Chapter 241: 305. Pass

The further north the group traveled, the more mountainous the terrain became. Winding mountain roads and narrow passes grew more common, and as a result, they had to be more vigilant about being discovered.

The Empire of Qin was a beautiful country, Jia had to admit, but surprisingly unpopulated for the nation that hosted more than half of the entire continent’s population. That was convenient for avoiding discovery, since the odds of bumping into other travelers were so low, but as the terrain grew more hostile, it became clear that most of the population was simply concentrated into strategically meaningful areas.

Places like Yunguang Pass, a huge city sitting at the entrance to the only path through the enormous mountain range separating them from the last province they’d need to cross before finally reaching the Xin clan’s territory.

While waiting for Rika to finish scouting the city, Jia decided to check up on Luo Mingyu.

“How are you feeling?”

Luo Mingyu glanced up from the concoction he was tinkering with and gave a slight bow in greeting.

“More like myself everyday. Thank you for asking.”

“How do you feel about Eunae?”

As much as Eunae hated it, that question had become a standard when checking in on Luo and Pan. With any luck, Jia hoped they’d soon be able to stop asking.

“Not quite as mindless in my adoration, thankfully. I still find it rather difficult to find any faults in her, but it could simply be that she’s just that perfect.”

Jia smiled sympathetically.

“Nope, that’s definitely the scarring. Your soul has almost entirely healed now, but the last bits are particularly stubborn. It hasn’t stopped, but you and Pan Jiaying are both regenerating much slower now. We’re still pretty sure that you’ll eventually recover entirely, but the side effects might stick around for a long time.”

He sighed.

“If you say so. I can imagine worse side effects than an inexorable attraction to a beautiful princess.”

“Maybe keep that to yourself—Eunae’s pretty beat up about it.”

“Of course. Is there anything else I can help you with, Miss Lee, or are you simply checking on my condition?”

Jia shrugged.

“I don’t suppose you know anything about this pass?”

“Hmm, we’ve traveled much farther than I’ve ever been from my home over the last months, and I’ve been out of sorts for most of it. Which province are we in now?”

“Gansheng. Yunguang Pass is the main passage between here and Baishulin, which is the fastest route to Qingchuan, our destination.”

Luo Mingyu scoffed.

“Sounds like you know more about it than I do. The pass itself I don’t know, but I may be able to offer advice about what lies beyond it.”

“Oh?”

“Baishulin Province is one of the empire’s few contested territories.”

Jia furrowed her brows.

“Contested? By who?”

“That’s a complicated question to answer, and I’m afraid I don’t have all the details, but I’ll do my best to explain. There are three parties involved—the Great Austere Mountain Sect, the Spiritual Flowing Purewater Sect, and the Labyrinthine Forest of Unbreakable Threads.”

“Ancestors, that last one’s a mouthful.”

Luo Mingyu chuckled.

“They usually are. Austere Mountain is the great sect presiding over most of the provinces along the southern border. Great sects tend to act as provincial lords over their home provinces, but extend their administrative power over a wider area—Austere Mountain’s actual sect is nowhere near us, but we’re still technically in their territory.”

“I see. And I know the Spiritual Flowing Purewater Sect, of course. That’s our destination.”

“Indeed, but are you aware that they are, in fact, formerly a great sect themselves? Though they’ve lost a great deal of power and prestige since then, they still hold much more territory than merely their home province.”

Jia nodded.

“I know some of the basics, but I never thought to study Qin politics too deeply.”

Or rather, she ardently refused to despite Yue’s insistence. It was just so boring!

“Among that territory is Baishulin Province. Since the Flowing Purewater lost their standing, the Austere Mountain has been trying to claim it as their own.”

“What about the last one? The Labyrinthine Forest?”

“That’s the sect of the provincial lords of the province, Clan Bai.”

Jia’s blood froze in her veins, and in the distance Eui stopped what she was doing to pay closer attention to the conversation.

“Tell me everything you know about them.”

Luo Mingyu noticed the sudden change in demeanor and chuckled timidly.

“Erm, they’re a younger sect, but quite powerful as I understand it. They deny any other sect’s claims over their province, and have made bids for the imperial family to officially recognize them as a great sect to replace the Flowing Purewater.

“To my knowledge, these disputes have never been resolved. In practice, Baishulin is independent—as is the rest of the Flowing Purewater’s territory. Officially? Nobody knows.”

“What about Clan Bai? What do you know about them? Have you heard of Bai Lin?”

He shook his head.

“I don’t know that name, but I don’t know much of anything about the clan that I haven’t already told you. The only reason I even know this much is because of how unique it is for provinces to claim independence from the great sects.”

Jia huffed irritably, but decided to leave the topic alone. This wasn’t the right time to be chasing down old grudges.

“Thank you for the information, Luo Mingyu. Though I’m not really sure what we’re supposed to do with it.”

“Happy to help, Miss Lee. Do take caution, though—I’m not sure what kind of history you have with the Bai clan or this ‘Bai Lin,’ but any sect that can hold their own while caught in the middle of two squabbling great sects is bound to be dangerous in their own right.”

“I’ll take that under advisement, thank you.”

 

---

 

“Okay, I’ve got good news and bad news.”

Rika had returned from her scouting trip to review her findings.

“The good news is that there’s no sect actively controlling the pass. As long as they pay their taxes, the Austere Mountain protects them from influence by smaller sects to prevent infighting—and conveniently reap all the economic rewards for themselves.”

Eui snorted derisively.

“Of course. Well, that suits us just fine—it means we can cross safely, right?”

Rika grimaced.

“Well—no. Apparently there have been entire caravans going missing in the pass lately. It’s got people scared, and even some of the cultivators that have tried to investigate the disappearances haven’t returned.”

Master Ienaga frowned.

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“You think it will be too dangerous for us?”

“No—whether it’s magical beasts, rogue cultivators, or some kind of demonic incursion like a few people claimed, I doubt that any of it would be a threat to us—especially with you and Princess Seong Misun here. The problem is that the great sect itself has gotten involved. The city is crawling with cultivators—I’m really lucky I didn’t get caught.”

Seong Misun stopped pretending not to listen and snapped her attention onto Rika.

“Are you certain you weren’t? Are there xiantian cultivators present?”

Rika shook her head.

“I don’t think so. They were talking about a group of elite inner disciples from the Austere Mountain Sect as the strongest ones around. Xiantians are usually core disciples or elders, right?”

Luo Mingyu nodded in confirmation.

“Anyone who’s reached that level of cultivation would be well beyond even the most elite inner disciples of a great sect.”

“Unfortunately this does still mean that the pass itself is going to be swarming with cultivators, and with a narrow gorge like that, it’s going to be hard to hide ourselves if we encounter any of them.”

Jia frowned.

“What about bypassing it entirely and just going over the mountain? It’s slower, but we could do that, right?”

Luo Mingyu shook his head.

“I don’t recommend trying it. The city and pass may be neutral, but the peaks will be jealously guarded. You’d draw far more attention trying to go over the mountain than you would getting caught trying to pass through the gorge under illusion.”

Master Ienaga glanced between him and Pan Jiaying.

“Luo, Pan, you two are from a sect that specialized in illusions and countermeasures. Do you have any insights on how we might pass undetected?”

“While I’m trained in the Everwatching Mists orthodox style, my expertise is still mostly focused on alchemy. If they really do have elites from a great sect, they will almost certainly be able to detect the use of illusions.”

Pan Jiaying grimaced.

“And I wasn’t trained at all, so...”

Li Meili raised her hand.

“Do we have to fool them entirely? What if we gave them a good reason for traveling under illusion—like, say, whatever monster is causing people to disappear?”

Ienaga frowned.

“It’s flimsy. Princess Seong and I would have to hide our power enough that it would leave us vulnerable if there is a xiantian cultivator, and if we’re pressed further it would likely lead to violence.”

Misun groaned.

“Ugh, I don’t care! As long as we get moving again, I’m sick of all this traveling and camping, and the sooner we arrive, the better. Besides, if it does come to a fight, we already have a perfect cover.”

Luo Mingyu scratched his cheek.

“I’d sooner you didn’t go about wantonly slaying the protectors of our realm. Dealing with threats like whatever is haunting the pass is one of the few ways that cultivators truly enrich the lives of the common people.”

She waved him off.

“Yes yes, we’ll do our best. It’s probably just some nascent fiend that needs culling—perhaps we can clear it on the way.”

Luo Mingyu bowed in acknowledgement and Master Ienaga sighed.

“Very well. Takeda, Lee, An, I want you to collaborate on our illusions. Your Highness, I’d like to request that you stay close to the non-combatants in case they need to be urgently evacuated.”

Misun grimaced.

“My divine essence isn’t unlimited, Ienaga. I can’t keep using that spell for frivolous things!”

“Just keep them safe, please. I’ll handle the rest, if necessary.”

“Tsk, fine.”

Master Ienaga turned back to address the rest of the group.

“You have your assignments. We’ll move out as soon as we’re ready.”

 

---

 

The pass was long enough that crossing it while maintaining a constant illusion over the entire party was taxing even for Yoshika, despite Rika’s assistance. They had briefly considered forming a triumvirate in order to maximize the efficacy of their illusions, but ultimately decided against it, since it left the three of them immobile.

Thankfully, none of the mortals or minor cultivators they’d passed had noticed—most of them far more concerned with their own business.

The illusions were fairly simple for most of the group, but the Seong sisters’ many bushy fox tails were a bit of a problem. Yoshika had opted to obscure them beneath the images of bulky rucksacks, but Seong Misun wasn’t the most cooperative about keeping her tails still.

Nevertheless, things were going surprisingly well. Right up until they bumped into a group of cultivators in the middle of a confrontation.

“Identify yourselves, foul beastkin!”

Yoshika nearly bolted, but she realized that the demand wasn’t addressed to her or any of her allies. Instead, a group of cultivators in pristine white robes had cornered three strange-looking half-spirits.

They must have had spiritual affinities at least as strong as Kim Yongsun, the tiger-headed scion of one of Goryeo’s high noble houses. One of them had a bird’s head, complete with a hooked beak, colorful feathers all over his body, and a pair of talons instead of feet. The woman next to him had dark purple scales instead of skin, a cobra’s hood, and the face and jaws of a snake. Most of her body was obscured beneath a heavy black cloak that reached the ground.

Behind the other two was the most suspicious of the trio. Their entire body was shrouded in the same black cloak the other two wore, but the hood was raised and a featureless white mask blocked their face.

Something wasn’t right about them, but Yoshika couldn’t quite place it. The bird-looking man raised his arms, his sleeves dropping to reveal feathers instead of hands.

“Peace, sir! We’re just passing through and mean no harm!”

The man sounded genuine, but his words felt hollow and empty. He was like an incredibly convincing actor that was nevertheless unable to fool Yoshika’s empathy. Evidently the leader of the white-robed cultivators wasn’t fooled either.

“Don’t waste your breath on lies, beast! Are you behind the recent disappearances?”

The bird-man put a ‘hand’ over his heart and gasped—once again completely devoid of any real emotion.

“We’re no mere beasts, sir! You offend us with the very insinuation that we would do harm to fellow citizens of this mighty empire.”

The snake-girl grinned, revealing the long, sharp fangs. Yoshika shuddered—they were all wrong. Those weren’t half-spirits at all, she realized—they were fiends! Which meant that they were also all xiantian-level, unlike the white-robed cultivators.

“Don’t mock me, creature! You—”

The leader was interrupted by one of his fellows tugging on his sleeve and nodding his head in Yoshika’s direction. He turned to look and Yoshika wanted to scream at him not to let his guard down.

She was too late. The man barely had time to open his mouth to call out to her before the cloaked figure struck.

Faster than Yoshika could follow, an impossibly long giant scorpion tail shot out from beneath the cloak and pierced the white-robed leader’s neck with a pulse of powerful miasma essence. Black veins spread across his body, and he collapsed to the floor, dead.

There was a beat of shocked silence, then a flurry of motion as chaos erupted around them.