A DROP OF WATER dripped from a crack in the stone cave and landed on the tip of Mo Xi's nose.
Mo Xi's lashes quivered as he slowly opened his eyes.
His gaze was unfocused; he couldn't tell if he was in the past or the present. The mess within Bat Tower swayed before his eyes, interspersed with glimpses of Gu Mang's meager silhouette walking into the dusky distance.
His heart was still beating, muffled by his flesh, after having nearly faltered, pushed to the limits of what it could bear. Mo Xi took a moment to breathe. Once his vision had cleared somewhat, he stretched his stiff neck and looked around.
He was lying inside a shallow cave, the starry sky visible beyond its mouth. A fire crackled merrily, and three people sat by the firepit: Gu Mang, Jiang Yexue, and Murong Chuyi. Yue Chenqing lay not far off with Jiang Yexue's coat draped over him.
Mo Xi's head ached atrociously; he had to close his eyes. The memories from before he lost consciousness sparked like flint in his head. All the past events within the Time Mirror, Gu Mang slowly walking toward the horizon with Lu Zhanxing's head on his back, the old beggar and his mournful folk song—I, too, once rode a splendid horse, my flag bid thousands on their course. One cry dispersed the demon crowd; godlike, before my feet all bowed. Today none mark my glories past, men once called friends all turn their backs…
And the coldness on Gu Mang's face when they finally came out of the Mirror, as he stood in the storm of blood.
Mo Xi sat bolt upright.
The movement alerted the group chatting around the fire. Gu Mang was first to notice; he turned and met Mo Xi's eyes. They looked at each other in silence.
The first thing Gu Mang said wasn't directed at Mo Xi. He stared at Mo Xi for a moment, and then turned to Jiang Yexue and Murong Chuyi. "He's awake."
The remaining two looked over. Jiang Yexue wheeled his wooden chair to Mo Xi's side. "Xihe-jun, how do you feel? Is anything bothering you?"
Mo Xi didn't respond. Heart pounding, his eyes never strayed from Gu Mang where he sat by the fire. He was still stunned and bewildered by Gu Mang suddenly regaining his memories. He even thought it might be a dream, but when he closed his eyes and opened them again, he was still in this cave, with these people. It was real.
The Time Mirror had shocked Gu Mang's brain when it brought him back to the past, and somehow repaired his mind.
Mo Xi's dry lips parted, his voice shockingly rough. "You…"
Gu Mang glanced at him, but his blue eyes quickly turned aside, indifferent. The expression he wore was nearly identical to that of the youth from eight years ago, only that there seemed to be a thin layer of frost over it.
Jiang Yexue saw that Gu Mang hadn't responded and was afraid Mo Xi would feel awkward. "Gu Mang's fine. Also…while you were unconscious, he told us about recovering his memories, so you don't need to worry."
Mo Xi stared past Jiang Yexue to the silent Gu Mang. He lay sprawled casually, an elbow propped on his knee. His lapels were even somewhat loosened, just like the roguish soldier he'd been.
Again and again, Mo Xi had been shocked upon entering the Mirror, but this final blow was beyond anything he could imagine. When Mo Xi realized Gu Mang had recovered his memories, he'd felt a flash of pathetic, short-lived ecstasy, thinking that they finally shared the same past. But the joy only lasted an instant. As he looked at Gu Mang now, the fervor in his heart slowly cooled. That brief flutter was crushed by unfamiliarity, anxiety, helplessness, and confusion. In that moment, he came to several realizations, but all were numbed by the tortuous mental beating he'd received.
After a long, dull pause, he finally settled on this: Gu Mang had regained his memories, but he acted much less like the Gu-shixiong he remembered. On the contrary, he was incredibly cold and removed. He had been first to notice Mo Xi was awake, but rather than get up, he was content to let Murong Chuyi and Jiang Yexue deal with it. He'd even turned away to take a leisurely sip of hot tea. Mo Xi examined Gu Mang's face in profile and the heaviness in his heart deepened.
At the sight of him staring silently at Gu Mang, Jiang Yexue asked with concern, "Xihe-jun, are you okay?"
Mo Xi paused a moment, looking away from Gu Mang and doing his best to sound calm. "I am." And because he didn't want Jiang Yexue to pick up on anything else, he changed the topic. "Where…are we?"
"Still on Bat Island," Jiang Yexue answered. "It's become a bit of a sticky situation. Wuyan sealed off the entire island and we've sustained too many injuries, so we can't leave just yet."
"Who?"
"The island's Bat Queen. Her name's Wuyan—yan as in swallow."
"Isn't she a bat?" Mo Xi asked wearily. "Why does she call herself a bird?"
"Yes, it's an odd name for sure," Jiang Yexue said. "When we entered the tower, Wuyan was at a critical point in her secluded cultivation within the underground palace, so she didn't emerge even with all the ruckus we made. After you destroyed her tribesmen in the tower, Chuyi…" Jiang Yexue paused, feeling uncomfortable, and corrected himself. "Xiaojiu rescued Chenqing from her prison. When you were passed out, she finished her qi circulation and broke seclusion to come after us. Fortunately, we had Gu Mang."
As he spoke, Jiang Yexue glanced at Gu Mang. He was being perfectly polite to the others, and grinned at Jiang Yexue as if he'd never defected. Jiang Yexue didn't know how to respond; he looked away. "Gu Mang stepped in to handle it, which is how we managed to escape and find this cave. But Wuyan is crazed with fury. At this point, she's covered all of Bat Island with alarm spells—a moment's carelessness and she'll find us.
I've set up a concealment talisman here; we'll be fine for a while, so you don't need to worry just yet."
Mo Xi massaged his pulsing temples. He turned to look at Yue Chenqing, who was curled up within Jiang Yexue's greatcoat, fast asleep. In the dozen-odd days since they'd last crossed paths, Yue Chenqing had lost a good deal of weight; his once-round cheeks had become sunken, the lines of his face pathetic and helpless.
"How is he?" Mo Xi asked.
As Jiang Yexue took a breath to respond, Gu Mang cut in. "Why not come over here to talk? Come warm up by the fire and have something to eat." Mo Xi's scarred and callused heart beat faster at these vaguely gentle words. He looked up at Gu Mang. Just as he was about to say a word of thanks, Gu Mang lazily continued: "Or is Xihe-jun so delicate that he can't walk? Do I need to come give you a piggy-back ride?"
Mo Xi's words lodged in his throat, choking the breath from him. He had thought they could at least mend their relationship somewhat after coming out of the Time Mirror. He wanted to make amends, at least: to properly apologize for his absence back then and try to ask Gu Mang for the truth one more time.
But Gu Mang didn't seem to share these sentiments. The hostility in his words was no different than when he was the Liao Kingdom's loyal subject—he sounded absolutely unrepentant.
"Gu Mang…" Mo Xi said softly.
"Hm?" Gu Mang scoffed. "You do need me to carry you?"
Mo Xi's eyes dulled, like a candle extinguished after guttering too long. Gu Mang had put out the last glimmer of light in his eyes. Gu Mang's attitude seemed to mock him—Oh Mo Xi, what's the point? The two of us are already like this. Whatever the truth is, whatever happened in the past, let's just be enemies. What other choice do we have?
Mo Xi clenched his jaw and rose; despite his injuries, he managed to make it to the firepit unassisted. He cast Gu Mang a meaningful glance, as if he wanted to say something, but in the end, he turned away. He silently sat next to Murong Chuyi, as far as possible from Gu Mang.
Naturally, Gu Mang noticed. He smiled without saying a word and focused instead on turning the meat over the fire.
An uncomfortable silence descended. After a moment, Mo Xi turned to ask Murong Chuyi, "How is Yue Chenqing?"
Murong Chuyi's face was wan. Eyes downcast, he said simply, "I've taken care of his injuries, so there's no threat to his life. However, he's been poisoned by the Bat Queen's gu worms, and I don't have an antidote."
Mo Xi stared. The shangao had said Yue Chenqing was locked in the cell and covered in bloodsucking vines. It hadn't mentioned anything about a gu worm. "What kind of poison is this gu worm?"
"I've never seen it before; there's no record of it in any cultivation realm texts. I interrogated two of the bat demons guarding his cell, but they didn't know much either. The only thing they said…" Murong Chuyi paused. Frowning with disgust, he coughed quietly.
Jiang Yexue came over and offered him a cup of hot tea. "Xiaojiu, have some."
Murong Chuyi gave him a withering look. He shoved the tea aside, spilling it all over Jiang Yexue's sleeves. Jiang Yexue fell silent.
After waiting for his breathing to steady, Murong Chuyi continued. "The only thing they said was that this gu worm could take a body drained of blood and create an undead puppet in the form of an individual of the poisoner's choosing. It could reconstruct everything about that person, from their appearance to their voice, memories, and feelings."
With nothing better to do, Gu Mang had summoned his demonic dagger to play with. He poked it into the fire like a pair of tongs, stoking the merrily burning flames. At Murong Chuyi's words, he asked, "So it kills someone and then uses their corpse to construct someone new?"
"Precisely."
"What is the demoness after?" Gu Mang nimbly spun the blade in his slender fingers. "Who does she want to reconstruct using Yue Chenqing's body?"
"I don't know," Murong Chuyi responded wearily. "Those two bat guards were loyal to the end. When I pressed them, they shattered their own cores and killed themselves. After I recover, I'll trap a suitable monster here on the island and ask some questions." He coughed again. "If we want to cure Yue Chenqing of this poison, the more we know, the better."
"All right then," Gu Mang said decisively. "How about this? I have a slave collar around my neck, so I can't run away no matter what. You guys haven't yet recovered. Why don't I go grab a likely demon for you to interrogate?"
Murong Chuyi looked at him. "How kind. Why?"
Gu Mang smiled at Murong Chuyi. "I'm just looking out for myself. In exchange for helping save him, I would ask you sirs to do a kind deed. Do me a solid: don't tell anyone I've regained my memories once we return to the capital."
No one had expected this, and all three of them fell silent.
"Why are you looking at me like that?" Gu Mang gave the dagger one last twirl. With a flourish, the blade became a wisp of spiritual energy that sank back into his palm. "Is my request so strange?"
"Gu Mang," Jiang Yexue said, "this is the crime of lying to one's emperor."
Gu Mang smiled. He was antagonistic and cold to Mo Xi, but there was friendliness in his expression when he spoke to the others, "Sorry 'bout that, I know I'll be troubling you all. But I don't have much choice. If the rest of Chonghua knows I've recovered, I'll probably be sent back to Luomei Pavilion, and those with grudges will come swarming. And His Imperial Majesty too—he'll take me for black magic experiments and interrogate me about the Liao Kingdom's secrets."
Murong Chuyi's expression was cold as ice and snow as he asked, "Do you not deserve such treatment?"
"I'm not saying I don't," Gu Mang said shamelessly. "But can't I fear that fate, at least? Who'd want to spend their days waiting to get offed or get fucked…"
Murong Chuyi paled at such vulgarity. "You!"
Jiang Yexue tried to compromise. "If you don't want to return to Luomei Pavilion, we'll help keep you safe. But we can't hide this truth. You should declare Liao Kingdom secrets to Chonghua."
"I can't divulge anything," Gu Mang said. "I've forgotten."
No one spoke.
At the expressions on the faces of these three noble sirs, Gu Mang added earnestly, "Sorry, I've really forgotten."
Mo Xi watched Gu Mang across the fire. That organ in his chest hurt so horribly it seemed to pulse with resentment at its neglect. He closed his eyes, biting out each word. "Did you not regain your memories?"
"I didn't say I remembered everything," Gu Mang said. "I'm missing two souls. No matter what I do, I'll never recover completely."
Mo Xi nailed Gu Mang with a stare. Hatred and heartbreak were clear in his eyes, but he exerted all his will to keep his delicate features composed. "And how, exactly, did you lose those two souls?"
The smile on Gu Mang's face disappeared. After a time he said lightly, "Oh, this is also something I've forgotten."
Mo Xi said nothing.
"Don't look at me like that; I really don't know. Believe me or don't. If you don't, you could use the Soul-Recording Spell or Draught of Confession to torture me as you like; if you can get the truth out, I'll admit defeat."
Mo Xi turned away, his grip slowly tightening around his own knee. He didn't reply.
Murong Chuyi had remained cool and calm. Unswayed by emotion, he considered Gu Mang's words and returned to the topic at hand. "If you're afraid of harsh treatment upon our return, why not just kill us and escape?"
"Good question, gorgeous." Gu Mang chuckled with a thoughtful hand to his chin. "Cold and beautiful men certainly are hard to handle. Xihe-jun is one example, and Murong-xiansheng is another."
Murong Chuyi and Mo Xi greeted this statement with identical silences.
Gu Mang laughed, but his blue eyes swept across each of them in turn. "Let's see. It does seem like I have a reasonable chance of killing you all and escaping. Look—Jiang-xiong is disabled, and he's used up much too much of his spiritual energy. Murong-xiong doesn't seem to be at his best either—he must've been injured saving his nephew. This Yue Clan kiddo isn't even awake, so I could kill him more easily than I would a sparrow."
His gaze fell next upon Mo Xi. It was a fleeting glance, like a dragonfly skimming water, before he looked indifferently away. He crossed his arms and grinned. "My god, at this rate, it'd be more absurd if I didn't kill you all and run."
"So?" asked Murong Chuyi.
With a flick of his fingertip, Gu Mang summoned the dagger Yongye once more. He lunged forward without warning—but Murong Chuyi had been watching the whole time. He summoned a gleaming gold talisman and instantly raised a protective barrier.
Gu Mang looked at the barrier and spread his hands with a smile. "You see? It'll end up like this, won't it? If I tried to kill anyone, you guys would retaliate. Even if demonic qi gave me an advantage, my core is still broken, and I might still lose. Plus, I certainly wouldn't make it out unscathed, and when the noise alerts that bat lady, what then? Should I lie here and let her mold me like a clay figurine?"
Murong Chuyi stared at Gu Mang for a moment. The golden light at his fingertips slowly extinguished, and he turned to glance at the unconscious Yue Chenqing. "I'll trust you this once. If you help us, I won't speak of your condition once we leave."
Gu Mang smiled. "Your word alone won't do. Can you guarantee your cute little nephews' mouths will also stay sealed?" He paused, his fluid gaze finally landing on the silent Mo Xi. "And Xihe-jun's mouth…" Gu Mang ran his tongue over sharp incisors, his mannerisms retaining their wolfishness. His gaze was dark with secrets as he stared at Mo Xi's pale lips, his voice a low, syrupy murmur. "The most stubborn of all. Murongxiong, could you do me a favor and ask him the same question? See if he's willing to cooperate and keep those pretty lips of his…shut tight for me?"