## Chapter 15: The Edge of Control
The battlefield was a blur of chaos. The rain poured harder, soaking Lin Yu to the bone as he pushed forward, his sword flashing through the sheets of water. The clash of steel, the cries of pain, and the shouts of desperate villagers filled the air, a cacophony that drowned out all other sounds.
Zhao Feng and the villagers had joined the fight, their arrival sending a shockwave through the cultists, whose disciplined formation had begun to break under the sudden assault. The makeshift defenses held, but just barely. The villagers fought with fierce resolve, but the cultists of the Hand of Xiangliu were trained and brutal, their fanaticism making them relentless.
Lin Yu dodged another strike, his muscles burning from exertion. He was exhausted, but he couldn't afford to stop. He parried a cultist's blade, spinning to strike another as they closed in on him. Every move felt heavier than the last, his body aching with fatigue.
And still, the whispers came.
**You're faltering, Lin Yu,** Xiangliu's voice whispered in his mind, low and insidious. **You can feel it, can't you? The weight of this battle. Your strength is waning. But you know how to fix that, don't you?**
Lin Yu shook his head, trying to block out the voice. He couldn't give in. Not now. Not while the village was still holding.
But the cultists were relentless. Another wave of them surged forward, pushing the villagers back. Lin Yu watched as Zhao Feng parried a strike, barely avoiding a deadly blow, and as Elder Wu summoned a shield of spiritual energy to deflect a flurry of attacks. The villagers were giving everything they had, but Lin Yu could see the strain in their movements, the desperation in their eyes.
His heart pounded as he saw more cultists emerging from the shadows of the forest, their dark robes blending into the stormy night. There were more of them—far more than they had anticipated.
"We can't hold them off much longer!" Zhao Feng shouted over the din, his voice tinged with urgency. "There are too many!"
Lin Yu's breath came in ragged bursts, his mind racing. He knew Zhao Feng was right. The villagers were brave, but they were outnumbered and outmatched. The cultists wouldn't stop. They would keep coming until the village fell, until they had what they wanted.
And Lin Yu knew what they wanted—him.
The serpent's mark on his wrist flared to life, glowing faintly beneath his sleeve. The power within him stirred, pulsing with a dark, ancient energy that thrummed beneath his skin. Xiangliu's voice grew louder, more insistent.
**You need me,** the serpent hissed. **This battle is slipping away from you, Lin Yu. You can feel it. You can't win like this. But if you let me in, I can give you the strength you need. You'll be unstoppable. Together, we will crush them.**
Lin Yu gritted his teeth, parrying another strike from a cultist who had lunged at him. The force of the blow sent him stumbling backward, his legs shaking from the effort. He was reaching his limit. He could feel the exhaustion setting in, his muscles screaming for relief. But more than that, he could feel the power of Xiangliu pressing against the edges of his control, waiting for him to release it.
He glanced at the villagers around him—people he had grown up with, people he had sworn to protect. They were fighting with everything they had, but they were on the brink of collapse. If something didn't change soon, the village would fall.
Lin Yu's gaze flicked to Zhao Feng, who was locked in combat with two cultists at once, his movements desperate but determined. Elder Wu was holding his own, but even he couldn't keep up his spiritual defenses forever. The villagers were tiring, and the cultists were still coming.
Lin Yu's chest tightened as he weighed his options. He could keep fighting as he was, and risk losing the village. Or he could do the one thing he had sworn never to do—use the serpent's power.
**There is no other way,** Xiangliu's voice whispered, a cold certainty in its tone. **Let go, Lin Yu. Let me show you the power you've been holding back. You are more than this—you are the heir to the serpent's blood. You were born to wield this power.**
Lin Yu's breath hitched, his hands trembling around the hilt of his sword. He could feel the weight of the decision pressing down on him, the choice that would define his future. He had fought so hard to resist Xiangliu's influence, but now, in the middle of this battle, with everything at stake—what choice did he have?
He could save them. All of them. All it would take was one moment of surrender, one moment of letting go.
**Just a taste,** the serpent whispered, coaxing him. **Just enough to turn the tide.**
Another cultist lunged at him, their blade aiming for his chest. Lin Yu reacted instinctively, raising his sword to block, but his strength was fading. The blow knocked him to the ground, his sword slipping from his grasp as he hit the muddy earth.
The cultist stood over him, raising their blade for the killing strike.
Time seemed to slow as Lin Yu's thoughts raced. His hand touched the mark on his wrist, the heat of Xiangliu's power radiating through him. He could feel it, the surge of energy just waiting to be released, to pour through him like a flood. The whispers grew louder, urging him to act, to survive.
**Do it,** Xiangliu urged, his voice both soothing and commanding. **Release me.**
Lin Yu's hand clenched into a fist, the power building inside him like a storm.
And then, with a single, shuddering breath, Lin Yu let go.
The serpent's power surged through him in an instant, flooding his veins with a dark, violent energy that was both exhilarating and terrifying. The mark on his wrist flared brightly, glowing with an otherworldly light as the power of Xiangliu took hold. The whispers in his mind faded into a dull hum as the serpent's presence wrapped around him, coiling through his thoughts like smoke.
Lin Yu's eyes snapped open, blazing with a fierce light as he reached out with his hand. Before the cultist could strike, a wave of raw, destructive energy exploded from him, knocking the cultist back with a force so powerful it sent them flying through the air, crashing into the side of a nearby building.
The air around Lin Yu crackled with energy, the rain hissing as it struck the ground near him. He stood, his body radiating power, his every movement filled with a new, terrifying strength.
For a moment, the battle paused. The cultists, villagers, and even Zhao Feng and Elder Wu stopped to stare at Lin Yu, their faces filled with shock and awe.
But Lin Yu's gaze was locked on the cultists. He could feel the power coursing through him, could feel the serpent's influence guiding his every movement. It was intoxicating, this raw, unbridled strength that surged through him, and yet, beneath it all, he could still hear the faintest whisper of Xiangliu's voice.
**Good,** the serpent purred. **Now, show them what we can do.**
Lin Yu didn't hesitate. With a flick of his hand, he unleashed a wave of dark energy that rippled through the ranks of the cultists, sending them scattering like leaves in the wind. The ground shook beneath him, cracks forming in the earth as his power tore through the battlefield.
The cultists, who had moments ago been so fierce, now hesitated, fear flickering in their eyes. They had come for Lin Yu, expecting to claim his power, but now they faced something far greater than they had anticipated.
Lin Yu moved like lightning, cutting through their ranks with ease, his sword a blur as it sliced through the air. The power of Xiangliu amplified his every strike, his every movement precise and deadly. The cultists fell before him, unable to withstand the force of his attacks.
But even as he fought, a part of Lin Yu remained distant, watching, aware of the growing darkness inside him. The serpent's power was vast, but it was also dangerous, and the more he used it, the more it threatened to consume him.
**This is who you are,** Xiangliu whispered, its voice wrapping around him like a shroud. **You cannot escape it.**
Lin Yu's breath came in ragged bursts as the last of the cultists fell, their bodies strewn across the battlefield. The rain continued to fall, hissing against the energy that still radiated from him.
And then, just as suddenly as it had come, the power began to fade. The mark on his wrist dimmed, the glow fading as the serpent's influence receded. Lin Yu stood there, panting, his body trembling from the strain of what he had just done.
He had won. The village was safe—for now.
But as he looked around, seeing the awe and fear in the eyes of the villagers, Zhao Feng, and even Elder Wu, Lin Yu knew that something had changed.
He had used Xiangliu's power. And now, there was no going back.