Chapter 55

When the first incident occurred, the people of the capital merely found it a novel curiosity. But when the second incident struck, a sense of self-preservation began to take hold.

The nobles of Chang'an, in particular, could not help but heighten the security patrols both inside and outside their estates. Those with connections hurried straight into the imperial palace to beg the Emperor for a few talismans personally drawn by the Grand Preceptor, hoping to plaster their front gates with them.

Hearing this, Li Chengying asked with a hint of amusement, "Are the Preceptor's talismans really that effective? I heard he is an immortal from the Southern Yue Grotto Heaven."

"Everyone says so."

Ah-Jin handed a cup of ginger tea to him.

Back when his mind was clouded, Li Chengying would stubbornly refuse this spicy-tasting beverage, rejecting it in tearful silence in a way that tugged at one's heartstrings while leaving everyone helpless. Now, however, he drained it to the bottom without a second thought.

As he tilted his head back to finish the ginger tea, a sliver of his wrist was exposed. His posture was natural and elegant, bearing no resemblance to someone who had been ignorant of worldly matters since birth.

Ah-Jin thought to herself that this must truly be the favor of the immortals. Ever since the young master recovered from his illness, joyous events had followed one after another for the Li family. Not only had Minister Li entered the Secretariat-Chancellery and become a high chancellor, but the lady of the house had also regained her health. The entire household was filled with jubilation, and everyone attributed it to the good fortune brought by the young master.

"The Grand Preceptor's talismans are worth a thousand pieces of gold on the outside, but compared to mere paper, if one could secure his personal intervention, no fiend or monster would be a match for him. This servant has heard that the Southern Yue Grotto Heaven is a formidable immortal sect. Back when the Retired Emperor faced danger on several occasions, it was thanks to the Preceptor's presence that His Majesty was able to return safely."

Ah-Jin held nothing back, sharing every scrap of gossip she knew before earnestly urging her young master.

"However, the Preceptor now leads a secluded life and rarely shows his face. With no way of knowing if further disasters might strike, everyone feels rather uneasy. If the young master has nothing pressing to attend to, it would be best not to venture outside recently..."

Subconsciously, she still treated Li Chengying with the cautious care she had always shown him.

Li Chengying suddenly asked, "Could it be more dangerous than when the realm was in utter chaos, and we had to flee the capital in a panic, only to return through countless hardships?"

"What... what do you mean?" Ah-Jin was interrupted, momentarily stunned.

Li Chengying continued, "Back when the Emperor left the capital and the rebel army breached the city, so many people died in Chang'an. Why weren't there any haunting then, yet ghosts are appearing now? Could it be that so many people died at the time that they all turned into ghosts, and when ghosts haunt one another, nobody even notices?"

Ah-Jin stood dumbfounded, completely at a loss for how to respond.

"I was only joking. Look at how frightened you are."

Li Chengying suddenly smiled, like the clearing of snow and frost under a bright moon, possessing an incomparable handsomeness that lingered somewhere between youth and manhood.

"If the opportunity arises, I'd quite like to meet that vengeful ghost. I wonder if it kills everyone it sees, or only those with whom it holds a grudge."

Ever since his recovery, he often uttered startling remarks that caught people off guard. Daring not to casually pick up this thread of conversation, Ah-Jin hastily pivoted: "What would the young master like for lunch? I noticed the kitchen rolled out fresh noodles today—shall I have them pan-fried with seasoned duck meat...?"

Before she could finish speaking, she saw the young pageboy, Li De, hurrying over.

"Second Young Master! The Master and Madam have invited an immortal guest to bestow talismans and bring blessings to ensure the household's peace, and they want you to come and pay your respects!"

Speak of the devil.

A cold gust of wind swept through, and Li Chengying gave two light coughs. "Could it be an immortal from the Southern Yue Grotto Heaven?"

Li De replied, "No, they say he comes from the Ten Thousand Plum Blossom Pool. This immortal sect seems exceedingly rare. But he has already visited the estate of Princess Xinping and won high favor and regard from her, which is why he was recommended to the Master."

The Li family hailed from the Longxi Li clan and, strictly speaking, were collateral relatives of the imperial family. Tied by marriage and blood, Li Chengying had to address the princess as his paternal aunt, and Minister Li's smooth ascent up the official ladder could hardly be said to have nothing to do with these influential connections.

Ah-Jin smiled. "The Ten Thousand Plum Blossom Pool—just the name sounds ethereal!"

Li De nodded repeatedly. "Indeed! And that esteemed guest truly looks like an immortal!"

Gesturing with his hands, he scrambled for words to describe the visitor's appearance and bearing.

By the time Li Chengying arrived, Minister Li and his wife were personally welcoming their guest from the outer courtyard.

The visitor wore black robes secured with a jade hairpin, devoid of even the slightest ornamentation upon his person. Yet, the cold, frosty, and unapproachable aura that enveloped him made it impossible for anyone to mistake him for an ordinary mortal.

Li Chengying abruptly came to a halt.

Minister Li and his wife caught sight of him at that very moment.

"Second Lang, you've come just in time. Come and greet our esteemed guest!"

Minister Li beckoned him over.

"This is True Person Zhu, a sword immortal from the Ten Thousand Plum Blossom Pool. He is currently traveling down the mountain to hone his craft and happened to pass through the capital. It is our utmost honor to welcome such an esteemed visitor to our humble home."

He then turned to introduce the young man to their guest:

"True Person, this is my unworthy son, Li Chengying. He was dim-witted and sickly since childhood, plagued by chronic ailments. Fortunately, by heaven's grace, he recovered from his illness three months ago."

"Greetings, True Person Zhu."

Chilled by the residual winter air brought in by the gathering crowd, Li Chengying let out a low cough and instinctively stepped back a few paces.

His gaze shifted from True Person Zhu to the red-robed young woman standing behind him holding an umbrella.

Li Chengying was not only puzzled but felt a profound sense of the uncanny.

From beginning to end, neither Minister Li and his wife nor the other members of the household seemed to notice anyone other than True Person Zhu; they remained utterly blind to the red-robed woman.

Only he could see her.

She looked back at him.

As pristine as ice and snow, standing tall and graceful in her crimson garments, she resembled molten lava and a glacial peak—utterly incompatible yet strangely harmonious.

Even though Li Chengying knew that staring so intently would easily give him away, he found himself unable to control his gaze.

Their eyes met.

Though he could read nothing through that placid expression, he could feel a subtle ripple in his own heart.

It was as if across past and present lives, they had brushed past one another tens of thousands of times, yet this was the one occasion where they truly recognized each other.

Where on earth did this feeling come from?

Li Chengying lowered his eyelids and looked away.

True Person Zhu must have been aware of the woman's presence, for he occasionally glanced in her direction.

It was done without leaving a trace, yet Li Chengying had caught it nonetheless.

A so-called sword immortal, and he brought a female ghost along when making social calls?

The fact that this female ghost could walk abroad in broad daylight while holding an umbrella—did that signify she possessed a very deep cultivation?

Li Chengying smiled faintly, maintaining a harmless and amiable facade.

"I have heard that whenever the Grand Preceptor travels, he is invariably surrounded by throngs of attendants. Since True Person Zhu is an immortal of the same lineage as the Preceptor, traveling all alone seems rather lacking in grandeur. Father, perhaps you could assign two maidservants to hold an umbrella for the True Person."

As the final words left his lips, Li Chengying felt the gaze True Person Zhu fixed upon him turn as sharp and biting as a drawn blade.

Sure enough, the man could see the red-robed woman as well.

Unaware of the undercurrents surging between them, and unwilling to scold the son who had so narrowly recovered from his illness, Minister Li chuckled and reprimanded him good-naturedly: "You know nothing of these matters, so don't talk nonsense! Many true persons travel through the mortal realm entirely by themselves!"

With that, he invited his distinguished guest inside to take the seat of honor.

"To be frank, my son's mind was clouded for a long time, defying all medicine. We invited many renowned physicians and experts to examine him, all of whom declared that his soul was incomplete and beyond saving. Now that he has miraculously recovered, he still suffers from lingering root causes—his constitution remains frail and he frequently coughs up blood. We were hoping the True Person might be so kind as to examine him. Should you bestow a miraculous medicine or two to cure this stubborn ailment, I would be beyond grateful and will certainly offer a generous reward in return."

Zhu Que was merely a sword that had attained sentience; how could he possibly know how to treat illnesses or heal people? He even had to rely on Xie Chang'an to draw talismans.

However, since Xie Chang'an was currently employing an invisibility concealment spell and had not revealed herself before mortals, she was standing nearby at ease, watching Zhu Que handle the Li household.

Having spent so many years masquerading as a divine Buddha within the Bone-Reflecting Mirror, Zhu Que was far from incompetent at putting on a facade of mystical authority when he remained silent and unsmiling.

Seeing him ponder in deep silence, the members of the Li family watched with eager, hopeful eyes, not daring to disturb him.

Finally, True Person Zhu relented.

"The creation of divine talismans is no trivial matter; it requires ritual bathing, incense burning, and a tranquil mind before I can set brush to paper. You may come to Cien Temple to find me in three days' time."

Minister Li heaved a sigh of relief and hastened to express his gratitude. "The capital has been somewhat unstable lately. If it is convenient for the True Person, might I also request a few talismans to safeguard the household's peace and well-being?"

True Person Zhu replied, "I will provide them together with the others."

Minister Li offered thanks upon thanks, not daring to show the slightest negligence. He hurriedly instructed his servants to present gifts of gold and silks and pressed the guest to stay for a meal. Yet True Person Zhu appeared indifferent to material possessions, accepting in the end only a modest amount of silver sufficient for daily expenses, while putting forward a single request.

"My purpose in coming to Chang'an is to travel and temper my mind. Should any household suffer from domestic unrest requiring the expulsion of evil spirits and the capture of ghosts, I ask Minister Li to kindly recommend me, and tell them that Zhu Que of the Ten Thousand Plum Blossom Pool is willing to lend a hand."

Filled with profound reverence, Minister Li naturally agreed to everything.

Throughout their conversation, Li Chengying did not interject. His gaze drifted outside from time to time.

The red-robed young woman had not entered. She stood quietly beneath the cassia tree in the courtyard, watching the snow clinging to the branches, as though admiring the scenery or perhaps gazing at the sky.

When True Person Zhu rose to take his leave, Minister Li finally noticed his absent-mindedness. "Second Lang, what are you looking at?"

With a normal expression, Li Chengying replied, "I was looking at that cassia tree. When autumn comes, the branches will surely be laden with blossoms."

Zhu Que glanced at him.

"Is that all you see?"

Li Chengying smiled. "Whatever the True Person wishes for me to see, that is what I see."

...

"What kind of place is the Ten Thousand Plum Blossom Pool?"

Upon stepping out of the Li estate, Zhu Que asked.

Declaring that affiliation had simply been in accordance with Xie Chang'an's instructions; he knew nothing of it himself.

Xie Chang'an answered, "A minor sect. Back in the day, an outer-disciple from their sect attempted to assassinate the monarch, but was intercepted by someone from the Southern Yue Grotto Heaven. Both sides perished in the end, and the Southern Yue Grotto Heaven vented its wrath upon the Ten Thousand Plum Blossom Pool, completely eradicating their entire sect."

Zhu Que understood her intent. "If the people of the Southern Yue Grotto Heaven hear that survivors of the Ten Thousand Plum Blossom Pool are still wandering outside, they will surely come to cut the weeds and eliminate the roots."

"That is why we do not need to go searching for them," Xie Chang'an said. "We need only wait for them to come to us."

Yet, returning to Chang'an City this time, she suddenly found the place fraught with anomalies at every turn.

The two notoriously haunted and ominous mansions whispered about throughout Chang'an had both been investigated by them, yet they found not the slightest trace of ghostly aura.

Places that had once experienced hauntings could not possibly leave behind zero clues.

Given their identities, there was no possibility of any ghostly presence evading their detection.

Unless—the newly deceased had been harvested into souls and instantly gathered away the very moment they drew their last breath.

For the time being, however, these matters had nothing to do with them.

Having returned to this familiar ground, Xie Chang'an possessed only a single objective: to retrieve the Heavenly Artisan Furnace from the Southern Yue Grotto Heaven.

Now, yet another bizarre occurrence had been added to the list.

Namely, Li Chengying.

"He can see you," Zhu Que remarked, referring to Li Chengying.

"There seems to be a faint trace of spiritual power within him, but he is not a cultivator. He shouldn't be able to pierce through your concealment spell."

Xie Chang'an replied, "Perhaps he possesses some other method."

"Do you know each other?" Zhu Que asked.

"We have never met. But..." Xie Chang'an paused slightly. "He bears a striking resemblance to an old acquaintance of mine."

"A friend?"

Had the fox been present, it would have immediately detected the subtle shift in her tone. But after all, Zhu Que was not well-versed in such nuances.

"No."

Xie Chang'an paused again.

"Someone who saved me, and then killed me."

Zhu Que furrowed his brow. "...Zhu Xuanguang?"

The resemblance was far too uncanny.

Aside from the absence of frost-white hair, his appearance and demeanor leaned even closer to his youth; there was not a single detail that did not look alike.

No one knew what she was feeling in her heart at that precise moment.

Even she herself found it difficult to articulate clearly.

The spot where she had once been pierced through by a blade began to ache faintly once more.

She felt as though she were hearing once again the howling winter winds sweeping relentlessly across the peaks of Chenghua, rustling past her ears.

Back then, her fingernails had dug deep into her palms, drawing damp, bleeding trails.

Xie Chang'an looked down at her palm; now, only a faint white scar remained.

Reason ultimately allowed her to suppress the surge of killing intent.

Reason told her that whenever something defies the natural order, a demon is invariably at play.

It was utterly impossible for two people in this world to resemble each other to such an extreme degree.

The Longxi Li clan, the Minister's son, Li Chengying.

A wealthy young master who had spent the first half of his life in witless dementia, only to suddenly recover and become as normal as anyone else.

Why did he regain his wits?

What secrets lay hidden within him?