Hidden By Moonlight

The ground erupted in crimson light before anyone could react.

Ghostly howls tore through the ravine—not mere sound, but the screaming of souls, twisted in eternal agony.

"Back!" Lu Shixian's warning came half a breath too late.

Formation lines surged beneath their feet, snapping like iron chains. Meridians froze. Qi locked. Muscles refused to move.

They were trapped—body and soul.

Then—

BOOM.

A streak of silver moonlight tore through the sky.

Lady Yuexian descended like a falling star. Her fan shimmered with divine energy in one hand; the other already slick with blood. She struck the array's heart with raw spiritual force—

—and took the full backlash.

The shockwave hurled her across the ground, slamming her into the dirt beside Lin Yuan.

She coughed. Blood trickled from the corner of her lips.

"Sect Leader!" the disciples shouted, rushing to her side—but it was too late.

The attackers were gone.

Only silence remained.

This hadn't been an ambush.

It had been a trap from the start.

Lin Yuan woke with fire in his veins.

His body trembled. His soul felt raw, as if flayed open. The poison had already begun its slow spread—he could feel it, a rot gnawing at his core.

His Sunfire seed pulsed violently, resisting the corruption.

Nearby, Lady Yuexian sat in silent meditation. Her face pale. A dry trail of blood marked her chin. Without opening her eyes, she extended a pill.

"Take it. It'll slow the decay."

He swallowed it without hesitation.

Then—

> "Tell her you need to pee."

Lady Mingyan's voice sliced into his thoughts like a blade.How could he tell this. When attackers are outside. They might get suspicious.

Clearing his throat, Lin Yuan whispered, "Sect Leader… I need to relieve myself."

Wu Yuerong snorted. "Pee in the bushes like a beast. Watch out for snakes."

Teng Fei chuckled. "Or worse. Girls like you should be careful."

Lady Yuexian barely opened her eyes. "The poisoner fled when he sensed our ancestors. Go. But stay close."

Lady mingyan say, "I am going to kill the attacker. I remember soul aura from ruin. Pick me up in the market around the fruit shops. "

Lin Yuan Return to the Sect with other in a small sprit ship.

They journeyed back in strained silence.

At the gates, Wu Yuerong's fury exploded. "We were bait! They sent us there to die!"

Teng Fei snarled, "This wasn't an investigation—it was a setup."

Lin Yuan understand sect leader try her best to save him.When they start complaining about when they are not injured,lin yuan can't take it anymore.Lin Yuan turned, voice like ice. "If we were bait… so was the Sect Leader. And she took the worst of it."

Silence fell.

Back inside Yuexian's residence, Xiao Hu shoved a warm milk bottle into her hands. "Drink. Now."

Too tired to argue, she obeyed.

Qingxue rubbed her forehead gently. "You'll feel better soon," she whispered, her tiny hands glowing with healing light.

Lin Yuan wrapped clean bandages around her wounds. "Rest, Grandmaster. You're bleeding internally."

Her fingers trembled, catching his wrist. "You're hurt too… but this mission came from Taiyin Holy Land. I couldn't refuse.I am sorry. I'll find a way to heal you. I swear it."

Lin Yuan said nothing.

He slipped into the city like a shadow.

Stalls lined the crowded roads. Merchants barked prices. The air reeked of spices and smoke. He pushed through the crowd until—

Lady Mingyan stepped from a dark alley, tossing him a storage bag.

"Buy every Soul Fruit you can find."

One hour later, he returned with:

1,320 Soul Fruits

20,000 Strawberries

20,000 Blackberries

20,000 Peaches

A mountain of spiritual fruits

Total cost: 35 high-grade spirit stones.

Whispers followed him like flies:

> "Showing off again."

"Wasting spirit stones."

"Who does she think she is?"

He ignored them.

Back in the courtyard, Qingxue was already slicing fruit like a one-girl army. Xiao Hu had three peaches stuffed into his sleeves.

> "Training. Now.We have to treat your poison. "

Lady Mingyan's voice rang in his mind.

She led him beyond the outer formations, up a desolate cliff where the wind screamed like ghosts.

"Soundproof barrier."

He activated three locking runes.

She eyed him. "You felt it, didn't you? How your Sunfire reacted?"

He nodded.

She revealed a demonic orb, burning with unstable flame. "Feed this to your seed. It'll grow stronger."

Two hours later, his dantian was a forge—burning not with pain, but power.

Lady Mingyan smirked. "Now for the real cure."

She produced a jar of glowing ants.

"Soul-devouring insects," she explained. "They'll eat your rotten soul. We will just use the ant to cut it down. And force your soul to heal. Don't worry it's the best solution for this."

Lin Yuan stared. "I thought we were done."

She popped the cork.

"Soul pills delay decay. These? They burn it out."

She scattered them across his bare back.

The first bite was fire.

The second was ice.

By the tenth, his vision blurred.

He writhed.

"Don't kill them," Lady Mingyan snapped. "They're saving your life."

Then she leaned in—and unleashed a Soul-Shaking Roar into his ear.

The cliff shuddered.

Lin Yuan's body convulsed—

—and the world vanished into darkness.

---

Awakening

He woke to dawn's golden rays spilling over the peaks.

His body ached. His soul still itched where the ants had bitten. But the poison no longer spread—his Sunfire burned hotter than ever.

He grabbed a pouch and devoured forty Soul Fruits in one sitting.

> "Once you recover," came Lady Mingyan's whisper, "your soul will surpass Xiao Hu's."

Still dazed, he returned to Yuexian's residence and collapsed.

---

While Lin Yuan slept, Xiao Hu and Qingxue returned from the market with milk, meat, and seeds.

Xiao Hu fired up a wok.

Oil sizzled. Chili sparked. Garlic danced in the pan.

Then—

BOOM!

A cloud of black smoke billowed from the kitchen.

Lady Yuexian and Lin Yuan ran in to find Xiao Hu grinning through soot.

"Everything's fine! Nothing's burnt! Go back to bed!"

Lin Yuan groaned. "Don't cook with spiritual herbs unless you know what they do."

"I did check! ...Mostly!"

Miraculously, the food was edible—charred meat in a spicy tomato glaze.

"If it's too spicy, drink milk," Xiao Hu declared proudly.

Qingxue brought out a frosted snow lotus cake.

"This is what dessert should taste like."

Xiao Hu took a bite. Chewed.

"…Fine. It's good."

---

That night, Lady Yuexian activated a miniature Moonlight Formation.

"Not as powerful as the central array," she murmured. "But it'll help.It's your personal mini formation. "

Lin Yuan stepped inside.

The silver light caressed his skin like falling snow.

He sat cross-legged, eyes closed, soul fruit in hand.

With each bite, he felt his fractured soul begin to mend.His mother help him cultivate. He sleep in the formation.Only come out in night for taking with everyone. In the formation they use ant 2 mother time. Now almost 50 present soul are pure. Eating fresh fruit is easy and effective. Where healing pill just don't work very well. Lin Yuan eat as much as possible so that he didn't become skinny.

---

Like this one mouth had gone by. One night, Lady Yuexian looked at him with strange softness.

"I've decided," she said. "You must participate in the beauty competition."

Lin Yuan blinked. "…Excuse me?"

She smiled, dead serious. "And I want you to win first place."

Next Chapter: The beauty competition, the visiting princesses, and the hidden plot that could change the fate of TT---Would you like help outlining the beauty competition events, visiting factions, or how Lin Yuan's entry ss