The Temple of Rain stood on one of the peaks of the great mountain ranges of Southern Nan. Surrounded by tall blue pines, it was submerged in billowing thick fog, as if standing on the border between heaven and earth. Streams of water from a waterfall flowed into the temple's lakes. They irrigated the sacred ground and then fell again from the steep cliffs, disappearing into their bottomless abyss.
Its walls – blue as the firmament – were adorned with yellow paper lanterns that cast golden shadows on the ground. The pointed roofs of the floors were covered with tile shingles shaped like droplets of water. These shingles were held aloft on sturdy shoulders by thick blue columns faced with marble chips in the form of long, twisting fish.
The faint sound of a bell could be heard from within the temple. It heralded the beginning of the morning services.
Yang Yulan stood at the entrance to the inner courtyard, waiting for the event to begin. According to the plot, today was meant to be the starting point for the heroine's future adventures. That Saturday morning, the Empress was making another attempt to improve relations between Yang Jinlong and Shin Zuzhou, and she invited them both to the temple for the Saturday service. The Second Prince, of course, did not comply with his mother's wishes and brought his beloved with him, greatly disappointing his mother. But that was not the most important thing.
The thing was that on this very day, demons would attack the temple and slaughter all the clergy. Mei Baijie would witness the full horror of the events and feel guilty for her helplessness. She would also notice that the medallion with the stone from the magical lake, which had once helped the prince defeat the demon armies and which had soon been gifted to her, would begin to glow and guide her to specific places. These places were sacred and held special relics that could help in the fight against the remnants of the demon race. There were three items in total: the Mirror of Regrets, the Blood Sword of the Forgotten Warrior, and the cards of the wandering fortune-teller.
In addition, at this point, the heroine would begin to suspect the villainess of conspiring with the demons. During the attack on the temple, Shin Zuzhou would disappear for a time and then reappear without a single scratch. She would explain this by saying that she had managed to hide in one of the rooms.
All these romantic dramas, plot twists, and adventures no longer concerned Yang Yulan much. She was only concerned about one significant issue. She could not bear the thought that the blood of innocent people would be shed so that the heroine could begin her journey. After all, to push her towards the idea that it was time to destroy the demons, it was not necessary to kill so many people. This thought had been circling in the girl's head since yesterday, and so, having prepared thoroughly and armed herself, she decided to do everything in her power to minimize the number of victims. What difference did it make whether this world was real or fictional? As long as she could save people, she would do it. Otherwise, what was the point of her staying in this world?
Approaching the gate, Yang Yulan opened the heavy doors and entered. The enormous hall was soaked in the scent of incense and the light of lanterns. A couple of priests stood at the entrance, blessing the newly arrived travelers with holy water.
There was still some time before the heroes arrived, so Yang Yulan walked through the corridors inscribed with images of the great Goddess of Rain – the main goddess of the southern lands. Her dress fluttered in the wind, and a silver mirror rested in her hands. She represented a perfect image, pure, radiant. Beneath her feet, writhing in pain, lay a strange creature. It had red skin, long black hair reaching half its body, and tattoos covering every part of its elongated form.
«Beautiful, isn't she?»
Yang Yulan twitched at the sudden sound. A priest had been standing beside her for some time. His face was hidden beneath a long hood. At first, Yang Yulan didn't understand who he was talking about, but it wasn't hard to guess.
«I wouldn't use the word 'beautiful' for a goddess.»
«Nevertheless, she is beautiful,» the man's voice was hoarse and muffled, as if weary of all life's burdens. «My daughter used to constantly boast that the goddess looked like her mother.»
«You were married?» Yang Yulan was surprised. «Forgive me if it's none of my business, but I've heard that servants of the goddess are not allowed to have contact with women, and sometimes they are even forbidden to look at them.»
«That's correct, I broke my vow. I betrayed the goddess by marrying a woman and raising a daughter. But that is not my only transgression.»
Yang Yulan was surprised by this priest's talkativeness. Were they allowed to so casually talk about their lives and dark secrets?
«Was there something else?»
«I stole, I harmed, I spread terror. I believed I was doing the right thing because it was all for my daughter. But in the end, the goddess punished me. She took away everything most precious. Now I have only one destiny – to seek repentance in this temple.»
«Why are you telling me all this?»
«You once took an interest in my fate. I decided I should explain myself fully so you wouldn't think I'm such a bad person. I still have many things left to do in this world. You are just one of my regrets.»
«Have we met before?»
Hearing the question, the priest reached for his hood with his old, reddened hands and revealed his face. The sight that greeted Yang Yulan made her freeze in horror. The man's entire face was riddled with burn scars and dried, rotting flesh. Despite the man's disfigured appearance, Yang Yulan immediately recognized the person standing before her. It was Tai Ji. The man from the bandit camp who had once helped her escape. The girl had been sure he had perished in the fire caused by the villainess.
«You survived.»
«Few survived that day. But I was unlucky...» He paused for a while, processing his words, then continued. «I didn't expect to see you here, healthy and energetic. I think... no, I'm sure the goddess brought you here so I could repent before you.»
Yang Yulan couldn't answer. Her thoughts drifted back to memories of that day, of that terrible fire. Yes, they were bandits, but there could have been many among them who were in the same situation as Tai Ji.
«Perhaps you cannot forgive me for everything I and my comrades have done, but I must say I am sincerely sorry for my actions.»
«You have nothing to apologize for,» Yang Yulan answered, finally snapping out of her trance. «You tried to save me.»
«But I was originally one of those who chained you up.»
Yang Yulan did not respond to these words. She didn't know how to react or what to say. But one thing she knew for sure: she absolutely had to save Tai Ji this time.
***
The palanquins carrying the imperial family stopped at the entrance to the temple, and from behind the silk curtains emerged the figures of the Empress and Princess Shin Zuzhou. Guards and close associates met them there. The Second Prince was late.
«I can't believe he's late on such a day. At this rate, he will not only disgrace our family but also bring eternal drought upon our lands.»
«Oh, come now, Your Highness,» Shin Zuzhou gently reassured the older woman. «I'm sure the Second Prince had no intention of angering you. Perhaps there were difficulties on the road. The temple is in such a remote place, after all.»
The Empress nodded. But she seemed to have let the princess's words go in one ear and out the other, thinking about something else.
«I so want you two to finally get along. You can't imagine how worried I am about the current state of affairs. Please try your best today. My son will surely bring that wretch with him again today. So I will distract her, pretending I want to get to know her better– Yang Jinlong won't be able to object for long – and in the meantime, you can talk to him, seduce him.»
The Empress examined the princess from head to toe, analyzing her appearance. Shin Zuzhou looked, as usual, strict and balanced. An understated black dress, slightly wavy hair tied in a low bun, and long silver earrings. Despite her face, white as if carved from marble, and her thin red lips, the girl's beauty did not seem, to the Empress, to match male ideals.
«You should look more charming. Look at that wretched girl the prince brought with him. Despite her status, she attracts men's gazes. Don't take offense, I say this as a mother to a daughter, but you rather repel men. Come here.»
Ignoring the rising nausea, Shin Zuzhou approached the Empress. She tied a pink floral sash around her waist.
«What a ridiculous thing» the princess thought to herself, but aloud she only said:
«Thank you, Your Highness.»
When the prince finally arrived, the sacred ritual was already preparing to begin. As the Empress had expected, Yang Jinlong did not come alone. But for this event, she and the princess had a plan. So, after half an hour of greetings and exchanging pleasantries, Yang Jinlong entered the temple together with Shin Zuzhou. Later, the guards and the Empress joined them.
The Northern Princess could not hold the Second Prince's attention for long. After several futile attempts to talk to him, she realized that the man was absolutely uninterested in communicating with her. They walked in complete silence for some time until they heard screams from the next room. It was Mei Baijie's voice.
The demons attacked completely unexpectedly. There were many of them, and they were ready to kill everyone in their path. Hearing the cry for help, Yang Jinlong took off and, leaving the girl walking with him, ran alone to save his beloved.
Yang Yulan was not idle either. Knowing perfectly well that the prince would be able to save the Empress and the heroine anyway, she hid on the second floor near the main entrance to the temple and shot arrows at the creatures coming to kill, protecting the clergy. Her first encounter with demons greatly frightened the girl. Red skin, sharp teeth, and black, bottomless eyes. It all seemed less like reality and more like a nightmare.
The arrows did not seriously wound the demonic creatures; they continued to move calmly even after being shot in the head. Yang Yulan knew she couldn't do much, so her main strategy was to hide the priests during the attack and provide them with escape routes by any means possible.
After unsuccessful attempts to fight back with ordinary arrows, Yang Yulan resorted to using whatever objects were at hand. Vases, paintings, even wooden boards. But there were too many of them. They filled the entire temple like a swarm of ants. Gradually, Yang Yulan began to panic. Her hands treacherously trembled, her legs turned to jelly.
Yang Yulan watched in horror as innocent people fell dead one after another before her eyes. Before everything happened, she had been sure she was mentally prepared for what was going to happen in this temple. But it turned out otherwise.
«It's useless, it's all useless!» was all she could repeat to herself, clutching her head.
While the girl was trying to pull herself together from the shock, some demons had already sneaked into the rooms on the second floor. More screams were heard. One of the voices was familiar to her. This instantly sobered her up. Barely moving her limbs, stiff with fear, she rushed to the room where she had prematurely brought everyone who had believed her warnings about the impending invasion.
Blood flowed like a river, and the air filled with the vile smell of copper. Walls collapsed, and floors were stained scarlet. The temple servants tried to fight back with holy water and prayers, but all attempts were futile. There were too many attackers.
Completely scratched by clawed fingers, Yang Yulan broke through to the still-living familiar priest and shielded him with her back. There was little time. The demons had already slaughtered the remaining people and now turned their attention to them. The girl knew she couldn't escape, but she wasn't afraid of death. The only thing she worried about at that moment was the life of the familiar bandit.
«I'll distract them, and you wait for the right moment and run, okay?»
Hearing no answer, Yang Yulan turned around in fright. Tai Ji had lost consciousness and fallen to the floor.
While the girl was distracted, one of the demons rushed ahead of the others and lunged at her.
An explosion was heard in the next room. The demon froze in mid-air and burst into black flames. The next second, its body disintegrated into dust. The other demons, seeing what had happened, threw themselves as one at the person who had just arrived. But these brave creatures were also turned to ash.
Sensing serious danger, the remaining demons fled from the room and ran away. Yang Yulan was silent.
She glanced at her savior. Shin Zuzhou, covered from head to toe in bright red blood, stood directly in front of her with an indifferent expression.
«I leave you alone for one moment, and you get yourself into trouble again.»
The princess nodded towards the unconscious man lying on the floor.
«Is he alive?»
Yang Yulan flinched and, realizing what had happened, ran to Tai Ji. Placing her hands on his neck, she breathed a sigh of relief. A pulse was there.
«What weak creatures humans are. Not a single wound on him, yet he lies half-dead.»
Yang Yulan looked at the villainess in disbelief. Why had she helped her? Why had she killed her own comrades for this? Why had they attacked her in the first place? Wasn't she their leader?
«Why did you attack the temple?» Yang Yulan asked.
«We?»
«Yes. You and your henchman.»
Shin Zuzhou stood in a daze for a moment, then burst into loud laughter.
«Why do you laugh as if it's not true?»
Shin Zuzhou did not answer her questions. She decided not to bother herself with excuses. Let the girl think whatever she wanted. And Yang Yulan did indeed think. She thought so much that her mind short-circuited.
«Hurry up and get out of here. They won't stop until they find what they came for.»
«What are they looking for?» Yang Yulan didn't understand.
Shin Zuzhou pulled an old, tattered scroll from her sleeve.
«This.»
«A scroll? What do they need it for?»
«With it, they can finally restore their former power. And destroy the world as a bonus.»
Yang Yulan was confused. How did the villainess know about this? Why had she taken the scroll? What were her motives?
For some reason, the last words of the villainess before her execution echoed in Yang Yulan's head: «You will all regret this...» At this moment, for reasons she couldn't explain, a crazy guess formed in Yang Yulan's mind: What if those words weren't just an ordinary curse?