The armored vehicle rolled across the cracked asphalt, the engine's roar blending into the descending night. No one spoke.
The mission was complete, but clearly, something had happened that wasn't in the report. As the lights of the Duong Nam Safe Zone appeared in the distance, Thuong Sinh opened his eyes. The blood essence in his body had stabilized, but deep within his veins, a lingering, indescribable sensation remained.
It wasn't pain, but rather like something slowly adapting.
The vehicle stopped.
The gates of the safe zone opened, and white spotlights shone directly into the cabin.
"Dismount, quick inspection," said the guard in charge of the shift. It was a familiar procedure; no one objected.
Thuong Sinh was the last to step down. When his boots touched the ground, a brief numbness surged up through his soles, as if the concrete floor was no longer entirely harmless to him.
He frowned slightly but did not let it show.
Lam Thanh Moc walked parallel to him, her pace slightly slower than his. Her gaze flickered toward his wrist, where deep purple veins were protruding.
"You..." she hesitated.
"I'm fine," Thuong Sinh spoke first. "I just need a bit of rest."
She didn't ask further, only nodding.
After the team disbanded, the others left one by one, leaving only Thuong Sinh standing before the dormitory building. The night wind blew past, carrying the sound of metal and the familiar scent of disinfectant.
He returned to his room.
The door closed.
At this time, Van Binh was not in the room. It was unknown where he had gone, and the room was quiet. Thuong Sinh sat on his bed. Not rushing to cultivate, he rolled up his sleeve. Under the dim light, the veins on his arm had not completely returned to normal. If one looked closely, they were slightly darker than usual, as if something else had mixed into his blood.
He remained silent for a few seconds, closed his eyes, and slowly circulated his True Essence. The blood essence in his body responded immediately—not resisting, but not entirely submissive either, like a newly awakened beast learning to live with a new master.
He understood clearly that this path allowed for no hesitation and no turning back. In Nam An, his family might still be alive, and to reach them, he needed to be stronger, faster, and more ruthless.
The next night, the dormitory remained lit as usual.
But somewhere in one room—Thuong Sinh's room—there was a rhythm of vibration that was very difficult to detect. It was so weak that unless one had a specialized sensory Ability, no one would notice.
Thuong Sinh sat cross-legged on the bed, both hands placed before his dantian.
True Essence circulated.
This time, it was not following the Source Breath Cultivation, but the Vile Blood Heart-Corroding Art; the old manual now only served to stabilize him.
The blood in his body began to heat up.
It wasn't surface heat, but a smoldering warmth spreading along every blood vessel, as if countless silk threads were being stretched tight and then gradually constricted.
[ Warning: Blood Essence has exceeded the stability threshold ]
The text appeared and then automatically faded away.
Thuong Sinh did not open his eyes. He had anticipated this; this was not a "natural flow" breakthrough, but a forced accumulation. If he succeeded, he would step into the Middle Stage of Essence Gathering. If he failed, he wouldn't die, but the consequences would not be light.
His breathing slowed.
The veins at his wrists protruded vividly, a deep purple hue, as if carrying something heavier than normal blood.
In that moment, out in the hallway, Lam Thanh Moc was standing before Thuong Sinh's dormitory door. She looked at the door plate for a moment before confirming she was at the right place. She prepared to knock, but remembering whether she looked presentable enough, she turned around and headed toward the restroom.
In the room, Thuong Sinh felt his dantian vibrate. It didn't shatter, nor did it overflow; it simply felt as though it was expanding. An invisible barrier was torn open, and True Essence flooded into a new space, carrying the blood poison he had tempered for many days.
In that exact moment, the air in the room shuddered slightly, as if a sinister wind had blown out and was immediately sucked back in. No one saw the scene.
There was no light, no sound; only Thuong Sinh opening his eyes. His pupils were a deep crimson before immediately stabilizing. He was just about to regulate his breathing when—
Knock. Knock.
Two light knocks on the door. It wasn't Van Binh; if it were Van Binh, he would have burst in instead of knocking. Thuong Sinh stood up and went to open the door. Before him was Lam Thanh Moc, wearing ordinary clothes but still exuding an air of calm.
The two looked at each other; no one spoke.
Lam Thanh Moc was the first to break the awkward silence.
"Are you al—"
Before she could finish, she saw the deep purple veins protruding on his arm and noticed his eyes were still slightly red, though the color had mostly receded.
"What... did you just do?" her voice slowed.
Thuong Sinh instinctively pulled his hand back to hide it behind his back, the crimson in his eyes almost entirely gone.
"Nothing, just testing something."
Lam Thanh Moc frowned.
Testing?
A test that caused veins to deform and his breathing to remain unstable?
"You look like... you just ran at full speed and suddenly stopped."
Thuong Sinh did not deny it. "Basically."
Lam Thanh Moc looked at him for a moment, not with scrutiny, but with confirmation. "Can your body handle it?"
"For now, yes."
She let out a soft sigh, but her brow did not relax. "Next time, don't test things like this again."
Thuong Sinh was somewhat surprised. "Why?"
"Because if I hadn't been standing outside just now, no one would know if you fainted in this room."
"But what did you come to my room for?"
The question from Thuong Sinh made Lam Thanh Moc pause, and she stammered.
"I... I came here to visit you. Tonight I saw that you seemed injured, so I brought some food."
She spoke, and her right hand, which was holding a metal food container, reached out toward him.
"Thank you. Do you want to come in and have some water?"
"Alright."
He pressed himself against the wall, signaling for her to enter.
Lam Thanh Moc stepped inside and observed the room. On the right was Van Binh's bed; his sheets and pillows were entirely yellow—where he got them was a mystery—and his belongings were scattered messily on the bed. Looking to the left, she saw what must be Thuong Sinh's bed: overly simple, neat beyond reproach, with a cloth-wrapped sword resting beside the headboard.
Thuong Sinh closed the door. Seeing Lam Thanh Moc still standing there blankly in front of him, he was about to say something when—
Clack!
The room door was swung wide open. It struck Thuong Sinh's back, causing him to fall forward. Lam Thanh Moc heard the noise and only had time to turn her head before she saw Thuong Sinh's body falling toward her.
"Hey, I'm saying—"
Van Binh stood at the door, holding a late-night snack.
Then he froze.
"...Uh?"
His gaze flickered between Thuong Sinh lying on the floor and Lam Thanh Moc underneath him.
He turned around.
"Did I... enter the wrong room?"
No one answered. In the room, the air seemed frozen.
Thuong Sinh had braced himself with one hand on the floor, his newly stabilized breathing shattered once more. Before him, Lam Thanh Moc had fallen into a sitting position. The distance between them was so close he could hear her breathing.
It was very rapid.
Van Binh stood at the door, eyes wide, his mind blank for exactly three seconds.
Then—!
"Ah... I'm sorry."
He took half a step back.
"I didn't know this room was... um... busy."
No one moved. Van Binh looked a bit closer.
The cloth-wrapped sword by the bed, the metal food container fallen on the ground, Thuong Sinh's still-pale complexion, and Lam Thanh Moc's ears—so red she couldn't pretend to be normal.
"Wait, did I miss something important?" Van Binh blinked.
"Get out," Thuong Sinh said in a heavy voice—not loud, but very decisive.
Van Binh let out an "Oh," immediately turned to leave, and very thoughtfully pulled the door shut behind him.
Click—!
Silence returned. Now there were only two people in the room.
Thuong Sinh's breathing was heavy. His blood essence had just stabilized but was now chaotic again. Sweat from his forehead ran down his cheek as he stood up. Lam Thanh Moc hastily stood up as well, adjusting her clothes. She turned her back to Thuong Sinh to pick up the food container rolling on the floor.
"...I'm fine," she said quickly. "What about you?"
"I'm fine."
Thuong Sinh stood up, leaning against the wall for a moment to regain his balance. He glanced at the food container in Lam Thanh Moc's hand.
"...Thank you."
Lam Thanh Moc nodded without turning back. A moment later, she spoke again, her voice calmer.
"I didn't know you were... in such a state."
"I only thought you were injured after the mission."
"You weren't wrong," Thuong Sinh replied. "I just hadn't finished dealing with it yet."
Lam Thanh Moc was silent. She didn't ask "dealing with what," nor did she ask "why."
She only said one very soft sentence.
"Next time... if things aren't okay, you can tell me."
Thuong Sinh was stunned for a moment. "...To you?"
"Yeah." She turned her head back, her gaze not flickering. "At least I'll stand outside the door."
"And knock."
It was a very ordinary sentence, but in that moment, Thuong Sinh felt his chest grow heavy, as if something had just been placed there—not a burden, but something very distinct.
He nodded. "I'll remember."
In the hallway, Van Binh's voice drifted in, intentionally loud: "Hey! I'm telling you! You two in there! I'm going to eat first! No need to save a portion for me! I know how to behave!"
Lam Thanh Moc froze.
Thuong Sinh: "..."
She let out a soft cough, her ears turning red again.
"I... I'm going back first."
"Remember to eat the food while it's hot."
Having said that, she quickly placed the food container on the table and walked past Thuong Sinh to open the door and step out, without looking back.
The door closed.
In the room, Thuong Sinh stood still for a while. He looked down at his hands. The blood essence had completely settled, but the echoes of the forced breakthrough remained, like a small crack that had just been covered.
Outside the door, the sound of Lam Thanh Moc's footsteps faded away.
Thuong Sinh sat on the edge of the bed and opened the food. Steam rose; it was very ordinary.
But for some reason, this time he ate slower than usual.