MTLNOVEL Chapter 17: *Chapter 17: The Cost of Defiance**
The first rays of dawn bled across Qingyun Village, gilding the thatched roofs in hues of fire. Li Tian stood at the edge of the barley fields, his fingers brushing the stalks as he channeled qi through the **Verdant Dragon's Harvest Song**. The technique, a fusion of celestial resonance and mortal agriculture, coaxed life from the frost-bitten soil. Behind him, the villagers worked in wary silence, their glances flickering between the rejuvenated crops and the mountain pass where Magistrate Heng's men had vanished days prior.
A crow's cry shattered the calm.
Li Tian's qi stuttered. The earth trembled—not from his **Quake-Step**, but from the rhythmic pounding of armored boots. Six cultivators clad in obsidian-tinted robes emerged from the mist, their sleeves embroidered with the coiled serpent of Magistrate Heng's house. At their helm rode the magistrate himself, his palanquin replaced by a sleek ironwood carriage drawn by spirit-beasts—wolf-like creatures with smoldering amber eyes.
"Li Tian of Qingyun." Magistrate Heng's voice slithered over the fields, oily and saccharine. "The Emperor's Court has heard tales of your... *unique* talents. We've come to offer you a noble opportunity."
The villagers froze. Wen Lin dropped her sickle, her face ashen.
Li Tian stepped forward, the **Earthen Veil** clinging to his skin like a second shadow. "Qingyun has paid its taxes. We want no 'opportunities.'"
Heng's smile sharpened. He snapped his fingers. A cultivator hurled a burlap sack onto the soil. It split, spilling shriveled barley heads—the poisoned crop from the Icebloom Caves.
"A village elder's treasonous plot to sabotage imperial tribute," Heng tutted. "Elder Guo's head now decorates White Maple's gates. Yours could join him... or you could serve."
Wen Lin gasped. The miller's wife stifled a sob.
Li Tian's qi surged, celestial patterns flaring in his irises. The lead spirit-beast snarled, ember eyes锁定ing on him.
"Control your mongrel," Li Tian hissed.
Heng leaned forward, voice dropping to a venomous whisper. "Or what? You'll unleash the mountain's wrath? We know of your little cave, *hybrid*. The Azure Dragon Clan isn't the only one hunting abominations."
The cultivators fanned out, hands resting on sword hilts etched with suppression runes. Li Tian's mind raced. These weren't mere tax collectors—they were Inquisitors, trained to sniff out unorthodox cultivation.
The Kitsune's laughter echoed in his skull. *"Offer them a show, little thief."*
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**The Rice Wine Inn**
Heng's terms were laid out over bitter tea.
"A monthly tithe of your qi-infused crops," the magistrate said, sipping from a jade cup. "And your presence at the Emperor's summer tribunal to... demonstrate your techniques."
Wen Lin's knuckles whitened around her teacup. "He's just a boy."
"A boy who shattered ironwood with his fists," Heng countered. "The Emperor rewards talent. Resist, and Qingyun burns."
Li Tian's gaze flicked to the window. The cultivators had cordoned the inn, their formation cutting off escape routes. One, a gaunt man with scarred lips, stared at Wen Lin with reptilian intensity.
"Three days to decide," Heng said, rising. "Pray you choose wisely."
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**Midnight, Bone Hollow Cave**
The Kitsune awaited him amidst glowing lichen, its tails lashing. *"Fools and their threats. Crush them."*
Li Tian slammed a fist into the stone dais. "They have my mother!"
*"Then give them blood."* The spirit's mist-form coiled around him. *"The mountain hungers. Feed it their souls, and their bones will shield your den."*
A vision unfurled—Li Tian channeling the **Quake-Step** through the village square, fissures swallowing Heng's men whole. But beneath the carnage, Wen Lin's face twisted in horror.
"No." Li Tian recoiled. "There's another way."
The Kitsune sneered. *"Mortal weakness. You cling to a life that cannot last."*
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**Dawn, Thirty-Ninth Moon Cycle**
Wen Lin met Old Man Heng at the abandoned shrine. Moonlight carved hollows into her face as she pressed a jade comb—her last dowry heirloom—into his hands.
"You know the old paths," she whispered. "Get him to the Azure Dragon Clan. They'll protect him."
The herbalist's chuckle rasped like dead leaves. "The Dragons cage what they protect. But for you, I'll try."
He pocketed the comb, revealing a scroll stamped with a nine-tailed fox sigil. "Burn this after reading. And Wen Lin... the mountain always claims its due."
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**Noon, Village Square**
Li Tian faced Magistrate Heng, the cultivators' formation tightening around him.
"Your answer?"
The villagers watched, breath held. Wen Lin stood at the front, her eyes pleading.
Li Tian bowed, the motion stiff. "I accept."
Heng's smile bloomed. "Wise choi—"
The ground exploded.
Fissures spiderwebbed from Li Tian's feet, channeling the **Quake-Step** not at the cultivators, but at the poisoned barley sacks. Golden moss spores erupted in a bioluminescent cloud, engulfing Heng's men.
"Run!" Li Tian roared, shoving Wen Lin toward the forest.
Chaos erupted. Cultivators choked on spore-filled lungs as villagers scattered. The lead spirit-beast lunged, fangs aimed at Li Tian's throat—
A dagger flashed.
Wen Lin staggered, the blade buried in her chest.
"No!"
Celestial qi detonated. Li Tian's scream tore the sky, raw power vaporizing the dagger, the beast, the cultivator who'd struck. Wen Lin collapsed into his arms, blood seeping through her fingers.
"Go," she whispered. "Before..."
The Kitsune's howl shook the mountains. *"TITHE PAID. NOW RUN."*
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