Xinyue had just returned from a sparring session,a black towel still hanging from her neck, and did not hesitate to pour herself some water. Sometimes the swordfighting lessons at the Mist Oasis were too taxing, even for the Saintess of the Silver Blade. Setting down the jug, she reached for the cup, but a slight crack appeared on it before she could pick it up. Xinyue froze, drawing her hand back with a strange sense of foreboding.
Faint scratching sounds startled her, and she turned sharply, hand on her sword. But it was only a raven at her window, which had evidently been trying to get her attention.
"A-Yue. What has happened to A-Yue?".
How she knew that something had happened to her younger sister, even Xinyue could not have explained. But she knew, somehow she just did. And maybe it wasn't a very logical thing to do, asking a bird questions, but now really wasn't the time to bother about such a thing.
The Saintess really might have gone on reeling off more questions if she had not spotted the piece of paper tied to the raven's left leg. Without delay, she tugged it free and read it quickly. The message was short and to the point:
"Yingyue is at the Aurum Pavilion.
She doesn't have much time left".
*
*
*
"Shijie, wait... you can't go in there...".
Xinyue did not bother with words as she shoved past several juniors and marched resolutely into the boys' dormitory.
She went straight to Wang Hui's room and knocked frantically.
"Wang Hui, I'm coming in".
Then she did something so rude she never would have dreamt of even thinking about it on a normal day- she pushed the door open and walked in without waiting for a response.
Wang Hui was seated at his study desk, wiping his sword absentmindedly. He looked up when she entered, and his eyes went wide.
"Xinyue...".
"Please. Help me. I'll do anything".
"Huh? What are you...".
"I know that note was from you because I know that raven belongs to you and I don't know your reasons so I'm really sorry for being selfish but I need you to stop playing dumb and help me out before my sister dies. Please".
Xinyue had practically said it all in one breath, and she could not help gasping a little.
Wang Hui blinked, but at least he had been listening, because he did not play dumb any further. Instead he sighed.
"I wish I could help you, but I...".
A loud thump cut him off.
Xinyue had not just dropped to her knees, but she had bowed into a kowtow as well.
"Please. I'll do anything".
"Xinyue, no,"he pushed the sword aside immediately and was beside her in seconds "don't do this".
He helped her up, his insides in a painful knot.
"Please".
"You have to understand. I've already gone against my father by sending you that note. If he marks me out as a traitor, I could be excommunicated...".
"Please. I need you".
"I already told you where...".
"I've never been to the Aurum Pavilion. I don't know my way around, I might not make it in time...".
"I could just give you directions...".
"I'm panicking right now. I'll forget everything" she grabbed desperately onto his hands "please. I need you".
A shiver went through him. This whole time, he had merely been loving Xinyue from afar, totally lacking the courage to make a move, and although they were on decent enough terms, this was actually the first time they had made physical contact.
Wang Hui looked into her glassy beige eyes, and suddenly he did not care about anything else. What did it matter if he got in trouble, or if his father punished him again,or disowned him like he had nearly done sometime ago,or excommunicated him like an abomination?
Xinyue needed him, and in that moment she was worth it all- his honor, his birthright, the loss of his father's approval, his home, and more. She was worth his life.
*
*
*
Wang Hui had stressed the need to be silent, and that was the only thing that kept her from bouncing from foot to foot in anxiety as she waited for him to give her the signal.
She knew he had said that things would be especially ugly if they were to run into his father, but Xinyue was totally prepared to dash out of her hiding place and get in trouble. Fortunately, she did not have to, because the talisman in her hand suddenly sparked once.
The coast was clear.
The Saintess stepped out from behind the pillar and broke into a run. This whole place was totally giving her the chills, and she wanted out as soon as possible, with her sister in tow,of course. Who would have thought that the XiuzhenWang-jun had such an awful dungeon underground in the Aurum Pavilion? Everywhere reeked with the smell of death and decay, and it was all Xinyue could do not to regurgitate her hearty breakfast.
Straight onward, Wang Hui had said, past seven cells on each side,then to the right.
Xinyue shoved the door open and dashed in, sword at the ready. It was a rather large room, and she nearly staggered at the number of guards that came into view. That many would be difficult to take down quickly, even for the Saintess of the Silver Blade.
But Xinyue had the element of surprise, and she used it to full advantage. More than half a dozen men had been knocked out before they finally registered her presence and what it entailed. But before they could do anything about it, Wang Hui served them another surprise by turning on them.
The two members of the A-list were younger, but they held their own perfectly fine for as long as they needed to before making a break for the back of the room.
Wang Hui knew that once they acted, it would not take long before his father got wind of their actions, and so the plan was to only take down enough guards to enable themselves get to Yingyue at the back of the room without interception. When they got to their target, Xinyue's feet came to a stop, and a look of abject horror fell over her. Wang Hui could not blame her,in fact, she was so amazing for not going into shock the moment she set her eyes on her sister's pitiful condition. But there really was no time, so he took her shoulder firmly and shook her a little.
"Xinyue, snap out of it. We have to get out of here".
The Saintess blinked,then gulped.
"You're right. I'm... I'm sorry".
She lifted Banlu and struck one of the chains with all the force she could muster, only for it to rebound on her, driving an agonizing shock up her arm while the chain remained unscathed.
Xinyue hissed.
"What's the matter?"Hui asked.
"It repelled me. What is this thing made of?".
The steel had been enhanced with diabolic cultivation, but neither of them knew that.
"Stop!".
"Damn it,"Wang Hui turned to see the guards rounding the bend and charging towards them "keep trying. I've got your back".
"Thank you".
While Xinyue coated Banlu with energy and continued hacking at the chains, he slipped both hands into his sleeves,then withdrew them. Out came a flood of tastefully drawn talismans. He tossed them into the air, and instantly there was a wall of blue fire between them and the guards, who all stood back at a reasonable distance. It wasn't like they were afraid of fire or anything- any cultivator worth his salt had to be able to withstand a little heat- but they could tell even without getting any closer that this was not regular fire at all, especially with the way it was greedily consuming even thin air.
Fortunately for them, though, they still had in their possession one of the most powerful weapons in human history- tongues.
"Young Master Wang, what are you doing?".
Wang Hui thought it was a very stupid question. They could very well see for themselves.
"What would your father say?".
Whatever the hell he wanted.
"This is treason, you know. He will not forgive you this time around".
Oh, really?, Wang Hui thought, exactly when had his father ever forgiven anything?
"If you don't step aside right now, the consequences will be really grave".
Wang Hui could have yawned. Could they please tell him something he didn't already know?
"I've always known that your arrogance would be the death of you, Young Master. You just do whatever you want, and everyone else can go hang. Are you sure you've thought this through?".
Wang Hui scoffed.
"I think you ought to cease your drivel...".
"Are you even thinking of your mother?".
That did it.
Wang Hui's eyes widened, he dropped his hands, and the flames vanished. Xinyue had just made a dent in the first chain when she felt his arms around her, pulling her back and away from her sister.
"Wait... what are you doing...".
"Xinyue, please".
His tone startled her even more than his strange actions. It was low and grave and dark, like solid sorrow.
"What is it? What is the matter?"she asked.
She could not see his face, as it was more or less pressed to her hair, but she did not need to see it to know that something was terribly wrong.
"You have to go"he replied.
"What? But A-Yue...".
"You have to leave her behind".
"What? No, I will not".
"You don't have a choice, and neither do I".
"Let go of me. Let go!".
Xinyue struggled to wriggle out of his muscular arms, but she was no match for his terrifying strength.
"Let me go. Please let me go!".
"I can't".
"Why not?!".
"I'm sorry".
"That's good,"the head of the guards spoke, stepping forward"just hold her like that. We were just about to proceed with the process of destroying the vessel's golden core, so we'll go on ahead now".
Wang Hui's lips tightened at that, but he did not move. Xinyue,on the other hand, started thrashing even more violently.
"Unhand me right now! Let go!".
Nobody paid her any attention. Instead, the guards surrounded Yingyue, taking out all sorts of nefarious looking talismans.
"No!"Xinyue screamed.
That was when it happened.
The entrance blew up, the force of it sending a shockwave through the room that smashed the furniture, destroyed the walls and caused the ceiling to cave in. The unfortunate guards standing furthest from Yingyue were even sent flying and cracking their skulls against the opposite wall.
All eyes turned to the source of the destruction, and a wave of terror went through everyone present. It was not just the calmly blank look on her face, like wiping them all out would cost her nothing,or the preternatural stillness with which she stood, reminiscent of a primordial entity. Neither was it the aura crackling like lightening around her,or the multiple golden ribbons glowing in the air around her, each one the length of a person, twisting and coiling as if they were alive.
They all remembered a certain name. A name everyone in the cultivation world knew, but many had made the costly mistake of forgetting. The one who stood before them was neither Madame Meng nor Meng Lanfen.
This vengeance incarnate was none other than the living legend.
Lanfen Tianshi.