Flame licked at Liu Sumeng sleeves and in the dead of winter, the heat became overbearing. He didn"t dare to take off his jacket, for it was the only reason why his entire body hadn"t yet been singed to an ugly crisp. "Brazen fools who tread upon my lands in seek of my power deserve nothing more than to be turned into a pile of as.h.!.+" The phoenix screeched. "And what have I done to deserve this treatment? I, who had done nothing but offered my kindness, my guidance, and my patience!"
Fire rained down upon him in endless waves. Liu Sumeng couldn"t afford to grip his sword with both hands, too busy forming seals for that extra bit of protection from his barriers. It was the only thing he could do in the situation.
With his patience finally widdled away, Yuan Xuelan cursed and activated the spell. A purple glow encapsulated the entire area. A sharp cry, pained and angered echoed in the woods. The spell a.s.saulted the phoenix"s already volatile spiritual energy. It flared, leaking out like an uncontrollable whirlwind. Fire raged and even the earth trembled at the terrifying outpour.
Liu Sumeng raised his sword to deflect another wave of flames before ducking behind a rock that was barely big enough to protect him. He concentrated on erecting a barrier around him even as the very earth was being devoured by phoenix fire. Not even stone stood a chance. Sweat beaded at his brow and he was reminded of a sea of fire of ice from a previous life. Except now he had no desire to face death, no desire to leave behind an ocean of haunting regrets.
When the worst of the waves dissipate, the phoenix was left collapse upon a large barren land. Where there was once frozen gra.s.s, branches and trees lay nothing but scorched earth. Flicker of flame still licked the ground, refusing to relinquish their embers. The phoenix, though exhausted, was still dangerous. With a single swipe of its clawed toes of a peck of that sharp beak could easily end a man"s life.
Yuan Xuelan drew his sword and leaped off the cliff. Though the divine bird was tired its instincts were still sharp and felt the young cultivator"s presence and killing intent. It lifted its large head and was able to meet the sword edge with a hardened beak.
"It"s a thousand years too early for you yet, stupid boy," it sneered with false bravado and immense pride. It dragged itself back onto its feet and fanned out those red wings. Although there was no more divine fire pouring out in devastating surges, the bird alone was still a fearsome beast.
Liu Sumeng stepped forward as well, his sword pointed forth and countenance unafraid. He was undeterred even if his spiritual energy was low and even as his skin p.r.i.c.ked with the sharp sting of third-degree burns.
Yuan Xuelan moved first and rushed in to draw the phoenix"s attention. But who knew a bird could be skilled at martial arts? The phoenix met him with its talons and could twist and maneuver in the air like a seasoned master. Perhaps it should have been weird to watch a bird fight with its talons and wings like arms and legs but the phoenix was a creature of refined grace. A large wing knocked Yuan Xuelan off his feet and he decided he was never again going to underestimate the force of a bird"s punch.
But Liu Sumeng was there to break his fall and catch him in those strong, steady arms. "Leave this to me." He seemed to smile in the midst of this dire situation.
"As if!" Yuan Xuelan scoffed as he jolted back up. This time the two cultivators charged at the phoenix together, parrying the attacks of beak and talons as well as the powerful swipes of a well-defined wing.
With a brash forward leap, Liu Sumeng was able to get in close and left a large slash on its left wing. Blood poured out and stained his sword. Where normally a phoenix"s wound would heal instantly, the cut remained open and bleeding. The phoenix reared its head in fury, and kicked its leg at him. It grazed Liu Sumeng"s shoulder as he twisted around to counter again.
The bird, sensing danger flapped its wings to take to the air. But it was wounded and struggled to remain airborne. With strength fast slipping, those red eyes faded to golden stripped of the embers of its powerful spiritual energy. Liu Sumeng was struck with pity and the memories of the victims of all their bloodl.u.s.t from a previous life. For this bird, like many of them, was also innocent.
Yuan Xuelan, seeing his chance, reached into his robes and cast out a golden net. The phoenix saw this coming but with its strength drained didn"t have the energy to disentangled from its prison. The divine bird crashed into earth.
Even now, caught and bound with all its powers exhausted, there was something beautiful about the creature. Though its feathers were ruffled they did not lose their mystical s.h.i.+ne. The eyes that looked up at them was neither sad nor fearful. Instead, there was pity.
"You will regret this," it told them, a soft sheen of gold covered its body until its size began to shrink, to reform. And in the place of a towering divine bird was a woman dressed in gold and red. Her skin was too supple to tell of age, but she held a gaze too wise and knowing to tell of youth.
"I-is it over?" Peng Jipei stepped out of his hiding spot and crept over, looking upon the woman caught under the golden net.
"Yeah," Yuan Xuelan huffed and pointed his sword at her, "Time to harvest that core. You better thank me for all this trouble, Peng-ge."
"Think about this very carefully," the phoenix huffed, her att.i.tude still haughty even at the face of death. She would not be robbed of her pride, her majesty, nor her beauty.
"Sorry Auntie, but you can blame this guy here," Yuan Xuelan nudged towards Peng Jipei. He had no sympathy towards her plight, and not even a flicker of hesitance impeded him from raising his blade.
And such was Yuan Xuelan"s character, who slaved and poured his entire heart out to the people close to him but couldn"t muster even a sliver of empathy to those he didn"t. Liu Sumeng felt his chest stutter. Was he really going to allow the same mistakes to unfold before his eyes a second time? Was he really so foolish? There were so many things he had to protect Yuan Xuelan from, how could he forget that one of those things was Yuan Xuelan himself?
The Ivory Sword Saint caught his wrist before he could slaughter the helpless woman before them, "Wait. Don"t."
Yuan Xuelan froze. The hand on his wrist burned worst than the phoenix"s flames. As much as he wished to shake it off, he found that he couldn"t. Dark eyes gazed at him and Yuan Xuelan suddenly felt that the Ivory Sword Saint"s face was one that was too expressive and much too honest. His throat went dry and Yuan Xuelan shamefully hid his anxiety with a sneer, "It"s a bit too late for that, don"t you think?"
Peng Jipei looked at them with confused panic, but he didn"t say anything. Not yet.
"There is no need for this." His grip on Yuan Xuelan"s wrist tightened, "Please."
And though her very fate was being discussed, the phoenix also remained quiet.
Yuan Xuelan threw away the hand that held him back and bore his teeth at the Ivory Sword Saint. How dare he scold Yuan Xuelan? "No need! Tell that to my idiot cousin, would you? Did you think I was doing this because I want to? Do you think me a cruel person?"
"You are cruel." The words, a confession, were blunt. But Liu Sumeng"s eyes were misty and trembling. And when Yuan Xuelan wanted to curse the man in front of him he found that he could only curse himself.
He glared at the Ivory Sword Saint and then he glared at his idiot cousin who got all of them into this stupid mess in the first place, "Fine, whatever. You two deal with this yourselves!" He turned his back and stomped off in a huff. A storm roared inside of him, threatening to break free. Yuan Xuelan walked and kept walking until he found land that was snow-dusted once more. He walked until he could duck under the cover of trees, far enough so he didn"t have to glimmer, didn"t have hear Liu Sumeng, Peng Jipei and that d.a.m.ned phoenix.
An ugly hurt flared within, a betrayal that he could fault no one with.
Because Yuan Xuelan was cruel.
But he was loyal! Wasn"t that enough? Wasn"t it enough to bid his life and will to his sword for those he loved? Wasn"t it enough to be reliable, to be a protector, a s.h.i.+eld? What more could they want from him? The feelings of compa.s.sion that could never bloom?
Yuan Xuelan sighed and leaned his back against the chilled trunk of a tall tree. The wind picked up and sent little needles into his skin. He hated the cold. When he was a child, Cao Sanmei almost abandoned him in a forest much like this one, with snow almost as tall as he. She found him cold, lost in a dense thicket of trees, his little hands frozen blue.
She held him crying with her breath stinking of wine, "Your mother is sorry, please forgive this stupid woman. Oh, I"m so dumb, how could I lose my cute child in the woods? It"s all that man"s fault! If it wasn"t for him, I wouldn"t have been so careless. I wouldn"t have drunk so much."
Yuan Xuelan, eight, killed the man his mother kept wailing about, believing that she would no longer forget him in the snow. But Cao Sanmei only smiled at him and patted his head. And then she took him to the next town to run away from the officials. There, she found a new man to entangle with and a new reason to sob and drown in alcohol. Yuan Xuelan, ten, was sold off to the Chen family, the final act of a mother"s warmth.
And perhaps he was the one that had been cruel, but Yuan Xuelan didn"t see himself in the wrong. For he was loyal and he was kind to Cao Sanmei and to Chen Anyue. He was also loyal and kind to Peng Jipei. Was he not kind to Liu Sumeng as well? Maybe not at first but...
A deafening silence surrounded him. There were no footsteps coming to claim him, no one calling his name.