51. People Become Strange in Isolation (Patreon)

Face wrinkled in intense concentration, Hui manipulated his qi. He guided it under his skin, separating the dead layers from his body. His skin stung, but by now, the pain barely phased him. Holding a line of qi down the front of his body, he pushed out. The qi sliced through his skin, cutting a narrow line in the skin.

Yes!

Wait, wait, don’t celebrate yet. I still have to get out of this skin. Hui expanded his qi under the dead skin. It stretched, puffing up, away from his body.

All at once, he leaped forward. Wind sheered through the gap in the skin, peeling it off him. He burst free of the skin, then turned around.

The skin stood where he’d stood, slightly puffier than him but fully formed. Without him in it, the skin began to collapse.

Hui pressed his hand against the skin’s chest. Qi flowed back into the skin. Using the spell circuits he’d sensed in Xixing’s mask, he reinforced the skin, giving it a harder shape and a fuller form.

The skin stopped collapsing. It stood before him, a replica of himself. Hui inspected it closely.

No eyes, very little hair. Hmm… He reached out and touched the face, urging the skin to stretch. The eyelids reached out and met each other, closing. I don’t have anything for the hair, but I’m sure there’s a hair-growing technique. Cultivators like to be beautiful, after all. I’ll have to find one when I get out of here. Either that, or invest in wigs.

Or become bald…

Hui considered it for a few seconds, running a hand down his long ponytail, then shook his head. No, no. I can’t do that. I can’t ruin this handsome face.

The slash in the front of the skin where he’d emerged sagged shut naturally, edges meeting. He touched the edge, thinking. A bit of glue here, or some qi to hold it together… I can fix that.

At last, he stood back, nodding to himself. It’s not perfect, but it’s good enough! Once I get out of here, I’ll work on perfecting the technique. With more materials and access to a library of magical techniques… I should be able to figure this out.

So thinking, he turned toward his spot on the floor. I’ll ponder it while I cultivate, waiting for my skin to grow back so I can try again.

A low rumble emanated from the cave’s entrance. Hui whipped around, startled. Sunlight spilled in, far too bright for his eyes. He raised a hand over his face and squinted, peering into the sunlight.

Amidst the brilliant light, a shadowy form appeared. As his eyes grew accustomed to the light, the form took shape. Colors faded in. White robes. Long black hair. A white jade crown perched atop the man’s head.

“Master?” Hui asked.

Weiheng Wu frowned down at him in befuddled silence.

Hui glanced around him. Skin-husk versions of himself stood, sat, or laid all around him. Some of the skins had huge chunks missing. Others were split in half. Toward the back of the cave, twisted, dilapidated husks piled on top of each other, dusty with age.

Just like Hui himself, every husk was completely naked.

Oh shit! I got caught up in practicing and forgot! Hui dove into the husks. He dug through them, searching for his robes. “Er, haha, my apologies, Master. I wasn’t expecting any visitors.”

“Mmm,” Weiheng Wu replied. He turned coolly away from the cave, averting his eyes from the mess inside.

“Has it been a hundred years already?” Hui asked, yanking his robes on and tucking his worldly possessions and various loot back into place. I did cultivate some, but I mostly practiced my new technique. It doesn’t feel like a hundred years passed.

“No. Three.”

Hui frowned. “Then… why am I being let out?”

Weiheng Wu tossed his hair. “It is no one’s right but mine to punish my disciple.”

Er, is that okay? Hui frowned. “The Sect Master threw me in here, right?”

“And?” Weiheng Wu asked.

Hui swallowed. Master, is it okay for you to do this? I know you don’t care what other people think, but this is the Sect Master, you know?

Seeing Hui’s hesitation, Weiheng Wu shrugged. “If I am removed from the sect, I’ll simply go to another sect.”

A chill passed down Hui’s spine. Master… is there a limit to how domineering you can be?

“Do you want to remain in the cave for a hundred years? Can you even survive that?” Weiheng Wu asked. He glanced at Hui from the corner of his eye.

“No! No. I’ll come with Master,” Hui replied, rushing to the cave’s mouth.

A golden barrier blocked his way. Hui slowed, biting his lip. Dammit, I forgot. “Master, I still can’t…”

Weiheng Wu lifted his hand and swept at the barrier. Gold light drew aside like a curtain. “I’ve broken through to the sixth realm. This is child’s play.”

“Master! Congratulations—”

Weiheng Wu lifted a hand to silence him. “I don’t wish for needless noise or adulation. I’m suppressing my realm so that the sect does not give me further responsibilities and diminish my cultivation time.”

Hui bowed. “As Master wishes.” He scurried out under the barrier. It’s not like I want to spend another ninety-seven years in here. As Master said, I may not survive it.

“Mmm, right. The debt is yours to bear,” Weiheng Wu said, nodding to himself.

Hui wilted, disappointed. No, no, it makes sense. I respect the farmers, they deserve to be paid. The Sect Master… well, I didn’t know what I was doing, but I still ate his precious pet. If someone ate Zhubi… He covered the snake with his hand at the thought. Ah, I hate debt, but I understand. At least this time I brought it upon myself, instead of having father’s debt heaped on my head.

The most expensive meal I ever had, and I didn’t even get any benefits from it! Argh, how annoying. I really made a mistake this time.

Next time, I’ll make sure to benefit from it!

Hui coughed. I mean, I’ll make sure I never do that again.

Weiheng Wu dropped the barrier. It snapped back into place. With a wave of his hand, he lifted the rock and placed it back over the cave entrance. He gave the arrangement a self-satisfied nod. “As if nothing happened at all.”

“Eh? Is Master sneaking me out?” Hui asked. I would expect most people to, but Master? Since when has he worried what other people might think?

Weiheng Wu glanced at him. “I wanted to test my new strength.”

Ah. That makes more sense. Hui nodded, understanding.

“In any case, they only put fourth-level protections on this cave. I would have to be a pathetic waste to trigger them at my level, and I am, of course, a once-in-a-generation genius,” Weiheng Wu declared.

“As Master says! No one can compare to Master’s glory,” Hui agreed.

Weiheng Wu nodded impassively. “Indeed.”

He turned and descended the mountain. Hui scurried after him, unwilling to be left behind, a fugitive in an unfamiliar part of the sect. He stared around, taking everything in. I’ve been on four of the five peaks, now, and I’ve never seen any of this. Is this Butterfly Pavillion Peak? But they only allow female disciples on the peak, and in any case, I don’t see any fairy maidens, butterflies, or pavilions. “Where is this?”

“The sect’s hidden sixth peak,” Weiheng Wu replied simply.

“Ah. Eh?” Is it okay for Master to reveal that so casually? Wait, but I was brought here for punishment. I guess it’s alright?

Weiheng Wu nodded. “It’s surrounded by complex spell arrays meant to erase it from existance, so that even if you see it, you won’t remember it. Once you leave, you’ll forget about it in moments.”

Hui blinked. “Why?”

Weiheng Wu nodded upwards, at the peak.

Hui turned. His eyes widened. “That—is that—”

“You study death qi. To what end?” Weiheng Wu murmured.

Hui jolted. He licked his lips. “To save my own small life.”

A pause. Subtly, Weiheng Wu’s stance loosened.

“Hui,” Weiheng Wu said quietly.

Transfixed, Hui stared at the peak. After a few moments, he wrenched his eyes away. “Yes, Master?”

“Under no circumstances should you look at the peak.”

Hui started to glance up, then caught himself. The last time you ignored advice, you regretted it! He forced his eyes to the floor. “I hear and obey.”

“What did you see?”

Hui’s brows furrowed. “Huh? Master, I followed your orders. I wouldn’t look at the peak if my poor little life depended on it!”

“Have you ever looked up, this whole time we were walking?” Weiheng Wu asked.

“Of course not! It never even occurred to me to do so. This small disciple heeds Master’s advice, and that’s that!” Hui said emphatically.

Weiheng Wu nodded. They continued down the peak.

Hui frowned at his master’s back. Is it just me, or is Master a little odder than usual right now?

He stepped forward. Something passed through him, a strange sensation he couldn’t put his finger on. Like… static? I… static. He frowned and put a hand to his head. Huh?

“Hui,” Weiheng Wu said.

Hui looked up. “Master? Wait, when did I get out of the cave?” I remember Master coming to get me, and then… He pinched the bridge of his nose. Huh? What then?

“Mmm. Shall we go? I received an interesting invitation. You stand to benefit from the encounter.”

“Go? Invitation?” Hui asked, tilting his head. I should leave the sect, it’s true. If the Sect Master notices I’ve broken out… well, I know Master. He isn’t going to hover over me for the next hundred years. Hell, he won’t even stick around for the next hundred minutes!

Weiheng Wu nodded. He held out a piece of paper to Hui.

Hui took it and unfolded it, curious. A simple message awaited him.

Inviting Peak Lord Wu to a dinner in celebration of our clan’s 100th anniversary.

“Ah? A dinner? Wait… which clan?” Hui flipped it over, but there was no mark on the thick paper, no postmark, nothing.

Curious, he sent a strand of qi inside. A faint residue of qi met his probe. He pushed deeper, searching.

Icy cold climbed over his qi, icy cold and fear.

Hui yanked his hand away. The paper fell out of his hand.

Weiheng Wu caught it out of the air and tucked it into his sleeve.

“They—they’re in trouble?” Hui guessed.

Weiheng Wu nodded. “In trouble, and cannot openly ask for help. Therefore, I am sending my disciple to this dinner in my place.”

“Eh? Master—”

“If I arrived, the mastermind might go into hiding or scurry off. The clan would be saved, but the problem would remain. To cut off trouble at the root, it’s best to smoke out the aggressors and obliterate them.” Weiheng Wu reached into his sleeve and drew out a bird-shaped jade. “Once you have discovered the source of the problem, send this to me.”

Hui accepted it hesitantly. “Er, what if this small disciple… winds up in trouble?”

“Use the jade. You are my precious disciple, after all.”

“Master!” Hui cried, reaching out to clutch the golden thigh.

Weiheng Wu dodged neatly away from his grab. “Image, a genius like me, unable to raise a single disciple. Even I have my pride.”

Even you? Master, if you were to claim to be the second most prideful, no one would dare claim first place! Hui bowed gratefully, keeping his thoughts to himself.

“I only have one jade, so use it judiciously,” Weiheng Wu warned him.

“Yes, Master!” Hui replied. Then he frowned. “But you said… we go?”

Weiheng Wu nodded. “There’s a large cultivator city nearby. I’ll visit the city while you resolve the issue with the clan.”

Hui nodded back. Ah, makes sense, makes sense. Master is only fifth stage, after all. He’s powerful, but not all-powerful. I’ll be safer if he’s close by.

Wait, fifth stage? Isn’t he sixth stage?

Hui frowned, confused. Huh? Why would I think that?

No, no, I’m missing the point! A cultivator city? Isn’t that the perfect place to sell my talismans! I can sell them to the clan, too! I bet they’re desperate for anything to help them! Hui chuckled under his breath, barely able to hold back his excitement.

They wove through the sect. Hui glanced up at their peak, but Weiheng Wu passed it by. “Master, we aren’t stopping by the peak?”

“Why would we?” Weiheng Wu replied.

Hui hugged himself and scowled at his master’s back. Ah, this small disciple understands that he’s made dumb decisions, but it’s very breezy under this robe, okay? If I show up to a formal dinner with no underclothes on…

“Is there a reason you wanted to return? I thought it best to move quickly, so no one obstructs us.”

“Master’s words are wise. Let’s continue,” Hui replied, gritting his teeth in a smile. He has a good point. I don’t want to get caught by the Sect Master or by Lan Taijian. If Master thinks it’s a bad idea to stop by, I’ll follow him. I can always buy a new set of robes in the city!

Weiheng Wu nodded.

A few disciples shot the pair an odd look as they walked along the peak, but no one stopped them. Hui stuck close to Weiheng Wu, well aware that his master was the reason none of the disciples bothered the pair of them. He glanced around him and licked his lips. Ah, I really hope we don’t run into Li Xiang. She wouldn’t be able to overlook us, not in a million—

Light flashed overhead. Something sheered through the air, humming as it went. Hui darted to Weiheng Wu’s side and cowered, arms over his head.

A sword dropped from the heavens and landed at Weiheng Wu’s feet. Descending after it in a blaze of white, Li Xiang landed atop the hilt. She crossed her arms and glared down at the two of them. “Halt!”

Speak of Cao Cao and he appears… Hui thought to himself, swallowing a sigh.