Whispers of Fate (Shui Long Yin)

"Giddy up!"

A crisp shout rang out as dozens of spirited horses surged up Good Cloud Mountain like dragons. A young woman in purple leaped down from her steed, a sword hanging at her waist and golden embroidered shoes on her feet. The dazzling pearl hairpins in her hair accentuated her delicate features, momentarily stunning the guards at the gate.

"Inform Young Master Tang that I've arrived," the purple-clad maiden declared as she dismounted with effortless grace, her movements betraying considerable skill. The guards from the Southern Mountain Sect stared at her for a few extra moments until one finally recognized her. "So it's Miss Zhong! It's been so long—your radiance outshines even my memories. I almost didn't recognize you."

Zhong Chunji glanced at the man but couldn't recall where she'd met him before, nor did she particularly care. "Is Young Master Tang here?" The guard, Song Lin of the Southern Mountain Sect, sighed inwardly. The last time they'd met, she had been an innocent, kind-hearted girl. Now, though she had blossomed into breathtaking beauty, she had also grown haughty, no longer acknowledging old acquaintances.

"Young Master Tang is at Sword Inquiry Pavilion," the Southern Mountain disciple said, opening the gate for her. Zhong Chunji led her white stallion inside with confident strides, followed by a retinue of unfamiliar attendants. Song Lin tried to stop them, but the crowd pushed past him, leaving him bewildered as this unannounced group barged into the Hall of Sharp Virtue.

Inside Sword Inquiry Pavilion, Tang Lici and Gu Xitan were sparring while Cheng Yunpao watched coldly, arms crossed. Gu Xitan had just learned a couple of swordplay techniques, and Tang Lici was guiding him through the blind spots in his form. They were on their third repetition when Gu Xitan's movements finally shed their initial clumsiness. Suddenly, a voice called out, "Brother Gu! Young Master Tang!"

Gu Xitan turned and blinked at the sight of the bright-eyed, radiant girl in purple. "Sister Zhong! It's been too long—how have you been?" Zhong Chunji, however, only had eyes for Tang Lici. Her face paled slightly as she opened her mouth, her thoughts tangled in hesitation. Tang Lici, surprisingly, bore no grudge for the needle she had once stabbed into him and smiled faintly. "It has been a while."

The memory of that needle—how she had been tricked into piercing him, causing his energy to dissipate—flooded her with shame. Her face flushed and paled in turns. "Young Master Tang…" she murmured, "I… I was deceived by villains back then. I never meant to harm you."

Tang Lici's gaze drifted from the pearl flowers in her hair to the embroidered shoes on her feet. "I know." Gu Xitan looked puzzled. "What happened? When did you harm Young Master Tang?" Zhong Chunji's face burned crimson. "Young Master Tang… you never told anyone?" Tang Lici gave a faint smile and glanced at Gu Xitan, who took the hint and discreetly withdrew with Cheng Yunpao, leaving them alone.

"Young Master Tang, you've been so kind to me," Zhong Chunji whispered. The guilt of stabbing him had weighed on her like an illness, yet he had never spoken of it to anyone. Tang Lici remained silent for a moment before speaking slowly, "Stabbing me with that needle—I can overlook that, since you were deceived. When I'm in a good mood, I might not hold it against you. But standing by and watching someone die, then drawing your sword to kill just to cover up your inaction… Tell me, would a woman who does such things ever be likable?"Zhong Chunji's face turned deathly pale in an instant. She had completely forgotten about stabbing Lin Bu—in her heart, Lin Bu held no significance. She felt remorse for pricking Tang Lici but none for killing Lin Bu. Yet she never imagined Tang Lici would find out about this. "He... he..." Tang Lici glanced at her sideways, his gaze not cold but filled with an eerie smile. "Liu Yan isn’t dead, and neither is Lin Bu. Are you very disappointed?"

She staggered back a step. "I... I... didn’t mean to..." Tang Lici's expression was captivating, his faint smile like that of a snow-white fox catching its prey. "I know exactly what you meant to do," he whispered, blowing softly into her ear. "Perhaps even better than you do."

Her limbs turned icy. In her eyes, Tang Lici was no longer the elegant and charming man but had suddenly become more terrifying than a demonic beast. "What... do you want from me...?" If word got out that she had killed Lin Bu—if Zhao Zongjing and Zhao Zongying found out, if the authorities learned of it—she might never regain her footing in the palace. The comfortable, peaceful life she knew would vanish forever. Even Fang Juan by her side would mock her, and the entire court and martial world would laugh at her.

Tang Lici reached out and gently stroked her head, his voice tender. "Go obediently to Bodhi Valley. I don’t expect you to bring him back—just go, to silence the gossip. That’s all." Tears welled up in Zhong Chunji's eyes. "What if... what if I die there? I... I..." Tang Lici's voice grew even softer. "So, in your heart, even your master is far less important than yourself."

She shuddered violently. He looked at her with that half-smile, an expression she couldn’t bear. "Don’t look at me like that... What I did... I had no choice. Sometimes I was deceived, sometimes... I was just confused, just momentarily confused..."

Tears streamed down her face as she pleaded in a whisper. Tang Lici lifted her chin and kissed her lips.

Zhong Chunji froze in shock. He wiped away her tears with his finger, his lips curling into an even more sinister smile. The dark, overwhelming demonic aura around him made his lips appear almost black, as though he were a true demon who saw through all her desires.

His message was clear: he could give her everything she wanted—if she obeyed.

Phoenix Cry Mountain, Rooster Valley.

Lately, many flowers had bloomed, covering the mountains and fields—bright yellow winter jasmine, dazzling peach blossoms—a scene of thriving vitality. Yu Tuan'er had gathered many flowers and arranged them throughout the mountain villa. Oddly enough, Tang Lici had also placed numerous porcelain vases indoors, resulting in clumps of purplish-red here and bright yellow there. Instead of the beauty of spring, the room was a chaotic riot of colors.

"Ah—duck duck duck duck—" A little one clad in a cotton-padded jacket embroidered with longevity peaches crawled out of the room. Unlike other toddlers who flailed their limbs haphazardly, Feng Feng crawled with deliberate focus, steadily and swiftly. Spotting Yu Tuan'er, he sat down and pointed at her, chanting, "Duck duck duck duck..." No one could fathom what about Yu Tuan'er resembled a duck. A Shui had corrected him many times, insisting he call her "Auntie." Strangely, just over a month ago, he had indeed called her "Auntie," but now he stubbornly insisted on "duck duck duck duck.""Oh no! You got out again. Where's your mother?" Yu Tuan'er, who had just returned with a large bouquet of flowers in her arms, crouched down to look at Feng Feng. "Where's Uncle Liu? Where's Uncle Fang?" She had just searched the house but couldn't find anyone.

"Ee-oo—yo—" Feng Feng grinned at her, his pitch-black eyes wide open, his pink mouth forming a perfect circle. He puckered his lips a few times and pointed outside.

"You little rascal, everything you say is a lie. They must be inside, right?" Yu Tuan'er pinched his cheek. This little one had just turned one year old but was already quite mischievous—he couldn't even speak properly yet but already knew how to lie with gestures.

Feng Feng shook his head and still pointed outside.

"Tell me where they are, and Auntie will give you honey syrup," Yu Tuan'er coaxed. "You must have seen them, right?"

At the mention of "honey syrup," Feng Feng immediately turned his head away, refusing to even look at her.

"How about almond milk?"

Feng Feng resolutely kept his head turned, unmoving.

"I'll give you meat. Honestly, a little thing with barely any teeth already loves meat," Yu Tuan'er grumbled. "Hurry up and tell me where they are!"

Feng Feng turned back and pointed beneath the floor. "Mmm-mm."

"Below?" Yu Tuan'er was puzzled. "How could they be below?" She felt around the floor for a while. "Is there a secret passage down there?"

"Mmm-mm."

"How could there be a secret passage?" She was utterly confused. After living at Chicken Coop Mountain Manor for so long, no one had ever mentioned a secret passage beneath it. A Shui hadn't been going out much lately—why would she suddenly go into a secret passage? Wasn't Fang Pingzhai drumming? How could he have gone into a secret passage too? What had happened in the short time she'd been out picking flowers? Suddenly, her expression changed. "Could it be—has something happened to him? Where are they? Tell me quickly, where are they?"

Feng Feng crawled under a tall, round flower stand in the hall and began patting it with his small hand. Yu Tuan'er twisted the stand, and with a creaking sound, a dull mechanical noise came from Liu Yan's room—a secret passage had opened. She dashed toward the open passage, but the moment she entered, the door shut behind her with a loud thud, as if it had never opened.

In the vast Chicken Coop Mountain Manor, only Feng Feng remained on the surface, crawling alone through the empty rooms. He shook this, pulled that, but no one was around. After looking around for a while, he let out a tiny yawn, curled up under a flower stand in the corner, and fell asleep there.

Yu Tuan'er rushed into the secret passage, which was filled with the smell of medicine—some pungent, some fragrant, a chaotic mix that made her feel even more uncomfortable. The passage wasn't a long tunnel but led to a massive room, as large as three rooms in the manor above. The room was lit, but dust-like particles filled the air, making it hard to see anything clearly.

"Hey? Hey? Where are you? Sister A Shui? Fang Pingzhai?" Yu Tuan'er waved her sleeves, trying to clear the dust. "Where is everyone? Cough... What is all this stuff?"

"Little sister," A Shui's voice came from the far end of the room. "Stay right there. Don't come any closer.""Why?" Yu Tuan'er gradually adjusted to the dim lighting below, faintly making out Fang Pingzhai and A Shui standing at the other end of the room. There were tables, chairs, and cabinets there too, with a person collapsed on the floor. Startled, she rushed forward. "What happened?"

The person on the floor was Liu Yan.

Under the dim light, a strange odor permeated the air as Liu Yan lay trembling violently. Yu Tuan'er reached out to help him up. "Why aren't you helping him? What's wrong with him?" A Shui grabbed her arm. "Wait, don't touch him. You can't move him now." Only then did Yu Tuan'er see the red spots covering Liu Yan's entire body as he convulsed in obvious agony.

"He took the Ape-Demon Nine Heart Pill," A Shui whispered. "I think... he ingested the part containing the lethal poison. That's why it's acting so fast. Don't touch him—if you do now, you'll catch the same condition." Yu Tuan'er's face drained of color. "Why would he take poison? He said he'd finished refining it, that I didn't need to test it for him anymore. Why would he take it himself?" A Shui bit her lip and shook her head. Yu Tuan'er cried out, "I told him I'd test the medicine for him! Why did he drink the poison himself? I meant what I said! I'd never regret it! He... why would he do this?"