Chapter 13: The First Peak… and the Brothers' Conspiracy
The ascending path toward Bright Dragon Peak—the First Peak of the Long Yuan Sect—was unlike anything Zhou Fan had ever seen.
Here, the air was not merely something to breathe; it was a dense liquid of spiritual energy that gently stung the skin, as if thousands of golden needles were caressing every pore.
The trees lining the mountain path were not green, but crystalline. Their leaves chimed musically whenever they collided under the mountain winds.
Zhou Fan walked slowly, leaning on a simple wooden staff. His body groaned under the weight of internal injuries left by the altar's collapse, yet his eyes missed nothing.
"One… two… three…"
He silently counted the hidden defensive formations embedded within the rocks.
"Every ten steps, there's a killing array capable of crushing a Body Tempering cultivator. This peak isn't a residence—it's a floating fortress."
Behind him, Chang followed in a daze, trembling each time an inner disciple passed them with a sword radiating celestial light.
"Fan… are we really going to live here? This place feels… so overwhelming that I'm afraid to even breathe."
Zhou Fan didn't turn back, but his voice flowed calmly like running water.
"Remember this, Chang. The grandeur you see is nothing but a shell. The more magnificent the palace, the more filth is buried beneath its foundations. We're here to claim a position—not to admire the scenery."
When they reached the Celestial Hall Plaza, a man was already waiting for them. He wore white robes embroidered with threads of real gold. This was Elder Qin, the second-in-command of the First Peak, known throughout the sect as the Sword of Justice.
His gaze was sharp as a blade, and when it landed on Zhou Fan, the latter felt a wave of spiritual pressure—not hostile, but evaluative.
"Zhou Fan," Elder Qin spoke, his deep voice echoing through the plaza.
"You've caused a disturbance unseen in the sect for a hundred years. A servant surpassing geniuses, and an elder vanishing in his presence. There are many questions awaiting answers… but rules are rules. You won, and the First Peak honors its promises."
He gestured toward a small palace perched at the edge of a cliff overlooking a sea of clouds.
"That is Dewfall Residence. It will be your personal dwelling. You'll receive ten mid-grade spirit stones monthly and access to the Celestial Scroll Library. But beware…"
Elder Qin stepped closer, lowering his voice so only Zhou Fan could hear.
"The First Peak is filled with hidden tigers. Your title as a Core Disciple makes you a target for every ambitious soul. Don't think winning in the forest makes you a master. There, you fought children… here, you'll face human monsters."
Zhou Fan bowed calmly.
"Thank you for the warning, Elder. Calculations are never complete without difficult variables."
Inside Dewfall Residence, Zhou Fan shut the door behind him and finally exhaled. He collapsed onto the floor, tears—born of physical exhaustion, not sorrow—streaming down his face as he suppressed a scream of pain.
From his chest, he retrieved the leather scroll—the Celestial Calculation Record—and examined it under the dim oil lamp. The characters pulsed as if alive, shifting and reshaping before his eyes.
"Young brother…"
The whispered words of the mysterious disciple echoed in his mind.
He opened the record to a page he had never seen before.
A star map unfolded—one that belonged to no sky of this world. Beneath it, new text appeared:
[Bitter Truth:]
The Record is not a book—it is bait.
We, the Accountants, do not possess power.
We merely clear the road for the arrival of the Lord of Chaos.
Of every thousand Accountants, only one survives.
Will you be the impossible number… or just a footnote in the ledger?
A chill gripped Zhou Fan's heart.
Everything he had done—every wound endured—was merely part of a far greater game.
He was not a lone protagonist. He was a candidate in a bloody competition among unknown "brothers" who possessed the same abilities—perhaps even greater ones.
"The equation has changed," Zhou Fan thought, digging his nails into the wooden floor.
"The enemy isn't Yang Lian. Not even Elder Mo. The enemy is the system that created this Record. If they want me to clean the road… then I'll dismantle the road itself and block it in their faces."
That night, as Zhou Fan attempted to temper his body using the peak's dense spiritual energy, he sensed movement within the shadows.
It wasn't the presence of an assassin.
It was an aura—terrifyingly familiar.
A young woman stepped out from behind the curtains, seemingly his age, dressed in First Peak disciple robes. She possessed a cold beauty, and her eyes shimmered with the same violet light that appeared in Zhou Fan's whenever he activated Dark Derivation.
"Don't bother reaching for the dagger," she said softly, her voice gentle yet absolute.
"My name is Ling'er. And I am your Senior Sister—in the computational sense."
Zhou Fan froze.
"You… you possess the Record as well?"
Ling'er laughed lightly and sat on the edge of the window, moonlight illuminating half her face.
"I hold the Third Volume: Soul Geometry. I came to see the one who managed to kill Elder Mo. He was the weakest among the brothers—yet killing him at the level of a 'servant' is an achievement I can't ignore."
"What do you want from me?" Zhou Fan asked, attempting to calculate her weaknesses—only to find her aura uncalculable, like an illusory entity.
"I want to warn you," Ling'er said as she leapt outward.
"The sect has announced an 'exploration mission' to the Broken Bones Valley next week. There, three Accountants will meet. Only one of us is meant to return alive and obtain the Fourth Volume.
If you want to survive… stop calculating numbers, and start calculating souls."
She vanished in an instant, leaving behind only the faint scent of withering flowers.
Zhou Fan remained alone in the room, staring at his trembling hand.
He wasn't afraid—he was exhilarated.
For the first time, he had found equals.
The world was no longer filled with fools easily deceived. It had become a chessboard where the pieces could think—and move—at the same time.
"Broken Bones Valley…" Zhou Fan murmured as he sat back down.
"Fine. Let's see whose bones get broken first."