Hui glanced back. “We’ve got company.”

Bai Xue snorted. He slammed his foot down, stopped dead and whirled. Waving his fan, he shot a blast of flame up the passage, roaring at the four cultivators.

Hui threw out a pair of talismans after them, and a wooden and shimmering golden barrier filled the passage behind them. His heart quavered. “They’re all third realm, and one of them is at least fourth realm…”

“I’m fourth realm. We have nothing to fear,” Bai Xue said firmly.

“You have nothing to fear,” Hui muttered under his breath. This small third-realm cultivator, on the other hand!

Huang Muwen swallowed, putting a hand to his chest. “We can’t face them. Those four are famous in the sect for their viciousness. One of them is a master of poisons, one has a thousand ghosts at his beck and call, one is a bloodthirsty, maddened sword cultivator, and Xi Guping, the one who spoke to us…” A shiver travelled up his spine.

“What about him?” Bai Xue asked, bored.

Huang Muwen shook his head firmly. “He’s a master of mind control. He loves nothing more but to add flesh puppets to his horrid collection! Neither alive nor dead, you’ll be stuck in his control forever, unable to even end your own life. He forces his newest puppets to kill everyone they know and love, to baptize them in blood and break their minds and hearts forever.”

Hui’s skin crawled. He rubbed his hands over his ghoul skin, unable to stop shivering. Flesh puppets? Stuck between life and death? No, no, no! Playing dead is no good, playing dead is worthless! I can’t live in a world that contains such a frightening, dangerous cultivator!

Ah, and that’s the fellow cultivator who wanted our teams to join together? Allow this small disciple to refuse!

Footsteps rattled down the passageway ahead of them. Three black-robed cultivators raced at the trio. Faces blank, eyes wide, they jumped jerkily through the air.

“Of all the shitty timing—” Bai Xue grumbled.

“Those—those faces—they’ve been turned into Xi Guping’s flesh puppets!” Huang Muwen gasped.

Hui’s eyes widened, and he pressed his lips together. Did he offer for them to join his team as well? That man—he’s too terrifying!

Motions slightly off, the first black-robed cultivator raised her hand, palm-out, jerking her other hand across her palm. Black blood welled up, then congealed into an orb and shot at the three of them. Bai Xue threw the dagger and pierced her forehead, deflecting the orb with a flick of his fan. The orb slammed into the wall and dug a deep crater. As for the female cultivator, she flinched, and then her eyes narrowed. Rather than flee, she allowed the dagger to pierce her forehead. Relief passed over her face, and she fell to the ground.

The other two drew swords. Hui drew a wind talisman and pointed it at them, while Huang Muwen jumped to meet the other. The wind blade cut through the air and slashed into their swords, biting a notch into the steel. Huang Muwen lashed out, and the sword snapped. He cut the cultivator in half.

The other closed in on Hui. Hui stumbled back, eyes wide, face the picture of fear. Their sword swooped close.

He flicked his hand, revealing a dozen talismans. Ice blasted over the cultivator, freezing him solid with the blade an inch from Hui’s neck, followed by a wind talisman. The green blast of wind cut the frozen man apart.

Huang Muwen drew a deep breath. “Thank goodness they were fresh flesh puppets. If he had more time to—”

A blast echoed down the passage behind them. The three of them whirled, then raced ahead. As he passed, Bai Xue scooped up the black dagger and stuck it into his belt, drawing his second fan instead.

Hui hesitated just a moment, then waved his hand over the girl’s body, drawing it into his storage ring. It being female isn’t ideal, but if I can use the talisman I learned earlier to make her a jiangshi and begin building my ghoul bodyswap army…

Not… not that I’m a demonic cultivator! But… it’s for a good cause, right? It’s to save this small cultivator’s life!

Hmm, or maybe I can trade with Fa Chuyou for one of her ghouls… no, no, with the modifications, it’ll be even more obviously not my body! Ah, oh well, I’ll figure it out later!

He raced after the other two, operating the flicker-step of Pond-Reflecting-Moon Waltz to catch up.

Bai Xue raised his eyebrows, displeased. “The true Pond-Reflecting-Moon Waltz? Who taught you that?”

Hui glanced at him, then grimaced. Right! I forgot! The full technique was a secret technique of Bai Clan! “Er, elder brother, I… er, figured it out… on my own.”

“Oh?” Bai Xue said, eyes dangerous. A glint of killing intent stabbed into Hui’s side.

“It’s fine if you stole the technique. We are a demonic sect,” Huang Muwen said, distracted. He glanced over his shoulder and sped up.

Bai Xue’s killing intent grew stronger.

It’s not fine, it’s not fine! The person I supposedly stole it from is standing right next to you, okay? Licking his lips nervously, Hui flicker-stepped again, emanating a thick aura of death during the flicker-step so Bai Xue could see he didn’t use the yin-yang swap his family had originally engineered. It’s an adapted technique, adapted! Not the true movement technique!

Bai Xue’s eyes widened. The irritation vanished from his face. He nodded to himself, impressed. “Interesting.”

Hui sighed with relief and ducked his head, exhausted.

A second after he ducked his head, an arrow whooshed through the space his head had been and slammed into the wall ahead of him. Wide-eyed, Hui sprinted ahead. Bai Xue spun and waved his fan twice, sending a double-wave of flame through the narrow passage behind them. The flames burned another two arrows mid-air. The lead chaser waved a ragged, ash-black flag. Eight shrieking ghosts flew out and slammed into the fire. The first two dissipated with pained screams, but then the flames gave out. Six ghosts raced at them, expressions pained, vicious lights burning in their eyes.

Hui raised his hand. Black energy streamed from the ghosts to his hand. The ghosts roared at him, but as they flew, they grew weaker and weaker. The lead ghost collapsed into nothing with a puff of smoke. As if triggered by its collapse, the other five immediately dissolved as well.

The ghost-flag cultivator stared at Hui, agape, but only for a moment. Her eyes hardened, and she scowled. “A death cultivator! How cheap.”

“You’ve got a mind-controller on your side, how cheap!” Hui muttered under his breath.

Pain burst through his forehead. Hui ducked his head, scowling. A drop of black blood ran down his soul’s forehead, and the third eye opened.

Through his soul’s third eye, luminous green strings darted out from behind the ghost-flag cultivator and raced at Hui.

Hui stared wide-eyed. He darted back, leaping away from the strings.

Xi Guping stepped out from behind the ghost-flag cultivator. As Hui dodged, his expression flickered. He gestured, and the strings darted after Hui again.

Hui threw a flame talisman at the strings. The fiery tabbies crashed into them and melted through, unable to touch them. He scowled and reached to his death dantian. Throwing out his hand, he cast the ducks into the air. They flew for the strings and bit them, but fell back, their beaks unable to devour the strings. The tips of the strings darkened, but they didn’t corrupt or dissipate.

Brows furrowing, Hui flicked his finger downward, directing the ducks. They spun and raced at Xi Guping instead. Xi Guping stared at them, wide-eyed, then jumped back, dodging the blow. The strings looped back on themselves and stabbed into the ducks. Crying out, the ducks glowed with a ghastly green light, then burst.

Hui sucked a breath. In the few seconds the ducks bought him, he’d fled a dozen meters, but the strings easily reached that long. Dammit! I can’t beat his strings. And if they touch me—if they touch me, I’ll be his puppet, won’t I? I don’t want that! I refuse!

“Hui, what are you doing?” Bai Xue asked, frowning.

“You can’t see them?” Hui asked. Pain stabbed into his forehead, and he clapped a hand to his head. His death dantian spun at full speed, feeding the eye. My soul’s eye… I’m not strong enough to support it yet. I can’t keep it open for much longer. But once it closes, we’re helpless against Xi Guping!

“Hui?” Bai Xue asked.

“Who’s Hui?” Huang Muwen asked.

“It’s a nickname, a nickname,” Bai Xue said, waving his hand.

Hui ran to Bai Xue’s side. “I can see Xi Guping’s puppeteering strings for now, but I won’t be able to for long. Before I lose the ability to see them, help me defeat Xi Guping!”

Bai Xue looked at him, then nodded. “What do I need to do?”

Hui glanced left and right, then furrowed his brows. “Hold me!”