Zixiao in Search of a New Master (3)
A sudden pang of unease fluttered from the tip of her heart. Lin Qianshuang seemed to sense something and looked toward Tianshu City; at the same instant Mu Weiyin, who had been holding her sword, let go and murmured, “Someone has triggered the Celestial Myriad Phenomena Instrument inside Tianshu City.”
Mu Weiyin’s voice paused, her expression grave. “It’s Lanle. She’s reversing the Celestial Myriad Phenomena Instrument.”
Lin Qianshuang’s eyelid twitched. The Celestial Myriad Phenomena Instrument governed every inner gate and hidden mechanism in Tianshu City; reversing it would seal the entire city. What was Xiao Lanle trying to achieve?
“Focus. The Zixiao Sword Spirit can’t hold much longer. Next, you purify this vicious ghost.”
The words began sharp beside her ear, yet softened as they settled on her.
Mu Weiyin intended to use this ghost infant blockade to hone the rapport between her and the Thousand Rain Sword, and Lin Qianshuang had no intention of wasting such an opportunity.
The formations the Penglai Immortal Sect disciples had left were shredded to scraps by Zixiao and the ghost infant’s brawl. Cut off from her sword master, Zixiao could neither draw freely on her spiritual power nor kill against his will; little by little the deathless thing of ghost qi glued itself to her and she slid into a losing stalemate.
She flipped her wrist to hurl a sword-qi phantom at the ghost infant; the creature’s swollen head took several hits and gave a distant, mournful wail. Blood-red tentacles wormed out of the fresh holes in its scalp, and like scarlet serpents two of them lashed round Zixiao before she could dodge. More spouted and whipped toward the three onlookers in a rage.
Chen Shangqing sliced the ghost qi apart; at his feet fell a dark-purple flexible sword whose demonic aura clawed at the sky: Liang Jingxuan’s Purple Heavenly Sword, still unsheathed.
“Senior Brother Chen, keep the Purple Heavenly Sword for now,” Lin Qianshuang called. “It will sheath only after it drinks blood. While Zixiao remains unstained she cannot return to her master. Hunt a living creature in the wildwood outside the city and let her feed. Once the sword spirit tastes blood she will wake and leave of her own accord.”
With that, Lin Qianshuang followed Mu Weiyin’s cue and formed the Spirit Sealing Art, driving the ghost infant back into the dried-up well inside the mansion. A flash of her blade sent a golden, glittering seal floating above the mouth of the well.
Qiankun Spirit Sealing Art.
This long-lost sword formula he had heard of only from Senior Uncle Qingyun; legend said it was the original stroke of Mu Yan, lord of the old Tianshu Tower Headquarters that preceded Tianshu City.
For the City Lord to teach Lin Qianshuang so profound and closely guarded a technique, she must place great trust in her senior sister; the two were hardly as estranged as gossip claimed.
Chen Shangqing watched a moment longer, then bent to lift the Purple Heavenly Sword. Before the blade left the ground it jerked forward like a mad thing; one hand could not hold it, so he hooked the other around the hilt and hauled the sword against his chest. Once the spirit within was roused by the blade’s own demonic breath, it would not return to the scabbard until it had tasted blood, and in a fury it could slaughter whole streets.
“He watched from the sky so long yet never descended. Why not help me slay the ghost infant? Instead he let me make a fool of myself!”
Inside the steel the sword spirit wailed, “The ghost infant nearly devoured me, but he never appeared. Does my master no longer want me?”
Chen Shangqing clung to the thrashing sword; his feet left the earth as the blade careered wildly through the air, whipping in every direction to shake free its rider. In desperation he drew the Bodhi Leaf he kept in his brocade pouch and chanted the calming mantra. The baleful light along the edge faded, and at last the sword hung quiet in his arms.
Purple Heavenly Sword rested quietly across Chen Shangqing’s knees and slipped into his grasp.
From within the blade the sword spirit drifted out in a low murmur.
“Take me to Yanqing Mountain. I’m weary. I want to see my old friends. I… miss them.”
Chen Shangqing hesitated, then closed his fingers round the hilt. He glanced once toward Tianshu City, judged the sky, and said without wavering, “All right. I’ll take you.”
Lin Qianshuang set the Thousand Rain Sword aside and sat down to breathe beside the dry well. Mu Weiyin raised the Rebirth Incantation in her palm; the murky death qi clinging to the ghost infant’s bones was slowly swallowed and cleansed by the golden spell. Clutching the baby, the woman in white rose from the well mouth and stepped little by little through the gate of rebirth.
“No wonder the ghost infant carried such fierce yin and resentment. A vicious ghost’s grudge had fused with it and condensed into that thing.”
Mu Weiyin turned to Lin Qianshuang. “A ghost infant of this level wasn’t created simply by devouring another vicious ghost’s grudge. After the Beast-Sealing Tower collapsed, countless resentful spirits poured into the world. The infant had already been lurking beneath this dry well; it gorged on mindless spirits and the resentment piled up until it became the fiend we just saw.”
Task completed, Lin Qianshuang instinctively searched for Chen Shangqing. He and Purple Heavenly Sword had vanished; apparently he had taken her advice and carried the blade back to its sheath.
“Junior Brother Chen, the Celestial Myriad Phenomena Instrument has reversed. Tianshu City has sealed its gates and raised its barrier; no one can re-enter. Once you’ve sheathed Purple Heavenly Sword, hurry to Hongye Temple.”
She hesitated, then let a wisp of demonic qi ignite between her fingers and left a sound transmission talisman on the spot. They had once been enemies, but Chen had always been upright; had they stood on the same side she would have counted him a friend. She had done the courteous thing; whether he believed her warning was up to him.
Beyond the temple pines the wind set the treetops swaying. Silver fish flickered in the rushing stream. An egret, stilt-thin legs pricking tiny puddles on the rough stone steps, caught sight of someone perched on a branch. Startled, it skittered left and right, suddenly remembered it had wings, and in a flap of white feathers fled in panic.
People are coming! Last time a little monk stewed one of its sisters with a fire spell.
All living things possess a spirit; she herself had been a spirit beast, so she caught most of the egret’s frantic bird-squawking.
Lin Qianshuang watched the bird’s comical flapping, yet no smile came.
She stared miserably at the Cold Cicada Zither across her knees. Its silver-white body was corroded and gave off a sharp, burned stench. A hairline crack ran from the tailpiece up the side.
Making the Thousand Rain Sword acknowledge its master was never meant to be easy. Xuan Luowan had shielded her from the poisonous rain with her Plain Umbrella, but the zither had paid the price.
If the instrument shattered, the soul sealed inside would shatter with it; she would never be able to draw Xiao Wan out again.
“I’ve searched everywhere for you, little envoy. So this is where you’re hiding.”
Lin Qianshuang recognized the sweet voice but didn’t bother lifting her head, her mood foul. “So the Domain Lord and City Lord have finished their discussion? You certainly work fast; half a cup of tea hasn’t even cooled.”
Seeing Lin Qianshuang’s indifference, Han Shengyao took no offense. She settled beside her, fingers resting on the holes of her bone-flute artifact. “Mu Weiyin didn’t summon this seat to talk business; we simply traded. She wanted my Soul-Gathering Pearl, and I wanted her information on someone.”
“Soul-Gathering Pearl.”
Lin Qianshuang’s pupils tightened. A treasure famed for anchoring the soul… what did Mu Weiyin need with that?
Han Shengyao tilted her head; beneath scattered moonlit leaves her stunning face looked eerily cool. “Little envoy, what allure do you possess that Mu Weiyin would risk reversing her cultivation, perhaps dispersing her own soul, to break the shackles of the Emotionless Path?”
Lin Qianshuang replied flatly, “We negotiated, but I never agreed. If Mu Weiyin means to escape the Emotionless Path, it’s for ascension, and nothing to do with me.”
“For a cultivator, once emotion takes root, it almost always becomes a calamity on the path. Little envoy, even if your experience is shallow, how could you utter such cold words as ‘it has nothing to do with me’?”
Han Shengyao glanced at Lin Qianshuang, then suddenly plucked the Cold Cicada Zither from her arms. Violet light swirled in her eyes as she said, “I want to hear what your heart truly holds. I will hide nothing: Mu Weiyin sent me to persuade you to play a part. The Celestial Myriad Phenomena Instrument inside Tianshu City has become the Heaven-Seizing Array; to reverse it again, one of the world’s supreme treasures must be activated. Taotie’s target is precisely this heaven-defying formation. Once it storms the city, your junior sister will be the first mark in its sight. Yet if you can lure the Penglai Immortal Sect’s leader out before the beast attacks, her life may yet be spared.”
“And how would you draw her out? By using her feelings for me? Then hold me up as a shield to wound her?”
Lin Qianshuang laughed, staring at Han Shengyao as though she were a stranger. “It seems City Lord Mu chose the wrong person. Domain Lord, that face of yours does intimidate me, but I will not obey.”
She reached to reclaim the zither; Han Shengyao locked both hands and instrument in an unyielding grasp.
“Let go. The city lord and I share a life-and-death contract. Offend me, and you insult her.”
Lin Qianshuang snapped, “Fixing the Cold Cicada Qin needs Mu Weiyin’s guidance, and only the Tianshu Mirror can save Xuan Luowan’s soul. Even if I did agree to her two-way deal, my master shouldn’t be the one announcing it.”
Han Shengyao’s cool fingers brushed the curve of her ear, tucking stray strands behind it. Violet eyes mere inches away, she spoke without the slightest ripple. “If you refuse to be the shield you spoke of, then marry me. Shuang’er, that’s what I used to call you, isn’t it?”
Lin Qianshuang’s pupils quivered. She snatched up the zither and tore herself from Han Shengyao’s arms by main force, voice shaking. “What… what did you say?”
“The only lead I have is you. I no longer feel anything, yet the scent clinging to you is unforgettable.”
Han Shengyao looked down at her, closing the distance, gaze deep and searching. “Shuanghan Manor was no accident, and the way you mirror the pose in that painting is far from coincidental.”
She leaned nearer, warm breath grazing Lin Qianshuang’s face; fingertips that had traced her features now rested lightly on her soft lower lip. “Do you realize? From the instant you entered my sight, every move you make has entranced me.”
Han Shengyao curved her lips in a bewitching smile, tasting the memory as she brushed her own against them. “The scent here… I still recall it faintly. Very sweet.”
Shizun remembers? But… it doesn’t feel quite right.
Lin Qianshuang’s heart lurched; she stared at Han Shengyao, at a complete loss.
“Domain Lord, she is this city lord’s dao partner. What do you think you’re doing?”
Mu Weiyin had barely left the meditation garden with Mu Xiaochi when she saw the Demon Realm’s ruler pressing her newly appointed tower lord against a tree trunk. Her own heart stuttered, missing several beats.
The clues I left were meant to mislead Han Shengyao, did she spot a flaw?
“You care so much about this little demon cultivator; it seems this seat has found your soft spot.”
Han Shengyao rose languidly, her scarlet sleeves billowing as she pulled Lin Qianshuang down from the branch. Smiling yet not smiling, she said, “Your newly appointed Tower Lord is truly naive. In just a few words I coaxed out your secret: the Marriage Life-and-Death Contract. There are very few dao-partners in this world who bind themselves with a pact that offers no benefit at all.”