9 "Chan Ji"

The string of footprints wound its way forward, extending all the way outside the courtyard.

Behind her, Xue Huailing’s voice rang out: "Has someone been here?"

Just as she was about to step out the door to investigate, Lu Wenshu raised his hand with a flick. A surge of spiritual power swept over the ground, and the messy trail of footprints vanished, leaving the snow smooth and undisturbed once more.

"No one has been here," Lu Wenshu replied.

He wiped away every trace in the snow. By the time Xue Huailing stepped out, all she saw was the courtyard blanketed in pristine, desolate white. The snow, like drifting catkins, continued to fall without pause.

Xue Huailing furrowed her brows slightly, about to ask further, when Lu Wenshu said, "Ling’er, I have matters to attend to. I cannot accompany you for the moment."

With that, he flew away.

Xue Huailing watched his retreating figure, her slender, slightly knitted brows refusing to smooth out. She felt a persistent sense of unease, an inexplicable intuition. She sensed that Lu Wenshu’s sudden departure had something to do with that mortal on Green Peak.

At this thought, Xue Huailing’s expression turned grim. She pressed her lips together and followed after him.

—

Lu Chanji remembered Xue Huailing.

That was thirteen years ago, when she had first arrived at the Great Sea and Ten Continents from the mortal realm alongside Lu Wenshu. She had been struck by a snow demon’s miasma; her entire body was freezing, and her chest ached with every breath. She had been on the verge of death when Lu Wenshu channeled his spiritual power into her, injecting a thread of vitality. Later, he brought her all the way to Wind-Breath Valley, where he secured the Wind-Spirit Pill to purge the extreme cold from her body, saving her life.

That was where Lu Chanji had first seen Xue Huailing.

Just as she had been thirteen years ago, Xue Huailing remained that same elegant and spirited young girl. Her appearance had not changed in the slightest; if anything, her presence was even more striking than before.

Seeing the daughter of the woman who had once saved her—seeing her—she should have been happy and grateful. Yet, Lu Chanji did not know why her tears began to well up, spilling over uncontrollably, her eyes stinging as the snow particles lashed against them.

On the path, the blizzard raged on. Beside the main peak’s road, two immortal attendants were moving potted plants.

Against the stark white snow, two golden-yellow plants appeared, as bright as lanterns lit in the fog.

"Careful now. These are the Yellow-Channel and Vine-Gold Moss that the Sect Leader specifically acquired from Wind-Breath Valley. Don't be clumsy. If you kill them, the Sect Leader will hold you solely responsible."

"Why are we planting flowers in the snow for no reason?"

"What else could it be for? It’s clear that Fairy Huailing is going to be staying at the Sword-Bearing Sect for the long term. The Sect Leader brought these over specifically because he feared she wouldn't be accustomed to the environment of Yan Continent."

"Fairy Huailing and her brother were sent to our sect by the Master of Wind-Breath Valley to practice swordsmanship when they were young. She and the Young Sect Leader share a deep bond. I’ve heard they are to become dao companions soon. Is that true?"

"Most likely. They truly are a match made in heaven, a peerless pair."

"But if that’s true... what about the one on Green Peak?"

"The one on Green Peak? ...How can they even be compared? What’s the difference between keeping a mortal and keeping a pet? It’s not something to be taken seriously."

As they continued to chatter, a buzzing filled Lu Chanji’s ears, and their voices grew indistinct. She looked at those golden plants, so conspicuous against the white snow. It was laughable—when she had arrived, her heart and mind had been filled only with Lu Wenshu; she had been blind to all these changes.

The sound of the attendants' footsteps drew closer. Lu Chanji hurriedly wrapped her cloak tighter around herself, wanting to avoid being seen. She turned and fled into the blizzard in a state of disarray.

—

The bells at Listening-Spring Pavilion rang once more.

Lu Wenshu looked down, his gaze scanning the courtyard. Lu Chanji, who usually appeared in the yard the moment he arrived, looking up at him with expectant eyes, was nowhere to be seen. He waited for a while longer, but she did not appear.

He could sense that Lu Chanji was in her room.

Lu Wenshu descended and, just as he was about to enter, he caught sight of the puppets scattered across the courtyard. They were piled in a heap, their wooden limbs riddled with sword slashes. Beside them lay a pile of crumpled paper balls. Lu Wenshu picked one up and saw it was covered in sword technique diagrams.

They were all discarded drafts.

Holding the crumpled paper, he peered into the room. Only when he saw Lu Chanji’s figure, curled over her desk with her head buried in her arms, did his heart truly settle.

Lu Wenshu walked in quickly and stood beside her, calling out softly, "A-Chan."

Lu Chanji did not look up.

Lu Wenshu asked, "Did you go to my residence just now?"

He began to regret giving Lu Chanji the invisibility talisman that even mortals could use. If not for that, he would have sensed her presence the moment she stepped into his courtyard, and she would never have heard Xue Huailing’s words. Xue Huailing had been pampered since childhood, growing up arrogant and lawless; she dared to say anything, and she had always looked down on Lu Chanji. He didn't know how much of that conversation Lu Chanji had heard. He should have sent Xue Huailing back to Wind-Breath Valley sooner, but she had been invited by the Sect Leader himself.

"If you're unhappy, would you like me to go down the mountain and buy you some pine-nut candies?" Seeing that she did not respond, Lu Wenshu reached out to touch her hair. "If not pine-nut candies, then what about sugar-roasted chestnuts? It's winter, and the markets at the foot of the mountain have them. Shall I buy you some?"

She dodged his touch. Lu Wenshu froze.

When Lu Chanji finally lifted her face from her arms, Lu Wenshu realized she wasn't angry. Not only was she not angry, but her porcelain-white face even managed to force a smile.

Lu Chanji smiled at him and said, "Brother Wenshu, I did go to your courtyard, but I heard from the attendants that you had guests. I didn't want to be impolite, so I came back."

As she spoke, she raised the sword manual in her hand, her voice intentionally light and airy. "I wanted to show you my sword manual. I've created my own sword techniques! Would you like to try them?"

Yet, her eyes were red, and faint traces of tears remained at their corners.

Lu Wenshu said, "Alright."

He unfolded the manual, looked at it for a moment, then set it aside and went into the courtyard to dance the sword. Lu Chanji picked up an undamaged puppet to practice with him.

"What is this move called?" Lu Wenshu asked after finishing a sequence.

The words caught in her throat. Lu Chanji hesitated, then, as if coming to terms with something, she smiled gently. "It’s called 'Chanji'."

She had originally wanted to name this move "Phoenixes in Flight," hiding her feelings within the name of the technique in a bold yet secretive way. Now that she knew Xue Huailing and Lu Wenshu were to become dao companions, she could no longer bring herself to speak the name of a move that held her hidden heart.

*Phoenixes in flight, never to be parted.* Her feelings were best left hidden among the waste paper; Lu Wenshu did not need to know.

"Called 'Chanji'..." Lu Wenshu murmured.

"Yes, just call it 'Chanji'," Lu Chanji said firmly, neither humble nor pushy, speaking with great solemnity. "Please tell those cultivators that this is a sword technique created by a mortal. Please tell them not to look down on mortals so easily."

"And..." Lu Chanji paused, "I hope they can use it to slay more demons and monsters, so that there won't be another child in this world left homeless like me."

"Why are you asking me to do this?" Lu Wenshu frowned.

Lu Chanji said softly, "Brother Wenshu, I want to return to the mortal realm."

Lu Wenshu’s posture stiffened, and his expression cracked. "Return... to the mortal realm?"

"Yes." Lu Chanji tried to make her smile look as happy as possible; she didn't want to make the parting too sorrowful. "Returning to the mortal world would be wonderful! If I want to eat pine-nut candies or sugar-roasted chestnuts in the future, I can just buy them myself. I won't have to wait expectantly for you here on Green Peak anymore."

Lu Wenshu raised his sleeve.

Lu Chanji felt nothing, for as a mortal, she could perceive nothing. Only the snow particles drifting outside the barrier surrounding Listening-Spring Pavilion were deflected further away as the barrier was suddenly strengthened.

"What if I do not permit it?" Lu Wenshu intensified the seal on the pavilion.

Lu Chanji was stunned. Lu Wenshu had always granted her every request, so much so that she had never considered the possibility of him forbidding her from leaving the mountain. She felt momentarily at a loss, completely unprepared for such an unfamiliar situation.

"Brother Wenshu?"

"A-Chan, you are not to leave. You must stay and keep me company," Lu Wenshu said. "I said we would be together forever."

Hearing this, Lu Chanji’s expression changed abruptly. "How am I to be with you forever? With my lifespan of at most a hundred years?"

Lu Wenshu murmured, "There will be a way. I will find a way." He insisted, "No matter what happens, I will never let you go."

A deathly silence spread between them.

Lu Chanji let out a bitter laugh. "Not leave? Stay and continue to be a pet?"

She looked straight at Lu Wenshu. "In the immortal realm, I am a mortal. Without spiritual power, I am useless. My few decades of life are like a mayfly’s in your eyes. Any desire or longing I have is tiny and laughable. Brother Wenshu, let me go back to the mortal world. That is where I belong. I will be an ordinary, happy mortal, and no one will gossip about me because of you."

The pain of separation was only temporary, but this was the best path. Even she understood such a simple truth; Lu Wenshu should understand it too.

But Lu Wenshu remained stubborn. "I will not let you go."

Lu Chanji felt a sudden, profound sense of powerlessness. It seemed that no matter what she said, Lu Wenshu would not listen.

"You should calm down first," Lu Chanji said. "I am going to find Lu Qi."

She turned to walk out of the pavilion. She would go find Lu Qi; it wasn't as if Lu Wenshu were the only one who could take her down the mountain. If that failed, there was still Xue Huailing... though that was a last resort. Deep down, Lu Chanji had hoped Lu Wenshu would be the one to see her off. She hoped that after a while, he would accept reality and calm down.

Suddenly, a tremor ran down her spine. She froze in place, her entire body rigid, with only her eyes able to move.

From the corner of her eye, she watched as Lu Wenshu slowly walked toward her and came to a stop.

"Lu Qi? You want to go find Lu Qi?" A smile appeared on Lu Wenshu’s face, but it was strange—as if he were using the smile to suppress something, leaving his proud, cold face with a hint of barely perceptible ferocity. "A-Chan, you are not to go find Lu Qi, and you are not to leave me. You promised me you would be with me forever; why go back on your word?"

A chill ran through Lu Chanji’s limbs. She had never seen Lu Wenshu like this. He had always been gentle, doting, and accommodating. Today’s Lu Wenshu felt like a stranger.

She instinctively tried to struggle, but she found herself unable to move, bound by a spell he had cast. This was the first time Lu Wenshu had ever used his spiritual power against her.

Tasting the sensation of being controlled by spiritual power for the first time, Lu Chanji realized that in their relationship, it had always been Lu Wenshu indulging her; she had never truly had a say in anything.

As her vision went black, she fainted, her body going limp before Lu Wenshu caught her in his arms.

After lifting her, Lu Wenshu gently smoothed the long hair that had fallen to her side. He then carried her out of Listening-Spring Pavilion. He would take her to a place where no one would ever be able to take her away.

He stepped out past the pavilion’s barrier, heading toward the Sword-Casting Valley.

Not far off in the snow, a voice filled with hidden anger reached them. It was Xue Huailing.

Upon seeing Lu Chanji held in Lu Wenshu’s arms, she erupted in rage: "Lu Wenshu, stop right there!"