Two nights after Kael's private audience with the Third Prince, the capital felt unusually quiet.
Too quiet.
Even the street noise seemed distant.
Kael sat in his chamber, circulating slowly. Core Formation Early was stabilizing toward Mid. The absorbed energy from the battlefield assassin had refined cleanly.
No corruption.
No instability.
He did not rely on luck.
He relied on control.
That was why he was still standing.
The attack did not come through the walls.
It came through information.
A servant knocked on his chamber door.
"Young Master, urgent message from the Montrell family."
Kael did not open his eyes immediately.
"Speak."
"They claim one of their expedition members was taken after returning home."
Silence.
Taken.
Not killed.
Targeted.
Kael opened his eyes.
"Who delivered this message?"
"A messenger in Montrell uniform."
"Bring him."
The servant hesitated. "He left immediately."
Kael stood.
That was the real warning.
He stepped onto the balcony and scanned the street below.
Nothing obvious.
But his instinct tightened.
This was not a simple kidnapping.
It was bait.
He moved fast.
No formal robe.
No guard escort.
He left through a side corridor and exited the estate quietly.
If they were watching, they would track movement.
He gave them exactly what they wanted.
The Montrell residence was several streets away.
When he arrived, the gates were open.
Too open.
No guards at the entrance.
Inside the courtyard—
Silence.
Kael stepped forward calmly.
The moment he crossed the inner threshold, the formation activated.
A suppression array.
Core-level.
Not strong enough to cripple him.
But enough to slow reaction.
Figures emerged from shadows.
Six masked individuals.
Shattered Oath.
One of them stepped forward.
Core Formation Mid.
"You came alone," the man said.
"Yes."
"You're either brave or predictable."
"Neither," Kael replied.
The suppression field pressed against his core.
He adjusted circulation instantly.
His chaotic Qi reshaped against the formation pressure and dispersed part of it.
The attackers moved simultaneously.
Two Foundation Peak cultivators attacked from left and right.
Kael did not retreat.
He stepped toward one instead.
Palm strike to the throat.
Direct.
Blood Devouring activated briefly.
The attacker collapsed before the second could react.
Kael rotated and kicked the second into a stone pillar.
Neck snapped.
Two down.
The Core Formation Mid attacker moved next.
Blade coated in dark energy.
They clashed in the center of the courtyard.
Stone shattered beneath their feet.
The suppression array pulsed stronger.
The enemy smiled coldly.
"You think you're strong because you absorb?"
"I think I'm strong because I don't waste movement," Kael replied.
The enemy attacked in rapid sequence.
Precise.
Disciplined.
Kael blocked two strikes, redirected the third, then intentionally allowed a shallow cut along his shoulder.
He stepped inside the blade range.
That was the mistake the enemy didn't see coming.
Kael's palm struck the man's chest.
Full activation.
Blood Devouring surged violently.
This time the drain was faster.
Cleaner.
The enemy tried to withdraw.
Too late.
His Core energy unraveled.
Collapsed inward.
Within seconds—
Dead.
The suppression array flickered.
Without its anchor, it destabilized.
Kael absorbed the remaining scattered energy from the formation itself.
Not greedily.
Just enough to dismantle it safely.
The remaining attackers hesitated.
Their leader gone.
Plan disrupted.
Kael turned toward them calmly.
"You chose the wrong target."
They retreated immediately.
Disciplined withdrawal again.
Shattered Oath did not waste lives unnecessarily.
Silence returned to the courtyard.
The Montrell family members began emerging from inner rooms.
They had been bound.
Alive.
The kidnapping had been staged.
Pure bait.
Montrell himself approached, shaken.
"They threatened my son," he said.
"I know," Kael replied.
"You shouldn't have come alone."
"I know."
Back at the Viremont estate, Kael returned before dawn.
His Core Formation pressure felt heavier now.
Close to Mid stage.
He washed the blood from his hands.
No tremor.
No hesitation.
No regret.
They had forced confrontation inside the capital.
That meant escalation.
And escalation meant they were confident in backing.
Later that morning, the Third Prince arrived personally at the Viremont estate.
"You were attacked," the prince said.
"Yes."
"You killed three Core Formation members within two nights."
"Yes."
The prince studied him carefully.
"You are accelerating faster than projected."
Kael did not respond.
"Shattered Oath will not stop," the prince continued. "They now consider you obstacle."
"I assumed that."
"And yet you don't look concerned."
Kael met his gaze evenly.
"Concern doesn't change outcome."
Silence lingered.
The prince exhaled slowly.
"Very well."
He stepped closer.
"If they escalate, I escalate."
Kael nodded once.
"Understood."
That night, when Kael closed his eyes to cultivate—
The faint echo from beneath the battlefield grew stronger again.
The sealed entity's presence pulsed once.
Slow.
Deliberate.
As if amused.
The Shattered Oath wanted it free.
The empire wanted it sealed.
And Kael—
Was now directly between both.