Immortal Druid

007 Midnight Intruder/s

I was sharing a quiet dinner with Xing Ning that evening. Tonight I decided to eat meat, something that had appeared among the latest pile of tributes left beneath the tree. A few predators I had helped in the past must have contributed it. I told myself it was only the respectful thing to do. After all, they had offered it freely.

I have to eat this meat.

It should be fine, right?

After all, it was a tribute.

I salivated at the sight of the sizzling strips roasting over the campfire. The aroma made my stomach rumble in anticipation.

While we ate, I made small talk with Xing Ning. “By the way, you mentioned teleportation arrays before. Why couldn’t your sect simply use one to retrieve you? It would save everyone a lot of time.”

Xing Ning chewed thoughtfully before answering. “Teleportation arrays are lost technology, Senior. Very few remain intact, and those that still function are extremely rare and heavily guarded. Even major sects find it difficult to activate them without risking collapse or spatial backlash. Traveling by foot or spirit beast is still the most common method.”

I nodded and took my first bite of the meat. For some reason it tasted strangely off, almost gamey in a way that did not quite match the rich smell. Meh, it probably just needed more salt. Maybe we should buy some condiments from the village next time.

The Hidden Village of Leaf was the closest patch of civilization, something I had learned from the endless gossip of the forest animals.

Hopefully, they wouldn’t mind me buying seasoning from them.

…

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[POV: Li Qing]

Night had fallen over the Hidden Village of Leaf.

Li Qing stood in the modest wooden hall, voice rising with frustration as she argued with her grandmother. “You are selling me off to the Serenity Cliff Sect. Do not pretend otherwise.”

Li Ming, her grandmother, shook her head firmly. “That is not the case at all. I only wish to marry you into the sect. It is the only way for you to sever your ties with this village and have a real chance at life of your own.”

“I want this life,” Li Qing shot back, fists clenched at her sides. “Let me stay here.”

Her grandmother’s expression hardened with weary patience. “You underestimate the responsibilities that come with staying. I only wish the best for you, child.”

“This is unfair!” Li Qing screamed, her voice cracking.

She had thought her grandmother would finally relent, but the older woman only grew more stubborn. Even though Li Qing had reached the seventh stage of Qi Condensation far quicker than any of her peers, her grandmother still insisted on sending her away.

Li Qing drew herself up and recited the village law with sharp precision. “A villager must reach the fourth stage of Qi Condensation by the age of nineteen years old before they are allowed to stay in the village permanently. I am already at the seventh stage. The law is on my side.”

Her grandmother raised her voice in return. “You will marry into the Guo family and become the wife of Young Master Guo Yuti. That decision is final.”

“So what am I? Just a precious flower to be traded away?”

Tears burned in Li Qing’s eyes. She turned and ran, slamming the sliding door behind her with a loud rattle. She wiped her tears away angrily as she stepped onto the balcony. When her crying finally subsided, the unfairness of it all settled heavily on her chest. Her grandmother had never once praised her rapid progress in cultivation. Instead she often gave Li Qing that same disappointed look, as if nothing she did was ever enough. What was wrong with her?

Suddenly, heated voices drifted up from the garden below. It was the Guo brothers, Guo Yuti the eldest and Guo Yimu the youngest.

Guo Yimu’s voice carried clear anger. “You stole her from me, brother. Li Qing should have been mine.”

Guo Yuti laughed coldly. “It was Grandfather’s decision. Stop acting like a child.”

“I was the first one to find her,” Guo Yimu insisted, voice rising. “It is unfair that you get everything just because you were born first.”

Guo Yuti’s mocking chuckle echoed through the night air. “Perhaps Grandfather would have considered giving you the girl’s hand if you had not been so eager to challenge that certain someone to a duel. Instead, you ended up humiliating the entire sect’s name when you dragged that strange silver-haired man into the matter. Truly a brilliant display of talent, little brother.”

Guo Yimu exploded in anger and embarrassment, his face flushing red even in the dim lantern light. “I was only doing it for the honor of the sect!” he shouted, voice cracking with indignation. “That foreigner, that Xing Ning bastard, should have known his place. He had no right to boast about his swordsmanship right in front of Li Qing. He provoked me first. I could not simply stand there and let an outsider show off like that.”

Guo Yuti snorted in disbelief. “Provoked you? He simply demonstrated a few forms and you immediately drew your sword like a hot-headed fool. Now the whole sect is whispering about how the young master of the Guo family was effortlessly tied up by vines and lectured by a silver-haired stranger who does not even seem to possess a sliver of cultivation. Congratulations. You have made us the laughingstock of the outer disciples.”

“I did what any true cultivator would do,” Guo Yimu protested pathetically, though his voice had grown smaller and more defensive. “He insulted our sect by acting superior. Someone had to put him in his place.”

“Someone had to put him in his place?” Guo Yuti repeated, amusement dripping from every word. “And that someone ended up dangling from roots like a common thief while the girl you claim to want watched the entire embarrassing spectacle. Brilliant strategy, truly.”

Li Qing could no longer stand the bickering below. She leaned over the balcony railing and called out sharply. “You two should take your conversation elsewhere. Some of us are trying to sleep.”

The brothers froze and stared up at her with wide eyes, faces flushed with embarrassment. The village was a special place, yet these people were going too far, arguing loudly in the dead of night.

Guo Yuti recovered first and forced a charming smile. “Young Miss Li Qing, we did not mean to disturb you. My foolish little brother was simply being emotional again.”

Guo Yimu immediately stepped forward, puffing out his chest in an attempt to save face. “Do not listen to him, Li Qing. I was only defending your honor. This matter concerns your future happiness, after all.”

Truly pathetic.

Before Li Qing could reply, Guo Yuti’s head suddenly exploded in a spray of blood and bone. She stared in horror, mouth agape. A split second later, Guo Yimu’s head also burst apart with a wet crunch. His fearful expression froze on what remained of his face before he collapsed.

The village alarm bell rang out urgently, its deep tone echoing through the night. Sound transmissions scattered across the Hidden Village of Leaf, carrying frantic words of warning. “The village is under attack. All disciples to arms. Protect the core area.”

Grandmother burst from the room behind Li Qing and shot into the sky on her flying sword. A dark-robed assassin pursued her closely, blade gleaming with killing intent.

“Grandmother.” Li Qing’s voice cracked with fear as she called out.

Through sound transmission, her grandmother’s calm but urgent voice reached her. “Hide, child. Do not come out.”

A pair of flying swords whistled toward Li Qing. She closed her eyes and raised her hands, bracing for pain and death. The impact never came.

When she opened her eyes again, several figures in dark robes surrounded her, their weapons drawn. Above her floated an elderly man enveloped in a swirling formation of swords. It was Guo Yupin, the Sword Formation King and an important elder of the Serenity Cliff Sect.

Elder Yupin quickly handed her a sleek flying sword. “Take this and flee, child. The sword will bring you to safety. Go now. These assassins are after you. You are more special than you realize.”

He summoned more swords around himself just as a dangerous presence nearly beheaded him from behind. Li Qing gripped the sword tightly, stepped onto it, and shot away from the balcony. A few black-robed figures immediately gave chase.

However, villagers soon intercepted the pursuers, drawing them into fierce combat. Part of Li Qing wanted to turn back and fight alongside them, yet she found herself unable to do so. What had Elder Yupin meant when he said the assassins were after her specifically?

Hours of intense escape followed. She knew she was still being tracked, so she never stopped. The flying sword carried her deep into the forest. She had no idea where it was taking her, but she had to keep going.

At some point the sword simply vanished beneath her feet, indicating a terrible fate must have befallen Elder Guo Yupin. Li Qing stumbled forward on foot, exhausted and disoriented.

Suddenly, a glowing mirage of her grandmother appeared before her in the moonlit clearing.

“Grandmother.” Tears streamed down Li Qing’s face as she rushed forward and tried to hug the figure. Her arms passed straight through the translucent form. “Grandmother.”

“This is a consciousness projection technique,” her grandmother explained gently. “There is no time for tears. Listen carefully.”

“I demand answers,” Li Qing said, voice trembling. “What is happening? Why are they after me?”

“You were never truly a member of this village,” her grandmother revealed. “You carry a special destiny. You must survive no matter what.”

Li Qing had always possessed a special ability that allowed her to sense truth from lies. She knew every word her grandmother spoke was true.

She asked the question she dreaded most. “Are you going to be okay?”

Her grandmother deflected with a soft smile. “I will buy you time.”

“Are you going to be okay?” Li Qing pressed again, her voice breaking.

The older woman’s expression grew solemn. “Your real name is Li Ming. Li Qing was my name. I gave it to you.”

Li Qing’s… or in this case, Li Ming’s eyes widened. “Why would you do something like that?”

Her grandmother simply smiled, warm and bittersweet. “Sometimes the wrong names can fool the right people.”

The mirage began to fade.

“Grandmother. Grandmother.” Li Ming reached out desperately, but the projection dissolved into faint sparks of light and vanished completely, leaving her alone in the silent forest.

…

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I woke up feeling particularly annoyed. I smoothed my robes, glad that my gear was so comfortable I never needed to change into sleepwear. I glanced at Xing Ning sleeping peacefully beside me. Sleep had refused to return. It was not because I had too much energy. I could sleep as much as I pleased in this body whether I needed it or not. I simply liked sleeping, trying to make up for every night shift I had endured back on Earth.

I stood up quietly. The movement stirred Xing Ning awake.

“Is there a problem, Senior?” he asked, voice thick with sleep.

“I am sorry for waking you,” I replied softly. “Can you hear that?”

He tilted his head, listening. “I do not get what you mean, Senior.”

“I can hear crying, rustling, and lots of running,” I explained.

I grabbed my staff. Xing Ning sat up fully, already reaching for his sword.

“Let me come with you, Senior.”

“Stay here,” I told him firmly. “It might be dangerous.”

He insisted anyway. “I will follow you. Please allow me.”

I sighed. “Fine, but be careful.”

I activated Wild Shape and transformed into an eagle. Powerful wings carried me high above the canopy. From the air I quickly spotted the source of the disturbance. A single girl was running for her life through the forest, heading straight toward my camp. That was strange. What was happening? Why was the plot coming to me? I had thought I had isolated myself enough.

The girl wore what passed for pajamas in this world. She was severely unarmed while her pursuers looked ominous in their dark robes, weapons glinting under the moonlight.

I decided it was better for my sanity to intervene. I swooped down and landed directly in her path, releasing the Wild Shape as my feet touched the ground.

The woman skidded to a halt, eyes wide with recognition. “You… you are the pointy-eared guy from the village.”

I sighed. “What is happening? Why are you being chased?”

She rushed behind me, trembling. “Please protect me. They will kill me if they catch me.”

Her plea sounded vaguely familiar. It reminded me of the way Xing Ning had begged for protection when he decided to tag along with me.

Moments later, the dark-robed figures emerged from the trees and surrounded us. Their killing intent was thick in the night air.

I planted my staff firmly in the ground and spoke calmly. “Please fuck off my forest. You are not welcome here.”