Kai, accompanied by a group of inner disciples, boarded an airship bound for the village of Meidao. From there, they traveled on foot, heading toward the stable area outside the sect's main grounds. The journey was long, but the tension was palpable. The disciples accompanying him avoided speaking to him entirely, their silence laden with hostility. Their cold, accusatory stares were enough to make Kai feel the weight of their judgment.

  Cleared of demonic cultivation charges, yet they still see me as one, Kai thought bitterly, his shoulders slumping under the weight of their scorn.

  He had no illusions about his situation. The only reason he was still breathing was the presence of the Emerald Tortoise Sect during his trial. Their presence had forced the Ember Sword Sect leadership to conduct a semblance of fairness. Without them, Kai was certain his execution would have been swift and merciless. But saying he survived felt hollow. He hadn’t been spared—his death had merely been postponed.

  Even now, he knew his time was limited. Lei Ju’s threats echoed in his mind, but Lei Ju wasn’t the only one he needed to fear. Many in the sect, from the elders to the inner disciples, would gladly see him dead. Some would do so out of conviction, convinced he was a danger to the sect. Others might see his death as an opportunity to curry favor with the powerful inner disciples or sect leaders. And if one of them killed him? The leadership would likely turn a blind eye. Kai was a marked man, not just by the Jade King Seal, but by the disdain of nearly everyone around him.

  Even the outer disciples might turn against him, seeking to earn scraps of recognition from the inner disciples. The thought churned uneasily in Kai’s stomach. He was walking a razor’s edge, surrounded by enemies on all sides, and the sect’s rules would not shield him. The moment the Emerald Tortoise sect leaves, it’s open season on Kai’s life.

  After some time, the group arrived near the stable area. The tension among the disciples only seemed to grow as they neared their destination.

  "Where is this demonic grove, you wretch?" one of the inner sect disciples barked, his voice dripping with disdain.

  "It's not far," Kai replied, keeping his tone even despite the insult. "Just a twenty-minute walk from here."

  Without further comment, Kai led them to a small, hidden path obscured by overgrowth. The trail was narrow and winding, shrouded by dense underbrush and towering trees. He parted the foliage, moving carefully, but the disciples followed with far less caution.

  The group trudged through the underbrush, their irritation at the cramped and uneven terrain evident. Kai tried to warn them about the dangers of the forest floor. "Watch where you step," he cautioned, glancing over his shoulder. "There are dung weeds in this area."

  Predictably, his warning went unheeded. One of the disciples, more concerned with glaring daggers at Kai than watching his own steps, stomped directly onto a patch of dung weed. The plant burst under his weight, releasing an overpowering stench that immediately filled the air and clung stubbornly to the unfortunate disciple's robes.

  The affected disciple recoiled, gagging and waving his hands in front of his face as though trying to fight off the noxious odor. "You useless, filthy dog!" he roared, his face twisting with rage. "Did you plant these here just to humiliate us?"

  Kai turned slightly, keeping his expression as neutral as possible. "I warned you to be careful where you step," he said, though he refrained from adding any further remarks that might provoke more hostility.

  The other disciples tried to suppress their laughter at their companion’s misfortune, though a few failed miserably, snickering behind their sleeves. The humiliated disciple cursed under his breath, muttering threats and insults directed at Kai as they continued down the trail.

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  Eventually, they reached the secluded grove where Kai had carried out his experiments to create the meat-fruit. The air seemed to grow heavier as the disciples laid eyes on the sight before them—five ominous red trees stood in the clearing, their gnarled branches twisting upward like skeletal hands clawing at the sky.

  The trees' bark was a deep, unsettling crimson, slick and veined, as though the wood itself pulsed with a grotesque semblance of life. What truly captured—and horrified—the inner sect disciples, however, were the fruits dangling heavily from the branches. They were black, glossy, and grotesque, with crimson veins crisscrossing their surface in a way that made them appear to pulse faintly, like living organs pumping blood.

  Gasps rippled through the group, and several disciples instinctively stepped back, hands moving to the hilts of their weapons.

  "This..." one of them muttered, his voice shaky. "This is... monstrous."

  Despite hearing the explanation on how these trees were created, the disciples' expressions hardened in disgust and horror. To them, these grotesque fruits could only mean one thing: demonic cultivation.

  “They might not look like demonic trees at first glance,” another disciple said, his voice low and accusing, “but how else could they bear such abominable fruit? Look at the sheer number of them! For this many fruits to exist... thousands of human lives must have been sacrificed to these trees.”

  The accusation hung heavy in the air, and all eyes turned toward Kai, suspicion and hostility etched into every face.

  Kai resisted the urge to roll his eyes at their ignorance but knew better than to express his frustration openly. Instead, he inhaled deeply and forced himself to speak calmly. "I’ve told you already. These are not demonic trees. They’ve never been fed blood, human or otherwise. The fruits were created through grafting techniques, not through any form of sacrifice."

  His words seemed to fall on deaf ears. The disciples were too entrenched in their assumptions to believe anything Kai said. To them, the grotesque appearance of the grove was all the evidence they needed.

  "You expect us to believe that?" one disciple spat, glaring at him. "Look at this place! No normal tree would ever produce something like this."

  Kai clenched his fists but kept his voice steady. "Believe what you will, but these fruits and trees are harmless. If you had truly listened during the trial, you’d know they lack any trace of demonic qi."

  Still, the accusing glares remained. The grove, with its eerie red trees and blood-like fruits, painted a damning picture that no amount of reasoning could erase from their minds.

  The inner disciples had no intention of continuing the debate. One by one, they drew their swords, the sound of steel ringing sharply in the grove. Without a word, they began channeling their qi, the air around them growing thick with energy. Flames erupted along the lengths of their blades, roaring with the intensity of the sect’s signature technique.

  The disciples moved as one, swinging their blazing swords with precision. Each strike cleaved through the gnarled branches and crimson trunks of the blood trees. The flames consumed the wood instantly, licking hungrily at the grotesque fruits until they, too, were engulfed.

  The air filled with the acrid scent of burning bark and sap, mingling with a faintly metallic tang that made it hard to breathe. The disciples worked methodically, ensuring their fiery destruction was contained to the grove. Their movements were deliberate, their qi controlling the flames to prevent them from spreading to the surrounding forest. Every cut, every burst of fire was meant to eradicate the trees and their unsettling fruit completely.

  Kai stood at the edge of the grove, his hands clenched into trembling fists. The heat of the flames washed over him, but it was nothing compared to the searing ache in his chest as he watched the trees burn. These were not just plants to him—they were years of experimentation, effort, and ingenuity. Each tree represented his vision of a new possibility, a feat no one else had achieved.

  And now, they were gone.

  A deep sense of melancholy settled over him as the flames devoured his creation, turning it into ash and embers. He didn’t dare speak; he knew his words would mean nothing here. To the inner disciples, he was already guilty of crimes he hadn’t committed, and his work was nothing more than a threat to be eradicated.

  The last tree collapsed under the relentless assault, its charred remains hissing as the flames finally consumed it. One of the disciples sheathed his blade and turned to Kai, his expression cold and detached.

  “It’s done. Whatever abomination you created here no longer exists.”

  Kai said nothing. His throat was tight, and his heart ached as though the flames had burned through him as well. He didn’t respond, his face impassive, masking the turmoil within.