162 First, Stop the Bleeding

Feng Ming winced as he held a large chunk of ice against his cheek. The blue blotch was fading quickly due to a healing salve he had applied, but the pain hurt him less than the scolding words his father had said.

It's not that I don't care about the family, Feng Ming thought, it's that I'm a prisoner in my own home.

"Do you really think I have enough influence in the military to change your situation?" Wang Jun said. "Your father is in the upper echelons of the military—either he or the crown prince would have to deploy you. Otherwise you'll be stuck in this city until you die of old age."

The five-fire chicken, a delicacy unique to the Song Kingdom, dripped bloody where Wang Jun had cut into it. It was the only fowl in the continent that could be eaten rare with little to no risk.

"I'm not asking you to get me deployed," Feng Ming said. "I just want you to get Marshal Yong to ask for my assistance in the south. Maybe if I misbehave enough inside the city, my father will be forced to deliver me himself."

"Fair enough," Wang Jun said. "How has the city been treating you otherwise?"

"Good enough." Feng Ming shrugged. "I've made some friends here and there. Sometimes I drink and gamble with them. Though gambling isn't exactly possible anymore, not since the underground arena was shut down. By the way, where is Cha Ming? Did you scare him away?"

"He's out on a mission," Wang Jun replied. "It's best if you don't know what it's about."

Feng Ming shrugged. "Do let him know that he has some competition on the way. I heard the crown prince's men talking about it. All I know is that it's a professional from Quicksilver."

Wang Jun frowned. "Did you happen to catch what kind of profession or his grade?" Feng Ming shook his head. "I'll keep that in mind when negotiating."

Their meal passed by uneventfully. When every dish was finished, Wang Jun created a portal on the wall. "Would you like a lift anywhere?"

"No, thanks," Feng Ming said, waving him away. "It's not like I have anything important to do anyhow."

Meanwhile, the gears in his mind were turning. How much chaos do I have to cause to get kicked out of the city? he thought.

Since the events at the arena, he'd conveniently found damning evidence of financial corruption by three of the crown prince's ministers. In addition, he'd found one of the crown prince's wives cheating on him. He thought that would be the straw that broke the camel's back, but instead it came back to hit him in the face. Literally.

***

In his boredom, Feng Ming walked around the city until he got to the palace gates. While the gardens were off-limits, the walkway beside the thin metal fences was not. Their magical formations protected the gardens while leaving the beautiful sight revealed to the public. Walking near the palace walls was the preferred activity of most couples in Songjing.

As he walked, Feng Ming saw many familiar sights. He saw familiar gardeners tending familiar trees he had climbed as a child, and a familiar pond where he'd gone swimming without permission. By the pond, he saw a familiar princess. She sat there with a dispirited expression that was much more sullen than the pouting he'd seen as a child.

As he reached the end of the walkway and the entrance to the palace, Feng Ming saw a pale black-clothed man resting by a tree. The man looked at him lazily with piercing red pupils. While most people would give him either a favorable or unfavorable feeling, the man gave off a neutral vibe.

Is that Zhou Li? Feng Ming thought. Why does he seem so different than how Cha Ming and Wang Jun describe him? Why does he seem so peaceful?

The man closed his eyes, and Feng Ming continued. He passed the guards and walked down main street and back to Central Square.

Save for the odd theft or raised voice, the afternoon passed by quietly. Feng Ming spent it sipping hot baiju on an open patio. He sat there until the sun set, and a familiar tingling finally reappeared. His fingers twitched as he looked around for the source of the disturbance. He finally found it in the form of a black cloak, which disappeared around the corner of an alley.

Feng Ming paid his tab and walked toward the inconspicuous alley. As he walked into the dark passage, he noticed beggars and street urchins going to bed while burglars and thieves exited their familiar hovels. He soon turned a corner in the alley, where he caught yet another flicker of black in the distance.

Feng Ming and the mysterious individual took many turns as they walked through the winding passageways behind the businesses in Central Square. Before long, they arrived at a small restaurant. Feng Ming walked in and saw a black-cloaked man sitting at one of the six tables. The restaurant was otherwise deserted, save for its owner, who began cooking as soon as he saw them.

"He only knows how to cook one dish," the mysterious man said. "Stir-fried beef with shredded potato. It gives me a very homely feeling."

The man then pulled back his cloak, revealing a pale, black-haired man with red pupils. "Are you bored of city life yet?" Zhou Li said.

The owner arrived at their table and placed two cups in front of them. One contained red wine and the other steaming-hot baiju.

"I thought my recent activities made that quite clear," Feng Ming said as he examined the mysterious man. "I'm hoping they'll let me go after I get a few more people arrested."

"I'm afraid it's not that simple," Zhou Li said. "Your father is a very powerful figure, and very difficult to ignore. You'd need to cause a devastating amount of trouble for the crown prince for him to even consider sending you out."

"I suppose you have a suggestion?" Feng Ming said.

"As a matter a fact, I do," Zhou Li said. "Believe it or not, I want you out of this city as much as you do. You're killing my family's businesses, and I want to cut my losses. Though I doubt you would trust me. I'm sure you've heard many things about me from your friends."

"Something along the lines of being evil incarnate," Feng Ming said. "Are you going to tell me it was all a misunderstanding and that I should be careful who I make friends with?"

"Heavens, no," Zhou Li said. "They know what I did, but my motives are misunderstood. Has it ever occurred to you that I might have legitimate reasons to contract people from the Obsidian Syndicate?"

"And what might that be?" Feng Ming asked.

"The prince asked me to," Zhou Li said. "Plain and simple." Feng Ming frowned as he mulled over this statement. A steaming plate of stir-fried beef and shredded potato was placed in front of him. He hesitated slightly before taking a bite.

"This is very good," Feng Ming said. "It's much better than all those 'delicacies' in the city."

"Those have never suited my palate," Zhou Li said as he ate. "If my health was better, I'd eat here more often. In any case, it was Prince Tian who asked me to hire the Obsidian Syndicate. He's the one who footed the bill. All I did was place the order and muddle karma. Unfortunately for him, the Alabaster Group interfered once they found out, just like I'd warned him."

"A plausible explanation, but why should I care?" Feng Ming said. "I have no interest in your games."

"For your freedom, of course," Zhou Li said. "I've come here to share some information with you. If you act on it, it will damage the crown prince enough for him to send you on your way. You'll even get to choose where you go."

"Excuse me?" Feng Ming said, aghast.

"Ironic, isn't it," Zhou Li said. "To tell you the truth, I'm only supporting the crown prince for my sister. But I don't approve of his methods. The collusion with devils and evil spirits is more than I can stomach. In four weeks, there will be a secret auction in Songjing. They'll be selling sin-tainted items, Sin Crystals, and even slaves. I want you to go to the basement of this location and crash their party. If you play your cards right, you'll be able to catch at least half a dozen generals who report directly to the crown prince." Zhou Li slipped a small piece of paper on the table.

"And why exactly should I believe you?" Feng Ming asked.

"You shouldn't," Zhou Li stated. "You'll trust in your friend Wang Jun's abilities. He'll be able to confirm what I've said with his auguries. I have faith in his abilities, despite our various misunderstandings."

Feng Ming thought for a moment before pocketing the piece of paper. "You're playing a dangerous game," he said.

Zhou Li shrugged as he stood up. "And so are you. We do what we must, and the world cares little for our personal wishes. You're just like me—adrift on the river of fate, trusting that it will take you in the right direction. Unfortunately, fate only cares about the result. It doesn't care whether ants like us live or die."

Feng Ming sat at his seat brooding as Zhou Li left through the front door. The man gave off a neutral vibe, which was strange. That meant he wasn't a saint, but neither was he a devil. Sighing, he crumpled the paper without looking and tossed it at an open fireplace that was crackling by a small bar.

To his surprise, the crumpled ball shifted strangely in the air and halted just before the fire. Frowning, he picked up the paper and tried tossing it again, this time more slowly. Strangely, his hand twitched as he tried to throw it and it hit the side of the fireplace. It landed on the floor unburnt.

"Third time's the charm," he muttered. He tossed it again. This time, it rolled out of the fireplace with several small fires slowly burning the crumpled paper. The flames spread, and before long, over eight tenths of the paper had burned.

"Let me get that," a voice said beside him. The owner, who had been sitting at the bar, stamped the paper out with his foot. Most of the paper crumbled to ashes, leaving only a small piece unburnt.

Curious, Feng Ming picked up the small piece of paper. He unfolded it, revealing a small piece of white paper covered in black ink. Four characters were still intact on the sheet of paper, despite the heavy burning. They spelled out the name of an establishment, the Honey Badger Inn.

***

Huxian, Cha Ming, and an old doctor walked off Silverwing's large body just outside Songjing.

"Who would have thought that flying could be so fun!" Li Yin exclaimed.

Cha Ming could only admire the man's courage. The slightest mistake in the journey could have caused him to drop off the large bird and fall to his doom.

"We should get going," Cha Ming said to the group. "We lost a lot of time on this trip, and the king could die at any moment." Huxian, Silverwing, and Lei Jiang donned their beast collars while Li Yin prepared himself mentally for entering the city.

They were greeted politely at the gates. "I hope your trip was fruitful," a guard said. "No need to reregister your contract beasts, Master Du. We already have their information and only require you to update it once their realms change."

"Much obliged," Cha Ming said, laughing. "This is my senior Li Yin. He'll be entering the city with me today."

"Not a problem," the guard said, waving them through. "Any friend of yours is a friend of mine."

"They seem to respect you an awful lot," Li Yin said after they'd walked a few blocks. "Do you hold some sort of political position in the Song Kingdom?"

"Nothing so important," Cha Ming said. "I am dual formation and talisman master. It affords me a certain degree of respect. Even spirit doctors need to watch their words around me."

As they approached Central Square, Li Yin admired the local architecture while Cha Ming observed newly built structures. Several buildings owned by Prince Tian's faction had been demolished and reconstructed in a very short timeframe. They now bore a semblance to the many large buildings in Quicksilver. The buildings contained earth-based runes to bolster their strength and defense. Each of these storefronts were now veritable fortresses.

Did a geomancer arrive in the city? Cha Ming thought.

To test his hypothesis, he walked up to one of these new buildings and placed his hand on it. His resplendent force mixed with his earth qi and examined the building's structure in finer detail. Smaller runes aside, he detected 108 nodes throughout the building. There was only one possibility for such a configuration: A peak master geomancer had been brought in. This level of craftmanship wasn't something that Cha Ming could match.

"Let's go to the Jade Bamboo Conglomerate first," Cha Ming said to his companions. "Wang Jun will want to hear about this as soon as possible."

***

An incense time later, they were sitting in Wang Jun's office. Wang Jun and Elder Bai were finishing up some urgent business while employees filed in with many snacks and beverages. No tea was brewed, which was a first, given Wang Jun's obsession with the beverage.

"Sorry about that," Wang Jun said, shooing Elder Bai away. "Some complications have popped up. Nothing unexpected, but they required urgent attention. Now, then, I presume that this gentleman is the Dr. Li you spoke so highly of?"

"Hardly a doctor," Li Yin said. "My license was revoked. Now I consider myself a medical researcher who happens to treat people occasionally. It ruffles less feathers."

"It's the results that matter, and conventional medicine is not affecting the king in the slightest," Wang Jun said. "Did Cha Ming brief you on his condition?"

"He did," Li Yin said. "Having one's qi restrained will undoubtedly affect health functions. I'm helpless to treat this, but delaying the inevitable… that's possible. I'll need Cha Ming's help, however. He's the only one I can trust with important matters like these."

Cha Ming's heart warmed at the recommendation.

"The king's health is a high-priority matter," Wang Jun said. "How soon can you start?"

"The sooner the better," Li Yin said. "Seconds matter."

"Unfortunately, we'll have to wait until a few hours after nightfall," Wang Jun said. "The royal physician will be done with his treatments by then and will leave the king to rest for a few hours."

"Then I'll make the necessary preparations," Li Yin said. "Is there anywhere where I can procure herbal or alchemical ingredients? And someone to blend them? Preferably not a physician's shop."

"That's easy to arrange," Wang Jun said. "Cha Ming recently recruited an alchemist. He arrived just yesterday, and he's located in this building. He brought a very large amount of alchemical supplies with him to kickstart a competing Alchemists Association. He should have what you need." Then he rang one of the many bells on his desk. A younger man entered the room immediately. "Su Ming, please take them to the alchemist and instruct their workshop that I will foot the bill for anything they need."

"Before we leave, I thought you should know that the crown prince has recruited a geomancer," Cha Ming said.

"Feng Ming hinted at that, and new buildings have been popping up all over the city," Wang Jun said wryly. "I'd be a fool if I couldn't connect the dots."

"Then did you know that it was a peak master geomancer?" Cha Ming asked.

Wang Jun frowned. "That I didn't know." He then sighed. "Then there's nothing we can do about it. We're outgunned, and it will take you at least a year to reach the peak of foundation establishment. Don't worry yourself about these things; I'll find a way to deal with it. I always do."

***

A shadowy door opened in the king's dimly lit chamber. Cha Ming, Wang Jun, the third prince, and Li Yin walked out from it and toward the king's bed. The dying man was much thinner than before, and his life force much dimmer.

"Who is this?" a voice said from above the king's bed.

"It's a fifth opinion," Prince Lei said. "Cha Ming found some help and has someone else working on a cure to the king's poison."

"Very well," the king's protector said. "Same rules as before, but this time, I'll have your head if anything happens."

Cha Ming immediately approached the bed and laid down a healing formation. Then he projected the situation to Li Yin. "See here, how the healing runes disintegrate on contact? That's the effect of the venom. I have someone else working on that issue, so you don't need to worry about it. However, as you can see, his blood toxicity is extremely high. He's being poisoned to death, and if his body hadn't been strengthened by his core-formation cultivation base, he would already be dead."

"Interesting," Li Yin said. "Can you magnify a cross section of the kidney? I want to inspect the cause of its malfunction."

Cha Ming shifted the formation's focus. The many interlinked capillaries and fibrous exchange centers were brought up on the projection screen. To Cha Ming, it looked like a perfectly normal kidney, albeit one that ran much slower than it should. It didn't appear damaged in any way.

"There is nothing medically wrong with this kidney," Li Yin concluded. "It's running slowly, but it must be due to some other reason. The qi-restraining venom you described doesn't have this power."

Cha Ming frowned. "Then how can we cure him?"

"We can only take it one step at a time," Li Yin said. "Once the venom is cured, we can inspect the situation further. For now, we need to reduce the strain on his body so that he can recover some energy." Li Yin then took out a small storage vial from his coat pocket. It was a cooled storage treasure which carried a solution Li Yin had invented, the blood-plasma solution. "Do you remember our discussion about semipermeable membranes? I want you to build one that won't let blood pass."

"Of course," Cha Ming said. "Prince Lei, we'll be purifying the king's blood, but for this, we need to take it out of his body a little at a time. Would you be so kind as to remove his bandage?"

Prince Lei frowned but did as he was told. There was no response from the king's protectors. Soon a small dripping wound appeared. Cha Ming quickly used his resplendent force to quell the bleeding. Then he took out the Clear Sky Brush and began painting a tiny but complex structure. To ensure success, he magnified it with the healing formation and precisely controlled his every brushstroke. A thin, clear membrane began to take shape.

Cha Ming flicked his finger and willed over a droplet of blood. The cells were misshapen and clearly unhealthy. He pushed it against the membrane, which gave way to it.

"Too big," he muttered. He willed his qi to contract, and the pores in the tiny matrix tightened. Then he used much broader brushstrokes to expand the existing structure.

Cha Ming produced a thin, clothlike sheet of unknown materials that spread out for fifty feet before doubling back. He rolled the one-inch sheet into a tube less than an eight of an inch wide. Then he created a much thicker clear sheet. This time, he didn't bother magnifying it. He wrapped it around the inner tube and filled the gap with baffles to compartmentalize flow.

"Now fill the membrane with the plasma," Li Yin said. He handed him the vial, which contained a clear fluid. Cha Ming filled both the inner and outer walls with the clear liquid. "You know what to do next," Li Yin said.

Cha Ming nodded and directed the inner tube, which was now full of fluid, to the tiny wound on the king's body. He used his qi to form a seal. The king's blood began displacing the clear fluid, which Cha Ming dumped into an empty vial. This continued until the entire inner tube was filled with blood. "My apologies, Prince Lei, but I'll need to create another wound on his body."

Prince Lei sighed but waved for him to continue. With so much blood having left his father's body, he was committed to this treatment method. Cha Ming went ahead and made a small incision right next to the original one. He used his resplendent force to separate the inflow and outflow of blood. Then he willed the blood in the king's body to circulate.

After the first incense time, there was very little change. However, after a half hour, the clear fluid in the outer wall began to change color. It turned more and more yellow as increasing amounts of impurities were ejected from the king's blood. Cha Ming wondered how it was even possible for Li Yin to think of dialysis, but he had rolled with it and used his own knowledge from his engineering days to suggest the counter-current extraction method.

Li Yin's original plan had also involved the use of sheep intestines and the like. Cha Ming, with his handy creation qi, would have none of this. Li Yin had readily agreed to each of his proposed improvements.

Two hours later, the tube nearest to the incoming blood was filled with yellow and red-colored impurities, while the plasma fluid closest to where the blood returned was slightly yellow.

"That's about it for today," Li Yin said. "You can return his blood. We need to clean his blood every three days at the latest. The lack of impurities will allow his body to heal and recover some energy. With any luck, that's all we'll need to do."

Cha Ming finished squeezing the remaining blood back into the king's body. The man's unhealthy red blood cells concerned him, but there was nothing they could do for now. He speculated that Li Yin's next method involved treating the blood. Shaking his head, he used fire qi to burn the contaminated dialysis equipment.

"I'll make a few sets in the near future," Cha Ming said. "I'd hate to be responsible for an infection due to improper cleaning."

Li Yin nodded. He was a big fan of using sterile equipment.

"We should leave," said Wang Jun, who had been standing to the side. He materialized a shadowy door and ushered the small crowd out of the room. Cha Ming hastily tied the bandage before leaving.

The king's chamber door opened just as the shadowy door vanished.

***

Princess Guo quietly entered her father's chambers like she always did. While her siblings were out fighting each other and politicking, she spent her time keeping her father company. She wrinkled her nose as a light, ashy smell came and went.

"So strange," she muttered. Her eyes wandered to the hastily tied bandage.

Song Guo sighed. "Why does he always do such a sloppy job in tying even simple bandages? How can doctors be so lacking when it comes to such simple things?" She unwrapped the bandage and carefully wiped away the blood before refastening it.

"What's this?" she whispered as she gently touched a new wound that had appeared on her father's arm. It hadn't been there yesterday when she'd replaced the bandage. "Is the royal doctor performing extra treatments without telling me?" She looked at her father doubtfully. He looked just as sickly as before. "Well, it doesn't matter what he tries, as long as he hasn't given up."

She took out a wet cloth and carefully washed her father's face. As she washed, she couldn't help but see the shadow of a smile forming on his sickly lips.

"It must be my imagination again," she muttered.