30. Mistakes and Intruders

The undead reached him. The nearest one crouched and grabbed his arm, lifting it toward its maw.

Ah, no! I forgot! They eat people, even dead people! Hui started to release his hold on his qi.

Before he could release it fully, a wave of green-robed disciples burst through the portal overhead. Startled, Hui clamped down on his qi again. The undead drew his limp arm toward its gaping maw. Cold drool dripped onto his skin. Yellowed teeth shone in the low light.

Argh! I can’t let go, but I can’t keep playing dead, either!

“Kill the trespasser—huh? He’s already dead?”

A sword swept over Hui’s head. Seconds before the undead bit him, its head separated from its neck. The head plopped down, rolling over the dusty ground. Empty white eyes stared at Hui. The undead’s jaw worked steadily, chewing on nothing.

All around, cultivators in green rushed past, a few casting a stray smirk in his direction, while most hurtled past. The wave of green smashed into the sea of undead. Swords flashed. Thick blood splattered, mixed with viscera and gray flesh.

Handsome faces stared down at him. Committed to his ‘death,’ Hui focused on nothing, eyes dead ahead. He watched them from his peripheries, their faces slightly blurred. Even so, he could make out their similarity. All three of the boys standing over him had the same face, down to the tip of their eyes and the quirk of their lips.

The three boys tilted their heads at the same time. They glanced among each other.

“Well, the interloper is dead,” a girl declared. She wore the same green robes and bun as the boys, but had a much finer face, full lips, a delicate chin, and long, fluttering eyelashes. She kicked Hui over.

Hui took the blow limply.

The three boys looked at her.

“Should we leave him here?”

“Should we give him a proper burial?”

“Should we let them eat him?”

The girl shrugged. “Do whatever you like. I’m going ahead. Don’t forget, this secret realm only holds so many treasures. If you aren’t careful, you’ll come away empty handed.”

The three boys exchanged a glance. At last, the first one spoke up. “No, we wouldn’t want that.”

The wind picked up. Dust blew in Hui’s face. He resisted the urge to blink, vision steadily narrowing. Hurry up, move along! I can’t lie here forever.

The second of the three boys grabbed him by his ankle. “I’m going to bury him.”

Please no, Hui whispered in his heart. A suffocatingly tight space closed in around him. In his blurred vision, he couldn’t tell if it was real or not, that box. The pine box.

Heavy thumping. Nails, poking through the wood at the edges. The rattle of chains.

“Heft him up. He won’t pay, so let’s give him a little taste of what happens to those who default, huh?”

“No, no, stop! Stop! I’ll pay! Another day, one more—”

Hui blinked. The vision vanished, leaving him with the dry, gray dust, the stone pillars, the undead. In his chest, his qi wiggled back to life. Hurriedly, he clamped down again, but no one had noticed. The other two boys looked at the second blankly. The girl stood slightly in the distance, frozen mid-step.

Making up her mind, she shook her head and waved as she walked off. “Alright. You three have fun.”

“Mmm. We will,” the first promised.

“Bye-bye. Don’t get ate,” the third replied.

There’s something wrong with these boys’ brains, Hui thought, dangling by his ankle, robes astray, hair mussed, face smashed on the ground, while he played dead.

His heart fluttered. Hui let go of his hold on his qi. Instantly, qi rushed in, blasting toward him. Prepared for it this time, Hui sat up, yanked his ankle free, and crossed his legs, diligently circulating it into his dantian.

Two of the boys stared at him, startled.

“He’s not dead?”

“He’s not dead.”

The third boy turned and looked to the sky. “Ah, another.”

Hui peeked an eye open, curious.

Overhead, the black void closed, slowly sealing shut. As he watched, it shuddered, then spat out another figure.

Dressed in white, a pale girl leaped over them. White hair streaming behind her, she squeezed her eyes shut, eyelashes just as white. A wide red belt tucked her robes shut, and red silk trim traced the edges of her robe and peeked out from the ends of her long, gauzy sleeves. Voluminous skirts fluttered on the wind. Under the skirts, Hui caught a glimpse of a thick red rope wound around her ankles, binding them close, and then she landed. She opened her eyes, revealing irises as brilliantly crimson red as the silk on her robes.

“Intruder!” the first shouted, drawing his sword.

“Stop her!” the second agreed, quickly forming hand signs. He pointed his hands at the girl, and a stream of fire rushed at her.

“A snow rabbit!” the third boy exclaimed.

Faced with a wall of fire, the girl scoffed. She drew a pair of matched fans from her sleeves. “You challenge the Bai clan with fire? Truly, it is as they say. Precious disciples of the Mysterious Heavenly Forest Sect, you know nothing of this world.”

She swept her arms around, then flicked a fan casually. A blast of icy air cut the fire in two and reduced it to embers in the next breath.

The boy with the sword reached her. She tapped his sword lightly with her fan. Ice encased the blade. His blade fell heavily toward the ground, no longer able to reach her.

Hiding her mouth with one fan, she smiled, gently fanning herself with the other. “So? Is this all the Mysterious Heavenly Forest’s disciples have to offer?”

Hui glanced around. The third boy stared at him, but the other two bristled at the girl, thoroughly distracted.

It’s time for me to make my exit, he decided. Moving slowly, he crawled backward.

The third boy watched him go with wide eyes, but made no move to raise the alarm or stop him.

“Left,” the first boy grit out.

“Right,” the second replied.

The two pushed off, flashing at the girl. Her eyes widened, eyebrows raising in mock surprise. Fire blasted at her from the right, while the first boy’s ice-bound sword swept from the left. Moving the fans deftly, she wiped out the flames with a slash and caught the boy’s sword between the other fan’s tines.

“Ah, he’s leaving,” the third boy said.

“Shut up!” the first two replied in sync.

The third boy let out a long-suffering sigh. He sat down and shook his head, tired. His eyes cleared, suddenly, and he made eye contact with Hui for the first time. “She’s too pretty for them. They’re completely distracted. Just leave already.”

“Uh… thanks, I will,” Hui replied. He bowed to the boy, then jumped up and scurried off.

The third boy’s eyes glazed over again. Ignoring Hui, he crouched and nudged at the undead’s severed head, rolling it over so the undead chomped at the earth. A light giggle escaped his lips.

Hui glanced over his shoulder. What’s up with those guys? Is it some strange cultivation method only triplets can use? Or, inversely, a weird qi deviation that split one person into three? And that girl in white… what’s her realm? She can hold off two of those boys at once… they’re at least at the third stage, so she’s got to be fourth stage or better.

He hurried off. I’d better get out of here before they remember I’m here! A pitiful little second stage cultivator like me has no chance against third and fourth stage cultivators! Master, why? Why did you throw me into this pit of lions?

His master’s voice replayed in his mind. Death qi… the best realm.

Hui shook his head, determined. Right! I can’t give up! I have to study this place. Find out more about this secret realm, and figure out what death qi is!