Chương 91: Chapter 90: FEEL OF FIRE

If you dare. Nifeng and the three Obscuring Shadows Sect Yellowsouls behind him glared at Feihuan, dark eyes frosty. It was on Nifeng that Jieyuan focused. The man was clearly the leader of his group; whatever came next would hinge on him. Will he dare? Nifeng's jaw was clenched, so taut the muscles popped out. That was the face of a man on the threshold of daring.

But if the way Feihuan had acted so far was anything to go by, she was sure that Nifeng would back down. And she was clearly familiar with the man. The silence stretched; Nifeng's expression slowly relaxed, but that didn't put Jieyuan at ease—because as the tension drained from his face, something arguably more dangerous took its place. His eyes narrowed, looked Feihuan over. Flicked over to the side, over to Jieyuan, Meiyao, and Daojue, and then back to Feihuan. Assessing. Considering.

Feihuan must've noticed that change as well, because her taunting, challenging smirk slipped.

"Don't tell me… Are you actually considering it? What's this? Have you grown a spine all of a sudden, Nifeng?" Feihuan didn't seem worried, at least. She looked more surprised than anything else. Jieyuan took that as a good sign. Nifeng didn't say anything, didn't react, just kept looking at her. The shadows under him seemed to deepen, and Jieyuan wasn't so sure it was just a trick of the lighting. A subtle change also came over the Yellowrealm trio behind Nifeng: they shifted their positions slightly.

Readying themselves. Jieyuan took that as a bad sign. Rot. If a fight broke out, it wouldn't bode well for them. Even if Feihuan could take four Yellowsouls on her own, Jieyuan wasn't confident she could do that while protecting him, Meiyao, and Daojue. And they'd very much need protection. Redsouls had no business being anywhere near a fight between Yellowsouls. At least when Taishou had fought Qingshi, they'd done it way up in the skies.

Forget about unscathed; if a fight broke out here, Jieyuan definitely didn't like their odds of making it out of it alive. And there was nothing he could do about it. A deep, overwhelming helplessness—powerlessness — engulfed Jieyuan. One he'd grown awfully familiar with these last couple of days. The feeling of being at someone else's mercy. The feeling of being utterly incapable of determining his fate. Oh, how he hated it. Violetrealm can't come fast enough. Feihuan didn't look surprised anymore.

But it wasn't concern she was showing now; rather, she wore a look of dry amusement.

"Oh, ho. You really are considering it. Nifeng the Weasel, taking risks. I never thought I'd see the day. Just what's brought this on? Your daughter—it can't be you care for her. I know you're not capable of that sort of emotion, what with that shriveled, withered lump you call a heart. So…" Feihuan's smile returned." Ah. I see. You actually think you can take me, don't you? No, you're confident of it. You think you can use your daughter's death as an excuse to get rid of me.

Well, in that case, before you do anything stupid—because I can kill you four, mind you, but I'd rather not face the fallout if I can help it…" She extended her arm out to the side. A familiar metal cylinder appeared in her hand. The four Obscuring Shadow Sect Yellowsouls' eyes flicked over to it. They went very still.

"Here," Feihuan said.

"Do you know what this is? Do you recognize it? Ah- ha, I can see you have your suspicions. Yes, it is what you four think it is. But let me confirm it for you. We mustn't leave any room for doubt." Light burst out from both ends of the cylinder, forming a shaft of light, with the solid radiance at the top taking on the outline of a blade. Jieyuan had to move his gaze away from it after just a few seconds, feeling his eyes burn even though it didn't appear to be that bright.

The reactions were immediate: all four opposing Yellowsouls tensed, eyes widening.

"Searing Anthem," Feihuan said. Slowly, deliberately, she moved the light-spear over in front of her.

"That's right; I found it. And as it turns out, I can use it. What a delight, eh? Now, I'm fairly certain I could've killed you four even without it. One of you could've gotten lucky, however. But if I'm using Searing Anthem… Well, I'm sure you know what your odds will be." She leaned forward.

Both her hands—she was wearing gauntlets all of a sudden, Jieyuan noticed—gripped the shaft, not the cylinder but the stretch of solid light (which was turning out to be even more solid than Jieyuan had expected), as she assumed a fighting stance. She pointed the tip of the spear toward the four Yellowsouls across from her. The shadows under Nifeng and his group darkened even further. Now Jieyuan was sure it was actually happening.

The ground under them turned into an unnaturally dark, pitch-black pool of pure darkness. They eyed Feihuan warily. Jieyuan's heart hammered, blood thumping in his ears. This is it, Jieyuan knew. The tipping point.

"So let's try this again," Feihuan said.

"Feel free to collect my apprentice's blood price from me. If you dare." This time, the silence that followed the repeated challenge was much shorter. Barely two seconds passed before Nifeng said, curtly, "We forfeit the blood price." Then he and his fellow sectsmen sank into the pool of darkness under them, their bodies floating downward, descending, neither slow nor fast, until the crown of their heads vanished into the darkness.

Just as they fully disappeared, the pool of darkness dispersed, lightening and brightening, until the shadows were back to normal.

"That's what I thought," Feihuan said. She flicked her wrist, and Searing Anthem vanished. Then she spun on her feet, turning to Jieyuan, Meiyao, and Daojue.

"Well, that's that handled." Jieyuan eyed the spot where Nifeng and the other three Yellowsouls with him had just been.

"They're really gone? No chance of them sticking around?"

"They certainly aren't within the range of my soulsenses," Feihuan said. She really did look perfectly at ease again.

"Here's something you should know about the Heiyingmi. They're a cold, unfeeling bunch. They act on logic, rather than emotion. It's how they're raised. Everything's a transaction, to them. People are tools. That sort of thing. They don't really care about anyone save themselves. They're merchants as much as they're cultivators." Jieyuan was rather unsettled to find a shadow of his own upbringing in her words.

"There are exceptions, of course," Feihuan said as she walked over to them. She stepped out of the yard, into the open corridor they were on.

"I guess Nifeng's daughter Zixuan was one, if she bothered to come all this way to avenge her brother herself." Jieyuan considered that.

"I got the impression it was less about avenging her brother, actually, and more of an excuse to torture someone."

"Hmmm? Well, that's more what I'd expect from Nifeng's daughter, then. The shadow doesn't stray too far from the light, after all." She stopped right in front of Jieyuan, beside a pillar.

"Anyway, it's not really over. Not by a long shot. But they've probably retreated for the time being. There's something else we need to discuss right now. Your… apprenticeship."

"Right," Jieyuan said, tensing a little. Out of the corner of his eyes, he caught Meiyao and Daojue doing the same. He gave Feihuan a searching look, trying to get a read on her.

"So I'm your apprentice now?"

"Oh, not really," Feihuan said. Her lips quirked upward into an amused smile.

"See, you have two options. One is, I arrange transportation for you three to another Greenrealm domain." That gave Jieyuan pause.

"Another Greenrealm domain?"

"Yes," Feihuan said.

"We're all in the Silent Saber Domain, the domain of the Silent Saber Sect. Except we're very isolated from the rest of the domain; there are our four islands, each with its Yellowrealm sect, and vast stretches of sea until the other, nearest island. We barely have any contact with our suzerain sect. The Silent Saber Sect only really sends an envoy to check in on us every few centuries or so."

"And you're offering to send us to another domain?"

"Yes," Feihuan said.

"The Silent Saber Domain might be big, but if I were to send you to an island on, say, the opposite side of it, the Obscuring Shadows Sect might still come after you. But another Greenrealm domain entirely? It just wouldn't be worth going that far out of their way to kill you. Especially since they have no idea just how valuable you really are—how much of a threat you could become."

"All right," Jieyuan said. He held Feihuan's gaze.

"But, you'd send us away, help us. Why?"

"Because the only other way to ensure your safety is for you to become my apprentice, and I'm not about to press you into joining my sect, let alone into becoming my apprentice. You'd be a great addition to the sect, sure, but it's not like we're hurting for talent. And considering the heights you might reach, given your heavenly affinity? Coercing you into a decision doesn't seem particularly smart." Feihuan crossed her arms, leaning her side against the pillar beside her.

"My ruse will have had the Obscuring Shadows Sect backing down for now. Enough time to get you far, far away from here. They'll come knocking later and demand reparations when they realize I lied to them, but it's nothing I can't weather. Especially with Searing Anthem."

"But that still doesn't explain why you want us safe in the first place," Jieyuan said.

"Oh, there are many reasons. One of them is your friend here"—she nodded to Daojue—"and how he's the reason I found Searing Anthem. I still owe him a debt for that. Another reason is that I'd never skip on an opportunity to get one over the Obscuring Shadows Sect. And thirdly… Well, it'll cost me very little to lend you a helping hand, whereas to you it'll mean saving your lives. That, to me, seems like a good trade."

"That's…" Jieyuan gave it some thought. He understood her points, but her stance on it all was still far more altruistic than he'd expect from a cultivator. Especially the last reason she'd mentioned. But this was in line with the earlier impressions he'd gotten from Feihuan.

"Right. You said there were two options."

"Yes," Feihuan said.

"The other one is we make that ruse of mine a reality. You join the Ardent Light Sect as my apprentice. Daojue is also welcome to join, of course. The fact that Searing Anthem accepted him is already more than enough to guarantee admission."

"Meiyao would be joining, too," Jieyuan said. He didn't put it as a question, because that part was non-negotiable. Feihuan glanced over at Meiyao.

"Hmmm. That's your real hair and eyes? Do you have a bloodline?"

"I do," Meiyao said, tightly. She was still giving Feihuan a wary look.

"Then you're welcome as well. The Heavens know we could do with more bloodblessed, especially since how useful the Immaculate Blood Cult have shown bloodlines to be in recent years. Of course, there's also the matter of heavenly affinities. I know yours is seventh-order, Jieyuan, but—""Fourth-order," Jieyuan said.

"For both Meiyao and Daojue." Feihuan pulled away from the pillar, straightening.

"Fourth-order? Both of you? Truly?" This novel's true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. Daojue said nothing. Meiyao said, "Yes."

"Well, now. Color me shocked. One seventh-order, two fourth-orders. That's…" she paused, eyeing them.

"Something." She paused; for a moment, her expression seemed oddly thoughtful. That moment passed quickly, though, and she fixed them with an expectant look.

"So, what will it be? Option one or two?" Jieyuan was already weighing the options. He was tempted to take option one—to have Feihuan take the three of them to somewhere far from here, get away from all this mess. But one thing was stopping him: the Immaculate Blood Cult. After what Taishou had revealed about Meiyao's mother and the captured Tianzijun, there was absolutely no way Meiyao and Daojue would be leaving the Immaculate Blood Cult be.

If they were going to take on the Immaculate Blood Cult eventually, Jieyuan reckoned it'd be better if they had the backing of another Yellowrealm sect. And from what Jieyuan had seen of Feihuan so far? They could do far worse than having someone like her on their side. He wasn't all that sold on this whole apprenticeship business, though. Jieyuan focused on his mind-linker, opening links with both Daojue and Meiyao. Neither of the two reacted outwardly, but both connections were immediately accepted. Daojue?

Meiyao? he sent them. Are you willing to join? Yes, came Daojue's answer. If you go, I'm going, Meiyao sent.

"This apprenticeship," Jieyuan said, and Feihuan perked up.

"What exactly would it entail?" Her eyes brightened. That shimmer from before returned.

"It's fairly standard. I'd mostly be responsible for your resources and guidance in general; in return, I can technically order you around, but trust me, I've already got more servants than I know what to do with." That didn't sound half bad, but Jieyuan had been taught to dig as deep into a deal as possible. Particularly the ones that seemed too good.

"So what exactly would be expected of me, then?"

"Hmmm." Feihuan seemed to think of it for a moment.

"I'll admit, I've never actually had an apprentice. I'm barely a hundred; it hasn't been that long since I reached tenth-step Yellowrealm. But, well, as far as I know, you'd only really have to accompany me to some meetings. Of course, in normal circumstances you'd be expected to eventually become a protector of the sect further down the line, but I don't think you're planning on staying around long." Jieyuan remembered having a similar conversation months ago.

With Wanxin, in the last step of the entrance trial of the Gleaming Stone Sect, just moments after he'd become a cultivator.

"That's correct," he said.

"Then that's really it," Feihuan said, nodding.

"Of course, when you do become a Violetsoul—or a Bluesoul, even—I wouldn't mind if you were to… you know, pay a visit and, I don't know, raze the Obscuring Shadows Sect to the ground… or something along those lines." She gave him a smile just shy of cheeky.

"Well," Jieyuan said, "I do make it a point to repay my debts."

"A good habit, that," Feihuan said. She straightened up.

"Do you accept, then?"

"I do," Jieyuan said.

"We'll join the Ardent Light Sect. And I'll be your apprentice." Feihuan glanced left and right—at Daojue and Meiyao—and then nodded, looking supremely pleased.

"Excellent. Oh, Heavens, can't wait to show you off to everyone else. A soulburner. Anyway, you three won't regret this decision. You joined the sect at just the right time, too. Something big will be happening soon. What I can tell you for now is that it'll involve all four of the local Yellowrealm sects. And there'll be something in it especially for Orangesouls." Before Jieyuan could ask, she nodded at him—or rather, slightly to the left of him.

Jieyuan followed her gaze down to his left arm, or what remained of it. He cringed a little; he'd been trying to ignore that particular issue. It hadn't stopped hurting, sure, but after experiencing the agony from soulburning, the pain from the phantom limb barely registered.

"We'll be seeing to that, too, of course. We've got Yellowrealm pills that can regenerate a limb. They're not cheap, of course, but for my soulburner apprentice? The sect will spare no expense, don't worry. You'll have your arm back, probably even before you advance to Orangerealm." Jieyuan froze, his breath catching. He'd known it'd only be a matter of time before he recovered his left arm; he'd even had some ideas of how he could use Fatebloom Renewal to speed things along.

But he had been under the impression it'd take months, if not years. He struggled for something to say but kept drawing blanks; he settled, rather lamely, on a half-choked, "Thank you." Feihuan waved it off.

"No need for that sort of thing between us. We haven't done the ceremonies yet—we'll be doing those as soon as we're back in the sect—but as far as I'm concerned, you're already my apprentice. Of course, you won't have to call me master until it's official."

"Got it," Jieyuan said. He still wasn't fully sold on having a master, especially one that looked no older than him, but he was warming up to the idea quickly. Again, he wondered if Feihuan was the norm or the exception in the Ardent Light Sect. One thing he wasn't used to, though, was being treated like this. Being prized like this. So far, from the moment he'd become a cultivator, he'd been overshadowed by Meiyao and Daojue in one way or another.

It was strange, having him be the focus and Meiyao and Daojue the afterthought. Then again, if Feihuan knew their real heavenly affinities… That thought gave Jieyuan pause. Feihuan didn't seem to notice the change in him; she'd turned away, her attention now on the corridor, looking it up and down. Jieyuan collected himself again, but inwardly, he thought hard and fast. Daojue's and Meiyao's heavenly affinities. They'd probably be tested, at some point, if only to confirm they were indeed fourth-order.

The problem was, they weren't. They were tenth -order. Was there a way to suppress one's heavenly affinities? Meiyao's and Daojue's had been sealed, but they had no idea how that had been done. Or maybe they could pretend their heavenly affinities were for another Concept, one they did have fourth-order affinity for? Just as Jieyuan was pushing his brain for a solution, another issue occurred to him: the matter of the dark thing in his soul, and how he might advance to Orangerealm.

He couldn't reach tenth-order Redrealm; he'd been betting on trying to use an Orangerealm coalescence hymn at ninth-step and seeing how it went. But if that happened while he was at a sect… then people would know he'd broken through at ninth -step, rather than tenth. That'd draw a lot of attention, because that kind of thing was supposed to be impossible. Jieyuan glanced at Daojue, a third issue occurring to him. Daojue being able to wield Searing Anthem. Supposedly, only Yaojianhui could do it.

That was why Zixuan had assumed Daojue was one. But the Yaojianhui would know Daojue wasn't one of them; not just that, Feihuan clearly knew what a chromal bloodline was. She'd know that Daojue had one, given his violet eyes. Suddenly joining the Ardent Light Sect wasn't looking like such a good idea anymore. Unless… He focused back on Feihuan. She had stepped past them and was looking into one of the doors that opened into the courtyard. Jieyuan caught a rather standard seating room past her.

Unless we have someone covering for us. The obvious choice was Feihuan. She was clearly of high standing in the Ardent Light Sect, and she'd made a very good impression on him so far. But that didn't change the fact that he barely knew the woman. It hadn't been even half a day since he'd met her. Rot. He wouldn't have to decide right now, at least. There would be some time before anything too damning might be at risk of coming out. He'd talk with Meiyao and Daojue, then, and consider their options.

This did directly concern them, after all. It wasn't just Jieyuan's secrets that were at risk here. For now, he reckoned he needed to understand Feihuan—his to-be master, now—better. He went over to her, Meiyao and Daojue following. She was looking into another room. He still didn't know what that was about. She'd also paid attention to the rooms on their way over here.

"Feihuan?" he asked.

"What are you doing?"

"Just, you know, curious," she said, glancing back at him.

"I've been searching for Searing Anthem for a few years now. Before that, I rarely got to leave the sect, so whenever I'm somewhere new, I like to get to know it. This place looks rather… bleak. Does this palace belong to an ascetic sect? I haven't come across one of those before, but I know they exist."

"I don't think so?" Jieyuan said. He took note of the room she'd been looking into; it was another seating room. No decoration in it. Just chairs and bare gray walls.

"This palace is the Xiyunfeng Clan's. I think they just have a rather… severe taste."

"Hmmm." Feihuan moved back from the doorway.

"Well, let's have a look at the living quarters. We'll be staying here for a day or two." She set off down the corridor. They followed.

"We are?" Jieyuan asked.

"I thought we'd be leaving for the sect right now."

"We could, but I want to get some things set up over there first," Feihuan said, leading them out of the courtyard area and into the building proper. Dull gray walls surrounded them; the chromal lights on the ceiling were dim.

"Searing Anthem, two fourth-orders, one of them an Anthem wielder, and my soulburner apprentice. There's also the mess with you killing Zixuan, and the blood price I forced Nifeng to forfeit. That'll make some waves." Up a stairway they went. Feihuan kept looking into the open doors they passed. She really did seem the curious sort.

"I've already reached out to some of the protectors I trust," she continued.

"They're making arrangements so that things will already be mostly settled by the time we arrive. My sectsmen can be rather… passionate about things. Best give them some time to cool. Until then, we'll be staying here. Like I said, it's just a day or two. We shouldn't be in any danger, but I'll put up some inscribed fields over the place just in case." She turned back to them as they walked into a different wing of the building, walking past another plain, dull open courtyard.

"Do you three have any matters left to handle in the city? Tell me if you need to go out. I'll go with, just to be safe."

"I don't think so," Jieyuan said.

"Just… turning in Caoluan's corpse."

"Ah, yes. Your acquaintance. We'll do that before we leave. My sealer ring's got some preservation inscripts; her body will be preserved until then." She paused in front of the first door they came across, opened it, and leaned inside.

"A bedroom! This is the residential wing, then." She glanced back at them.

"Anyway, is that it? Just arranging for the girl's funeral proceedings?"

"That's it from me," he said. He considered, just for a moment, dropping by the Haoyujin compounds. Saying goodbye to his aunt, his cousins, and what remained of his family. Chances were that he wouldn't be back in the city ever again. But no. He'd already decided to leave that part of him—of his life—behind. He was sure Daojue didn't have any pressing matters, either, so he turned to Meiyao. She'd been unusually withdrawn; all this while she'd just kept close to him, her expression mostly undecipherable.

If there was anyone with pending business to deal with here, it was her. There was still the matter of the Liangshibai Clan and the Viridian Death Cult. Jieyuan wasn't sure what had become of them; the Viridian Death Cult had supposedly helped evacuate the Liangshibai, but he wasn't sure if the other Liangshibai had also been drawn to the Maw like Qingshi, Yunzhu, and Wanxin had.

"No," Meiyao said.

"Well, tell me if any of you change your minds, then," Feihuan said. Jieyuan's gaze lingered on Meiyao. On the forced neutrality of her face, on the storm brewing in her green eyes. He knew that look; she was just barely keeping herself under control. And he recalled just what sort of things Meiyao had experienced not too long ago. Just what sort of things she'd lost.

Jieyuan still had some questions he wanted to ask Feihuan (particularly about blood prices and what seemed like rules of engagement between the local Yellowrealm sects; there was also that big thing Feihuan had mentioned), but he set those aside. Right now, he had other priorities. Meiyao was on the right side of him; that made it easy for him to grab her hand. She stilled, glancing at him. He nodded, squeezing her hand, then turned to Feihuan's back.

"We'll go find ourselves a room," Jieyuan said.

"Hmmm?" Feihuan glanced back at them.

"Go ahead. I'll be exploring some more." Jieyuan then gave Daojue a nod before leading Meiyao straight to the nearest door; he opened it, confirmed it was a bedroom—a plain one, with a simple bed, a desk, and little else—and strode inside, Meiyao following, and closed the door behind them. —∞— Jieyuan sat on the bed, his bare back against the headboard. Meiyao lay curled beside him on the bed, the sheets crumpled around her body.

She had her eyes closed, her breathing steady, though he knew she wasn't sleeping, just in deep meditation. It'd been a few hours since they'd gone inside the room. Meiyao hadn't wanted to talk. He'd barely gotten out the first few words of his first question before she pushed him onto the bed. She still hadn't said anything since they entered the room, but the way things had developed on the bed had been worth a thousand words.

There had been passion, but not the sort he'd come to expect from her; he'd let her set the pace, and for the first time since their first time, she'd taken it slow. Slow and tender and steady. It'd been different. The change of pace would've been nice if there hadn't been such a weight hanging over Meiyao. And over him, by extension. He glanced down at her, brushed some stray locks off her face. As his fingers grazed her cheeks, he couldn't help but note the lingering moistness.

They'd have to talk, eventually, about everything. But it seemed like she had to process it herself first. He felt something stab at his heart. He wanted to do more for her, but he wasn't sure what. He hadn't had any experience with relationships as Amyas, and Meiyao was his first real lover in his current life. He'd already summoned Maeva to see if she could offer some advice, but all she'd said was to give Meiyao time and be there for her. He sighed. It'd have to do.

And in the meantime, he had his own matters to handle. The most pressing being his cultivation. Soulburning had returned him to eighth-step Redrealm, and he needed to make up for lost ground as fast as possible. Reaching inward, he concentrated, feeling out for the presence of the Heavens. As he entered Heavenly Communion, though, he immediately noticed something was off. The presence of the Heavens bloomed inside his mind—and it was much, much stronger than it'd ever been.

Before, it'd been an airy weight on his consciousness. Now it was almost like a solid thing, broad and expansive, wrapping around his being. What's happening? Jieyuan could only remember feeling the Heavens this strongly once before. Back in the Absolute Sword Trials, when he'd carried the spheres of Concepts inside him. He fully focused on the presence of the Heavens, trying to understand what was going on—and as he did, he caught a trace of something. Another impression. One of heat and passion and sacrifice.

FIRE. Jieyuan froze, then focused on Fire's presence. Communed with the Concept. And the moment he did it, he knew it. Knew it by instinct and intuition. His affinity with Fire was no longer seventh-order. It was tenth-order now. But how? His heavenly affinity was fourth-order. He'd, exceptionally, raised some of his affinities past that in the Absolute Sword Trials. One of those exceptions was his Fire affinity, which he'd raised to seventh-order. Except it was tenth -order. Which should've been impossible.

And it wasn't just Fire's presence that was stronger. It was that of the Heavens. So it wasn't just his Fire affinity that was tenth-order, but his heavenly affinity. The last time he'd entered Heavenly Communion had barely been a few hours ago, when Fire had whispered to him his soulburn aria. The only thing that had changed between now and then… was his soulburning. Had it increased his affinity somehow? But no. That didn't add up. Soulburning wasn't something special to him. Others could do it.

Only, what if it hadn't increased his heavenly affinity, but rather unlocked it? He recalled how Meiyao's heavenly affinity had been mysteriously, unintentionally unsealed when Muyeshen unlocked her bloodline. And how the same thing had happened to Daojue when the Red Ring lent him its power. And just like that, he was struck by the realization that he might be more like Daojue and Meiyao than he'd ever assumed.