The crowd outside fell to their knees with a rustle; I followed suit, bowing my head. Lu Lingfeng arrived a moment later and, with visible reluctance, knelt as well.
In a hurried glance, I saw two eunuchs standing behind the Emperor. One was Master Feng, and the other appeared to be in his sixties—quite young for a man of his standing. He was broad-shouldered and stout, with a face that looked so honest it almost bordered on simple-mindedness. This was Hu Bichang, the Chief Scribe Eunuch. Despite his guileless appearance, he was a man of profound cunning and sinister intellect. Though he ranked below Feng Zhen, Master Feng often had to grant him a significant amount of deference in many affairs.
Beside Eunuch Hu stood the Crown Prince, with Eunuch Cui Rongyuan waiting at his side. The imperial consorts did not show their faces, yet I could sense the presence of the Empress and the Noble Consort within the tent. A cluster of palace maids held their breath, ears strained to catch the movements outside.
"Liu Qi, Wang Yi, dispatch five hundred provincial troops and five hundred Wude Guards to assist Yingzhao Temple in suppressing the chaos. Hou Yi, take my Jiange Order and command the Wujing Sect to seize the demon spirit." The Emperor issued his commands with clinical efficiency. He cast a cool glance at Feng Zhen and Hou Yi. "As for the failure of your intelligence, you shall first redeem yourselves through service. A thorough investigation will follow."
Master Feng painfully lowered his knees, bowing low to the ground. "I thank Your Majesty for your mercy and protection." Hou Yi respectfully received the Jiange Order tossed to him by the Emperor, prostrating himself as he voiced his assent. Legend had it that the Jiange—the Sword Pavilion—was the resting place for the dharma treasures used by Ni Tian and other ancestral masters of the Wujing Sect after their passing. The Sect and the Imperial Family each held half of the authority over it. Once invoked, it represented the combined might of the court and the sect, just as it had been before the founding of the dynasty.
The Emperor turned his head and beckoned to the Crown Prince. "Huan’er, you shall be the commander."
Though he said this, the actual decisions would naturally be made by the generals and Hou Yi; the Emperor simply intended for the Crown Prince to observe the situation firsthand. The boy’s small face flushed with excitement, yet he remained solemn and disciplined, maintaining perfect etiquette as he knelt and kowtowed. "Your son obeys the command!"
The group rustled back into the tent. I hadn't expected our Son of Heaven to be a man of such swift action.
Only Grandpa Feng remained. He stood before the tent flaps, which whipped loudly in the wind, huddled deep within his fur-lined cloak with his hands tucked into his sleeves. Beneath his aged, drooping eyelids, those eyes—still clear and bright—cast a gaze of deep concern toward me. Everything he wanted to say was written in that look.
I gave him a grateful glance before hurrying after Brother Hou.
We boarded an imperial flying vessel, traveling with the speed of wind and lightning. The grand procession soon returned to the East Market battlefield. While we were still several miles away, the dazzling glare of fire was already visible. It wasn't just the Tenfold Pavilion; the entire surrounding district seemed to be ablaze. Daoist Lu had manifested his giant form—a technique only possible after reaching the mid-stage of the Canxia Realm—and was currently locked in combat with Xian Su, whose own stature had increased by dozens of feet. They were enveloped beneath the fiery glow of the Tai-chi Subduing Array. Spells shot back and forth within the formation, red light flickering in dense, intricate patterns. Xian Su’s waves of black baleful energy seemed inexhaustible, yet Daoist Lu showed no signs of flagging. He swung his Demon-Slaying Staff with dizzying grace, surrounded by circling, crystalline blue stars—the manifestation of his innate evil-suppressing cultivation.
My heart constricted; I was almost too afraid to look. I feared not seeing her, yet I feared even more seeing her covered in wounds...
Fortunately, once we fully entered the East Market, I spotted her immediately atop the Tenfold Pavilion, focused entirely on manipulating the great array. The formation had reached the scale of the Zhaixing Realm; it must have been Daoist Lu’s handiwork, as she couldn't have laid it herself. She was likely barely managing to control the attacks through the array's core.
Xun Zhenren and Xiang Tai were nowhere to be seen. Jiang Xiaying had been placed within a barrier by Xian Su, protected a short distance away. The Demon Lute was no longer in her hands; Xian Su must have reclaimed it.
Hou Yi leapt to the prow of the ship, holding the Jiange Order high. Infusing his voice with a transmission technique, he roared, "By imperial decree, I request the Perfected Masters of the Wujing Sect to seize the demon spirit Xian Su!"
The seal, crafted from a material that was neither metal nor stone, erupted with brilliant light. Suddenly, the silhouettes of five Perfected Masters appeared in the sky. It turned out they had arrived long ago, merely waiting for the imperial sanction.
The leading Master flicked his horsetail whisk and pinched a hand seal. Hundreds of golden chains composed of runes erupted around Xian Su—the Wujing Sect’s Demon-Locking Array! The demon kings imprisoned in the Decree Prisons for centuries had fallen to this very formation.
Xian Su sent Daoist Lu flying with a palm strike, her sleeves billowing with surging black mist. She laughed aloud, utterly fearless. Spreading her slender fingers, she reached out and grabbed a handful of the runic chains, bunching them together in her palm as if she intended to snap them by sheer brute force!
The black mist and golden light collided directly, producing a bone-chilling grinding sound. If one listened closely, the air was filled with the wailing of vengeful ghosts, a sound that grew steadily louder...
Since entering the East Market, the Crown Prince had abandoned the imperial decorum he had maintained so well. He clung to the ship’s railing, peering down anxiously. Even he knew that his "Teacher Wei" was likely here. At this moment, the little man was so nervous he nearly forgot to breathe, clutching Hou Yi’s sleeve and pointing at Xian Su, too frantic to speak.
Hou Yi politely pulled his sleeve away and consoled him, "Your Highness, do not fret."
The moment he spoke, the Tenfold Pavilion’s array suddenly activated again. This time, even I could see it was no longer the weak spell Xian Su had brushed aside before; this attack was a genuine immortal technique of the Baoyue Realm!
The instant the red light pierced Xian Su’s body, the five Masters raised their hands simultaneously. Five magnificent, majestic golden chains appeared in the sky, snaking in like lightning from the four cardinal directions. They pinned Xian Su’s limbs and finally delivered a heart-piercing lock!
This was no runic locking array; it was one of the Wujing Sect’s supreme treasures: the God-Torturing Shackles.
In extreme agony, Xian Su let out a shrill, terrifying ghostly shriek. She struggled violently, but she could not break free. The black baleful energy bled from her body incessantly, turning into handfuls of sand-like ash that drifted down from the sky. It fell upon our heads and shoulders, as if it might keep falling forever, until the very end of the earth.
If one listened carefully, one could hear names from the demon tongue amidst those wails. She was instinctively calling out for Ming Yu, calling for her friends who were also among the Ten Great Demon Artifacts. But they were all gone. No one could come to save her.
The world they had dominated a thousand years ago, where they had lived with such wanton abandon, had long since vanished.
Even her current self was nothing more than an existence that shouldn't exist.
Jiang Xiaying, however, was not captured. Using some unknown technique, she had taken the opportunity to flee the moment the five Canxia Masters appeared.
Daoist Lu’s giant form shattered under Xian Su’s final palm strike. He reverted to his original body and crashed through the roof of a shop. He scrambled up, spitting out blood with a series of unrefined curses, then chuckled slyly. "When it comes to backstabbing, that kid really is..."
Before he could finish, Zheng Zhenren dealt him another palm strike, forcing him into a deep sleep to receive treatment...
I didn't wait for the ship to dock before vaulting over the railing and dropping toward her. Official Wei had been maintaining both the Tai-chi Subduing Array and the Tenfold Pavilion’s formation; the mental drain was too immense. She could no longer stand and sat slumped against the railing. The ground around her was littered with shattered tiles and debris, as if she were sitting in the middle of a ruin. Her face and body were covered in wounds from the collateral damage of the two "immortals" fighting—a web of bloody streaks that seemed to wrap around her entire being.
She tried to raise her arms to hug me, but she didn't have a shred of strength left. I couldn't describe the emotions in my heart; I simply pulled her into a tight embrace, laughing through my tears.
"Official Wei..." I whispered in her ear, forcing a smile. "You've worked hard."
But she wasn't listening anymore; she had fallen into a heavy, unconscious sleep.
Sensing Zheng Zhenren nearby, I flushed and released the blood-stained woman, allowing him to perform his healing arts. As he applied the treatment, he turned his head and said calmly, "I must seal her meridians and true essence for half a month. Do you agree?"
Though the content of his words left no room for refusal, the fact that a Canxia Master asked so politely made me feel deeply respected. I nodded hurriedly. "I defer to your judgment, Master. You have my eternal gratitude."
Muyu and the others hurried out from the house, clutching their skirts, and peered into the carriage at the sleeping Wei Qingming. "She only went out for a flute lesson, and then such a disaster happens!" Muyu grumbled, stamping her foot in a rare display of her true feelings. "Master Lu and Chief Nie left the city today..." With the Fifth Sister and Fourth Brother gone for several days as well, there was no one at home to take charge.
"Big Brother has a life beyond just watching over us siblings," I said, patting her hand to soothe her. I knew she didn't mean to blame him; she was just frightened and frantic. Even Nie Xiaoyan was shocked by the severity of Wei's injuries and remained uncharacteristically silent.
Official Wei finally slept through the entire night. The aftermath was left to Hou Yi and Chu Jiangheng, allowing her a day of leisure at home.
The moment she woke up, she discovered her true essence was sealed again, but she wasn't surprised at all. When I told her it would be for half a month, she even let out a couple of chuckles. Clearly, it was shorter than she had expected.
"Laugh, go ahead and laugh!" I glared at her, feigning anger. "If I’d known, I would have asked Zheng Zhenren to increase your sentence!"
She coughed and suppressed her smile, answering with a frown, "Ah-Zhi doesn't know. While Zheng Zhenren’s healing is effective, the experience is the most painful in the Hall of Eternal Spring."
I grew nervous, leaning over her to check. "Where? Where does it hurt?"
"The meridians throughout my body," she said tonelessly. "It feels like ten thousand ants eating my heart."
I let out a loud, exaggerated wail. "Thank goodness it's only for half a month!"
She couldn't help herself and began to laugh through her coughing. I realized I’d been teased again. I didn't dare hit her, so I pulled back my half-extended hand and put them on my hips. "Just how much does it hurt? Do you dare lie to me?"
"I wouldn't dare," she answered seriously. "It’s a bit sore and numb, nothing serious."
"Is that the truth?"
"The truth." Official Wei smiled leisurely. "However, as for the treatment the Daoist is receiving... it is likely not far from the feeling of ten thousand ants eating one's heart."
After only half a day of peace, Daoist Lu indeed came limping to our door, groaning and wailing. To my ears, his cries sounded quite robust, and his knocking was far from weak—hardly the behavior of a patient with sealed meridians. Of course, even if these Canxia Masters couldn't use spells for a time, their physical strength was still formidable.
"Kid Wei! Come quickly and bow to your savior, Grandpa Lu!"
Wei Qingming stood on the third floor of the Chunluan Tower, the highest point of our home. She gave him a cold look, turned, and swept away without the slightest intention of thanking her "savior." I had no choice but to open the door in my capacity as the mistress of the house, smiling as I invited the old Daoist inside.
Daoist Lu spent the entire afternoon and evening feasting at our house, keeping Auntie Zhong and Muyu busy to the point of exhaustion. He nearly polished off half of the New Year's provisions stored in our warehouse. During the meal, Wei Qingming pulled out the jade talisman representing the Daoist’s "indentured service" and said coolly, "The common folk all know that to get Daoist Lu’s help, one only needs a good meal. Since you’ve eaten mine, this time doesn't count as a use of the talisman."
"Hey, hey!" Old Lu got anxious. "You can't say that! I nearly lost my life! If I’d known the favor you wanted was *that*, I never would have come!"
Little Wei ignored him entirely and tossed the talisman into his lap. "Restore the contract to three uses."
"Fine, fine." Old Lu sighed heavily. He dropped the half-gnawed braised beef tendon, wiped his hands on his clothes, and picked up the talisman.
He held the jade and struck a pose to cast a spell. After straining for a long moment with no result, he slapped his forehead. "Old Zheng sealed me up!"
In the awkward silence that followed, he let out a great laugh and tried to clap Little Wei on the shoulder, his large eyes squinting. "Don't pretend. I know you're sealed too."
Little Wei coldly and nimbly dodged, refusing to let his greasy hand touch her...
After a long bout of bickering, the two "patients" nearly jumped up to have a fight with their chopsticks. Finally, through Su Zhenzhen’s mediation, they reached an agreement: this incident would count as half a use. In the future, if Little Wei had a task involving sightseeing and good food, Old Lu would be at her beck and call once without consuming a charge of the talisman.
***
| Chinese | English | Notes/Explanation |
| :--- | :--- | :--- |
| 胡必昌 | Hu Bichang | The Chief Scribe Eunuch (Bingbi Taijian). |
| 秉笔太监 | Chief Scribe Eunuch | A high-ranking eunuch position in the imperial court. |
| 崔荣元 | Cui Rongyuan | A eunuch serving the Crown Prince. |
| 剑阁令 | Jiange Order | An imperial/sect command token representing the Sword Pavilion. |
| 焕儿 | Huan’er | The childhood name/nickname of the Crown Prince. |
| 刑神枷 | God-Torturing Shackles | A powerful artifact used by the Wujing Sect to restrain powerful beings. |
| 万蚁噬心 | Ten Thousand Ants Eating the Heart | An idiom for excruciating pain; used here to describe the healing process. |
| 春峦楼 | Chunluan Tower | "Spring Peaks Tower," a building in the narrator's household. |
| 钟姨 | Auntie Zhong | A domestic worker/elder in the narrator's household. |
| 苏真真 | Su Zhenzhen | A character (likely a physician or associate) who mediates the bickering. |
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