Xu Hanshan looked very solemn as he stepped into the red-painted doors of the Crimson Fairy. A year ago, he had sworn an oath to his wife Wang Xi'er, that no matter what, he would not meet the cursed witch that he had grown up with.
But now, it seemed that he would have to break his promise to her because there was no other way out!
He furrowed his thick brows as he looked about the inn. A waiter with a towel around his neck hasted towards him, politely putting his hands together in a greeting.
"Kind customer, what can I get for you?" Ma Qi asked.
A constrained look was written all over his face. This man had to be worried over something and was not here to dine for fun, Ma Qi observed.
"I wish to meet your proprietress," Hanshan said in a deep voice. His eyes were sunken, and his dark eyebags were very evident. He must have something urgent to see their boss about.
"I apologise, but Miss Muxue is not seeing anyone right now."
"But it's urgent," the man insisted anxiously. "It's only she who can save my wife now."
Wife? Did the customer just say Muxue Xiyu could save his wife? Even a man drinking at a table in the inn suddenly stopped to look at Hanshan. Muxue Xiyu, who practised witchcraft, could save lives?
"What is your name, Sir? I will report this to Miss Muxue at once."
"Xu Hanshan."
Zhan Dongyue's keen ears perked up at the mention of 'Xu Hanshan', and putting down his teacup; he watched the man silently. The man was dressed in a fur coat that looked inexpensive, but under his coat, he could see a few patches on his outer garments. It didn't seem that this Xu Hanshan was rich at all. Since he was born with a silver spoon in his mouth, he hadn't understood what it was like to struggle for a living. Hanshan got by with doing carpentry, and his wife sewed for a living. But now, his wife's sickness got the better of her. If he didn't act fast, his wife might even die.
What was Xu Hanshan to her? Dongyue wondered curiously, resuming sipping the hot jasmine tea in his teacup and scalding his tongue slightly. Tea was what Dongyue grew up on, and he was glad to know that the people of Muxue did enjoy tea. Did Muxue Xiyu like tea?
Shortly after, the waiter returned with good news.
"Mr Xu, my mistress Miss Muxue will see you. Let me escort you," he offered.
"There's no need," Hanshan said. "I can find my way upstairs myself."
"The upper floor of the inn," Ma Qi said, maintaining his courtesy as he spoke. "She will be waiting in the hall. Do not enter any of the rooms on that floor. They are heavily warded with magic that has the powers to grant you an instant death, Sir."
Hanshan nodded, and the waiter promptly left to attend to another customer who had just walked into the inn.
Deeply intrigued, Dongyue followed the man up the stairs. The man was shaking in a panic, and pearls of sweat adorned his forehead. There had to be something about this man, Dongyue thought, that had triggered Miss Muxue to believe all Han men were like Xu Hanshan.
Hanshan stopped outside the hall. Muxue Xiyu sat, drinking gracefully from a jar of wine. Since Hanshan knew how she looked, she had not bothered to put on her veil. Dongyue felt a tinge of jealousy for the man as Xiyu faced him, gesturing for him to come closer. This man was lucky to have been a part of his Miss Muxue's life, which he envied and wished for.
"Hanshan, take a seat. What business do you have to discuss today?" her cold voice echoed across the hall, making Hanshan shiver with fright. Just a year they had not met, and yet, she was so frightening to him now. The young and chirpy girl from his past had now matured into a cold and unfeeling woman. Was it because of him?
Hiding behind a large pillar to eavesdrop on their conversation, Dongyue watched from the staircase, as Xiyu talked to the guilt-stricken Hanshan while keeping a distance of no less than five metres between them. The poor man related the facts on his wife's sickness and how he believed her to be the only person who could help.
"Hanshan, your friendship with me is over. Why do you think I will help you?"
Hanshan's eyes glimmered with tears as he begged, falling to his knees dramatically.
"Yu'er, you are the only person I know well on this island. Without Xi'er, I have nobody on this island. I only you're a benevolent person, and won't stand by to see me lose my only family."
She shook her head. "Hanshan, it's not about you or me. I'm powerless to help because I don't have healing powers. Hanshan, I am an enchantress, not a witch doctor."
His mouth gaped in awe, but he remained in denial.
"I know you can cast spells, Yu'er."
Dongyue disliked how he continuously called his Miss Muxue with that intimate name, and bravely he strode forward. Albeit his jealousy, he knew that he couldn't stand by and watch an innocent woman die. Even if Hanshan had hurt the woman he deeply admired and had feelings for, it was not a crime deserving of death.
"This young master, she cannot help you with your problem, but maybe I can."
Vexed, Xiyu glanced coldly at the man who had intruded in her matters once again. Instead of expressing her fury, which she knew was useless against the fool, users she smiled icily at Dongyue.
"You never get tired of poking your nose into my affairs don't you, Young Master Zhan?"
She was spooked when out of the blue, he walked right through her barrier spell and took his seat beside her. Holding her hand, he gazed into her cold eyes.
She was as cold as ice, but inside she was a lonely woman yearning for love.
"That's because of you, Xiyu," he said sweetly.
She didn't know what was happening, but he was appearing to melt the ice that had formed around her. His arm curled around her shoulder possessively, teasing her with an amorous stare from his eyes.
Hanshan couldn't understand either, but whom Xiyu chose to be with was not his concern. His only wish was for his wife to be well again.
She trembled as Dongyue swept her in his warm gaze before he turned to the visitor and declared confidently, "I will help you, but on one account, and that is, that you never appear in Xiyu's life again."
What was going on with this man, and what did he want? Xiyu wondered, feeling herself burning with passion at his tender touch.
“Miss Muxue, it is inappropriate for us to behave in this way,” he said, pulling his coarser lips away from her cherry lips.What did he mean? She was startled by his claim. Was he looking down on her because she was a witch?
Hanshan bowed his head in reverence.“Kind Sir, I would be most grateful if you could indeed save my Xi’er. I will promise you anything.”
Western LakeAt the venue promised, Xu Hanshan stood with a grave look on his face, wearing a dark outfit. Dongyue arrived at the lake, flanked by his companions. Upon seeing the man approach,
Xiao Tian jolted up in his sleep.The image of the woman in his dreams appeared to be a bit clearer now. The woman in grey smiled upon him in sheer brilliance as her hair hung loosely, billowing in the wind. Her eyes were downcast, and though she was smiling, she appeared remorseful, like she was guilt
The next dayIn those days, houses or even inns would have a trap door leading undergr
Not only had the sudden radiance astounded the four of them, but they were also immobilised for a few seconds, before being able to move again.Dongyue glanced at Xiyu, whose hand was still in his, and she coldly took her hand away from his big paw without saying a single word.
After being spun in the water from some time, making several swooshing sounds, the boat stabilised and came to a standstill. Xiyu opened her eyes and looked upwards at the sleeping Dongyue, who still had his arms curled around her. Her heart warmed, and a smile spread across her pale face, partially concealed by the sheer material of her veil. Perhaps, many Muxue women would have desired this man of Han descent. But she, Muxue Xiyu, had her doubts.
Xiyu's stares were cold and blatant, but yet held an intensity that impaled directly through the men's souls. Her skirts fluttered in the wind as she set forth adventurously towards the mountains. In front of them, thousands of icy steps proved challenging as a wrong step could send them plunging dangerously down the steep incline!
It felt like only yesterday they had come to Xuancang Mountains. Now, it was time for the couple to bid their goodbyes to the structure, that would always remain a mystery to Zhan Dongyue. Save for making a few final arrangements, the three of them, along with Xiao Tian, were prepared to seal the temple and return to the island. Xiyu was mindful of how long it had been since she had left the island into the portal that led into the Xuancang Mountains. She missed her lands and her people, but a question remained in her mind. Would they ever be able to return to Xuancang again, if they wished? “Is everything ready?” Xiyu asked Dongyue. She noticed how forlorn he had been after she had revealed the truth of how the bulls had treated their companions. However, there was nothing much he could do at this point, and Yan had already decreed for the bulls to be executed for treason some days ago. “Master is still by Goddess Ao Yun’s coffin, bidding his goodbyes,” Comm
As with the announcement the other day, drums sounded again to assemble them at the hall of Muxue Yan’s chambers. By now, Xiyu was beginning to realise her biological father had regained most, if not all, of his lost powers. Her ‘mother’ had often told her stories of how the chained man in the mountains had met his demise.Now that she thought of it, what had those tales, that she had heard so clearly even from others, said? The chained man had been betrayed by his kin. Though she was unclear of the identities of the people who had gone against him, she knew their combined powers had to be akin to his, or even more powerful to overwhelm him. She would never fathom the pain of betrayal.Beside Yan, Dongyue was her only kin now, having forged the union of a soul and ritual bonding along with marriage. The union would strengthen their ties in time to come, and if they performed dual-cultivation, they could work their ways to become an unparalleled pair.&
Dongyue slipped her out of her garments readily. He took her by the hand, leading her to the end of the room. He pulled on a small hidden lever in the Temple to reveal an unseen exit. This exit, surprisingly, took them into another room, a bathroom. It had not occurred to her how he had found out about this room’s existence, or why Muxue Yan needed to build a bathroom in his temple. As an extension of his mind and wishes, bricks and earth did not make the structure, but the power he had come to own after being corrupted by evil.
Everything was faint when Xiao Tian opened his eyes. It was like he was reliving his nightmare. The first time, he had been a swordsman, practising the arts in the solitude of the mountains, when they were all assaulted by a group of masked invaders. His master was nowhere to be found, and his martial brothers were massacred.They had been murdered over gold and a f
“Xiyu, are you alright?” Dongyue appeared concerned.She was looking blankly at the walls of her rooms, still absorbed by Yan’s words earlier. She had come to appreciate that in Muxue, marriage was more of an obligation rather than due to love. She saw the same for the other residents of the island. Wang Xi’er had been offered to Hanshan in marriag
Hours later, Xiyu found herself standing, now in a bright commemorative red dress, in an assembly as Yan made his speech majestically from a stage. Dongyue was beside her, similarly dressed in a red matching suit. Now that her spellcasting abilities were restored and her health back to almost her usual self, she appeared striking. Red appeared to accentuate her snowy-white skin.
It was a wondrous feeling for her.Dongyue’s gaze never left hers, deeply immersed in the mystery behind the galaxy of emotions within her dazzling supernovas. Like in the ritual chambers, she lost all sensation of pain, allowing him to wrap her intimately around his larger torso.
Ritual (continued)Dongyue knew from what he had read that within minutes he would temporarily relinquish control over his own body, submitting to the call of desire. He had no idea what that meant, but possibly that was what Xiyu was going through at the moment. He looked at her, and his chest throbb
“Xiyu, Xiyu. You must not sleep,” Dongyue strived to speak emotionally, confused by all what was going through him now. His eyes were now streaked with tears; the connection was weak. She was in imminent danger. Pain shot through his abdomen, mirroring what she was going through at the same time.Xiyu was unconscious but shivering badly, with beads of cold swe