Legend of The Young Master

Chapter 112: Flying Serpent

Luding Continued "Your objective aligns with mine. So, I won't consume your essence, as tempting as that may be at this moment."

He pulled back his staff

"My cousin warns me never to trust you. You're just another human, regardless of the form you take," Nixi rose to his feet, embodying seamless elegance.

"Regardless of what I am, without my aid, you stand no chance against those humans. You'll never regain your homeland," Luding responded.

"Men are feeble," Nixi sneered.

"Yet men have repeatedly vanquished your kind. They set fire to the forests, fell the trees, construct settlements and bridges, muster armies, and your kind continues to lose," Luding realized he was attempting to reason with an immature being.

"Nixi," he said, seizing the young daemon's spiritual core, "heed my command. Go, observe those men, and return to inform me."

However, Nixi possessed his own form of power, and Luding observed as his imposed Qi dissipated off the creature. When he released his grip, the demon pivoted and dashed toward the trees.

It was only then that Luding remembered he had initially summoned the young daemon for an entirely different purpose, making him feel both aged and fatigued. Yet, he channeled his demonic Qi once more, this time summoning one of the Feishe, known to humans as Flying Serpents.

The Feishe were more compliant, less contentious, but equally ferocious. They were not good at manipulating Qi but were physically more ferocious, generally steering clear of open confrontations. Jiadhi, the Flying Serpent, gracefully descended into the clearing before the ancient oak tree, although the aerial maneuver had tested his abilities.

"I am here," he announced.

Luding nodded in acknowledgment. "I appreciate your presence. I need you to scout the lower valley to the east. There are men—cultivators—there, and they could be highly dangerous."

"What human poses a threat to me?" Jiadhi, the Flying Serpent, retorted. Standing eye to eye with Luding, his wings, when fully extended, had an awe-inspiring span. Even Luding felt a flicker of genuine apprehension when the Feishe were agitated.

Luding nodded again. "They possess bows and other spirit weapons that could inflict severe harm upon you."

Jiadhi emitted a guttural sound. "Then why should I undertake this task?" he questioned.

"I restored the vision of your offspring when they were afflicted with winter blindness. I provided the heat-emitting stone for your mate's nest," Luding gestured, implying he would continue to offer his healing abilities to the Flying Serpents.

Jiadhi unfurled his wings. "I had planned to hunt. I am famished. Being summoned by you feels demeaning, akin to being called like a domesticated beast." His wings expanded further. "However, with my brother, I may choose to hunt in the east and, in doing so, observe these individuals you speak of."

"They are your adversaries as well," Luding said, exasperated. Why must they all be so immature?

Jiadhi tilted his head back and let out a piercing cry, his wings flapping vigorously. In an instant, he was airborne, the surrounding trees shedding leaves in the turbulent air currents he generated. Not even a night of torrential rain would have dislodged so many leaves.

Luding then cautiously extended his Qi, like a man navigating unfamiliar stairs in the dark. He reached out towards the southeast—further and a bit more—until he sensed what he always did. Her. The lady in Yushan Fortress.

Sitting here with his demonic sense, he probed the fortress's defenses, akin to a man probing a sore tooth with his tongue. She was there, fortified by her power. And accompanying her was something else entirely, something he couldn't decipher but had devouring capability similar to his Qi. The fortress's potent array obstructed his demonic Qi, thwarting his attempts to see through it.

He sighed as rain began to fall. He sat, attempting to appreciate the burgeoning spring around him. Nixi had slain the elder, and now the mistress of the Pavilion had acquired additional warriors. He had set certain events in motion, albeit without fully understanding why.

And he pondered whether he had committed an error.

***************

Back in Yushan fortress.

Upon Tao's directive, one of Wuyi's earliest subordinates, who used to report to Meiying, the elite archers, had arranged target stands in the meadows beside the river. The warriors were discontented; they had been told to groom their horses before retiring for the night.

They had been traveling nonstop for months to reach here, and even if they were Qi warriors, they were not at a stage where they could go months without rest. Yet, before they could tend to their steeds, they were commanded to practice archery.

They had been on a strenuous journey for an extended period, and not a single warrior was without signs of fatigue, a good thing the fatigue was hidden in masks.

Wanxie, one of the senior Qi archer, along with Yuei, who had recently returned unsuccessful from a mission to track down a killer with Beastmaster Jin, instructed the younger initiates to unload the target stands. These were either filled with old fabric or constructed from straw and were stored in the carts.

"Why is it always our turn?" grumbled Qian. "Why single us out?" His protest might have carried more weight if he hadn't waited for Wanxie to be out of earshot before voicing it.

Zhai, the youngest in the group at just fourteen and with a slender build that indicated a childhood of scant meals, climbed atop one of the high carts. Without a word, he grabbed a target and tossed it down to Liangee, a man with an unusual appearance, marked by a dark complexion and foreign features.

Catching the target with a muted sound, Liangee began walking toward the designated field. "Quit complaining and get to work," he advised.

Qian spat on the ground and lethargically moved toward a cart that was empty of targets. "I'll just check—"

Suddenly, Baijian's subordinate archer, Qinujian, materialized and nudged him roughly toward the cart where Zhai was preparing another target. "Enough talk, get to work," he reiterated.