The Administrators are a rather ingenious way of managing the problem of the Shore. At once ensuring all villages and towns of a certain size are granted a measure of protection, while both minimizing and organizing the cultivating populace in that dangerous place. By their very existence, Administrators create a power dynamic that drives cultivators away and, thus, prevents organized rebellion or worse, a swell in the moon-twisted. –Yarei Suzan, Administrator to Shiyun

* * *

I sighed as we crossed into the silk-covered streets of Heimian. The tiny town had clearly seen more spider attacks in the month, much to my disappointment. They were getting bolder. Long threads of silk hung from the eaves like streamers waving in the wind, and I caught the faint smell of blood on the wind. The survivors milled about in the light of day, faces sunken to the bone as if they were already dead and their bodies hadn’t quite realized it.

“These poor people,” Pollen murmured. “I knew the fighting had gotten bad in contested territory, but this is surreal.”

“I’m not sure it’s quite contested anymore. This is what happens when mortals get caught between the conflicts of those higher on the ladder,” I explained, trying to contain the bitterness I felt in my heart. “Luckily, the spiders probably won’t be out during the day, so we can meet up with the hornet represent- CHIHO!”

I swatted my hand at the hair pin, but it zipped out of my reach just before the blow landed. I didn’t know what had gotten into the stupid thing! It had been whirring around non-stop since we left Xinya at the Honey Hive for a second time. Cherry Blossom and Rose Thorn were there to take care of her…something which I explained to Chiho several times, but it didn’t seem to calm the pin down in the slightest. It zipped around my head like a buzzing gnat, and every so often, it dove down and poked me painfully in the ribs like it was angry.

“Chiho, for the last time, please behave yourself. If you don’t, I’ll dip my hair in a mud pit.” The pin grumpily settled down for a few moments, only to dart away a moment later to chase after a fallen leaf.

“Your pin continues to be unruly, it seems,” Pollen said, biting her lip to conceal the smile that so clearly shone in her eyes. I just shrugged and shook my head. This had been the constant state of things for weeks.

I nodded a greeting to the fletcher whose bow I’d broken. He waved me over, so Pollen and I stepped into his meager shop.

“Young Master, I’m so glad to see you made it out!” he said. “The battle that night was truly horrible. I heard rumors that you were kidnapped by spirit beasts after the battle.”

“I’m sorry I couldn’t pay you back,” I answered.

“Think nothing of it,” he said with a shake of his head.

“It seems the town has had a rough time lately.”

The fletcher sighed and shrugged. “I’d leave if I could, but the roads are even more dangerous than the town. That witch has spiders on every road, ready to creep from the woodwork and eat whole caravans alive.”

“The witch? You mean the death artist? She’s still alive?!” After weathering so many attacks, I thought for sure she was done for. How had she managed to come back from that?

“She’s taken a humanoid form and sits in the Wind Master’s Temple like she owns the place,” he explained. A spark of anger ignited in my heart. The Wind Master was one of the reverent titles given to the Sword Saint. She was in one of his temples, likely desecrating it with her very presence.

“That’s horrible,” Pollen noted. “You’d think the local cultivators would rise against her.”

“The town administrator tried. Lady Shizue killed him for the attempt. First I’ve ever seen a cultivator die. And, since the Lunar Hunt are wrapped up in their own little world, what chance do the rest of us have?” He shrugged. “But, if I’m going to kick the bucket, then I’m glad you stopped by before I did, Young Master. I’ve got something special for you.” He pulled a long bundle of cloth from a chest and set it on the table for me to see. “It’s my finest work, inspired by seein’ you in action when you snapped that last twig right in two!”

I blushed and muttered an apology. He shook his head and pushed the bundle closer. After a long moment, I relented and began unwrapping the object. My eyes went wide revealing the fine craftsmanship.

It was a longbow, the finest I’d seen in quite some time. The wood was smooth and supple, and, burned into the wood, were swirling patterns that looked like little black clouds snaking up and down the limbs. He really had been inspired by my void techniques.

“I must say, it’ll be a shame if you meet your end here, friend,” I told the merchant as I ran a loving hand down the length of the bow. “This is exquisite craftsmanship.”

“Your words honor me, Young Master.” He bowed deeply in thanks. “Perhaps you could use that to save our little town. I can put together a quiver for you, as well, if you want it.”

I thought long and hard about the proposition. It was made of sturdier wood than the bow I’d broken last time I was here, but it was still only a mundane item. I’d need to infuse it with qi so it wouldn’t break, and void qi wasn’t exactly good for increasing durability. Was it worth trying to use it?

Fighting at range was something I quite enjoyed. When I’d first learned to use a sword, it was because my sect specialized in it, not because I had any particular talent for swordcraft. In fact, I’d been told repeatedly that I was barely passable with a blade…which, of course, isn’t worth nothing. “Passable” for an Ascendent is still leagues better than most cultivators could ever dream of contending with, but that didn’t change the fact that the Sword Saint beat me in 10 out of 10 fights if I didn’t use my blooded techniques.

Even if I couldn’t use it right now without revealing myself, the fact that the ominous moonlight that combined my void and lunar qi together could block my blooded techniques altogether was worrying. I still hadn’t figured out quite what that technique was meant to do, if anything useful, but it clearly came with a cost. If I was to withstand that cost, I needed to reconsider my options. I was skilled with a bow, at least enough that I could further hone my skills through practice. Maybe that could make up the difference…

“Pollen, would you be able to infuse the bow with qi to make it even sturdier?” I asked. A land artist and array weaver both, the honeybee queen’s work would be much better than mine. She took the bow in hand, examined it, then nodded.

“I can try, at least.”

“Then, let’s do it!”

The fletcher’s eyes shimmered with joy and hope as he helped me string the bow. Though he refused my gold, saying that he was too likely to die before it could be used, he did accept several jars of Pollen’s qi-infused honey in exchange…something that was easily worth three times the amount in gold, but we had plenty of it.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

“I hope you put an arrow through their eyes, Young Master,” the fletcher offered with a bow as we left. “And, don’t worry about the Hunt, they won’t be prying these old lips open.” Before I could ask quite what he meant by that, the old man had closed the door. I turned to Pollen, but she only shrugged, mirroring my own confusion.

I slung the bow over my shoulder, and the two of us continued meandering down the streets in search of Pharyx. The spirit hornet hadn’t said where he’d be meeting up with us, but the town wasn’t that big, and I was sure we’d spot his sun-kissed hair from a mile away.

Or at least, so I thought… We searched for nearly an hour in all the busiest parts of town, but there was no trace of him. I looked up to the sky, mentally checking the date against my internal calendar.

“I don’t understand, the hornet should have beat us here by at least a week,” I muttered.

“Leave it to a predator to be late,” Pollen huffed. “She’s probably off lazing on a sunny rock or something.” Per Pharyx’s request, I still hadn’t told Pollen that he’d be the one coming.

“Maybe we ask around again?” I said. “Anyone out of the ordinary is sure to leave an impression on someone.”

We surveyed the market square. Very few stalls were open, and those merchants who were out had their heads kept firmly on their wares and the ground. It was strange. Pollen and I were clearly cultivators and cultivators often had money. Why weren’t the merchants trying to get our attention? In fact, it almost seemed like they were avoiding looking at us.

Chiho poked me hard in the shoulder and I yelped. It pointed across the way to a group of six men and women dressed like fighters and wearing black bands with a mix of green-colored and bronze-colored badges. Cultivators, split between the Leaf Stage and Bronze State, were going between the stalls. They were questioning the merchants, but we were too far away to hear what it was they were saying.

“Maybe they’ll know?” Pollen offered, following my gaze. I wasn’t sure. It seemed…off. The fletcher said the local administrator died, and this town was even smaller than Saikan. They wouldn’t have more than one local cultivator, meaning these were either wanderers or…

I was violently yanked backwards by a cold hand in the collar of my robes. The hand was strong, definitely an Iron.

“Don’t resist,” said a cool, familiar voice. Qi filled the command, and a shockwave spread down my body from my ears. Without warning, my entire body relaxed, and I was forced to let the hornet drag me into the alley. Once there, he promptly dropped me in a puddle of mud.

In the moment after I hit the ground, black mud getting all over my white robes, Pollen struck. The honey-haired spirit hornet was shoved so violently against a wall that I heard the wood creak and protest.

“Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t end you here,” she hissed, a talisman in her free hand, ready to burn her enemy.

“What gives, Pharyx?” I hissed, fighting through the command. This must have been a manifestation of his bloodline: Subjugation. My clothes were filthy, and more of me was covered in brown than white.

“This is our contact from the hornets?” Pollen growled. However, instead of releasing Pharyx from the wall, she only pressed her forearm harder into his throat. He gasped and forced a smile.

“Mercy…Majesty…mercy,” he rasped. “This one…is…humbled…by your presence.”

“Let him go, Pollen,” I said. I stood and began brushing off what mud I could. It would take several minutes for my techniques to clean this much of a mess.

Pollen looked conflicted. Anger raged in her gaze, but eventually she released the hornet from her grasp. He coughed several times, massaging his windpipe. Then, he brushed off his black and gold uniform and bowed to Pollen.

“Much obliged, Majesty,” he said. “This one has been sent by Queen Taiya Suzume to accompany your illustrious self and Master Tsuyuki on this grand mission to slay the Arachnid Matriarch.”

“She sent a drone?!” Pollen hissed. Pharyx’s expression darkened just a touch at the disgust in her voice, but when I tried to interject, he just shook his head. He was running the same game he did in his throne room. This was a test for Pollen, and I was not to help her.

Instead of answering, Pharyx turned to me. “Master Tsuyuki, I would not recommend cleaning your clothes.”

“Why not?”

“Those cultivators searching the market are looking for a cultivator dressed in all white accompanied by a small child,” he explained. “Given how few cultivators pass through the area, I’m assuming that would be you.”

My heart sank. That must have been what the fletcher was talking about. These were Shen Yaoxan’s people. I wasn’t sure how they’d managed to find me, but I was sure they didn’t just want to talk.

“What does that have to do with the mud?” I asked.

“Makes your clothes less white,” he answered simply, then a grin brightened his eyes. “And because it was just a little bit fun.”

“That isn’t going to fool anyone,” Pollen said.

“It might! I’m travelling with two spirit beasts not…” Pharyx cut me off with a raise of his hand.

“Come out from hiding, please,” Pharyx called. His eyes flashed gold as his bloodline technique activated, only I wasn’t the target.

Soft footsteps padded down the alleyway. Xinya was dirty, covered in scrapes and dirt. She did not raise her head as Pharyx’s command forced her to approach.

“Is this yours, by chance?” he asked sweetly. “I’ve been watching you since you entered town, and this one was following you.”

I knelt, keeping my face expressionless as I looked the little girl in the eye. “What are you doing here, Xinya?” She didn’t meet my gaze.

“I’ll take that as a yes.” Pharyx raised a hand and began ticking on his fingers. “So, that’s a cultivator, dressed in white, with a small child in tow. Now am I justified for dragging you into the mud?”

Pollen pinched the bridge of her nose. “Cherry and Rose are probably panicking. I’ll send word that we have her.”

“You do that, gorgeous,” Pharyx said. The words weren’t even all the way out of his mouth before he was ducking to avoid the fibers of Pollen’s whisk as it sailed towards his head. “In the meantime, I’m going to go find you something else to wear. If her Majesty would be so kind as to accompany this idiot drone before he gets in trouble?”

Pollen narrowed her eyes. “Fine, but only because you would screw it up otherwise.”

I watched the two spirit beasts disappear into the town. Part of me wondered if they’d be alright. Neither of them had much experience dealing with people beyond their own kin, and I gave it even odds that they would break into a fight between each other. Pharyx was playing a dangerous game, pretending to be a drone in a matriarchal society. If Pollen didn’t realize the truth quickly, would they be able to lay the foundation for their alliance? Or would it end in further war and bloodshed?

Not my problem at the moment. I shook my head and turned back to the girl before me. Xinya still hadn’t raised her eyes to meet mine

“How did you manage to avoid notice?” I asked softly. Xinya shuffled her feet and looked pointedly at my hand. Chiho still struggled to get free of my grasp, and suddenly it made sense. “It was helping you, wasn’t it? By distracting us anytime you were around?” She nodded.

“You promised to teach me,” she muttered.

“And I still intend to.”

Xinya didn’t answer, but I saw tears well up in her eyes. She fought hard to keep them in, blinking furiously and looking everywhere but in my face. Eventually, the tears were too heavy, and they cascaded down her cheeks as she scowled.

I couldn’t bring myself to be angry. She’d been left behind by everyone she loved, even if none of them were intentional. Her mother left to fight a monster and never returned. Her father stood against a cultivator and died before her eyes. Now, Pollen and I were off to protect the Moon-Soaked Shore, and with no guarantee that we’d return.

“Are you going to send me back?” she asked. What she didn’t realize was that I didn’t have a choice. Heimian was in the middle of nowhere. The closest place of safety was the Hanai Hornet nest, and that was just over two weeks away. She was already behind enemy lines, so there wasn’t much else to do.

I shook my head. “It’s going to be dangerous.” Her eyes lit up and she finally looked me in the eye. “And you must promise to follow every order given by Pollen, Pharyx, or myself. If you don’t, I will ask Pharyx to force the issue as he did to draw you out.”

“I promise.” She was unusually sincere, more so than I’d ever seen from her before.

“Alright, then we begin now while we wait,” I said. Not that I’d ever admit it, but she was incredibly skilled to have gotten this far without Pollen and I noticing. Maybe now was as good a time as any to start. “Sit down and cross your legs. You’re going to find the place where your core will someday be.”