Chapter TEN

The Fool​

The clouds today were grey and gloomy.

Frigid winds howled across the rugged plains, its mournful cry echoing through the twilight. I tightened my grip on the reins, feeling the steady rhythm of my steed beneath me as we moved toward the looming silhouette of the mountains ahead. The evening sky, a canvas of deepening grey, cast a somber mood over the landscape, the setting sun bleeding its last rays onto the horizon.

I could feel the longma's muscles tense and relax beneath me with each stride. The wind whipped through my hair, bringing with it the crisp scent of Qi, petrichor, and earth. My robes billowed behind me, fluttering like a solitary banner against the backdrop of the encroaching night.

Ahead, the Yun Ling range stood, stoic and immense. Its peaks, veiled in perpetual mists, pierced the heavens like the vertebra of a slumbering dragon; truly, they were said to be the exposed spines of an ancient, colossal Gu, petrified in an eternal slumber. Even I, with all my knowledge about the world, could not say for certain whether or not this was true. The air here was thick with spiritual energy, a pulsating force that nurtured all sorts of mystical plants and Gu.

Centuries before the White Orchid sect declared the range as their own, independent cultivators, drawn by the allure of the mountains, embarked on treacherous journeys, seeking to harness the treasures that pervaded the range for themselves. Many did not return alive; even more never returned at all. These days, thanks to the sect's many machinations, the mortality rate of prospective adventures visiting the mountain has suffered a steep decline making it a much safer place to visit.

Still, considering who I was, and how easy it would be to erase all signs of treachery in such a place, I deemed. it prudent to remain cautious. This was why today I departed with all but two of my guards. I would have preferred to have all of them with me on this expedition for greater security, but Ma Yili was too important to my plans to leave unguarded, and neither could I risk bringing her into such a hostile environment.

As we neared the base of the mountain, the world seemed to grow quieter, the wind's howl diminishing to a solemn whisper. The path twisted upwards, snaking its way into the realms of stone, bark, and shadow. The sky darkened further, the last vestiges of daylight surrendering to the inevitable night.

Behind me, Feng Yu rode atop the Longma that belonged to one of the guards I left in the sect. I rode the other, gaze fixed ahead as I ignored the cultivator behind me, certain in my belief that my guards would sooner sever the four pillars holding up the firmaments than let a threat so far beneath their station harm me.

As we made our way through a series of well-maintained paths leading further into the mountain range we eventually ran into the first of the formation barriers keeping the Gu reserve contained, at which point we were forced to slow down as we ascended deeper into the mountains where vegetation and the dangerous Gu existed in greater numbers.

As we drew closer to the middle point of the mountain, the number of cultivators manning the various checkpoints slowly increased. Duos soon turned into trios, then squads. And as the sizes increased, inversely so did the frequency at which I sighted them until, eventually, it became obvious we were truly alone in this mostly untamed wilderness.

We continued our march through the mountains, eventually arriving at a clearing surrounded by trees. Ahead was a rock face with a steep incline behind which a hidden grotto supposedly exists. "Is this it?" I asked, speaking for the first time since we departed from the sect.

"Yes, my prince," Feng Yu replied. "Bixue lotuses grow in large numbers in the valley just behind that ridge. You should have no trouble finding enough at your leisure."

I dismounted, leaving my longma behind as I approached the rock face. It was a few dozen meters high, but in the eyes of cultivators, such a height was at best a minor inconvenience. I let the muscles in my thighs and calves tense as I lowered myself towards the floor before kicking off the floor, sending my lithe frame soaring into the air.

As I reached the apex of my bound, two dozen meters into the air, and a sense of weightlessness began to suffuse my being, I reached out with my right hand to grip onto a handhold in the jagged rocks. The toes of my feet came to rest on mossy stone moments later before a deliberate four-limbed bound along the vertical incline sent me hurtling across the remaining distance to the crest of the ridge.

It was fun being superhuman, I decided as I turned my gaze to the rest of my entourage who had joined me on the ridge. I looked down at the valley below and indeed a vast field of blood-red flowers carpeted the valley on the other side of the ridge beneath us. Without hesitation, I retrieved the jade slip in my storage ring and fed it a bit of my chi. The object warmed up slightly in my grasp and I instantly knew I was very close to my objective.

"Thank you, Feng Yu," I said as I turned to glance at one of my guards, shooting the man a discreet nod.

Before the cultivator could reply the warrior-eunuch blurred, appearing behind him as he placed one hand on his head. In that one motion Feng Yu fell into the eunuch's arms, limp and unconscious, his memories of the past few hours erased. I turned my attention back to the jade slip in my hand before racing in the direction it was guiding me.

The entrance to the grotto was just as I remembered reading about it. Hidden behind a powerful illusionary technique, the jagged hole in a rocky earth was flanked by a pair of dog-sized stone statues of a pot-bellied man.

The cave was tranquil...

Until it was not.

Without warning, a Zheng, a Gu feared and revered for its camouflage, emerged from the darkness. With its five undulating tails and the body of a large cat on steroids, Zhengs were known for preying on mortal beasts like tigers and leopards. Yet, even as time seemed to slow down and the beast soared through the air at me, eyes rabid, I remained impassive, my heart calm. Swords sang from my flanks as they emerged from their scabbards. I saw nothing but blurs and flashes of energy; the ambush was a short-lived affair.

As quickly as the peace was disrupted it was restored. But my mood had long soured. I stalked past the cubed remains of the Gu enthralled to assassinate me to the small prayer mat at the end of the grotto and found nothing but a small indent in the silken mat where the storage ring containing Li Yifeng's inheritance was supposed to be.

My anger boiled over as I slowly realised I had been got and played a fool.

"Fuck!" I growled as I turned to leave.