暮云春树 (mù yún chūn shù) - "Evening clouds, spring trees"; thinking of friends who are far away.

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"You're leaving, Miss Fén, Miss Cultivator?"

Miss Fén patted the child who had asked the question on the head. "Sorry, little one, but those demons won't hunt themselves. Shīmèi needs to come with me to improve her cultivation too."

The villagers gathered around, genuinely disappointed that the lively demon hunter and gentle cultivator were leaving them behind. They had grown quite fond of the two women, even if the former had a bit of a tendency to do whatever she wanted, and the latter insisted on camping beside the once-cursed lake.

She had finally set foot in the village for the first time that day, only to say goodbye. The villagers presented them with a little of the food they could spare from the autumn harvest, a veiled hat for Lián, and lots of advice. As well as the remainder of Miss Fén's fee, for she had headed to Chūn before they had paid.

"The nights are getting cold. Stay warm!"

"Miss Fén, be alert in the border towns. They're saying the flooding of the military village was the work of demons!"

"Xiǎo Lián, you need to eat more, you're so skinny! Hey, bring a few more sweet potatoes over here!"

Eyes shining, Lián bid the villagers farewell, following in Miss Fén's footsteps as they began to head south. She felt weightless, like a petal on a breeze, and almost expected herself to float away if she didn't pay attention, now that the curse had been lifted.

In the end though, Miss Fén had to confess that she did not know the exact identity of the person who had cast the curse. She also would not tell Lián why she did not believe the woman who confronted her on her wedding day was the one who cursed her, much to Lián's inner disappointment.

She's hiding things from me again, she thought. And then, in a very different tone, should I find out what it is~?

The thought was forgotten almost immediately. She was grateful for Miss Fén's assistance, and no one had any permission to demand information of anyone. She would respect Miss Fén's decision to keep quiet.

Still, it made it difficult to be truly free with her own words to Miss Fén. The demon hunter had a relaxed, amicable air about her that would lull Lián into talking more than she had in her life, but this also resulted in the cultivator feeling a little anxious about revealing so much when Miss Fén was so reticent. She wanted to ask if Miss Fén truly viewed her as a junior sister, but that seemed selfish after all Miss Fén had done for her.

Lián sighed, her spirits sinking a little. Never had she had so much turmoil in her mind. Her cultivation path sought stillness and tranquillity, but here she was running around in her own mind like a headless chicken. It was impacting her advancement towards Third-Dantian level, which she had resumed once she was well enough.

Her century in the lake had set back her cultivation journey; with her Still Water Heart, she had managed to keep her senses for several decades, but without the important things in life – nourishing food and rest, warmth and shelter, and the support and contact of fellow humans – her mental strength had begun to fail, and her energy began to warp and skew towards the demonic. Miss Fén had luckily come along and rescued her, but she could also owe it to a certain extent to her mental focus.

And yet here she was, losing her mind over the unknown thoughts of her saviour. This couldn't do.

I'll just make it so she won't leave me.

"Have you decided what you will do when you get to Chūn?" Miss Fén's voice interrupted her thoughts. Lián shook herself slightly. What had she been thinking about?

"Seek an audience with the king, to start. Hopefully my knowledge of the inner workings of the kingdom will convince him of who I am."

"What will you do if it doesn't?"

Can I come with you? she wanted to ask, but how could she impose on an adventurous, free-spirited hunter? Instead, she smiled peaceably. "I'll convince him."

They camped a few kilometres away from the border crossing that night, in a small natural clearing in the forest. Miss Fén had no qualms about lighting a small campfire to keep them warm. She was confident in her fighting abilities.

"And I hate the cold." She shivered and wrapped her cloak more tightly around herself, sitting so close to the fire that Lián was worried she would catch fire herself.

"Are you a cat?" The cultivator smiled, handing the demon hunter a roasted sweet potato. Miss Fén grinned with a flash of slightly sharper than normal canines.

"Maybe." She began to peel the potato, its warm sweet scent enveloping them. As she went to take a bite, she suddenly stopped. Lián had paused too in the middle of peeling her own potato.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

"What was that?"

Their heads swivelled simultaneously in the direction of the nearby forest. In a flash, Miss Fen was gone from the fireside and there was a yelp from the darkness.

"Ow ow ow! Get off me!"

Lián leapt after Miss Fén at marginally slower speed to find that the demon hunter had... hunted a demon.

Miss Fén had a male demon by one of his long earlobes, as though she were scolding a naughty child. He looked relatively young, with the appearance of one in his late teens, his horns still small, but beings with strong spiritual or demonic powers could not be easily labelled. Lián was more surprised with how Miss Fén was handling him.

"Are you not... going to kill him?" she asked, over the demon's wails.

"I will if he keeps making that noise," Miss Fén replied threateningly, letting some of her powerful aura wash over the young demon. He ceased wailing immediately.

"Good. What do you want?"

"Sweet potato," he answered immediately, drooling at the fragrant smell.

"You can't have one. Those are ours."

"Please, benevolent miss! Just one potato for a poor lone demon! I'm so hungry!"

"Fan Ze-"

"No."

Miss Fén slung the demon over her shoulder like a sack and carried him back to the fire. She dumped him unceremoniously beside it.

"Then I guess I'll have to go eat a person from the nearest village," the demon suggested brightly.

Miss Fén smiled cheerfully in return. "There's a chestnut tree a few hundred metres that way. Take this bag, fill it with good chestnuts, bring it back, as quickly as possible, otherwise I truly will hunt you down."

The young demon took the bag and scuttled away.

"He seems harmless?" Lián remarked dubiously, as she settled back down to eat her potato.

"Only because he's entertained. He actually seems to be quite high ranking." Miss Fén took a contented bite of her food. "That's the thing about demons. Keep them amused and they're easy to deal with. The problem is when they get bored."

The young demon was back within minutes, the bag bulging with nuts. He watched with a salivating mouth as Miss Fén began to roast them.

"Who are you, kid?"

"Ah, yes, I'm Prince Fàn Bì'ān(1), at your service. Are those chestnuts ready yet?"

"..."

Lián glanced at Miss Fén.

"Not yet, unless you are happy with texture like a rock. What's a royal demon doing out here?"

"Bored."

"Of course."

"And what are the names of these gracious dàjiěs(2)?"

"This is honourable Miss Lián(3). You can call me Miss Fén."

The demon prince burnt his tongue on the chestnut he was gingerly testing, shocked. He stared at Miss Fén with wide eyes.

"You're the demon hunter Miss Fén?"

"The same."

"Cool!" His dark red eyes suddenly shone with excitement, to Lián's surprise. "Are you headed out to fight someone right now? Is it the wútóuguǐ(4) in the capital? Or -" He snapped his fingers.

"The shuǐguǐ(5) from the border town that got flooded, of course!"

"There are shuǐguǐ?" Miss Fén asked suddenly.

"Oh yeah, heaps. They wail so much all the time, it's really annoying around there."

Lián observed the young demon as she finished her sweet potato. He seemed completely at ease, juggling hot chestnuts whilst sitting right next to a demon hunter and a cultivator. If it were not for his long earlobes, the two horns on the top of his head, and the reddish tinge to his skin, he could have been some carefree young master out on an adventure. His black clothing was well tailored and neat, and with only a silver bracelet and a few earrings, his general appearance was simple and elegant. She knew she shouldn't trust him, but his cheekiness was somewhat disarming.

"Take those chestnuts and go away. We're going to sleep now," Miss Fén said dismissively. The Prince Fàn Bì'ān puffed out his cheeks.

"Boo. You're no fun."

"Go find someone else to entertain you, kid."

"Meh. Thanks for the food, dàjiěs."

The demon prince stuffed many chestnuts into the bag he had previously used to harvest the nuts, and disappeared into the night.

"Did he just take your bag?"

Miss Fén shrugged. "It's not a big deal. Anyway, we've fed and entertained a demon prince for a bit, so that should give us a nice favour, should we ever need it."

"He almost seemed cute."

"That doesn't mean you should trust him, shīmèi."

The fire was down to the warm embers as they wrapped themselves in their cloaks to sleep.

"Fan Ze?"

"Hm?"

"Sorry to keep you awake. I just... wanted to say thank you again."

"No problems."

"You've done a lot for me. I also owe you a favour. More than that, I owe you a great deal. If I can ever do something for you-"

"I'll let you know."

The rest of the journey passed uneventfully. Prince Fàn Bì'ān popped up once more as they passed by the ruined border town, trying to convince them to hang around until night when the shuǐguǐ would appear, but Miss Fén cheerfully sent him away with some sweet apples they had picked instead, which he accepted with much grumbling, perhaps because she threw them accurately at his head first.

Eventually, the two stood at the edge of the rolling hills that surrounded the plateau of Chūn, looking down together across the lush green landscape towards the distance where the Chūn Palace stood, well out of range of human eyesight. Lián closed her eyes and slowed her breathing, controlling the jīng(5) boiling in her lower dāntián and letting it transform and rise through her body, settling herself. She took a deep, steadying breath and turned to Miss Fén.

"Say thank you to Zhū Yī Shēng for me."

"I will."

"It's been... I'm truly, truly grateful for all you have done for me."

"It's my job."

Is that all?

Miss Fén smiled, her grey-brown eyes unshaken. "It's been a pleasure to know you, Xiăo Guī."

Lián controlled her expression at the sound of that old nickname and smiled back, memorising the demon hunter in this moment as she did - the soft early morning light making her skin glow and lights dance in her smooth, chestnut-coloured hair, the gentle breeze tugging at her long veil, her figure amongst the long, green grass. "Well then. I... hope I see you again, one day."

"I will do my best to visit."

Already, so distant. Lián wanted to cry. How long had it been since her emotions had crashed down on her, beyond her control like this? Miss Fén could twist her up inside with a look or a word and it seemed beyond the control of her cultivated discipline to resist.

"You're so cold," she whispered, a strange little smile curling her lips. Something pale flickered in her eyes. "So cold, dàjiě."

Miss Fén frowned. "Lián? What did you say?"

Lián raised her head. "Thank you, Miss Fén. I hope you achieve all you wish for (6)."

"Farewell and good luck, Your Highness."

With one last bright smile, Miss Fén disappeared back down amongst the hills they had just crested. Lián turned back towards Chūn, striving to control the turmoil in all three of her dāntián. Slowly, slowly, the energy came under her control and she could open her eyes again.

Drawing her veil around her, she stepped forward, towards the place that was once her home.