It was the Seven Moons Elder"s misfortune, for she had greatly underestimated her foe. Could she have been faulted though? Most men and women would fall at her prowess and skill. She couldn"t have known that her opponent was the Ivory Sword Saint himself, who parried and knocked her off balance as if mere child"s play. Even worse, that the shorter, soft-face cultivator was no cultivator at all! And was a demon with powers that startlingly resembled a Hui.
A pained grunt escaped her lips as a heavy blow came down on her sword. Who knew such elegant movements could pack such terrifying strength. Her nerves yelled, numbing needles traveling up her arm that made her grip falter.
She clenched her teeth and cursed how calm the Ivory Sword Saint was, not a single bead of sweat glistened upon his brow.
But it was not the Ivory Sword Saint or even the strange enemy demon that wove her greatest concerns.
The bright glow of a sacred sword and eyes that danced with rage. Of course she was attentive to the winds of gossip and news of an Ascending Dawn boy that had fingers so deft and a mind keen for engineering. So much so, there were whispers of the name the Divine Craftsman() that floated around her circles.
Who knew that genius boy was also a madman? Though his swordsmans.h.i.+p was not nearly as refined or as elegant as the Ivory Sword Saint, nor did he command as much strength and power as the demon, there was the unmistakable glint of bloodl.u.s.t in those eyes.
They were the eyes of an evil beast, its belly full with meat but still craving blood. A rabid animal that loved blood for the sake of letting blood.
Not even the demon king, Hui Ziw.a.n.g, could match up to this level of villainy.
Her heart dropped hearing the struggling cries of her disciples and their soft pleads for mercy. She could hardly focus on the swordmaster she faced.
But this woman was not stupid, she would not call a retreat, knowing that one should never show their backside to an angered beast. But she could not yield her disciples" lives so easily either. Pride was a secondary thing. And when her eye caught sight of the monster of a craftsman angle his sword for a fatal strike on her pitiful disciple, she did not need much motivation to yield.
The Elder shoved herself between the roaring buzz of Silei"s fire and her disciple"s cowering figure.
"I yield!" She called, her voice loud and steady. Knowing that her words would not easily cut through the bloodthirsty boy"s mind with reason, she had raised her sword in defense.
But the sacred blade, Silei, sliced through the steel of her sword as though it were wet paper, and wedged itself into her shoulder, catching her collar bone.
The Seven Moon Elder instantly felt faint but refused to show weakness and shouted as she could, "We yield! I will show you where the Fallen G.o.d is. If you kill any one of us I will refuse any information!"
But there was still rage in those eyes that crackled with red. She was fearful for a moment that all their lives will end in this madman"s hands.
"Enough." The Ivory Sword Saint"s voice was masked with calm, opposite to the horror and chaos he felt in his mind. He quickly grabbed Yuan Xuelan"s arm, forcing him to pull Silei back before the woman died. "Xuelan. That"s more than enough."
Yuan Xuelan clicked his tongue in impatience when he sheathed his sword. He grumbled, then looked at Liu Sumeng apologetically and backed off without saying a word.
What was that? Liu Sumeng had no idea. He was frustrated that even if Yuan Xuelan acted sweet and kindly to him, he still didn"t seem to trust him with his heart.
Of course, the Ivory Sword Saint was beginning to feel worried, but currently had no time to address that matter. Not when the woman bleeding out in front of his eyes was promising exactly what it was they came here for.
"Show us the way," he said tersely and watched the Seven Moons woman nod.
Hui Moxiang, who had remained silent till now, poked his head between their exchange, "What if it"s a trap?"
"We"ll kill them if it"s a trap," Yuan Xuelan said casually.
Liu Sumeng frowned, not liking how eagerly Xuelan sought violence but this time he couldn"t refute the teenager either. The Ivory Sword Saint nodded.
The Seven Moons woman chuckled bitterly, "Do I really look like I"m in the position right now to lead you guys into a trap? Never mind. As long as my cute disciples remained unharmed I don"t care. I will show you the Fallen G.o.d you so seek."
Though her actions might be considered traitorous, she reasonably thought that there would be a good chance of these idiots falling to the Fallen G.o.d"s might. And if that were the case then she could pretend there was no problem in Hengsheng at all.
She calculated that this would be her best chance of survival at this point.
"Follow me," she said between rasping breaths as she forced herself up despite the pain.
Contrary to their initial beliefs, they were led outside of the watchtower.
"Huh, I guess I was wrong after all," Hui Moxiang hummed absently as he followed.
Yuan Xuelan"s eyes swept around them, scrutinizing the vacant town streets and the abandoned residences in search of suspicious tells and movements. But rather than being high on alarm because of mistrust, it was almost as if he was waiting for any tiny opportunity to jump back into the fray.
Liu Sumeng saw this and felt weariness in his heart. How he could even deal with this at such a time? Could he pull Xuelan aside and have a proper conversation?
It wasn"t as if Liu Sumeng could even have a proper conversation in the first place.
Sighing, he circled a hand around Yuan Xuelan"s upper arm, startling the younger out of his sharp alert.
Yuan Xuelan jolted in his steps and looked at Liu Sumeng with wide startled eyes. He was leaning away as if instinctively trying to make distance.
Liu Sumeng ignored how this hurt his heart. He kept his voice steady and a little soft, "Keep up, don"t dawdle."
At this point, Yuan Xuelan could recognize the subtle differences between when he was being scolded and when Liu Sumeng was trying to awkwardly comfort him.
For an instant, he relaxed into the touch, soothed by Liu Sumeng"s gentleness.
"I…" But he remembered that this person did not like him the same way he liked him. A silly pettiness hearkened self-hatred. Yuan Xuelan shook himself out of Liu Sumeng"s hold. "I"m sorry, I"ll pay attention and follow your lead."
"..."
They were led to a small plaza that had once been the heart of Hengsheng and welcomed many peddlers and travelers.
"It"s here," the Seven Moons Elder said, clutching her b.l.o.o.d.y shoulder.
But there was nothing there. The plaza was quiet like the rest of the town. There were stalls of rotting fruits of vegetables. Old animal carca.s.ses rotting and carriages left forgotten. But nothing else. No overflow of corruption, resentment, or any other spiritual energy that simmered or saturated the air.
The three walked around to investigate but Yuan Xuelan"s face was quick to pull into a grimace, "Are you pulling our legs?"
Liu Sumeng"s gaze was a lot gentler when he looked at the woman, but was still imploring.
She shook her head and pointed at the cobblestone ground. "It"s there."
With a wave of her hand, a large array appeared under their feet but soon the symbols burned and disappeared. It was a simple concealment spell. Once dissipated, there was an obvious whirl of uncomfortable energy that brewed beneath the ground. To say it was resentful energy would be wrong. It wasn"t quite like demonic energy either, nor spiritual energy.
There was a hint of corruption, but not thick in the way of resentful energy. It was powerful and volatile like demonic energy and also elegant and precise like spiritual energy.
Whatever it was, it felt wrong.
"So how do we get to it?" Hui Moxiang s.h.i.+vered, instinctively taking a step back.
"I will leave that to yourselves." The Seven Moons Elder sighed as she sat down next to an old abandoned carriage. "I have done my job."
"Thank you," Liu Sumeng hummed as he drew Mingshui, "you may leave with your disciples. Go find somewhere safe."
"Hah, no need to concern yourself with me," her lashes fluttered closed, "I will just rest here a little. I"m sure my cute disciples have already run off, the cowards."
Even as they investigated and prodded, everything was eerily still.
"So, what now?" Hui Moxiang stomped against the hard ground without any effect. The sky was dark with howling winds and though he might have been a demon, Hui Moxiang felt chills creep down his spine. "We draw the thing out?"
"Yes," Liu Sumeng answered, "Fallen G.o.ds will not move without being commanded. But they will still react to being attacked."
The demon hummed, "You sure know a lot, Liu-ge."
Yuan Xuelan rotated his shoulder and drew Silei, "Draw it out huh? Well if it"s just lying around under dirt like a corpse, that"s not a big problem." He stabbed the ground with his sword. The blade glowed red along with the heart of his eyes, raging with wildfire.
Orange lights escaped between cobblestone, lighting the ground beneath their feet. A deep rumbling sound was heard through the earth.
Boom!
Crack!
Long, deep blue fingers pried open the earth.
From it, emerged an enormous figure, taller even than the tallest man standing almost one zhang[1] in height. Unlike a corpse creeping out of its grave, it did not grumble or groan mindlessly.
The Fallen G.o.d was female in appearance with a round dainty face. Her hair was long enough to trail on the ground and it was like a beautiful silk scarf. Her eyes were calm and half-lidded with fanning lashes that hovered over eyes completely black, including the scleras. Her dress was black and gray with subtle hints of midnight blue, matching the deep tinge on her skin.
She had no words for them but hummed in a low feminine tone that resounded in the air from all directions.
When she looked upon Yuan Xuelan, he instantly felt that this monster was gazing right through his soul. He trembled at its sight, containing his terror with a sneer of aggression.
[1] 3.58 metres (11 feet 9 inches)