Diteyi chuckled, the sound smooth and cruel. "Astute as ever, Your Highness. Yes, I am here. Though, perhaps 'here' should be 'above.'" He gestured lazily to the sky. "After all, some are destined to soar, while others… are left to sift through remnants of a fallen..."
He trailed off as he descended slowly, his feet finally touching the ground. "Tell me, Your Highness, do you now understand the nuances of this… tragedy? Or are you still caught up in your little little beliefs?"
Dao Wei's gaze sharpened as he finally looked at Diteyi. "The end, huh?"
Diteyi clapped his hands together, amusement flashing in his crimson eyes. "Precisely! Imagine, even the esteemed Hall, known for their… supremacy. They found your beloved sect troublesome. A weed in their meticulously cultivated garden. And weeds, Your Highness, must be… eradicated."
Diteyi's smirk widened as he leaned in slightly. "But… the why is the truly delicious part, wouldn't you agree? The High Court… oh, they have such fascinating theories swirling around you, Your Highness. Whispers of… connections. Affiliations… with the Unspoken Ghost Reaper himself."
Dao Wei's expression remained impassive, but the slightest flicker of something crossed his eyes. And Diteyi caught it.
"The Death God, you stupid bum." His voice was almost a raged whisper now, eyes glowing with malice. "They think you are linked to the Death God. Pathetic, isn't it? Such a… revered god clinging to such unremarkable person."
A silence stretched between them. The wind howled, carrying with it the dying embers of the sect's ruin.
Dao Wei finally spoke, his voice quiet yet heavy. "The Old Man… where is he?"
Diteyi's smirk faltered for the briefest of moments before he laughed. "Old Man? Ah, yes, the Jade Emperor. Always so self-righteous. Don't fret, Your Highness. The Hall is… thorough. Let's just say he's unavailable for the foreseeable future. Perhaps engaged in a prolonged conversation with… associates."
Diteyi watched closely, waiting for an outburst, for some crack in Dao Wei's icy composure. But there was nothing.
Nothing except a quiet, measured response. "I see."
Diteyi frowned, his irritation growing. "See…? See what?! That you are the reason your sect is destroyed? That the Hall of Nine Sins wants to use you as a pawn? That the High Court thinks you're in league with… with him?!"
Dao Wei met his gaze, the depth in his eyes dark and fathomless. "I see the Hall of Nine Sins thinks highly of me. Oh… and the Old Man is fine."
Diteyi gritted his teeth. Why? Why was he like this? Why was he so goddamn calm?! He wanted to see him snap. To rage. To break.
"Damn you, Dao Wei!" he suddenly roared, his voice shaking the air. "Show me something! Rage! Grief! Hatred! Anything! This placid mask… it's… it's utterly boring!"
Dao Wei's stare was funny. And then, for the first time, he spoke with a weight that crushed the air between them.
"Are you done?"
Diteyi felt something tighten in his chest. It was the way he said it. The way his voice carried an unshakable authority.
"Tch." Diteyi forced a smirk. "Enjoy the ruin of your so-called home for now, Your Highness. And perhaps… contemplate your connections. They might just be… your downfall."
Howl!
The atmosphere changed. The wind, once howling, suddenly stilled. The air became thick. Heavy.
Boom!
Diteyi made his move first, vanishing and reappearing in an instant right before Dao Wei, his jagged black spear poised to pierce his chest.
Rumble!
But then—The very ground quaked. And from deep within the Sword Burial Grounds, something broke free.
Crack!
A monstrous aura erupted forth, drowning the sky in an overwhelming, primordial force.
Boom!
A surge of power exploded from Dao Wei's position, sending shockwaves through the air.
Diteyi's eyes widened in genuine shock.
"What…?"
The sky darkened, an oppressive force covering the entire sect. Diteyi's breath hitched as he felt an aura so thick, so overwhelming that it suffocated everything around.
Meanwhile, the wind whipped around the fallen Ghost Peak, carrying with it the faint scent of smoke and the distant, muffled rumble of power. Lu Shen squinted towards the towering Supreme Elder Peak, his breath catching in his chest. Beside him, Wei Jun's face was drawn, a thin line of worry etched between his brows. Huang Ling, though her usual bright eyes were shadowed with concern, held a firmer stance.
"That… that's not normal," Lu Shen managed, his voice raspy, each word a struggle against the lingering weakness that clung to them all.
Wei Jun nodded, his gaze fixed on the distant peak. "Definitely not a natural phenomenon. Someone's fighting… and…" He trailed off, swallowing hard. "Is… is it Second Brother?"
Huang Ling's hand tightened into a fist. "It has to be. Who else would cause such a commotion?" Even as she spoke, her voice trembled slightly, betraying her anxiety despite her outward confidence. "I-I just wonder who that presence we felt earlier was."
Silence descended, broken only by the howling wind. The raw power that had erupted minutes ago had subsided, leaving a heavy, oppressive tension hanging in the air. Lu Shen felt a cold dread creep up his spine. He couldn't shake the image of Dao Wei facing some unknown, formidable foe.
Huang Ling finally broke the silence, her voice regaining its characteristic conviction. "Dao Wei will be fine. He's… he's the Sword Childe. There's nothing in this world that can hold him back." She lifted her chin, staring resolutely at Supreme Elder Peak, as if willing her belief into reality. "He'll crush whoever dares to challenge him."
Wei Jun shifted his weight, his worry shifting into something else. "Maybe… maybe we should go closer? See if we can help?"
"Help?" Lu Shen croaked, a dry laugh escaping his lips. "Help how? In our condition? We'd be more of a burden."
Wei Jun's expression darkened. "That's… that's what I'm afraid of. If he's fighting someone powerful enough to cause that, maybe he has to worry about protecting us too. Maybe… maybe our presence here is a hindrance."
Lu Shen's heart clenched. Wei Jun's words struck a painful chord of truth. He looked at his brother, still weakened from their recent ordeal, and then back towards the foreboding peak. "Then… then you two should go."
Wei Jun frowned. "Go? Where?"
"Anywhere safe," Lu Shen insisted, his voice firmer now. "Leave the Sword God Sect. You can go to the Imperial Capital, find Elder Jong, and tell him what happened." He avoided their eyes, his senses prickling with an awareness he couldn't yet explain, a familiar energy that was subtly, almost imperceptibly, growing closer.
Huang Ling scoffed, crossing her arms. "Leave? And abandon Dao Wei? Are you mad? We're not leaving him to face this alone!"
"It's not abandoning him!" Lu Shen argued, his voice rising slightly. "It's being smart! If we stay here, we might just become targets! If something happens to us, Second Brother will be distracted!" He knew he was exaggerating, pushing the point, but the feeling of that approaching presence urged him to get them away.
"That's ridiculous," Huang Ling retorted. "Dao Wei can handle anything! And what if he needs us? What if he's injured, or… or needs backup?"
"Backup?" Wei Jun echoed, his voice laced with disbelief. "Against that power? Junior Sister, be realistic. We'd be crushed in the crossfire." He looked at Lu Shen, his brow furrowed. "But… why are you so insistent we leave, First Brother? You're usually the one ready to rush into danger."
Lu Shen's jaw tightened. He couldn't tell them about the presence he felt. "Just trust me, alright? It's safer if you two go. I'll… I'll be fine here. I won't do anything stupid."
"Wait what? Senior Brother, you can barely even stand!" Huang Ling snapped, her patience wearing thin. "We're sticking together. We're not running away."
"But—" Lu Shen began to protest again, his gaze darting towards the shadowed treeline at the edge of Ghost Peak.
Before he could finish, a soft and melodious voice, cut through the tense air.
"Running away? Run away from what, exactly?"
The three of them whipped around, startled. Standing at the edge of their clearing, her silken robes fluttering in the wind, was Qing Yao. Her expression was serene, her eyes calmly assessing the scene before her.
Lu Shen's initial surprise warred with a different, more unsettling feeling. Qing Yao… she wasn't the presence he'd sensed earlier. This was unexpected. He had been so focused on the approaching energy, that he hadn't even noticed her arrival.
Huang Ling blinked, her defiant posture faltering slightly. "Qing Yao? What are you doing here?"
Wei Jun stared, a mixture of confusion and relief washing over his face. Relief because it wasn't an enemy, confusion because… Wasn't she supposed to be fighting with the others?
Lu Shen however, remained silent, his mind racing. The familiar presence was still out there, somewhere close. And now, Qing Yao had arrived. What was happening? And Why wasn't she in the same condition as them? None of this made any sense.