~~~

The days following the end of the Crimson Cloud Tournament prove to be quite fruitful. Training Feng Hao and talking to Granny Zhao stand out as particularly enjoyable experiences. The old lady makes sure to visit the palace as much as she can, allegedly to pass on the words of the Crimson Cloud, but in reality, so they can have tea and talk about Old Jiang.

Alas, Liu Jin cannot stay in Imperial Cloud City indefinitely.

The trip back to the Storm Dragon Empire is a slow one. While calling the Storm Dragon Palace to his person is a relatively brisk process, the same does not hold true if there is no call for the palace to answer to. His uncle might have stayed in the Storm Dragon Empire with General Nie Dan—the former needed very little convincing on the matter, while the latter had to be ordered to remain behind—but he cannot call the palace. Despite having higher cultivation, his uncle lacks the proper gravitas for the Storm Dragon to heed his call.

Still, they eventually reach the border and, with it, the first stop on their journey, Thunder Blade Fortress. Under other circumstances, Liu Jin would have to enter the place and give the Lei Clan the opportunity to demonstrate their hospitality. Anything else could be seen as a deliberate offense, but since he cannot leave the palace, there is no need for that this time. The palace doesn’t even come to a complete stop. It just slows down enough not to completely pass the fortress by.

Only one person needs to remain here.

“Surely, I can stay until we reach the capital? One could say it is my duty to ensure that you reach your destination safely, Your Majesty.”

“Lei Kong,” Liu Jin says, smiling as his friend tries to find a reason to lengthen his stay. “Your loyalty is something I always depend on, but that’s exactly why I need you in Thunder Blade Fortress.”

The Lei Clan has not stepped out of line since Liu Jin took over, but it’d be too optimistic to assume they are completely loyal. It is better to have Lei Kong there to keep things under control.

“But we have just been reunited, Your Majesty!” Lei Kong says, sounding more like a teen and less like the grown man he is. “Being the Head of the Lei Clan-”

“-Is a duty assigned to you by the Emperor,” a new voice cuts in. “Surely, you will not be shameless enough to say it is a burden?”

The man who strides into the throne room is closer to being nine feet tall than eight. The armor that covers his body is full of nicks and scratches. He has had plenty of opportunities to commission a new one, yet he remains loyal to it. Strength radiates from his every movement. His presence alone tells a story of countless battles.

“Shameless?” Lei Kong echoes, red coloring his face. “I’d never…”

“General Peng,” Liu Jin says, greeting the man as he kneels before him. Despite his loyalty, the man fought his promotion tooth and nail, claiming there was no point in someone like him being put on the same rank as Nie Dan. However, he’d relented when it was pointed out that the country could not have only one general. “I’d ask if you enjoyed your stay, but I believe your mood is enough of an answer.”

General Peng lifts his head, ignoring Lei Kong’s sputtered protests and focusing only on Liu Jin.

“The Lei Clan is not currently treacherous, but they are clearly a pampered, bothersome lot. We did the young ones a favor by letting them be raised in the palace and Rumbling Thunder City,” he says. “It is good to see you alive, Your Majesty.”

In Lei Kong’s absence, Liu Jin needed someone to watch the Lei Clan. Lei Cheng volunteered for the task, but he is still too young and too weak. Although the Lei Clan has yet to produce another Heaven Realm cultivator, letting General Peng be in charge of watching them was the safest move.

Even if it annoyed the Lei Clan and tried General Peng’s patience.

“It is good to be alive, General,” Liu Jin replies. “I thank you for your service, but please understand that the leader of the Lei Clan has his own circumstances.”

When young, Lei Kong had been the shining jewel of the Lei Clan. Alas, he shone too brightly, so members of his family conspired against him and left him crippled. He lost all prestige and was treated as the lowest of the low, nothing more than an expendable pawn to be gifted to Murong Bang in the hopes that he would die. To say he does not have happy memories of the Lei Clan is putting it mildly.

Even though Lei Kong is now the one in charge, having to stay in a place with so many negative memories is not easy for him. Making him the head of the Lei Clan might be the cruelest punishment Liu Jin could have given him.

“No, Your Majesty,” Lei Kong says, shaking his head softly. “The General is right. It is my duty, and my joy to carry out your will. Any other feeling I might have is simple pettiness.”

“It does me good to have a servant like you,” Liu Jin says, smiling sadly. “Go and prepare the Lei Clan for what is to come.”

“I am your ever faithful servant,” Lei Kong replies, bowing lower.

It is goodbye again, but not forever.

For cultivators like them, time is simply not an obstacle.

~~~

Far above the Storm Dragon Palace, Liu Jin's Soaring Feather, Xiao Shuang's Snow, and Xiao Fang's Talon play together with such childish zest that one could almost forget they are the size of elephants. Though the three Black-Winged Imperial Eagles have not been together since they were eggs, they seem to instinctively understand the bond between them. The sound of their playing has become a recurring companion to their trip.

It is almost enough to make Liu Jin jealous. As a cultivator in the Heaven Realm, he can fly through the skies, yet he must remain confined to the palace, only able to watch the landscape go by. It is not a bad landscape, but he cannot quite bring himself to enjoy it. Now that they no longer have the combined protection of the Crimson Cloud and the Storm Dragon, they are far more exposed.

“It seems the others were right. You are quite prone to frowning now, husband.”

Liu Jin turns around.

“I do not believe I have ever been the type to smile much,” he tells Xiao Shuang.

“Maybe so,” she says, walking up to him. “However, your lack of smiles never used to mean you weren’t happy. It just meant you saw no need to express it.”

Her hand is cool as it touches his face. He leans into it, finding it a welcome balm.

“Things have changed,” he says, holding her hand close and kissing it. She blushes cutely.

“They have,” she admits, averting her eyes. “By the way, where is young Feng Hao?”

“Sleeping, I assume,” Liu Jin answers, letting go of her hand.

“Truly? He seemed serious about wanting to learn from you,” she says, her lips forming a puzzled pout.

“He is,” Liu Jin answers. “He has been waking early every day. We already trained. Now, he’s recovering. I expect he will not wake up for a few more hours.”

Xiao Shuang keeps her face impassive, but Liu Jin knows her mind is already working it out. Sure enough, her eyes narrow with suspicion.

“What did you make that child do?”

“Nothing too straining,” he says, looking away.

“Husband!”

“We worked on his fundamentals. Nothing more,” he says. “Considering his circumstances, I thought it best to improve on his control.”

“Control exercises rarely lead one to faint from exhaustion,” she says, unfortunately correctly guessing Feng Hao’s condition. “Husband, we underwent harsh training because there were extenuating circumstances surrounding us. It is not the sort of thing others should be subjected to.”

“He wants it. If I wasn’t training him this hard, he’d be demanding I do. More importantly, he needs it. His circumstances are also extreme,” Liu Jin says, sighing. “There is plenty of that around these days.”

“You are worried,” Xiao Shuang says.

“As everyone was so kind to point out after the tournament ended, I am a wanted man now,” Liu Jin says, looking out the window to the lands below. “Can you feel them?”

Xiao Shuang closes her eyes momentarily as her other senses reach out to their surroundings.

“I believe there are around twenty-one of them following us,” she replies. “I expected more, but I suppose everyone realized how silly it would be if the palace was surrounded by the population of a small village at all times.”

Liu Jin chuckles. Xiao Shuang’s Qi brightens in response.

“Considering all the things you said to me before, you sound remarkably unconcerned,” Liu Jin notes.

“Things were far more urgent back then,” Xiao Shuang replies. Her lips twist in a pout. “I will admit I may have… reacted poorly, but you showed me that you could surpass my expectations and those of everyone else. Besides, the people we can sense are not the ones we should be worried about.”

As expected, she understands well.

Even before the end of the tournament, several assassins and spies were looking for him. Summoning the palace might have granted him an impenetrable shelter, but it also revealed his location to everyone. They have been circling the palace ever since, and leaving Imperial Cloud City has not changed that. It would be amusing if it wasn’t annoying, but that is not the important part.

Those from the other side also know where he is.

Alarming Shadow and Firm Shadow tried to capture him and later fought Lu Mei and the others. They did not succeed, but they were not defeated. They fled only because they feared being attacked by multiple Emperors. While Liu Jin wants to believe they have returned to their side of the Dead Plains to report their actions, that feels like a far too optimistic thought. Most likely, they are still out there somewhere.

Then, there is the Death Fashioning Scripture. The creature he and Xiao Shuang fought was definitely one of their creations. Its presence does not necessarily mean a disciple of theirs is close by. After all, the Fleshcrafter’s creatures had been spread all over the Storm Dragon Empire at one point, and Liu Jin doubts this new disciple is his lesser. However, Liu Jin is also nearly certain he felt the disciple’s presence close when he usurped control of its creature. Even now, they must be watching them from afar.

But the actual problem is…

“The Qin,” Xiao Shuang says, making Liu Jin tense up reflexively. “They are the ones occupying your thoughts, are they not?”

“As the Feng Clan is to the Eternal Flame Clan and the Chen Clan is to the Infinite Mountain Sect, so is the Qin Clan to the Peerless Heavenly Sword Peak. Make no mistake. Their authority is not the result of something as banal as an Inheritance. They are simply that strong. Their history starts long before the Great War. Those are the people whose eyes you have carelessly drawn in your direction.”

“They might have been the ones who killed my master,” Liu Jin says, deliberately underplaying his words. If the Wandering Wind considers them the most likely suspect, then there is very little reason to doubt her. “They want me dead.”

“You already knew that would happen,” Xiao Shuang points out. “Where is the staggering confidence you showed at the tournament?”

Liu Jin stares at her.

“Where is the staggering worry you showed at the tournament?” He asks her.

“It has been quelled by your actions. Now, it is just normal worry,” she replies. “I will say this again. You chose this. You knew what would happen, and you did it anyway, much to the consternation of many. However, that is your right, husband. We live our lives according to our paths, even if those paths happen to clash with others. That is only what is just. Do not tell me now that you believe your path is a fruitless one and your confidence was nothing but bravado.”

Cold concern. Is there such a thing? There certainly seems to be where Xiao Shuang is concerned. Her words almost sound like an attack, yet her Qi reaches out to him and embraces him with care.

“It’s not bravado,” Liu Jin replies. “This path might be difficult, but it is absolutely not futile. That is not what worries me. It is…”

His Qi quivers for a moment. The lapse of concentration allows Xiao Shuang a glimpse into it. Her eyebrows rise for a moment.

“I see,” she says.

They killed his master.

“I know I should not let this control me,” Liu Jin says, taking a deep breath to calm himself down. It is not as bad as before, but the very thought causes his Qi to quake. “However, it’d be a lie to say I am not emotionally compromised. It is even worse because…”

Liu Jin sighs.

“I didn’t think of you,” he says. “I planned for so many eventualities, yet I failed to consider the most important aspect of all. I did not consider how worried I’d make all of you. That was something I failed at, even when I thought I was acting calmly. How much more will I miss when I cannot think at all?”

If, when he should be acting calmly, he loses control of himself and acts rashly, what will happen to all those with him? How can he prevent that from happening?

Xiao Shuang frowns as she considers his quandary. A moment of silence passes, and then…

Splat.

Liu Jin blinks, snow falling from his eyelids as he does so. A burst of his Qi blows it away.

“Did you just throw a snowball at me?”

“I always wanted to try it,” Xiao Shuang says. She even sounds proud. “The other disciples always held back against me because of who my master is, so there was little point playing that game with them. Still, I must say, you can be quite conceited sometimes, husband.”

“Conceited?”

“You claimed me,” she points out. This time, he is the one who blushes at the phrasing. “You took me into your world, yet you still seem to think your decisions are the only ones that matter. We are here. All of us. Are we not? If you make a mistake, why do you think we’ll remain silent? If you fail in some way, why do you assume our actions will be unable to make up for it? Reconsider, husband. Your path and mine are now joined.”

Liu Jin opens his mouth, a reply ready at the tip of his lips, but a new thought filters through his mind, rendering it meaningless.

When exactly did he start thinking he needed to do things alone?

At first, it was because he had lost everything. His only ally, Lei Kong, was a former enemy soldier. There was no telling how much he could trust him. It was the same in the Eternal Flame Clan, so he always kept his real goals and identity hidden. Even when they were in the Storm Dragon Empire, he did not reveal who he was until the situation forced him to.

Somewhere along the way, he got used to it. He stopped doing things alone because there was no other choice. Instead, he was doing it because that was the normal thing for him to do.

A self-deprecating smile appears on his face.

“It is curious,” he says. “Just days ago, Su Daji told me that leaving me alone with my thoughts is the worst thing one can do.”

“She sounds like a wise person whose advice you should heed," Xiao Shuang says seriously.

“I am the fool then,” Liu Jin says. “I kept thinking I was alone despite surrounding myself with so many irreplaceable people.”

“My master once said we are all a little foolish,” Xiao Shuang says. “There are Five Fairies because together they make up one wise person…Lady Bai Lianshi and Lady Dai Jie did not like hearing that, but I believe my master was not altogether wrong.”

Liu Jin laughs. The sound is a little happier this time.

“Alright then,” he says. “Let us make each other wiser.”

Xiao Shuang smiles brilliantly.

“Nothing would please me more.”

~~~