The Jade Pavilion was a sight to behold. Perched atop a crystalline lake surrounded by blooming white lotuses, it emanated a purity that stood in stark contrast to the tumultuous world of cultivation. As Li Jue approached, he felt an unfamiliar sense of unease. The air was heavy with spiritual energy, not hostile but potent, as though the very essence of the pavilion itself watched him.
Li Feng awaited him within, clad in flowing white robes that shimmered faintly under the fading sunlight. Her hair was bound in an intricate knot, adorned with a single lotus pin. Her gaze was calm, yet piercing, as though she could see through every layer of his carefully constructed facade.
"Li Jue," she said, her voice like the first snow of winter—soft, yet unyielding. "You have stirred the heavens themselves with your actions."
"And you have summoned me like a servant," Li Jue replied, his tone sharp but curious. "Why?"
Li Feng gestured to the seat across from her. "To understand you. To determine whether you are an ally, an enemy, or something more dangerous—a force beyond control."
Li Jue sat, his eyes never leaving hers. "And what have you concluded?"
"Not yet," Li Feng admitted. "Your defiance of the cultivation system is revolutionary, but revolutions often birth monsters. You claim to reshape this world, but at what cost? Do you even know?"
Her words struck a nerve, though Li Jue would never admit it. "And you?" he countered. "What is your vision, Li Feng? Why does the White Lotus Sect, a bastion of purity, tolerate this corrupted world?"
Li Feng's lips curved into a faint smile. "Purity is a tool, just like corruption. The question is how one wields them. I do not seek to destroy this world, only to guide it toward balance."
The two locked eyes, an unspoken tension crackling between them. For the first time in his life, Li Jue felt as though he had met an equal—not in power alone but in ambition, intellect, and the ability to see beyond the surface.