Be Gentle, Immortal Master

243  Her Dare

Bai Ye occupied himself with those books immediately after we returned. And remained so occupied, in fact, that he spent the next few days buried in them and barely remembered to cook.

Knowing that whatever suspicion on his mind must be quite serious to deserve his attention like this, I didn't want to distract him. So I reassured him that missing a gourmet meal or two wasn't going to weaken my health, and with the excuse of foraging for myself, I slipped outside the cabin during each mealtime, leaving him a quiet space for his search.

Well, it was partially to help myself think through things as well. I took a deep breath of the fresh, chilly air as I resumed my aimless evening stroll once more. Tried as I might, I still hadn't fully processed everything that happened at the cave, and although Bai Ye's sharp perception had eased some of my worries, there were still too many puzzles and uncertainties left, whispering at the edge of my mind like the venomous hiss of a viper.

What were that girl's true identity and intentions? Why had she killed all those cultivators in the past? The secrets of Twin Stars seemed to be getting more obscure day by day. If settling my past with those swords had only been a fear lurking inside me before, then the surprise encounter at the cave had brought everything to the surface, relentlessly pushing me towards the inevitable that I had to face.

I let out a sigh, realizing then that while my thoughts wandered, I had ended up at the cliffs overlooking East Village. I gazed into the distance, idly taking in the view of the dark village painted by the evening blue. The rising smoke from a few chimneys caught the moonlight, swaying like thin veils against the light wind. All was so quiet and peaceful—

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Wait. New Year's celebrations lasted for weeks, and we were still in the middle of what should be the most boisterous time right now. How could the village be so quiet and peaceful?

A bad omen rose in me. Summoning my flying sword, I made a swift descent into the settlement beneath us.

The sight that greeted me matched what I expected. On any normal day during the festival season, every house would be lit up with lanterns at the gates and bursting with laughter from visiting family and friends. The air would smell like roasted pork, and the roads would be buried under a thick layer of firecracker dust. But right now, all I could see was darkness looming over an eerie silence. Few houses had candlelights glowing through their windows, and even fewer had any sound of muffled conversations drifting over the walls. The only scent escaping kitchen chimneys was that of plain rice and porridge.

This was utterly unbefitting such a time of the year. Almost impossible. Padding gingerly through the empty roads that bore barely a trace of footprint, I tuned my senses sharp, but no signs of danger stood out to me. No presence of demons, wild beasts, or even menacing bandits …

A scurry of boots on the other side of the road broke the silence of the night. I turned on my heels, hands on my swords as I closed in on the dark corner where the sound came from. But just as I thought I might come upon a pair of fangs or yellow-green eyes, I found a little boy scuttling through the bushes in the snow. He startled at my approach, freezing in his tracks with his head still poking out of the thicket.

"Please don't tell my parents!" He begged in a hushed voice. "I'm going home right now, I promise!"

"…" Staring at the boy in bewilderment, I loosened my grip on my swords. "What are you doing out here by yourself?" I bent lower and asked. "Where are your parents and everyone else?"

"They are hiding." The boy cocked his head. "Aren't you supposed to be hiding too? They said everyone should stay home, and they wouldn't even let me go play with Little Lin. I had to sneak out to go to his house!"

I frowned. "Hiding?" So that was why the entire village looked like a dead place. "Hiding from what?"

"The devil. They said it steals children, but I don't believe them." The boy pouted. "Anyway, I'll go home now before my parents find out … Don't tell anyone you saw me!"

Another rustle of the bush, and the boy disappeared under its cover.

A devil that stole children? This sounded even worse than the demons that attacked their village last year, and I hoped the Elder had sought help from Mount Hua already. Large cultivation sects tend to attract demons due to the concentrated spiritual power in their vicinity, so it was the norm for each sect to guard the safety of nearby commoners. Hopefully, the Gatekeeper would send someone here soon enough to help these villagers through this hard New Year …

But that bad omen in me didn't lessen the slightest bit at the thought. Somehow, something felt off, and I had learned in the past few months that my instinct on ill fortune was becoming more and more accurate. Glancing down at Twin Stars, I winced. This wasn't about another surprise getting in line for me, was it?

The silvery moonlight washing over the swords wavered, casting a wisp of shadow over the hilts. My head snapped up, following the direction where the change of light came. Blood thickened in my veins at the sight. On top of a tall roof, silhouetted against the moon, was a familiar figure that I had hope feared and hoped to see, and I could almost feel the smug curl of those lips when I heard her say:

"Took you long enough to come find me. Now, shall we make a deal about those swords on your belt, or would you rather see the consequences of defying me?"