Chapter Seven: The Figure in the Shadows

The Grand Mistress knew full well what kind of person Yu Su’er was, but there was nothing she could do, for Yu Su’er had caught their master’s eye.

As for herself, the reason she was now favored was largely thanks to Yu Su’er’s influence. Had Yu Su’er not repeatedly insisted on removing a thorn from their master’s heart, the master would not have assigned her to protect and support Yu Su’er. Even if she was resentful, all she could do was shoot Yu Su’er a withering glare. Could she really just abandon her? Yet, if she did intervene, she would never be able to swallow her pride. Lowering her gaze, her pearly teeth bit gently into her red lips, her apricot eyes flickering with silent unease.

A cloud of sorrow flitted across her features, shifting endlessly between gloom and shade. The Second Mistress, watching from across, felt unsettled in her heart. She secretly glanced at the two, seeing the Grand Mistress’s wavering mood, and grew increasingly anxious herself. She couldn’t bear always being overshadowed by the Grand Mistress, yet she feared that if she really did betray her master for her own survival as Su He wished, she would be the one to suffer in the end. When that time came, wouldn’t her own life be forfeit?

But she dared not provoke the Grand Mistress further. All she could do was sit to one side, leaning askew, lowering her head behind her sleeve and feigning sobs.

The Grand Mistress’s head throbbed with pain, her brows knitting ever more tightly.

Su He held the tail of the golden needle between his fingers, exerting slow, measured pressure as he spoke, unhurried, “Well, have you made up your mind, Grand Mistress?”

The Grand Mistress froze for a moment, then suddenly let out a cold, bitter laugh. “It’s said that you were once an extraordinary figure. What is this? After all these years, have you returned only to practice petty tricks? Ambushing and coercing me into betraying my master—aren’t you pushing it too far?”

“There’s some truth to that. If you were just an ordinary woman, my actions would indeed be disgraceful,” Su He replied, nodding with grave composure. “But you’re not. There’s no need for us to waste time with such provocations. I ask you: who sent you two here?”

But as the saying goes, there is no thief who can steal forever, nor a householder who can guard forever. If he could find a breakthrough, future plans would not be so directionless. How could he let this chance slip by?

Yet he underestimated the Grand Mistress’s resolve to sever her own tail to survive. While he was lost in thought, she surged her demonic energy, forced her strength to its limit, and with a sudden movement, expelled the golden needle from her body. In a flash, the needle shot straight back toward Su He.

Fortunately, Su He reacted in time. As he dodged to the side, the Grand Mistress, moving with utmost speed, swept up the Second Mistress from the ground and vanished in the blink of an eye.

“To risk grievous injury just to spirit someone away—I underestimated her.” With that, he turned and walked to where the golden needle had fallen. He picked it up, carefully wiped it clean, and slipped it into his sleeve.

Abruptly, his figure vanished, darting out of the mountain cave.

When he next saw daylight, it was unexpectedly in the teahouse once more. The mist-shrouded, eerie forest and the shadowy cave were gone.

His gaze swept the scene. The teahouse was as it had been before: the grades of immortal tea, from fifth to first, the bamboo plaques still hanging on the wall. Yet what was different now was the clientele. Where once a few immortals sat sipping tea, now only skeletons in old-fashioned robes remained, still frozen in their lifelike postures.

Even the attendant who had introduced the teas to him earlier remained in the act of welcoming guests.

Su He surveyed the scene for a long time and could only let out a long sigh in the end. It seemed these people had all fallen victim to the two women. Alas, though their bodies were dead, their souls were trapped here, unable to ascend or be reborn.

He took a few steps forward and, just as he was about to reach out and touch something, a sudden change occurred. The attendant’s skeleton crumbled to dust in an instant.

A violent wind sprang up, swirling and sweeping everything clean. The bones of the other immortals were swept away as well, and even the teahouse itself was reduced to powder.

When the gale passed, nothing was left.

It was as if nothing had ever existed in this world.

The passersby around took no notice, unperturbed by this. Occasionally, a few immortals would stop and whisper to each other, glancing at Su He standing alone on the empty ground.

But that was all—no one would bother to question a stranger.

Because in their eyes, it was nothing more than an open space. No one knew where this dazed man had come from or why he stood there so long. Perhaps he had been a deity for too long and gone foolish, or perhaps his cultivation had driven him mad. People like this were common in Yu Hai Tian; no one paid them any mind.

Su He, unaware of the truth behind it all, sighed and melted into the flow of people.

Strolling amid the crowd, he heard familiar speech, but the faces were all those of strangers.

Perhaps he had truly been gone too long. Everything had changed...

Suddenly, Huai Yin appeared at a street corner, watching Su He’s disappearing figure. He raised his hand, drew out paper and brush, and carefully recorded everything he had seen and heard, rolling the letter tightly.

He then took out a small wooden bird, pressed a slight protuberance beneath its wing, and a tiny opening appeared on its back. He placed the letter inside, and the opening closed tight.

“Go,” he whispered.

At that, the wooden bird became a living thing, flapping its wings and vanishing into the void.

After carefully checking his surroundings and confirming there were no suspicious onlookers, he hurried off to follow Su He’s trail.

...

Meanwhile, the wooden bird passed through a barrier and finally flew into an ancient residence at the foot of a mountain.

Green peaks soared skyward, waterfalls cascaded, and groves of trees cast deep shade, lending the place a tranquil and mysterious air.

The bird landed and instantly reverted to wood, its arrival sharp and abrupt.

Immediately, someone heard the sound, picked it up, and hurried through winding corridors into an inner chamber.

“Master, news from Huai Yin.”

A middle-aged man, holding birdseed, stood beneath an ancient tree, amusing a caged bird for a while before turning to set the dish on a stone table. With a casual motion, he sat down.

“Bring it here.”

“Yes, sir.”

The servant—named Ding Miu, the very ‘boss’ Huai Yin had mentioned—held the wooden bird above his head and respectfully presented it.

“Ding Miu, what’s your opinion?” The middle-aged man retrieved the letter, slowly opened it, and began to read.

“I dare not presume,” Ding Miu replied.

“There’s nothing to be afraid of. Speak your mind,” the man said, eyes never leaving the letter, yet exuding an ineffable authority that made Ding Miu’s heart tremble.

Knowing he could not refuse, Ding Miu mustered his courage. “Bai Li Su He’s return is being watched by more than just us. I suspect that the suitors for Shu Xing Tower’s young mistress are mostly opportunists. When news spread of Bai Li Wu Shuang’s demise, the Bai Li clan’s masters all mobilized. Even within the Si You domain, there was much activity. With such a stir, even if hidden well, it could hardly go unnoticed.”

The man finished reading, set the letter on the table, and flicked a spark from his fingers to burn it to ash.

“Your reasoning is sound, but too one-dimensional,” he said.

Ding Miu glanced up, then quickly lowered his head. “Your servant is dull and has shamed you.”

“It’s not your fault. But Huai Yin’s letter says Su He intends to visit Shu Xing Tower. What do you suppose his goal is? Surely he’s not courting the young mistress as well? From what we know, Bai Li Su He is a man of deep feeling, but indifferent to romance. Why, then, is he hurrying to Yao Yue Peak with such urgency? Could it be he seeks that object...?”

Ding Miu hesitated. “You mean there’s something in Shu Xing Tower he desires?”

Suddenly enlightened, the middle-aged man realized that all these so-called marriage proposals were but a smokescreen.

“Indeed.” He paused, then continued, “After you leave, keep a close watch on this. Let no one interfere with Su He’s plans, lest our own designs be disrupted.”

Ding Miu was a bit bewildered by this turn. What did he mean by Su He’s ‘good fortune’?

He ventured a cautious glance. “Forgive me, Master, but... I don’t quite understand.”

He had only made a casual guess; how had it become Su He’s ‘good fortune’?

The man looked up. Ding Miu shivered, took half a step back, then dropped to his knees.

“Your servant admits his fault and begs punishment.”

“Get up. You cannot be blamed for what you do not know. Now I see why everyone is pushing their young scions to Yao Yue Peak—all are after that object. No wonder Su He, upon returning, did not turn to settle accounts with the Bai Li clan, but went elsewhere first.”

Though Ding Miu did not know what the man meant by ‘that object,’ he understood well enough that it was a taboo beyond his reach. So he rose silently and stood aside.

The man’s gaze grew distant. He scattered the last of the birdseed, then suddenly crushed it to powder.

“Huai Yin writes of an ambush on Su He in the Tongliu region.”

“May I ask, Master, do you know who the attackers are?” Ding Miu felt a chill—his master was angry.

“Their origins? Ha...” The man stood, brushed his sleeve, and the ashes disappeared from the table. He walked under the old tree, teasing the caged bird.

After a while, he turned and said, “I have scarcely heard the name, but judging by their aura, they are demon immortals.”

“Demon immortals?” Ding Miu was shocked. Yu Hai Tian was no ordinary realm. If the demon domain was involved, the matter would go far beyond the normal power struggles of the immortals, and might reveal even deeper secrets.

The man nodded, feeling a headache coming on. “Yes. Go immediately to the demon domain. See if anyone there has recently vanished; perhaps we’ll find a clue.”

“Yes, sir. And what of Bai Li Su He?”

“No need. Just convey my instructions to him.”

“Understood. I’ll see to it at once.” With a bow, Ding Miu turned to leave.

But he had barely taken a few steps when the man called, “Wait.”

“Is there anything else, Master?” Ding Miu halted, frowning in confusion.

“Tell Huai Yin, if necessary, he may secretly ensure that Bai Li Su He does not die. Under no circumstances must our plans be ruined.”

“I understand.”

With that, he bowed and left.

When he was gone, the man snapped a slender twig and poked it into the cage, teasing the bird until it hopped and chirped incessantly.

With utmost gentleness, he murmured, “Little thing, sing, sing. The more lively the better. The waters of Yu Hai Tian have lain still for too long. It’s time someone stirred them up.”

Don’t you agree?

All he got in reply was a piercing shriek from the bird. The man smiled, turned, and walked away at a leisurely pace.

But the bird in the cage fell silent, and only a single feather drifted down on the wind...