Lu Na made it all the way to her room before she remembered about Sun Ren. When she entered her room, Sun Ren wasn’t there. The only things still inside the room were Senior Wong’s items and her own pack. Where could she have gone?

And then she remembered. Sun Ren must have set off to steal the relic.

Lu Na grabbed her pack and her staff. She walked over to Hen Li’s room. Hopefully, the drugs wore off by now and he’d be alert to move. When she knocked and entered the room, Hen Li was nowhere to be seen.

Where could he have gone? More importantly, who could move that bulky monk? He is all muscle and Lu Na still felt sore from when she had to carry him a short distance.

Did Elder Hen take his son with him? It would make sense since he cares for him so much. But where would he take him? Everywhere Lu Na looked, there were only disciples here. She doubted that someone like Elder Hen would choose to stay here.

But Lu Na thought for a moment. Should she still involve the monk? He was a tremendous help on their way here, but they’ve arrived at the labyrinth. Is it fair of her to risk his life for her own cause?

“What are you doing? Why are you standing in the hallway like a lost lamb?” Nugua asked.

“Spirit, you’re back. I thought you’d be exhausted after that fight with Senior Wong,” Lu Na said.

“I’ve been getting better at controlling your wards now that I know what you are trying to do.”

“I didn’t know. All I needed to do was tell you.”

“Little Na Na, I know you don’t trust me and I know that after our bond, you might fear me a little. But understand, I’m still going to be here with you until the end, as I promised. I just needed you to know how our relationship was going to work.”

Lu Na nodded, but she wouldn’t voice her true thoughts. If her spirit that has been with her this long could threaten her all for the sake of her own ambitions, then what about all the other spirits? Were they even worth having if they not only threatened humans, but are actively stealing from their life?

“Anyway, that beefy monk is not in there. He’s in the back courtyard,” Nugua said.

“How do you know that?” Lu Na walked through the halls in that direction.

“Ever since we’ve bonded, my spirit senses have come back. I can almost recall what it was like to be bonded with a seasoned summoner.”

Lu Na wanted to ask more, but when she reached the courtyard, Hen Li was there with Elder Hen and Senior Wong. How was she going to tell him about Sun Ren’s plans?

“Good evening, Elder Hen.” Lu Na curtsied with her head bowed. The courtyard was cleaned up from their earlier fight.

“Good evening, Young Miss Lu. I trust little Yoong’s attacks did not rattle you?” Elder Hen asked.

Lu Na sat beside Hen Li. He wore his old gray monk habit and his hair was let down again. He had his eyes closed, but he was moving his prayer beads while silently reciting the heart sutra.

“Thank you for saving me again, Elder Hen. I only wish I didn’t have to continually be saved from Senior Wong.”

“Wong Yoong, apologize,” Elder Hen said.

Senior Wong looked like a child. She had scrunched her head into her shoulders, staring at the floor, while holding her own arms. It was the same look Lu Na’s younger brothers had after she chastised them for their pranks.

“I’m sorry, Young Miss Lu.” Senior Wong got up and left the courtyard.

Lu Na wasn’t expecting much, but to have a powerful summoner like that apologize to her was more than enough. Although she had tried to kill Lu Na frequently, this was the first time she spoke with her without contempt or anger. Something must have changed.

“I apologize to Elder Hen, but would it be possible for me to talk with Hen Li?”

“Of course. I have to take a bath to clean off the filth of the last few days, anyway. That monkey king really made us work to get out of that forest. I hope he didn’t mistreat you.” Elder Hen walked toward the rooms. “And don’t think about running away. I have disciples posted outside of the inn on all sides. If you even touch the door, I’ll make sure you’re locked inside your room until we leave for the labyrinth.”

“Of course, Elder Hen.” Lu Na bowed her head. “I would never dare to take advantage of your hospitality like that.”

“Child, I know what you are thinking. I’ve been young once. But now I’m too old to play around. I won’t be so nice the next time I have to come and save you.”

“My uncle Sun and my father both thank you for your mercy.”

Elder Hen snorted and disappeared back into the inn.

“Amituofo, he’s finally gone,” Hen Li said.

“Are you okay? You were pretty banged up when we dragged you out of your room,” Lu Na said.

“I have a few bruises and a headache, but I will be fine. Where’s Sun Ren?”

“You missed a lot after your long nap.” Lu Na took a minute to tell Hen Li the most important parts of what happened. She left out how Senior Wong tried to kill her again.

“Then is Sun Ren trying to steal the relic right now?” Hen Li asked.

“Yes, and she told us to meet us outside of the village,” Lu Na said.

“Amituofo. Please let the sins pass. We shouldn’t steal, least of all, someone's ancestral relics. That’s not only stealing from the village but also their history.”

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“Normally, I would agree with you. But the village leader was hiding something that was linked to the labyrinth. I’d rather have every advantage we could get when we enter there, especially if we can’t come back out of the labyrinth if we don’t solve the puzzle.”

Hen Li paused for a moment before putting his prayer beads around his neck.

“And if anything, we can return the relic when we come back,” Lu Na said.

“Very well. Let’s go now while Elder Hen is in the bath.”

Lu Na didn’t mention how Hen Li called his father by Elder Hen. She followed him to the back of the courtyard where two lit lanterns hung. The last of the sunset was fading.

Hen Li opened the door and they were met with two disciples in dark blue tunics. They both had a staff raised against him.

“Greetings, Senior Hen. It’s been a while since we’ve last seen you. We hope you are well,” one disciple said.

“Amituofo, I have not been a disciple of the Wintersweet Sect for a while.” Hen Li pushed his hands together and bowed. “Please let us pass.”

“You know as well as we do we can’t do that. Elder Hen has told us to stop you or your friends from leaving the inn.”

Hen Li took a step back and clenched his left fist. The air became heavy with spirit energy. The other disciples did the same.

Only now did Lu Na notice she could sense the spirit energy coming off these summoners. She didn’t have this sense before no matter how many times her older brother or others summoned their spirits. Was this because of her bond with Nugua?

“Might I say something?” Lu Na said.

“Little spoiled Young Misses shouldn’t be talking,” the other disciple said.

Lu Na smiled as sweetly as she could. She reached into her chest pocket.

Both disciples focused on her.

“What are you—”

Lu Na took out twenty taels of silver as two perfect sycees. She took a few of these from her father’s personal stash. They were the same ones that he had made specifically for his business partners. It had a small Lu engraved on the bottom.

“I will not attack you, if that’s what you thought. And you are right, I am a Young Miss of the Lu family from Jianye. It’s not a brag when I say that our family is probably one of the richest in the city.”

“Your money can’t bribe us,” the disciples said.

“I think you’re mistaken. This is not a bribe. This is my payment to you for the injuries you will suffer from fighting Hen Li as we try to get past you. If you call him Senior Hen, then I shouldn’t need to tell you how powerful he is.”

Lu Na let that sink in. Both disciples looked between them and Hen Li. The monk might be injured currently, but his reputation should be enough.

“We can skip all of this and I can hand these two perfect sycees to you as a gift between friends. Not only would you have some pocket change for the coming New Year, but you also won’t have any injuries to nurse tonight.”

“But Elder Hen will beat us if he finds out. He shows no mercy to anyone that defies him.” The other disciple rubbed his arms.

“You’re telling me that righteous and understanding Elder Hen would punish you for not getting injured while standing up to his son? Let’s say you stop Hen Li and injure him. Would he be more understanding then?”

The disciples were sweating despite the cooling night. All Lu Na needed to do was let them stew for another second or two.

“So how I see it is that you two are stuck between a bad choice and a worse choice. Instead, you could take these two sycees and pretend you never saw us.” Lu Na offered both perfect pieces of silver in each hand out to the two disciples. She knew disciples didn’t make any money within these summoner sects. Most of them had to pay for the privilege of being taught summoner arts.

The first disciple took it. The second stared at the first, putting it away inside his chest pocket. He sighed and put away the other as well.

“Go now before Elder Hen realizes you came out this way,” the second disciple said.

The spirit energy coming off the three summoners cooled the air further.

Hen Li pushed his hands together and bowed.

“Thank you for your consideration.”

“No, she’s right. We are not your match. Even if we tried to stop you, we would only end up on bed rest for the next two weeks,” the first disciple said.

Lu Na smiled and pulled Hen Li away before he could speak anymore. She didn’t need to ask to know that he had a rapport with these disciples. They were on a deadline because if Lu Na knew one thing; it was that Sun Ren already had the relic in hand and would leave them if they didn’t hurry to meet her.

Lu Na led the way while Hen Li lagged. He sustained an injury or two that was making him walk slower than usual. When it became fully dark, Lu Na took out her light ward. She wrapped it around the head of her staff to light the way.

The village was darker than the city, as few bothered to hang lanterns on their doors to help travelers.

“Wait. Sun Ren needs your help,” Nugua said.

“Why does she need my help?” Lu Na asked.

“I can feel her spirit fighting against something and she’s getting desperate. Hurry to the ancestral shrine.”

Lu Na looked at Hen Li to confirm, but he had already turned toward the ancestral shrine. Despite his earlier shuffling movement, he now moved with purpose with his left hand clenched.

“We need to hurry in case any of the Wintersweet members sense it too,” Hen Li said.

“How did you sense it?” Lu Na asked.

“Only because your snake spirit mentioned it. But if the fight goes on any longer, it will turn into something more serious.”

Lu Na jogged toward the ancestral shrine. She had a feeling that with Hen Li’s help; it was going to become more serious no matter what. She tossed her staff to Hen Li who caught it with ease.

If Lu Na was heading into another battlefield, she needed to get ready. She took out her null metal bracelet and wrapped it back around her wrist. The metal was still warm to the touch, but it wasn’t burning. She double tapped the two spirit skin wards and a thin, invisible skin engulfed her. The metal warmed up.

When she had time later, she was going to look into putting something that could drain the null metal when it got too hot. She never thought it was because it held too much spirit energy that made it a molten piece of metal. She could work with that.

“Do you know what Sun Ren is fighting, Nugua?” Lu Na asked.

“It feels like an ancient being. It’s not strong, but I’m not sure if Sun Ren understands how to fight it,” Nugua said.

“An old friend of yours, then? The village leader said that the relic was here with the village’s founding all those generations ago.”

“Child, I’m old, but it doesn’t mean I knew everyone. And besides—”

“It’s a ghost.” Hen Li stopped. He took off his prayer beads and wrapped them around his left hand. “And it’s a strong one.”

“A what? Those don’t exist,” Lu Na said.

“How strongly do you believe in those Buddhist scriptures you use for your wards?”

“I don’t.”

“Then what about the heart sutra?”

“I told you before, I only recited it to calm myself.”

Hen Li bit his lower lip. This was the first time Lu Na had ever seen him so worried before.

“That should be enough. Keep reciting the heart sutra as you follow me and don’t stop reciting it for anything. I’ll deal with the ghost. But if I suddenly stop moving, you run, got it?”

“Is it that serious? Should we tell Elder Hen?” Lu Na didn’t know why the old man was the first one she thought of for help, but she couldn’t deny that he was probably the strongest one here. Without realizing it, she also trusted that he would help them no matter what, especially if it involved his son.

“I don’t want to, but if I fall victim to the ghost, then yes, call him. He might have something to fight this ghost or know someone. Just remember, no matter what, keep reciting the heart sutra even if you have to leave me.”

Lu Na nodded. What did they get themselves into? And how are ghosts real? She’d never seen one before. So many questions, yet the most frightening one for her was: what could she invent to fight them?