Chương 95: Chapter 94: GOAD AND CUT

CHAPTER 94 GOAD AND CUT —∞— Jieyuan swept his gaze over the banquet hall, taking in both the room and the people in it. Lining the walls of the hall were tiered balconies leading to other rooms. Tall, thick pillars of gold and crimson rose off the ground near the walls, framing the galleries, pressing into a vaulted ceiling that stood nearly fifty feet tall. Almost every inch of marble wall was patterned in the elaborate golden and crimson designs that seemed to pervade the Ardent Light Sect.

Several large tables, most of them long enough to sit a hundred, were arranged throughout the hall. Displayed on each of those tables was as varied an assortment of dishes as Jieyuan had ever seen; with just a glance, Jieyuan caught sight of just about every color he could name and several more besides. More than a few of those dishes were beasts that looked almost entirely whole, many of them so large they dwarfed the nearby cultivators. All the dishes were also untouched, meaning the banquet had yet to begin.

Everyone in the hall was standing, split into groups small and large spread throughout the massive hall. Given how packed the hall already was, Jieyuan wondered if they were the last to arrive. Based on what he knew of Feihuan, he wouldn't be surprised if that was the case; she certainly hadn't been looking forward to this. Upon their arrival, most conversation had died, but after a few seconds, the quiet drone of mingled human voices picked back up.

But it was quieter than before; at least half the hall still had their attention on them. It wasn't Feihuan that was drawing the most attention, though, but Daojue and Meiyao. A quick survey of the hall revealed black eyes and hair all around; Meiyao's and Daojue's unusual palettes were drawing attention, as usual. Their figures and absurd looks didn't help any, either, Jieyuan reckoned. Well, nothing new there.

Standing near the middle of the hall, crowded by other cultivators wearing the golden-and-white robes Jieyuan now knew to belong to protectors of the sect, was Sovereign Ruoqing. The woman looked their way, and an easy smile graced her face. She began making her way over. About a dozen other cultivators from her group followed. All the approaching cultivators were garbed in white and gold except for a short-haired woman in the crimson-patterned robes of an inner disciple. Curious.

Jieyuan caught Feihuan sighing beside him. Her features settled into a neutral mask, an oddly detached, clearly affected look that looked wrong on Feihuan's normally expressive, open face. The shimmering over her eyes was almost entirely absent, just the barest hint of it present. On his other side, Jieyuan saw as Meiyao also maintained an aloof expression, though the slight narrowing of her eyes betrayed her tension. Daojue, of course, just did his best impression of a statue.

Meiyao tightened her grip on his left hand, and he squeezed back in response. On his shoulders, Xiaohu remained lying, half-curled around his neck, seemingly at ease, but Jieyuan noticed how the little beast's gaze was warily fixed on the approaching group. Jieyuan cast another quick look around the hall, but nobody else seemed to be headed their way, so he returned his attention to Sovereign Ruoqing's party. The woman was halfway to them now.

To her right was Tianxin; the man wasn't glaring at Jieyuan, for once, but rather had his gaze on Feihuan, brows lightly furrowed, looking conflicted but also clearly yearning. Not the healthiest of combinations, that. Though immeasurably better than Liangshibai Yunzhu's profoundly disturbing stares, so Jieyuan couldn't complain much. Jieyuan's attention returned to the sole inner disciple in the sovereign protector's entourage.

The woman wasn't particularly tall for a cultivator and wore her hair even shorter than Feihuan's, at ear-length. She looked of age with him, not yet twenty. By mundane standards she'd be rather pretty, but surrounded by what were clan-born cultivators, she looked awfully plain. Ironically enough, that made her stand out. But as average as she looked, the inner disciple carried herself no worse than the cultivators around her: her stride firm, chin tall and proud, her gaze firm and clear.

It took Jieyuan a moment to realize that said firm and clear gaze was on Daojue. And that the gaze in question also wasn't as firm and clear as it'd originally seemed. The inner disciple was hardly the only one looking Daojue's way— a lot of the women in the hall were doing just that—but she didn't look enamored or smitten. Rather, there was an almost frozen quality to the inner disciple's stare, something like shock.

Jieyuan kept his attention trained on the woman as her gaze flicked over to Meiyao after a few moments and also lingered on her before finally settling on himself. Their gazes locked. By this point, Sovereign Ruoqing and her group were nearly upon them. The inner disciple held Jieyuan's gaze; her expression flickered briefly. Then she raised an eyebrow and offered Jieyuan a brief, amused smile. Well now, Jieyuan wondered, who exactly are you?

The woman's rank, incongruous with the company she kept, had already been enough to draw his curiosity, but her reaction to him, Meiyao, and Daojue—especially Daojue—was most certainly deserving of his attention. He gave her a brief, acknowledging nod in return, and her smile widened slightly. Sovereign Ruoqing came to a stop in front of them, her group following suit. They were all well within range of Jieyuan's soulsenses; he took quick stock of them.

There were only three Orangesouls among them; everyone else was a Yellowsoul. Tianxin's fifth-step was the highest among the Orangesouls; after him was the woman in inner disciple robes, at fourth-step. The third Orangesoul, a third-step, was a bored-looking young man with the refined beauty clan-borns normally boasted, the result of thousands of years of curated couplings. Three Orangesouls, Jieyuan noted.

Three was also the number of cultivators with heavenly affinity over second-order of the current younger generation of the Ardent Light Sect. Unless Jieyuan was off the mark, these three were precisely them. One with fourth-order heavenly affinity, two with third-order, that was what Feihuan had told them. Feihuan had already revealed earlier that Tianxin was one of the two third-orders. Meaning that either the plain-looking young woman or the bored-looking young man was the fourth-order.

"I see you took your time, as usual, Feihuan," Sovereign Ruoqing said, her slightly chiding tone offset by an indulgent smile. It had been clear to Jieyuan from the moment he'd watched their reunion that Feihuan and Sovereign Ruoqing were close. Observing them now, he found that impression reinforced; there was a sisterly, if not motherly, fondness to the sovereign protector's demeanor as she interacted with Feihuan. He had the feeling the older woman wasn't actually Feihuan's mother, though. An aunt, maybe?

The shimmer in Feihuan's eyes brightened briefly as she offered the sovereign protector a subtle nod before putting back on her indifferent mask.

"My apologies." Sovereign Ruoqing didn't seem at all surprised by Feihuan's lack of reaction. A tall woman standing to the sovereign protector's right let out a bark of laughter. She appeared to be in her mid-twenties, seemingly slightly older than Feihuan. Her hair was tied with golden string into a long, thick braid that was draped over her chest. She wore a protector's robes and coat, the trim cut emphasizing her broad-shouldered frame.

"You're a delight as always, Feihuan," the woman said, stepping forward, directly in front of Feihuan.

"Would it truly kill you to at least pretend you wouldn't rather be anywhere else?" Feihuan's eyes shimmered again, even brighter than before; Jieyuan caught it as her lips twitched, almost forming a smile. Feihuan turned her head away.

"I'm afraid so." The other woman snorted before stepping even closer and pulling Feihuan into a hug. Feihuan wore a long-suffering look, but there was no hesitation to her movements as she also wrapped her arms around the other woman in return. They broke away, and the other woman's eyes fell on Jieyuan.

"And you must be the apprentice. Hmmm." She stepped closer to Jieyuan, looking him up and down, arms crossed over her chest. Her gaze lingered briefly on Xiaohu and then on his right hand, which Meiyao was still holding. Feihuan stepped in front of him.

"Liecheng, stop eyeing my apprentice." The woman—Liecheng—looked over Feihuan's shoulder and winked at Jieyuan.

"If you caught Little Feihuan's attention, you must be something special. I'm looking for a new apprentice too, so if you ever tire of having such a childish matter—"" Liecheng," Feihuan said, a little more heat in her voice now. Jieyuan couldn't look at Feihuan's face right now, but he was sure she was glowering at the other woman. Liecheng's smile only widened, but she looked away from Jieyuan, her attention shifting to Meiyao and Daojue.

"And the two of you—Daojue and Meiyao, isn't it? I'd love a fourth-order apprentice, even if it isn't Feihuan's. So if you'd rather be core disciples, know that my doors are ope—" Sovereign Ruoqing drew closer and placed a hand on Liecheng's shoulder. Liecheng froze, glancing at the much older woman.

"I believe," the sovereign said, her voice amiable enough, "that we've delayed the start of the banquet long enough. How about we elders leave and let the disciples get to know each other, for now?" Liecheng shrugged.

"Sure," she said. At first glance, she seemed relaxed, at ease, but Jieyuan could see the sign of tension in her: a sharpness in her gaze as she glanced at the sovereign, a faint stiffness in her movements. Sovereign Ruoqing removed her hand from Liecheng's shoulder and stepped back. She then gave Jieyuan, Meiyao, and Daojue a quick nod before turning around and starting down the hall. The other Yellowsouls, Feihuan and Liecheng included, followed, leaving only the six Orangesouls behind.

Jieyuan was about to speak up when the female inner disciple drew closer and extended her right hand toward him.

"The name's Lushan. Kunliehao Lushan." Jieyuan shook hands with her.

"Haoyujin Jieyuan."

"Oh, I know," Lushan said.

"I doubt there's anyone here who doesn't know you and your two friends, actually. Information sometimes travels faster than light, especially when it concerns three newcomers with fourth-order heavenly affinity. It'll take me some time to get used to not being the special one in our generation." The bored-looking Orangesoul scoffed and rolled his eyes. Tianxin remained quiet, but his attention was on Lushan, his eyes wary as he regarded the plain-looking woman.

"You're the other fourth-order, then?" Jieyuan asked. He wasn't particularly surprised.

"The other, is it? I see my reputation precedes me," Lushan said, nodding pleasantly.

"Indeed, that's me. Now, I believe you've already met Tianxin, the most esteemed disciple of our beloved sovereign"—her tone was just shy of mocking, and Tianxin glared at her—"so all that's left is Xunliao here." She glanced at the third-step Orangesoul, who sighed.

"Qiandaoxin Xunliao. A pleasure," he said dully, addressing Jieyuan, Meiyao, and Daojue all at once.

"And that's that for introductions," Lushan said, clapping her hands.

"How about we take that table over there for ourselves and get to know each other a little better?" She gestured toward a table set off to the side, closer to the balconies, in a quieter spot of the hall. Before anyone could reply, Feihuan walked off, making her way over to it with the confident stride of someone who expected everyone else to follow. Surprisingly, Xunliao was the first to set off after her, though not before letting out a long-suffering sigh. Tianxin didn't make to follow.

Instead, he glanced at Jieyuan. Hesitation flickered across his face, briefly, before he said in a quiet voice, "They're both from the New Nobles faction. Don't let your guard down around them. Especially Lushan." Oh? Maybe Feihuan wasn't wrong about Tianxin after all.

"Good to know," Jieyuan said, suppressing his surprise.

"Thank you." Tianxin frowned at him, eyes narrowing.

"You're Feihuan's apprentice. I'm looking out for her, not you." Without another word, he walked off in Lushan's and Xunliao's direction. Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. Or maybe not, Jieyuan amended. He glanced at Meiyao, who frowned thoughtfully before shrugging, and then at Daojue, who didn't have much of a reaction. And then they followed the other Orangesouls to the table Lushan had picked.

They reached the table just as Sovereign Ruoqing and the other elders took up positions behind what was clearly the main table: a long, wide table on a raised platform at the end of the hall. The sovereign protector stood in the center position, and as she raised her arm, even though she didn't say a word, all conversation quickly died as everyone present focused on the woman. The food on the main table was noticeably more understated than the one on the other tables. The dishes were simpler, or at least smaller.

Nothing that could obstruct their view of the rest of the hall. Obviously by design.

"We hold this banquet," Sovereign Ruoqing began, her voice resonant, clearly amplified through some chromal means as it filled the massive hall, "to celebrate the return of Yaojianhui Feihuan, who left the sect years ago to join the search for one of our ancestral treasures, Searing Anthem. We're also gathered here to celebrate her success, for Searing Anthem has, indeed, been found." Conversation rumbled all around the banquet hall again. Almost every single head turned toward Feihuan.

Jieyuan's master stood to the sovereign protector's right, and she bore the weight of hundreds of gazes with little reaction.

"Feihuan," Sovereign Ruoqing said, her voice quieter but still clear, "if you wouldn't mind?" Feihuan extended her right arm out in front of her. The space around her right hand warped briefly—and then there was a very familiar cylinder in her grasp. Light burst out from both ends of the cylinder, assuming the form of a radiant spear. Jieyuan caught a few gasps; the eyes that had been on Feihuan were now firmly fixed on the weapon she held.

Jieyuan scanned the hall and noticed that quite a number of them looked uneasy, wary. Jieyuan found himself wondering just what Searing Anthem was capable of. He doubted producing a spear of light was all there was to it. It wouldn't have elicited those reactions, otherwise. Nor would it have deserved to be an heirloom artifact of the Ardent Light Sect.

"As you all can see," Sovereign Ruoqing said, "not only is Searing Anthem returned to us, but it has also taken a wielder once more. It is clear, I believe, that the Heavens look favorably upon our sect. That is not the extent of the Heavens' favor, either. We have another reason for this banquet. Feihuan has not only brought back with her Searing Anthem, but also three new disciples, one of them her apprentice. All with fourth-order heavenly affinity."

Sovereign Ruoqing looked in Jieyuan's direction, and this time it was toward them that people turned their heads. Jieyuan offered the sovereign protector a small, diplomatic smile and nod in return. Meiyao and Daojue didn't bother with the pleasantries and, much like Feihuan earlier, had no real reaction. Murmurs rippled throughout the hall again, sharper this time. Lushan had made it clear earlier that their arrival was no secret, but Jieyuan reckoned that many here had been waiting for confirmation.

The arrival of three fourth-orders really verged on absurdity. Sovereign Ruoqing let the murmurs run their course for a moment before speaking up again: "I have more words to say, but I believe I've kept you all from your feast long enough." The sovereign protector smiled lightly, her tone slightly joking, and was rewarded.

"So that shall be all for now." She paused, then said, her voice suddenly solemn, "The Ardent Light burns bright and shines upon us all."

"The Ardent Light burns bright," every cultivator in the hall except Jieyuan, Meiyao, and Daojue echoed as one, "and shines upon us all." Sovereign Ruoqing then took her seat. And that was that. Conversation sparked all over the banquet hall again; some cultivators made their way over to one of the tables, whereas those who were already near one took their seats and began filling up their plates.

The table Lushan had picked out for them was one of the smallest ones, and though a few people glanced their way, nobody else drew near, while those who'd been originally close to the table also moved away. They were left with the whole table, which could've seated dozens, all to themselves. Xunliao was the first to take his seat; ignoring everyone else, he started helping himself to some of the food. Lushan took the seat next to his.

Tianxin, on the other hand, stayed on his feet, arms crossed and eyes closed as he leaned back against one of the pillars. Jieyuan looked over the dishes and found himself rather intrigued. He'd never been to a cultivator banquet. He hadn't even known they were a thing before today, what with how cultivators lost the need to eat halfway through Redrealm. The food was clearly chromal, too; he could see the spirits, all of it Orangerealm. Very extravagant, that.

He was sure a lot of it could've been made into concoctions and artifacts. Would a chromal beast taste any better than a mundane one? He'd never eaten one before. He glanced at Meiyao and saw that she was also staring at the many dishes with clear interest. So he nudged her before sitting down across from Lushan. The woman's gaze flickered over to him and Meiyao before returning to the food. Daojue, much like Tianxin, remained on his feet. Jieyuan eyed the nearby dishes.

One of them caught his attention: what seemed to be a raw chromal fish, its iridescent, rainbow-hued flesh sliced into hundreds of little cubes. Jieyuan served himself some of it and briefly reached for his soulsenses; focusing on the song of the little fish-meat cubes, he activated his Lawgift, Natural Symphony Insight, and their spirits split into a series of chords. A glance was enough to confirm that in its current, unrefined state, it wouldn't have any significant effects.

All of its properties seemed to be tied to… taste? Oh? He used the pair of chopsticks that had come with the late to pick up one of the little cubes and moved it to his mouth. As soon as it touched his tongue, he was struck by an explosion of flavor; it was like he was tasting color, and a rainbow of it all at once. Tasting the ocean, too, fresh and deep, the myriad colors swirling in its currents. It was unlike any mundane food he'd ever eaten before; the taste was conceptual.

He'd never tasted anything nearly this good, and he'd sampled the best mundane cuisine had to offer. Jieyuan wasn't even particularly interested in food as a whole; this was just something else altogether. He bit into it, the texture soft but springy, and savored the impossible taste.

"Fascinating," Meiyao murmured; Jieyuan glanced at her just as he picked up another piece. Meiyao's plate was still empty; she was still looking between the dishes, her eyes a bit brighter than normal, clearly interested.

"Meiyao?" Jieyuan asked quietly. He brought the cube he'd been about to eat over to Xiaohu instead, who chomped down on the little piece of meat without hesitation and then let out a soft purr of satisfaction.

"These chromal beasts… I believe that cultivators had a hand in creating them," Meiyao said, glancing at him.

"Creating their races. Chromal beasts don't normally have any special properties pertaining to taste. I wonder… The nurturers here must be quite advanced…" Jieyuan was about to respond when he noticed that Lushan was staring at Meiyao from across the table. Staring hard. But then Lushan's eyes flicked up to him.

"So, Jieyuan," Lushan said, "how exactly did you and Protector Feihuan meet?" Xunliao still wasn't paying them any mind, but Jieyuan caught it as Tianxin tensed slightly. The man didn't move away from the pillar, his eyes remaining closed, but Jieyuan was sure he was paying attention. Jieyuan had been prepared for that question.

"It's a long story," he said dismissively.

"Well, the banquet's just begun," Lushan said, "if there's something we won't lack, it's time."

"It's not an interesting story, either," Jieyuan said, casually popping another of the little fish cubes into his mouth. His excuse was plain to see; he was making it clear he didn't want to talk about it. Meiyao looked between him and Lushan, frowning slightly, before returning her attention to the food on the table. He had thought of a cover story already, of course. One that Feihuan would corroborate. But he was more interested in finding out just how far Lushan would push here.

She was trying to find out about him, but he'd take the opportunity to find out more about her instead.

"Oh, I sincerely doubt that," Lushan said.

"Any story that involves three fourth-orders is bound to be interesting." Jieyuan shrugged. He fed Xiaohu another fish cube and picked up another for himself.

"Well, long story short, it was a series of fortunate circumstances that led to us meeting." Into his mouth the cube went. He chewed slowly, watching Lushan expectantly as the woman simply smiled in response to his obtuseness.

"I see. But would I be correct in guessing there was combat involved? I might have never met Protector Feihuan before, but I do know of her reputation. A high heavenly affinity isn't enough for her to offer someone an apprenticeship. She cares greatly for martial arts, as well." Maybe that was so, but clearly when you were a soulburner, she was willing to make an exception.

"There was some fighting involved, yes," Jieyuan said.

"As I thought," Lushan said, smiling in satisfaction.

"You must really be exceptional, then. Tianxin is among the best martial artists in our generation"—she nodded to Tianxin, who now had his eyes open, looking at them—"and I believe that at one point it looked like Protector Feihuan might have taken him in as her first apprentice, only for her to ultimately change her mind. For her to apprentice you, you must be significantly—" Tianxin pushed away from the pillar and marched toward the table.

"Let's fight," he said, staring hard at Jieyuan.

"Here. Now. Martial arts only." Jieyuan met Tianxin's burning glare before glancing back down at Lushan, who had a rather bemused look plastered on her face, like she was taken aback by Tianxin's reaction. Like she hadn't very clearly meant for this to happen. Oh, she's fun. Jieyuan was no stranger to these sorts of games; he'd played them often as a mundane, back when he'd still been the Haoyujin heir.

Jieyuan returned his attention to Tianxin and asked, letting some of his amusement bleed into his voice, "In the middle of the banquet?"

"Yes," Tianxin said curtly. Clearly just barely holding himself back.

"Come." The man strode off toward the center of the hall. Some heads turned his way. Jieyuan remained seated.

"And there Tianxin goes again," Lushan said, shaking her head in clear disapproval. Jieyuan sent her a flat look; she pretended not to notice, instead giving him a commiserating look.

"I'd get used to it if I were you. The Ardent Light Sect's very much a martial sect, and duels are a common way of solving disputes. There was a duel in the banquet a month ago, too."

"Is that so?" Jieyuan said dryly.

"Did you provoke that one too?" Meiyao was looking at them now, her interest in the chromal food for the moment. Xunliao hadn't stopped eating, but Jieyuan caught the man sneaking glances at him and Lushan. Daojue drew closer to the table. Tension hung heavy in the air.

"I have absolutely no idea what you mean by that," Lushan said, smiling pleasantly. And utterly shamelessly. Jieyuan chuckled, tipping his head toward her in acknowledgment, before standing up. An odd sort of nostalgia swelled within him. He wouldn't say he missed these kinds of plays. But he'd always been good at it himself, and it was hard not to like something you were good at. Meiyao frowned up at him as she also got to her feet.

"Jieyuan?"

"I'll be right back," he said, shaking his head softly at her. He nudged Xiaohu, and the beast jumped off his shoulders and straight onto her master's, though she kept her little green eyes on him. Then he nodded at Daojue, who regarded him cooly but otherwise didn't react, before he made his way to the center of the hall, where Tianxin was waiting for him, straight-backed. Jieyuan stopped a few feet away from the other man. A circle had opened up around them. The nearby cultivators looked on mostly with interest.

None of them looked particularly confused or concerned. It seemed like Lushan had been right about sudden duels being traditional. Jieyuan glanced at the main table. Feihuan was looking at them, frowning. So was Sovereign Ruoqing. On the other hand, Liecheng, the protector who'd needled Feihuan before, seemed more amused than anything else. But none of them made any moves to stop what was about to happen. All right, I guess we're doing this, then. Jieyuan rolled his shoulders, focusing back on Tianxin.

"You do realize that Lushan all but goaded you into this, right?"

"Yes," Tianxin said simply. He didn't look as riled up as before, but his gaze was still intense.

"But I meant to duel you anyway. Not during the banquet, but that doesn't matter." Jieyuan took a deep breath. He felt a spark inside his heart, warming him. Lushan's barefaced manipulations aside, he found that he was actually looking forward to this. It'd been a long while since he'd last had a proper martial arts duel. All his recent fights had been to the death, with just about everything on the line. He wasn't sure how he'd measure against Tianxin.

Tianxin was from a Yellowrealm sect, and though there was a limit to how far you could take pure martial arts, Jieyuan expected the man to at least be better than the opponents he'd fought in the Radiant Gold Tournament. Tianxin clearly didn't have a chromal bloodline, so he shouldn't be at Meiyao's level, let alone Daojue's, but he should still put up a good fight. Jieyuan felt he was long overdue for an accurate assessment of his martial arts prowess.

Pure martial skill; no Fatebloom Heart, Absolute Will Command, or Lawgifts.

"Rules?" Jieyuan asked.

"You said martial arts only. How does that work? No bondskills, no mantle, no artifacts?" He summoned the Shifting Sisters out of his sealer ring directly into his grasp. Their echoes sung at him through their bond, as adorably bloodthirsty as usual. White-shrouded.

"Because I might need a little mantle; my weapons are gold, can't really use them with mundane strength. And my fighting style involves joining them together and splitting them apart constantly, so I'd need to use the spiritskill that does that." The air warped around Tianxin's hand, and then he was holding a long, sleek sword wrapped with a crimson spirit-shroud.

"You can use your mantle freely; I'll restrain mine to a first-sign Orangesoul's output. If your weapon is inherently chromal, you can also use the necessary spiritskill, but no other." Jieyuan watched as the emanation of Tianxin's soul went from fifth-shade orange to first-shade.

"What about hastespace?" he asked.

"No."

"Then that's it, I reckon." Jieyuan nodded.

"First blood?"

"First blood," Tianxin agreed. He extended his other hand and the space around it rippled again. This time what appeared in his grasp was a little orange prism.

"We begin when it lands." He tossed the prism into the air. Jieyuan didn't take his eyes off Tianxin, instead tracking the prism's trajectory with his soulsenses. The moment the prism touched the floor, they both burst into movement; Tianxin lunged forward, sword stabbing at him; Jieyuan also rushed toward him, searching for signs of a feint and finding none, and merged the Shifting Sisters into Shifting Edge before swinging the boundfang straight into the incoming attack.

One of Shifting Edge's blades met Tianxin's stab, parrying it with an upward flick, and Jieyuan channeled his momentum, swinging his body with the motion as he slightly rotated the spin on the boundfang's lower half and brought it swinging toward Tianxin. To his credit, Tianxin reacted quickly, drawing back. But if there was one thing you could never do when fighting an amphis artist, it was letting them press their advantage.

Jieyuan's momentum kept growing as he swung with the motion of the amphis again, surging toward Tianxin. Tianxin, having quickly recovered, surged forward, slashing down with his sword at his shoulder. Blocking it with the Shifting Edge would require Jieyuan to break his momentum. It was a good strike. But Jieyuan merely split the boundfang into the Shifting Sisters mid-swing, and as inertia carried Ruby right up to meet the incoming blade, Jieyuan redirected Sapphire's blade toward Tianxin's side.

Tianxin didn't retreat but rather drew even closer, into Jieyuan's guard; his swing was parried, but having gotten so close he'd have been clear of Sapphire's blade—if Jieyuan hadn't changed to high-grip mid-motion, rendering the blade close-range and bringing it in toward Tianxin. Sapphire's white-shrouded blade cut a line in Tianxin's side. Striking flesh. Drawing blood. Tianxin's eyes widened.

Something flickered across the other man's face, and Jieyuan braced himself in case he broke the rules and went all-out, but then Tianxin disengaged, jumping backward, and Jieyuan let him go. Sensing that Sapphire was barely holding herself back from tearing through the shroud to get to Tianxin's blood, Jieyuan quickly returned the Shifting Sisters to his sealer ring. Across from him, Tianxin was still staring at him with widened eyes. Disbelieving, almost. Jieyuan took a deep breath to settle his racing heart.

He suspected his eyes were a little wide, too. Because that had been way easier than he'd thought it'd be.