Chapter 43 – Secrets Beneath the Moon

  Akari’s grip tightened on the doorframe.

  Renji stood before her, cloaked in darkness, his silver eyes gleaming under the faint moonlight.

  > "You're not the only one keeping secrets, Akari."

  The words lingered in the cold air between them.

  She should have been wary.

  But she wasn’t.

  She was curious.

  Tsubaki let out a low chirp, her feathers ruffled as she eyed Renji warily. The spirit beast never trusted people easily.

  And neither did Akari.

  “…What do you mean?” she asked, keeping her voice steady.

  Renji’s smirk didn’t fade. “Let’s not talk here.” He glanced behind him, scanning the empty courtyard. “Too many ears.”

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  Akari hesitated.

  Everything in her told her not to trust him.

  But she needed answers.

  And Renji… Renji knew something.

  With a quiet breath, she stepped outside, closing the door behind her.

  The night air was crisp, carrying the faint scent of incense from the sect’s main hall. The moon hung high, casting long shadows across the stone pathway as Renji led her away from the courtyard.

  Silence stretched between them until they reached the old training grounds—an abandoned section of the sect, overgrown with moss and barely lit by flickering lanterns.

  Only then did Renji speak.

  ---

  The Truth About the Seventh Gate

  “You felt it, didn’t you?” he said, turning to face her.

  Akari’s breath caught in her throat.

  He knew.

  “The moment you opened the Seventh Gate,” Renji continued, stepping closer, “something changed inside you. You’re stronger. Faster. But it’s not just cultivation.”

  Akari clenched her fists. “How do you know about the Seventh Gate?”

  Renji chuckled, shaking his head. “Because I’ve been there too.”

  Silence.

  Akari’s heart pounded.

  Renji? He had… crossed the Seventh Gate?

  She studied him carefully, searching for any sign of deception.

  But his silver eyes remained unreadable.

  “…What happened to you?” she asked.

  Renji exhaled slowly, his gaze drifting toward the sky. “The same thing that’s happening to you.”

  He turned back to her.

  “You’re being hunted.”

  The words sent a sharp chill through her spine.

  The shadow.

  The voice in the darkness.

  The thing that had crossed over with her.

  Renji stepped closer, his voice lowering. “You think that restriction seal is going to help? It won’t.” He grabbed her wrist, his fingers brushing against the golden markings.

  Akari felt a sudden jolt—like a pulse of qi surging beneath her skin.

  Her breath hitched.

  For a brief moment, she saw something—

  Flashes of black mist. Silver chains wrapped around a figure. Eyes that burned with violet fire.

  Then it was gone.

  Renji released her hand.

  “I know what’s coming for you,” he said. “And if you don’t want to end up like the others… you need to listen to me.”

  Akari forced herself to breathe.

  She had questions. So many questions.

  But one thing was clear.

  Renji was the only one who understood what she was going through.

  And that made him the only person she could turn to.