The return of the Divine Wind fleet was met not with silence but with a roar that shook the very foundations of the floating islands.

  As the Storm-Bringer docked at the central peak, thousands of disciples who had remained behind cheered until their voices grew hoarse. The news had traveled faster than the ships: The Shadow-Viper Hall, a plague upon the region for centuries, was gone. Erased.

  Matriarch Feng Meilin stood at the prow with her silver armor gleaming in the sunset.

  "The threat is ended!" she proclaimed. Her voice was amplified by wind Qi to reach every corner of the sect. "Tonight, the Divine Wind Sect celebrates! I want everyone to take part. If you have duties, save it for tomorrow."

  Drums thundered and huge wind-chimes sang deep resonant notes. The entire sect transformed into a festival ground that was ready for a good time. The celebration was not just for their great victory. It was also a celebration for those that had returned from the war and all of their achievements.

  The feast was held on the Grand Plaza of the Four Winds. Massive bonfires fueled by scented spirit-wood that burned with a blue flame crackled in the center. Long tables groaned under the weight of roasted spirit beasts, jars of aged wine and mountains of glowing fruits harvested from the Sky Gardens.

  Li Yu was currently engaged in a serious battle with a roasted boar leg that had been glazed in honey and spirit-herbs. Si Luo was sipping wine with regality, while Bai Ruo was dissecting a moon-cake to determine its structural density and filling ratio.

  Feng Meilin sat beside Li Yu. She had changed out of her armor into a formal robe of deep indigo silk and embroidered with silver wind currents. She looked relaxed, happy and decidedly mischievous.

  "You aren't eating much," Meilin noted while nudging Li Yu. "Is the boar not to your liking?"

  "It's delicious," Li Yu mumbled around a mouthful. "I'm just pacing myself. I saw the dessert table. It looks dangerous. I need to save room for those custard tarts."

  Meilin laughed at his genuine response and poured him more wine. Her expression then grew serious but her voice remained low so only he could hear.

  "Li Yu," she said. "We need to settle accounts. Truly settle them. I don’t like to be in debt."

  "Accounts?" Li Yu swallowed the food in his mouth. "I told you, the service was free. I don't charge for saving friends. Especially when I was the one that chose to do so on my own. And the entertainment of seeing the sights in the sect was enough. Especially that rock."

  "I know that is how you feel." Meilin said. "You don't want spirit stones. You don't want techniques. You gave me a treasure that is very valuable because you felt bad about my dress. You are a terrible negotiator and a man that doesn't take advantage when he should."

  "I prefer 'generous'," Li Yu corrected.

  "Generosity creates debt, favors and emotions of needing to repay." Meilin countered. "And I do not like being in debt as I said. Especially not to a man I respect. So, I have a proposal that you should actually be interested in."

  She leaned in closer to Li Yu and her eyes locked onto his.

  "Your 'Alliance of the Jagged Peaks'. It is new. It is a coalition of mid-tier sects, clans and mercenaries. It has potential, maybe, but it lacks... pedigree. In the eyes of the Great Sects of the continent, you are upstarts. Unknowns. Even if they grow into something, it will take a long time."

  Li Yu nodded slowly. She wasn't wrong. Strength and reputation took time to build and without heavy backers, others might try to test them. They already had the support of the Five Mountain Alliance but that was in word only. Would they really come to help them in times of need?

  Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

  "So," Meilin continued. "I offer you legitimacy. The Divine Wind Sect will formally declare an alliance with the Alliance of the Jagged Peaks. We will be your backers. Your sister sect. If anyone wrongly attacks your people, they will see the banner of the Divine Wind behind them."

  Li Yu paused at the proposal. This was huge. Having one of the Three Great Sects of the East vouch for them would instantly elevate their status. It would stop potential aggressors before they even thought about attacking. It would turn his ragtag group into a protected political power overnight.

  "That is... a big offer," Li Yu said. "Are you sure? We're a rowdy bunch. We might embarrass you. My subordinates can be... enthusiastic."

  "I like rowdy," Meilin grinned. "And you saved the heirs of my sect. If anyone questions the alliance, we can show it through actions. Besides..."

  She looked at Si Luo and Bai Ruo who were currently debating the physics of a floating lantern.

  "I have a feeling your alliance is going to be stronger than people think. I want to be on the winning side early. Perhaps it will be your alliance that will come to our aid one day."

  Li Yu smiled. He raised his cup.

  "Deal. But one condition."

  "Name it."

  "If we disappoint you," Li Yu said seriously. "If we lose our way or become something you don't agree with... you can walk away. No hard feelings. An alliance should make sense for both sides. I don't want you tethered to a sinking ship if we fail."

  Meilin looked at him. Most leaders would try to lock in a contract for a thousand years, binding their bloodlines together. He was giving her an exit door before they even started. It was because of that, that she felt she was making the right decision.

  "You really are different," Meilin murmured. She clinked her cup against his. "Agreed. To the alliance."

  While the leaders discussed politics, the lower tables were buzzing with a very different kind of conversation.

  Disciples whispered behind their hands, eyes darting toward the head table where the Sect Master was laughing and leaning close to the, not super handsome, but bad looking young stranger. The proximity, the shared wine, the way Meilin looked at him. it was all fueling the rumor mill that everyone loved during celebrations.

  "Who is he?" a junior disciple hissed, leaning over a plate of dumplings. "I've never seen the Matriarch smile like that at a man. I was told she smiled a lot more when her husband was still alive but that was before my time here. Not even when the Lord of the Iron Mountain visited!"

  "Look at how close they are," a female disciple noted with her eyes wide. "And he's sitting in the family seat! That spot is usually reserved for Elder Feng Wei! That's a sign if I ever saw one."

  "He's too young," an older disciple argued, shaking his head. "He feels barely twenty or thirty. The Matriarch is... experienced. Maybe he's a... you know. A companion."

  "A boy toy?" the junior gasped. "The Matriarch got herself a boy toy?"

  "Shhh!" The older disciple covered his mouth and looked around nervously. He was checking if anyone else overheard and checking for enforcement elders. "Don't say it so loud dumbass! But... look at him. He's handsome in a 'scholar who needs protecting' kind of way. He doesn't look like a fighter. Maybe she likes the innocent type."

  "Innocent?" Another disciple snorted. "I heard from the crew of the Storm-Bringer that he stood on the deck while they bombed the Shadow-Vipers and ate snacks. That's not innocent. That's cold. Maybe he's a master of the seductive arts."

  "Maybe he's her secret son!" a disciple with an active imagination proposed, slamming his cup down. "Think about it! He shows up out of nowhere, saves the Young Master and Young Mistress, his siblings! And now she's treating him like royalty! It explains everything!"

  "It explains nothing," his friend sighed. "Look at the nose! It's completely different. And if he were her son, why would she be pouring him wine and fluttering her eyelashes?"

  "She is not fluttering!"

  "She totally is. That is the 'I am interested' flutter. I've seen it before. Trust me, I am a master when it comes to things like this."

  At a nearby table, a disciple who had been part of the Ghost Wind Division—the advance team at the marshes—shook his head.

  "You're all idiots," he muttered into his drink. "That's Li Yu. The guy who punched Faceless into mist."

  The table went silent. Then they burst out laughing.

  "Punched Faceless?" The imaginative disciple scoffed. " Faceless is a Soul Formation expert! You think this pretty boy punched him? He looks like he struggles to lift his chopsticks!"

  He pointed over at Li Yu, who was currently trying to balance a spoon on his nose to entertain Feng Xi.

  "Yeah," the Ghost Wind disciple insisted weakly. "I saw the crater..."

  "Sure, sure," his friend patted him on the back. "You inhaled too much residual poison, brother. That guy is clearly just a very lucky, very average boy toy. Let the Matriarch have her fun. She’s always been quite eccentric. She deserves whatever happiness she wants."

  Back at the head table, Li Yu felt a sudden itch on his nose. He sneezed and dropped the spoon.