During the meal, Fu Yu’s gaze was sharp enough to flay her senior sister Qing Yao alive, and the rice in her mouth was chewed with a grinding intensity.
Qing Yao, however, paid no attention to what her junior sister was doing. She ate with elegant restraint, savoring each bite slowly. No matter how delicious or bland the food, she always ate in moderation. Yet, in truth, she was extremely picky, many things she simply refused to eat, such as the chives and cilantro from the previous night.
Today’s braised radish was garnished with coriander, and Fu Yu noticed that Qing Yao had not touched the dish at all.
A sudden idea sparked in Fu Yu’s mind, and a smile spread across her previously sullen face. “Senior Sister, why aren’t you eating the radish?” she asked, swiftly picking up a piece of radish along with some coriander and placing it in Qing Yao’s bowl.
Qing Yao paused, her chopsticks suspended mid-air, and shot Fu Yu a sidelong glance. “What are you doing?”
Fu Yu grinned mischievously. “Just showing my care for you, Senior Sister, by serving you some food.”
Qing Yao remained unruffled. “Thank you for your concern.” Then, this ethereal senior sister slowly rose to her feet, walked unhurriedly over to her junior sister, and in one swift motion, overturned her entire bowl onto Fu Yu’s.
“A gesture of care from your senior sister. Eat up, no need to thank me.”
With that, she turned and strode away.
Fu Yu shook her fist at Qing Yao’s retreating back. If only she could use magic, she would seize this chance to take her down while Qing Yao was powerless!
After the meal, Fu Yu was so furious she felt indigestion. Carrying a birdcage, she took Little Mochi for a stroll in the Little Kala Court. Towering ginkgo trees stood like golden money trees, their leaves shimmering like gold coins adorning the branches. Beyond the railings, clusters of datura flowers bloomed, their stems reaching high, adorned with cascading blossoms, pink ones radiant, white ones pure, and yellow ones vibrant, adorning this tranquil sanctuary.
Fu Yu sat beneath a ginkgo tree, admiring the mountain scenery and amusing the now lively Little Mochi. Suddenly, she overheard nuns conversing in the datura flowerbed below the railings:
“Did you hear? Something terrible has happened down the mountain.”
The opening of such a tale instantly captivated Fu Yu, and she pricked up her ears.
“They say a monster has appeared in the city. Last night, during the Mid-Autumn Festival, a blood moon rose, and the monster drained the life essence of seven women in a single night.”
“What? Seven? That many? And why only women?”
“They say the monster is extremely picky. All seven women were exceptionally beautiful. After their essence was drained, they turned into withered skeletons. What a tragedy!”
“What kind of monster could be so cruel?”
“No one knows. The abbess has taken several senior sisters with high cultivation down the mountain to perform rites. With seven deaths at once, even if they spend half an hour on each, it would take three and a half hours. They probably won’t return today.”
“Do you think this monster will stop after seven, or will it return every night?”
“Who knows? I’m not the monster. But you’d better be careful.”
“Why?”
“Look at your face, it’s exactly the type the monster would fancy.”
“Pfft, what’s so special about me? I’m just a bald nun. If we’re talking about beauties, our temple has indeed welcomed two recently.”
“You mean… Oh no, no wonder the abbess activated the protective barrier around Little Kala Court before leaving. It must be to safeguard those two esteemed guests.”
“Exactly, think about it. If something were to happen to the princess and her consort in our temple, none of us would survive, even if we tried to flee, we couldn’t escape. As the saying goes, ‘The monk may run away, but the temple remains.'”
“We are nuns.”
“Ahem, same difference. They say the Buddhist sanctuary lies beyond worldly affairs, but in reality, it’s still under imperial control. Isn’t our abbess still a member of the imperial religious council?”
“That’s true. I’ve heard that in some countries thousands of miles away, religion actually governs the state.”
Fu Yu looked up at the sky. Had a protective barrier been activated here? She couldn’t tell at all.
Suddenly, she thought of Qing Yao again. Unable to use magic, Fu Yu was still worried about her, even though she was quite skilled in hand-to-hand combat.
She grabbed Little Mochi and hurried back to find her senior sister.
After knocking on the door for a while with no response, she wondered if Qing Yao had gone out. Where could she have gone? In such a small place, her senior sister didn’t know many people.
If anyone, she only knew their master. So, Fu Yu rushed toward the Wisdom Hall.
Surprisingly, the door to Master Qing Cheng’s room was open. She walked straight in. “Master, is Senior Sister here?”
As soon as she spoke, she saw the master and disciple sitting opposite each other across a small table on the arhat bed, both turning to look at her. Of course, Master Qing Cheng could only see the slight sway of Fu Yu’s veil as it moved toward her.
“You two…” Fu Yu walked over to them in surprise.
“Why are you here?” Qing Yao asked.
“Can’t I come? I came to see Master.” Still upset about the chamber pot incident, Fu Yu spoke to her senior sister with lingering irritation.
Master Qing Cheng gestured for Fu Yu to take a seat.
Having something to discuss, Fu Yu pulled over an armchair from the corner and said seriously, “Master, I just heard that a demon appeared yesterday and killed seven women. Is it true?”
Just as Master Qing Cheng was about to speak, a voice beside her said, “It’s false.”
Under her veil, Master Qing Cheng looked surprised but didn’t expose Qing Yao on the spot. She remained silent, waiting to see what Qing Yao would say next.
“Go back. I have matters to discuss with Master.”
Fu Yu asked, puzzled, “What matters? Can’t I listen?”
Qing Yao replied bluntly, “No.”
Fu Yu was taken aback, but her intuition told her that Qing Yao’s discussion with Master Qing Cheng must be related to the demon killing the seven women. Perhaps they were planning how to capture the creature. In this world, Master Qing Cheng was considered an enlightened master, so dealing with demons fell within her responsibilities.
It seemed Qing Yao didn’t want to involve her, perhaps because her skills were too weak to help and might even hold them back.
Sensing this, Fu Yu didn’t press further. She returned the armchair and took her leave.
After Fu Yu left, Master Qing Cheng asked, “Why didn’t you tell her? Though her skills are limited, knowing earlier would at least allow her to be prepared.”
Qing Yao shook her head. “It’s unnecessary. Besides, it’s not because her skills are weak that I didn’t tell her.”
“Then why?” Master Qing Cheng pressed.
“Perhaps… because her skills are too strong?” She was the only soul in this Fusheng Jade not bound by the past timeline. She could wield all her inner power and magic freely, but precisely because of that, she was in even greater danger.
The Enchanting Hermit pressed her lips together and dropped the subject, shifting her concern to the task the Empress had assigned for this trip. “How have things been with your junior sister lately?”
Qing Yao looked at her master, her gaze calm. “Master, there’s something I’ve been meaning to ask you. How did you come to comprehend that set of Twin Beauties sword techniques that day?”
The Enchanting Hermit froze, her hands tightening slightly. Oh no, my old habit is acting up again. “I… I should go. You should rest early.”
With that, she stood up to leave, but after taking two steps, she realized something was off, she was the one who owned this room.
She stiffened on the spot, unsure whether to move or stay.
Qing Yao knew her master’s quirk had surfaced again. She rose to leave, but not without turning the tables on her master with a parting remark: “Take care on your way out. I won’t see you off.”
The Enchanting Hermit bit her lip. Whimper, she’s copying me!
Night fell quickly. By lamplight, Fu Yu carefully removed the bandages from Little Mochi’s wing. It had mostly healed. She encouraged the bird, “Try flying a little.”
Little Mochi seemed to understand. It fluttered its wings a few times and managed to lift off, though its flight was still somewhat unsteady.
“Don’t rush. In a little while, you’ll be back to your old self. When that time comes, I’ll set you free.”
The bird tilted its head as if it understood.
Fu Yu placed the birdcage by her bedside, took off her shoes and outer robe, slipped under the covers, and said, “Goodnight, Little Mochi. See you in the morning.”
Then she turned on her side and closed her eyes to sleep.
Midnight arrived in the blink of an eye.
The moon is fullest on the sixteenth night, and tonight, the blood-red moon hung heavy in the sky. As it reached its zenith, a strange wind swept out of nowhere, rustling the bodhi tree in the courtyard and stirring up dust and debris.
Just then, Qing Yao quietly opened her door and stepped outside. She descended the steps unhurriedly, her pristine white skirts billowing in the wind. Under the moonlight, her stunning face took on a frosty, ethereal coldness.
She walked to the stone table in the courtyard and sat down, speaking calmly, “Since you’re here, why not show yourself?”
A strange woman’s loud, arrogant laughter followed. Accompanied by the eerie sound, a swirl of black mist descended from mid-air, set against the vast night sky and the blood-red moon, a sinister and terrifying sight.
The black mist circled Qing Yao, the laughter continuing, “Beauty, I’ve been watching you for a long time. Aren’t you afraid now that you’ve seen me? I love nothing more than watching beauties turn pale with fear.”
Qing Yao showed no trace of fear. On the contrary, she remained perfectly composed. She even raised a hand, pressing her index finger to her lips in a gesture for silence. “Shh! Keep your voice down. Don’t wake my junior sister.”
The black mist paused. “Huh?”
“Besides,” Qing Yao added coolly, “your laughter is truly unpleasant to hear.”