In the grey light of dawn, Li Wei made his way to the Internal Affairs Hall.
The path was lined with ancient flagstones, worn smooth by the passage of countless feet seeking power within the sect's walls.
As he entered the hall, the air was thick with incense and the low murmur of hushed conversations.
Li Wei joined the disciples, waiting for their turn at the counter.
He watched the clerk, who worked with a bored efficiency, taking tokens and handing out pills without looking up.
He approached the counter, his movements deliberate to avoid drawing unnecessary attention.
The clerk, a man with a gaze as flat as the tokens he collected, barely glanced up.
Li Wei presented his own token, the metal cool and heavy in his hand.
The clerk took it, his fingers stained with ink, and gave two bone pills.
They lay in Li Wei's palm, small and unassuming.
Around him, Disciples were all around the hall: black hems for the newcomers, red for the inner disciples.
The very air seemed laden with their ambition and fear, a silent storm of desires and dreams.
Li Wei kept to the shadows, his eyes a pair of dark stones absorbing every detail.
Where the guards stood, who watched whom, and the subtle exchanges of power played out in the flicker of an eye or the curl of a hand.
The pills disappeared into his robe, hidden away, as Li Wei stepped back into the throng.
He moved through the hall.
Li Wei felt exposed.
Only at the second level of Qi cultivation, he was vulnerable, without a single technique to his name or a dagger for defence.
He walked through the sect with heightened caution, keenly aware that he was defenceless.
His eyes darted around, taking in every face and movement.
Each shadow or sudden sound had him tensing, ready to bolt.
He kept his movements measured to avoid drawing attention.
Still, he made sure not to appear hesitant, which might invite challenge or confrontation.
In every interaction, he was terse, giving away nothing that might hint at his lack of defences.
He could rely only on his wits to navigate the dangerous waters of sect politics and power struggles.
Li Wei was acutely conscious of his weak Qi; it offered him little protection.
The imbalance between his ambition and current frailty weighed on him, driving him to be ever-vigilant.
Li Wei joined the queue for sect missions, a line snaking through the hall.
The duty was annual, a must for every disciple, yet for Li Wei, it was not just routine — it was a dire need for resources, with only a handful of bronze coins to his name.
When it was his turn, he faced the inner sect disciple responsible for mission assignments.
The man, showing no interest, didn't look up from the list before him.
"Name?" he droned, pen ready but devoid of expectation.
"Li Wei," he said, his voice betraying none of his urgency.
The inner sect disciple made a note, still without glancing at Li Wei.
Li Wei stepped forward with respect, addressing the inner sect disciple formally.
"Esteemed senior brother," he began, his manner polite.
He presented one of the bone pills, placing it on the counter as he leaned in slightly.
"Might I inquire about the nature of Bone Fire?" he asked, curiosity laced with deference.
The disciple looked at the offered bone pill, a faint sneer crossing his face.
"You expect to bribe a disciple at the second level of the Foundational Establishment with a single bone pill?" he asked, his tone laced with mockery.
Despite his condescension, there was a glimmer of amusement in his eyes.
With a patient nod, Li Wei entered his robe, withdrawing the second pill.
"My apologies, senior brother, for my previous oversight," he said, adding the second pill to the first.
The disciple let out a laugh, one that carried both mockery and a touch of surprise, as he flicked the second bone pill in the air before catching it.
"Oh, the things you lot will do," he said, shaking his head.
He gave Li Wei a long, amused look, his gaze lingering on the desperation that must've been clear on Li Wei's face.
"All right," he relented with a dismissive wave, "I'll indulge you.
Since you're so eager to throw your resources away, I'll answer your questions.
But make no mistake, this," he said, holding up the bone pills, "isn't enough to buy anything but words."
"Bone Fire?" the disciple mused, tipping his head slightly.
He scrutinised the pill in his hand, then Li Wei with a newfound curiosity.
"It's rare for an outer disciple to know of such things. Bone Fire is not mere flame—it is the lifeblood of alchemy. We use it to purify essence, to amplify the strength of our concoctions. It's the difference between a mediocre pill and one that resonates with the very essence of cultivation."
The disciple gave a nonchalant shrug, tucking the pills into his robe.
"Your interest in alchemy is curious for one of your station," he said, eyeing Li Wei.
"Since you've brought it to my attention...and offered a token of...goodwill," he continued, his fingers subtly feeling the weight of the bone pills in his pocket, "I'll see to it that you're assigned to the Alchemy Hall.
There, your curiosity can be...better addressed."
Gratitude flashed briefly in Li Wei's eyes.
"Thank you, senior brother. Your guidance is most generous."
"Be at the Alchemy Hall by sunrise," he instructed, his voice carrying the weight of authority that left no room for tardiness.
"Don't be late."
He dismissed Li Wei with a wave, returning to his scrolls and the faint glow of the oil lamp beside him.
Li Wei nodded, committing the directive to memory, aware that punctuality was as much a part of sect discipline as the cultivation itself.
He then slid an alchemy hall token across the table towards Li Wei.
The token was a small, plain disc, its edges worn from the hands it had passed through.
Li Wei picked it up, the cool metal solidifying his new position.
With the token secured in his pocket, Li Wei left the hall.
His walk back to the cave was quiet, his mind alive with thoughts.
He replayed the exchange, pondered his next steps, and strategised about his future in the Alchemy Hall.
The cave was dark and still when he arrived, a contrast to the whirl of his thoughts.
He sat down, the stone floor hard beneath him, and took out the token again, turning it over in his hand as he mapped out the journey ahead.
Li Wei sat in his cave, no pills in his pouch, just a few coins and a new token.
He missed the pills but figured it was probably for the best.
With pills, he could've been a target.
Now, he was just another poor disciple, and that was safer.
He had a chance to learn more in the Alchemy Hall.
It was a good trade.
As the last light of day turns the sky to shades of fading orange and purple, a figure approaches Li Wei's cave.
From outside the cave, a loud call disrupts the silence, "Oi, Li Wei! You in there?"
Startled, Li Wei's hand snaps behind him, clutching a jagged rock.
His heart pounds as he peers towards the cave entrance.
A shadow looms, and then, recognition dawns.
Li Wei freezes, recognition dawning.
It's Jia Long, the very man who'd sold the previous Li Wei a pouch of Mortal Ash — the same ash that spelt his doom.
"Got something for you!" Jia Long shouts, stepping into the dim light of the cave, a mischievous grin on his face.
"Mortal Ash, only 20 coppers. It's a steal."
Li Wei's grip on the rock loosens, but he keeps it hidden, just in case.
"Maybe soon," he replies, his voice carrying a mixture of caution and curiosity, "but my pockets are thin these days."
"Don't wait too long," Jia Long warns, wagging a finger.
"Assessment day's not far". Jia Long's eyes gleam knowingly.
"Bone pills can only take you so far, Li Wei. Remember that," he advises with a wag of his finger.
Li Wei's eyes narrow slightly, the question clear before he speaks, "And where did this Mortal Ash come from?"
Jia Long chuckles, tossing his head back.
"Mortals, obviously!" he laughs as if sharing the world's oldest joke.
"Where else?"
Jia Long turns, his figure receding into the twilight, his steps swallowed by the evening's embrace.
The rock slips from Li Wei's fingers, clattering to the floor, a stark sound in the quiet cave.
Assured of solitude, he lies down, his earlier tension dissolving into the cool air around him.
His breathing steadies and sleep claims him, the rock forgotten beside him on the ground.