Sword of Coming

The campfire was providing some warmth in the rundown temple in the wake of the storm.

The little lotus spirit was sitting on Chen Ping'an's leg, and it subtly pointed at Pei Qian's eye.

Chen Ping'an immediately understood its intentions, and he instructed Pei Qian to leave the temple with him, while the little lotus spirit vanished into the earth to help Chen Ping'an patrol the area around the temple.

Chen Ping'an hadn't seen what had happened to Pei Qian in the temple earlier, but after the battle, he had noticed the blood on her sleeves and the mud all over her body. She had told him that her eyes had suddenly started hurting out of the blue, and she had rolled around in pain on the ground for a long time. After that, the little lotus figure had given Chen Ping'an a very animated recount of the events that had transpired.

After leading Pei Qian some distance out of the temple, Chen Ping'an stopped in his tracks, then turned around and crouched down to look closely into Pei Qian's eyes.

"What happened? Why did your eyes suddenly start bleeding?"

Pei Qian's complexion instantly turned as pale as a sheet as she thought back to the painful ordeal she had suffered, and tears began to well up in her eyes as she shook her head and sobbed. "I don't know. They suddenly started to really hurt, like something was about to explode inside, just like the firecrackers that rich people set off during celebrations.

“By the way, can we set off some firecrackers to celebrate the New Year once we get back home? It looks so festive, I've always wanted to give it a try!"

Chen Ping'an didn't know how to respond to Pei Qian's erratic train of thought, and he said, "Back when we left Dragon Spring Prefecture, someone forbade us from returning there in the next five years. However, we can definitely set off some firecrackers on New Year's Eve. Let's get back on track here. Did the old Daoist priest that threw us out of the Lotus Flower Blessed Land do something to your eyes? Did he say anything to you?"