Chapter 71

  The Tales Woven (I)

  "Uh... what happened?"

  Light's first words shook me up a bit too, as, well, I didn't really have an answer either. What did happen? She flew up and out to the center, ate up a bunch of rather painful reminders of my past life, reversed her 80,000-year-old curse into a boon, and now she was awake, asking what happened.

  "Do you feel any different?" I asked.

  "No, I don't think so."

  "Try circulating Qi."

  "... ah!" She briefly closed her eyes and exclaimed quickly after, her expression tightening into a rather odd one. It was as though she was suppressing excitement and horror all at once.

  "Don't mention it to anyone," I warned. "When Elder Qin asks, just say that when you tried cultivating, your mind was five times clearer than before."

  "A-ah, okay," she nodded somewhat hesitatingly.

  "Come on, let's go." She grabbed my finger yet again as I pulled her up and led her outside.

  Right at the edge, I glanced back one last time at the place, bidding farewell to it as I simply wasn't coming back, no matter what. Were it not for Light, I'm afraid those memories... might have caused some damage.

  As the two of us emerged, we first noticed the panicked Elder Qin pacing back and forth right on the opposite side of the bridge. Just as we saw him, he also saw us, and his rather worried expression alighted, and an aged, weathered smile came up.

  "Is everything alright, you two?" he asked us as soon as we crossed the bridge.

  "Everything is fine. How long have we been inside?" I queried.

  "Almost an hour..."

  "Wow." It didn't really feel like an hour, but then again... what the hell even is time?

  "So, you really are alright?"

  "Yeah," I nodded, smiling as well. "Don't worry; neither of us has gone mad. I mostly just observed while our precious little one here underwent a bit of a Nirvana."

  "..." Though he seemed tempted to ask, he paused and stopped himself. I really did want to spill my guts out and tell him everything, but... couldn't. No matter how much I trusted him, there was the pre-written 'arrangement', almost, that we'd soon part ways. "Very well. All is good if you two are alright. Come on; let's go back. It's time for the sect to wake up."

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  He led us out through the same tunnel we came in, though at a more accelerated pace. At some point I even had to pick Light up as she was unable to keep up. We went our separate ways as soon as we emerged at the valley, with him pulling me to the side and offering a single sentence of advice: "Tell no one, even unto death."

  Well, that wasn't ominous, not at all.

  As we watched him leave, Light grabbed my finger yet again and squeezed against my leg, her eyes worriedly looking at the fading figure of the old man. I sighed and pulled her with me up the mountain, returning right as the morning bell hawked throughout the sect.

  Halfway up the mountain, I had to pull the girl up to my shoulder, where she promptly fell asleep and was still far off in dreamland even throughout the ringing of the bell.

  I gently carried her over to the bed under the questioning gazes of Dai Xiu and Hua before walking back to my home, going upstairs into my bedroom, opening it, and bearing witness to something that caused my heart to nearly leap out of my chest.

  Long Tao was sitting on the corner of my bed, reading something--nothing strange so far, sure--while one of his feet was pinned against the throat of a man lying prone on the ground, squirming violently, purple in the face.

  ... Hey, wait a second--I know that guy! It's that spy elder that I identified, what was his name? Uhh.. Zhu, Zha--no, Jiang Dong!

  "Welcome back, Master," Long Tao said rather disinterestedly. "I trust you had a good excursion to the ancient little alcove."

  "Yeah. We sang, we danced, and we had a great deal of fun--could you please give context to, well, all of this?"

  "This guy's a spy."

  "... yes, I know. It was me who told you about him!"

  "Well, last night I was feeling a bit bored, so I went out to check on them. Stumbled upon this guy doing something shady, followed him, and watched him get a message through a Firebird from his sect."A Firebird? What the hell's a Firebird? "A bird made out of fire."

  "... huh. Okay. So, why bring him to my bedroom?"

  "I thought you'd want to question him. I've already sealed his meridians and activated the soundproofing array. No matter what happens, not a soul will hear it."

  Huh.

  I think delegating a task to Long Tao may have been a mistake. No, it was definitely a mistake; the way an old monster like him handled things and the way I would handle them are so contrasting they may as well be--just wait a goddamned second, wasn't this guy at the Peak of Spirit Manifestation Realm?!! How the hell did he get captured?!

  I always knew that the kid could probably kick my ass with ease, but I always chalked it up to the fact that Lu Qi wasn't really a Spirit Manifestation Realm cultivator--he was merely a fake. But now... was the guy having his neck stomped on also a fake? Well, to Long Tao, most of us may as well actually be fakes...

  "Alright. Let him breathe, for crying out loud," I said with a sigh as the old monster pulled his leg back. The old man began to cough violently, scurrying up and against the wall while his gaze darted between the two of us. I'd have to be blind not to see the cogs spinning in them, and I actually grew quite curious as to what kind of a story he would weave.

  "Elder Lu, what is the meaning of this?!" He finally managed to speak after almost a minute, his voice hoarse and shattered, as it were. Huh. So he's going with 'ignorance'. "Were you displeased with our transaction? You could have just returned the trinket! Isn't this too much?!"

  "His ability to pretend he didn't hear a word of our conversation," I said. "Quite impressive."

  "Let me know what you learn," Long Tao said as he stood up and moved toward the doors.

  "You're not going to stay?"

  "I'm just a weak, scared little disciple. This is a business meant for seniors of our sect."

  "..."

  I want to smack him, honestly, but instead... I just smile.

  "Ah, but don't worry," he added just before closing the doors behind himself. "I'll be back for cleanup. He he. I would never miss the cleanup."

  Shivers.

  Goosebumps.

  Chill in my veins.

  Call it what you will, that little freak scares the bejesus out of me. I exhaled in solidarity with the old man who shuddered as the doors closed, meeting his gaze and wondering...

  What the hell do I do now?!