The Flame Has Found Its Bearer

Chapter: The Flame Has Found Its Bearer

Lanh Hoa recognized the old man as well.

He stood motionless in the middle of the courtyard, the tip of his ancient Fire-aligned sword lowered beside him. A few streaks of blood still remained on the blade after the brief but intense battle, yet Lanh Hoa's attention was no longer on the enemies they had just defeated.

He did not step forward or say anything. His gaze simply moved slowly across the old man's weathered face, then over the elderly woman beside the fire and the women holding their children, before finally settling on the youngsters sheltering behind the adults.

Most of those children had probably never known the Fire Qilin Tribe during its prosperous days.

Lanh Hoa's expression remained as cold as ever, but the hand holding his sword tightened slightly.

The old man stared at him for a long while, as though he still could not fully trust his own eyes.

"Is it really you?"

Lanh Hoa remained silent for a moment before giving a slight nod.

"It is me."

Those two words alone made the old man's hand tremble harder around his walking stick.

He wanted to step forward, but after barely half a step, he had to stop to steady himself. Lanh Hoa instinctively raised a hand as though he meant to support him, but in the end, he remained where he was.

Hao Nhien saw everything but said nothing.

Some returns required very few words.

Behind them, Luu Tan had already tied up the mid-stage Foundation Establishment prisoner whose spiritual power Lanh Hoa had sealed. He checked the knots once more, then stood and planted his sword in the sand beside him, keeping one hand on the hilt.

None of the Fire Qilin tribesmen nearby looked at him kindly. Years of resentment could not disappear because of a single sword strike. This time, however, Luu Tan did not lower his head and avoid their eyes as he had before. He remained beside the prisoner and silently accepted every cold gaze directed at him.

Hao Nhien recalled the Tieu Dao Sword and looked around the cluster of houses.

"First, do not gather here for too long. There are still Heavenly Eye people outside Dragonmist Thorn Forest, and they do not know what happened to these three."

He turned toward Lanh Hoa.

"Check the surroundings and erase the most obvious traces of the fight. Move the two bodies into one of the abandoned houses nearby. Cover the blood in the sand as well. Try not to let anyone approaching from a distance realize there was a battle here."

Lanh Hoa understood immediately.

"Understood."

Hao Nhien looked toward the others.

"We will speak somewhere else. There is a large house to the north that is secluded enough. Go in small groups and avoid drawing too much attention."

The old man with the walking stick was still watching him suspiciously.

"Who are you?"

Hao Nhien paused for a moment.

He did not want to answer in the middle of the courtyard, much less allow the people who still did not understand the situation to continue gathering there.

"I came with Lanh Hoa. I will explain the rest once we are inside."

The old man turned toward Lanh Hoa.

Lanh Hoa gave a slight nod.

That was enough.

The old man asked no further questions and turned to speak quietly with the people around him. Several women immediately led the children away from the courtyard, while the elderly woman lowered the fire beneath the porridge pot before following them. No one spoke loudly, but their eyes kept returning to Hao Nhien and Lanh Hoa.

Luu Tan stepped aside to make way.

The boy of about eight passed him with the same pebble still clenched in his hand. He paused briefly, looked at Luu Tan, then at the sword planted in the sand.

This time, the child did not curse him.

But neither did he come closer.

Only after everyone else had left did Luu Tan pull his sword from the sand, drag the prisoner to his feet with one hand, and escort him after the others.

Lanh Hoa remained behind until the end.

The large house to the north had once served as the Fire Qilin Tribe's council hall.

From the old man's explanation, Hao Nhien learned that generations of Clan Heads and elders had once discussed the tribe's affairs there. The building was still large enough to hold several dozen people, but its wooden walls had faded with age, and many of the rugs covering the floor were so worn that their original patterns were nearly impossible to recognize.

Most of those gathered were elderly people, women, and several middle-aged men carrying old injuries. The children had also been brought inside because no one felt safe leaving them outside after the battle.

The prisoner was tightly bound near the door, his mouth stuffed with cloth. Luu Tan stood beside him as guard.

No one sat near Luu Tan.

Lanh Hoa stood half a step behind Hao Nhien.

The ancient Fire-aligned sword had been wiped clean, but he still held it in his hand.

Hao Nhien looked at the people inside the hall.

These were what remained of a tribe that had once possessed a name throughout the Western Wastes. There were no powerful experts and no orderly ranks of warriors. The people before him were simply those who had survived years of division, internal struggle, and forced separation from their homeland.

After several breaths, he spoke.

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"I did not come here to tell you that everything will immediately return to the way it once was. The Fire Qilin Tribe is still weak, many of its people remain scattered, and Heavenly Eye still has people waiting outside."

Everyone in the hall remained silent.

Hao Nhien continued,

"But there are two things I can tell you clearly. First, some Fire Qilin tribesmen have already been rescued and are on their way to Tam Thành. I arranged for others to escort them there first so they would not fall back into Heavenly Eye's hands."

Several people immediately raised their heads.

A woman near the middle of the hall asked softly,

"Is that true?"

Hao Nhien nodded.

"It is. Not everyone, but some are still alive. Among them are people who were captured before, as well as those who were forced into hiding."

A low murmur immediately spread through the room.

Some people gripped the hands of those beside them, while others lowered their heads as though trying to suppress their emotions. Hao Nhien did not give further details. He knew that at a moment like this, promises that were too large would only make his words harder to believe.

"The second thing is that Duong Quang has no right to decide whether the Fire Qilin Tribe continues to exist. As long as you are still here, and as long as those who were scattered still wish to return, this matter is not over."

The old man with the walking stick had been studying Hao Nhien closely from the beginning. At last, he asked,

"By what standing do you say these things?"

The hall immediately fell silent.

That was what everyone wanted to know.

A young stranger whose cultivation was only at early Foundation Establishment had come with Lanh Hoa, knew about the tribesmen being taken to Tam Thành, and could even give Lanh Hoa orders.

Hao Nhien did not answer immediately.

Inside his Sea of Consciousness, the Fire Qilin Jade remained still. Ever since he entered the council hall, the faint resonance with the altar at the center of the settlement had not completely disappeared.

It was not strong, nor did it carry any will or intent.

It was simply a mechanical resonance between an inheritance treasure and the place to which it belonged.

Hao Nhien guided a very small amount of Fire spiritual power through his meridians.

A moment later, the Fire Qilin Mark gradually appeared between his brows.

It was only a clear red mark, shaped similarly to the ancient patterns carved into the Fire Qilin Altar.

Yet the atmosphere inside the hall changed at once.

The old man's eyes widened.

The elderly woman sitting across the room also rose to her feet without realizing it.

"That mark..."

The old man stared at Hao Nhien's brow.

"The Fire Qilin Mark?"

Before Hao Nhien could answer, Lanh Hoa spoke from behind him.

"The Fire Qilin Jade chose him."

The entire hall fell silent.

The old man turned toward Lanh Hoa as though he needed to make sure he had heard correctly.

Lanh Hoa continued calmly,

"It is currently within the Clan Head's Sea of Consciousness."

Several people immediately exchanged looks.

Some were shocked, others could not hide their excitement, but a few remained cautious.

Hao Nhien had expected such a reaction.

He did not demand that they believe him immediately.

"I have not yet completed the rite at the Fire Qilin Altar."

The old man was about to speak when Hao Nhien continued,

"So according to the Fire Qilin Tribe's formal tradition, the altar has not yet fully acknowledged me."

Lanh Hoa frowned slightly behind him.

"The altar is only the final step."

Hao Nhien glanced back at him but did not argue further. This was far from the first time Lanh Hoa had called him Clan Head, and the man clearly had no intention of changing.

The old man with the walking stick slowly rose.

He looked at the mark between Hao Nhien's brows, then at Lanh Hoa. After a long while, his aged body slowly lowered onto one knee.

Hao Nhien immediately stepped forward to stop him.

"Senior, please stand."

The old man looked up.

"But..."

"I have not completed the rite."

Hao Nhien held his arm.

"And what the Fire Qilin Tribe needs right now is not for people to kneel."

The old man looked at him for a moment before finally allowing Hao Nhien to help him back to his feet.

Several other elderly people who had been about to follow his example also stopped.

Not everyone fully believed yet.

But something had appeared in their eyes that had almost disappeared before.

Hope.

Hao Nhien withdrew the Fire spiritual power, and the mark between his brows gradually faded.

"I am not asking you to trust me because of a single mark. Nor do I intend to use the Fire Qilin Jade to force anyone to follow me."

His gaze moved across the hall.

"All I can say is that from the moment I received the Fire Qilin Jade, the affairs of the Fire Qilin Tribe became my responsibility. Those who are still alive, those who were scattered, and those who remain under Heavenly Eye's control, I will find a way to bring them back if I can."

No one spoke.

After a brief pause, Hao Nhien continued,

"But before we speak of what comes next, I need to know what happened within the tribe during these past years."

The old man with the walking stick was helped back into his seat.

He remained silent for a while, as though sorting through memories he had avoided for far too long.

"Everything began after the old Clan Head died."

Hao Nhien listened closely.

"Afterward, conflict broke out within the tribe. Duong Long already held considerable status at the time. With a group of supporters behind him, he gradually forced the others to obey him. At first, he claimed that as long as the Fire Qilin Tribe cooperated with Heavenly Eye, we could preserve our people, keep our resources, and avoid being suppressed by the other tribes."

The old man gave a bitter laugh.

"But afterward, those who opposed him began disappearing one after another."

"Some were killed. Some were taken away. Others left the tribe before their turn came."

He paused to catch his breath.

"Elder Luu Thai also disappeared after being hunted down. We only knew he had been severely injured before he fled. After that, there was no further word of him."

Hao Nhien did not interrupt.

He knew Luu Thai had died, but it was not yet appropriate to explain everything connected to the Fire Qilin Jade here.

The old man continued,

"After gaining control of the tribe, Duong Long led a group of people away with him."

His voice gradually lowered.

"Most of those who remained either could not leave or refused to. But the water became harder and harder to secure, and our spirit stones were nearly exhausted. Anyone who still had strength had to hunt in the desert, mine ore, or work for others in exchange for food."

He looked around the hall.

"These are the people who remain."

No one cried loudly.

There was only a long silence.

Hao Nhien understood that what he had seen since entering the settlement was only the surface.

If he truly wanted to gather the Fire Qilin Tribe again, the first task was not to raise their banner or light the altar.

It was to keep these people alive.

After a while, the old man looked at Hao Nhien.

"If the Fire Qilin Jade truly chose you..."

He paused and changed the way he addressed him.

"If the Jade chose you, sir, then we have only one request."

Hao Nhien did not allow him to kneel again.

"Please speak, Senior."

"Find those who were taken away."

The old man's voice had become hoarse.

"You do not need to promise that everyone will return. But if any of them are still alive, please do not abandon them."

Hao Nhien looked at him and nodded.

"I will search for them."

It was not a grand oath.

Nor was it a promise that everyone could be saved.

But it was something he truly intended to do.

The elderly woman gently wiped the corner of her eye.

"We kept this place all these years because we were afraid that if someone came back, there would be no one left here waiting for them."

Standing behind Hao Nhien, Lanh Hoa suddenly drew a heavier breath.

Hao Nhien heard it but did not turn around.

He looked at the people in the hall.

"Thank you for keeping this place until today."

It was a simple sentence.

But the old man immediately lowered his head.

The elderly woman turned her face away as well.

Hao Nhien said no more.

Time did not allow them to remain immersed in the past for too long.

The three Heavenly Eye cultivators sent into the settlement had already been gone longer than a normal scouting mission should have taken. No matter how patient the group outside Dragonmist Thorn Forest was, they would soon begin to suspect something had happened.

His gaze shifted toward the prisoner bound near the door.

The man still had his head lowered, but the moment he noticed Hao Nhien looking at him, his entire body tensed.

Hao Nhien stood.

"There is still much we need to discuss about the Fire Qilin Tribe. But first, we have to survive today."

The hall, which had only just begun to warm, immediately fell silent again.

Hao Nhien walked over to the prisoner and pulled the cloth from his mouth.

The man took several deep breaths but did not dare speak.

Hao Nhien sat down in front of him.

"How many people are still outside Dragonmist Thorn Forest?"

The prisoner remained silent.

Hao Nhien did not rush him.

"Who is commanding them?"

Still no answer.

Hao Nhien looked directly into his eyes.

"And how long will they wait before entering if the three of you fail to return?"

This time, the prisoner's gaze shifted slightly.

It was only a tiny change.

But Hao Nhien saw it.

He knew he had asked the right question.

Outside the council hall, the desert wind continued to pass over the old rooftops. The Fire Qilin Altar remained silent at the center of the settlement, and no flame had yet been lit.

But that could wait.

The encirclement beyond the forest could not.