Unlimited Writing Works

3:5 – Zhan Clan

The nameless man… now called Sifu Guilao, stood off against Zhan Long, Xinxin’s father and the leader of the Zhan Clan. Despite the spiritual pressure emanating from Zhan Long, Guilao simply smiled.

Xinxin had a terrible premonition. The moment her father attacked would be his end. Sifu might have held back against Uncle Hu and Uncle Wei, but that was because they were third parties. Since Xinxin’s father was the source of her issues…

Xinxin wracked her mind on how to resolve the issue. Sifu said to leave it to him, but if she did then, judging from the look in Sifu’s eyes, her father would die.

Zhan Long stared at Guilao and said, “You know my name. Tell me yours.”

Guilao laughed. “My name? Of all the things to ask about, you ask that? Not whether your daughter is fine, why she left, or anything else?”

Zhan Long didn’t respond.

Seeing that, Guilao’s expression darkened. “Hmph. If you insist, you can call me ‘Guilao’ like your daughter has.”

“A ghost person? No, a foreigner devil?” Zhan Long frowned.

Seeing her chance, Xinxin quickly stepped back in front of her Sifu and father. “Stop! There’s no need for you two to fight!”

Zhan Long narrowed his eyes. “Daughter. We will talk later. But for now, step aside unless you want to get hurt.”

Xinxin shook her head and then turned to Guilao. “Sifu!”

“He asked for this.” With those words, Guilao pushed Xinxin to the side.

The beautiful young girl stumbled, landing on the ground.

An instant later, Zhan Long lunged, thrusting his spear like a bolt of emerald lightning.

Dark miasma formed around Guilao and he grinned, slowly raising his left hand.

Seeing that, Xinxin screamed. “Stop it!”

A vortex of spiritual energy erupted in the surroundings with Xinxin as the center.

“What?!” Zhan Long stopped his attack and then turned towards Xinxin. His eyes widened and he muttered, “Late Foundation Establishment? But that’s impossible!”

Guilao turned towards his disciple and sighed. “…Well, I suppose this works too.”

Xinxin stood up, panting with exertion. She didn’t know what she just did, but she knew that it was enough to get them both to listen. “Father… no, Daddy. Stop. Please. Sifu doesn’t want to hurt anybody.”

“Says you.”

Xinxin glared at her Sifu.

Guilao rolled his eyes and became quiet.

Xinxin turned back to her father and said, “Sifu accepted me as his disciple after I helped him when he was unconscious. That’s all.”

Zhan Long frowned and shifted his gaze towards Guilao. “Is that true?”

“True enough.”

Zhan Long’s frown deepened.

“A-Anyway,” Xinxin said. “Can we go back now, Daddy? I’m tired, hungry, and dirty.”

Zhan Long didn’t respond and kept staring at Guilao.

Xinxin’s Sifu shrugged. “She has a point. Besides, isn’t it inappropriate for the Zhan Clan Leader to leave the grounds just to accost a rogue cultivator?”

“…Very well. Xinxin, follow me.” Zhan Long turned around and started walking. “Brother Hu and Brother Wei. Show our… guest to the Emerald Pavillion.”

The two guards saluted Zhan Long and then gestured for Guilao to follow them.

Xinxin looked to her Sifu, but on seeing him wave her off, she quickly headed after her father.

The Zhan Clan manor. It was a typical oriental style building. Vast, but one level, it served as the living quarters for the clan leader and his immediate family, along with a few other important members of the clan.

Zhan Long led the way when inside, taking Xinxin directly to her room in the northwest corner of the manor. Once outside the door, he slid it open and gestured for Xinxin to walk inside.

Xinxin hesitated after seeing her father’s stony face, but she took a deep breath and stepped inside her room.

For a young girl, Xinxin’s room was relatively bare. A simple bed with silk sheets, a wardrobe with various clothing, and a few jeweled hairpins and combs along with a bronze mirror were all she had.

It looked like everything was still where Xinxin had left them. But before she had the time to think about it, her father stepped into the room and slid the door shut.

Immediately after, a dense spiritual sense covered the room, preventing anyone from eavesdropping.

Zhan Long stared at his daughter for a few moments before saying, “What were you thinking, Xinxin? Do you know how worried the clan was? How worried I was?”

Xinxin crossed her arms. “Hmph. You just don’t know what excuse to make if you don’t have me to marry off.”

Zhan Long pinched his nose. “Are you still talking about that? You know that marriage is for the best.”

“And what about what I think? How I feel?”

The air suddenly grew heavy, the power of a Core Formation stage cultivator filling the room.

“…Perhaps I have been too lenient with you after your mother died. But this is your duty as my daughter. And besides that… what are you so concerned about? I am sure that Wang Tian-“

“Don’t talk to me about that… that jerk!”

“He is your future husband.”

Xinxin huffed and crossed her arms. “There are still two years, father! You promised!”

Zhan Long groaned and rubbed the bridge of his nose. “Just what did I, Zhan Long, do in my past life to earn such a child?”

Xinxin huffed and jumped onto her bed.

“Your clothes are dirty, Xinxin.”

“So?”

“Xiao Mei is going to have more work to do now cleaning up after you.”

Xinxin blushed at that and then got off her bed, slowly brushing the dirt off.

Zhan Long sighed and leaned against a wall. “You have no chance, Xinxin. Wang Tian has already broken through to the Core realm. While I don’t know what heaven-defying technique your ‘Sifu’ used to bring you to Late Foundation Establishment, two years will not be enough for you to clash against Wang Tian.”

“Two years is a lot of time, father!”

“Not enough to prepare for and then transcend your divine tribulation, Xinxin. Even our founder took a whole decade to make ample preparations before reaching Core realm, and he had been cultivating since a child. You, Xinxin… you only have average talent and aptitude.”

Xinxin pursed her lips and turned her head away.

Zhan Long stared long and hard at his daughter and then sighed. “You foolish girl. But if you’re that determined, then so be it.” He reached into this shirt and placed a manual on the table. “Here. Don’t let anyone else know that you have it.”

Xinxin took the book and flipped through it. “This is-“

“I don’t know what your Sifu has taught you, and I don’t trust him, but as a member of the Zhan Clan that has stepped onto the path of immortality, it’s your right to learn the techniques of our family.”

“…Daddy.”

Zhan Long shook his head. “This is the only thing I can do for you as a father, Xinxin. From this point onwards, whether you can seize your fate is up to the heavens. But if you fail, I hope that you will accept the role you are given.”

With that Zhan Long left.

The moment he did, the air distorted and another figure appeared in the room. “Some father he is.”

Xinxin cursed and dropped the book onto the ground. “Sifu! You can’t just-! No, how are you even here?”

Guilao picked up the book and idly flipped through it. “Don’t underestimate me, girl.”

“Give that back!”

Before Guilao could look at any more, Xinxin jumped off her bed and snatched the book back.

Guilao let her and held up his hands. “Fine, fine. It’s not like your clan’s techniques are anything special. I can already use most of them anyway.”

Xinxin froze. “…You can?”

“Of course. It’s just channeling some wood nature energy into your body and reinforcing it through the meridians. Basic stuff.”

“Sifu.”

“What is it girl?”

Xinxin frowned and stared at her Sifu before saying, “Who… no, what exactly are you?”

“I already told you, girl. Just a nameless ghost that somehow cheated life and death… but now what was this bet I heard your worthless father talk about?

“Don’t call him that.”

Guilao raised an eyebrow. “Why not, girl? He’s selling you off to a man as an ornament and the only thing he can do for you is give you a book?” He shook his head. “I take it back. He’s not worthless, he’s trash.”

“Don’t…”

“Am I wrong? I bet that he didn’t even watch you grow up, too busy with his ‘clan duties’.”

That time, Xinxin didn’t respond. Her Sifu was right.

At that time, someone knocked at the door. “Lady Xinxin? Your father sent me to help you clean up.”

That was Xiaomei!

Xinxin’s eyes widened. “In a moment!”

She gestured for her Sifu to hide, but he just rolled his eyes.

“Sifu!” Xinxin whispered.

Guilao walked towards Xinxin and said, “I’ll see you later, girl. Rest easy until I get back.” After saying those words, he vanished into thin air.

The moment he did, the door opened and a young woman in a plain brown robe walked in while rolling a cart carrying a tub of warm water. She wasn’t as beautiful as Xinxin, but she could still be considered fairly attractive.

Xiaomei took a look around the room and frowned. “Are you alright, Lady Xinxin? I thought I heard another voice-“

“It’s nothing! I was just… talking to myself, Xiaomei!”

The young woman stared at Xinxin.

Xinxin smiled, doing her best to keep her cool.

After a while, Xiaomei nodded. “…Of course, Lady Xinxin. Now, your father told me that you needed to bathe…”

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3:4 – Foundation

“I’m sorry, Sifu.”

Guilao sighed and said, “I’ll let it pass this time. But if you do something like that again, forget about being my disciple.”

Xinxin wanted to protest. She was just an ordinary girl that had never received any training. Even if she managed to brutally kill the Shadow Panther in the heat of a life and death experience, when faced with the gruesome aftermath it was obvious that she would lose her stomach.

Even though Xinxin knew that, she bit her tongue and said, “Yes, Sifu.”

Still, for her Sifu to remain unfazed after forcing a beautiful young girl like herself to commit such a brutal task… Xinxin began to wonder if there wasn’t some truth to Sifu declaring he was a ghost.

Guilao turned his attention back to the front and the master and disciple pair continued their walked through the dark bamboo forest.

After Xinxin’s violent upheaval, Sifu Guilao had declared that they were heading straight to the Zhan Clan Grounds. While her reaction to the first lesson wasn’t the best, Sifu Guilao decided that she would at least avoid freezing up when faced with a deadly situation now. Because of that, he deemed her ready to return to the Zhan Clan and confront her fellow clansmen about her decision.

After all, if you could stare down death and move past the painful experience, what were a few up-stuck elders?

Or so Sifu said.

Xinxin still didn’t think it would be that simple, but she had already made her choice, so she remained silent and kept walking.

The night breeze drifted across the forest, rattling the bamboo trees. Like before, it sounded like the cackling of evil spirits. But Xinxin wasn’t afraid. After all, there was something even more dreadful walking in front of her.

But that reminded Xinxin.

“Sifu.”

“What is it, girl?”

“How do you know the way to the Zhan Clan Grounds? Have you been there before?”

Xinxin thought that Sifu would have made her lead the way back. In the dark, it would have been difficult, especially with the profound beasts lurking in the night. That was also why Xinxin thought he taught her the first lesson. Yet, instead of forcing her to lead, Sifu had walked in front of her, causing Xinxin to follow behind.

Guilao came to a halt.

Xinxin almost ran into him, but managed to stop before she did. “Sifu?”

“…You ask too many questions, girl. Just trust that we won’t get lost.”

Saying those words, Guilao continued walking.

Xinxin frowned but followed after him. Her Sifu was just too mysterious. She burned with curiosity to find out more about him, but Xinxin refrained on remembering his temperament. When her Sifu got into a mood like that, it would be like talking to a brick wall. No, a brick wall at least bounced your voice back. It was instead like talking into the empty night, with only the spirits able to respond back while you hoped nothing would.

“How is your body, girl? Do you still feel nauseous?”

Xinxin shook her head, but then remembered that her Sifu couldn’t see her action.

Before Xinxin could respond, Guilao was already speaking again. “Good. Then we can move onto the next step.”

Xinxin wondered if her Sifu secretly had eyes on the back of his head. Then she remembered that he was an expert so far beyond her that she couldn’t even begin to fathom his power and brushed it off. Instead, she focused on what her Sifu said after that.

“The next step?”

“Yes,” Guilao said. “Your body should have digested the rest of the medicinal properties of the pill now. The life and death experience would have acted as a catalyst and cemented the foundation I laid out for you.”

Xinxin frowned. “But I don’t feel any different?”

“You wouldn’t. I made sure of that. If you focus your attention on your… what do they call it. Dantian? Heavenly sea? Energy center?” Guilao shook his head and said, “Just focus your attention to that place below your navel. You should realize it then.”

Xinxin was skeptical, but she closed her eyes and did as her Sifu said.

In an instant, her consciousness was pulled away from the forest and into a dark void. It stretched on seemingly forever, an infinite darkness expanding in every direction. But within that darkness there were eleven towering pillars that illuminated the darkness.

Ten of those pillars formed a circle, each of them appearing to have been carved out of crystal and glowing with starry light as if entire swathes of the night sky had been sealed away. The last pillar stood in the center of that circle. But unlike the others, it was barely visible, only a dark silhouette amidst the black background.

Shadowy tendrils wreathed the central pillar, drawing in the light from the surrounding pillars.

Staring at it, Xinxin almost felt like it would draw her in as well.

As if sensing her fear, the swirling shadows slowed, along with the attractive force.

With that, Xinxin was free to contemplate what she was seeing.

‘This is… Foundation Establishment?’ Xinxin thought. ‘Those pillars must be Dao Pillars. But I don’t remember hearing anyone ever having more than nine… or any with those colors. Nine should already be a complete circle, but I have ten in a circle and then one more…’

Xinxin drew her attention outside of her dantian. “Sifu-“

She called out, but there was nobody around.

Xinxin panicked and then scanned her surroundings. She couldn’t see her Sifu, but somehow, she felt that he was nearby. A strange sixth sense guided her way and she ran through the forest.

Before long, she caught sight of her Sifu’s back. “S-Sifu! You’re supposed to wait for me!”

Guilao kept walking and said, “It’s not my fault if you get left behind.”

Xinxin pouted her lips but quickly increased her pace to catch up.

“So,” Guilao said when Xinxin caught up. “I take it you realized that you’re no longer an ordinary girl.”

“Yes, Sifu. But… how am I in the Foundation Establishment stage already? And why do I have eleven Dao Pillars?”

“Again, you ask too many questions, girl.”

“But Sifu-”

“Quiet.” Guilao’s cold voice cut off Xinxin’s words. “There are some things in life that are better to just accept rather than question.”

Xinxin realized that she wouldn’t be getting any answers and said, “Yes, Sifu.”

Guilao kept walking.

Xinxin followed.

The bamboo forest began thinning out. The master and disciple pair were approaching the edges of the Zhan Clan Grounds.

At that time, Guilao spoke again. “…If you truly want to know, ask me again when you have become accustomed to your new power. Until then, just know that you won’t lose out even to that One Tin guy you’re betrothed to.”

Xinxin smiled. “It’s Wang Tian, Sifu.”

“That’s what I said.”

Xinxin’s smile grew and she walked a bit closer to her Sifu. “…Thank you.”

Guilao turned back to glance at Xinxin and then quickly turned away. “It’s still too soon to thank me, girl. Instead, you’d better come up with a good excuse for your clansmen unless you’re fine with me slaughtering everyone when they mistake me for having kidnapped their princess.”

Xinxin’s smile vanished. She had forgotten about that.

“Don’t worry,” Guilao said. “You still have a few hours until sunrise and then an hour afterwards before we arrive at the front gate of your clan grounds.”

“A few hours. Right- wait, the front gate?”

“Of course. I said it earlier, didn’t I? A Sifu should introduce himself to his disciple’s family.”

The words were soft and polite, but Xinxin could hear the excitement and hunger underlining them.

…Maybe the guards wouldn’t over react? Uncle Hu and Uncle Wei were reasonable people.

Right?

It was a bright and sunny morning. The blue sky carried fluffy white clouds that leisurely drifted above. The wind was refreshing, neither cool nor hot, and gently brushed the skin as it passed like a soft caress. The sun cast its rays to the ground, causing the drops of dew on the grass to glisten when light struck them.

With that beautiful weather accompanying them, Xinxin and her Sifu arrived at the front gates of the Zhan Clan Grounds.

The Zhan Clan Grounds, while called that, was really a vast sprawling village encircled by a wooden fence. Placed at the valley of the Emerald Mountain where the founder of the Zhan Clan’s tomb stood, it was protected by the founder’s legacy formation and the natural aura of the nearby mountain.

There were two main entrances to the Zhan Clan Grounds, one facing the Emerald Mountain and the bamboo forest where Xinxin and Guilao arrived from, and another facing the vast plains opening to the rest of the Xia Dynasty.

Those entrances were guarded by two men each and had a massive gate that shut at night to keep out profound beasts and would-be attackers. Their equipment varied depending on their specialty, be it spear, sword, fist, or some other weapon, but their uniform of dark green robes with brown embroidering remained a constant.

Despite the boring job, the guardsmen manning the gate took it seriously and carefully considered every threat to the clan. They were the first line of defense, after all.

Thus, when Zhan Hu and Zhan Wei noticed Xinxin walking towards the gate with her silk green robes covered in blood and grime, they immediately reacted.

“Brother Wei, quickly grab little Xinxin! I will distract him!”

Zhan Hu kicked off the ground and charged at Guilao. His long black hair billowed behind him as he lunged forward, thrusting an iron sword towards Guilao’s heart.

“Understood, Brother Hu!”

Zhan Wei kicked off the ground as well, making a beeline for Xinxin. Unlike his fellow guard, his hair was cropped short and so didn’t disturb the air as he moved.

Both of them moved faster than an ordinary human had any right to. Having reached the peak of Qi Condensation stage, they had gone beyond the levels of mortals and stepped onto the path of immortality.

But they were still just guards, and weak ones at that.

Guilao grinned and he leisurely raised his left hand.

“Uncle Hu, wait!” Xinxin shouted and tried to step in. “You aren’t a match for him!”

It was going wrong. Xinxin didn’t expect Uncle Hu and Uncle Wei to react so aggressively.

“Brother Wei!”

Zhan Wei grabbed Xinxin’s arm and turned around to run.

At the same time, Zhan Hu’s sword reached Guilao’s chest.

The air suddenly grew heavy, filled with pure malice.

Xinxin’s heart raced. Realizing that words wouldn’t have any effect, she decided to take things into her own hands.

When Zhan Wei turned to run, Xinxin pivoted and swung him at Zhan Hu.

Zhan Hu, seeing his comrade flying towards him, immediately averted his attack and reached out to grab him.

The two guards were sent sprawling on their collision, but they quickly got back on their feet to face Guilao. This time, Zhan Wei drew his sword as well. The distance had opened up, but it was one that could be crossed in a single bound.

The confrontation wouldn’t end so easily.

Guilao’s hand was still raised and malicious intent pressed down in the surrounding areas.

Despite not knowing what her Sifu was going to do, she knew that it wouldn’t end well for either Uncle Hu or Uncle Wei if she allowed him to continue.

Xinxin quickly grabbed her Sifu’s raised arm and said, “Sifu! Please, spare them!” After that, she turned around to the guards and said, “And Uncle Hu, Uncle Wei! Stop! This is my Sifu, not a kidnapper!”

Zhan Hu’s eyes widened. “Sifu? Little Xinxin, what are you talking about?”

“Sifu found me after I got lost in the forest and helped keep me safe through the night! He even taught me how to cultivate and protect myself from the profound beasts! He’s not a bad person!”

Zhan Hu frowned. “This…”

“What are you so concerned about, girl?” Guilao grinned. “Since they want a fight so bad, let me teach your ‘uncles’ a lesson or two.”

Xinxin pouted. “No! You’re going to kill them!”

Guilao was silent for a few seconds and then said, “…Not this time. I swear.”

“Si-fu!”

After glaring at Xinxin for a few moments, Guilao sighed and lowered his arm. “Fine, girl. This time I’ll listen to you. But I don’t think your father is going to want to hear what you have to say.”

“My father?”

Before Xinxin could say anything else, an immense wind and spiritual pressure pressed down on the surroundings.

Zhan Hu and Zhan Wei immediately fell to their knees.

Xinxin managed to resist the pressure, but her face paled as a result.

For a moment, an illusory green bamboo forest replaced the open plains. But that quickly disappeared. In its place, a heroic figure in a green robe with a tree embroidered on it in gold appeared. His body was layered with muscles honed from years of training and his eyes were sharp, carrying a gaze that seemed to peer into the secrets of the world.

Upon arrival, Zhan Long’s long hair billowed majestically behind him. His sharp brows furrowed as he noticed Xinxin’s presence.

“Daughter. Explain yourself.”

Xinxin stared at her father and gulped.

Before she could say anything, her Sifu shook off her hands and stepped forward.

“Zhan Long… the Zhan Clan’s Dragon, is it? I have a few things I want to say to you about my disciple.”

The Zhan Clan’s leader gave a curt nod and then swept out his sleeve, causing a jade spear to appear. Grabbing it, Zhan Long spun it around and settled into a combat stance. “Good. I have words to say to you as well, my daughter’s ‘Sifu’.”

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3:3 – The First Lesson

In the middle of the night, where the only illumination came from the faint rays of moonlight from above, Xinxin slowly traversed the bamboo forest. In her right hand, she tightly gripped a bamboo stick.

Silence, save for the occasional breeze and the clattering bamboo trees, filled the air.

Xinxin’s heart raced, but she kept moving. Her eyes flitted about, searching for any signs of profound beasts that might be lurking in the darkness.

She had resolved herself to do her best to meet her Sifu’s expectations, but for her first lesson to survive until morning armed with only a stick… No. She shouldn’t doubt her Sifu. It might seem impossible, but surely there was a way out? That must be the lesson that Sifu was trying to tell her.

Again, silence and the occasional clatter of bamboo filled the air.

Xinxin resisted the urge to shudder, the noise sounding like the laughter of ghosts.

“Remember what Sifu said. Just cut down anything that shows up.” Xinxin muttered those words to calm her racing heart.

Suddenly, something shifted in front of her. A portion of the darkness moved and then revealed two yellow orbs floating in the air.

Xinxin tensed and slowly raised her bamboo stick.

A Shadow Panther slowly approached from between the bamboo trees. It was a low-rank profound beast. Weak, but more than a match for someone that had yet to reach foundation establishment.

Xinxin’s heart pounded in her chest. That was a profound beast! And all she had was a bamboo stick to fight it off. No techniques, no qi, no divine artifact… just an ordinary piece of bamboo her Sifu had broken off and placed in her hands.

Xinxin gulped.

The Shadow Panther charged. True to its name, the beast blended in with the darkness as it moved. Without even a sound of it pouncing, the Shadow Panther attacked, its paws outstretched and its maw wide open.

Xinxin froze from the instinctual fear from a beast of prey lunging at her. The bamboo stick in her hand was forgotten.

The Shadow Panther shoved Xinxin to the ground and tore out her throat.

Pain, shock, despair. Xinxin gasped and struggled beneath the beast. But her delicate body grew cold, blood slowly pooling out beneath her and dyeing her pale skin crimson.

Two yellow orbs stared deep into her eyes and then two rows of ivory teeth clamped around her face.

Xinxin gasped and clutched at her face and neck with her left hand. Cold sweat ran down her back, drenching her silk green robes.

She stood in the middle of the dark bamboo forest, the bamboo stick clenched firmly in her right hand.

A breeze blew through the forest, rattling the bamboo. The sound echoed like the laughter of restless spirits, cackling.

Xinxin shakily lowered her left hand. Was that… a nightmare? A hallucination? But the fear, the pain… it was so real.

“What’s wrong, girl? Cat got your tongue?” Her Sifu’s cold voice drifted through the silent forest and he appeared in front of her.

Perhaps because he had accepted her as a disciple, Xinxin’s Sifu had changed his clothes. Instead of the torn rags, he now wore a pure black robe and matching pants. On any other person, they would have appeared regal. Yet, with the man’s messy hair and pale skin, he looked more like a corpse risen from the dead.

Guilao smirked. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

“S-Sifu. Did… I just die?”

“Of course not. If you did, you wouldn’t be talking with me right now.”

Xinxin remembered the feeling of those teeth on her face and shivered. “B-but…”

“Hmph. Where did that fearless girl just a few moments ago disappear to? Or was that just an act to try and fool me?” Guilao narrowed his eyes. “Because if it was… your story ends here.”

Xinxin shook her head. “No, Sifu. It… it was nothing.”

Right. Nothing. The feeling of those claws tearing into her throat. The sensation of her face being torn apart.

It was just a hallucination. A vivid delusion from being in the dark.

…Xinxin just had to keep believing that.

“Good.” Guilao nodded. “Then this is your first lesson: explore the forest and survive until morning. If anything shows up, just cut it down. Understand?”

Xinxin thought it was strange. Didn’t Sifu just tell her that a few minutes ago? Or had she imagined the talk in the first place?

“Girl.”

Xinxin blinked.

Her Sifu was staring at her. He frowned and tapped a finger on his leg impatiently.

Xinxin nodded. “Yes, Sifu. I understand.”

Guilao vanished, and then Xinxin was alone.

Xinxin felt an odd sense of incongruity, but she shook her head. “It must be the night. I’m just not used to being out alone by myself.”

She took a deep breath to calm herself and then cautiously traversed through the bamboo forest. The trail she followed was familiar, and her steps were like tracing an old memory.

Silence, along with the occasional clattering of bamboo filled the air.

Xinxin paused and then carefully observed the area in front of her.

Something was standing there, crouched in the darkness. Slowly, it turned towards her and revealed two glowing yellow eyes.

That piece of darkness moved, leisurely ambling towards her. A Shadow Panther.

Xinxin remembered what happened, the feeling of her neck being torn out, her face being ripped apart.

The Shadow Panther lunged.

Xinxin’s body moved on its own and she lashed out with the bamboo stick.

The beast yelped and moved to the side. It quickly got up, however, and then growled. The silent beast of prey had tossed aside its usual approach and glared at the one that attacked it.

Xinxin’s heart pounded and she glanced at her right hand, still holding out the bamboo stick. That hadn’t been a conscious action. Instead, when she thought of how she would experience that pain and agony again, her body had moved on its own.

Could that be what Sifu was trying to-

The Shadow Panther roared, causing violet light to surge around it, and then lunged towards Xinxin.

She felt an impact on her chest and searing pain.

This time, instead of two rows of teeth, a paw with razor sharp claws filled her vision.

Xinxin gasped and swung her bamboo stick.

Something grabbed it.

Panic gripped her heart and Xinxin pulled with all her might, trying to get it free.

“Careful girl. You’ll take an eye out doing that.”

Xinxin blinked and slowly regained awareness of her surroundings.

The dark bamboo forest. Her Sifu standing nearby, his eyes narrowed in irritation.

“Sifu…?”

Xinxin slowly turned her head and looked around.

A dark bamboo forest. Not far from them, the remains of their campground, the embers of the fire still smoldering.

“What, girl? Cat got your tongue?”

Guilao stood directly before her. His left hand was wrapped around the other end of Xinxin’s bamboo stick, keeping her from moving it.

“I… I think that I might need some sleep, Sifu.”

Xinxin let go of her bamboo stick and took a step back. “I’m… not feeling too well.”

She felt dizzy. Nauseous. The sensation of her skin being ripped apart, her face being shredded-

Xinxin paled and quickly ran to the side before bending over to vomit. She didn’t care for her Sifu’s thoughts or for how she looked. The pain, the agony… the horrific memory of falling prey to the Shadow Panther kept resurfacing and caused her to vomit out the fish she had eaten earlier.

A sigh sounded in the silent forest. Xinxin’s Sifu shook his head and said, “This was a failure.”

Xinxin wiped her mouth and muttered, “I’m sorry, Sifu.”

“Come over here, girl.”

Xinxin nodded and walked towards Sifu Guilao, coming to a stop a few steps away from him.

Her cold Sifu showed a flicker of an unreadable emotion and he said, “Hold out your hands.”

She did. Her mind was too tired to do anything other than obey his commands.

Sifu placed the bamboo stick back into her hands and closed them. After that, he looked Xinxin in the eyes and said, “Get over it.”

Before Xinxin could question it, Sifu was gone and she was alone.

Something shifted in the darkness. Two yellow eyes hung ominously in mid-air.

Xinxin’s breath caught in her chest. Her heart pounded and she took a step back.

The Shadow Panther lunged.

A surge of panic. Her body moved on its own and she lashed out with the bamboo stick.

The beast yelped and moved to the side. It quickly got back up and growled. Violet light began gathering around it.

Nausea welled up inside Xinxin and her vision spun.

The Shadow Panther charged.

Xinxin’s body swayed.

The Shadow Panther missed. But it was still moving. It wouldn’t take long before it would come back around for another attack.

Xinxin could already feel the pain of its attack. Feel the blood leaving her body. Feel the sickening sensation of her skull being torn open.

Her stomach twisted and her body moved. Before the beast made another attack, before her body was torn apart, Xinxin dashed forward. Wrapping the bamboo stick tight in both her hands, she lashed out at the panther’s skull.

It flinched from the sudden blow and shook its head, stunned.

Xinxin swung the stick again.

And again.

And again.

The sound of bamboo striking flesh echoed over and over in the dark forest. Despite the force put behind each strike, the bamboo stick never broke, the fresh sprout bending but never shattering.

Xinxin’s vision blurred and she was standing in front of Sifu back at their campsite, the fire still roaring.

He stared at her, smirking. “So. How does it feel to get over the memory of death?”

Xinxin stared back, her crimson lips slowly opening for an answer… and then she vomited on Guilao’s pants.

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3:2 – Guilao

Xinxin woke up to the sound of crackling flames and the savory scent of cooking fish. She opened her eyes and blearily looked around.

It seemed that she had been sleeping beneath the bamboo shelter she made. It was dark now and the only source of light came from the fire burning nearby.

Xinxin slowly sat up.

“So you’re finally awake.” A cold voice called out. It was the nameless man she thought to save the other day. His dark eyes stared at her, as if peering into her soul.

Xinxin froze and then the memories of what happened to her returned. She quickly scrambled back away from the man and knocked down the pile of bamboo sticks that formed the makeshift shelter. Xinxin yelped and covered her head. Luckily, the bamboo fell around her instead of on top of her.

The nameless man snorted and turned his gaze back to the fire, tending to a rack of fish roasting on a stick.

Was he not going to attack her? Xinxin stared at the nameless man and tilted her head, examining him. At the same time, she grabbed one of the fallen bamboo, keeping it close by but hidden.

The nameless man glanced at her and his gaze shifted towards her side.

Xinxin felt her stomach drop. But then the nameless man turned his gaze back to the fire and the cooking fish.

With that, the tension in the air seemed to lighten up. At least, Xinxin felt that the nameless man’s temper wasn’t going to flare anytime soon.

After a moment of silence, the nameless man said, “I’m surprised. I thought a girl like you would be more naïve, but you seem to have at least a modicum of self-preservation, unlike another girl I knew.”

“…Yes, Senior.”

“Hmph.” Hearing Xinxin’s curt answer caused a brief smile to form on the nameless man’s face, but it was quickly erased.

Xinxin pulled her legs close to her chest and stared at the nameless man. He looked like a vagrant, one of the wandering rogue practitioners that roamed the Xia Dynasty. Messy black hair that spread in every direction, dark eyes that held a hint of madness, and clothes tattered into rags.

Her father had warned her of people like that. Cultivators that belonged to neither sect nor family, living by their own code, whether good or bad. At the same time, they were those that would repay a debt incurred no matter what… or so Xinxin had believed. But somehow, she felt that the man before her was different.

Curious, she said, “Senior. Who are you?”

The nameless man raised his head. His dark eyes reflected the flickering flames, for a moment seeming miles away. That moment quickly passed and then they narrowed. “Me? I’m nothing more than a nameless ghost that managed to cheat life and death.”

As if the world acknowledged his declaration, a cold draft emerged and caused the fire to dim.

Xinxin shivered and stared at the nameless man with wide eyes. “T-That is… S-Senior…” She didn’t dare say her guess, unless it was true.

The nameless man grinned. “I’m someone that would kill a girl like you in a heartbeat for the sake of power.” He stood up and slowly approached Xinxin. “Someone that would cut apart that perfect body of yours to find out how it ticked, someone that would take that knowledge and use it to make myself stronger.” He stopped in front of Xinxin and then knelt down, staring her in the eyes. “That’s the person you tried to help out. Scared?”

Madness flickered in those dark eyes, as well as a bottomless hunger. His gaze was ravenous, as if he would tear into her then and there if Xinxin said the wrong words.

A hungry ghost ¹ . Preta. . That was what Xinxin faced.

Yet. If that was the case…

Xinxin shook her head. “No, Senior. I am not scared.” She stared back at the nameless man with her violet eyes.

His expression flickered. “Oh? Your body seems to say otherwise.”

Xinxin’s heart raced and she felt sweat forming on the back of her neck. Her hands trembled, and she felt the urge to run away at the ghost’s cold gaze. Even so, she nodded and said, “It is true, Senior. My body seems to reject your very presence… but I don’t think that Senior is someone I need to fear. If you were… I wouldn’t still be alive, would I?”

That was the source of her confidence.

Hungry ghosts would be mindless and tainted with sin. If the man before her truly was one, Xinxin would not have awoken so peacefully. She wouldn’t have woken at all.

The nameless man’s expression flickered, but quickly returned to a cold gaze. “Hmph. You’re smart, girl. But what makes you think I didn’t keep you alive just to see you suffer as I devour your soul?”

“If that was what Senior wanted, wouldn’t the best time have been when I was suffering after consuming that pill? Instead, Senior saved me. Isn’t that telling enough of your intentions?”

The nameless man glared at Xinxin, an expression filled with killing intent and malice.

Xinxin stood her ground and stared back.

After what seemed like an eternity, the nameless man shook his head and returned to his place by the fire. “You’re reckless, girl. Reckless and too smart for your own good. But ‘saved’, huh?” The man muttered. “If you look at it like that, you’re not wrong. But you’re not entirely right either…”

Xinxin let out a sigh and then relaxed. Somehow she had made it through the ordeal.

And then her stomach rumbled.

The nameless man looked at her, his eyebrow raised and a smile on his face. “Hungry?”

“…Yes, Senior.”

The nameless man took a fish off the fire, turning it over to examine it, and then handed it to Xinxin.

She reached out to grab it, but before she could the man paused and stared at her.

“Aren’t you afraid that it’s poisoned? Or that I might be filling you up to devour you when you’re relaxed?”

His dark eyes stared at her, a strange expression contained within.

Xinxin shrugged and said, “Even if that might be true, Senior, I wouldn’t have a say in the manner anyway. And if so… I would at least like to have a full stomach before I depart from this world.” With that, she took the fish from the man’s hand.

He stared at her for a while and then said, “Strange. You are a strange one, girl.”

“Is that so? I like to think that I am just myself.” Saying that, Xinxin began nibbling on the fish. Despite the plain way it was cooked, somehow the fish tasted delicious. Whether that was due to the man’s cooking skills or her hunger, however, she couldn’t tell.

The nameless man shook his head and went back to cooking the rest of the fish.

Xinxin kept taking bites from her fish. At the same time, she stared at the man tending to the fish and the fire. He called himself a nameless ghost… but Xinxin believed that it was just an expression after talking to him.

It was strange, however. Xinxin knew that the man was dangerous, vicious, and violent. The events that occurred after she went to check up on him with the Blood Coagulating Pill showed that. Yet, sitting there tending to the fire, Xinxin couldn’t help but feel like the man was a gruff older brother or cousin. A bit scary, but reliable.

The nameless man caught her staring and said, “What? You not hungry?”

“I am. But I’m just curious.”

The man narrowed his eyes. “Curiosity killed the cat. And it will kill you as well if you keep asking questions.”

The words were sharp but lacked sincerity.

Even so, Xinxin saw that the man was irritated so she went back to eating her fish. At the same time, she pondered over what the clan would be thinking at the moment. She would have been gone a whole day now, the longest she had ever been before. The thought of it should have filled her with dread, but… for some reason she felt free. Relaxed.

Did she have to go back? Her father and clan were depending on her for the betrothal, but she never asked for it. And did she care, truly? Since her mother had disappeared, the only attention she had gained had been for her status, and then for her beauty. But with the man before her, although dangerous, she could at least be herself instead of the Zhan Clan’s darling princess.

“So, girl. Tell me why someone like you thought it was a good idea to get involved with a nobody like me. Run away from home? An engagement?”

Xinxin stopped eating for a bit and said, “Both.”

The man muttered, “Well that explains why there were so many people running around the forest.”

Xinxin raised her head. “People running around?”

“Heh. You don’t have to worry about that girl.” The man grinned, a cold and cruel expression. “I took care of them for you.”

“…Did you kill them?”

“What do you think?”

Xinxin stared at the man and the man stared back. After a while, Xinxin shook her head. “…You didn’t. It would have drawn more attention to you. And I think that Senior has his own circumstances. Trouble is something you don’t want at the moment.”

“Oh you think you’ve got me all figured out now, don’t you girl?”

A cold breeze began to gather, and a malevolent intent filled the air. “Just because you’re alive, just because I gave you food, you think that I care whether or not you live. Whether or not killing you is more trouble than it’s worth.” He narrowed his eyes. “Let’s get this straight. You are worthless. No matter how beautiful you are, no matter the fact that you’re still a child, if you piss me off you will die. Understand?”

Xinxin shuddered and gave a meek nod.

“Good. Now eat your damned fish.”

Xinxin did as she was told. She had already pushed her luck enough.

The nameless man watched her for a moment before turning his attention back to the fire. “Still,” he muttered. “An engagement at that age, huh? What a crapsack world this is…”

Xinxin agreed, but she didn’t speak. Instead, she kept eating her fish. Before she realized it, she had finished and the man was handing her another.

“Here,” he said.

“Aren’t you hungry, Senior?”

“Unless you want to drop dead, shut up and take it.”

Xinxin didn’t want to, but her stomach rumbled before she could refuse. She blushed and then took the fish.

By that point, the other fish were finished cooking so the man placed them on top of a rock to the side. When he did, he turned his attention to Xinxin.

Xinxin noticed, but she ignored him and kept eating her fish. She’d realized by now that if the man wanted to say something, he would. If not, he wouldn’t.

Soon enough, the man spoke. “You… really aren’t afraid of me, are you?”

Xinxin paused her eating and lowered her fish. “Should I be?”

“Yes. You should absolutely be afraid of me. Even if you don’t remember it, your soul should. And yet, you aren’t. For some strange reason, you aren’t afraid of me, even after I-“ The man cut himself off and shook his head. “You are strange. Even those ‘experts’ searching for you fled in terror when they saw me, but you… are you not afraid of death?”

Xinxin thought about it. Death. She had wondered the same thing before she took the pill. If she had to suffer through something like that again, she might reconsider. But if it wasn’t like that, then…

Xinxin shook her head. “No. If anything, death would be a release.”

Maybe her next life would be better. A life without her accursed beauty. A life without her lofty status. An ordinary life with an ordinary loving family. One where she could find a faithful companion to be with and not have to worry if the one talking to her was doing so to win her favor. One where she could act like she wished without being reprimanded for breaking her graceful image.

The air suddenly became heavy. The nameless man stood up and glared at Xinxin, his dark eyes narrowed in rage.

Xinxin blinked. “Senior?”

“Take those words back.”

“I… don’t understand?” Did she say something wrong?

“I thought it was strange. I wondered why you kept dying over and over again. Why it was so hard to keep you alive.”

Xinxin shook her head. “I don’t-“

“Shut up.”

Xinxin did.

The nameless man stood there for a moment and then said, “Why? Why do you not want to live? Is your fiance that bad? Are you treated poorly?”

“…No. But I-“

“Did your father abandon you? Are you an orphan?”

“No, Senior. But-“

“Then WHY DO YOU WANT TO DIE?! You foolish, selfish, arrogant girl!”

Xinxin tossed her fish to the side and glared at the man. “And what would you know?! I never asked to be born into this life! To have this status, to have this appearance! My whole life… my very fate has already been set in stone! And I…! I…!” Xinxin’s vision blurred and she lowered her gaze. “I… can’t do anything about it.”

Zhan Xinxin, the jade fairy. Zhan Xinxin, the clan’s darling princess. Zhan Xinxin, the fiancee of the heavenly prince Wang Tian.

A life laid out in stone before her. The karma that heaven gave her. The fate that she couldn’t avoid, even though she prayed with all her might otherwise.

“Look up, girl.”

Xinxin shook her head, scattering her glistening tears.

“I said, LOOK UP, GIRL!”

The harsh words caused Xinxin to raise her head.

A complicated expression was on the man’s face, but soon it settled into determination. “Answer me. Do you want to change it?”

“…Senior?”

“Yes or no! Do you want to change your fate?”

Xinxin’s heart raced. Could it be that the man…?

“Girl!”

Xinxin didn’t respond. Instead, she quickly knelt to the ground and did three kowtows. At the last, she said, “Xinxin offers formal greetings, Master!”

The man let out an exasperated sigh before pulling Xinxin up. “You stupid girl. I asked for your answer, not your obeisance. No… I suppose that is your answer.”

Xinxin stood up and stared at the man- no, at her Master. Her Sifu.

He shook his head and gently brushed the dirt off her clothes and then the dirt on her forehead. That done, he stared at her, a complicated expression on his face.

Xinxin simply waited.

“I am not a good person,” the nameless man said. “If it comes down to it, I will kill you if it might advance my goals. I will let you die. I will watch you die. And I will let let your death be, not bothering to seek vengeance or compensation.”

“Yes, Sifu.”

“Your family, your clan, your home. On a whim, I will erase it down to its root, slaughtering even women and children.”

“Yes, Sifu.”

The nameless man narrowed his eyes. “Following me will mean becoming the enemy of the world itself. At the end of this path there will be no heaven, only hell. I can promise you power, yes, but happiness… I cannot.” The nameless man paused and said, “I can still pretend this never happened. There are other things I can do to free you from your situation. Killing your fiance, forcing your family to break off the engagement with force… Consider it the repayment for building me a shelter.”

Xinxin shook her head. “Even so… I want you as my Master, my Sifu.”

The nameless man was silent.

Xinxin’s heart pounded. This… was her only chance. If even he rejected her then she truly would have no other path to turn to. They always said that heaven left a way, but if the man refused then-

“Foolish girl… but very well. From this day forth, you will be my one and only disciple… for whatever worth that may be.”

Xinxin smiled and hugged the man- no, her Sifu. “Thank you! Thank you, Sifu! Xinxin won’t let you down! I promise!”

“Gah, you- Girl, let go!”

Xinxin held onto her Sifu for a little longer before stepping back. She couldn’t stop the happiness she felt, however, and a radiant smile remained on her face.

“Hmph. You said your name was Xinxin?”

Xinxin nodded. “Yes, Sifu. Zhan Xinxin. That is my name.” She frowned. “Um… what should I call you, Sifu?”

“…Call me what you wish. Like I said, I no longer have a name.”

Xinxin thought about it for a moment. Since her Sifu called himself a ghost…

“ Sifu Guilao ² .”

“What?”

“…Do you not like it, Sifu?”

“Tch. Whatever, girl.”

Xinxin smiled.

Seeing that, the nameless man, now Sifu Guilao, poked Xinxin’s forehead. “Don’t be too happy you reckless girl. The first thing we’re going to do is to head back to your home.”

“Eh? Why?”

“Isn’t it obvious?” Sifu Guilao grinned, a predatory expression revealing his white teeth. “A Sifu should introduce himself to his disciple’s family, shouldn’t he?”

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3:1 – Zhan Xinxin

A bamboo forest atop an emerald mountain. A river coursed through it, bringing fresh water from the peak.

The sun was low in the sky, early morning, and cast soft rays of light from a clear blue sky. Gentle rolling mists covered the ground, giving the area a mystical feel.

By the river in the forest, a makeshift shelter was made. A few chopped bamboo were loosely placed together to make a haphazard wall and roof.

Within that shelter, a nameless man stirred.

His dark eyes darted about, taking in his surroundings. When they did, his eyes widened and he frantically patted his surroundings, searching for something.

He did not find it.

The nameless man sighed and sat up, running his left hand through his scraggly black hair. “It wasn’t a dream… and I can’t go back.”

Sorrow flickered in his eyes, but that was soon replaced by anger and then vigilance.

Footsteps echoed from down the trail nearby.

The nameless man slowly exited the shelter and then vanished without a trace.

Zhan Xinxin hummed a little tune as she walked along the trail in the Jade Forest. She had sneaked out from the manor again to go exploring. Because of that, she hadn’t changed from her clothes last night and dragged an elegant silk green robe across the dirty ground as she walked. Even so, while the robe became dirtied, it did nothing to detract from Zhan Xinxin’s beauty.

Xinxin was the darling of the Zhan Clan, a beauty with milky white skin as pale as the moon and violet eyes that twinkled like amethysts that had sealed the stars within. Her ruby lips drew the eye and her long black hair was like silk spun from the night sky itself.

However, her body was still undeveloped as Xinxin was only 14 years old. Still, it wouldn’t be long before a woman capable of bewitching gods and demons appeared in the world.

That was what every member in the Zhan Clan believed.

And that was why she was betrothed to the scion of the Wang Clan.

Remembering that made Xinxin purse her crimson lips.

The Zhan Clan, once renowned for its True Wood physique and carrying the esteem of a major clan in the Xia Dynasty, had slowly declined throughout the years. While there had been some descendants born with wood physiques recently, the True Wood physique famed for its boundless vitality and energy had not been seen since the death of their founder centuries ago.

In contrast, the Wang Clan, an old acquaintance of the Zhan Clan, had steadily increased in prestige throughout the years with rising stars born every generation. And now, with the prodigy Wang Tian appearing and preparing to breakthrough to the Core Formation realm before the age of 18, the Wang Clan was assured to rise even further.

Thus, to ensure the Zhan Clan’s continuation as well as strengthen their ties, Xinxin’s father, the clan head, decided that she was to be married to Wang Tian within two years. The day she became of age at 16 was the day she would have to give up her freedom and devote herself to bearing an heir for the famed ‘Prince of Heaven’.

That was, unless she did something about it before then. Since she was already promised to another and possessed an average aptitude at birth, the clan had refused to teach her. But if she could find a master and begin her cultivation… and if she could show decent progress, it might be enough to change her father’s mind.

Xinxin examined the glass bottle she kept within her sleeves and sighed. “I hope this Blood Coagulation Pill is enough for that mysterious Senior.” She couldn’t get her hands on the Vital Breath Pill without drawing attention to herself, so she prayed that the mysterious Senior’s injuries weren’t too heavy.

Xinxin tucked the bottle back into her sleeves… and then a hand clamped around her throat and pushed her against the trees.

“Who are you?” A cold voice echoed. “Why can I not feel any mana? Where is this?”

Xinxin’s clutched the arm of the one holding her neck and tried to resist, but to no avail. Realizing that, she lowered her hands and stared at the person before her.

A man. His appearance was average and he had messy black hair with dark eyes. Xinxin noted that his body was slim and, from the lack of definition she could see beneath his tattered clothing, untrained. At least it appeared that way.

But there was no mistaking the air of power around him, the sheer dread that emerged from simply staring at his form.

The man tightened his grip. “Did she send you? Another dainty maiden for me to save and become chains to bind me to this world?”

Xinxin couldn’t answer, but the man either didn’t realize or didn’t care. Instead, his eyes narrowed and took on a murderous light.

And then there was a soft clink .

The man’s eyes shifted towards the source of the noise.

It was the bottle kept in Xinxin’s sleeves. With her arms hanging loose at her sides, it had fallen to the ground.

“That bottle…”

Xinxin’s vision began fading. Her chest hurt and she could barely think.

And then the man let go.

Xinxin collapsed and drew in deep breaths, coughing as her body tried to make up for the lack of air.

The man ignored her, his attention focused on the bottle and the pill it contained. He picked it up and held it close to his eye, observing the pill rolling around within.

Xinxin took advantage of the man’s silence to calm down and settle her racing heart.

After a while, the man said, “What is this?”

“T-That is a Blood Coagulating Pill, Senior.” Xinxin coughed and said, “I thought you might need one. To help you recover.”

The man frowned. “A pill to coagulate blood?” His eyes narrowed.

Xinxin froze and quickly added, “It’s a healing pill! It has restorative energy within it to help you recover!”

“Really now?”

Xinxin nodded. “Yes! Since I found Senior wounded the other day, I thought that something like this might-“

The man tossed Xinxin the bottle.

Her eyes widened and she barely caught it.

“You eat it.”

Xinxin blinked. “M-me? But Senior, I-“

“Eat it. If those bruises around your neck heal, I’ll consider hearing you out. If not…”

Xinxin gulped and then winced at the pain she felt when she did.

“Well?”

“…Yes, Senior.”

Xinxin carefully unsealed the bottle and rolled the pill onto her palm.

The man watched her, his dark eyes not letting anything escape from his gaze.

Xinxin stared at the pill.

It was innocuous. A little round red ball the size of a pea. That ball had the ability to seal gaping wounds and buy a few breaths worth of time for someone already on their last.

But that was for those who had already begun cultivating. For someone like Xinxin who had yet to train a day in her life to consume it-

Xinxin stared at the man.

He stared back, his eyes narrowing.

Xinxin’s hand shook.

If she took the pill, she could die. But if she didn’t, then she would die. The mysterious Senior she set out to save and become a disciple to was ruthless and paranoid.

Tears blurred Xinxin’s vision, but she took a deep breath and blinked them away.

It wasn’t so bad. Dying meant that her life would come to an end, but that only meant her soul would return to the stream of reincarnation. She wouldn’t have to worry about spending eternity with an arrogant young master that would just use her for an heir while he sought eternity and the great Dao.

Xinxin closed her eyes and swallowed the pill.

When she did, she felt a surge of heat erupt in her body. Her blood boiled, and her veins felt like they would burst.

Xinxin couldn’t help herself. She collapsed on the ground and curled up, sobbing with the pain.

She couldn’t hear anything, couldn’t see anything, couldn’t feel anything but burning pain.

Stupid. Stupid, stupid, stupid . How stupid was she to think that she could escape her fate? How stupid was she to think that a wounded stranger would teach her for saving him?

Xinxin cried. Her beautiful voice hitched in pain and despair. Her delicate fingertips clawed into the dirt until they became bloody and torn.

It hurt. Having her fingers tear into the ground until she was grinding away her bones hurt. Sobbing in agony aggravated the bruises the man placed around her throat and made them hurt. And now even breathing hurt, the air too cold for her too hot body.

An eternal agony of searing flames.

And then, all of a sudden, it stopped.

A cold wave swept throughout her body, quelling the searing flames. However, the heat hadn’t vanished from Xinxin’s body. Instead, it dimmed, turning into a comfortable warmth. Pain was instantly replaced by pleasure and in an instant, Xinxin had gone from hell to heaven.

The change was too much for her, and the beautiful young girl fell unconscious.

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30 – Demon Lord Route – [ _____ ___ ]

28 – Demon Lord Route – Fugue

The heart of Yggdrasil was what I once thought to be just a chamber hidden in the inner depths of Alvheim. It was mostly the same as I remembered it being in the future, despite my alternate entrance. The major difference was the atmosphere, sacred and filled with life rather than desolate and dead.

Roots swirled around the chamber, gathering around an orb of glowing green light in the center. Within it, I could see a sword suspended within the radiance.

TAKE IT.

A splitting headache and a flash of a memory.

I grimaced and clutched my head with my left hand.

After a few moments, the headache passed. I sighed and stepped forward, glancing around.

I didn’t need Analyze to see the patterns of mana woven into the area. They shone with enough power that it could be seen with the naked eye. Patterns that formed barriers to protect Alvheim. Patterns that formed lines of communications throughout the Ancient Forest. Patterns that formed what were essentially trip-wires, detecting whenever those with hostile intent drew near.

Powerful but simple. The patterns did their job and did it well, but they weren’t enough.

I watched how the patterns wove into each other and interacted. Where I couldn’t comprehend them, I used Analyze. Coupled with my experience from seeing the barriers on the outskirts of Alvheim and my Absolute Memory, it didn’t take long before I could figure out where to place my additions.

Anti-magic formed in my right hand. Though it served as the antithesis of mana, the properties were similar. Slowly, carefully, I twisted what little I could muster into threads, weaving them into patterns like the ones I saw.

“Hello.” A voice echoed from just beside my right ear.

I froze. After making sure that the Anti-magic remained secure and far away from the existing mana patterns, I turned my head to look at the source of the voice.

A young girl in a dark brown dress floated in the air next to me. Short, light green hair drifted in a non-existent breeze while her bright emerald eyes stared straight into my own. She smiled and shifted her body as if she was leaning on the ground, elbows knelt and propping up her head with her hands.

“…Hello,” I said.

The girl stared at me for a little bit and then said, “You’re weird. Did you know that?”

I thought about her words and then said, “And you must be Yggdrasil?”

The girl shook her head. “Iggy.”

“Hm?”

The girl pouted and said, “My name is Iggy. Yggdrasil is too long and boooring.”

“…Sure, Iggy.” So the spirit of Yggdrasil was a young child. That meant that the World Tree wasn’t that old yet in terms of its general lifespan.

A splitting headache and another flash of a memory. A young girl’s sobs and pained screams.

I flinched, but managed to keep my expression neutral.

Yggdrasil… or rather, Iggy, tilted her head and said, “So whatcha doing, Mister Weird?”

I turned my gaze back to the thread of Anti-magic in my hands and said, “I’m making sure your heart is safe.”

“Safe?”

I nodded. “Bad people are going to come here soon to try and steal what you keep in your heart.”

Iggy gasped. “They can’t!”

I looped my thread of Anti-magic through the pattern of mana, carefully forging a circuit, and then said, “They can. And they will… if I don’t set this up.”

Iggy drifted closer, moving near the thread of Anti-magic.

I frowned and said, “Could you not do that?”

“…But it’s weird,” Iggy said. “It feels really tingly.”

I spiraled a thread of chaos mana around the Anti-magic and said, “I don’t doubt it. Chaos mana and Anti-magic would definitely feel strange to you.” Well, more like lethal. I didn’t say that though.

Iggy nodded and remained quiet, content to watch me work.

I took advantage of the silence and completed a few circuits. An Anti-magic barrier to trigger when the defensive barriers fell. A Chaos barrier to reinforce the existing mana barriers. Anti-magic fail-safes, chaotic reinforcement… if anyone thought they could break the spells by short-circuiting them with chaos magic or Anti-magic they would be in for a surprise.

Perhaps realizing that I was finished with the delicate work, Iggy said, “Hey, Mister Weird.”

“What is it?”

“Iggy!”

I sighed and said, “What is it, Iggy?”

“Why is your soul split up into a bunch of pieces?”

I froze and slowly turned towards her. “…What are you talking about?”

Iggy leaned back, changing her position to sit cross-legged, and then held out her hands, palms raised. “This is what a normal soul looks like.”

A white orb appeared above her hands, radiating a powerful light.

“Sometimes, people have different attributes so the color changes.”

After saying that, the orb in Iggy’s hands changed its hue, shifting from green to red to blue.

“But Mister,” Iggy said. “Yours looks like this.”

The orb turned back to white and then shattered . Bits and pieces drifted in the air like splinters of glass caught in orbit. The white light vanished, broken up into its individual waves. The orbs still glowed, but it was a kaleidoscope. All the colors making up white were still present, but they had been scattered into separate parts, now distinct from the whole. But more worrying than that, peering in the depths of the orb there were hollow parts, black areas where light didn’t shine.

It was wrong.

“That’s… impossible.”

Impossible. A soul should not be like that. Could not be like that. And definitely not my soul, not with my ability.

Iggy nodded. “I know! And look, the inside’s all empty.” The young girl made another light and shone in through the center. The black areas instantly lit up, showing that they were empty space rather than bits of darkness.

A chill crept up my spine. The implication of that…

Iggy clapped her hands together, making the orbs disappear, and then turned to face me. “So, Mister Weird. What are you?”

“I…“

“Curses, girl! Use your wind magic properly!”

“You think I’m not trying?!”

Saphira roared and breathed crimson lightning at a crowd of shadowy figures.

After escaping from the house, Saphira turned into her dragon form and tossed both Aria and Titania on her back before flying into the air.

In response to that, the shadowy figure had summoned a small army of similar shadowy beings, although with different forms and statures.

Saphira’s breath attack vaporized half of the shadowy beings, but the other half continued to fly through the air, racing towards the girls.

Aria lifted her left hand and said, “Spirits of Wind! Fall and become my shield! Dark Tempest!”

True to the spell’s name, a vortex of dark wind swirled around Saphira, buying the trio a momentary breather.

“Elf!” Saphira said.

Titania flinched, snapped from her daze at the sudden events. “What is it?”

“Where is my Master?”

“Your Master?”

“Of for the love of-“ Aria cursed and said, “Lord Nazin, Tani! Where’s Lord Nazin?”

“Oh! Lord Nazin went to meet with father half an hour ago!”

Aria grimaced, feeling the strain from maintaining her spell. “When do you think he’ll be back?”

“Any moment now?”

“Elf!”

“I don’t know, alright!? He left me behind without telling me anything!”

“Useless! Even the girl does better!”

“Th-that is-“

Aria groaned. “Stop arguing and get ready! I can’t hold this any longer!”

At that time, a distorted voice echoed. “ Dark wind, twist and die… ”

“Girl! Let go of your spell!”

Aria quickly did as she was told and relinquished her grasp on the dark tempest. The moment she did, that voice continued.

“ …Cruel Gale’s Demise .”

The tempest screeched and then shattered, as if an invisible creature ripped it apart.

When the wind died, the shadowy beings reemerged. The difference was that the numbers had more than doubled the original count, almost blanketing out the blue sky.

Aria panted, exhausted from forcibly terminating her spell. “Any… bright ideas… lizard?”

“Only one, girl. But I can scarcely believe that they will provide an opportunity.”

“Probably… not.”

Aria turned her gaze back towards the army of shadow beings.

The original figure still floated in the air near their ruined home. Perhaps it felt that the army of shadow beings was enough, or perhaps it had lost all sense of self-preservation after its powerful attack, it remained there unmoving.

Not that it helped their situation anymore knowing that. Even if the original shadowy figure didn’t move, the army of shadow beings surrounding them was more than enough.

“Ari.”

Aria felt a hand placed on her shoulder. Her eyes widened and she glanced back to see Titania standing. “Tani?”

The eldest princess of Alvheim smiled and said, “Allow me.”

Aria shook her head. “No, Tani. You can’t-“

Before she could say anything else, Titania leapt through the air.

“Oh spirits of wind, lend me your strength and be my wings. Flight!”

Titania’s falling body slowed and then rose back up. At the same time, she held out her right and left hands holding the hilts of swords that didn’t yet exist. “Oh spirits of ice, lend me your strength and be my blades. Frost Edge!”

Titania’s empty hands were filled, and she armed herself with a matching pair of light blue long swords.

“Argh! Stupid Tani!” Aria jumped off Saphira as well and raced after Titania. “You’d better work fast, Fi! If Tani dies because of this, I’m going to tell Nowun!”

“H-Hmph. Needless worries!”

“Then hurry!”

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