Doubt is a disease.
It festers in the mind, devouring certainty, corroding resolve.
And Lan Yue was already infected.
She still called herself righteous. Still whispered the sect's mantras like prayer. But the words tasted wrong. Hollow. Meaningless.
Why did following the sect's will suddenly feel like a betrayal?
Why did she flinch whenever she thought about abandoning Lin Xue?
And worst of all—why did she hesitate?
A Private Conversation
The night was thick with silence when Lan Yue found herself at Mu Qinglan's door.
She hadn't planned to come.
She told herself it was just a coincidence. A passing thought.
A lie.
Mu Qinglan was waiting outside, bathed in lantern light, as if she had known all along.
Her voice was soft, amused. "Senior Sister."
Lan Yue's throat tightened. The warmth in that voice burned.
"…Lin Xue," she started, then stopped. She sounded weak. She hated it.
Mu Qinglan tilted her head, patient, expectant.
Lan Yue forced the words out. "Am I… a good person?"
A beat of silence. Then, Mu Qinglan blinked, as if the question was absurd. "Of course."
Lan Yue's fists clenched. "Then why do I feel like I'm doing something wrong?"
Mu Qinglan stepped closer. Slow. Unhurried. Her gaze never wavered. "Because you've never been allowed to think for yourself."
Lan Yue inhaled sharply.
Mu Qinglan circled her, movements deliberate, voice a thread of silk woven with steel. "The sect feeds you rules. The elders decide what is just. You've followed without question." She leaned in, her breath ghosting over Lan Yue's ear.
"But tell me, Senior Sister… what do you want?"
Lan Yue's pulse hammered.
She had spent her entire life obeying orders. Training, sacrificing, serving. Not once had she been asked what she wanted.
She had no answer.
And that terrified her.
Mu Qinglan's fingers traced the edge of Lan Yue's sleeve, the touch featherlight, fleeting. "I don't want you to betray the sect." A lie, honeyed and gentle. "I just want you to be happy."
A single sentence. A single fracture.
Lan Yue swayed on the edge of something she didn't understand.
Something she couldn't escape.
Zhao Min's Warning
Morning. Cold and sharp.
Lan Yue barely noticed the passing disciples, her mind weighed down with questions that refused to leave.
Then—
"Lan Yue."
She turned.
Zhao Min stood before her, expression taut, eyes dark with suspicion.
"We need to talk."
Lan Yue's gut twisted. She already knew what this was about.
She forced her voice steady. "About what?"
Zhao Min stepped in, too close, her voice a low blade. "Lin Xue."
Lan Yue felt something lock in her chest.
"She's dangerous," Zhao Min pressed. "She's corrupting you."
The words should have sparked outrage. Instead, they lodged in her ribs, festering.
"That's not true," Lan Yue said, but the defense was weak.
Zhao Min's stare turned ice-cold. "You hesitate during training. You defy orders. You shield her." A pause, razor-thin. "Do you even realize what you're doing?"
Lan Yue didn't answer.
Zhao Min's lips curled with something close to disgust. "If you continue this path, the elders will notice."
The implication was clear.
The Azure Moon Sect did not tolerate weakness. It did not tolerate deviation.
And it did not tolerate traitors.
Lan Yue knew what happened to those who strayed too far.
Punishment would be swift. Unforgiving.
She should be afraid. She should turn back.
But instead, she felt a slow, creeping dread.
Not at the thought of the sect's wrath.
But at the thought of leaving Mu Qinglan behind.
Jin Xiao Watches from Afar
A shadowed valley. A still night.
Jin Xiao sat in quiet meditation, his mind stretching far beyond his physical form.
Through Mu Qinglan's eyes, he watched Lan Yue waver.
Falter.
Break.
A smirk tugged at his lips.
"Good."
Humans were pathetic. Their beliefs, their loyalties—so fragile. So easy to shatter.
Lan Yue thought she was still righteous.
She had no idea she was already lost.
Bai Ling's voice drifted from the darkness. "She's falling apart."
Jin Xiao exhaled, utterly unconcerned. "Not yet."
He leaned back, eyes gleaming with something cold.
"She still needs one last push."
And when the time came—
She would betray the Azure Moon Sect willingly.