"The Jinxing Mages are here!"
Mingyu heard a woman say, and he turned to see a group of men in blue robes. Leading them at the front, was a young man in green robes.
Mingyu's eyes were fixed on the young man in green, and his facial expressions softened in recognition.
Their eyes met for a brief moment, but Mingyu quickly looked away, waiting for the group to pass by completely before sneaking another glance at the man. His gaze followed the green-robed figure as he disappeared into the distance.
Mingyu's mind then wandered far off to a distant memory.
Mingyu was in his teens at the time, and he was sitting on the branch of a tree, playing a flute, but he wasn't alone. A boy in green robes who was of the same age range as him, was seated beside him, and he was smiling brightly as he watched Mingyu play the flute.
"How long has it been, Feng Zhenyu?" Mingyu muttered, sadness evident in his voice. He must have seen my dead body by now, and I'm sure he didn't recognize me… the flute, as well.
….
Deep within the forest, far from the bustling central city of Huayang, a secret hideout concealed two figures. One man wore regal purple robes, while the other was shrouded in a black cloak, its hood casting a shadow over his face. Together, they stood before the ominous entrance of a dark and eerie cave.
"Yewang [1]. There is no sign of Mingyu anywhere." The man wearing the purple robes reported to the other. "I think he failed to transfer his soul into another body, if not, he would have returned by now."
"Even if he succeeded, he is most likely hiding himself due to one problem or the other." The cloaked man said in response, with a calm voice.
In the blink of an eye, that calm voice turned into something sinister and dark. "An assassin with a revealed identity is as good as being useless, and therefore, should be discarded. We will have to retrieve his body and sword, as well as, getting rid of everything that has to do with him."
Silence reigned for a few seconds before the other man spoke, "What happens if he is still alive?"
The cloaked man chuckled darkly, "He will eventually be killed for being a transmigrator, and if that doesn't happen, his soul would still eventually clash with his new body, leading to his demise… Ah, it's such a shame." He sighed while shaking his head, "I trained him to be the best assassin there ever was."
….
"Achoo!" Mingyu sneezed loudly for the umpteenth time. "Who the hell is talking about me?" He grumbled to himself as he glared at the merchant who had been keeping him waiting for a while.
Left with no choice, after spending all the money he found in Jiang Yichen's pouch, Mingyu decided to sell the Jade pendant the crazy youngster had kindly, but suspiciously blessed him with.
The merchant kept observing the Jade pendant for an annoyingly long time without naming his price.
"How much longer do you need?" Mingyu asked, feeling his patience wear thin by the second.
The merchant's eyes didn't even leave the pendant as he replied, "It is an expensive item, so I need to take a closer look."
Mingyu let out an heavy leadened sigh, rolling his eyes in annoyance. "I won't ask for too much. Just pick a price, and pay me."
The merchant's eyes darted towards the entrance of his shop, and he suddenly stood up, pointing a finger at Mingyu. "He's over here! Get him!" The merchant suddenly yelled, and before Mingyu could react, three hefty men already barged into the shop, seizing him by the hands.
"What's going on?" Mingyu asked in confusion.
"Take him away!" The merchant yelled, not bothering to answer Mingyu's question.
Mingyu instinctively yanked his right hand free from one of the men's grasp, and without thinking, he sank his teeth deep into the hand of the other man holding his left hand.
The man screamed in agony, and in a reflexive response, he struck Mingyu with a powerful blow to the back of his neck, knocking him unconscious.
….
Mingyu's eyes slowly fluttered open, and he sat up, stretching his arms and yawning like he just had a really good nap.
Hold on a sec. Mingyu thought as he remembered what happened at the merchant's shop, and his eyes took in the sight of his new environment.
He was in a really small room, and he had been laid on a comfortable blanket. Was I abducted by those men? Did they take me to Jinxing? His face grew pale at the thought of being in Jinxing.
The door was suddenly flung open, startling Mingyu a bit, as a woman stood by the entrance, holding a black robe in her arms.
"Are you awake?" She asked, eying him.
"Who are you? Where am I, and who brought me here?" Mingyu asked in return, eying her as well.
The woman came into the room, and took her time to shut the door behind her, before she faced him once more to answer his question. "I'm Madam Wang, and this is the abode of Master Jiang Renxing, the head of the Huo sect."
"Jiang Renxing?" Mingyu muttered the familiar name, confused as to why he was brought here of all places.
The woman moved closer to him and bent down next to where he was sitting, her face uncomfortably close to his. "I wonder why young master brought you to our home."
"Young master?" Mingyu repeated in confusion.
"That's right. Young Master Jiang Yichen paid money to the owner of the Golden Lotus, and brought you here from the brothel. I also heard you stole his Jade pendant." She explained.
Mingyu's eyes widened in realization, mixed with shock. He was earlier still confused by the woman's explanation, but as soon as she made mention of the Jade pendant, he immediately understood what was going on.
So that crazy guy at the brothel was Jiang Renxing's son? But why would he bring me here?
The woman continued to ramble on, "I was a bit worried when he said he would be bringing a stranger home, but when I saw you, I was put at ease. Jiang Yichen isn't into men."
"Here." She said as she dropped the robe she had brought in, on Mingyu's lap, "Get changed immediately."
Mingyu eyed the black robes that seemed like a uniform. "What's this?"
"That's your uniform as the young master's manservant." She said, before scoffing, "Don't tell me you thought he paid that huge sum of money, just to bring you to his home as some kind of guest."
"Also from now on, you will address me with respect!" Her voice suddenly went up, shocking Mingyu with her abrupt switch in tone, "Young master Jiang gets tired very easily, so you had better do anything he asks at the quickest pace. And you MUST always put a smile on your face, no matter what he says… Where's my answer?"
Mingyu had never felt intimidated by anyone before, perhaps with the exception of his master – the Yewang, whose face remained a mystery to him. Yet, this woman exuded an undeniable air of authority, one that could effortlessly reduce anyone to feeling small and insignificant in her presence. "Yes, ma'am," he replied, before he even realized it.
Then, just like a switch being turned on, a smile appeared on Madam Wang's face as she stood up to take her leave. "He wants to see you as soon as possible, so quickly get changed and go see him."
She opened the door, and paused to look at Mingyu once again, "Where is my answer?"
Mingyu gritted his teeth in annoyance, but nevertheless, he still grumbled his reply, "Yes… ma'am."
—————-
A/N: [1] Yewang is Chinese for Night King. It is the title Mingyu's master goes by.