Three’s Company (7)

“What are you doing?”

Lin Qianshuang stepped back, bewildered as the Lingxiao Sword Sect disciple stared at her in horror. The sword in his hand looked like a toy; she tapped it aside with a light flick.

The Cold Cicada Zither lay silent at her feet. As she bent to pick it up, the hand that reached out from her sleeve had turned into a furry beast claw. The soft pink pads slid across the glossy surface, and she had to twist and balance awkwardly before she could lift the instrument.

At this critical moment, why had she suddenly lost control and reverted to her true form, right in front of a righteous sect disciple?

Startled, she spread her claws and closed her eyes, trying to channel demonic qi to resume human shape. The qi responded, yet the transformation failed.

The disciple’s eyes bulged; he had probably never seen a demonic beast as sentient as Lin Qianshuang in his life.

With such humanlike behavior, this demonic beast is no ordinary creature; it is a demon cultivator who has already attained enough power to take human shape.

“You… you horrifying demon wearing human skin, how can you speak our tongue so fluently?”

The Lingxiao Sword Sect disciple was frightened, but not completely stupid. Wary of challenging a demon cultivator whose depth he could not gauge, he raised a palm toward Lin Qianshuang and edged forward step by careful step to retrieve his sword from the ground. When she ignored him, he spun around and sprinted toward his fellow disciples, shouting, “A demon cultivator has infiltrated camp! Right over there!”

“…”

Lin Qianshuang watched the youth scare himself into shrieks, rolling and crawling in his rush to escape, and gave him a speechless look.

How long has it been since these people last saw a demon cultivator? To panic so badly really disgraces the face of righteous cultivators.

She had meant to slip away at once and keep her identity hidden, but the Lingxiao disciples’ shrill yells sparked a new thought.

Since every debt with Junior Sister Xiao was already severed and she herself was quitting Penglai, why cling to that sect token? Better to cast it off and make the break absolute.

Lin Qianshuang drew out the jade tablet that proved her Penglai status, studied it one last time, then flung it to the ground. She shook the dust from her silver fur, stretched her powerful limbs, and sprang in a high arc; tent after tent collapsed beneath her as screams erupted across the camp.

Righteous cultivators crawled from the wreckage, only to find the round, silver-white beast squatting before them, lips pulled in a mocking grin.

Before long a troop of indignant cultivators gave chase, weapons raised, shouting for her blood.

She led them a merry dance along the streets, then slipped away with a minor illusion that trapped them in a dead-end alley.

Lin Qianshuang watched the human cultivators spin themselves dizzy in the alley and found it so funny she snorted.

She slapped her own cheek. What are you laughing at? If your cultivation were any lower, their spells would have killed you a hundred times over.

Too lazy to play with them any longer, she dissolved into a wisp of demonic qi and drifted into an empty guest room at the nearest inn.

Once inside she shrank to fox size, sprawled her fluffy limbs across the table, and flicked her tail while her mind raced. By leaving the Penglai jade slip behind she had exposed herself as a demon cultivator; one more tug on the thread and those upright idiots would uncover the suspicious circumstances surrounding former Sect Leader Xiao Shen’s death.

As a retainer of Tianshu’s City Lord she had just shoved the murder pot toward Mu Weiyin.

She had worried Xiao Lanle might turn on Mu Weiyin, but now that Xiao Shen’s death would be laid bare, the girl would have to confront the truth of the Xiao clan’s annihilation. Unless Mu Weiyin chose to reveal that secret, their coming dao partnership was already ruined.

“I saw that thing run this way.”

“There’s an inn ahead, come on, let’s check it.”

Several kilometers away, Lin Qianshuang had already heard the hunters. She was sliding off the table when fingers closed around her furry hind legs and hoisted her into the air.

A woman wrapped in a snow-marten cloak, the Purple Dragon Jade Crown securing her coiled hair, purple silk gloves immaculate, seated herself soundlessly. She dangled the little beast by its hind leg and spoke without inflection. “I have followed you all day. Every stunt you pulled, I watched. You exposed yourself on purpose to cut Lanle loose. How very heartless.”

Lin Qianshuang’s fluffy paw smacked Mu Weiyin’s cheek. The City Lord wore the same frozen mask, the same mild voice that always drew blood, but today the cicadas outside were deafening and Qianshuang’s temper was raw.

Too tired to enjoy the woman’s momentary surprise, she laughed coldly. “The python swallowed me whole while you watched from the gallery, did you find the show amusing? You know exactly what calculation you’re using me for. We both scheme; between us, who is the one without a heart? Stop pretending you don’t know.”

Mu Weiyin gave Lin Qianshuang’s furry ear a light tug. A faint red mark from the kick still colored her jade-white cheek, yet she showed no anger. Calmly she said, “This City Lord knows what you want. What I want does not clash with what you want; it is only an equal trade.”

Lin Qianshuang flicked her ears, curled her long tail, and sat back on the table. She lifted her chin, her sapphire eyes narrowing. “City Lord, our previous deal is finished. Are you proposing a new treaty with your subordinate?”

“The new trade can wait.”

Mu Weiyin swept her wide sleeve aside and extended a slender hand, inviting Qianshuang to jump up. “Leap into my arms, and I will restore your human form.”

Lin Qianshuang arched a brow, puzzled at the City Lord’s sudden kindness. Apart from a marriage-and-life-death contract, she could think of no reason for free help. Still, she sprang lightly onto the table in front of Mu Weiyin and let the woman cradle her in the crook of her arm.

Mu Weiyin had never lied, and a great cultivator one step from ascension would never stoop to deceive a frail Demon Infant.

Beneath the silken silver fur of her palm, the blood of the Divine Vein pulsed; the blood of the ancient divine beast Baize¹ carried the purest, untainted breath of heaven and earth. The Tianshu Mirror, the life token that person had once pressed into her hand, was keyed to that very breath. The bright mirror rested in her heart, turning every thought transparent, yet that clarity had slowly bled her of mortal feeling.

Gold threads shimmered across Mu Weiyin’s pupils as she studied the beast curled indifferently in her arms. A faint ripple disturbed her calm. She should have recognized this person the moment their spirits first coupled; only someone extraordinary could coax her into lowering every guard. If even she had once been fooled, how could a mere Shark Pearl have hoped to keep her?

She had walked away without a word untold ages ago, yet here she was now, blinking like a lost child—had she truly forgotten everything?

The six-petaled peach-blossom spirit seal adorning Mu Weiyin’s forehead glimmered softly. With a casual tug at the air around Lin Qianshuang, the City Lord drew out several stubborn strands of pure divine power; they writhed in her fingers like living threads, then scattered into golden filaments and vanished.

Lin Qianshuang felt the mysterious force in her dantian ebb away, the magic seal fade and sink back into her brow, her human shape steadily returning.

Mu Weiyin had been cradling the little beast in her palms; once the transformation began, she unceremoniously dropped her onto the floor, stripped off her silk gloves, and poured two cups of tea.

She surprised herself by handing one steaming cup to Qianshuang, who was still sprawled on the ground flexing her newly restored limbs. Her silver lashes lowered, Mu Weiyin said, “Xiaochi tells me you’re curious about what sort of person I favor. The world knows I tread the Emotionless Path and keep all others at a distance. Apart from Lanle, you are the only one allowed at my side. You understand what that means.”

The tea in Qianshuang’s mouth shot straight onto Mu Weiyin’s immaculate sleeve. Catching the City Lord’s frown, she gave a strained laugh. “City Lord, your humble subordinate hasn’t the slightest idea what you’re talking about.”

Mu Weiyin glanced at the Cold Cicada Zither Lin Qianshuang was hugging as if it were a priceless treasure. “You once asked this City Lord how to nourish a soul. You were referring to this Zither of the Beast Emperor that hides a shattered soul fragment, were you not? You went to such lengths to throw me at Lanle just so I would fall in love, all to unlock the Tianshu Mirror. Did I guess correctly?”

Lin Qianshuang, seeing her intentions exposed, shot back, “And what about you? You’re after the Glazed Temple Gem. You saw through Junior Sister Xiao long ago.”

Before she could say more, Mu Weiyin’s sudden intimacy left her dumbstruck.

Slender jade scallion-like² fingertips brushed the hidden magic seal on her forehead. Mu Weiyin’s half-lidded eyes, misted with a faint glow, were so close they reflected Qianshuang’s entire face.

“This City Lord did use you,” Mu Weiyin murmured, arms braced against the wall at Qianshuang’s back. Layers of gauzy sleeves cascaded down like drifting mist, releasing a cool, subtle fragrance. Their noses almost touched. “I planned to draw out the Glazed Temple Gem through Xiao Lanle’s affection for you. If you want the Tianshu Mirror, come claim it yourself. We cooperate, share the spoils equally, an excellent bargain.”

Lin Qianshuang’s eyes froze; depths of calm glinted beneath them. “I won’t make that trade. Buying and selling feelings is shameless.”

“Is it?”

A hair-line crack ran across Mu Weiyin’s habitually proud, indifferent face. The hand circling Qianshuang’s upper arm tightened, a flicker of light sliding through her eyes. “Still the same, no retreat, no compromise. Touch your bottom line and you’re a cat with its tail stepped on, refusing to yield.”

Lin Qianshuang lifted a brow; the remark sounded nonsensical, as if Mu Weiyin were talking to herself.