Wu Jianwu sneered. Now that they were in this sect, his status among the three of them had changed. Arrogantly waving his hand, he summoned one of his children, the parrot, who perched on his head.

Wu Jianwu didn’t say a word after that. Instead, his parrot stuck his chin up and spoke for his father.

“What kind of immature, bull** plan is that? You think Mistress Rosyclouds is an idiot or something? If my dad tries to seduce her, she’ll definitely get suspicious! Then all she’ll have to do is scan the spirit spring, and she’ll know exactly what you two are up to! If you want to court death, that’s fine. But leave my dad out of it! He refuses to go along!”

Xu Qing looked at the parrot, and noted the way it held its head arrogantly and looked down its beak at them.

The Captain, meanwhile, looked visibly surprised. “I never said that we would set stuff up in the spirit spring after your dad seduced her! It’s the opposite! Of course she’ll get suspicious when your dad seduces her. And then when she checks the spirit spring, she’ll find that there’s nothing out of the ordinary there. It’ll be the same way every time. After that happens a few dozen times, then her suspicions will naturally fade away. Am I right, or am I right?”

The parrot was stunned, and Wu Jianwu’s expression seemed a bit more solemn than before.

“It will take time to set things up in the world fragment,” the Captain continued, “But as far as the spirit spring goes, getting the spell formation ready will only take about six hours.”

The parrot surreptitiously looked down at his father. Wu Jianwu, meanwhile, looked a bit hesitant.

The Captain, who knew Wu Jianwu very well, went on to make some more persuasive arguments. Toward the end, as Wu Jianwu finally seemed to be wavering, the Captain made his final move.

“Worst case scenario, we can forget about my past-life body. I have other alternatives ready. It’s just sad that I won’t be able to get those five volumes of ancient records left behind by Ancient Emperor Dark Serenity. Ai. There are just so many descriptions of the Ancient Emperor in there, such as his ambitions when he was young, all of which were recorded in the form of poetry….

“You know, I actually remember one poem from in there. I can even recite it for you! Heavenly daos bend the knee, sun and moon shine so clear; purge the imperial lands and bring order to the frontier.” The Captain spoke in a soft voice, but there was something magnificently powerful about his words. 1

Wu Jianwu shivered from head to toe, and he suddenly looked fascinated. Quickly putting away the parrot, he took a deep breath and nodded.

“I’m in!” The determination in his eyes, and the forcefulness with which he spoke those two words, made it clear that he had made a firm decision.

The Captain’s eyes glittered with approval as he stepped over to start discussing some details with Wu Jianwu.

Off to the side, Xu Qing sighed inwardly and went over to the door to stand guard.

Normally the nights were dark, but right now, there were countless shimmering lights in the air. They were the Yin-Yang Betwixt Flowers Sect’s special dancing butterflies, which not only pulsed with curse power and dangerous poison, but also shone brightly at night.

Disciples in this sect are good with dangerous poisons, so they aren’t bothered by the dancing butterflies’ poison. But what exactly caused me to feel that strange sensation? And not once, but twice.

After some thought, Xu Qing reached out to the god’s finger in D-132 inside of him. He found that īt was sleeping soundly….

Don’t tell me that provoking that heavenfate tribulation created some potential calamity?

Xu Qing frowned as he analyzed the situation.

The night passed.

The next morning, the Captain’s new plan was carried out. As the sun climbed over the horizon, Wu Jianwu strolled out of their guest accommodations, a placid look on his face. He was on his way to carry out the mission as devised by the Captain: to seduce Mistress Rosyclouds!

It was obviously a very formidable task, and succeeding at it related directly to Wu Jianwu’s personal dreams. Therefore, he took the mission as something sacred. As he walked out of the door, the sunlight illuminated him, and he turned to look at the Captain and Xu Qing. .𝒎

The Captain clenched his hand into a fist and pumped it in the air encouragingly. “You’ve got this!”

Wu Jianwu stuck his chin up and nodded slightly, then turned and walked off into the distance.

The Captain watched him go. After a few breaths of time passed, and Wu Jianwu was definitely out of sight, the Captain took out an eyeball and then squatted off to the side, where he beckoned at Xu Qing. Xu Qing wasn’t surprised at all by this. There was no way the Captain would ignore his own curiosity and refrain from spying. In fact, it seemed entirely likely that he was recording everything.

“Hahaha! Big Jianjian has his uses after all!” Looking very pleased, the Captain took out a recording jade slip which he used to record everything the eyeball was showing.

Xu Qing said nothing. He just looked at the image of Wu Jianwu as projected by the eyeball.

***

As Wu Jianwu walked through the Yin-Yang Betwixt Flowers Sect, he was actually quite nervous, and had to keep saying encouraging things to himself. Eventually, he stopped by a small pavilion. After taking a deep breath, he took out a jade slip to send a voice message to Mistress Rosyclouds. Back when she first escorted them into the sect, they had exchanged jade slip information.

“The birds are nowhere to be seen in the firmament; oh immortal, this pavilion can make destiny permanent!”

After sending the message, Wu Jianwu clasped his hands behind his back and looked up into the sky. The wind blew, stirring his long hair. Shortly after, he heard a kind, smiling voice from behind him.

“Did you call for me, young sir?”

Wu Jianwu didn’t turn around. Instead, he proudly said, “In heaven, glowing clouds meander and flow; on earth, the minstrel is joined by the rosy glow.”

Mistress Rosyclouds eyes shone as she walked up to Wu Jianwu. Looking at him from the side, she said, “The royal spring basks in the light of the moon; in this life, cleanse the heart to bring a boon.”

Wu Jianwu shivered and turned to look at Mistress Rosyclouds, his eyes glowing. He previously had assumed that there was little more to the situation than Mistress Rosyclouds understanding his poetry. Because of that, the poem he had sent as a voice message was something he casually composed on the fly. Little did he know that Mistress Rosyclouds was also adept at speaking in poetry.

Getting even more excited, he quietly said, “With no dark gales, who can speak in verse? The green waters’ ripples will never disperse!”

As the sun shone onto Mistress Rosyclouds’ face, she seemed to flush slightly. Looking off at the horizon, she replied, “Heaven trembles but green mountains stand; in this dream of life, what can be planned?”

Wu Jianwu thought for a moment. Not being ready to give up, he continued, “The unripe plums have a violet glow; brew them into wine and toward home we go!”

Mistress Rosyclouds hesitated. Emotions rising and falling, she quietly said, “We met by chance, and follow the wind; yet we can still discuss the principles of Zen.”

Wu Jianwu’s mood sank slightly, but he forced himself to smile brightly. Mistress Rosyclouds also smiled. Then the two of them walked off together. The wind accompanied them, and the sun lit their path. Dancing butterflies swirled in the air. Altogether, it was a dazzling and beautiful scene that defied description. And yet, despite the beauty of the scene, it still resonated with a feeling of heartbreak.

***

“What were they saying to each other?” the Captain said. Looking blankly at Xu Qing, he continued, “Why did it seem like they were passing secret messages?”

Xu Qing’s eyes looked just as blank as the Captain’s. Up to now, there was only one person they knew of who could understand Wu Jianwu’s poetry, and that was Mistress Rosyclouds.

A moment passed. Xu Qing and the Captain exchanged a glance, and then went back to spying on Wu Jianwu.

The day passed and evening approached. That was when Wu Jianwu returned. His expression was one of pain and grief. He didn’t say anything once he was back. He just sat in a chair and stared blankly at nothing.

Seeing that, the Captain went over to offer some encouraging words. Wu Jianwu just shook his head and sighed. Some time passed.

Finally, Wu Jianwu said, “No flower blooms for a hundred years; the stars before pāramitā shed gauzy tears.”

The Captain frowned and looked at Xu Qing. Xu Qing’s eyes turned cold.

“Speak like a normal person!”

As Wu Jianwu just sat there scowling on the verge of tears, his parrot flew out and landed on his head. Sighing, the parrot said, “My dad got rejected.”

“That’s fine!” the Captain said, sliding his arm around Wu Jianwu’s shoulders. “That’s just how women are! Look, Big Jianjian, the trick is to play hard to get. I can teach you a few things that will definitely secure you the victory!” With that, the Captain went on to discuss some strategies.

By dawn, Wu Jianwu was completely enlivened, and hurried out to ask for another date.

Slowly but surely, twelve days passed. It was now less than a week until Nethersprite was supposed to show up.

Xu Qing and the Captain would occasionally visit the spirit spring, but still hadn’t done any work toward their plan.

As for Wu Jianwu, he had made some progress. On just about a daily basis he would ask Mistress Rosyclouds out on a date. The two of them would go for outings or recite poetry together. And a few times, they had long, intimate talks in which they praised Ancient Emperor Dark Serenity’s literary and artistic talents. In that manner, the two of them unwittingly got closer to each other.

Mistress Rosyclouds would get daily reports about what Xu Qing and the Captain were up to, and as time passed without anything unusual happening, she slowly started to get less suspicious of them.

Three days before Nethersprite was supposed to show up, Xu Qing and the Captain finally took action. As usual, they went to the spirit spring for a soak.

After settling down cross-legged, the Captain snapped off one of his fingers and sent it wriggling through the water like a caterpillar. After quietly circling the spirit spring once, it went to the middle, settled down, and transformed into what looked like a little clump of mud.

Xu Qing’s eyes were closed as he absorbed the nourishing power of the spirit spring, and didn’t give off even the slightest suspicious feeling. However, just when the Captain finished with his work, a group of dancing butterflies flew in their direction. Xu Qing’s heart flip-flopped, and as he looked over at the approaching butterflies, he yet again felt a strange sensation sweep over him. His vision blurred. The world seemed like it was superimposed over itself, including the rocks, terrain features, and even the spirit spring itself. It was the same with the people present as well. Only the Captain remained clear!

His head suddenly throbbed, and at the same time, felt like he had become the center of the world, and everything else was spinning around him. The sensation prompted him to close his eyes again and try to get rid of the feeling. Waves of weakness and revulsion swept through him, and without him even realizing it, sweat started dripping down his forehead.

Not even soaking in the warm spring water could get rid of the coldness within him. The sounds that reached his ears were faint, to the point where he almost couldn’t hear them. The sensation lasted for longer than before. It was a full ten breaths of time before he recovered.

Eyes snapping open, he breathed heavily as he looked around. His face was ashen, and he found himself leaning up against the stones that lined the spring. The Captain was there, supporting him.

“What’s wrong?”

“Eldest Brother, is there something you’re hiding from me?” Xu Qing said quietly, looking at the Captain.

The Captain didn’t answer the question. Smiling sincerely, he said, “Just trust me, little Ah Qing.”

Xu Qing nodded and didn’t ask any more questions. Shortly after, they got out of the spirit spring and went back to their room. Nothing unusual happened the entire time. In fact, Xu Qing felt like things went too smoothly. It was as if every single element of their plan was succeeding perfectly. Wu Jianwu had established a close relationship with Mistress Rosyclouds, ensuring that she didn’t notice anything suspicious about them. With all the preparations made, all they needed to do now was wait for Nethersprite to show up.

Xu Qing didn’t give voice to any of his misgivings. The next day, it was time for them to leave the Yin-Yang Betwixt Flowers Sect.

Wu Jianwu was clearly reluctant to part with Mistress Rosyclouds. But for the sake of the greater good, he gritted his teeth and left, not even looking over his shoulder as she saw them off.

*** .

Three days after they left, Nethersprite appeared.

From a distance, it was possible to see the grand procession escorting her, including handmaidens dancing and scattering flowers.

No one seemed to notice that, as she neared, a pair of ancient eyes opened on the twin peaks. There was deep meaning in those eyes as they looked out.

“How amusing.”

1. In Chinese poetry, fixed-line poetry is fairly common among poems. In other words, each line will have the same number of Chinese characters. Wu Jianwu’s poetry always contains two lines that are seven characters each. The poem recited by the Captain has two lines that are eight characters each. I’m by no means an expert in Chinese poetry, so I’m not really sure if that’s supposed to be significant. I did some cursory brushing up on Chinese poetry and couldn’t find anything to provide insight in that regard. As far as I know, it’s common historically for poems to have either seven or eight characters. If any of you have insights, feel free to share them in the comments. ☜

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