Chapter 12: Mourning Shadow

As wide-eyed heads soared high and blood gushed forth, all noise came to a screeching halt. By now, the rank two Bearworms had recognized the superiority of Xinzi's Jeweled Dome and dared not keep hurling their vanguard at it. But before they could shift towards new prey, said prey's limp bodies were dropping on the frozen ground—too dead to rise again.

Dong Ling's jaw dropped, Xinzi's eyes arched up, but while the former's face shifted between grimaces of shock and horror, the latter ignored the brutality of the scene to pick up cold facts.

'She was faking it? H—oh, how careless of me...' Murdering all witnesses of Dong Ling's half-beast form made perfect sense. But considering the lapse between the disciples' recovery and their deaths, Dong Ling's maid had to have been awake and ready to strike for a while now. Worse, given Dong Ling's surprise, Xinzi wondered if from the start, the maid had been hiding her true abilities and was just biding her time to take Dong Hui down in one blow—the thought put a smile on his lips.

"Hateful! Zi Fengxiu, have you gone insane?! In broad daylight, how dare you murder fellow disciples?!" Her fists balled up, Dong Ling snapped at Zi Fengxiu, who'd been by her side for as long as she could remember—yet never displayed this level of ruthlessness.

'So it would be fine if she did it at night? Not like we have much light here…' The words hung on Xinzi's lips, but knowing that the time had passed for lousy jokes, he restrained himself. Contrary to what her unruly disposition might suggest, Dong Ling put loyalty on a high pedestal. Loyalty to the clan, loyalty to her emotions, loyalty to the sect. Loyalty in all things, really. Alas, ill-defined loyalties often led to self-contradictions.

Though she knew the consequences that news of her beast form would bring forth, Dong Ling never planned to murder these disciples. But at the same time, she had no plan, and could very well let them walk away scot-free. In what world would that work out?

"Young lady, the Dong-Zi secret isn't something that outsiders can afford to know. As the next master of the Spirit Formation hall, Abbot Xinzi is of a different breed and can be trusted with these secrets. But the others? Please forgive my lack of faith, but I would be surprised if over three of these disciples didn't sell the truth to our rival factions. The legacy of our ancestors will not collapse due to my softheartedness."

"You…" Dong Ling clenched her teeth. But to Zi Fengxiu's brutal yet honest words, she couldn't offer a coherent rebuttal. Of the seven states of Yanzhou, Dongli ranked second, largely due to the dominance of the White Immortal sect. Whereas other large sects of the region struggled to produce a handful of Nascent Soul powerhouses, the White Immortal sects counted them in the dozens. Better, several ancestors of the White Immortal sect served as high officials for the Yanzhou Hegemon. With such a deep background, across the Yanzhou province, few dared to offend the White Immortal sect. Alas, greatness most often breeds envy.

6,000 years ago, the Dong and Li Dao Companions, two Divine Transformation stage legends, founded Dongli and the White Immortal sect. By relying on their heaven-grade dual cultivation method, the Nine Paths of Yin and Yang, they minimized the importance of resources, amplified their disciples' talents, and produced experts at a rapid pace. However, no matter how fast of a dual cultivation method the Nine Paths of Yin and Yang was, it left the sect with one fatal flaw: weakness.

Cultivation speed alone cannot dominate the world. Battle power has the final say. All great clans and super sects possess unique skills that give their disciples a crushing advantage over the average cultivator of the same realm. The White Immortal sect didn't. Thus, after 5,000 years of fast production but shallow foundation, it degenerated into the top Dual Cauldron brothel of Yanzhou—a tool for super sects to increase their disciples' cultivation base. Unable to endure this state of affairs, the Li clan betrayed the sect, trading the Nine Paths of Yin and Yang with a secret faction for a formidable battle skill. With it as their foundation, they founded the Soaring Crane mountain and took over the leadership of Dongli.

Never did they expect that only three years afterward, the Zi clan would migrate to Dongli, join the White Immortal sect, and with that very same Nine Path of Yin and Yang as the starting point, create a succession of marvelous skills—including the overbearing Yin-Yang Sword Array.

Subsequently, the White Immortal sect swept aside all its rivals, even abusing the Soaring Crane mountain to near extinction. Only the odd interference of the Yanzhou Hegemon enabled them to survive. Now, many across Yanzhou crave the Dong-Zi heritage. So while alone, the Soaring Crane mountain was no match for the White Immortal sect, should they ever get their hands on the Dong-Zi secret, a coalition would drop on Dongli and erase the White Immortals from the world's surface.

Neither the Dong nor Zi clansmen could afford any carelessness. Dong Ling knew that well enough, and therefore couldn't argue against Zi Fengxiu's ruthlessness.

"The Golden Lotus be praised, Zi Fengxiu, my humble self dares not blame you for your faithlessness, but have you for once considered that by giving these fellow disciples your trust, you'd earn their loyalty in return? Alas, while my humble self understands the thoughts that drove you to this sinful deed, I cannot help but sigh at this tragedy. Are you guilty? Or is the world? Alas…who am I to say?" A deep sigh followed Xinzi's words, after which a gap narrow enough to let Fengxiu pass opened in the Jeweled Dome Array.

Again, the words rang oddly false in Dong Ling's ears, but Zi Fengxiu, who had a completely different view of the monk, relaxed. "Thank you, abbot, for your understanding. To protect my clan and young lady, I had no other choice." Zi Fengxiu bowed at Xinzi and stepped past the gap he opened to let her in.

However, as soon as she reached Dong Ling's side, Zi Fengxiu's aura converged at her sword's tip, and she lunged at Xinzi! The unprepared monk barely had the time to shift towards the incoming blow that a shadow rose at his back to hack at his neck!

The two blows connected with Xinzi's chest and neck. But as Zi Fengxiu smiled at her successful cleanup, runic seals flashed on Xinzi's chest—unleashing a dazzling force that blocked and returned Zi Fengxiu's blow with twice the force!

*BANG*

Zi Fengxiu's body and shadow flew back. The former fell between rows of spinning jewels that crushed her into a puddle of meat and gore. The latter had better luck, and despite the true body's gruesome destruction—still lingered on the ground.

'Foolish...oh so foolish.' While his jaw fell and eyes blinked in a show of confusion, Xinzi's voice echoed in Zi Fengxiu's perishing soul.

'A Retribution Seal. You...set me up?'

''The legacy of our ancestors will not collapse due to my softheartedness.' How can the author of such words accept me so readily?

You tried to lower my guard by treating me as one of your own but failed to consider that I'd see through your trick and make a preemptive move. The good thing about the Dong Lings of the world is that you can trust them unconditionally. You, however, are a walking bottle of arsenic. I'd be damned if I let you breathe beside me. Especially when I can recognize your Tenebrous Form Secret. Not bad for someone who didn't receive the complete inheritance of the Mourning Shadow hall.'

Unlike Dong Ling who couldn't even recognize Zi Fengxiu's skill, Xinzi could tell that the shadow was in fact her soul and not only had complete control over the body, but could subsist without—albeit for a short time. That said, if she cultivated the complete Tenebrous Form, Zi Fengxiu could turn her shadow soul into an independent lifeform.

Not even the Dong clan's direct descendants could identify the Tenebrous Form Secret. That Xinzi could, made Zi Fengxiu realize that she'd kicked an iron sheet.

'You are from…no wonder...no wonder.' Zi Fengxiu saw through Xinzi's true identity, but before she could warn her young lady, her Shadow Soul collapsed into dark light particles—forever banned from the Reincarnation Cycle.

Too dazed to react, Dong Ling lost her balance and dropped onto her knees, leaving Xinzi to mourn Zi Fengxiu's fall.

"A pity! A loss! A tragedy!"