Chapter 136
Enduring Mortal Desires
Xiaoling stood perched atop the tall wall, looking over the fading horizon; there was a set of Elders by her side, all perked with anxiousness and flecked with fear. She, too, wasn't entirely free of either. Though she had her Master's promises and direct orders, they were still welcoming someone at Nascent Realm into their home, wholly blind to the man's intentions.
She'd never seen anyone above Soul Ascendance Realm before, with the exclusion of the attack that her Master somehow deflected during the Sect's invasion, and neither did anyone else present. People at that realm were enigmatic existences to this tiny corner of the continent, as anyone with even the remotest of chances of ascending left for the Central Plains as soon as they could to increase those remotest of chances, if ever so slightly.
And though she bore within herself the confidence of a thousand men, it still fell short of being enough to face something so grand bravely and apathetically. So, she dug her fingers into her palm and used Qi to force her heart to calm down.
They waited for about an hour, as the 'signal' that he was coming had been sent likely from the border of the Sect's lands. He first appeared as a flickering tick of light deep on the horizon, grandly imposed against the ashen skies, growing brighter and brighter as he approached until the light flickered out, and before them floated a man of indescribable countenance.
It was as though the world around him kneeled and moved out of his way, his figure gently floating amidst the drifting of ethereal spirits; colors bounced across his frame, all turning into bright variants of themselves, until he almost seemed holy. Though Xiaoling's expression remained the same, she frowned inwardly; all of this... was merely a show. However much Nascent Realm lorded over all those below it, the man was still a mortal, bound by the same laws.
It would be akin to Xiaoling visiting some remote Tier I Sect and putting on a show of colors to impress upon them an image of a God--which, to them, she may as well be, but to the rest of the world, she would be merely a scared girl, fearful that her weaknesses would be known.
"Greetings, Senior," nonetheless, there were laws, unwritten though they were, to obey. She clasped her hands and bowed toward him, as did all others next to her, echoing the sentiment.
"Hoh?" The man's voice escaped him as he landed right in front of her, a few inches of space between them. She did manage to keep her expression even but inwardly understood that there would likely not be a peaceful day after today.
The look in the man's eyes was... wild. It was one of obsession, the kind that she hadn't seen in a long while, as nobody had dared look at her that way for over fifteen years. It was as though he was looking at a doll rather than a person, and that he must possess it, no matter what else. He all but licked his lips, the perversion of it downright rancid. Yet, she endured.
"Welcome to the Holy Blade Sect," she said. "Allow me to accompany you to the Greeting Hall."
"Of course," he said. "You could accompany me anywhere."
Xiaoling merely smiled and departed, the man following a single pace behind as they arched across the sky, quickly entering the heart of the Sect and a rather adorned complex jutting out of the left side of the Central Palace.
The interior was decorated well ahead of the time, with over a dozen tables prepared with the finest meals and drinks they could make, nearly all suffused with rare herbs. Fifty mortal women, too, were hired to stand in and deliver whatever was asked, though Xiaoling already suspected they would remain standing in place, never looked at.
The other Elders retreated to the side tables, seemingly blending into the background as she'd asked them to do so beforehand. She led the man to the front, where even the Sect Leaders of other Tier IV Sects would not be allowed to sit, but looking at the man's rather apathetic demeanor about everything but her, she feared it would have no bearing on him.
"I understand that it cannot live up to Your Grace," she said. "But this is the best our tiny little Sect can do."
"Oh. It is fine," he said. "Vastly better than that pathetic kingdom. Yes, vastly." He, once again, eyed her with a snake's gaze, and she felt every hair on her skin stand up for a moment. "I am thirsty."
"We have the best spiritual wine--"
"--yes, yes, that is quite alright," he said, lugging over to the central seat as though it was the most natural thing--a seat always reserved for her Master--and tossing his legs over the table. "I don't care what you serve, for none of it will be good. However, perhaps being served by you will sweeten it up, if ever so slightly."
Xiaoling eyed him for a moment but held back in the end, walking over to the nearby table, grabbing a bottle of the spiritual wine as well as a singular glass, before carrying it over to him and pouring. Though the Master had told her not to bow her head, she would still rather resolve this entire thing in peace, even if she had to sacrifice her pride.
"Hm, indeed," he said after taking a sip. "Still awful... though sweet, indeed. What is your name?"
"It's Xiaoling, Young Master."
"That's a pretty name, Xiao'er," he said, flashing her rows of pearly whites. "My name is Lei Feng."
"That is a mighty name, Young Master Feng," she said.
"Why, thank you, Xiao'er," he said, taking another sip of the wine. "I hope you can relax—I've heard the rumors about the Sect's connections to an Immortal, but if it should ease you, I seldom believe you have been colluding with one. Though, perhaps, I would believe if you—or whoever bastardized this Sect--concocted those rumors to elicit someone to come. Perhaps in a bid to bewitch them with your heavenly beauty."
"... you overpraise me, Young Master," she endured. "There is nothing heavenly or beautiful about me."
"Ha ha ha," he laughed. "Ah, young miss, I'm afraid that humbleness does not suit you. Some Holy Maidens, indeed, have the looks and the countenance necessary to be humble even in their divine beauty; most, however, ought to simply embrace the gifts. It is not a sin to be beautiful, after all," he added, grinning yet again and taking another swig of the wine. "Or is it that you've been so poor your whole life that you could never afford the means of looking at your own reflection?" Xiaoling could feel the subtle changes behind her, in the hearts of those in the hall, and if she could, so could he... yet, he didn't seem to care.
Then again, why would he? To him, all people here—her included—were ants. Insignificant, pointless. The only reason he had bothered even coming here was her; for whatever reason, he'd fancied her. Though Xiaoling knew herself to be beautiful, most women pursuing immortality were beautiful, too. It only ever took a small whiff of Qi to still the aging, another whiff to erase the wrinkles, to change the hair color, the eye color, the contour of the face... a completely different image was a breath away for everyone. So, why was he so obsessed with her? The answer was simple, as it always was: none of the other women wanted him, and he could only swallow that with bitterness.
"Would you like something to eat alongside the wine, Young Master?" She tried to change the topic, though judging by his expression... it wasn't going to happen.
"I had no intention of coming here, truth be told," he said. "I loathe the thought of staying in these godforsaken, barren lands a day longer—ah, forgive me. Yes, they are your home, but trust me, Xiao'er, once a person experiences the lush lands beyond these borders... yes, these lands, thus, begin to live up to their name: Ashlands. Every day here, it feels like it's harder and harder to breathe; Qi is sparse, its purity nigh rancid, and now even the Qi Storm has arrived to destroy what little you people had to begin with."
"Qi Storm?" Xiaoling pondered.
"The ashen skies," he pointed upward with his index finger. "Though I have never witnessed one of such scale, I have read records of some prior Qi Storms that covered nearly all of Ashlands, and stayed for weeks, months, and, yes, on occasion even years." Though Xiaoling wanted to probe further, judging by his expression... that was all she was going to get out of him in regard to the 'Qi Storm.' He was likely wrong, though she would never say it aloud, as she herself didn't know what right or wrong was in this scenario. "Come, join me. Drink with me." She forced a smile and walked over with yet another glass, sitting down by his side. Whatever distance she left between the two was quickly bridged, however. "I have seen your portrait."
"You have?"
"And I thought to myself, Gods, is it possible that someone so beautiful could exist in these here lands?" he asked, his breath already heavy and hung. "I suspected it was false, truth be told. Whether it's your or someone's rather loose interpretation of one's appearance. But no... you do exist. And you are vastly more adorned than the canvas ever suggested."
"M-many thanks, Young Master."
"And you are talented, too," he said. "Soul Ascendance Realm at your age... I suspect, were you not chained to this place, you may even have hope yet of ascending beyond it. Becoming someone truly of note in this world. Do you ever dream of it, Xiao'er? The world in which you matter? In which masses cheer your name in absolute adulation?"
"Can't say I do, Young Master," she said. "I am simply unworthy."
"The world may have made you believe you were unworthy," he said, hanging his arm around her shoulder. "But I promise you, it was wrong to do so."
"Young Master, it is inappropriate..."
"... yes, indeed." He pulled back his arm, taking another sip. "Forgive me. I am humbly a man bewitched. I have heard that your Sect was unfairly attacked recently, Xiao'er."
"Yes, Young Master. We have indeed suffered an unjust attack."
"And I have noticed that you have yet to fully recover."
"... indeed. We are struggling." She feared where it was going, yet hardly had the means of steering the conversation anywhere else.
"A shame. I may be able to help, however."
"... you could?"
"While staying in the Kingdom, I was given many gifts," he said. "Some of which would be far more useful in the Sect's hands than mine."
"We would, of course, be most grateful for any help, Young Master."
"Hm, it is all in here." He spawned a ring on top of the table and let it spin, the metallic sound ringing out across the hall like a song beating directly into her soul. "And it can all be given away." She gritted her teeth and held it in, feeling his arm creep against her back yet again. When was the last time she endured so much? Perhaps never, rather. "I can give you the world, Xiao'er," he whispered, his lips just inches from her ears. "And all else within it. Your Sect would prosper, its reputation like a rising phoenix as your name gets carved into the annals of true history."
"--It sounds to me like you are trying to thieve a precious Disciple of mine from me, Young Master Feng," Xiaoling felt all tension suddenly leave her body as a rather calm voice echoed out through the hall. She caught the man's expression darken and sour immediately as his focus shifted from her and toward the source.
"Who the hell are you to interrupt me?" he asked, his countenance starkly different from when he interacted with her.
"The Sect Master of this humble place," Xiaoling glanced over and saw her Master standing in the middle of the hall, arms behind his back, a faint smile hanging on his lips. "As well as Xiao'er's Master."
"Huh. Your words were rather rude and implied me a villain," Lei Feng said. "Seeing as you are Xiao'er's Master, I am willing to forgive—but only if you get lost within the next three seconds."
Three seconds passed, though nothing transpired. Yu Minge remained standing, still smiling as though none of it had anything to do with him.
"You are still here," Lei Feng said.
"I was told you'd come here to investigate an attack on my Sect," he said. "Not hound my precious Disciple."
"What I do is my prerogative," Lei Feng said. "And well outside the scope of your need to know. You are provoking me, old man. And my patience, however vast, has its limits."
"Very well, allow me to be succinct, then," Yu Minge said. "You are here to investigate an attack on my Sect, and within that scope, you may do and have any one thing you desire. You are not here to thieve away my Disciple, promising her lies, however."
"... this is your last warning." Xiaoling could feel the temperature in the room dropping as the Qi stirred around them like the sea before a storm. "Leave this instance, or I will not only kill you but raze this Sect to the ground and erase it from existence." The fight was about to break out, Xiaoling knew, and could only sigh and regret that she ever allowed her portrait to be made to begin with.