I stood outside Yuanshi Tianzun’s palace. The sea of clouds burst upon me so suddenly that I almost didn’t recognize the rolling plains of whiteness. Sunshine glittered and blinded my eyes. It was already morning. Oh Shangtian, she must have been wondering where I was all night! I spun my branch and casted a cloud to fly back to my room.

The men wanted the calculation to the Purple Omen. From the way Yuanshi Tianzun protected the tortoise shell, the carvings on it must be what the men were after… to find “his majesty’s remains”… They were after Arum’s Treasure. A rotting pile of bones swirled in my mind, along with butterflies. Based on Luosha’s conversation, they needed butterflies in their search and the Purple Omen was a shortcut.

A chill ran down my back. If Mojie weren’t the ones out to get me before, then they certainly were now. This was getting convoluted; I needed help. The face of that god popped into my mind. He would know what to do. I had to find him immediately.

The branch took me back to the familiar rows of rooms. As soon as my cloud landed, I began to run. I ran through the meandering paths that led to the courtyard. I could see the bamboo grove that surrounded the entrance—

“Ziyan!”

It was Shangtian.

“Where were you all night?” She demanded. “I was so worried! I stuffed your bed to pretend you were sleeping when the fairies did the bedtime check last night! I had to lie that you were out practicing etiquette when they brought the breakfast!”

“Were they dumb, I mean, unwise, enough to believe that?” I joked. When I saw Shangtian’s darkening face, I quickly said, “I’m sorry. I was at—”

It was then that my tongue glued itself to the roof of my mouth once more.

“—ROUNDSHE TARGHZHUH.”

“What?” Shangtian demanded.

“I… I can’t say,” I said exasperatedly after garbling several more times.

“I waited for you all night and you won’t even tell me what happened?”

“I want to tell you, but I can’t. I was PARGHSOMECHARGH.”

Shangtian raised her eyebrows.

“It’s fine if you don’t want to tell me,” she said. “I thought you snuck off on an adventure or something. But you would have told me, right?”

“Of course I would, but I went where I said I would go. It just,” I chose my words carefully, “took longer than I expected.”

“Did Yuanshi Tianzun forgive you?” She asked.

I shook my head. Thankfully, I was allowed to do that. Repeatedly having my tongue stuck to the roof of my mouth wasn’t a pleasant sensation. Perhaps it was better that I couldn’t tell Shangtian. There was no point in worrying her.

“Where is everyone?” I tried to change the subject.

“Baishi Ceremony, which we are late for!” She replied with a scowl. “Everyone has been made up and dressed. Most left on a giant cloud an incense of time ago. I stayed behind to look for you.”

If only I could explain!

“I’m here now. Let’s go,” I said immediately.

"What’s the point, you won’t find a shifu anyway.” An annoying voice said. We looked up to see Sylvestris hovering on a small rainbow.

Shangtian tugged at my sleeve. She didn’t need to remind me to keep my mouth shut; I didn’t want to face the Goddess of Propriety again.

“Unlike you, my shifu will be the mighty and illustrious his highness. My father has made sure of that already. If you beg me, I'll consider asking some of papa’s friends to accept you are disciples," Sylvestris said, batting her eyelashes.

“I’d rather eat shit,” I replied.

Sylvestris’s face went red.

“Just as well. They probably won’t accept a stinky Xian wearing a wrinkled dress,” she said, head held high.

During my faceoff with Luosha, I sweated like a pig. So to be honest, I probably did smell, but I was not going to admit it.

I turned to Shangtian.

“Why didn’t you tell me that she was disabled?” I asked.

“What?”

“Clearly she suffers from anosmia, and most likely, other handicaps. You should forgive her for—” I raised my voice, “—CHEATING IN THE CELESTIAL TRIALS.”

Sylvestris’s face turned bright right. She raised her finger.

I ducked, but it was too late. A large slit formed in my dress… the matchmaker’s precious silk dress.

In our village, one could scratch someone’s face, one could tear out someone’s hair, but one did not mess with someone’s clothes! Rage blinded me. I had no idea how to use my chi for anything other than clouding, but I stuck my palms out at her and grunted, hoping for something.

“Ziyan, no!” Shangtian shouted as a stream of air shot out of my palms.

Sylvestris dodged it easily. She mimicked my grunt and returned a stream of air.

This time, I had an inkling of how chi worked. I imagined water. It materialized, and her force met my shield water with a loud splash.

A feeling of smug satisfaction flooded me as stains blotched her lavish silk dress.

But an angry Sylvestris was also a better fighter. Her forces slashed faster and stronger. The little chi that I had was no match. Soon, my dress was hanging on me like shreds.

“Stop! Or I will tell the Goddess of Propriety,” Shangtian yelled shakily.

Sylvestris’s mouth stretched into a nasty smile.

“Speaking of the Goddess of Propriety, I’m sure I can persuade the Goddess of Propriety to review whether you truly belong in Shenjie. I assume that you borrowed her crane to get here?”

Shangtian cowered.

I lunged at Sylvestis, but a voice stopped me.

“Unity between the Shen and Xian is paramount in order to have a harmonious world,” Barette said, walking out from behind a rock formation.

“Shut up,” Sylvestris snapped. “Just because you were the Goddess of Flower’s hairpin, others may look up to you. But you are a yao, a half step above a Xian.”

“Rule 2331 was written by his highness. Do you disobey his highness?” Barette asked.

Sylvestris made a face of constipation but closed her mouth.

“Shouldn’t you be at the Baishi Ceremony?” Shangtian asked, looking at Barette in awe.

"I noticed that you and Ziyan didn’t arrive with the others, so I came back to look for you. Let’s all go before it is too late,” Barette said.

Sylvestris looked like she wanted to say something, but another glance from Barette silenced her.

“You will need to take this off,” Barette said, pulling the shreds of the matchmaker’s silk dress off me, “and put this on.”

She revealed a white dress, identical to what they were all wearing. The fabric glistened like water and caught on the calluses of my hands. I had only known rough cloth made from hemp.

“This color doesn’t hide stains. It will need to be laundered after one wear,” I noted.

“Launder? What’s that?” Barette asked.

I paused, and then asked carefully, “What happens to dirty clothes?”

“They are thrown away,” Sylvestris sneered.

Barette nodded as well.

“We get new dresses daily from the Goddess of Weaving.”

I hid my shock as Barette tucked and pulled, the white robe was in place. The layers upon layers of fabric made me feel like an onion.

“You look incredible,” Shangtian finally said, her mouth slightly open. “I wish I had your figure.”

I was about to say something humble when I saw Sylvestris’s jealous face. So I pulled the belt so that my waist appeared even smaller. The white robe fitted smoothly over my shoulders and fell to the floor in gentle waves. I would have loved my new clothes normally, but it reminded me that the Baishi Ceremony was imminent. I was worried about Mojie, and about finding my god.

Our odd group of four went out of the gates of the courtyard. A narrow trail led us through a thick bamboo grove that blocked the view of the outside. Syvestris’s presence prevented me from sharing the events of last night and my worries regaring Shenjie.

“Be careful here,” Barette warned. I realized why. A thin layer of cloud now covered the ground, making the trail hard to see. Bamboos grew sparser and sparser. I stepped carefully, not wanting to embarrass myself in front of the Shen.

“This is stupid,” Sylvestris’s voice crept into my ears. “I have enough chi to fly to Shenxiao instantly.”

“Don’t say stupid, say unwise,” Barette reprimanded.

“Barette, how will we get there? We can’t fly very far yet,” Shangtian whispered.

“You will see,” Barette answered.

A motion parted the clouds in the distance. I could just make out what appeared to be a golden dragon with shiny scales swimming towards us. When it arrived, the dragon nodded at Barette and coiled into the shape of a boat.

“You can command a dragon? My shifu said they are the ride of choice for senior gods!” Shangtian exclaimed.

“His highness’s favor,” Sylvestris muttered.

“Step on,” Barette said with a smile. “The dragon is very gentle.”

I thought “gentle” had nothing to do with it; it was the fact that the dragon could uncoil at any time that worried me.

But Barette was right. Riding on the dragon didn’t differ from standing on land at all. The sunshine felt so warm, the breeze felt so gentle, and everything felt so tranquil.

We flew over peak after peak. I also saw more and more gods. Soon we were swept up in a tide of flying deities. Most flew on clouds. Some rode on nameless beasts. The coolest ones stood on their swords and surfed the skies. I had never seen so many gods. My heartbeat quickened as I tried to find my god among them.

Then the brat complained.

“So boring. I haven’t ridden this thing since I was two hundred years old,” Sylvestris said.

I did a double take. Then I remembered Shangtian had said that everyone aged slower in Shenjie. How could she not have grown out of her bratty stage even after hundreds of years?

The dragon obviously took offense to her comment. He lurched downward into a nosedive. I hung on just in time. Cold cloud vapor stung my eyes. Through tears, I saw the mortal world underneath growing closer and closer as clouds fell away. Then the dragon lurched up and flipped over.

I lost my grip. My weight disappeared as I tumbled. The feeling was both frightening and exciting. Before I could join the screaming around me, the dragon caught us again and dumped us on hard ground.

Breathless, I looked around. A god nearby had gotten off his beast, which I thought was due to concern until I saw his whooping laughs.

Thankfully, we were all there. Shangtian had turned a nasty green, but she pointed toward Sylvestris. I wheeled around to see Barette march towards her. I was instantly reminded of the occasional bears we saw in the forest.

While Barette berated Sylvestris in angry whispers, I took the joyful time to look around. Nine landmasses floated in the clouds. We were standing on the tallest and largest landmass of them all.

When Barette had hissed herself hoarse, we followed the throng of gods to a gate that read: Southern Gate. On either side stood menacing marshals, who brandished their swords and cutlasses.

They roared to some gods and spoke more politely to others, including Barette. I remembered how these people treated me last time and threw them a dirty look as I passed.

I saw things I would never have imagined to be possible: drifts of perfumed vapor and strains of music, mighty pillars extending towards infinity. Coiled around us were all kinds of magical creatures that I didn’t recognize. Phoenixes with brilliant plumages strutted the grounds. Exotic trees and flowers dotted the landscape. At every turn was a fountain or sculpture of some sort, from which wine flowed endlessly. Palaces rose from the clouds. Above the entrance of every building hung a board proclaiming its name. Fairies danced and entertained in front of doorways. I had heard legends about the world of gods, but the legends certainly underestimated the grandeurs of gods’ world. It was that moment when I realized how far I had come from the village of Flower Mount.