IVYSCP - Chapter 17
Chapter 17
Even if the Xue family hadn't let any word slip, first thing in the morning Xue Zizai and Lu Yao were going door to door handing out evil-warding talismans. Even an idiot could figure out something had happened, and with that old beggar on the west side dead under suspicious circumstances, everyone knew there was probably an evil spirit in Linshui Town.
The streets had thinned out quite a bit, but a few shops still kept their doors open. An evil spirit had shown up, true, but right now the immortals from Piaomiao Sect were here. The townsfolk were uneasy, but not all that afraid, fully confident that the immortals could protect them and deal with whatever it was.
Ling Qingyue walked toward the wood-carving shop in a heavy mood. She'd meant to pick out a few nice pieces of wood from the shop to carve a bangle for Pei Si, with protective formations and the like carved into it. Instead that damn book had thrown her thoughts into chaos and left her so angry her teeth ached.
"If you can't write, then don't scribble nonsense!"
Right as the anger simmered, someone nearly crashed into her. Ling Qingyue shifted a toe and sidestepped out of the way.
But the person lunged to grab her with shocking speed, and the air carried an indescribable reek of rot and decay.
Ling Qingyue's gaze sharpened. She was about to act, ready to snap the arm clean off, when the corner of her eye caught a flash of sword light. Her rising hand stopped immediately.
The hand, filthy with dust, blood, and grime, latched directly onto Ling Qingyue's arm, nails sinking deep into her flesh. The disheveled, dirt-caked person opened wide and bit straight for her neck.
Ling Qingyue squeezed her eyes hard, blinking until the rims went red, like she'd been scared out of her wits.
In the instant before the bite landed, a long sword drove through the skull, swift, vicious, and precise. Warm blood splattered across the side of Ling Qingyue's face.
Ling Qingyue: "…"
"Ah Xi!" Lu Yao rushed over in a hurry, studying her with worry. "Are you all right?"
A glance caught the claw wounds on her shoulder, and Lu Yao's expression turned to one of regret and self-blame. "Sorry, my fault. I took my eyes off it for a moment and it got away."
Lu Yao pulled her sword free. The corpse stiffened and toppled to one side. From the nearby shops, people poked their heads out, a mix of fear and curiosity.
Ling Qingyue's face was pale. She frowned at the corpse on the ground and asked quietly, "What happened to her?"
Lu Yao wasn't in a position to say much. She supported her. "I'll take you home."
Ling Qingyue had the sense not to press, but the sight of that corpse unsettled something deep in her chest.
The body was excessively desiccated, little more than a layer of skin stretched over bone. The lividity marks showed it had been dead for days.
A corpse controlled to attack the living after death. Ling Qingyue could only think of one explanation.
A Blood Demon. A type of demon that cultivated using the blood of the living. Their blood inflicted grievous harm on a cultivator's body and soul, and no medicine could mend the damage. For example, if a Blood Demon's blood harmed the eyes, even replacing the entire body wouldn't help.
Ling Qingyue remembered that a century ago, the Formless Demon Lord had twelve Blood Demons under her command, infamously difficult to deal with. But according to the records, the Formless Demon Lord had fallen in that battle, and all her most powerful fiends had been slaughtered.
Then what was going on in Linshui Town?
Lu Yao delivered her back to the courtyard and called out loudly for Pei Si.
The moment Pei Si came out and saw Ah Xi covered in blood, her expression shifted. She walked over and took the person from Lu Yao's hands. "What happened?"
Lu Yao still didn't say. She pressed a porcelain bottle into Pei Si's hand, urged her repeatedly not to go out, and then rushed off in a hurry.
Ling Qingyue could feel the tension in Lu Yao. It seemed Piaomiao Sect had also realized this wasn't some ordinary evil spirit.
Pei Si wrapped an arm around her shoulders, her gaze falling on the wound.
"What happened?" she asked again.
Ling Qingyue came back to herself and mumbled an explanation about being on the way to the wood-carving shop when some lunatic suddenly charged at her, with terribly long nails and a vicious grip, and how Lu Yao had skewered the person's head with a sword in this absolutely terrifying way, like skewering a candied hawthorn on a stick.
She made herself sound pitiful, even shrinking against Pei Si as if frightened. A glance saw she was covered in blood, so she pulled back instead, afraid of getting Pei Si dirty.
If not for seeing her chase after that evil spirit the other day, Pei Si might have genuinely believed she was this wronged and miserable now.
She helped her into the bedroom and told her to take off her clothes, then went to fetch some warm water.
Playing the pitiful one shamelessly was one thing, but undressing right in front of her now gave Ling Qingyue a twinge of embarrassment.
Face red, she stripped down to her last inner garment, then lifted the collar on one side to bare half a shoulder. The fabric stuck to torn skin, and every tug was a sharp jolt of pain.
Seeing the sweat beading on her brow from the pain, Pei Si walked over and bent down slightly. "Let me."
Ling Qingyue looked up at her. Her gaze lingered on Pei Si's eyes for a moment, then she averted her face, the ear hidden among her hair going completely red.
Five bloody holes punctured her shoulder, a ghastly, terrifying sight. Pei Si carefully cleaned away the blood and the wound, then applied the medicine Lu Yao had given.
Piaomiao Sect's medicines were truly impressive. The bleeding stopped the moment it was applied, and the wound began healing at a rate visible to the naked eye.
New flesh growing was painful and itchy at once, not a pleasant sensation. Ling Qingyue couldn't help but reach toward it. Even just rubbing it a little would have made it feel better.
Before her hand rose, it was pressed down. Another hand reached over to wipe the fine sweat from the tip of her nose. "Don't move. It'll be fine soon."
Ling Qingyue sniffled. She wanted the person before her to hold her, but the thought struck her as overly delicate. It was just a scratch, not a broken arm or leg.
As she wrestled with the thought, warmth suddenly touched her face. A soft cloth soaked in warm water gently wiped across her cheek, her forehead.
Ling Qingyue felt her chin being lifted, and following the gentle pressure of those fingers, she raised her head.
Pei Si was wiping her face.
Her gaze had nowhere to hide from the woman's face. Ling Qingyue was briefly lost.
"Pei Si…" she whispered. The name came out soft and laden with something unspoken.
"Mm?" Pei Si answered, her voice gentle, as though soothing her. "Still hurts?"
Ling Qingyue had suffered no shortage of injuries growing up, but no one had ever spoken to her so tenderly, like they were coaxing a child. Her master wouldn't, either. Her senior sister might bring her medicine, but she wouldn't soothe her.
She blinked, and her lashes grew damp. Ling Qingyue stiffened. Awkwardly, she pulled her chin free from the hand and lowered her head.
Really, no backbone at all.
In the next breath, a soft, fragrant body leaned over and wrapped her in a light embrace. The woman's palm pressed against her back, patting gently, rhythmically.
Ling Qingyue froze. Then her nose stung with tears, and a mist blurred her vision.
After the wound was treated and she'd changed into clean clothes, Ling Qingyue sat by the window, restless and unsettled.
In her palm lay the Spirit Jade Marrow Pei Si had given her, along with several Spirit Stones.
Ling Qingyue, how could you be this kind of person?
Your sect is the leader of all immortal sects. Your master is the foremost figure in the Immortal Realm. Your senior sister is the pride of her generation. They are all upright women, bright and honorable. And here you are, occupying someone else's body, shamelessly coveting her wife.
Ling Qingyue drew a deep breath. Her eyes burned. It shouldn't be like this.
Ling Qingyue, you should recover your cultivation as quickly as possible, return to the Immortal Realm as quickly as possible, return to Shangtianqiong, and beg your master and your senior sister to help you forge a new body.
"Ling Qingyue, you really are… utterly absurd." The murmur slipped out before she even realized.
"Thud!"
Ling Qingyue jumped at the sudden noise. She whipped her head around and saw Pei Si standing in the doorway, looking at her with a complicated expression.
"What did you just say?"
Comments
Post a Comment