"Hey! Jie!" Pan Tian said.

Jie blinked and finally noticed the older girl. Of course, she'd known someone was there on some level, but she hadn't truly recognized that fact until now.

"What is it?" Jie asked.

Pan Tian recoiled. "Jeez! What did I do?" she asked.

Jie frowned. "What're talking about?" she said.

"You just sounded so... angry," Pan Tian said.

"Don't worry, I'm not. I was just thinking. What's up?" Jie asked.

Pan Tian narrowed her eyes. "I suppose that makes sense. You don't hear how you sound to other people do you?" she said.

Jie giggled. "How would I?" she asked.

Pan Tian rolled her eyes. "You're terrible at it though! You sounded like you wanted to murder someone in cold blood. Or... actually, now that I think about it... you sound much worse when you want to do that," she said with a smile.

"So are you going to tell me why you're talking to me?" Jie said.

Pan Tian frowned. "You know... you're doing it a little again. It's... weird. Have you not spoken to anyone much or something?" she said.

"There was a time I was in... isolated training," Jie said, "now what is it?"

Pan Tian nodded. "I thought it might be something like that. You don't hate me or anything right?" she said.

Jie's gaze turned flat. "I think I will if you keep avoiding my question," she said.

Pan Tian giggled. "Oh! Yes! I'm going to the city with my family soon. You should come," she said.

"Thanks, but no," Jie said.

Pan Tian blinked as though she'd just been slapped. "What? But why? Do you already have plans?" she asked.

Jie looked at the older girl like she was insane. "Training?" she said.

Pan Tian pressed the palms of her hands to her face. "Do you ever even think of anything else?" she asked.

"Why would I?" Jie asked.

"There's more to life!" Pan Tian said.

"And, I'm sure I'll experience more of that if I don't die because I'm too weak," Jie said.

Pan Tian let out a ragged sigh. "Oh, come on! You can go without training for a few days!" she said, "it'll be fun! I'll show you the sights! I'll even treat you. In case you need to send that spirit coin home or something."

It was Jie's turn to be stunned. "That's... very nice of you," she said.

"Don't look so shocked! What are friends for? So, you'll come?" Pan Tian said.

"No, I need to train," Jie said.

Pan Tian's hands closed on the air in front of her as though strangling an invisible neck. She let out a slow breath and inhaled even slower. She opened her mouth but closed it as though trying to figure something out. Then, her eyes lit up. "You know... you can get some extremely impressive cultivation resources in the city," she said.

Jie stopped walking. "How impressive? Doesn't the academy have all the pills?" she asked.

Pan Tian snorted. "Do you think they'll sell all the most precious items here? To people who can't afford them? No. And, aside from that, there are all kinds of incredible items brought in from all over! You never know what treasures might be available. Things that even a spirit coin can't purchase," she said, "and so much more than pills. Items to aid cultivation, martial skills, weapons, armor, special food for cultivating, ancient texts that help you cultivate even better..."

Jie stroked her pursed lips with one knuckle. "You're not just telling me this so I'll go are you? I'll be really annoyed if you are," she said.

Pan Tian giggled. "I promise," she said.

Jie nodded slowly. "When will you go?" she asked.

"Tomorrow. I wanted to give you more time, but you're rather hard to find," Pan Tian said.

"I'll have to let Elder Shi know, I suppose..." Jie said.

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"That's the spirit!" Pan Tian said, "I'll come get you early tomorrow morning. Before the sun comes up. Don't have any of your bodyguards kill me or anything okay?"

Jie frowned. "Bodyguards?" she asked.

Pan Tian rolled her eyes. "Oh, come on. It's the talk of the whole academy. The elders checked out what was sucking up so much Essence in your residence, but they couldn't even sense the barest trace of it. Except for the drain on the Essence.

"They even had Vaultmaster Song and Elder Shi reinforce your privacy enchantments to keep people from finding out. But I heard all about it from a friend of a friend of a friend who's kinda dating one of the elders. Everybody knows! I bet the Chen family regrets messing with you even more now," she said.

Jie held back the laughter bubbling up inside of her. People leaped to conclusions and gossiped in any world... although, it was a little disturbing how close to the truth that actually was. But, maybe rumors of a powerful bodyguard would help keep her safe. Still, her thoughts turned bittersweet as she thought of Ming.

"Do you think there's a really strong healer in the city? Or maybe a place that sells powerful healing items?" Jie said.

"Of course. There are plenty of places like that. Depends on what you're looking for though," Pan Tian said.

Jie considered whether to even mention it to the older girl. But she didn't know this world, so what choice did she have? Elder Shi hadn't exactly come back with useful answers. Only rumors of a faraway place that the headmaster might know something about.

And it was nearly impossible for a student to meet with the headmaster so Jie couldn't easily ask him for details. Perhaps Elder Shi could find out more in time, but Jie didn't like relying on her or anyone else. Not when it came to Ming's life.

"Do they have anything that can heal a god?" Jie asked.

Pan Tian's eyes went wide. "A... god? Why would you need something like that?" she said.

"Just curious," Jie said.

Pan Tian's eyes narrowed a bit. "I don't know if they have anything like that or even what it would cost," she said, "but, my aunt might know. She's one of the most powerful alchemists in this region, and she's friendly with most of the others. I doubt any of them can make one, but maybe they have a treasure tucked away or know where to get one. It's pretty serious to ask about that though... people are going to think you want to use it on someone."

"Maybe I do," Jie said.

Pan Tian cracked into a smile. "Nah, you're probably just getting resources for the cultivation level you'll have tomorrow," she said.

The two talked as Jie walked back home before Pan Tian left to notify her brother and the rest of her family that she was bringing a guest. Jie went into her residence and told Ming what she was planning. Just in case he was listening. Then, she bathed and cultivated.

***

Several hours later, the air was far from relaxed in the Chen family compound. Chen family elders sat in the audience room, where the messenger from Elder Kanev still lay prostrate on the floor as he had not yet been given permission to leave.

The room was silent for a long moment as each of them internally chewed over the news in Elder Kanev's report. News of bodyguards too powerful for even the Headmaster of the Crimson Academy to sense was disturbing indeed. Such news sent ice-cold fear trickling down the spines of many Chen family elders that now doubted the wisdom of any further conflict with this Liu Jie.

But could they afford to do nothing when one of their greatest rivals was making moves to secure this mysterious girl as a potential ally?

Lord Chen Liang drummed his fingers slowly on the armrest of his chair. Each tap sent fresh shivers through the messenger who had still not been permitted to leave.

"Perhaps we should change our course and leave this Liu Jie be. Maybe even attempt to gain her favor ourselves. The girl's bodyguards sound formidable. If what Elder Kanev said is true, we dare not draw their ire," said one of the family's elders.

"The girl has already made it clear we are not in her favor. It would likely be impossible to change her mind. And if we do nothing, the Pan family may gain an ally strong enough to wipe us out and take our lands for themselves. Even now, they may be offering themselves as vassals to the Liu family in exchange for such a boon," said another.

Lord Chen Liang's fingers stopped drumming, and he smiled. "This may yet work in our favor," he said.

Nobody said anything for a long moment, and the Chen Family Head's face darkened.

Another elder cleared his throat. "How so?" he asked, having realized his folly.

Lord Chen Liang's frown receded, and a bit of tension rolled off many of the elders.

"Did you not hear Elder Kanev's report?" Lord Chen Liang said, his voice dripping with condescension.

"About the bodyguards?" asked the elder, "what about them?" His voice was wooden and mechanical, having gone through this routine many times.

"Yes," Lord Chen Liang said, "we can't know if these bodyguards will be with her at all times. Maybe she'll even order them to take the day off so she can spend time with her friends or something stupid. We'll send assassins after her, and make sure they cannot be traced back to us. If they succeed, her bodyguards can blame the Pan family for offering insufficient protection. If the bodyguards are there and the assassins fail? Then, who cares? It will give us valuable information and we risk nothing."

"How strong should the assassins be?" the elder asked. He glared at the other elders who remained silent and constantly forced him to speak.

Lord Chen Liang combed his fingers through his perfect hair. "We'll make them just strong enough to deal with the children. Have the assassins wait until they're vulnerable. There's nobody in this city we could hire that could fight with those bodyguards of hers anyway. And, if they sense too strong an aura, they may come rushing to help. No, we want just enough to kill the girl. If we can kill some of the Pan family's younger generation too, it'll be an added bonus," he said.

"Is this really where we should be focusing our efforts?" asked another elder. One that had remained silent thus far.

Lord Chen Liang flicked his hand, and the messenger who lay prostrate on the floor burst into flames. His screams turned to gurgling shrieks and he rolled across the ground in a desperate attempt to put out the fire but succeeded only in smearing the polished floor with his burning flesh. He soon stopped moving, however, and the flames licked at his corpse.

"Worry not, I'm doing everything our new patron asks of us," Lord Chen Liang said, "It wouldn't do to depend on them too much though. Making sure to eliminate this threat will help avoid any unfortunate future events. Besides, we can't let her get away with the rudeness she has shown us. My son has been punished, and she must be too."

The elders nodded at that. Some agreed, but others felt sick to their stomachs. Not over the idea of killing a child, but over what the family head had done to his own son. It served as a powerful reminder that none were safe from the family head's wrath.