Chapter 18 - 42-46

Chapter 42-Truce End 6

No.

She couldn't - wouldn't - act like that anymore. It would mean abandoning one of her few friends, and it wouldn't even solve the problem. This wasn't like before where she could count on her own obscurity to make the aggressors forget about her if she escaped the initial conflict. She had made herself stand out, and now, all she could do was deal with the consequences.

... She was tired of running anyway, and these people pissed her off. Maybe becoming a cultivator had worsened her control on her temper, but she really just wanted to beat these people down. Bai Meizhen was worth ten of these hypocritical assholes. She would just have to trust that the girl's reputation was true to life.

Her flute appeared in her hand, drawn directly from her new ring, and she blew the first note of her Melody, calling on the mists once again. She would see just how brave this bunch was.

"Xu Lian, help the others pin the peasant down," the apparent leader snapped as the mist engulfed them. "Du Xi, activate your formation now!"

Ling Qi felt a bit of dread in her gut as the blue glow on the rearmost girl's hands expanded outwards in a bubble, washing over their enemies. It set their eyes ablaze, causing the fearful trembling in their hands to cease.

At the same time, the murmuring boy with the pike rapped the butt of his weapon on the ground, and a circle of golden characters flared into existence around him. In response, ephemeral chains burst from the ground around Cui, whipping around blindingly fast to coil around and slam the rearing serpent to the ground.

Even as Ling Qi quietly crept away from her original position to get a better vantage, she felt the fear in her gut intensifying again. Had she made a mistake? What was she thinking, fighting this many people at once? She was already down an ally…

"Arrogance," Bai Meizhen's voice cut through her music and the other sounds like a frozen whip. "To think such a paltry spell could hold a daughter of Bai. Is this truly your best?" There was no fear, nor even concern, in her friend's voice, just furious contempt.

Even as the terrifying pressure the other girl exuded redoubled, Ling Qi felt her own fear lessen. Bai Meizhen's eyes glowed like golden fire even in the darkness induced by her mist, and a weapon had appeared in her hand. It had a handle like a sword, but rather than a blade, there were four long shining strips of paper-thin metal hanging from it. Her shadow had grown into a dark pool at her feet, and Ling Qi could feel Bai Meizhen's qi pulling hungrily at her mist, drawing moisture from the air. A mantle of dark waters cascaded down her shoulders and rose up, casting her face in shadow as it formed a flared hood.

At the same time, Cui let out an enraged hiss, and Ling Qi felt a pulsing ripple of qi in her bones as a loud sizzling reached her ears. The shining chains holding the serpent corroded rapidly along with the dirt and grass around her until the serpent's flexing coils shattered what remained in a hail of rapidly dissolving fragments.

However, Cui's escape took time, precious seconds that gave the four armed for melee time to close the distance with Bai Meizhen and the archers to draw back their bows. Ling Qi could tell that her attempt to hide herself had failed when she saw the arrowheads train on her position.

Dark qi flooded her limbs as Ling Qi smoothly dodged the first arrow, which crackled with fiery qi, and the second, which felt oddly heavy as it passed over her shoulder when she ducked. If her mouth wasn't occupied with playing her Melody, she would have grinned savagely when she heard one of the archers curse her in the mist.

The other four had converged on Bai Meizhen. They seemed relatively confident despite the failure of their companion's spell on Cui. Had it only been meant as a momentary distraction to keep Cui occupied while they ganged up on Bai Meizhen? Worry still churned in her gut. Ling Qi hoped Bai Meizhen would be fine for a few seconds until she could start the next part of the song and distract them.

The leader let out an encouraging war cry that seemed to steady his companions' hands even as two of them split apart to flank Bai Meizhen The flankers' bodies blurred under the effects of their movement arts. The last of them dashed forward, the spear in his hands outstretched in a thrust.

It passed by Bai Meizhen without touching her as she swayed to the side, a contemptuous expression on her face. A twitch of her weapon hand brought out a nerve-wracking scream of metal on metal as the strands of her weapon snapped out, guided unnaturally by the unseen force of her qi. The boy hurried to pull back his spear, spinning the haft up to deflect the snapping metal strands, and though he knocked three aside, the fourth twisted through his guard with a metallic hiss. He cried out in pain as the whip-like blade slashed across his chest. Bai Meizhen's strange weapon shredded straight through his robe and the armor beneath even as the spearman's dark earthy qi flared, preventing the wound from being more than skin deep.

However, the two enemies who had moved to flank Bai Meizhen were still there, and as they brought their swords to bear, one cutting high and one cutting low, Bai Meizhen's knee buckled slightly, disrupting her graceful swaying dodge enough that one sword scoured across her shoulder. It sheared off a few more tattered shreds of her sleeve and sent up a splash of cold water as it scoured her mantle, but it failed to so much as draw a drop of blood. It was, however, enough to make the lingering feeling of fear from her friend's initial technique fade, and Ling Qi saw Bai Meizhen's expression of disdainful fury grow darker.

Ling Qi hesitated on what to do next. Should she continue her song or shackle their enemies with the wind? The mist would fade in a short time if she stopped, but something told her that this battle would be decided one way or the other before the Melody fully faded. Ling Qi flicked her wrist and threw, a streak of white flying from her sleeve toward the back of the girl that had almost struck Bai Meizhen..

The girl jerked and arched her back, gasping in pain as the knife cut a bloody line across her side. Ling Qi took hold of her qi, and the wind kicked up around the four, growing fierce and blowing back against their movements. It was almost enough to distract them from the scream that erupted ahead of her as the boy with the pike fell to the ground, frantically tearing at his burning and sizzling robe with his qi flaring wildly and quickly beginning to fade. Going by the sizzling dirt and grass around him, Ling Qi blamed Cui, who had reared up angrily and was slithering closer to the ranged foes.

... Cui was still over ten meters away from the boy with the pike. Could the serpent spit her venom that far? That was terrifying.

She did not have any more time to consider it as she wove out of the path of incoming projectiles, relishing the looks of increasing panic on the archers' faces as the arrows thudded into the dirt behind her. A shudder went up her spine as one of the arrows exploded into a violent fireball when it passed through where she had been a moment ago. That would have hurt.

A glance behind her showed that Bai Meizhen was going on the offensive. She swayed through their attacks, her liquid mantle springing to life to deflect what blows could not be fully avoided, and then struck out. Her weapon's strands snapped out with a metallic hiss and coiled around the sword of one her attackers to rip it from her hands even as her free hand struck the girl across the cheek with a simple open-handed slap. Ling Qi didn't have time to be bemused by her friend's choice of attack as the force of the blow sent the girl tumbling to the ground. Then, she screamed and thrashed in pain. Ling Qi could see the inflamed red of the handprint on her cheek and the way tendrils of red spread further under her skin.

Ling Qi hoped Bai Meizhen remembered not to go too far. The girl who had been hit by her dagger fell next as the watery mantle over Bai Meizhen's shoulders exploded outward in a rain of icy needles. The needles peppered the area around her, making the two remaining enemies flinch. Their counterattack gained them little except another painful repudiative slash from Bai Meizhen's blades that sent one of the two boys stumbling back with much reduced qi.

Ling Qi smiled to see the archers and the girl with the gloves falling back, looking ready to run. She would have to see if she could put a stop to that; they didn't deserve to run after this stunt. Going by Cui's path, the serpent agreed with her. Still, her instincts whispered to her that this had been too easy.

Then the area around Bai Meizhen exploded in a plume of dust and grit, blasting her mist away from the girl's position. Ling Qi's eyes widened in alarm when she saw Bai Meizhen flung backward to sprawl on the ground. In the midst of the rising plume of dust, Ling Qi spied a tall figure and the gleam of metal. When the dust cleared, she saw a boy that she recognized from Elder Zhou's lessons. Kang Zihao, the only boy to be given advanced elixirs. He stood in the center of a small crater, tall and serene of expression. In one hand, he held a shining steel shield embossed with the imperial dragon crest in gold, and in the other, he held a tall, straight spear with a red tassel just below the blade.

Her dread returned at the sight of of one of the top ranked cultivators in Elder Zhou's lessons. Ling Qi suddenly had a feeling she knew why these eight had the courage to insult Bai Meizhen so.

"How pitiful for one of such status to abuse their lessers." The handsome boy's calm voice echoed out over the sound of falling grit. "Have you no shame, serpent of the lakes?"

"Do not speak to me of shame," Bai Meizhen spat in response, struggling to her feet. Ling Qi felt a spark of fury when she saw how badly her friend's legs were bleeding again. "Do you think me a fool? I had wondered why these curs had elected to bare their teeth so."

"It is my duty to protect the people of the Empire from traitorous vermin," Kang Zihao responded smoothly. "Much as it is father's duty to protect Our Holy Empress. I can no more ignore their plight than he would an assassin's knife, and is that not what your entire clan truly is, serpent?"

Bai Meizhen drew herself up, imperiously staring down at Kang Zihao despite the difference in their height. "Do not speak as if your family holds a position of pride, fool. The Empress will tire of your father in time, just as she has her other playthings. Do you truly think you are something special, Kang Zihao?"

Ling wondered why her friend was wasting time talking, but she saw then a creeping shadow in the grass behind the boy and felt a thrill of hope.

Kang Zihao narrowed his eyes and spun, deflecting Cui's fangs with his shield and throwing the furious serpent back. "I will bandy no further words with you, serpent. Let us see how well you do without your servant blinding the opposition."

Bai Meizhen's eyes widened in alarm at the same time that Ling Qi's did. Ling Qi pushed off the ground, willing the mist to darken further and hide her as she leaped back, but it wasn't enough. She felt the pulse of qi as the spear-wielding boy appeared in front of her, weapon drawn back to strike. His spear blurred through the air, and although Ling Qi did her best to track it and dodge, she wasn't going to be fast enough.

Her vision exploded into whiteness as a muffled boom sounded, but there was no pain. Instead, there was a familiar and very loud voice, tinged with strain.

"VILLAIN! SUFFER THE WRATH OF LADY CAI!" Ling Qi opened her eyes in time to see Gan Guangli, towering over her attacker with Kang Zihao's spear clutched in a fist the size of a small keg. Blood trickled from between his fingers, and blazing white light shone from his skin. More importantly, she opened her eyes in time to see Gan Guangli's other gigantic fist slam directly into Kang Zihao's face.

Kang Zihao skidded backward a full five meters, heels digging furrows in the dirt. Blood trickled down from a split lip twisted into a furious scowl. "What is the meaning of-"

"What is the meaning indeed," a cold and measured voice rang out, cutting him off. Ling Qi craned her neck to see the source. There she saw one of the other stars of Elder Zhou's lessons. She found herself looking up at Cai Renxiang, standing atop the ridge on the far side of the path, arms crossed over her chest.

The Cai heiress was illuminated from behind by a blazing corona of white light, casting a long shadow across the path. The girl had discarded her disciple's robe as well in favor of a shining white gown with gold hems and embroidery. The image of a red and gold butterfly's wings splayed across the bosom of the garment, the top of its wings stretching up to her shoulders. "Is this the honor of the capital, Kang Zihao? The use of a flimsy pretense to strike at a wounded peer?" she asked in a voice filled with scorn.

Ling Qi fought down the panic she felt at being around so many who were out of her league. Her feeling looked to be one shared by the two young men who had engaged Bai Meizhen but were left standing; they looked distinctly regretful as they slowly tried to creep away. The ranged attackers had fled long ago at this point.

Bai Meizhen's venomous gaze was fixed on Kang Zihao's back, and Ling Qi felt a stab of concern at how coldly murderous her friend's expression was. She had seen looks like that before; usually, there would be a body for the guards to clean up the next day.

"It is good to see that there is at least some civility in this place," Bai Meizhen said softly, glancing up at Cai Renxiang and studying the other girl's angular features briefly before returning her gaze to Kang Zihao's back. "I had begun to think all the Empire outside of the Thousand Lakes had degenerated into barbarism."

"You cannot mean to side with this snake," Kang Zihao said, looking a bit nervous. "Lady Cai, please understand the statement you are making. I struck only for the good of the Sect, and of course, the province of Duchess Cai. The presence of one of the Bai…"

"I care not for your petty excuses, and her presence is one of imperial mandate," Cai Renxiang cut him off flatly. "I am in no mood for this. I have witnessed so much cowardice and dishonor this day that my stomach was turned, and now, upon seeking out one of the few who I expected to be worthwhile for a duel of honor, I find you engaging in a pathetic display of banditry? Attempting to strike down a citizen of my Emerald Seas without mercy? Begone from this place, and reflect on the shame of your actions."

Ling Qi blinked. Was the shining girl referring to her? Gan Guangli still stood in front of her like a gigantic shield, glowering at Kang Zihao. This situation worried her; she felt like she was intruding into something she had no business being involved in. Something was happening here, and it irked her that it was going over her head.

Kang Zihao squared his shoulders defiantly, but she could see his eyes tracking from Bai Meizhen to Cai Renxiang and then over Guangli and herself and his own quivering 'allies'.

"I see," he said finally. "You make an error, Lady Cai. I will, however, respect your will in this. If I may collect my followers…"

"You may take those who still stand," Cai Renxiang's domineering voice cut him off again. "The others will pay the price of loss for their shameful ambush."

Kang Zihao's expression darkened, and Ling Qi saw the grip on his spear grow white-knuckled. In the end, he nodded once curtly and gestured for the two boys who still stood to follow him. Ling Qi disliked the idea of them getting away, but if Bai Meizhen wasn't going to speak up in this situation, then neither would she.

"I thank you for your assistance, Lady Cai," Bai Meizhen replied somewhat stiffly, her eyes still fixed on the rapidly retreating back of Kang Zihao.

"It is no more than my duty," the other girl said dismissively, turning her gaze to the two of them. Ling Qi dipped her head respectfully as Cai Renxiang's intense gaze passed over her.

"Guangli, help them gather the belongings of this trash and move it from the road. Bai Meizhen recover well. I will challenge you when you have healed."

"It will be my honor, Lady Cai," Bai Meizhen said politely, with more respect than Ling Qi had seen her give another person before.

"Are you well, Ling Qi?" Bai Meizhen asked in a quieter tone, scanning Ling Qi for injuries. Ling Qi fidgeted awkwardly as she found herself studied by both her friend and the steadily shrinking young man in front of her. It didn't help that Cai Renxiang's gaze was burning a hole in her back either.

"I'm fine. They weren't able to land a hit on me," Ling Qi replied with a touch of pride. "Gan Guangli… Lady Cai, thank you very much," she added, remembering Bai Meizhen's lessons and giving each an appropriate bow.

Cai Renxiang simply nodded seriously in her direction while Gan Guangli's stern expression turned cheerful. Ling Qi glanced away, flushing slightly at the sight of Gan Guangli's smile. Why did Gu Xiulan have to put such thoughts in her head?!

They turned to practical matters after that. Between her efficiency and Gan Guangli's ability to carry everything, stripping the losers of their valuables took only a short time. Bai Meizhen sat down and caught her breath while they did so. Meanwhile, Cai Renxiang exited in a flare of light to do whatever it was intimidating glowing people did.

The ambushers didn't have anything near as interesting as her previous opponents. It seemed that because of the planned ambush, they had chosen not to carry most of their valuables so it was really only their talismans that could be looted. She would likely sell off the talismans for red stones because none of the talismans were of particular interest to her. Bai Meizhen didn't appear to have any preference on the matter.

Gan Guangli seemed to have taken his lady's command to mean to follow them to the market, carrying the goods as they went. This allowed Ling Qi to feel a little bit safer as she helped her friend limp along.

Once she and Bai Meizhen had gotten to the medicine hall, Ling Qi found herself in an awkward position. Bai Meizhen insisted on paying for Ling Qi's wounds to be healed despite the fact that the girl's own healing was going to cost over a hundred spirit stones. Apparently, Sun Liling's techniques were incredibly difficult to heal from. Ling Qi could do little but accept, even as she promised herself to pay the other girl back for the twenty odd stones spent healing her completely from her earlier duel.

By the time they were released, it was getting late. The sale of the talismans afterward did not take long though. With her newfound wealth tucked firmly into her storage ring, Ling Qi thought she had quite enough of this day and only hoped those following would be a little less stressful.

Bonus 8: Observation

Sima Jiao tapped his foot to the beat of the music echoing through his chambers. It was all horns and drums, full of a frenetic energy. The recording tablet stood upright on the stand to the right of his plush chair. It was an older model, but he found the faint scratchy distortion to the original sound to be superior to the ones made by that upstart Master Ren. The old model changed the images and emotions that it impressed on his thoughts just enough to make something different of the piece. It really was too bad that the musician had been executed so early in his career, he would have liked to see how his style developed.

Putting aside idle musings on music, he inhaled deeply from the pipe between his lips and then breathed out, blowing out a complex symbol of sparkling smoke and squinted up at it, guiding it to join the growing array that hung in the air in front of him. The feedback issue that had been plaguing his latest attempts to improve upon Grandmaster Wu's work on steering arrays was truly vexing.

"Perhaps you should focus on your toys at a later date dear. You are on duty at the moment," Xin said from behind him.

Sima Jiao did not do anything so base and mundane as turning his head. Instead, the vast shadow cast by his chair rippled and a single additional eye opened in it's depths. His presence suffused the entire back half of the room, dozens of eyes gazing upon each of the clairvoyance arrays set up throughout the viewing chamber, showing scenes of battle and petty teenage rivalry that were playing out on the mountain below. In truth, there was no need to make an additional viewpoint at all, but it paid to give his wife direct attention. Especially when she took on that sly tone, the vexatious vixen.

Xin's avatar lounged distractingly atop a couch of silvery lunar mist, bobbing her head absently to the music as she looked down on the most advanced array, which tracked the overall chances of lethal injury among the barbaric little urchins they were overseeing.

"You know perfectly well that I can do both," he replied dryly, not bothering to move the lips on his own avatar, his voice rang out instead from multiple sources in the shadow around her.

"But you are not really paying attention," she chided, giving his newly formed eye an impish smile. "Oh, no one is going to die, but you're hardly enjoying the show with me."

"It was entertaining for perhaps the first quarter hour," he scoffed. "Then it just began to remind me why strict law is such a necessity," he knew they were taking a lighter touch this year, but the little beasts were going to reduce the mountain to smoking rubble and be forced to live like barbarians in the ruins at this rate. It had almost been enough to make his old instincts stir from slumber.

"It is not so bad as that. Structure rises from anarchy. I am sure the children will manage to find an equilibrium in the coming days," his wife replied musingly. "I can feel the first ripples propagating into the future already."

"I shall take your word for it," Sima Jiao replied. For his part, he expected that the path was rather clear, given the pieces in play, but teasing the details of approaching events out had always been her talent. He began to turn the greater part of his attention back to his developing array. His wife was clearly up to something, but if she wished to draw him into her meddlesome plotting she would have to try a bit harder.

"That Ling girl is doing well so far," Xin interrupted again. "She's begun to master both of her arts and won a duel. She was out shopping with a friend using her spoils while the rest were scrabbling. It was quite adorable."

He grunted in response. That one was talented, but so were all the commoners brought in, the ministry wouldn't have bothered otherwise. Heavens knew that was one policy he had supported whole heartedly. Left to fester in squalor those sorts inevitably became trouble, shaping themselves into engines of ever greater destruction and chaos the longer they survived. Much better to nip it in the bud and bring them into the system early, before one needed an entire squad of Ministry Agents to bring the boot down on some power mad would be neo-sage emperor. With the conscription program they could get suppressed, snapped up by a clan, or made new nobility.

"Nothing particularly special about that one. If she doesn't end up a retainer to the Bai, she'll spend her life building up a village somewhere in the back end of the province," he added, knowing that his wordless reply wouldn't be sufficient.

"That is hardly fair," Xin protested. "She has the potential to be a core disciple in the future with a little good fortune."

She got like this sometimes, attaching her attention to a disciple. They always ended up a disappointment.

"I heard that," Xin replied with narrowed eyes, and Jiao cursed silently at his lack of care with his thoughts. "Really, you impossible man, just get over here and watch things with me."

Sima Jiao silently raised his eyes to the ceiling, stopping short of offering a plea to the great spirits. It would hardly do him any good, given his wife's lineage. She was obviously going somewhere with this, and wouldn't allow him his peace until he humored her. Instead the man in the chair and the chair itself dissolved into smoke and shadow, and he reformed a body atop the couch next to Xin, who sat up to make room.

He was reminded why he bothered with his body at all as she leaned against his shoulder and slipped an arm around his waist. A glance down at her slyly grinning face told him that she knew perfectly well what he was thinking, even if he had shrouded his thoughts properly. Sima Jiao simply rolled his eyes at her antics, even as he loosed his hold on his spirit and allowed it to mesh with her own spiritual self, tinging the rooms shadows with silver.

"Show me what I've missed then," Sima Jiao said, gesturing at the array.

"It is not so much what you have missed, but what you would have missed. Someone is about to drop a stone in the stream," Xin laughed, resting her cheek against his shoulder. She gestured toward the array, and Jiao eyes, all of them, widened as information began to pour through their connection. Future paths, some dying, never to be, and others blooming into new possibility. White hair and mist, radiance and blood.

Sima Jiao, esteemed Elder of the Argent Sect, Head of the Talisman department, dropped his face into his hands and let out the groan of a man who had just seen his workload double.

Xin just laughed and laughed.

Chapter 43: Brewing Chaos 1

Despite having to rest in the ruins of her home, searching for a new one was not Ling Qi, nor Bai Meizhen's top priority. Instead, the next day, with her energy restored, Ling Qi immediately went to look into what, if anything, had happened to her friend, Li Suyin and her roommate, Su Ling. It began rather poorly with Ling Qi's arrival at their house finding the door broken in and what little inside ransacked. The shattered inkwells and torn pages scattered on the floor painted a grim picture, one that lit worry and anger in Ling Qi's heart.

It wasn't as if it was an uncommon sight either. Now that she had time to look, the entire residential area looked worse for the wear. Walls and roofs were damaged, windows were broken, and craters pocked the streets. Fighting was still ongoing with Ling Qi passing several open duels in the streets on her way to Li Suyin's house. The only place completely free of damage was the storehouse where everyone got their food and household supplies; she supposed the storehouse counted as 'Sect Property' in a way the rest didn't.

The atmosphere was tense and the air clouded by smoke from the occasional uncontrolled fire. To Ling Qi, the sight resembled the half-remembered spirit tales she had heard of when she was very young. After all, naughty and disobedient children brought misfortune or were snatched by spirits or monsters.

Linq Qi didn't bother to hide as she exited her friend's ruined house. Perhaps she was feeling overconfident from the day before, but she just couldn't muster the desire to slink away into the shadows as she usually did. She met the stares from a pair of girls across the street who were watching her with difficult expressions and scowled, her fingers itching for her knives. If someone here wanted to start something, they were welcome to try.

To her surprise, there was no snide comment or disdainful whispers from them or the other scattered passersby. The girls she scowled at simply lowered their heads and scurried on, hurrying away from her with a flapping of soot-stained gowns.

Ling Qi huffed irritably. Thankfully, her clothing seemed to take care of its own cleanliness, and for all that she still felt awkward and out of place in the shimmering, smooth fabric, she couldn't help but be grateful to Gu Xiulan for it.

The ensuing investigation into her friend's whereabouts quickly became frustrating. She couldn't track them given her lack of expertise in that area, and for all that the open hostility directed her way had toned down, no one was interested in talking to her or answering questions. Her search took her from the residential area out to the main plaza where she continued trying to get more than terse non-answers out of her fellow disciples. This attempt proved fruitless, and after a few hours, she was feeling frustrated and irritable on top of increasingly worried.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, she reacted poorly when she saw an all-too-familiar head of gray hair approaching her with his hand waving in greeting. She had been standing in one of the plaza's miniature gardens, trying to calm herself.

"Go away, Huang Da," Ling Qi snapped, one of her knives appearing in her hand as she turned to face the approaching boy. "I don't have time to deal with your obnoxious, unwanted advances today. I had enough trouble with the damn fiancée you apparently have yesterday." Her voice was harsh, and her more vulgar words slipped through without notice.

He came to a stop a few meters away, that irritating, creepy little half-smile still firmly in place.

"I apologize for the trouble that ogress gave you, my lovely night lily," Huang Da replied smoothly, making Ling Qi's eyebrows twitch in irritation. "Let me first assure you that I have no feelings for that brutish girl. It is merely a business arrangement. I wish I could have seen you dancing circles around her that day."

Ling Qi continued to scowl at him, fingering the blade of her knife, as he leaned against the cherry tree he had stopped next to.

"Because that's so much better," she said peevishly. "Seriously. I don't have time for you today. And stop making up weird nicknames. I'm not your anything." She deliberately turned and began to march away, hoping he wouldn't follow.

"Are you not interested in the well-being of your followers?" Huang Da asked to her back. "I had heard you were looking into Li Suyin's whereabouts."

Ling Qi stopped, her qi churning in time with her anger as she turned around.

"If you hurt her, I won't forgive it, you creep," Ling Qi said coldly. "If you think you can use her as some kind of hostage…" She didn't know what she would do exactly, but he wouldn't like it.

Huang Da frowned, looking hurt.

"Of course not," he said dismissively. "Truly, if it were not for the fact that it is what allowed me to see your beauty in the first place, I would regret my first impression if that is what you think of me. No, I simply helped them escape their pursuers as they fled. A bit of misdirection allowed me to guide the pursuers away from the cave that the beast girl led them to hide in." He cocked his head to the side slightly at Ling Qi's dubious expression. "Come now. Why would I lie about something so easily disproved? I can tell you where they hid away, and you may ask them."

"And what are you going to want for that?" she asked suspiciously, even as her heart pounded. Were they really alright?

"Well, a kiss for the heroic one wouldn't be amiss," Huang Da said hopefully with a slight widening of his smile.

"Go drown," Ling Qi responded instantly. She knew they were out in the wilderness now; she would track them down herself.

"I thought not," he said in disappointment. "But no, I require nothing of you, lovely Ling Qi. Nothing but a word of gratitude from your lips."

Ling Qi scowled at him, but she couldn't sense any duplicity. As he said, his story would be easy to confirm, and if he lied about where they were hiding… Well, she might not be able to hit him now, but she could certainly do it later.

"... Thank you, Huang Da." The words left a bad taste in her mouth, but it was too small a thing to refuse.

Huang Da closed his blind eyes, seeming pleased with himself. "Ah, how wonderful," he mused.

"You're still a creep," Ling Qi said darkly.

Huang Da's expression fell, but he didn't stop smiling.

"As you say," he said. "Now, I took the liberty of writing down the location. Wouldn't want anyone overhearing us after all, and I suspect that you would not appreciate me leading you there." He pulled a crumpled scrap of paper from the pocket of his robe and held it out to her. Ling Qi took a few short steps closer, eyeing him warily as she took the note and glanced over it. It did indeed contain directions to a location deeper in the mountains.

It could be a trap, but she was too worried about her friend to not check up on the location. Ling Qi still despised him, but she thought that the obnoxious boy was probably sincere in his creepy, flirtatious way. She knew better than to let her guard down though; she had seen enough of guys like that to know that playing nice after the violence ended was just an attempt at manipulation. She scoffed under her breath. Like she would let herself fall for the simplest trick in the book.

Ling Qi found the place about an hour later after winding her way to a particularly maze-like ravine at the top of a rock slide that ended in a narrow crack in the mountainside. She had scouted it out, climbing the cliffs to get a better look and make sure it wasn't a trap, so she was reasonably confident when she approached the crevice and called out. Hopefully, the two girls hadn't left yet.

"Li Suyin?" Ling Qi called, coming to a stop a few meters from the cave entrance. "Su Ling? It's me, Ling Qi. Can I come in?"

Her voice echoed in the ravine. There was no response save for her own words calling back to her. Should she just go in anyway?

Then, she caught a sound from inside, the scuff of a shoe on stone, and she saw a shadow in the entrance. It soon resolved itself into Su Ling, peering warily out of the cave.

Su Ling didn't look great. Her gown and her skin were filthy and bloodstained, and her right hand was badly swollen, fingers wrapped with makeshift splints and bandages. Ling Qi was fairly certain the girl's fingers were broken. The only other obvious damage was a chunk of hair missing from the right side of Su Ling's head, making the vulpine girl's profile uneven.

Su Ling regarded Ling Qi tiredly, dark circles obvious under her eyes.

"Huh. It is you. Guess jackass decided to tell you where we were," Su Ling said without energy. She narrowed her eyes, studying Ling Qi, who was suddenly all too aware of her new garments; the new dress felt more out of place than ever. "You managed to come out on top if you can afford stuff like that."

"It's a pretty powerful talisman," Ling Qi murmured, feeling guilty and awkward. "After yesterday, I figured I'd need every advantage I can get." It sounded like a rationalization to her own ears.

"Tch. You won't hear me argue that," Su Ling replied gruffly, stiffly straightening up and spitting on the ground. "I guess you want to see Suyin, right? She's further inside."

Ling Qi nodded and stepped after the girl into the narrow 'room' beyond the entrance to the cave. "What happened?" she asked quietly.

"A bunch of girls decided they could use our stuff more than we could, and that we'd been too uppity," Su Ling growled. "Not much more to it. They busted down the door barely an hour after that stupid announcement. I had told Suyin that we should just camp out that night."

Ling Qi clenched her fists and looked down. She had been so worried about getting her stones and getting out and then later, cashing in her winnings. Some friend she had been.

"You were right." Ling Qi heard Li Suyin's voice before they rounded the corner into a larger chamber. "Trusting in civility was a mistake."

Her friend's voice sounded dull and tired, and when Ling Qi saw her, she understood why. Li Suyin was seated on a flat stone platform, her shoulders sagging. The whole right side of her face was still streaked with blood, and more was crusted in her unkempt blue hair. The shoulder of her gown was torn and hanging loose, exposing a new scar on her upper arm. What really drew her eye was the makeshift patch tied over her friend's right eye and the four jagged scars emerging from beneath it to cross her cheek and neck.

"Shit, Li Suyin." The girl's name escaped from her lips unbidden as Ling Qi stepped past Su Ling and into the small chamber, which contained a scattering of things: Li Suyin's writing case, looking cracked and battered but intact; a small stack of texts wrapped in beast hide; and some of Su Ling's hunting gear. Ling Qi fell to her knees in front of the seated girl, checking her over for further wounds.

"What the hell! No one is supposed to be crippling people," Ling Qi snarled angrily.

"It was my own fault. Or I'm sure that's what that girl would tell anyone," Li Suyin said bitterly. "I should have just held still while my friend was being kicked in the dirt."

"I coulda handled it. Wouldn't have been the first time I've been stomped on a bit," Su Ling said sullenly. "But you made the witch pay for it, didn't you," Su Ling added with a bit more cheer. "I even managed to light up the other two bitches' hairs before they ran off for their friends."

"Yes, I did," Li Suyin acknowledged absently, looking off into nothing. "I wonder how long it will take to fix that many burst veins…"

Ling Qi clenched her hands so hard that she could feel her nails biting into her palms.

"I'm sorry." The words escaped her lips before she could think about it. "I… I should have checked in on you guys. I'll talk to Bai Meizhen. I'll owe her, but I can ask her to pay for you to get your eye fixed and Su Ling's hand…" Ling Qi was babbling as sadness and fury warred for dominance in her heart.

"No," Li Suyin said sharply. "I will fix it myself. I broke through in my understanding of my technique so it's not impossible in the future. And it's not your fault. I am not a child you need to care for - and neither is Su Ling."

"Yeah, I got this covered," Su Ling grunted, waving her wrapped hand. "Suyin fixed up the rest and did a good job on this. I can sell some cores and get the healing finished up."

Ling Qi lowered her head, anger slowly winning out over her other emotions.

"Fine," she ground out. "I won't involve Bai Meizhen. But I still want to help you. You're my friend, Li Suyin. At least let me…" She suddenly recalled the talismans she had kept from the fight with Hong Lin and the twins. She had been intending to give them to Li Suyin and Su Ling. A thought brought the hairpin and the anklet talismans into her hands.

"I was going to give you these anyway. They're from my fights yesterday. I thought you two could use some talismans of your own. I wanted to thank you for helping me as much as you have so far."

The gifts felt kind of lame now, but as Ling Qi began to calm herself with a well-ingrained breathing exercise, she could admit that Li Suyin was right. While she might have been able to help, she wasn't responsible for the other girl. She still wanted to stick a knife in the gut of whoever had hurt Li Suyin so much.

For her part, Li Suyin looked conflicted as Ling Qi pressed the gift into her hands. "I - I don't really deserve this. It… Wouldn't it be better if you…"

"Just take it," Su Ling said gruffly from over Ling Qi's shoulders as she plucked the offered anklets, looking them over with a critical eye. "I'm done playing nice, and I can use whatever advantage I can get. ...Unless we're gonna all tie ourselves together and never go out alone, shit like this is gonna happen. I don't blame ya for not bein' around." She shrugged. "Still, thanks. You need help with something, let me know."

"I'll accept it then. Thank you, Ling Qi. It's lovely," Li Suyin relented as she toyed with the hairpin in her hands, staring at it intently with her uncovered eye. "Thank you very much for being my friend," she added, her voice trembling. "I don't think I could have stayed here after this if you hadn't…"

As her voice choked off, Ling Qi spotted Su Ling retreating from the cave looking intensely uncomfortable. She understood why when she felt Li Suyin's arms close around her shoulders and the girl's tears soak into her gown. Ling Qi stiffened awkwardly as her friend hugged her and cried, not really knowing what to do beyond patting Li Suyin comfortingly on the back.

Several awkward minutes passed that way until finally, Li Suyin's shoulders stopped shaking and her tears stopped flowing. Voice muffled by her face pressing against Ling Qi's chest, Li Suyin vowed, "I - I won't be weak anymore. I'm going to destroy that girl, Xu Jia, and her friends. I won't let them get away with this."

"I'll help as much as you want me to," Ling Qi replied quietly, rubbing a circle on the girl's back. She added the name to the list of people who were going to regret crossing her, but she would let Li Suyin have this if she wanted it; in the end, this was her grudge far more than Ling Qi's.

Chapter 44: Brewing Chaos 2

The three of them left the cave some time later when Li Suyin had cleaned up. They stopped first at the medicine hall for the supplies they could afford, then headed up to the vent. There, Bai Meizhen was meditating. She no longer wore the customized disciple's uniform she had previously worn. Instead, she wore a conservative snowy white gown with a deep blue sash and embroidered wave patterns along its hems.

Ling Qi spent less time on her own cultivation that day than she probably should have, but Li Suyin was determined to learn more unarmed fighting from her. Ling Qi taught Li Suyin the basics that Ling Qi had learned in Elder Zhou's class, and helped her work through the problems her wound caused.

Once Li Suyin had exhausted herself physically, Ling Qi entered a deep meditation, focusing on the qi cycling exercises detailed in her Argent Soul Art. She knew she was coming close to mastery. The penultimate level of the cultivation art was within her reach. Yet, for all that, the exercises were growing more difficult and complex.

Ling Qi found the argent qi soaking into her body growing more solid and complete, and her production of the potent energy growing quicker. On top of that, she soon felt her spiritual cultivation reach the same blocking point that her physical had. By the time the sun was falling, she felt like she was ready to attempt breakthrough to the Yellow realm. But before she could do that, she and Bai Meizhen needed to secure a new residence. She wanted to get her other friends a place to stay as well, but… It seemed Su Ling and Li Suyin intended to stay where they were. Su Ling was already planning ways to make anyone who approached the cavern uninvited regret it dearly. So with some reluctance, Ling Qi went her separate ways with them.

Which lead her to where she was now, walking alongside Bai Meizhen as the sun sunk below the horizon and re-entering the residential area. Ling Qi found herself glaring at other girls, wondering if one of the 'ladies' walking around in the streets had been among those who had hurt Li Suyin. It wasn't a productive thought so she sought something to talk about with her silent friend to take her mind off of it.

"So what should I know about what happened yesterday?" Ling Qi asked, turning to more immediate matters.

Bai Meizhen pursed her lips, glancing at Ling Qi as the other disciples parted before them.

"It did not involve you, but I suppose that man has made it your business when he chose to strike at you," she responded slowly and thoughtfully. "I am going to kill him, of course," she added as if she were merely commenting on the weather.

Ling Qi almost came up short, blinking rapidly.

"Are you sure you want to commit to something like that?" she asked. Even Li Suyin didn't want to kill her target as far as Ling Qi could tell. Murder as a response seemed… excessive.

Bai Meizhen regarded her silently until Ling Qi began to feel uncomfortable under her slit-pupiled gaze.

"It is not excessive at all. But do not be mistaken. I am in no hurry. A Bai must always have patience," she said serenely. Cui slithered out of the collar of her robe to coil loosely around her neck, once more shrunk to her tiny size. "As for yesterday's situation, what do you know of the inner provinces?"

"It's where the tax carts go after they hit our capital, and it's where the Imperial Court is." Ling Qi shrugged. "You know I don't exactly have much education about this kind of thing." It felt easier to admit ignorance to Bai Meizhen now.

Bai Meizhen arched an eyebrow.

"Quite," she replied dryly, ignoring the duel going on in the street to their left. "There are three 'core' provinces, which have no foreign border. My family's province, Thousand Lakes, is one; the Imperial homeland of Heavenly Peaks is the second; and the third is the Ebon Rivers province. That Huang fellow you have grumbled about is from a prominent family there."

Ling Qi's expression soured. She would put that one last on any hypothetical list of places to visit then. "Okay. So all of those people were from the other core provinces?"

"Yes. As you are no doubt aware, my family is not well liked for a number of reasons. Suffice to say, many look upon the rich fields and lakes of my homeland with greedy eyes, in addition to…" Bai Meizhen narrowed her eyes at a girl who had been slow to move out of their way. "... other reasons best not spoken in a public street.

"My presence here is actually a concession made by my clan in order to increase unity between the provinces." The sneer on her lips told what Bai Meizhen thought of that. "Obviously, the disciples from the scavenger clans around us have taken it as a chance to strike at us. I doubt my cousins are faring better in the sects that they have been sent to."

"I should avoid people from the inner provinces then," Ling Qi said simply, scratching her cheek. "Why are you so hostile to Sun Liling and she to you then? The Western Territories aren't core."

"Sun Shao is a large part of the reason these problems exist at all. This is not the appropriate venue for such a history lesson. Do you have a preference for what residence we seek out?" Meizhen deflected.

"One of the nicer homes, I think," Ling Qi replied, feeling a stab of loss at the memory of their first house. "I don't think staying humble is going to help. Not at this point with so many people after us. We should make a statement."

Bai Meizhen's lips quirked upward slightly, her expression almost warm as she nodded at Ling Qi's words. "Well said. While I have little use for frivolous luxuries, it seems that I must remind these scavengers of the truth of our positions," Bai Meizhen said. "I had intended to find something similar to our previous domicile, but perhaps this is better."

"How about a house near Gu Xiulan's home? She's a friend, and it can't hurt to have another ally close by, right?" Gu Xiulan lived in one of the houses in the second best tier, the ones with multiple rooms and full yards. The only nicer house was the mansion in the center occupied by Sun Liling.

"Gu… from the Golden Fields?" Bai Meizhen asked curiously. At Ling Qi's nod, she made a considering sound. "That is a good family, if one that has regressed somewhat into mercantilism. Acceptable. Do you know where she resides then?"

Ling Qi nodded again and took them down the street. Once they had reached the inner street, it was simply an issue of selecting a target. The acquisition didn't quite go down as she had imagined it would. In reality, Bai Meizhen simply had a very calm discussion with the current owners, who turned over the home in exchange for a pouch full of spirit stones for their inconvenience.

Even Ling Qi picked up on the unspoken threat of what would happen if the two girls they evicted didn't take the payment and clear out though. That aside, for all that the two girls left white-faced and trembling with their things packed on their backs, they didn't seem too upset. That had been a pretty large pouch. It seemed her concern that Bai Meizhen would do something excessive was unfounded.

This left the two of them to settle into the well-appointed home and allowed Ling Qi to finally retire to a proper meditation room. She had already told Li Suyin and Su Ling what she would be attempting back at the vent and had asked Bai Meizhen to convey her intentions to Gu Xiulan should she see her. With those final worries out of the way, Ling Qi had little to do but begin working on her breakthrough.

As Ling Qi meditated, turning her perception inward, her sense of time faded away. The little aches and pains leftover from yesterday's exertions slowly vanished. Even niggling things like hunger and thirst, reduced as they were, disappeared. All that existed was her spirit, embodied by the shining silver skinned orb that was her dantian, and the narrow branching channels that flowed from it. Blacks, blues, and soft, nearly translucent greens flowed through her being, mingling and separating in time with her heartbeat.

As Ling Qi cycled her qi, feeling it strain against the invisible barrier that prevented her from growing further, she contemplated her experiences as a cultivator so far. The initial wonder, what little there had been, had faded quickly. She had been thrust into a hostile environment, where she had many enemies and few friends. And yet, that number of friends was still more than she had before.

She was more free now, despite the restrictions that remained, than she had ever been on the streets. The shackles of base need had fallen away but had been replaced by new ones: the desperation for resources; and the driving need to grow stronger so that she would not be pushed around by her peers. The friends Ling Qi had made were a shackle in a way, if one she wore willingly. Her guilt about leaving Mother alone was another. Her thoughts churned on that.

She desired freedom, the ability to choose as she willed, and the ability to go where she wished, drifting on wind. Yet… there were limits to that. True, complete freedom was an impossible ideal and one that she could not truly decide whether she even wished to achieve. What would it really even mean? She couldn't really comprehend such an existence. For all that her spirit yearned for the endless open sky, the thought of abandoning the things that bound her to those around her was something she feared, but so was allowing them to truly bind her. Was this what the well spirit had referred to when it spoke of her broken wings and damaged roots?

Ling Qi breathed out as she contemplated these thoughts and began to cycle her qi and expand her dantian.

Ten cycles.

Twenty cycles.

Fifty.

One hundred.

Five hundred.

The strain she felt grew greater with each cycle, pain blossoming somewhere in the body she could barely feel. The contradiction in her own nature occupied her thoughts. Here in this state, she could think clearly in a way she could never manage while conscious, and she wondered if she could truly have both. Her Wings and her Roots. Freedom and Connections. Would trying to hold onto both hinder her Path?

Ling Qi did not know, but she wanted to try. Total freedom was a useless and empty thing. The sky was empty without any perch on which to land. She needed power to ensure that her wings could carry as much weight as she wished.

With the answer came a distant feeling of chains broken and spread wings. Her qi surged, and Ling Qi opened her eyes to a world that felt richer than ever before.

But thoughts in deeper meditation were as dreams to the waking mind. Only time would tell if her feet could continue to carry her on that Path.

Chapter 45-Second Realm

When Ling Qi emerged from her meditation, she found that three days had passed. She would never admit afterward that her first thought was the simple, overwhelming hunger that struck her. Bai Meizhen had congratulated Ling Qi on her breakthrough to Yellow Soul and then politely ignored the way Ling Qi had wolfed down every edible thing in the house. Despite the slightly vulgar start, Ling Qi could not help but feel that she had only taken her first real step on her Path of Cultivation.

Still, practically floating with excitement, Ling Qi could not help but want to visit her other friends and give them the good news. Gu Xiulan was closest, and Ling Qi was soon at her door.

"Can you believe it, Gu Xiulan? I did it! I had been worried I would be stuck for weeks trying to breakthrough, but I managed on my first try!" Ling Qi exclaimed happily. "Everything feels so much more now."

Gu Xiulan smiled up at her, but Ling Qi thought her expression seemed a little stiff.

"How wonderful for you," Gu Xiulan said brightly. "Do come in. You have gone and caught me by surprise, but I believe I have some sweets left from our last celebration."

Ling Qi couldn't help the feeling of elation that had her practically bouncing on her feet as she stepped past Gu Xiulan. When was the last time she had really felt so accomplished?

"Sorry about that," Ling Qi said, turning back to face her friend as the shorter girl eased the door shut. "Did Bai Meizhen get a chance to let you know what I was up to?"

Gu Xiulan's expression screwed up oddly.

"... She did. I admit, that was somewhat surprising. Bai Meizhen informed me that the two of you had taken the house three doors down?" Gu Xiulan asked.

"Our old one got wrecked in her duel with Sun Liling." Ling Qi frowned, peering around the open sitting room. "I guess I should have asked. Is your roommate around? I don't want to bother her."

"It is no bother," Gu Xiulan replied, seeming to recover her poise. "That girl spends little time here. Don't concern yourself over it."

"If you say so." Ling Qi thought it a little odd, but ultimately, it was Gu Xiulan's business. Ling Qi followed Gu Xiulan into the dining room. "How have you been holding up? Things have been a mess since the truce ended. I hope it dies down soon. If things keep going like they are now, the whole residential area is going to be wrecked."

"That is a concern," Gu Xiulan agreed as she led Ling Qi to the table. "I suspect the Cai heiress' call for a meeting between the more important parties may have something to do with that." As Ling Qi sat down, she continued on her way toward the pantry. "As for myself, I have had a few scuffles, but nothing worth speaking of."

Ling Qi let out a relieved sigh. Although she had partially broken through to the second realm in spirit, she really didn't want to have to jump into any major conflicts yet. At the same time, she wouldn't just let one of her friends be hurt.

That turned her thoughts to her other reason for coming here. She wasn't exactly sure how to bring it up though. Once Gu Xiulan returned with a few plates with rice cakes and sweets, Ling Qi allowed the topics to drift to lighter and simpler things, like ways Ling Qi could style her hair as it grew out and other such frivolities.

Eventually, conversation turned to Han Jian and the others, who were doing well. Han Jian and his cousin, Han Fang, had broken through to Silver Physique. In addition, Fan Yu had finally reached the peak in physical cultivation for Gold Physique.

From there, conversation turned to their own current cultivation goals.

"I will be ready to begin my breakthrough to Silver in two weeks at most, I think," Gu Xiulan mused, daintily nibbling at the edge of a rice cake. "Elder Zhou's lessons were helpful in that regard. After that, I think I shall seek out a spirit to bind."

"Your family isn't going to send you one?" Ling Qi asked, fiddling with her cup of well-watered plum wine. Perhaps it was her dearth of examples, but she had assumed most noble families kept to a theme.

"No, I'm afraid not. I shall have to find something to suit me. I should ask my Elder Sister where she found her own spirit. My storage ring and a few other gifts from Father should arrive by the end of the week though," Gu Xiulan said, sounding pleased. "He had only praise for my progress."

"I'm happy for you," Ling Qi said sincerely. "How will that work by the way?" Her question drew a questioning look from Gu Xiulan as she finished her cake. "Talking to your older sister, I mean," Ling Qi clarified. "I know you can use sect points to get lessons, but is there some restriction on travel? There are older disciples on the mountain but I don't think those are inner disciples?"

"Outer Disciples like the two of us require a pass to go to the Inner Peaks," Gu Xiulan explained easily, taking a sip of her own drink. "Inner Disciples are not allowed onto the Outer Peak except in special circumstances to avoid... undue suppression. If I meet with my sister Yanmei, it will have to be in town."

Ling Qi frowned briefly, staring into the rippling liquid in her cup. If she read between the lines correctly, that meant that once she left the Outer Sect mountain, she wouldn't necessarily be safe from meddling via Inner Disciple. It was something to remember.

"Well, that makes sense." Ling Qi sipped her drink and cast a considering eye over the array of sweets before selecting a pastry she didn't know the name of; it had some kind of delicious fruit paste filling though. "Do you have any advice on breaking through to Silver Physique?" Ling Qi asked absently.

A flicker of surprise crossed Gu Xiulan's expression.

"Oh? Are you approaching that point yourself?" she asked. "My, you are quick about things."

Ling Qi gave her a confused look.

"I reached the peak of Gold before the end of the truce. Didn't Han Jian or one of the others tell you?"

Her friend paused in the middle of raising her cup to her lips.

"No, I'm afraid it never came up," Gu Xiulan said faintly, something unidentifiable in her tone. Ling Qi shifted uncomfortably as Gu Xiulan studied her; the other girl's gaze was sharp and calculating, the way it had been when Ling Qi first met her. "You would be quite offended if I attempted to introduce you to one of my male cousins, wouldn't you?" she asked grumpily.

Ling Qi stared at her, thrown by the apparent non-sequitur.

"I don't see why I…" Ling Qi blinked and then frowned as understanding of what Gu Xiulan was implying reached her. "Oh. You mean… No, I don't want to get involved in anything like that." She shot the other girl a dirty look. "Why would you even ask?"

"Hmph," Gu Xiulan replied glumly. "I am quite cross that you do not even understand the extent of your good fortune. Rising rapidly through the first stage of cultivation is one thing. Even breaking through in one aspect after such a short time might be dismissed as luck. But both? That is rare talent. I suppose you did not notice the sudden number of girls chatting excitedly over that Ji Rong fellow after his dual breakthrough last week," she continued tartly. "Even at a slightly slower pace, you will likely need to fend off suitors with a stick once mention of your ability slips out in correspondence." Gu Xiulan seemed to grow more irritated as she spoke.

"I haven't actually broken through yet," Ling Qi pointed out, alarmed at the scenario Gu Xiulan painted. "I mean, it might take me a few more weeks or even a month or two."

Gu Xiulan laughed humorlessly, shaking her head.

"You really do not understand, do you?" she asked, the jealous anger fading from her tone. "Even if it took you another month, such breakthrough speed would be attention catching, if less so. To think I would be outshone by you so…"

Ling Qi felt more than a bit of worry at the way the other girl's hand tightened around her cup.

"Gu Xiulan," she began awkwardly. "It's not like I did it all on my own. Bai Meizhen has helped me, you and Han Jian have helped me, and so have Li Suyin and Su Ling. Do you think I would have made it into Elder Zhou's class without your help? I barely knew how to dodge an attack until you taught me."

"You were quite hopeless for all your fire," Gu Xiulan muttered, peering up at her with narrow eyes. "... My apologies. That was unsightly." Her dark expression seemed to clear as fast as the clouds of a summer rain shower. "I suppose I shall simply have to increase my efforts."

"Right. It never happened," Ling Qi agreed quickly. She knew Gu Xiulan's temper flared easily, and the last thing she wanted was to alienate one of her friends. "That actually leads in pretty well to the other thing I wanted to talk to you about."

"About breaking through?" Gu Xiulan asked. "It is different for every person. I would strongly suggest having several buckets of soapy water on hand before you begin though."

"Got it," Ling Qi said, recalling when she had reached mid gold and found herself covered head to toe in oily grime. "I actually wanted to talk to you about Li Suyin."

Gu Xiulan wrinkled her nose.

"That meek little creature? I do not understand what you see in her. She is a weight dragging you down," Gu Xiulan said hotly before the heat faded. "Or perhaps not, given your progress."

Ling Qi grimaced. She had suspected that Gu Xiulan's hostility was something like that, which made it harder to be angry at her. The other girl thought she was doing Ling Qi a favor by driving off 'hangers-on'. Well, Ling Qi also suspected a large part of it was simply possessive jealousy. "Can you give her another chance? I really think Li Suyin's going to do better; she had a… wake-up call at the end of the truce."

Gu Xiulan huffed, looking unconvinced. "Very well. I will trust your judgement in this." Ling Qi thought she was telling the truth. "In exchange, may I ask that you at least be polite in letting down any members of my family that Father sets to court you?" Gu Xiulan's voice turned back to teasing; the other girl's moods really were mercurial.

Ling Qi spluttered. "You aren't actually serious about that. I refuse to believe it. Anyway, let's stop messing around. I was hoping I could keep training with you and the others. Are you doing that today?"

"In the afternoons," Gu Xiulan answered, giving Ling Qi an amused look. "I doubt anyone will object. Even my Fan Yu is not foolish enough to deny that you deserve a place if you wish it."

Ling Qi spent much of the next few days in the company of Han Jian and the others, training and practicing combat skills in spars, as well as refining her use of Forgotten Vale Melody. She would then spend each evening with Gu Xiulan soaking in the bubbling qi of the mineral spring and chatting with the other girl. She spent some time playing her flute as well. She found it awkward to do so while bathing with Gu Xiulan, but it was relaxing and even serene. A good way to round out a day of hard training.

She idly wondered if Gu Xiulan would mind if she invited Bai Meizhen. The pale girl had been looking somewhat harried lately. A good soak would probably be good for her.

Ling Qi was sad about the growing distance between her and Han Jian. Han Jian was throwing himself into training more and more, and she suspected it was partially her fault. More and more, he seemed frustrated and angry with himself and his progress in cultivation. Han Jian still put in a show of good cheer, but Ling Qi couldn't miss the strain in his smile and the occasional looks of envy she caught him giving her. Despite that, her training with her other friend was still far more stressful.

"Li Suyin, we really should take a breather," Ling Qi sighed, having just swept Li Suyin's feet out from under her and knocking her to the ground.

"I can keep going," the blue-haired girl panted out, her face red from exertion as she struggled to rise back to her feet. Li Suyin had changed, having shorn her hair short so that it ended just below her ears and having acquired a proper, if plain, eye patch that covered much of the right side of her face with dark grey silk.

"But you shouldn't," Ling Qi said, crossing her arms. She cast a glance at Su Ling, who sat in quiet meditation with twin fires behind her head with a third struggling to form between them, and Bai Meizhen, whose surging qi sent a thrill of fear up her spine as the girl stood stock still, her shadow churning in a dark pool at her feet. "You have to cool down and meditate on your actions or your qi won't be able to imprint the experiences on your body properly. And that's ignoring that you'll just hurt yourself if you push too far all at once. You should know that."

Li Suyin looked down while trying to catch her breath. They had been sparring hard with pure unarmed combat for the last hour and a half, and although Ling Qi felt fine, she could tell that Li Suyin was on the edge of collapsing. Elder Zhou had always made sure disciples who reached that state sat down to meditate and dispersed their qi properly into their bones and muscles. He had said that doing so was how they were able to learn and master weapons so much more quickly than mortals.

"I'm sorry," Li Suyin said, shoulders slumping. "I've asked you to teach me, and here I am, acting as if I know better. How ungrateful of me."

Ling Qi grimaced, looking down herself. The other girl had been like this all week, swinging from determination to depression like a pendulum. Ling Qi wasn't sure what to do about it. Li Suyin was advancing quickly enough - she knew how to throw a punch, the basic tells necessary to dodge simple attacks, and even a few throws and counters - but Ling Qi was concerned about the girl's mental state.

"It's not a big deal," Ling Qi assured her friend. "Just remember that if you don't take care of yourself, all the training in the world won't help, alright?"

Li Suyin nodded, and to Ling Qi's relief, she sat down to rest and meditate.

"I think I might be able to decrease my recovery time with the next layer of my art mastered," Li Suyin murmured to herself as Ling Qi sat down across from her.

"That would be good," Ling Qi said, even if she wasn't certain whether something like that would be healthy in the long term. "How is your cultivation going anyway?"

"I think I should reach late gold within a few more weeks," Li Suyin replied as she calmed her breathing and closed her eyes. "I need to open a spine meridian though before I begin working toward the peaks. It's difficult to decipher, but I think grandfather's art contains more combative techniques… It's just so difficult to piece everything together."

Not for the first time, Ling Qi wondered at just what kind of art Li Suyin was using. It sounded more like several arts all mashed together to her. Maybe it was; who knew. It would make sense for a clan to have a whole tree of related arts, she supposed. Maybe what Li Suyin had inherited were all the fragments that were left?

"I'm sure you'll get it," Ling Qi replied confidently, which made Li Suyin smile just a little as she meditated.

Ling Qi needed to get her own cultivation in so she closed her eyes and focused on absorbing the qi-infused mist of the vent to strengthen her argent foundation. If she kept working at it, she would master the technique within the month and finally be able to learn just what the Eight Phase Ceremony cultivation art in the jade slip she received from Xin did.

Chapter 46-Restoring Order 1

The meeting Cai called took place near noon on the fourth day of the week and was the last thing Ling Qi intended to do before secluding herself for her breakthrough attempt to Silver Physique. As she and Bai Meizhen walked the path to the pavilion Cai Renxiang's message had indicated, she continued to pepper Bai Meizhen with questions, which the pale girl took in stride.

"Do you know what the test is for becoming an Inner Disciple?" Ling Qi asked. Elder Su had mentioned that there was a test, but she didn't really know what the test consisted of. Presumably the older disciples on this mountain were the ones who failed.

"A tournament," Bai Meizhen said evenly. "As is traditional. The top eight performers are accepted into the Inner Sect with their tournament placing determining their initial Inner Sect rank. There is also a production contest with similar rules."

"So sixteen people total," Ling Qi mused. It would almost certainly have to be the combat tournament for her. Even if she did find formations interesting, she doubted she would get good enough at them to become a top talisman crafter by the end of the year. "Is it just our year or…?"

"The older Outer Disciples may join either test, although typically those more than a year or two older than us have reached the plateau of their potential in the Sect," Bai Meizhen answered as they reached the top of the path. Ling Qi peered ahead, seeing perhaps a half-dozen people already present, but they were too far away for her to make out any features.

Ling Qi frowned; the entry of older Outer Sect disciples would make the competition stiffer.

"What would it mean?" Ling Qi asked, drawing a glance and a raised eyebrow from her companion. "For me, I mean," she clarified. "Since I have to serve in the army for eight years."

"A higher placing in the tournament may mean a higher and better starting position within the Sect's military branch," Bai Meizhen replied thoughtfully. "I would not assume too much however. While it is true that you must serve, it need not necessarily be with the Sect."

Ling Qi glanced curiously at Bai Meizhen, but there was no time for further questions because they had arrived at the perimeter of the pavilion. The building itself featured a wide stone platform with several steps carved into the sides. Thick wooden columns painted silver had been slotted into the corners to hold up a tiered and tiled roof overhead. The platform was well furnished, but it now centered on a set of four tables pushed together and surrounded by chairs.

At the head of the table sat Cai Renxiang, serious and severe as ever. Gan Guangli stood to her right, carefully pouring his lady a cup of tea.

Seated further down on the left was the crimson-haired Sun Liling, slouched with her elbow on the tabletop and her cheek in her hand. Lu Feng sat beside her in a still casual but less rude slouch wearing a bright red robe embroidered with gold thread. His sharp gaze swept over Ling Qi and Bai Meizhen, evaluating them before returning to the others.

Unfortunately, Kang Zihao was also present, sitting stiffly across from Sun Liling and regarding everyone else present with an aloof expression, his arms crossed over his chest. Two boys she didn't recognize flanked him.

Ling Qi was surprised to see Han Jian sitting at the far end of the table flanked by Han Fang and Gu Xiulan with Heijin asleep in his lap. He raised a hand in greeting as he caught her eye, and Gu Xiulan gave her a sharp-edged smile.

Other surprises were less pleasant. Huang Da was seated a short way down from Kang Zihao. For once, he wasn't paying her any mind. His usual grin was twisted into a glower at Ji Rong, who sat across from him. The scarred boy was idly polishing the thick iron plate of the cestus on his right hand with the sleeve of his left while staring down Huang Da.

She didn't recognize the last person present. He sat between Kang Zihao and Cai Renxiang, and at first glance, he seemed to be asleep. His arms were crossed over his broad chest and his face concealed under a wide brimmed conical hat painted with a tortoise shell pattern.

"Tch. Just like a Bai. Makin' everyone wait without a care in the world," Sun Liling drawled as the two of them approached the remaining empty seats.

"Our method is certainly superior to one which leads to rushing heedless into the jaws of ruin," Bai Meizhen said coolly. Bai Meizhen drew a few surprised looks when she pulled out a chair for herself. Ling Qi wondered if they were expecting her to do it.

"Is that so," the redhead said glibly. "Not seein' it, personally. Which one of us is a princess?"

Bai Meizhen gave her a look of condescending pity as she sat down, turning up her nose slightly as if to say that this conversation was beneath her. "A matter of debate. I suppose even barbarians enjoy pretensions of class in their huts of mud."

"And snakes like playin' at strength while hiding in their burrows," Sun Liling responded heatedly before glancing at Cai Renxiang, who had turned her attention to the two of them. "But this ain't the time for this grudge. S'pose I can give Miss Cai some face and leave it till later."

Ling Qi sat down carefully and quietly, doing her best not to draw any further attention to herself.

"Thank you, Princess Sun," Cai Renxiang said calmly as Gan Guangli took up a position looming behind her with his arms crossed over his muscular chest. "As worthwhile as it might be to witness such a battle, I do not wish for this meeting to devolve into a brawl."

"Lady Cai, might I interject before we begin?" Kang Zihao asked, dipping his head respectfully in her direction.

Cai Renxiang turned her severe gaze to him, staring him down for a full three count before inclining her head slightly. "You may. What is your objection, Kang Zihao?"

"Thank you, Lady Cai," he replied. Ling Qi might have even thought him sincere if she didn't know better. "While I can understand an exemption for that one as we all have our seconds" - he glanced pointedly at Ling Qi before directing his gaze to Ji Rong - "but what is that doing here?"

Ji Rong fixed Kang Zihao with an unimpressed look; he seemed much more confident than the last time Ling Qi had seen him. "You wanna have a go, pretty boy? If you're talking to me like that, then you know damn well that I killed a Mid Red Realm when I was a mortal. You really want to try your luck?"

Huang Da's expression grew more sour. "Do not brag as if it were some achievement, scum. Only luck saved your miserable hide."

"That so," Ji Rong said, cracking the knuckles on his uncovered hand. "The way I hear it, luck is just another kinda strength. The creepy fuck shoulda been more alert while he was going around playin' vampire."

"You…" Huang Da looked ready to lunge over the table at Ji Rong when Cai Renxiang rapped her knuckles once on the surface of the table.

"He has been invited because this is a matter of strength, as all things are." Her voice cut through the echoes of her thunderous knock. "I will not comment on whatever personal disputes you might have, but the criteria for an invitation was simple. If one reached the second realm, they were to be invited, provided they were not vassal to another," she announced evenly. "I am glad, in this instance, that you came regardless, Miss Ling. I had not been informed of your breakthrough."

Ling Qi froze as the girl's eyes turned to her, along with everyone else's. She fought down the urge to squirm under the attention, doing her best to imitate Gu Xiulan and Bai Meizhen by sitting as straight as she could and keeping her expression serene.

"It is no trouble," Ling Qi said distantly as her heart pounded in her ears.

"The Bai have sharp eyes at least," Sun Liling grumbled. "Can we get on with this then, Miss Cai? I gotta feed my spirit soon. She's getting testy."

Ling Qi eyed Sun Liling curiously. She didn't see any kind of spirit beast in the girl's presence. It must be hidden away.

"Of course, Princess Sun," Cai Renxiang said. "I have brought you together in order to discuss matters of the chaos unfolding around us. Property is being destroyed en masse, and banditry is becoming common. It is frankly unacceptable."

Ling Qi felt a stab of vindictive pleasure as she caught a scowl on Kang Zihao's normally serene face. "Is such not the will of the Elders?" he asked. "It is, after all, meant to winnow the chaff away."

"I agree. It does make things rather more exciting," Huang Da added, having apparently gotten a hold on his temper. To Ling Qi's eyes though, there was still an edge to his normal expression.

"Yeah, not gonna say I haven't enjoyed the time since the gloves have come off," Sun Liling added with a shrug. "Guessing you're not exactly complaining about that though."

No one else seemed inclined to speak up. Han Jian looked a bit uncomfortable just being at the table with the rest, Bai Meizhen seemed content to keep her peace, and the 'sleeping' boy had barely stirred.

"You are correct," Cai Renxiang replied. "I have no objection to tests of martial valor. However, some limit need be applied to the venue lest we find ourselves crouching amidst rubble by the year's end. Personally, I believe that this is yet another test to see if we disciples will allow ourselves to descend into barbarity if left unchecked."

"That does seem pretty accurate, I think," Han Jian spoke up lowly, glancing around the table. "Everything I've seen says the Sect takes a pretty hands-off approach, but they're paying attention to what we do with our freedom."

"The moon has eyes, and the clouds stand vigil. Even the mountain lives and breathes," an unfamiliar voice said slowly as if choosing his words carefully. Ling Qi followed the sound of the voice to see that the boy who had been 'asleep' had raised his head. She could see his somewhat blocky features now, but most disconcerting were his eyes. The whites were dark grey, almost black, and his irises were an odd grey-green shade. She could also see a few patches of dark green, nearly black, scales peeking out from under the neck of his robe. "We are judged."

"Exactly so, Sir Han, Sir Xuan," Cai Renxiang replied, setting her cup down soundlessly. "I propose that we impose a penalty on those who begin battles within the residential areas. It would be a fine of some significant sum of spirit stones or if need be, confinement for repeat offenders."

"Well, I'm not gonna apologize for my own actions." Sun Liling smirked challengingly at Cai Renxiang. "And I don't really think it's an issue. What d'you have to fear about camping? Not like the grass ann the trees are gonna eat you here."

"It is hardly anyone else's fault that you reside in a demon haunted jungle and have no standards," Bai Meizhen cut in. "I second this proposal. There has been far too much noise as of late."

Kang Zihao scowled before nodding. "That seems reasonable. Any who attempt to use such a ruling to hide from the winnowing will find their cultivation stunted regardless."

Ling Qi scowled as she caught Huang Da 'looking' in her direction. "Agreed. We all deserve to sleep peacefully," Huang Da said smugly.

Ugh. Was he watching her sleep at night? No, boys were still barred from the female residences and vice versa, but the idea was still unsettling.

"Who'da thunk that I'd find myself agreeing with a Huang?" Ji Rong drawled. "Sure. I guess you want us to smack around anyone who breaks the rules?"

"It would be best to give them a warning to cease first," Cai Renxiang said. "But yes. If need be, perpetrators are to be subdued." Her expression then grew cold. "However, should I find any of you abusing such privilege, I will see it as an assault upon my person."

Ling Qi relaxed a little as the conversation continued. It seemed that things were actually going to stay civilized. Cai Renxiang was focused on curbing the most obvious chaos first and foremost. Ling Qi thought that was to her credit, even if she was obviously angling to expand her authority and control from there. It was refreshingly honest, all things considered.

There was a lot of dickering over what exactly the punishments would entail and how they would be enforced. It was eventually decided that the initial fine would be thirty five spirit stones, doubling on each subsequent offense until the fourth when the perpetrator would find themselves confined for two weeks.

Confinement would be handled by the Xuan since formation barriers were apparently his focus. It was agreed that the actual fines would be in Cai Renxiang's care to avoid the temptation to abuse the authority being granted. The only other thing agreed to was that there would be another meeting in a month's time.

Until then, everyone at the meeting would have the authority to levy fines. It was a strange feeling, having potential authority over others.

However, Ling Qi didn't test whether that authority actually granted any respect. Instead, in the wake of the council meeting, she rushed home for one purpose. She needed to breakthrough to Silver Physique now more than ever with others' attentions on her as a cultivator herself, rather than an extension of her roommate.

Ling Qi sealed the door to the meditation room and began to cultivate.