Chen Wuya slipped down the crater the inverted poison tree had climbed out of, feet sliding over the loose dust. He coughed and spat more blood. Blood stained his lips, and purple blotches climbed out from under the hems of his robes. He wiped his lips, smearing the blood over his face. Between his fierce eyes and ragged hair, the smeared blood made him into a vicious specter, an undead creature clawing his way out of the underworld.

In the center of the hole, the purple veins that crawled over the land converged and twisted together into a thick, dark purple node. The node shuddered, beating like an exposed heart in the dark air. The surface of its skin flinched with every pulse, as if the air injured it. Already, a black sprout thrust from the center of the node, hair-thin roots waving in the air.

Moving decisively, he plucked the black sprout and thrust the satsuma branch into the node.

The satsuma branch shook. Its bark flaked off. In a breath’s time, the branch trembled fiercely, on the verge of shattering.

Chen Wuya knelt beside the branch, gripping its base with both hands. He closed his eyes and reached out. His qi pulsed in time with the veins and flowed into the satsuma branch.

The satsuma branch stabilized. It thumped with the beating of the node, no longer withering away.

Drawing a deep breath, Chen Wuya threw himself into the satsuma branch.

--

Years passed. The seasons cycled past in the blinking of an eye. Under his roots, the poison cleared away steadily, absorbed into his trunk. The townsfolk clustered around him, excited. They knelt and touched the soil, feeling the softness of it, the richness.

Silently, he watched from the tree.

Pure soil stretched out from the base of the tree. Into the fields, across the town. The townsfolk’s eyes grew bright once more. They began to venture out from the town. Excited voices rang out. Children ran, laughing, through the town.

Gardens sprang up in the wasteland. Beyond them, wildflowers grew. Saplings sprung from the earth, slowly flourishing into trees. Once a year, the townsfolk gathered around him. Songs sounded, praises rang out. The satsuma tree had become their miracle.

“I… was it worth it?”

The town grew. Children became adults. Gardens became well-tended fields. The lush earth grew dark. Overhead, a flock of white birds wheeled, while rabbits and deer bounded through the fields.

“In my rush… did I destroy what I was trying to save?”

A white bird settled in the satsuma tree. Wings ragged, eyes cloudy, it settled heavily against the trunk, barely a spark of life left in it. It breathed out one last time and slumped, body still.

The satsuma tree, too, sagged. Its life wavered. No new leaves had grown in weeks. Neither branches nor fruit had sprouted in years. Black streaks climbed up its trunk, its entire form gnarled and withered. Full of poison, it no longer possessed enough life force to survive.

The sun set. Looking out over the town, the tree trembled one last time.

“This life… wasn’t so bad.”

--

Brilliant light burst out of the satsuma branch. All the power of the villager’s worship, all their hopes and dreams, swirled around. Illusory images danced on the air. A wedding. A child born. A huge harvest, enough to feed a family. A downpour of rain. All the mundane wishes of the villagers over the centuries, swirling around Chen Wuya.

Resonating with the branch, Chen Wuya swayed with the beat of the veins. Power rushed through him, welling up from within the branch. Enough power to restore his strength. Enough power to ascend once more.

He opened his eyes slowly. White light spilled out from his eyelids, streaming over the earth. Where the light fell, the soil rejuvenated.

“I… am not the one who deserves your praise,” he whispered. He drew in a deep breath, then furrowed his brows and pushed the power outward, through the satsuma branch and into the purple veins.

The white light met the veins, and they withered. It surged through them, flying through the ground. Streaks of white light burst through the earth, glimmering into the night. Where it passed, the poison faded away. The earth became soft once more. Rotting bodies and shattered trees melted into the earth, sharing their nutrients. The inverted poison tree turned into dust and blew away, destroyed before the gentle power of the light.

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Under the moonlight, waves of white light pulsed through the earth. In the light’s wake, thin grasses sprouted. Saplings pushed through the ground. The black earth vanished, lush once more. Wasteland sprouted into meadow.

The satsuma branch trembled, glowing with white light. All at once, it burst upward. Sprouts formed, green, then brown, growing into branches. The branch grew as wide as his wrist, growing into a trunk. Leaves sprouted from the branches, and buds burst up between them. The buds flowered and wilted away.

The light faded. The satsuma tree withered rapidly. Even as it withered, a single orange fruit grew from the very tip of the tree. The tree dipped, crumpling, unable to hold up the weight of the satsuma. It toppled over, falling beside Chen Wuya.

A final wave of light passed from the branch into Chen Wuya. He shivered. It burned through him, cleansing the poison from his body. The light reached deeper, purging the remnants of his demonic aura.

No! Not that!

The light winked out, too weak to fight against the sudden onslaught of will. Chen Wuya’s eyes opened. Clear skin greeted him, his hands and feet clean. He took a deep breath.

His lungs seized. The poison burned his insides, still sunk deep inside. He fell into a lotus pose and circulated his qi, cleansing the poison on his own terms. The poison fought back, tainting his qi. Clawed deep into his organs, it refused to be removed so easily.

Chen Wuya wrinkled his nose. Damn divine energy! Is it the nature of deities to stick their noses where they don’t belong? I was counting on you to cleanse my poison! Couldn’t you have focused on that before you tried to destroy my reserves of demonic energy?

With no other recourse, he sank deeper into his meditation. Qi flowed through him. His brows furrowed faintly as he battled the poison.

--

“You’re back?”

Fen Long bent over to catch his breath. Hands stained with dirt, fingers singed from fire, he braced himself against his knees. Heaving himself to a stand, he nodded at the old lady. “I’m back. The other boy who was with me… where is he?”

The granny tilted her head at him. “Hmm? I thought he went with you.”

Fen Long shook his head once.

“Boys, always running off. He left his robes, for goodness’ sakes.” She tutted. After a second, her eyes lit up. “Oh! Thank you, hero!”

“For… what?” Fen Long asked.

She waved her finger at him, smiling. “Don’t play pretend. You’re a deity in disguise, right? Or some kind of fearsome immortal, descended from your mountain to do heroic deeds?”

Fen Long blinked. “Why do you say that?”

“The miracle!” The granny pointed out past the wreckage of the ancient satsuma tree.

He stared.

Verdant greenery shimmered under the sunlight. Flowers bobbled with a gentle breeze. Where the poisoned wasteland had been, now a beautiful meadow spread to the horizon.

“Chen Wuya?” he whispered. His hand clenched. He sprinted out into the meadow.

“Hero, where are you going? I wanted to thank you—”

“I’m not the one who did this!” he shouted. Don’t tell me, that fool—!

Soft loam padded under his feet, no longer poisoning his legs as he ran. Tall grasses brushed at his legs. He charged onward, chest pumping, fear building in his chest. It can’t be. It can’t be.

A crater opened up in the earth before him. He came to its edge and staggered to a stop, his heart in his throat, hands clenched tight.

Thick flowers grew up and down the edges of the crater. In the crater’s center, a boy in white sat in a lotus pose, eyes shut, as still as death. Ragged hair swayed on the breeze, pitch black offsetting his pale skin. A withered node laid exposed in the dirt before him, and a tiny green sprout grew from its center. Beside him sat a ripe satsuma, untouched.

“Chen Wuya…” he breathed, staring. He shook his head, then charged down the crater. Flowers danced all around him, swaying as he passed. He reached Chen Wuya and hesitated, then reached for the boy’s neck.

Chen Wuya’s eyes snapped open. He caught Fen Long’s hand seconds before it touched his neck. A bloodthirsty glare cut through Fen Long.

“You’re alive,” Fen Long sighed, relieved. He retracted his hand. “I thought you’d succumbed to the poison.”

A quiet snort rang out. Chen Wuya’s eyes shut again. His head sagged faintly.

He’s not really awake. He reacted to me instinctively. Something’s wrong! Fen Long knelt beside him. Carefully, retracting every trace of killing aura he could, he pressed two fingers against Chen Wuya’s forehead.

Pure qi. Whole flesh. His brows furrowed. He pushed deeper.

Black, swirled with poison. Shivering organs, weakened and growing weaker.

Retracting his qi, Fen Long’s eyes widened. He pulled a pill bottle from his robes and tipped a white pill, traced with blue, from within. Tipping Chen Wuya’s head back, he pushed the pill into his mouth, then covered his lips and nose with his hand.

The pill melted in Chen Wuya’s mouth. He struggled against Fen Long’s hold, brow furrowing faintly. Fen Long held on. “Swallow, dammit!”

Chen Wuya shook his head, as if refusing. Disgust flashed over his face. His body began to go limp as he chose to pass out rather than drink the pill.

“Why are you so stubborn?” Annoyed, Fen Long wrinkled his nose. His free hand darted out and pressed a few pressure points on Chen Wuya’s chest, forcing the boy to swallow. The boy’s throat bobbed at last, and he let go.

Fen Long sighed. “That didn’t have to be difficult, you know.”

Chen Wuya gasped a breath, eyelids flickering open. “Who… what did you… feed me?”

“The antidote, you idiot.” Fen Long slung Chen Wuya over his shoulders and stood.

“Fen… Long? You came back?”

“You said you were counting on me.”

Chen Wuya hung silent for a few beats. Suddenly, he snorted. “Mm, I did.”

Turning to go, Fen Long hesitated. He turned back, then flicked his sleeve and collected the satsuma. He gazed at the green sprout for a breath, then walked away.