Path of Infernal Dao

The courtyard reeked of soot, blood, and secrets left too long in the sun.

Shen Yao stood alone at the edge of the Southern Outer Pavilion, where the flame-engraved tiles still bore traces of his tribulation. His robe hung open, revealing half-healed marks along his chest. His core was quiet now—but it was the silence before a blade is drawn, not after it's sheathed.

[System Update: Sinflame Ledger – New Entry]

Name: Yun Fei (Tier-3 Inner Disciple)

Crime: Hidden Collusion, Betrayal (Past Life)

Karmic Trail Confirmed. Eligible for Marking.

Yun Fei.

In his past life, he had laughed beside Shen Yao, trained beside him, toasted with him. He had also, Shen Yao now remembered, passed on the coordinates of Shen Yao's secluded cultivation chamber to the executioners.

He didn't strike the killing blow but he smiled when they did.

That smile returned now in memory, bright and polished, as Yun Fei passed by with a casual swagger near the sect's Flame Orchid garden. He was unchanged—same high ponytail, the same golden-trimmed inner disciple robe, same cocky voice he used to charm the junior sisters with.

But Shen Yao was no longer the man who admired him.

Now, he marked him.

[Burn Imprint Engaged – Yun Fei]

Effect: All Qi techniques used by Yun Fei are traceable through flame resonance. His death will grant a Breakthrough Opportunity within the current realm.

A trace of fire blinked in Shen Yao's palm—then vanished into air.

Yun Fei didn't notice but he would.

Soon.

Later that night, the Flame Orchid garden was still.

The moon above cracked faintly behind drifting embers. A light wind stirred the charred grass. Somewhere deeper in the sect, cultivators toasted wine, gossiped about Shen Yao's tribulation, and speculated whether he'd used a forbidden talisman.

Only Shen Yao knew the truth.

The flame that protected him… was himself.

He crouched beneath a shattered garden arch, blending into the dark, waiting. Not like an assassin—but like a man returning to bury something that should've died already.

Footsteps echoed along the stone.

Yun Fei appeared, his outer robe loose, sword half-strapped. He walked like a man who feared nothing—because no one had made him fear anything.

Not yet.

Shen Yao waited until he turned.

Then struck.

A sizzle, a snap—Yun Fei spun just in time to block the first flame-thread with his spirit blade. Sparks danced.

"Who—?!" he hissed.

The flames didn't answer but Shen Yao did.

From the shadows, he stepped forward—expression cold, posture loose, like a beast that didn't need to try hard anymore.

"Yao-ge? What the hell—"

The second wave struck.

A spiral of compressed flame shot from Shen Yao's palm, not aiming to kill—yet. It shattered Yun Fei's defensive Qi layer in a single hit. The older disciple rolled back, coughed blood, and slammed a talisman against his chest.

A golden shield shimmered—Celestial-grade.

Shen Yao sneered.

"You used that talisman," he said, voice soft, "on me last time. Before the flames ate my legs. Remember?"

Yun Fei froze.

Just enough.

Shen Yao's foot slammed into his chest, cracking the talisman into flickering dust.

Yun Fei collapsed backwards, wheezing, scrambling toward the edge of the pavilion, hand glowing as he tried to activate his distress token.

He never got the chance.

A whip of soulflame wrapped around his arm and burned through it.

"AAARGHH—"

The token clattered to the stones.

Shen Yao didn't gloat. He didn't monologue. He walked forward slowly, deliberately, like a funeral was already being held, and he was simply late to it.

Yun Fei's eyes widened as realization dawned.

"This… this isn't about now, is it? I never did anything to you—"

"Not yet," Shen Yao replied. "But you already did everything that mattered."

He raised a finger, and the whip tightened.

Flame wrapped around Yun Fei's chest, encircling him in a spiral that sank into his flesh like hungry brands. His core pulsed erratically—then began to destabilize.

"You were the first to betray me," Shen Yao said. "I forgive betrayal. I burn liars."

[Sinflame Activation: Soul Eruption]

Triggering Flame Breakthrough via Karmic Purge…

Yun Fei screamed.

His body ignited from the inside. Not a normal flame—not even the core soulfire of Shen Yao's system. This was Sinflame—a karmic inferno fed by the debt of betrayal.

Yun Fei's scream echoed into the night— Then died into smoke.

Silence returned.

The garden was ash.

Only Shen Yao stood, unmoving, as the fire faded. The heat didn't touch him. The pain didn't reach him. Even the satisfaction… felt like frost in his chest.

But the system stirred.

[Breakthrough Opportunity Secured]

Ember Root Condensation Stabilized.

Passive Flame Control Enhanced: +22% Efficiency

New Technique Seed Available: "Breath of the Dying Flame"

He absorbed the gains. Stored the rewards. But felt nothing.

Yun Fei's ashes drifted across the soil. Not a trace left of his once smug aura. No disciples would mourn him. His name would vanish like so many others. 

But Shen Yao didn't forget.

For every traitor that smiled, there would be one less star in the sky — and one more flame in the ledger of hell.

He turned, and walked back into the night.

Two hours later, Lian Xue found him meditating atop the old well behind the flame dormitories. He looked as still as a statue, eyes closed, palms resting on his knees.

"You killed again," she said softly.

He opened his eyes.

"Good."

She flinched, not because of his words, but because she expected them. That terrified her more.

"You're changing," she whispered. "You're colder now."

"I'm burning slower," Shen Yao replied. "That's the difference."

He didn't elaborate.

He didn't have to.

She sat beside him, not speaking, just watching the moon rise. She knew that even if he didn't explain, she would see his scars.

Not the ones on his body.

The ones on his soul.

Elsewhere, in the upper sect tower, a hooded elder glanced over a burning jade slip and frowned.

"Another disappearance?" the second elder asked.

The hooded one nodded. "Yun Fei. Gone without trace."

"Was it an Accident?"

"No," the hooded man said. "He angered something that's waking. Something old."

He paused.

Then looked south and murmured one word: "Shen Yao."