Hours passed, amid the cries of beasts and the confused snores of slaves crammed into the barn.
Tao Yu Xin, sitting cross-legged, meditated in the shadows beside a black horse with a glossy mane, like a specter of faded nobility.
A figure materialized near him.
A rider draped in shimmering silk, a broad Chinese sabre strapped to his back, his eyes hidden beneath a veil of shadow.
— Master Tao Yu Xin... he growled in a hoarse voice that vibrated through the air. The Black Warrior Geipin is dead.
— How? Tao replied, his tone as cold as stone.
— The Demon Queen, Xuelan Mowang, annihilated him.
He paused briefly before adding, icily:
— Give the order for your army to execute the Jade Sovereign.
Tao remained silent. Only the horse's slow breathing disturbed the atmosphere.
— I refuse. Qin Tiang has already been attacked… in a parallel timeline.
That entire reality was destroyed because of him. If we strike now, the same pattern may repeat.
The rider seemed to hesitate, unsettled.
— My lord… what you speak of is beyond my comprehension, he said with a mix of awe and dread.
But even so… we must strike Qin Tiang.
Tao Yu Xin slowly reopened his eyes. A demonic glint flashed through his gaze.
— I already anticipated this, shadow slave. My plans require patience. Have you forgotten that?
"Until my blood-child is born... I cannot act," he thought, fingers digging into the ground.
The shadow trembled. He knelt and kissed Tao's feet before vanishing into a thick, oily mist, swallowed by the night.
A few meters away, a little girl had been watching the scene with curious eyes.
Xu approached quietly, placing an innocent hand on her master's shoulder.
— Master… who were you talking to? And that mist… where did it come from? she asked, her voice still trembling with childhood.
Another child appeared, dressed in rags, his face thinned by hunger. He gently took Xu's hand.
Tao Yu Xin looked at them with an angelic smile — a soft mask concealing his tainted soul.
— Nothing, my child. Go back to your little boyfriend, he said, tenderly stroking her hair.
Xu blushed furiously.
— But Master! You told me… never to love! she pouted, puffing her cheeks.
— And yet, look at you: love has made you more alive… more expressive, Tao replied with a soothing smile.
Embrace the feeling, Xu. The beauties of this world await you.
The boy — Luyin — stepped back, unsettled by the cold gaze Xu was giving him.
— You know, Master! the girl exclaimed, snuggling up to Tao. Luyin told me he and his father used to ride water dragons!
— Xu! W-why are you telling him that?! the boy stammered, beet red.
Tao burst into a laugh, almost warm:
— Hahaha! That's wonderful! You're finally making friends Xu !
But inside, he wasn't laughing.
"This boy… is a seed. A piece. Should I sacrifice him?
No. He will serve for my cultivation. For her."
Suddenly, hooves pounded the earth. A troop of riders burst from the shadows.
They smashed open the barn doors and dragged Tao Yu Xin and about fifteen slaves out by their hair, like beasts bound for slaughter.
— Come with us, demon of Khou! a soldier shouted, pressing his sabre's blade against Tao's throat.
You'll be the sacrifice for the Lord tonight!
— MASTER!!! Xu screamed in terror.
Tao Yu Xin slowly raised a bloodied hand… and signaled her to stay back.
— No…