“Huh?” Qian Yu froze.
Xie Yingying blinked and looked up at her. “Eldest Senior Sister, have you forgotten? Amu curses every male creature that sets foot on Yunliu Mountain.”
Was this one of those horror stories with supernatural rules?
Qian Yu's brain was slow to catch up. She had no idea how to answer.
The immortal master, silent until now, suddenly spoke. Bending slightly, she patted Xie Yingying's little head. “Your eldest senior sister knows, of course. She has only come back to tell you that she's taking the child to live outside the mountain.”
“What? No!” Xie Yingying wailed. She clung fiercely to Qian Yu's clothes, her eyes reddening and filling with tears.
“I...” I don't want that either!
Qian Yu's expression plainly said, What? I'm leaving? Naturally, the immortal master ignored it.
She nudged Xie Yingying toward the house. “Enough. Don't be willful, Yingying. Go inside.”
Xie Yingying couldn't accept it. Why had her eldest senior sister become so strange today? Why would she leave their longtime home for a child she'd encountered by chance? And why wasn't their master stopping her?
Thinking of her master's attitude, however, Xie Yingying found herself unable to object. Her trust in her master remained unconditional.
Ever since that incident, everyone had become strange.
Qian Yu watched the immortal master usher Xie Yingying into the house. From initial resistance to eventual submission, the girl managed only a couple of disgruntled sounds, not a single word, before the door closed on her.
Master Zizai turned. Only she, Qian Yu, and a child hovering on the edge of sleep remained outside.
“Leave Yunliu Mountain now. The path is easier in daylight. Head west while it's still light. When you see a thatched hut, you'll be outside the mountain. Amu has no authority beyond it. You may rest in the hut tonight.”
“Why are you sending me away?”
The answer seemed obvious. Master Zizai knew she was no longer “Qian Yu.” Naturally, she ought to leave of her own accord.
But the master's stiff reply was not what she expected. “Because I have fulfilled the agreement and raised you into a perfect vessel. Everything is now ready. It's time for you to repay your debt.”
Agreements? Debts? Qian Yu was utterly lost.
Master Zizai offered no explanation. Forming a hand seal, she said, “One final gift.”
Golden threads circled Qian Yu, tightening little by little until they merged completely into her body.
She watched in wonder. “What is that?”
“A protective spell. Any of the strange manifestations outside that approach you will burn. But it has limits. It cannot last more than a quarter of an hour at a time. If you encounter danger, you'd best escape within that time.”
“Amazing. Oh, right, Mas...” She wasn't sure whether she should use that address. “A-Ling said I have no magic. Why?”
“There is no why. Everyone has their own fate.”
Qian Yu had run out of things to say, but she didn't want to leave the mountain so soon. She knew too little of this world, and she had met someone like the immortal master. She didn't know why, but she didn't want to leave her. She wanted to look at her a little longer. Tears inexplicably threatened to fall. Another voice in her mind said, “Don't send me away.”
Was it “Qian Yu”? She wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes. Following the voice inside her, she bent in a deep bow, then turned to go.
“...Qian Yu.” The immortal master suddenly called her name. “The world outside is still unknown to you. You must explore it yourself. I believe you can handle everything, just as before. And I will always be your master.”
Qian Yu didn't dare turn back. With all her strength, she ran down the mountain.
Strangely, when she'd come with the immortal master, the journey had been serene, the flowers, birds, and greenery refreshing. Now, carrying Qian Duoduo downhill, she felt that her surroundings had changed.
The first thing she noticed was the darkness. Profound darkness. It should have been three or four in the afternoon, yet there wasn't a ray of sunlight.
Was it going to rain?
An inexplicable chill crept up her spine. She pulled her clothes tighter and lifted the child closer.
Qian Duoduo was awake now. Hungry or uncomfortable in her arms, she couldn't tell; he kept wriggling. Still, he was well behaved. Even when discomfort furrowed his little brows, he didn't cry.
“Good baby...” Seeing him stare at her, Qian Yu forced a smile to amuse him.
“Wah.” Qian Duoduo waved his short arms, his eyes never leaving her face.
Distracted by playing with him, Qian Yu wasn't watching the path and nearly tripped over a protruding stone. As she steadied herself, a dark shape flashed at the edge of her vision. She thought little of it, assuming it was a rabbit or deer.
Before long, she finally realized something was wrong.
It was too quiet.
Not only was there no sunlight, leaving everything dim; the lively cicadas and birds she'd heard on the way up were gone too.
Qian Yu felt cold again, as though something had wrapped around her and was constantly releasing a chill.
“Duoduo, are you cold?” she asked, looking down, though she had no idea whether he understood.
“Wah.” The same two sounds.
“I can't understand you either,” she said helplessly.
As though answering, Qian Duoduo babbled, suddenly lifted a hand, and pointed toward her face.
“What is it, sweetheart? Is there something on my face?”
He had been staring at her since waking. She'd already thought it strange, but both hands were holding him, leaving neither free.
“Ah.” Qian Duoduo made another sound and kicked her through his swaddling.
“What? What's wrong?”
Still not understanding, Qian Yu merely assumed he was uncomfortable and hurried to soothe him, asking him to bear it a little longer.
“Ah.”
Another sound. But this one was short and low, without a lead-in or lingering finish, as though it came from empty space. And it seemed to be right behind her. A breath of cold air drifted over, carrying the clipped sound into her ear.
Qian Yu fell apart. She remembered the ghost stories the older members of her family had told when she was little. The dead spoke like that: short of breath, their voices with neither a beginning nor an end.
“Aaaaaaaaaah...” She wailed in despair. “What is it? What is it... Aaaaaah, is it on my back...?”
Aaaaaaaaaah...
Agonized, she broke into a run, no longer caring about direction. She shook her shoulders, wishing she could chop off her back that very instant.
“Waaaaah...” Unable to take the jolting any longer, Qian Duoduo finally began to cry too.
Qian Yu had to spare some attention to comfort him. That brought her senses back a little. When she nearly tripped on another stone, she looked ahead and saw a familiar crooked tree.
“A ghost... a ghost's trapped me in a loop! Aaaaaah...”