The Gathering Storm

1,857 words

When Han Li said this, Zhong Weiniang’s face brightened into a smile, and she repeatedly praised him. Liu Jing also showed a look of relief.

As for Song Meng, he stepped forward and clapped Han Li heavily on the shoulder, grinning broadly as he said:

“I knew I hadn’t misjudged you. If you’d really refused to go, I would’ve had to fall out with you. But I knew Junior Han had some spine!”

After saying this, Song Meng shot a cold glare at Wu Xuan. It seemed that Wu Xuan’s standing among his fellow disciples was truly poor.

Seeing this, Wu Xuan gave a cold snort and said:

“In that case, I’ll find somewhere else to stay. I won’t disturb your grand plans. I’ll report everything here to Master. I hope he doesn’t blame you lot for this!” With those words, Wu Xuan walked out of the room without expression, directly took to the air on his artifact, and flew away from the Qin Estate.

“Sixth Senior Brother really is something else, backing out at the last moment. And he’s supposed to be our senior.” Zhong Weiniang said with extreme dissatisfaction.

“Forget it. Everyone has their own path; you can’t force these things. Let’s get down to planning the operation. The sooner we act, the safer it’ll be. After all, we don’t know if that Black Fiend Sect Leader will come out of seclusion early.” Liu Jing said gravely.

“Third Senior Brother, you have so much experience rooting out corrupt cultivators. You make the plans. Whatever you say, we’ll do. I’ll just be responsible for the fighting!” Song Meng said, his eyes gleaming with excitement.

“Song Junior Brother, you…”

Liu Jing was left speechless, looking utterly helpless against Song Meng.

Zhong Weiniang’s eyes curved into crescents as she let out a sweet laugh.

Han Li simply smiled silently.

“Seventh Junior Sister, you’re familiar with Junior Chen under Uncle Hui Ming. She’s currently in Nanwu City. Go and ask for her assistance. It’ll be easier for you to approach her.” Liu Jing said calmly to Zhong Weiniang after returning to his usual composure.

“Junior Chen is here too? It’s been a while since I last saw her. But we’re close; the aid won’t be a problem.” Zhong Weiniang said, brimming with confidence.

When Han Li heard the words “Junior Chen,” his heart stirred. He thought with a mixture of suspicion and surprise:

“It can’t be that much of a coincidence, can it? Could it be… her?”

Just as Han Li was wondering, Liu Jing’s voice reached his ears.

“Junior Han, the rest of us will probably be staying at the Qin Estate for a while. I need you to talk with the Qin family and arrange lodgings and quiet cultivation spaces for us.” The third senior brother said steadily.

Han Li agreed readily.

“Then what do I do?” Song Meng couldn’t help asking, looking impatient.

“You stay on guard at the Qin Estate, in case the Black Fiend Sect launches a sudden attack. I’ll need to go into the streets from time to time to see what the Black Fiend Sect members are up to. Junior Han has already been seen by them, so naturally he can’t show his face again.” Liu Jing said flatly.

“Understood.” At this, Song Meng’s energy visibly deflated, and he answered listlessly.

The following days were still extremely quiet.

Except for Zhong Weiniang, who had gone early to Nanwu City to seek reinforcements, everyone else generally stayed at the Qin Estate to cultivate their qi. Third Senior Brother Liu Jing did go out a few times as he said he would, but he didn’t gather any useful information. It seemed that all the Black Fiend Sect disciples had gone to ground and were lying low.

As for Wu Xuan, he had taken a room at an inn in Yuejing. Word was that he had sent a letter to Li Huayuan, but no one knew what was in it. After that, he wandered freely through the bustling and lively parts of Yuejing, enjoying himself with no intention of returning to the Qin Estate.

Nanwu City was really not far from Yuejing. In just three days, that Senior Sister Zhong returned, bringing back three men and two women.

Among them was a woman of exceptional cold beauty—it was indeed the “Junior Chen” Han Li knew: Chen Qiaoqian. This made Han Li feel somewhat uneasy.

When Chen Qiaoqian saw Han Li, she also showed a flicker of surprise, but said nothing.

To her, Han Li was not exactly a stranger, even if the two of them had never exchanged a single word.

The other three men and one woman were Chen Qiaoqian’s fellow disciples—two at mid-Foundation Establishment and two at early-Foundation Establishment. They all greeted Liu Jing with obvious warmth, indicating they knew him as well.

Zhong Weiniang introduced Han Li to these people as her newly joined junior brother. But when they heard Han Li’s name, the others besides Chen Qiaoqian all showed expressions of surprise.

“So you’re Junior Han! You really are young! But we’ve long heard of Junior Han’s great reputation—single-handedly killing over a dozen Foundation Establishment cultivators from the demonic path during the border confrontation. That’s truly remarkable!” said another senior sister of Chen Qiaoqian’s, smiling charmingly.

This twenty-seven- or twenty-eight-year-old beauty seemed to genuinely admire Han Li.

Hearing this, Liu Jing and Zhong Weiniang were greatly shocked.

The two of them had been on other missions earlier and had not participated in the second round of the great war between the seven sects and the demonic path. Naturally, they had known nothing of Han Li’s “great deeds.”

Now, hearing such things from acquaintances, they were deeply alarmed!

After all, this Third Senior Brother had exterminated countless corrupt cultivators, but among them, Foundation Establishment cultivators could be counted on just two or three fingers. Even then, each victory had required a desperate struggle.

Yet Han Li had the “great deed” of killing over a dozen Foundation Establishment cultivators. This shocked the two of them so much that they couldn’t help sizing up this unremarkable Junior Han anew, as if seeing him for the first time.

“Fourth Senior Brother, you must have known all about Junior Han’s accomplishments. Why didn’t you tell me?” Zhong Weiniang suddenly thought of something after her initial shock and immediately turned to “hehe” snickering Song Meng, scolding him loudly. Her tone carried clear intent to hold him to account.

“Junior Sister, you never asked about this. You just kept asking about Junior Han’s technique and cultivation level. I thought you already knew.” Song Meng said smugly.

He had long wanted to see the look of shock on these two fellow disciples’ faces, and now he was finally getting his wish.

How could Zhong Weiniang not catch his perfunctory excuse? She shot him a fierce glare and was about to press further when Liu Jing laughed and said:

“Excellent! I didn’t expect Junior Han to be so accomplished! This gives us even more confidence in dealing with that Black Fiend Sect Leader!”

As he said this, his face was full of delighted surprise. But Han Li felt a chill run down his back, and he grew extremely uneasy. He couldn’t help thinking to himself:

“This Third Senior Brother… he’s not thinking of having me take on the Black Fiend Sect Leader alone, is he?”

The moment this ridiculous thought appeared, Han Li ridiculed himself and cast it aside.

Afterwards, Han Li and the others hosted a welcoming meal for Chen Qiaoqian and her group. Although their cultivation level allowed them to abstain from food for long periods, since they were in the mortal world, it was only fitting to follow local customs and enjoy a meal to satisfy their appetites.

After the meal, Han Li had the servants of the Qin Estate clear the banquet. The group then began to discuss their plans for dealing with the Black Fiend Sect and entering the Imperial City.

Liu Jing immediately declared that he was willing to bear full responsibility for violating the Seven Sects’ prohibition. In light of this, Chen Qiaoqian and her fellow disciples set aside their own reservations and agreed to go along.

Based on the intelligence Han Li had obtained, aside from the so-called Four Blood Attendants, the other altar lords and such high-ranking members of the Black Fiend Sect were likely still managing sect affairs across Yue. The probability of them all gathering in the Imperial City was extremely low.

Thus, Liu Jing judged that with their current manpower, they were more than enough to deal with the Black Fiend Sect. They should act quickly and with decisive force to avoid any delays that might invite trouble.

The others found this reasoning sound and decided to let Chen Qiaoqian’s group rest for a day. They would strike the following night, when the mortals in the Imperial City were still asleep, infiltrating the Imperial Palace to eliminate the evil.

Han Li watched from the side, smiling as the others grew more and more excited, but inwardly, he couldn’t help letting out a cold laugh.

Did these people really think the Black Fiend Sect members were made of clay, so easy to deal with?

When the battle was over, who knew how many of those speaking here would still be alive?

If it weren’t for a secret he had learned from that Young Prince’s account—a secret that could be extremely useful for his future Core Formation—there was no way he would risk such a perilous incursion into the Imperial Palace. What did it matter to him if others used blood sacrifices to cultivate evil arts? The victims’ families and friends would come to avenge them. All he had to do was leak the information.

When it came to punishing evil and upholding justice, Han Li had always believed in acting within one’s means.

If the risk was minimal and it didn’t demand too much effort, he was happy to do it. But if the opponent was too strong and it had nothing to do with him, he didn’t see risking his own life to meddle in others’ affairs as a wise move!

That Sixth Senior Brother Wu Xuan, though thoroughly unpleasant, had undeniably been wise to wash his hands of this matter early on. Otherwise, after a burst of hot-blooded passion, he would have to face the risk of his soul being scattered.

For Han Li, gritting his teeth and agreeing to charge into the Black Fiend Sect’s lair with these people was a violation of his principle of self-preservation. But this risk, he judged, was worth taking.

Because his spiritual roots were simply too poor. Anything that could increase his chances of forming a core by even a sliver, he was unwilling to let go of easily. Besides, he was somewhat confident that he could make it out safely.

For this very reason, he had specially prepared a trump card to ensure his safety on this trip. Otherwise, given Han Li’s cautious and meticulous nature, how could he have agreed to such a thing out of the blue?

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Reading Guide Decoding

Team Assembly and Private Calculus

Cultural / Xianxia Notes

The ‘Blood Curse’ as an Institutional Leash: The Black Fiend Sect’s control structure—where disciples are bound by Blood Curses rather than loyalty—reflects a recurring xianxia trope: the use of bodily poison or soul-binding restrictions as a form of indenture. This mechanic externalizes what in other genres would be an internal moral conflict. In the Mortal Stream, such leashes are a logical extension of the Dark Forest: if you cannot trust, you must control, and the most efficient control is physical. Note that the term itself does not appear in this chapter’s dialogue, but the architecture of the sect (Four Blood Attendants, altar lords, a secluded leader) implies exactly this kind of institutional fear economy.

Reputation as a Double-Edged Asset in the Cultivation World: When the visiting cultivators recognize Han Li’s name and praise his “great deed” of killing over a dozen Foundation Establishment cultivators, this is a pivotal development in Han Li’s social standing, but the narrative treats it with cold caution rather than satisfaction. In the cultivation world, reputation is not just fame—it’s visibility. A cultivator known for being dangerous will have his every move watched, his every negotiation weighted with suspicion, and his alliances structured around the fear of his power rather than trust. Liu Jing’s immediate thought upon hearing Han Li’s record is to mentally recalculate the team’s odds of victory, not to congratulate him. Han Li himself feels a chill down his spine, because he knows that being perceived as the strongest asset in the room also makes him the most likely to be thrown into the hardest fight.

The “Disposal” of Wu Xuan as a Strategic Purity Cost: In xianxia team-building narratives, a character who withdraws from a dangerous operation is often morally condemned. Here, Wu Xuan is indeed condemned—by Zhong Weiniang and indirectly by Song Meng—but the narrative itself does not fully endorse that condemnation. Han Li’s internal monologue explicitly reframes Wu Xuan’s escape as “wise” and “self-preservative.” This is a classic Mortal Stream subversion of the expected heroic narrative. The text does not punish Wu Xuan for cowardice; it simply cuts him off from the group’s resources and information, which is a secular consequence, not a moral one. The cost of principle in this world is not guilt but isolation.

Chapter Overview

This chapter is the calm before the storm. Liu Jing’s impromptu alliance finally takes shape: reinforcements arrive in the form of Chen Qiaoqian and her fellow disciples from the Yellow Maple Valley, the battle plan is set, and every role is assigned. But beneath the surface harmony, cracks are already showing—Wu Xuan’s desertion, the looming unknown of the Black Fiend Sect Leader’s power, and Han Li’s own cold, private calculus about what he’s truly after. By the end of the chapter, the group is united in purpose but deeply unequal in commitment. Han Li stays not out of loyalty, but because of a single secret that might inch him closer to Core Formation.

Key Plot Points

Wu Xuan explicitly withdraws from the operation, citing his intention to report everything to Master Li Huayuan, and leaves the Qin Estate alone. His departure reinforces the self-preservation principle; no one is surprised.
Liu Jing formally takes command of the remaining group. Zhong Weiniang is sent to Nanwu City to request aid from Chen Qiaoqian, leveraging an old friendship.
The reinforcement party arrives: Chen Qiaoqian plus three other men and one woman, all Foundation Establishment cultivators. Han Li’s unease is palpable when he sees Chen Qiaoqian, though nothing is said between them.
The visiting cultivators recognize Han Li’s name immediately from his reputation at the border confrontation. Song Meng’s glee at finally having kept a secret is evident. Liu Jing and Zhong Weiniang are visibly shocked by the scale of Han Li’s past kills—this recalibrates Han Li’s status within the group.
A welcome feast is held in the mortal style. After the meal, Liu Jing lays out the plan: strike the Imperial Palace the following night, relying on surprise and overwhelming force.
The chapter concludes with an extended internal monologue from Han Li. He has no illusions about the danger—he fully acknowledges that some of them may not survive. His motivation is purely self-interested: a secret he learned from the Young Prince that might improve his Core Formation odds. He’s also prepared a failsafe trump card.

Reading Guide

This is a transitional chapter, but don’t let the lack of action fool you—it’s doing crucial work beneath the surface. The banquet scene and the mission planning are not there for atmosphere; they are a careful audit of assets, vulnerabilities, and hidden agendas. Pay close attention to how Han Li’s internal narration contradicts his external behavior. He smiles, he nods, he eats the feast—but in his head, he’s already counting how many of these people might die and whether his trump card is enough to guarantee his own escape. This is the Han Li we know: cooperative only when the odds skew just enough in his favor.

The appearance of Chen Qiaoqian is a quiet but loaded addition. The author doesn’t waste words rehashing their history—there is no dramatic exchange, no emotional confrontation. The tension is communicated purely through Han Li’s private unease and through the reader’s memory of what happened between them in the Yellow Maple Valley caves. The Mortal Stream respects its readers’ memory; exposition is treated as a resource to be conserved.

Finally, note the granular realism of the logistics: Zhong Weiniang is sent ahead for three days, the visiting cultivators are given one full day to rest, and the strike is scheduled for the quietest hour of the night. These small details are not filler. They reflect Liu Jing’s competence as a planner. The Mortal Stream rewards careful preparation over bold improvisation, and every hour of delay is a roll of the dice against the unknown timing of the Black Fiend Sect Leader’s seclusion.