immersed in tense silence. But inside, in that cramped kitchen, Shen and Xiaoyun found refuge in each other. As she devoured the bowl of porridge, he allowed himself to believe that, for a few moments, fear could be kept away.
***
Shen found Hua Fang at the village entrance shortly after finishing breakfast with Xiaoyun. The man was already waiting for him, his axe resting on his shoulder, his skin glistening with sweat even so early. The deep lines on his face and his disheveled beard gave the impression that he never rested.
"You're late," Hua Fang said, frowning, though his tone was more habitual than reproach.
"Sorry, it won't happen again."
"It's okay, boy, relax a little."
Together, they followed the trail that led to the forest. The path was narrow, surrounded by twisted trees that blocked much of the light. For a few minutes, they walked in silence, listening only to the rustling of small animals fleeing through the bushes. Hua Fang was the first to break the silence.
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"The village is strange," he grumbled. "Yesterday I closed the doors before it even got dark. It's no way to live."
Shen just nodded. The weight of those words had been on his shoulders since he woke up.
"How is your mother?" Hua Fang suddenly asked, his gaze fixed on the path ahead.
Shen took a moment to answer. "She's tired... just tired." He didn't like to talk about the subject, preferring to downplay the situations in his life for outsiders.
Hua Fang bit his lower lip, as if he wanted to say something more, but ended up staying quiet. The silence between them stretched, burdened with something Shen couldn't decipher.
The work started quickly. Hua Fang pointed out the trees that needed to be cut down, and Shen obeyed, carrying the already-cut logs to the point where they would stack them. The effort made his muscles burn, but Shen was used to it.
The axe came down rhythmically, echoing through the grove. With each blow, wood chips flew, and the fresh scent of sap filled the air. Shen felt sweat run down his face and back, but he didn't stop.
That's when, as he aimed at a thick log, something different happened. His body seemed to act on its own, as if his arm were moved by a force beyond him. The axe came down violently, and the log split in one go, cracking like a dry branch.
The sound echoed loudly, startling a flock of birds that fled among the treetops. Hua Fang took a step back, almost hit by a splinter.
"For heaven's sake, boy!" he exclaimed, his eyes wide. "Do you want to scare me to death?"
Shen swallowed hard, trying to control his breathing. He feigned fatigue, leaning the axe on the ground. "I think I got a little carried away."
Hua Fang shook his head but still looked at the broken log with suspicion.
"I've never seen you cut one of those so easily."
Shen forced a smile. "Maybe I hit the right spot."
Hua Fang grunted, not very convinced, and went back to work.
But inside Shen, his heart beat faster. He could feel a strange vibration running through his body, as if something was circulating in his veins besides blood. The axe still felt lighter in his hand, and the world around him was sharper.
***
During the late afternoon, Li Shen walked towards the village; he had just left his work at the rice plantation, and his payment was still reduced, to his unhappiness. Due to the recent events involving the deaths by a supposed demonic beast, in addition to his previous experience in the forest, he didn't dare to venture far from the village alone. Because of this, his routine of hunting before sunset had ended.
He just wanted to get home, rest a little and maybe prepare something for Xiaoyun.
But before he even reached the main street, he heard someone call him.
"Shen! Hey, Shen!"
Nie Rong ran towards him, his expression too animated to match the heavy atmosphere of the village. He was a long-time friend. Dust rose behind his hurried steps, and when he stopped in front of him, he was already out of breath.
"I finally found you," he said, resting his hands on his knees. "I've been looking for you since early morning."
Shen raised an eyebrow. "What is it this time?"
Nie Rong laughed, his yellowed teeth showing. "I managed to get a good job."
"Oh yeah?"
"Yes. Old Liu Zhen needs workers on his farm. And it's not just any low-paying job, Shen. He's offering double the normal rate."
Shen was silent for a moment. Liu Zhen was known to be a retired cultivator, someone who had once served the Sect but had lived reclusively for years. The farm was a bit far from the village, surrounded by productive lands, but hardly anyone saw the man in public. Still, no one dared to disrespect him.
"Did you already accept?" Shen asked.
"Of course! And I thought of you right away. Hard work, it will last a few days, but it's better than carrying wood with that grumbling Hua Fang in your ear." Nie Rong nudged his arm, laughing.
Shen asked a few more questions.
The payment really seemed good. Money was something that was never left over in his house. With Xiaoyun always hungry and his mother tired, any extra coin could make a difference.
But then the memory of what happened earlier came back to his mind, along with the thought that had been with him for months: the Twilight Sect.
"Do you know how much the inscription for the Sect costs?" he asked suddenly.
Nie Rong blinked, surprised by the change of subject. "The inscription? Well... I heard it's five hundred Zuens now. It went up again because of the last admissions."
Shen's stomach churned. Five hundred Zuens. Almost everything he had saved, the fruit of years of work. Money that could guarantee medicine for his mother, food for the next winter... but also the chance to change everything.
Nie Rong seemed to notice the struggle in his friend's eyes. "Hey, don't tell me you're still thinking about that."
Shen didn't answer.
"Shen, you know how hard it is to get in. They don't want someone like us there. They want sons of rich families and lineage stories. If you spend all that on it and get rejected, what will be left?"
The words sounded harsh, but Nie Rong didn't speak out of malice. He seemed more worried than anything else. Shen, however, felt his heart tighten.
'If I don't try, nothing will ever change.'
He looked at the sky, where the Sect's banners fluttered in the distance, high on the mountain. That sight always seemed to mock him, as if the Sect was too close to be ignored and too distant to be reached.
"Rong, I can feel it... I'm close to something, I feel like I just need a push, a tip, something to help me take the next step," he finally said.
Nie Rong's eyes widened. "Are you serious?"
"Yes. The problem is that I don't think I'm capable of taking that step alone. Maybe, if I'm accepted into the Sect, someone can help me."