Ji Youyou spoke with perfect politeness.
Yet anyone could hear the sharpness beneath her words.
Xie Lin turned to Yu Xuanhe with eyes brimming over and glistening.
His look was an unspoken accusation.
It is our wedding night.
You are a husband.
Yet you meet another woman in secret.
And now this woman speaks to me so unkindly.
Yu Xuanhe are you even a man?
Yu Xuanhe knew he was in the wrong.
He stepped close to Xie Lin.
He spoke sharply toward Ji Youyou.
Evil cultivator.
You dare speak to what is mine?
You are nothing but a prisoner.
You do not decide what you may or may not say.
He swept his sleeve.
A needle of ice flew forth.
It struck Ji Youyou in the neck in an instant.
Before she could react it dissolved into her skin.
Fear and dread coursed through her.
She had no magic and no skill in battle.
There was no way she could have dodged it.
She pressed a hand to her neck.
She trembled and stared bewildered.
What is this?
Did it pierce me?
A punishment.
Remember this.
I have never spared evil ones.
If you ever make Lin’er angry I will make sure you find life itself a torment.
Anger and bitterness rose in her throat.
Before she could speak the world went dark.
She fell to the ground and lost consciousness.
Lin’er do not grieve.
Let us return home.
I did not know her arts were so beguiling.
Tonight I…
Xuanhe we are wed.
I would never hold this against you.
Yet must she really live?
Lin’er there is something I must tell you.
Xie Lin’s heart sank.
He knew Yu Xuanhe.
He never spoke like this.
What had he done that he must confess?
Was he going to abandon her?
On our very first day?
For this woman?
He smiled bitterly.
His face paled.
Speak then.
Among my people every man is bound in body and spirit.
He belongs only to the one with whom he shares his first union.
To all others he will feel no desire.
If I kill her…
There was a flicker of sorrow deep in his gaze.
He fell silent.
He thought of his mother.
His parents had been the most loving and faithful pair he had ever known.
They were devoted to one another.
Then came the great dragon of the Western Sea.
It wrought havoc and called forth great waves.
It devoured whole villages.
His father was called away by the will of heaven.
His mother went alone to face the beast.
The dragon was fierce.
She was gaining the upper hand and ready to strike the final blow.
Then the dragon poured all its remaining strength into a wave that threatened to swallow the whole continent.
It spent itself in the effort.
She slew it in two strokes.
But the waters rose fast.
If nothing was done countless lives would be lost.
She saw homes being swept away.
She saw people clinging to wreckage.
She cast every spell she knew to hold back the flood.
It was not enough.
Only one way remained.
She would give her spirit to the sea.
She would become the waters.
Without hesitation she took her crane form and dove into the storm.
The dark and raging sea swallowed her.
In a moment the skies cleared.
The waves fell still.
The ocean was calm and blue again.
It was as if nothing had happened at all.
The survivors saw the danger pass and gave thanks.
Who would remember her?
Who would thank her?
They would only say the gods have spared us.
Her father knew the moment she died.
The bond between them told him.
For the first time he turned against heaven’s command and raced to the Western Sea.
Yu Xuanhe was but a small child then.
His memories were faint.
He remembered his father carrying his mother’s body back from the waters.
He had gone mad with grief.
He slew everyone in the Western Realm.
He nearly killed Yu Xuanhe too when he saw him.
Only heaven’s intervention restored his mind.
Those who had been slain were brought back.
His father was punished.
All these years later Yu Xuanhe knew the madness still lay beneath the surface.
Once he had spoken his mother’s name and his father had looked at him with eyes like a demon’s.
Ji Youyou held his first time.
If he killed her he would be lost to madness even worse than his father.
The suffering would be great.
He stroked Xie Lin’s head and smiled gently.
Do not trouble yourself.
We are married.
It is not mercy that stays my hand.
My mother had only my father in all her life.
When she died he was undone.
I fear if I kill this woman I will lose myself to darkness.
Xie Lin did not truly believe him.
Yet he bowed his head in obedience.
I shall follow your will in all things.
Yu Xuanhe’s heart grew heavy.
It is late.
Let us go home.
She bears the Needle of Ill Fortune.
It is punishment enough.
Do not be angry or sad.
Yes Xuanhe.
Whatever you say.
The Needle of Ill Fortune is a humble enchantment.
It binds the sleeper in a waking paralysis.
It fills their dreams with terror.
Even after waking they remain weary and adrift in visions for days.
Ji Youyou lay caught in that very dream.
She woke to the sound of traffic outside.
The air conditioner hummed at a steady twenty six degrees.
Beneath her fingers the sheets were soft and familiar modern cotton.
She looked around and pressed a hand to her cheek.
She was home.
She had returned to her own world.
Joy surged through her.
No more suffering.
The air was cool.
The scent of sweet and sour spareribs drifted from the kitchen.
Her favorite dish.
She hurried to the kitchen.
She had missed them so.
Her parents stood with their backs to her chopping rapidly.
The knives clicked fast and sharp.
Mother.
Father.
I am home.
I have missed you both so much.
Tears pricked her eyes.
Something was wrong.
Her mother’s hair had always been short.
Now it fell long to the floor.
And her father had died long ago.
Who was this?
They stopped moving like machines.
They did not turn around.
You are back little Youyou.
Her head turned all the way around.
It hung backward upon her neck.
Her face was pale and lifeless.