Li Xiang lifted her sword over the unconscious man’s body. Hui hesitated, then grabbed her arm.

“What this time?” she demanded.

“Wait, elder sister. It’s unjust to kill a sleeping enemy. What if we leave him and interrogate him later, instead?” Hui asked.

“I like that idea. I want to completely rid my clan of any trash like Bai Fenfeng. If we kill everyone we see, some rats may scurry away into the shadows and survive,” Bai Xue said.

“But we could right the wrongs here by cutting off his life,” Li Xiang argued.

“Or right more wrongs by keeping him, and completely unravelling any remnants of this plot later. We can always kill him if he doesn’t cooperate,” Hui suggested.

Li Xiang pouted, then lowered her sword. She pointed at Hui. “His life is on your head now. You bear his karma. If this is the wrong decision…”

“Elder sister, I am willing to bear that burden,” Hui said, bowing. He’s not fighting us. He’s unconscious. It would be easy to end his life, but then we learn nothing about Bai Fenfeng’s motivations, or who else was working with her. This man, as he is now, has more value to us alive.

Bai Xue waved his fan at the downed, half-dressed cultivator. Ice formed around him, freezing him in place. In a dark voice, he murmured, “I’ll look forward to questioning you.”

Hui swallowed. Ah. I feel like I have consigned this man to a fate worse than death.

Oh well. For what he’s done? He deserves it.

“Is everyone ready?” Bai Xue asked.

Hui tugged out his ponytail and bowed his head, pulling his hair into his face. Beside him, Li Xiang removed her pin and did the same. “Ready.”

“Follow,” Bai Xue ordered.

The infected cultivators lurched after him. Watching their gait from the corner of his eye, Hui did his best to mimic it.

Beside him, Li Xiang walked straight-backed and proud, a fizzle of anger and tension about her.

With a wave of his hand, Bai Xue dismissed the outer barrier. They walked through, toward a female cultivator in black.

“Breaking the barrier?” the other cultivator asked.

Bai Xue coughed. In a mediocre imitation of the other cultivator’s voice, he said, “No need for it any longer. This is the last of them.”

The other cultivator frowned at him. “Are you okay?”

“Frog in my throat,” Bai Xue said, coughing again.

She narrowed her eyes, then nodded. “It is the last of them, after all.” With that, she swept away, leading the way back into the branch family’s compound.

As they walked, the female cultivator glanced back. “Did you discover what caused the fire?”

“I didn’t see anything suspicious. Maybe one of the cultivators regained their consciousness for a moment,” Bai Xue suggested.

“Are you sure? They seemed almost like Bai clan flames. The last thing we need is for a main branch member to come by to check on the infected.” the female cultivator prodded.

Bai Xue cupped his hands to her. “Would eld… senior like to check herself?”

Li Xiang stiffened minutely. Beside her, Hui reached out and squeezed her hand, reassuring her. Bai Xue knows what he’s doing.

Glancing at him, Li Xiang gave a small nod and ducked her head in assent. The tension in her shoulders unwound just an inch.

The female cultivator squinted at Bai Xue. A long moment passed, and she shrugged. “As you say. I don’t want to enter that filthy place. And besides, since when has the main branch family given us the slightest thought?”

Tossing her head, she turned away. Bai Xue followed after her, clasping his hands behind his back. Hui, Li Xiang, and the infected cultivators stumbled after them.

“What happened to the rest of the branch?” Bai Xue asked, looking around.

“Eh?” The female cultivator frowned.

Hui tensed. Bai Xue! Shit, maybe he doesn’t know what he’s doing!

“I was out on the town for most of it, distributing pills,” Bai Xue lied smoothly.

“Anyone who disagreed with Bai Fenfeng’s plan was quietly drawn away and fed to the lotus or bound to the barrier. There is no room for dissention in her new clan.” She gave Bai Xue a calculating look.

Bai Xue put his hands up. “All glory to our venerable future Matriarch Bai Fenfeng. I have no issue with her plans.”

“Good.” She turned away again.

Hui glared at Bai Xue’s back. Stop talking! If she figures you out, we’re done for!

They wound through the branch, through the center square. The female cultivator paused at the sight of the broken street and the lotus through it. “What happened here?”

“I saw one of the demonic cultivators in the area earlier,” Bai Xue said innocently.

“When? We’ve been together all day,” the female cultivator replied.

Bai Xue shrugged. “I saw him fly by.”

She frowned. “You should have pointed him out.”

“Next time,” Bai Xue promised.

Hui barely resisted the urge to clench his fists, glaring daggers at Bai Xue’s back. Next time, I’m the one who plays the guard, no matter how recognizable your face is!

The female cultivator frowned at the ground, then shrugged. “It’s nearly the hour, anyways. This way.”

She turned down a back alley, to where a yin-yang was set in the floor, then held out her hand over the symbol. “Array, validate.”

Ice blasted out of the ground and encased Bai Xue behind her. He jerked away, but too slow. Halfway into the air, he froze in place. The female cultivator smirked. “You aren’t Heng Shu. I knew it!”

Li Xiang raced at her, sword drawn. The female cultivator whirled, surprised. She adjusted her hand over the symbol, almost typing. Ice leaped out of the ground to block Li Xiang’s blow. Before Li Xiang could retreat, the ice climbed up her sword. She yanked at the sword, but it wouldn’t dislodge. Ice crawled over her hands, locking her in place.

The female cultivator strode toward her, raising her own sword. “Oh? Are you the source of the flames? Or was it perhaps… him?” She glanced behind her at Bai Xue, then shook her head. “No matter. You’re both dead.” The female cultivator struck at Li Xiang.

“Not so fast!” Hui pointed a wind talisman at her. Wind burst out of the talisman, hurtling toward her.

“A talisman of that level? Pathetic,” she said, waving her hand. The wind dispersed around her, slicing harmlessly past on either side.

“Activate! Activate!” Hui shouted, wincing internally. My precious income, vanishing with every passing second—!

She waved left, then right. Again, the wind dispersed. She let out a heavy sigh. “Will pathetic weaklings like you never learn? A mere second-level talisman—”

“Look behind you, elder sister,” Hui replied, grinning.

A deep cut scored into either side of the ice encasing Bai Xue. As the female cultivator turned, the ice shattered. Bai Xue climbed out, scowling furiously.

“Raging Inferno,” Bai Xue growled, flicking his fan at her.

A pillar of fire engulfed the woman. She screamed. Ice encased her in a desperate attempt to block Bai Xue’s flames, but it proved useless. The fire turned the ice to vapor, and the flames devoured the woman. Hui turned away, fire burning his eyes, heat singing his face. When the flames dimmed, he turned back around. Only a small pile of ashes remained.

“One less rat to worry about,” Bai Xue muttered, tucking his fan back into his robes. He tossed the veil off his face and threw the dark robes on the ground. “Enough of this scuttling about. It’s time to fight.”

“But… how do we get in?” Hui asked, despairing. After a second, he knelt and gathered up the dark robes. At the rate I go through robes… I could use these.

Li Xiang yanked her sword free of the woman’s ice. “This is the control point of a spell array, right?”

“Right. We should be able to enter the barrier from here.” Bai Xue knelt and pressed a hand to the symbol. His brows furrowed. “She locked out the controls to anyone who isn’t a part of her branch!”

“Then…?” Hui asked.

“Ha, the fool. The key is a combination of yin and yang energy. The precise proportions her branch cultivates, in fact. Unlucky for her, this furnace was born with pure energy! My control over my yin and yang is unrivaled under heaven!” Bai Xue stretched his hand out, focusing intently. Black and white lights flickered in his palm, fighting one another. The white light blazed stronger one moment, only to be pushed out by the black the next.

“Unrivaled, except for the curse,” Hui reminded him, crossing his arms.

“That’s not my fault,” Bai Xue muttered.

At last, the yin-yang symbol shone. The light enveloped the three of them, and they vanished.