Stepping forward, Xixing spat out a small, dark pill. She held it up in the air and crushed it. Immediately, black smoke rushed out of her fist and coiled toward the cicadas.

The cicadas fluttered their wings. Hui lifted a talisman, expecting them to attack, but instead they rushed at the smoke. Crawling and flying, they fought one another to get to the smoke. The biggest one pushed the smaller ones away and breathed deep, sucking the black smoke deep into its body. The little ones shoved one another out of the way, desperate to snatch up the scraps of black smoke.

Zhubi leaned out toward the smoke, wavering in the air, tongue flicking toward it. He started to slither forward, then looked at Hui and held himself back. Still, he gazed toward the black smoke longingly.

Shocked, Hui blinked. That smoke… what exactly did Xixing put in that pill?

Beside him, Xixing let out a dark cackle. “I’m glad I hid that Intoxicating Will pill until now. It only has a weak effect on humans, but beasts go wild for it. Once they breathe in the smoke, they enter an imprinting state, as if they’re baby ducks. If you’re the next thing they see, you become their mother.”

She stepped forward. All the cicada’s eyes settled on her. They rattled their wings and scurried toward the front edge of the cage, eager to be near to her. Just as they had over reaching the black smoke, they scurried over one another to be the closest to her. Their bodies shuddered with joy, as if being near her fulfilled their entire life’s desire.

“That’s…” Hui said, taken aback.

“It isn’t as strong on beasts that don’t naturally have an imprinting period, and it won’t work on branded beasts like your Zhubi, but it’s a powerful pill nonetheless. For these cicadas, it’ll likely only last for a few days, but that’s more than long enough for us to harvest them,” Xixing said, rubbing her hands together. She looked out over the cicadas lovingly, but Hui got the feeling that instead of cicadas, she saw an array of beautiful purple pills.

Hui edged away from her. Er, Elder Sister, your desires are showing…

A second later, he blinked. “Branded beast?”

Xixing nodded. “You branded Zhubi, right? That’s why he isn’t hostile toward you and treats you kindly.”

“Er… how does one brand a beast?” Hui asked.

“You… you didn’t brand Zhubi?” Xixing asked. She frowned and reached a hand toward Zhubi.

Zhubi looked at her, a tolerant expression on his face. She touched his back, then retracted her hand. “He really isn’t branded! How…”

“We, er… recognized kindred spirits?” Hui suggested.

Xixing frowned at him. “You should brand him as soon as possible. What if he attacks?”

“Zhubi would never attack,” Hui replied firmly.

“The first time you came to me, wasn’t it because Zhubi bit you?” Xixing returned flatly.

“That… was a special circumstance,” Hui said hesitantly.

Xixing shook her head. “It’s risky for you and Zhubi both. What if someone else tries to brand Zhubi? As an unowned beast, it’s fair game for anyone to brand him, and once he’s branded, he won’t be able to attack that person or break free from their control. You should brand him, Hui, and soon!”

Hui hesitated. He looked at Zhubi and offered his hand to the snake. Lowering his head, Zhubi nuzzled his hand. Intelligent eyes watched Hui.

“Do you want to be branded?” Hui asked quietly.

Zhubi hesitated. After a second, he shook his head.

Hui stroked the snake’s head. “Then I won’t brand you.”

“Hui! You’ll regret this,” Xixing said.

Hui held his arm out to Zhubi. The snake diminished down to his ordinary size and wriggled up Hui’s sleeve to his current usual place. “Even so, I won’t go against Zhubi’s wishes.”

I know what it’s like to be under a contract to someone you don’t want to be contracted to, to be forced to complete their every whim and command without any say in the matter. I don’t want anyone I know to be in that position, let alone my friend Zhubi. If he doesn’t want to be branded, then I absolutely will not brand him. This small cultivator will not violate his own beliefs. I’ll avoid all the debts I can, but neither will I put anyone into debt with me, or force them to be under my control!

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Well, except the ghoul I’m refining. But she’s dead, and she won’t have a will. It’s different.

Xixing sighed. “You should force me to refine some pills before you send me back.”

“Eh—eh?” Hui asked.

Xixing glanced at him, then raised her eyebrows. “You should ‘force’ me to refine some pills. I need to replace the one I used, and there’s a few other pills that would be extremely useful in buying time or escaping that I can make with a few simple resources. Besides, if I could refine an Amethyst Exoskeleton pill from these amethyst cicadas…”

“Ah. Of course, Elder Sister,” Hui said, nodding as he understood.

A thump. Bai Xue landed beside them, and a second later, the massive cicada slammed into the earth beside him. He clicked his tongue and shook his head at them. “You two, flirting over here while I do all the fighting…”

“All the fighting?” Hui asked, gesturing at the sea of cicada corpses before him.

Bai Xue snorted and stomped on the corpse he’d slain. “A thousand of those cicadas wouldn’t measure up to this one.”

“Bring that corpse back with you. If it’s an elder amethyst cicada…” Xixing trailed off dreamily.

“Ha! You couldn’t pay me to leave it behind. What about you? Are you bringing that whole birdcage with you?” Bai Xue asked.

Hui considered, then threw out another half-dozen talismans. A round platform of wood rose beneath the cicadas, sealing them in from below. He turned to Bai Xue. “Elder Brother, I leave carrying it in your capable hands.”

“Who’s going to carry this one, then?” Bai Xue asked, patting the large corpse beside him.

Hui sized it up. I don’t think I could carry something that big. Not to mention, I wouldn’t fit on Bai Xue’s fan if I did. “Zhubi?”

Slithering down his arm, Zhubi returned to his large size. He crawled to the cicada and regarded the large corpse, tilting his head left and right. He opened his mouth wide.

“Eh? Zhubi! Don’t eat it!” Hui cried.

Zhubi retreated his head, giving Hui a hurt look. After a second, he flicked his tail at the cicada. The cicada’s body flew onto his back and settled there.

Hui breathed out, then turned to Bai Xue and Xixing with a polite smile. “Taken care of.”

Bai Xue snorted. He shook his head and walked over to the birdcage. Lifting a hand, he unleashed a wave of force on the birdcage. It and the cicadas both shrunk down until they were the size of an actual birdcage. Drawing a bit of rope from his storage pouch, he strung it through the top bars of the birdcage and slung it over his shoulder.

Drawing out the amber he’d caught earlier, Hui looked it over wistfully. I don’t want to go any deeper into the geode, in case there’s more dangerous monsters, but… I really wish I could have found more than one piece of amber.

The amber wobbled in his hand. A strange fluctuation emerged from it, somewhere between the second and third realms. Hui’s eyes widened. Eh? What is that?

He started to peer closer, then stumbled over a crystal. The bit of amber flew out of his hand. He lunged and caught it before it could vanish. With a flick of his fingers, he sent it back to his storage ring. I’ll examine in when I get home! Not now, not now! If I lose it now, I’ll never forgive myself!

They travelled back through the geode. Hui stuck near the center of the group, casting a wary look at every passing crystal. None of them came to life, but he flinched away at every shiver of light anyways, gripping his talismans tight. Fa Chuyou chatted quietly with Yi Ping near the entrance. The two of them looked up as the other group arrived.

“Eh? Are you hurt? What happened?” Fa Chuyou asked, rushing over. She ignored the other two to peer at Hui, flinching at the sight of his scraped skin.

“Ah, this small cultivator is fine. We ran into a few amethyst cicadas, but we took care of them,” Hui said, bowing as he retreated.

“Amethyst cicadas? They haven’t been seen in seven hundred years… ah. I suppose it was time for them to wake up,” Fa Chuyou said, nodding to herself.

In the distance, something wiggled. Hui whirled, gripping a talisman.

“It’s odd that only a few woke. Usually they all wake at once…” Fa Chuyou turned around her, looking at the amethyst crystals.

Hui swallowed. A feeling of dread welled up in his chest. “Er, Elder Sister, er… are all of these crystals actually cicadas?”

“Not all of them,” Fa Chuyou said.

“Ah,” Hui said, nodding. He exchanged a look with Bai Xue, Xixing, and Zhubi. As one, they bolted for the exit.

“Eh? Where are you going?” Fa Chuyou asked, staring after them.

“Hey! Don’t run off with the hostage!” Yi Ping barked, chasing them.

Behind them, the crystals began to shiver. One after another, cicadas yanked their heads out of the geode and shuffled their wings.

“Oh,” Fa Chuyou said. She turned and ran after the others.

Hui raced down the twisting, stony passage. Behind them, the buzz of cicadas rang out, echoing down the gap. Bai Xue burst ahead. Xixing fell back, struggling to keep up without the full usage of her cultivation base. Hui glanced back, then nodded at Zhubi. The snake’s eyes glittered. Zhubi ducked his head and scooped up Xixing, racing along at top speed.

Golden light spilled down the narrow passage. Bai Xue burst out into the sun, followed closely by Hui, Zhubi, and Xixing. A few seconds later, Yi Ping leaped out of the cleft, then Fa Chuyou. Wordlessly, she threw out her shuttle. They crowded onto it and swooped away, seconds before the cicadas rushed out of the cave. Screaming, translucent wings buzzing, hundreds of amethyst cicadas took to the sky. They blacked out the sun, a huge mass of insects. They circled around, then dissipated into the air, vanishing to all corners of the world.

Hui drew a deep breath. He wiped his brow. We made it!

Fa Chuyou glanced at him, then at the massive snake barely coiled around the edge of the shuttle. “Xie Hao… where did the snake come from?”