Fatherly Asura

Orthodoxy.

Myriad paths exist for those of Sect worth.

Need I list them? No. The blind might see these benefits.

The Zephyrous Cicada Sect draw attention, spectated some fifty moons ago at their Patriarch’s four hundredth moon day.

Dependence on aphrodisiacs shattered his cultivation some thirty moons prior, and so your Master attended to pity the ignorant fool, no more.

Though… yes, I recall an aspirant of the Yin Blossoms Sect attended. Disciple, need I instruct you on the regular bolstering of Yin-Yang meditation? Were she of import I would have made her my third concubine.

Bah- Orthodoxy.

A Sect named for Cicadas, the reasoning is clear as flawless gems!

Why do their petitioners bring spiders and grasshoppers?

“Pariahs of Heritage,” by [Buried in Papyrus]

What disciple would not offer their aid to another? What personal disciple would shame their master by silence?

Aligned by scales, the pair voiced their challenge.

Yifei found Fu’s [Stagnation]. His image; understanding; insight; history; and [Profundity] of the aspect. That which was antithetical to flow, motion and transformation, adding her own insult against the Lord.

“[Shallow],” her voice sang.

But shadow far differed from sun, for the misty cultivator waited not for this Lord’s reply. No, with prideful affectation, Fu hummed a second answer. “[Malaise].”

The [Spirit Serpent] hissed at this dishonor.

The daring of this fresh arrival to have them associated with such a lack of propriety.

In bygone [Seasons], a fisherman might have mused on this. How cultivators might speak: how their words contained Heaven’s essence, turning truth with a flick of their palm. Sundering oceans with unparalleled secrets.

Strange, he knew, that his own voice belonged to this world.

Force washed through the staining of brown this court possessed. A ripple to lighten the surrounding hue.

Measured steps moved the Lord from his throne, now at pace along the pools. “Stagnation,” he sounded. “Stagnation,” he tested. “What auspicious moments lead here? Now? A pair of foolish humans, and three blinds beasts sully my court. [Summer’s] stooge and [Winter’s] malice.”

Fu blew his mists, sharing a cold laugh. An immortal’s laugh, or close. “Many have eyes, noble Lord. Many fail to see. The [Boundless Dao] might say that all are equal beneath them.”

“Yet you would stir my passions?” the Lord cawed, splaying a plumed arm over the downcast hundreds. “Empire-blind beasts. Weak-hearted, yellow-blooded servants. Rage proud against the Heavens, or rage not at all. This is the solitary truth.”

Speak more, Lord, let us discover the cause of this. We only know that you endanger our Sect, and that our sun-facing cousin challenges you.

Yifei sneered, and it was a graceful affair. “An offer was given. Show worth or ash where you stand. You call ‘trespass’ at our arrival, but know not the immensity of serpents, Lord. Prove or perish. Bah.”

Heat built beneath Fu’s feet.

He provoked this challenge, holding no love for [Spirit Beasts] entwined with cultivators. As we are, brother, sister. Then what passion does he speak of?

To leap blind was against instinct, and yet his [Dao] had roused him. So soon after the [Hollow Trial’s] completion, he felt an encounter that might spur growth.

“It fades in wasted breaths,” sighed the Lord. “And here, was there a glimpse? Now, I think not. My ears confirm what my heart knew. Never will you have benefits to offer, this is waste and naught else.”

The serpents watched him gaze across the crowd. A look, shared with the younger beast of maroon plumage.

“Brother!” she cried, pleading for reasons Fu could only half guess.

“No, little wing. In sadness I will repeat what I have ever held true. Mortal-shells, fleshen-corpses, never-bright. Humanity grants no leading path. Apologies, but this is the truth of it,” he returned, returning colour from the sepia air. “Burn.”

An avian cry loosed from the sister, protesting an emergence of flames.

[Half Cloud Step].

Fu blurred to the Lord’s wailing kin, one hand atop his whisker. “This old man has stumbled across a sea of fire,” he laughed, feeling his [Heavenly Spectre’s Shroud] reduce against a fiery hellscape to their rear. “You do not agree with your Lord’s views?”

“Old man?” stammered the sister. “I… I would not speak openly-”

“Sister,” warned the Lord. “Our matters are not the matters of this mist-wrapped fiend. Beware his coming lies.”

Yifei cleansed the flames with a single swish of sleeve. “[Brittle],” came her insult.

Once more the pools washed brown.

“Hmm. Speak your desire, young one,” waxed Fu. “This old man offers no harm to you or your kin. Oh-ho, well, I will not tolerate these itchy flames for much longer.”

A charade indeed, for his [Core] was rapidly depleting against the ambient flames.

“The Heavens are endless! But nothing might be seen here! Are you truly so vile, cultivator?” she cried, glancing at Shuidi. “Cousin crab. Are you so tainted by this Bond? Not all become prey, surely, for there are as many good souls as stars in the night sky!”

Flames curtained before her. “Stars? What know you of stars, little-wing?”

Fu rubbed pointedly at his whisker. “You grant audience, Lord, claiming these wayward souls have trespassed. Demand answers to a question you do not speak. Oh-ho, this old man needs help to put in his eyes. Kinder yet to have these cultivators slaughtered, for I see no mind ready for change. Is this not right, little-wing?”

Our [Dao of Four Horizons] stands ready, and we will depart if this next bout turns foul. Still, I sense our Path in this moment.

His facade held this Lord at bay, quieting the heat. “This wizened Lord is beneficent. You yet stand as proof of this. But insult has come, laced in the [Dao]. To name me sterile-blooded, dull-flamed and sedentary. My Path is Passion and Heart!” he cawed, igniting his plumage. “Prey not on innocent youth. Twist not her eager mind, for this wizened Lord alone knows the sins of humanity!”

A grand proclamation.

Hushi impressed a small regret, for they had plunged into waters unknown. Entered a tale that spanned more than they truly wished to know.

Even still- Yifei set a pitying gaze. “Passion in hibernation. You are small, Lord. Ignorant. It interests me no longer.” A bian lengthened, appearing from her spatial ring.

The Lord cawed in outrage, manifesting a blaze of talons upon his fingers. “Base desires. Yes, let us fulfil them.”

“Brother,” whimpered the sister.

Fu hummed as the pair paced. “Little-wing,” he smiled. “If this old man might guess, your Lord-brother wishes for no part of the world outside his domain. Humanity holds his ire, thus his challenge to the venerable cultivators contained here.”

Of wide eyes, she could only nod.

Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.

“For you,” he winked.

“It… he clings here, ruining himself. His Path, my Path. All he does is to serve me, and I cannot bear it!”

Fu offered his hand with a kind smile. “As I had guessed,” he said. “Come, little-wing. Let us convince him.”

If Yuling, Yuqi or Feng ever dared to grasp the hand of a stranger… He hoped they had better sense than to trust the words of supposed immortals. But a feathered grip entered his, clutched daintily, and they walked to this Lord.

“Sister,” he sighed, incensed at Fu’s intervention. “That palm is unworthy. Desist and interrupt not, my attention will turn once this serpent lies ashed.”

“Whisper to him,” he said, loosing his grip.

Thunder crackled in Fu’s pipe and golden arcs raged within a singular puff. This he blew swiftly, using the sister’s proximity to ward it from flame.

[Dao of Coming Tribulations].

Her words met his ear, quashing the heat. Then this Lord wobbled, gasping as the [Dao] claimed him.

Fu wished greatly to rub his temples, for this was an affair best left untouched. Half-entered, and against all caution. But as an old master he merely watched, stroking his whisker as gold began to radiate from the Lord’s plumage.

🀦

Five hours of imperious stance. A second facet of those high upon the Path, this triviality of time’s passing.

Yifei stood ahead, emotionless in regard.

Fu circulated his Qi, disguising [Three Wisps From Breath] under flights of whimsy. Some mirthful monster that solidified mists in playful shapes about the Lord’s domain.

The sister did not speak. Nor did the unburdened [Spirit Beasts] plunge into challenge once stirred from the heated [Intent]. Indeed, the space was solemn, easily equal to the depths of a daoist’s pagoda in prayer.

Neither serpent spared more than a civil glance.

Waiting.

At his breast Shuidi once more affixed her prideful look. A raised shell and tight bound pincers, mirroring with great physical difficulty the posture of their sun-facing cousin.

Enlightenment sparked atop the throne.

“Brother,” cried the sister, falling before it.

The Lord’s eyelids lifted sharply, sparing a single moment to cradle her cheek. Small whispers escaped him. A larger address followed. Accentuated limbs, a bow, grander gestures of gratitude, speech and… meaningless platitudes.

For the [Dao of Coming Tribulations] poured volcanic heat into its cultivator.

[Spirit] drowned Fu’s [Ink] with ephemeral force. An increase to far swell what his meagre [Insight] had once contained.

As an old master he could spare no emotion, but reigned in every fibre of his cultivation to process the change. He cut himself off from external sources, deafened to the conversation before him.

The [Twin Mockeries Heartplume] roared.

One hundred breaths passed before his body returned to normal, granting some semblance of control.

Brother, sister. We are close. Our [Constellation Seed] nears its ascension from this single task alone. It seems… if one is to overcome our [Dao of Coming Tribulations] then the tithe returned is tenfold that of a dread-filled foe.

A thought such as this sparked a strange resonance.

I far prefer this, no? To aid another, over slaughter.

Sense returned, and he found himself recovering from a vacant stare into distant waters. Something pensive and wise, he hoped, for the bearing of a slack-jawed fool might undo much of what had transpired.

He saw space, cleared, and Yifei alone with her serpent. A throne room bereft of Lords, sisters and maddened crowds.

“May you walk interesting paths,” she said.

Fu thought it a phrase of parting until her surprising clasp. Face, shown by one that should rightly demand it herself. Novel enough to shock an assassin, despite how he returned it with a lower bow.

“Intricate are the ways of Heaven and Earth. Once met, [Karma] entwines us. I spoke on this, and naturally it is so.”

“Cousin, this old man-”

Yifei sneered at his words. “Cleanse this mask, serpent.”

Shuidi fervently tapped upon his breast, urging that he not disappoint this queen among cultivators. A Matriarch to which she could aspire.

Thus Fu smiled, recalling the frigidity of their last parting. “Cousin Yifei, I greet you. As less-than-strangers and as fellow serpents.”

“Yes. The greeting is returned,” An oddity of silence came next, as though she was at a loss for words. “You are crippled now.”

“In flesh,” he agreed.

Silence again.

The fervor of his [Spirit Crab] partner… lessened.

Ah.

Memory returned more thoughts of their previous meeting. The departure from their first [Hollow Realm] and the [Constellation Seed] they had gifted her. She had spoken words of debt, and perhaps an Inner Disciple knew little of the propriety involved.

“Might we speak freely?” he asked, embodying Zhu’s talent of bluntness. “Our Sect is my reason for wandering, and now found, I would seek to complete my mission.”

At this the [Spirit Serpent] craned, levying a cold glare.

“Do so.”

“A list to trouble you, perhaps, so I will speak swiftly. This Lord and trial, the insight you granted, I would know where matters stand.”

Yifei’s look was alien. “The beast’s tide is managed. As is right, he works to better serve the Cloudy Serpent Sect. A Path, corrected, now aligned with our interests in this realm. The feathered wretch moves to strike the southern [Paifang].”

“At your bidding?”

“Truth has found him. To bloody himself that worthy serpents might not be stained against [Spring’s] hollow blades,” she said, lips thinning. “A sign of trying times that we are forced to grant such an honor.”

Fu expanded his [Senses], finding the breath of others well distant from here. Truly, Yifei had sent the Lord from his own court. “A small parcel of history might grant more insight, if it is no trouble to you, cousin.”

“If I must,” she frowned. “Know that the false fools of [Spring] crowd south of here. A flowing garrison to seal entry beyond the [Paifang]. Insects, truly, for while of middling talent they number in the quantities one might find beneath rotten logs. I arrived to remove this blockage, encountering that self-styled Lord and his shallow ways.”

“Beginning this insight to barter safe passage?” he guessed.

“No. The fool required educating, no more. However, your [Dao] held merit. An accomplishment, cousin,” Yifei considered. “Near a moon has passed since first we met. Our estimations of you were as muddied water then, naming you as a thief of opportunity. [Primordial Constellation Gates]. [Constellation Seeds]. The mysteries I had thought you to merely meddle in prove to be seas in which you swim.”

The [Spirit Crab] swelled in pride, posturing further.

“And the [Paifang]?”

Yifei turned curious as he spurned her compliment, for it was a certainty that those of the sun-facing world would bask in such words. But she did not press. “You desire no further tales of this Lord?”

“A single line of characters, cousin, and within a tome that is not mine to read. I have the sum of things. Gratitude.”

Her [Spirit Serpent] lowered, intent on Shuidi’s climbing form. Its pupils were vast, capturing Fu’s full reflection with room to spare.

An ally, we must recall.

Aside this studious look, Yifei continued. “Then, to actual matters. What goals you hold, and what benefit I might grant.”

“A kindness,” nodded Fu. “My goal is to rejoin the Sect’s forces. That of [Gleeful Viper], for hers are the whispers we have followed.”

“Then south is your calling. To the [Paifang] that draws even my attention. An intricate fate, that your destination aligns with my own. And yet is it not natural for moon to chase sun? Travel there and you will find our venerable Elder. [Imperial Realm 84].”

The number quirked Fu’s brow. “Eighty four is high among Realms. Among Marches,” he said, conjuring a fragment of the [True Orchid Path].

Nine paths stemmed from its representation. Realm 84’s star, radiating well into the hues of orchid Marches. A true sea of peerless blades, fraught with all the monsters [Spring] might bring to bear.

“I foresee small obstacles in this course.”

Yifei took measure of these stars. “A dense fragment. It shows much, and- does this hold annotations?”

“Imperial Repositories hold many undeserved treasures,” smiled Fu. “My talented juniors add to this with diligence. If cousin Yifei wishes, there are several. But, to matters of this [Paifang] and [Imperial Realm]. The [Spring] Imperials have warded its access? I have chanced across such tactics before, and yet, to counter the head of our Cloudy Serpents will require more than the trite efforts I have previously witnessed.”

A small exchange had her stow one such treasure. “It will serve the Sect well,” came Yifei’s approximation of gratitude. “I have spoken on the false Imperials, no? Myriad buzzing gnats. Beneath this construct and against the [Demonic] malady within its beasts, they deny ingress to the realm so honoured by her presence.”

Fu drew long of his pipe, hesitant. “To find the best price, one must ask at three different stores.”

The [Spirit Serpent] recoiled, mirroring its cultivator. Unbridled [Intent] struck the three ghosts to have them gasp. “You dare?”

[Spirit] plundered through the [Dao of Coming Tribulations] prevented a total collapse, though it waned against even this momentary pressure. “Cousin, have you laid eyes upon this realm?” Fu rasped back.

Yifei relented. “Need I have? One serpent knows another. She is close, and myriad others confirm it. Dare ask this again, cousin, and our [Karma] will not prevent tragedy.”

“Apologies. Prudence is a blade I must wield well, lest dishonor claim me. I ask only in the case that we need amend our plans. Why stake all on a single throw when the target might have moved beneath our notice?”

Her acceptance was grudging. “The Imperials would not construct such defences for lesser cultivators. Others walk here. Sister Sects and vagrants. [Spring’s] strays that answered at the end of my bian. If further testimony is required then your prudence is better named madness. Apt, for even I, Zheng Yifei, have not yet struck openly against their number.”

Resonance pushed through Fu’s brooch.

“Not yet,” he nodded. “Then indeed the stars align, Yifei, for our paths cross at an opportune moment. My designs are upon this [Paifang], and forces greater than either of us demand it be conquered.”

The cavern around them grew darker.

Of great talent, Yifei’s gaze met the first disciple’s approach. Fen, converging from the lengthening shadow. But the first of many Wayward Winds, as soon they ringed the conversing pair.

“A southern [Paifang],” uttered Fu.

In unbroken stride the eighth of his disciples reported. Words flew of cultivators, realms, threats, elite forces and the [Arrays] confining their position.

“[Imperial Realm 84].”

His easternmost third detailed a second report. One inclusive of [True King Realm], [Spatial Qi Abundance], True Orchid March and smaller details aside. A compilation of retrieved texts and reaped knowledge.

Yifei regarded only Fu, as if these juniors were not worthy of her attention. Unchanged across nine separate reports.

Inwardly, the Old One collated all.

“Gratitude, my disciples,” he half-bowed.

The [Spirit Serpent] shuddered in disbelief. To grant such face to one’s juniors- why, it was enough to have one’s blood flow in reverse. His protest was clear, for he indignantly pushed further from the crowd.

“Noble cousin. I would ask for a stipend of time. One day to arrange matters, if this is suitable to your own strategy. By the grace of serpents we might have these Imperials fall by its end,” said Fu.

With disdain only an Inner Disciple might manage, she scoffed. “My strategy stands across three [Seasons]. From arrival to now, I have laboured to marshal forces for this task. Insult comes, cousin, for now I will rightfully challenge your claim. One day alone will not level these Imperials, or do you think yourself an Elder’s equal?”

“A blade takes but a breath to fall. Great change arrives as swift as thunder, for the clouds ever contain it. One day is required to bleed [Spring’s] hold. No more.”

Yifei shook. “Bleed. The moon-facing Sect hold much confidence. Very well. It is agreed, if only to see how ghosts fare at the mouth of a dragon’s den.”

“Gratitude, cousin. Although I have no intention of wetting their blades, no. Their attention will lie elsewhere.”