The oil lamp had long been extinguished, and the room was as dark as an old iron pot. Just as my eyelids grew heavy and I was about to fall asleep, my chest suddenly burned, and the Pendant jumped three times against my skin, like a bell tolling.
I opened my eyes, my hand already pressing down on the Pendant.
It was scalding hot, not the mild warmth from last night, but a burning heat. The moment my fingertip touched it, the Gold Pattern crawled up from my palm, as if pulled by a thread.
A roof tile shifted.
Not just one, but three consecutive sounds, starting from the southeast corner of the roof and moving toward the Side Room. They were light, but each step landed precisely on the seams of the Roof Beams—a path only someone knowledgeable would take.
I rolled over and sat up. As soon as my feet touched the ground, the Sword Qi beneath the door crack instantly retracted by half an inch.
Lu Jiuxuan was also awake. He sat on the edge of the bed, his Silver Hair unbound, his Ancient Sword drawn out half an inch, its cold light creeping along the floor.
“Three,” he murmured, his voice low, squeezed from his throat. “Demonic Qi pressing the border; these are not gang members.”
I remained silent, only staring at my left hand. The Gold Pattern had not receded; it was tracing its way along my Blood Vessels toward my forearm, an inch, then it stopped.
He suddenly turned his head to look at me, his gaze falling on my neck.
I felt it too—my Adam's apple was moving, not swallowing, but retracting inward. The Gender Swap Technique couldn't hold much longer; in half an hour at most, this skin would crack.
He violently pulled open his collar, revealing the Chest Seal on his chest. Black Qi coiled around the Talisman Pattern, twisting as if alive.
“You go first,” he said. “I’ll hold them off.”
I didn't move.
He looked up, his brow furrowed, seemingly not understanding why I hadn't moved yet.
I reached out and grabbed his wrist.
The force surprised even me. In all those years wandering, I never touched people; I avoided them if I could. But this time, my hand felt welded in place, refusing to let go at all. The Pendant pressed against my palm, so hot it felt like it would burn right through my flesh.
He tried to pull his hand away, but I held fast.
“Together,” I said, my voice still hoarse, but steady. “I have a way.”
He stared at me, his eyes weighing how much truth there was in my words.
I didn't wait for him to ask; I pressed the Pendant directly onto his Chest Seal.
“It can absorb Demonic Qi,” I explained. “When the Compass lit up last night, it was absorbing. There are three outside now; the heavier the Demonic Qi, the harder it absorbs—maybe it can sustain the Barrier.”
The moment the words left my mouth, the Pendant vibrated with a low hum.
It wasn't my hand shaking; it was vibrating on its own. Golden Light radiated from my palm, flowing through the Pendant toward his Seal. The Black Qi instantly recoiled, as if burned. The Seal’s edge, where the Talisman Pattern lay, flashed once, shifting from Dark Red to a pale gold.
Lu Jiuxuan’s breath hitched.
He stopped struggling. Instead, he raised his hand and placed it gently but firmly on my wrist.
“It can really stabilize it?” he asked.
“I don’t know,” I replied. “But we won’t know unless we try. If you defend alone and the Barrier breaks, the Demonic Qi will leak out and alert the entire Academy. Then you won't be able to leave, and neither will I.”
A flicker crossed his eyes.
He knew I was right. He wasn't afraid of dying, but he was afraid of implicating me.
Outside, a roof tile shifted again.
This time, it was closer—right above the window.
I felt the pulse in his wrist beating, fast, but steady. He seemed to exhale in relief and slowly slid his sword back into its sheath.
“I’ll trust you this once,” he said.
Before his voice faded, he pulled me backward with a swift motion, leaving no room for argument.
I stumbled slightly, bumping into his shoulder, and caught a scent of medicine on his collar—bitter, like the packet of Purple Crystal he brought back from the Pharmacy last night.
A Talisman Paper slipped from his Sleeve Pouch. Without lighting it, he rubbed the corner between his fingers, and it ignited itself with a faint Blue Light flashing.
“Stay behind me,” he instructed. “Keep close.”
I nodded, not releasing the Pendant.
The light from the Talisman Paper cast long, slanted Shadows on the floor, perfectly covering the window crack. I stared at the gap, my ears straining. There was no more movement outside, but I knew they were waiting—waiting for the Barrier to weaken, waiting for us to make a move, waiting for an opening.
The Pendant continued to vibrate, its heat undiminished. I felt it was "listening," just like it listened to the Compass last night, but now it was listening to the breathing rhythm of the three people outside.
The first was on the roof above the window, crouching, a blade in hand, still sheathed.
The second had circled to the back wall, landing as lightly as a cat on the balls of their feet.
The third stood outside the courtyard, motionless. But their Demonic Qi was the heaviest, making the Roof Beams tremble.
Lu Jiuxuan’s Talisman Paper burned down by a third, and the Blue Light began to flicker.
He noticed and pinched his fingers, extinguishing the flame.
The room plunged back into darkness.
But in the instant the flame died, the Pendant suddenly grew intensely hot, and Golden Light burst from between my fingers, shooting straight toward the roof. That light didn't dissipate; instead, it solidified in mid-air into a thin line that crossed the Roof Beam and connected directly to his Chest Seal.
The Seal hummed, and the Black Qi completely retracted into the Talisman Pattern. The Golden Light traced a circuit along his Meridians, stabilizing everything.
Lu Jiuxuan looked down at me, his expression changed.
It wasn't suspicion; it was understanding.
“It recognizes you,” he stated.
I didn't answer, because I knew he was right. This Pendant wasn't just a tool; it had Consciousness, it just hadn't awakened until now. The Compass lighting up last night was its first movement. Now, it had connected to Lu Jiuxuan’s Seal, like building a bridge.
Outside, the window paper suddenly hissed as a slit was cut open.
A blade edge slid in from outside, sweeping along the wall corner. It didn't strike; it was testing the Barrier.
The moment the blade retracted, the Pendant’s Golden Light dimmed by half.
I knew it couldn't last long. The more it absorbed, the faster it drained.
Lu Jiuxuan raised his hand, gripping his sword tightly again, but not drawing it.
“They realized the Barrier is unstable,” he said. “They won’t wait any longer.”
I nodded, letting my hand slide down from the Pendant to press against my own chest. It felt searingly hot there, like a fire burning inside, but no heat was escaping.
“Do you remember that day in the kitchen?” I suddenly asked.
He paused, letting out a soft “Mm.”
“You said, ‘My Study Boy,’” I continued. “I knew then that you wouldn't abandon me.”
He didn't speak, but the tips of his ears twitched.
“It’s the same now,” I finished. “Don’t try to carry this alone. We face it together—either we both leave, or we both stay.”
He turned his head to look at me; in the darkness, his eyes shone brightly like Star Particles.
Outside, Footsteps sounded on the roof.
This time, it wasn't testing; they were stepping down firmly. All three moved simultaneously.
The sound of shattering Roof Tiles exploded as the window top, the back wall, and the main door all took force at once. The Barrier hummed and shook. Sword Qi shot out from under the door crack, coiling on the ground like snakes.
The Pendant jerked violently, and all its Golden Light surged toward Lu Jiuxuan’s chest.
The Seal lit up, the Black Qi held down tightly, but the Pendant began to tremble, as if it had reached its limit.
Lu Jiuxuan raised his hand and slapped the Talisman Paper onto the floor. Blue Fire erupted, instantly connecting to form a semi-circular Barrier.
“Get ready,” he said quietly.
I moved to stand just behind and to his side, clenching the Pendant in my left hand and reaching for the Purple Crystal Fragment in my Sleeve Pouch with my right.
The Gold Pattern crawled from my palm to my wrist, but no further up.
I knew it was waiting—waiting for the instant the three outside broke through.
The Roof Beam shuddered, and a section of Roof Tiles collapsed with a crash.
A Black Shadow leaped down from the hole, a blade flashing straight toward Lu Jiuxuan’s head.
He didn't move; the Talisman Fire surged, and the Blue Light collided with the blade edge, sending sparks flying.
A second Shadow crashed through the back window. The Barrier cracked open slightly, and Demonic Qi flooded in.
The Pendant hummed, and the Golden Light exploded, forcefully patching the crack.
The third person was still outside the door, but their Demonic Qi suddenly pressed down even heavier, as if trying to crush the entire room.
Lu Jiuxuan gritted his teeth. A fine crack appeared on the Chest Seal, and a wisp of Black Qi seeped out.
I immediately pressed the Pendant onto it.
The Golden Light and Black Qi intertwined, fighting like two snakes. I felt a force pulling me, dragging me into the Seal.
Just then, the person outside the door spoke.
The voice was hoarse, like iron scraping stone.
“Ye Zhen.”
I froze completely.
He knew my name.