The High Inquisitor leads me into the dome, the light changing to a soft orange as stones lining the wall emit a soft glow.

We pass several doors with cultivators standing guard as we travel deeper. They salute the High Inquisitor, and I feel their attention focusing on me as I pass by them. Multiple qi senses scan me as we pass through doorways, but none as intrusive as the first inquisitor I had met. Shia is completely still, and if I didn’t know she was wrapped around me, I would think she had left.

“We are very careful here in the fourth sect.” High Inquisitor Xiang says.

My head turns to her sharply, distracted from the searching qi.

“The demons that malign this world are terrifying to behold, and even the weakest can wreak havoc on mortal and cultivator lives. Spirit beasts are little better, creatures twisted by qi and spirit into unnatural monsters. They too gladly feed on the qi of cultivators.”

The lights dim as we travel deeper into the structure, making the High Inquisitor harder to see.

“The crimes of your sisters are twofold. First, they helped a dangerous spirit beast escape our custody. And second, they attacked my inquisitors.” The High Inquisitor’s eyes keep me still, not with fear, but with the sheer power that she holds. “These crimes are not easily forgiven. But… your sect is not under the wings of The First Matriarch.”

We take a turn, then stop in front of a door.

“As such, the price of their release will be high.” High Inquisitor Xiang lifts her chin, her eyes bearing into me with a cold and calculated stare born from centuries of cultivating and hunting. “We want to know the locations of the portals in and out of your realm, as well as any knowledge your sect holds of Spirit Beasts and Demons.”

My mind immediately goes to Ai. Already my sect wants her, but something tells me that if the Fourth Sect found out about her, they would stop at nothing to have her dead or in their hands.

She opens the door, revealing a small but comfortable room with two beds and a desk. Parchment and ink are provided for the residents. Two familiar cultivators turn to look at us, and I let out a breath of relief at the sight of the two girls.

Xia Jing and Lai Ming look up at the sight of The High Inquisitor and myself. Xia Jing had clearly been pacing while Lai Ming had been meditating on one of the beds

High Inquisitor Xiang motions for me to enter the room. “I will give you a few moments to confirm their safety, then you will arrange the transfer of information.”

I meet her eyes, and my heart clutches in fear at the monster I see within them. There is no hesitation, no forgiveness, only a deep hatred for the inhuman. A terrifying fanaticism.

I tear my gaze away and step into the room.

She closes the door behind me and the room is left in silence.

Xia Jing rushes forward and grabs me in a strong hug. “It is good to see you Sister Lin.” She pulls away to look at me, her eyes looking over me worriedly, “Are you alright?”

I shake my head, focusing on the two girls. “That’s what I should be asking you both.” I say, unable to stop myself from smiling at the sight of them. I had worried that we’d been separated far more than we had. “They haven’t done anything to you?”

Xia Jing lifts her hand, revealing a strange metal bracelet that curls up the length of her arm. “It drains our qi, but they haven’t done anything else to us.”

I look at Lai Ming and she shows me the same bracelet curling up her arm. “They’ve been polite and they haven’t harmed us.” She pauses, her eyes flickering to the door before looking back at me. “But there’s something not quite… right with them.”

Xia Jing nods in agreement.

I open my mouth, then close it, my gaze looking around the room. I close my eyes, focusing on my spirit sense, which had grown so much since I’d first learned to use it under Qiu Tai’s tutelage.

Wisps of spirit rise from the floor and float through the walls. I open my eyes with the knowledge that we are not as alone as we might appear.

I pull Xia Jing into another hug. I shape my qi to hide my words as best I can. My whisper comes out as a song, shaping the illusion to hide their sound. It’s not easy, as my qi still does not like to shape itself in small strands like this, but I manage. “Two below, two beside, we find that we are never alone, no matter how we hide.” The notes change the shape of my mouth, hiding the movement of my lips so even if they see into the room, they cannot read what I am saying.

I pull away and Xia Jing nods, having got my meaning.

I motion for Lai Ming to come close for a hug, and repeat the words to her.

She nods in understanding.

I pause in thought, trying to decide what to do next, I want to say so many things to them, but I can’t risk the High Inquisitor knowing our current relationship to our sect. Instead, I just close my eyes and take a deep breath.

I open my eyes with conviction. “Be prepared to leave soon. I am representing our sect to negotiate your release.”

I grab Xia Jing’s arm fondly, and press with my finger in the direction I believe the people to be listening are in.

She doesn’t react to the pressure, and I’m not sure if she got the message. Instead she smiles. “We’ll be ready. Good luck, Sister Lin.”

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

I turn around and head to the door. It opens easily. The High Inquisitor stands there, waiting patiently.

I bow my head in thanks. “I see that they are unharmed, and I believe my sect would be willing to provide you most of the information you seek.” I raise my head high, “However, my sect has a different view of spirit beasts than your own-”

“You misunderstand.” The words stop me cold, and a chill crawls up my spine. “I am not negotiating. I am telling you the price of their freedom. Either your sect gives us this information or we will punish your disciples as we would one of our own.”

The ease with which she says those words terrifies me, and it takes every ounce of my will to not crumble under the woman’s gaze.

I turn my body to the woman and hold her gaze. Her sharp brown eyes twirl with an inner red light, twisting with the spirit of a huntress staring at her prey.

I move my qi through my body, running it through every portion of my being to give me strength. “If you do, you invite war with my sect.”

I hold her gaze for a long moment, before she looks at my flute through my clothes, huffs and looks away, a small smile playing at the edge of her lips.

Despite myself, I let out a breath of relief.

“I see why your sect sent you. You are brave, young Disciple. Stronger women than you have faltered under my gaze.” The High Inquisitor speaks in a quiet tone. “Very well, we will negotiate. Simply the information on the portals of your realm and where they lead will be enough for me.”

She starts walking.

I close my eyes and breathe for a second before following her. Now I’m faced with a bigger obstacle. I’m not actually representing my sect, so how do I get that kind of information to her?

“It will take time to get that information to you…” I start.

“And we will hold onto the disciples until you do,” High Inquisitor Xiang says without looking at me. “unharmed of course.”

I do my best to not give any kind of physical reaction to her words, but even without looking at me, The High Inquisitor must’ve noticed something.

“I have already lowered myself for you, do not tempt fate.” She says the words casually, but my stomach twists at the promise hidden inside them.

She leads me out of the building and into the garden where the same Inquisitor who had brought me here waits for us.

The sword expands under her feet and she offers her hand to me. I ignore it as I step onto the sword. Having her qi intrude into my body once was bad enough.

I turn and bow to The High Inquisitor. “You honor me with your words and actions. My sect and I look forward to future dealings with The Fourth Sect.”

The High Inquisitor nods her head. “I will see you again soon, Core Disciple Lin Jia of the Flowing River Sect.”

High Inquisitor Xiang’s gaze is impossible to read as the sword rises into the air and leaves the sect behind.

***

Inquisitor Lao doesn’t even look at me as she leaves me in the street.

I watch her leave until both her spirit and qi are gone, then close my eyes. Several unfamiliar wisps of spirit surround me, barely detectable to my senses.

I open my eyes, then start walking.

I turn down the first alleyway I find, and twist my qi into the Movements of The Silent Monster.

I run through the alleyways, my footsteps slipping into the movements of The First Song: Dance Of The Brook.

The wisps of spirit disappear, one by one as I slip in and out of alleyways, through crowded streets and on the occasional rooftop.

I continue moving for a while after the last strange wisp of spirit had disappeared, then walk silently through a familiar market street.

“Are they all gone?” I ask.

There’s no response for a long moment as the sun sets and merchants hawk their wares to mortal customers. A young boy hurries down the street lighting lanterns.

Finally, a quiet whisper reaches my ear.

“I believe you’ve lost them.” Shia says.

I let out a breath, then turn down a street. I am mildly lost in the city, but travelling by rooftop does wonders for finding the small tavern I’d been in just a couple hours ago. The night plus my technique hides me as I make my way.

Li Mingze’s music guides me the rest of the way and I open the door to soft strumming and a celebratory atmosphere.

I move out of the Movements of The Silent Monster and Li Mingze looks up at me for a moment before turning his attention back to his instrument.

I slip over to an empty table and sit down. Shia twists around my body, letting out her own tenseness with her movement.

A serving woman walks over to me, and places a drink in front of me with a small bow.

I look up in surprise.

“From the master of the house.” She explains. She bows her head again, then moves away.

I look at the cup with suspicion. “Shia?”

“It is unpoisoned.”

With that, I let out a long breath. I lift the cup to take a sip, only to realize that I’m still wearing my fox mask. It had been on so long, that I had actually forgotten that I was wearing it. I lift the mask up, hesitate for a second, then fully take it off and set it on the table. I take a sip, and am surprised at the pleasant taste. It’s a fruit juice of some kind, and I can feel it soothing and replenishing my qi as it moves through me.

A presence appears across the table from me, making me look up sharply. It is a calming presence, the spirit uplifting and filled with the quiet joy of life. The man who sits there is himself familiar, from a place I would never expect.

“It is good to finally meet you, Successor of The Musicians of Zhu Teng.” Zhu Teng’s eighth disciple and creator of The Eighth Requiem: Necrosis sits across from me, but this is no spirit.

He wears long white robes, with green vine-like patterns traveling up and down them. Leaning against the table is a case holding the same instrument that Li Mingze plays. His eyes are a comforting green, contrasting The High Inquisitor's harsh gaze, and his hair is tied back flowing all the way down to his waist.

“Forgive me, I have startled you. I have many enemies, and therefore like to keep my presence subdued, even inside my Inn.” The man bows his head, “I am Li Yuze, Master Wordsmith and Eighth Disciple of Immortal Zhu Teng. May I have your name, young Disciple?”

I nod, then bow low while still sitting. “I am Lin Jia of the Flowing River Sect.”

Li Yuze smiles. “I am blessed by your presence, young Lin Jia.”