~~~

The leaves dance—the fire burns.

Lu Mei laughs as she moves across the forest. Her steps are so light she might as well be gliding. Over a hundred leaves swirl around her as blue flames give chase. Every time the flames get close to her, Lu Mei moves the leaves to block them. Every time a fireball makes contact with a leaf, it leaves it burnt.

In return, the fireball is extinguished.

“Useless.” Lu Mei moves her hand in a lazy circle. As she does, more leaves are ripped from the trees and drawn towards her. “We are in a forest. The trees, the fruits, and even the animals. There is no end of shields for me to use here!”

Now that she knows how this technique works, dealing with it is a simple matter.

Now that she knows how this technique works, Lu Mei can only lament her foolishness.

It had made perfect sense back then. The forest would give her opponent far too many places to hide. The mist and trees would make it harder for her to keep track of all the fireballs. Meanwhile, in the sky, it’d be her who’d have the advantage. Those had been her thoughts before taking her flying carpet out from her storage ring.

It had been the worst decision she could have made. Since the flames were immune to her wind, Lu Mei had inadvertently made herself an easy target. She had acted under the assumption this was a fire technique and almost paid for it.

Lu Mei knows better now.

Bei Hong had told her about how he and Qing Jin had found the plums the other day. Burnt but without any of the lingering Yang Qi that would usually be associated with the use of a fire technique.

Just like the many leaves she has used as shields.

This is not a fire technique at all.

The blue fireballs are actually a Yin-based technique that only has the appearance of flame. The blue flames imbue themselves on a target and create an imbalance between Yin and Yang Qi. The Yang Qi is forced out, and it is this sudden loss that causes the target to be "burned." Lu Mei had been able to confirm this the moment those flames had touched her.

In other words, this technique can only interact with that which falls between certain ratios of Yin and Yang Qi. Lu Mei’s wind falls outside the required ratio. Thus, it had been useless against it.

Now that she understands how it works. There is nothing to fear. What made it strong and dangerous now makes it weak and predictable. Each fireball can only affect one target. It does not spread like fire but rather completely empties itself once it hits something. Each fireball can be stopped by a single leaf, and Lu Mei has many, many leaves at her disposal.

However, that is not all there is to it.

“So that’s where you were.” Lu Mei softly brings her hand down, but there is nothing soft about the blade of wind that slices through several trees in the blink of an eye.

[Red Curtain]

A pained cry echoes through the forest.

“I found it weird how perfectly those flames were tracking me,” Lu Mei notes, not moving to attack. Not yet. “If I flew high enough, whoever was controlling the technique wouldn’t be able to see me, and the flames would become easy to avoid. That had been my thinking.”

Yet, that hadn’t happened. The flames never had any trouble chasing after her. It wasn’t that they were honing in on her Qi. Rather, they had moved to anticipate her movements, almost as if someone had been watching and guiding their movements.

No, not if.

“You were peeking, weren’t you.” A light twitch. A small movement just behind the mist. Another blade of wind cuts through the forest. “Do you think me stupid? Now that I have found you, I won’t lose track of your Qi.”

This person had been there the entire time. He hadn’t been watching from afar. He had been right there all along.

Lu Mei just hadn’t been able to pay attention.

“Another property of your flames, I am guessing?” Lu Mei blocks a dozen more fireballs with a bored wave of her hand. “It is not that you are decreasing your presence in any way. Your flames just naturally draw all attention to them.”

A metaphorical sign saying “Pay Attention To Me!” Each of the flames has something like that. And with so many flames to keep track of, it became all too easy to completely ignore the person controlling them.

“Don’t you think you have been silent for too long? A good man should be able to stand tall and proud.”

Qing Jin would probably disagree, but Qing Jin lives under the delusion he has somehow managed to keep a low profile.

It is adorable, really.

“I… apologize.” The shade speaks with Wong Shou’s voice as he comes out of the mist. “I am not fond of drawing attention to myself.”

Though this one is smaller, he wears the same black outfit as the other shades. It makes Lu Mei even more amazed that she somehow managed to completely ignore his existence while they were up in the air.

“So you draw it away from yourself. How droll.”

Dozens of fireballs shoot towards Lu Mei in the blink of an eye.

“Bo-ring~”

The leaves rise to block the flames once more. Even the ones the shade tried to sneak behind her are blocked.

[Red Curtain]

An instant later, a blade of wind severs the shade in half.

Lu Mei sighs as each severed half hits the ground. “Pitiful. I am embarrassed at having had so much trouble with such a weak foe.”

“I… am not here… to amuse you.”

Lu Mei raises an eyebrow as the two halves of the body rejoin. She blinks as the shade stands up and summons more flames, ready to battle once more.

This… this could be troublesome.

~~~

“Lord Feng Zhi! Wait!”

The first time, Feng Zhi kills him by boiling his blood.

“Please! We must talk!”

The second time, he burns his face off.

“What has caused you to become so angry?!”

He rips out his organs.

“I do not understand!”

He crashes his skull between his hands.

“I thought you had come here to help us!”

He melts off Wong Shou’s limbs one by one before destroying his heart.

“Lord Feng Zhi, this is far too violent!”

Again and again, Feng Zhi kills Wong Shou, yet Wong Shou cannot seem to stay dead. Something is clearly wrong. Feng Zhi realizes that, but it is not enough to make him stop. Far from it. Even after his rage has died down, Feng Zhi keeps killing Wong Shou. It is not every day he finds such a perfect opportunity to sate his more vicious urges. It is better if he cuts loose now rather than later when he could be in a sensitive situation.

The true nature of fire is destruction. Some people would like it to be cleansing or rebirth, but Feng Zhi has never heard the Eternal Flame inside him speak of such things.

“Very well,” Feng Zhi says once he has killed Wong Shou to his satisfaction. “Talk.”

“You finally see sense, Lord Feng Zhi!” Wong Shou’s face brightens as he stands up and brushes some dust from his robes. Dust, yet not a single drop of blood. “Good! Now, we can finally continue our mission.”

Feng Zhi crosses his arms. “Our mission?”

“To find out whoever created this tower and save Night Phantasm City! Surely, that must be why we are here?”

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Feng Zhi stares.

Wong Shou stares back. The look on his face is perfectly guileless.

“You.” Feng Zhi stops and forces himself to take a deep breath before continuing. “You cannot possibly expect me to believe you have nothing to do with this.”

Wong Shou blinks.

“What are you talking about, Lord Feng Zhi? How could I have anything to do with this? As someone who will one day inherit the Bright Phantasm Sect, I must do my best to protect it. I would never do anything like this.”

He says it as if it should be obvious. As if it is Feng Zhi who has said something weird instead of the other way around.

“You must think I am quite the idiot to believe such blatant lies.”

“Lord Feng Zhi, I would never insult you!” Wong Shou says, stepping back so he can better bow to him. “The Eternal Flame Clan is a valued ally of the Bright Phantasm Sect. If I have done anything to offend, I can only beg your forgiveness.”

A lance of fire pierces Wong Shou’s throat.

“I have no time for games.” Feng Zhi growls as Wong Shou regenerates. “Just now, I pierced your throat. You should be dead. You aren’t. Explain that.”

“Pierced my throat?” Wong Shou can only blink. “Ah, I see. It seems Lord Feng Zhi has quite a violent sense of humor. Do you wish me to play along? Still, I don’t think this is the time for such games.”

He denies it still.

Feng Zhi cannot believe the unmitigated gall of the person in front of him. To look at what is clearly black and say it is white, even his cousin is not this bad!

And yet…

What if Wong Shou is not lying?

“Wong Shou, you are going to answer a few questions of mine,” Feng Zhi says as he starts pacing around the room. Curiously enough, even though the floor has fixed itself, the mists he burned have not come back. Is that due to Wong Shou’s presence here?

“Questions?” Wong Shou looks confused but nods. “Whatever Lord Feng Zhi desires of me.”

“Why are you here?”

“Why am I here?” Wong Shou manages to look even more confused. “How could Lord Feng Zhi not know that? We came here together to investigate the tower, didn’t we?”

“Is that so?” Feng Zhi hums. “You and I set out from Night Phantasm City together? Is that what you remember?”

“I… Yes, that is so.”

“Do you remember seeing the tower rise?”

“I… don’t.” A frown appears on Wong Shou’s face. “I must have been indoors when it happened.”

“Indoors? I see.” Feng Zhi rubs his chin, his mind already at work. Wong Shou denied being killed without a shred of hesitation, yet he hesitated just now. That is something he can work with. “Do you remember what you were doing last night?”

“I…” The frown on Wong Shou’s face deepens. “I must have been asleep. Yes, I was asleep!”

“Is that so? Curious, I thought you and Qing Jin set out together last night?”

“Ah… yes, we did, didn’t we?” Wong Shou’s face… convulses. It twitches in various places at once in a way that is most assuredly unnatural. “We were... enacting Lord Feng Zhi’s plan and were… we were…”

“Attacked,” Feng Zhi finishes for him, watching as Wong Shou’s entire body starts to sweat. “You were attacked by shades, were you not?”

“Yes!” Wong Shou gaps out. His face is pale. A shudder runs through his entire body. “We fought them. Yes, that’s what we did. We fought and… and… I said that it must be my Uncle behind this, but Qing Jin said… he said…”

“What did he say?”

Wong Shou holds his head between his hands, his blue hair gripped between his fingers. “He said Uncle didn’t know about the path we were taking, so the culprit could only be…”

“You,” Feng Zhi finishes for him. “It could only be you.”

“I… I… I don’t remember.”

“Do not lie.”

“I’m not lying!” Wong Shou shouts. He tries to step back but loses his balance and falls. “These memories… they cannot be right! How could I… No, there is no way. How could I…?”

“Summon shades,” Feng Zhi finishes for him. “It is an interesting question, isn’t it?”

Wong Shou is in the Spirit Realm, and only barely. That may make him capable by the standards of the Bright Phantasm Sect, but it is nowhere near enough to create the hundreds of shades outside. Either someone is helping him, or there is a powerful artifact at play. Since Wong Shou’s Qi is so prominent all around the tower, Feng Zhi had assumed it was the latter.

However, Wong Shou is not creating any shades now. Is it because he’s at his limit already?

No, perhaps he’s looking at this all wrong.

“There’s an even more important question to consider.”

Wong Shou looks up at him, sweat shining on his face. “Which is it?”

“How do you know you are the real Wong Shou?”

~~~

One shade is sliced in half. Another one dies when Liu Jin’s spear pierces its head. Three more die from wild swings and stabs. There are so many shades that he can kill them by waving his spear in their general direction. There are so many shades, he can only kill five to ten at a time before he has to keep moving, else he’ll be overwhelmed.

“Traitor!”

“Leave me behind!”

“Get out!”

“Come back!”

Random words have become phrases and even sentences. The shades scream at him from all sides, contradicting each other without pause. Some scream for his death. Others call for help. Others still beg him to leave.

“You will tire eventually!”

“You are magnificent!”

It could easily be a trick to distract him, but something tells Liu Jin the shades are truly disagreeing with each other. There is meaning in that, but Liu Jin is far too preoccupied with staying alive to figure it out.

[Ground Contraction]

His body speeds up. A hundred-yard lead is gained in an instant, but with so many shades, it matters little. There are always some nearby. His spear is slowing down. His movements are becoming sloppy. His body is getting heavier. Even the Eternal Flame Clan’s Selection Exam wasn’t this tiring.

“Surrender!”

“Do not give up!”

Liu Jin bites his tongue and thinks back on Lei Kong’s lessons. Angry red lightning crackles around him. It travels through his spear as he stabs it into the mass of shades. There are so many of them so close to each other, the lightning quickly spreads from one shade to another. Dozens and dozens of them die in an instant.

It is still not enough. Liu Jin cannot keep the lightning flowing forever. He has to stop the technique and use [Ground Contraction] again to escape as the shades come crashing down on top of him like a furious wave.

“That… hurt.”

“That did not hurt at all!”

“Are you not tired of disagreeing with each other all the time?” Liu Jin asks. He does his best to keep his voice even, not wanting to give away how tired he is.

“It’s all your fault!”

“You woke him up!”

Liu Jin blinks. He hadn’t expected an answer, much less for the shades to agree with each other on this. He had made a few comments before, but they hadn’t reacted to them.

Are the shades changing somehow?

“Do you mean Wong Shou?” Liu Jin asks as he quickly runs up a tree. It is for naught. The shades pile up on top of each and crawl up. It is not long before the tree starts falling under their combined weight.

“Shut up!”

“Don’t say that name!”

“Don’t pry!”

Liu Jin stabs his spear into the tree and pours Lightning Qi into it. It crackles then bursts, causing the tree to explode from the inside, launching fiery bits of wood all around. Liu Jin, who’s at the top, is the one least affected by this. Many shades are not so lucky.

“Are you saying I shouldn’t have confronted him?” Liu Jin yells. A midair use of [Ground Contraction] sends him away from the shades waiting for him below. He wishes he could remain on the air forever, but that is not within his abilities yet.

“Too soon! Too soon!”

“It was not ready!”

“It would have happened anyway!”

“What would have happened anyway?” Liu Jin starts running as soon as he hits the ground.

“Don’t pry!”

“Wong Shou would have realized it!”

“Shut up!”

“It’s Wong Shou’s fault!”

“What-” Liu Jin almost trips over an exposed branch. That is how tired he is. “What is Wong Shou’s fault?”

“Nothing!”

“Everything!”

“Us!”

“We are Wong Shou!”

Liu Jin stops, and to his surprise, so do the shades. It is as if the last statement had cast a spell on the battlefield. No one talks. No one moves. Each shade is perfectly frozen in place. Liu Jin does not know why it happens, but he’s not about to waste this rare chance. There is only one way he can win right now.

“You are Wong Shou?” He asks, hoping for the best.

The shades start moving again, but they do not attack. They writhe against one another, buzzing like insects.

“We are! We are!”

“We are not!”

“Who are we then?”

“What are we?”

“We began with Wong Shou!”

“We were born from him!”

That’s…

Not possible. No, it is, but...

It doesn’t make any sense.

~~~

“You are not making any sense!” Wong Shou yells. He’s on the floor and backing away from Feng Zhi. “Lord Feng Zhi, please, stop these jokes!”

“You really have no idea.” Feng Zhi’s form blurs. In an instant, he’s right before Wong Shou, punching right through his chest. “Does this look like something normal?”

Feng Zhi asks the question with his arm still inside Wong Shou.

“Are you the sort of person who can ignore an arm through their chest?”

Wong Shou cannot ignore it this time. He has started to ask questions. The moment he began doubting his own story was the moment his mind became vulnerable.

“That’s… that’s not…This is not…”

Feng Zhi snorts. “Look, you are even speaking normally.”

He removes his arm, and the wound heals. Wong Shou is left gasping.

“What?” Wong Shou stares at his chest. “What just happened?”

“The stupor you placed yourself under is starting to fail. The inconsistencies are too many for your mind to ignore. Tell me something, do you know what emotion is most dangerous to a cultivator?

“Pride?”

Feng Zhi laughs.

“Doubt, Wong Shou. Doubt,” Feng Zhi says, his face losing its smile. “Wrath. Pride. Lust. As long as they do not become obsessions, it is perfectly fine to indulge in such things. We can commit many unspeakable acts, and they will not hamper our cultivation in the slightest. As long as you can treat maiming someone or forcing yourself on them with the same level of triviality as going fishing, there is no harm. However, doubt is another matter. There is no safe way to indulge in it. It will gnaw on you and lead to fear and hesitation. Such things can tear us apart from the inside… Just like it did to you.”

“What?”

“Where is Wong Shou?”

“My lord, I am right here!”

“You are not Wong Shou. You can keep pretending, but you should already understand. No, perhaps not. Even I don’t quite understand how you came to be, but there is one thing I am sure of. You…”

Feng Zhi kneels down to look at Wong Shou in the eyes.

“You are a Heart Devil. A monster born from the real Wong Shou.”

~~~