The fire crackled in the silence of the camp. Ling Tianyi sat cross-legged on the ground, his back stiff and his sword resting across his lap. His eyes, sharp and cold as winter frost, stared into the flames. Despite the tranquil setting, his mind was anything but calm. The eerie presence of Zhi Yue, who lounged lazily nearby, grated against his nerves.
"You really should smile more, you know," Zhi Yue remarked suddenly, his voice dripping with amusement. He lay sprawled on a rock, one arm draped over his forehead like a languid aristocrat. "This brooding thing is bad for your health. Makes you look like you're a hundred years old. Oh, wait—aren't you actually ancient?"
Tianyi didn't respond, his gaze unwavering as he poked the fire with a stick.
"Nothing? Not even a witty comeback?" Zhi Yue continued, rolling onto his side to face him. "I thought you immortals were supposed to be clever. Or is your tongue as frozen as the rest of you?"
Tianyi finally spoke, his tone sharp and cold. "If you have nothing useful to say, stay quiet."
Zhi Yue gasped theatrically, clutching at his chest as if wounded. "Oh, the frostbitten prince speaks! What an honor! Truly, I'm humbled to be in the presence of such eloquence." He tilted his head, a wicked grin playing on his lips. "But tell me, Ice Block, how do you plan to survive this realm with that charming personality of yours? Intimidating mortals with silence?"
Tianyi set the stick down, his patience wearing thin. "Unlike you, I don't need theatrics to prove my worth."
"Worth?" Zhi Yue snorted, sitting up. "Darling, your 'worth' plummeted the moment you fell from the Celestial Realm. Now you're just a man wandering around with half a memory and no sense of humor. It's tragic, really."
Tianyi's grip tightened on his sword. "You talk too much for someone who has yet to explain why they're following me."
Zhi Yue shrugged nonchalantly. "Following you? I'm guiding you, Ice Block. Big difference. Without me, you'd have walked straight into a den of hungry ghouls by now. Do you even know how to navigate the Mortal Realm, or were you planning to stumble around until something ate you?"
Tianyi's eyes narrowed, but before he could respond, a sudden rustling in the bushes drew both their attention. He rose to his feet in one fluid motion, his sword ready despite its damaged state.
"Finally!" Zhi Yue exclaimed, clapping his hands. "Something interesting. Let's hope it's not just another squirrel."
Out of the shadows stepped a man clad in black, his face obscured by a hood. His movements were deliberate, his presence radiating a sinister energy that made Tianyi's skin crawl.
"You're Ling Tianyi," the man said, his voice cold and flat. "The fallen immortal."
Tianyi didn't flinch. "And you are?"
"Someone sent to finish what the heavens started," the man replied, drawing a curved blade that gleamed in the firelight.
Zhi Yue let out a low whistle, clearly unimpressed. "Oh, how original. Another celestial lapdog with a grudge. Honestly, don't they have anything better to do? Like knitting clouds or counting stars?"
The assassin ignored him, focusing solely on Tianyi. "Your existence is a stain on the heavens. Prepare to be cleansed."
"Cleansed?" Zhi Yue repeated, his grin widening. "What are you, a celestial janitor?"
Tianyi stepped forward, his sword held steady. "Leave, and you might live."
The assassin scoffed. "You're hardly in a position to make threats, fallen one." He lunged forward, his blade slicing through the air with deadly precision.
Tianyi met the attack head-on, parrying with his broken sword. The clash of steel rang out, echoing through the forest. The force of the blow sent a jolt up his arm, but he held his ground.
"Not bad for someone half-dead," Zhi Yue commented, lounging against a tree as if watching a casual sparring match. "But maybe try aiming for the other guy next time?"
Tianyi didn't bother responding. The assassin was fast—too fast for a mortal. Each strike came with a ferocity that tested the limits of his strength. Despite his weakened state, Tianyi moved with the grace of a seasoned warrior, his movements precise and calculated.
"He's going to wear you down, Ice Block," Zhi Yue called out, yawning dramatically. "Want me to step in and save you, or are you enjoying the workout?"
Tianyi gritted his teeth, ignoring the demon's taunts. He sidestepped another strike, using the momentum to slash at the assassin's arm. The blade cut through fabric but barely grazed the skin.
"Pathetic," the assassin sneered, retaliating with a spinning strike that Tianyi barely avoided.
Zhi Yue sighed, finally stepping forward. "Alright, enough of this. Watching you struggle is fun, but I'm getting bored."
With a flick of his wrist, Zhi Yue vanished, reappearing behind the assassin in the blink of an eye. The man had no time to react before Zhi Yue delivered a swift kick to his back, sending him sprawling to the ground.
"And that's how you do it," Zhi Yue said smugly, dusting off his hands.
The assassin scrambled to his feet, his eyes wide with disbelief. "What are you?"
"Your worst nightmare," Zhi Yue replied cheerfully. Then, without warning, he reached out, his hand crackling with dark energy. The assassin let out a choked gasp as he was lifted off the ground, suspended by an invisible force.
Tianyi watched in silence, his grip on his sword tightening.
"Relax, Ice Block," Zhi Yue said over his shoulder. "I'm just teaching him some manners." He turned back to the assassin, his voice dropping to a deadly whisper. "Go back to your masters and tell them this: if they want him, they'll have to go through me. And trust me, they don't want that."
With a flick of his wrist, Zhi Yue sent the assassin flying into the trees. The man hit the ground with a groan, then scrambled to his feet and disappeared into the shadows.
"Was that necessary?" Tianyi asked, his tone clipped.
Zhi Yue smirked. "Necessary? No. Satisfying? Absolutely."
Tianyi sheathed his sword, turning back toward the fire. "You're reckless."
"And you're no fun," Zhi Yue shot back, plopping down beside him. "Seriously, Ice Block, what's it going to take to melt that frosty exterior of yours? A bonfire? A volcano? A kiss?"
Tianyi's glare could have frozen the flames. "Stop talking."
Zhi Yue laughed, the sound echoing through the night. "Oh, Ice Block. If I didn't find you so amusing, I'd have left you to rot days ago."
Tianyi didn't respond, staring into the fire once more. Despite Zhi Yue's infuriating behavior, he couldn't deny that the demon had saved his life. And while he didn't trust him, a part of him—however small—was starting to wonder if Zhi Yue's presence was less a curse and more a strange, twisted blessing.