MO XI AND GU MANG looked out over a sunken area surrounded by dense forest. Crosses of petrified wood lined three sides, covered in chains and shackles—execution platforms. An enormous blood pool was carved out of the middle; within it, skeletons tangled like flotsam as centuries' worth of the dead rose and fell on the churn of its bloody waves.
The fire bat tribe had built a pavilion that extended over the pool's surface, lit by temple lamps balanced on delicate stands, each gleaming brightly in the gloom of the night. The pavilion's construction was exquisite, but a closer inspection would make anyone nauseous—the ground that looked to be composed of fine sand and rounded cobblestones was in truth strewn with countless human teeth. As for those temple lamps, their stands were curving human spines and their bases human skulls… This pavilion was built from human bones.
Mo Xi stared in silent distaste.
"Look over there, in the middle!" Gu Mang exclaimed.
Mo Xi glanced over. In the center of this pavilion that was like hell on earth sat a beautiful woman who appeared around forty years old. She wore gauzy robes and splendid jewelry, with a gold and jade circlet resting atop her brow. Her aura was one of overwhelming luxury and poise; the other bat demons were like planets orbiting her star as they moved around her, trembling in fear as they waited on her whim.
"That must be Wuyan," Gu Mang muttered. "How strange. She doesn't look like the peerless beauty in the first legend, nor the old demon hag in the second. She seems like a pretty normal queen."
Mo Xi knew Gu Mang was referring to her looks and nothing else, because at that moment, a bat demon official in military uniform was kneeling at her feet. She was held down by two attendants, and half her face was covered in blood; one pointy bat ear had already been hacked off.
Wuyan twirled that ragged ear in her fingers, fiddling with it absentmindedly. As they watched, she dipped a finger into the oozing blood, painting it over her shining nails as if applying cinnabar stain. "You've searched all day and haven't found a thing," she said leisurely, still playing with the ear. "Instead, you allowed someone to kidnap this venerable one's medicine—Shunfeng-er, why should I let you live?"
The official was shaking. "Your Majesty… Your Majesty, have mercy…"
"This venerable one has shown more than enough mercy. You were in charge of guarding the pill room, yet this venerable one's most important source of blood has slipped through your fingers." Wuyan's tone was hard, her red eyes narrowed. "Do you know this is a crime punishable by death?"
The official trembled, unable to form words.
Wuyan raised her hand, fire blazing from her palm. In a blink, the angry flames burned the ear to ash.
"Attendants." "Here!"
Pinky delicately raised, Wuyan assessed her freshly painted nails then pointed a red-tipped finger at the official kneeling on the ground. "Shunfeng-er is incompetent, her mistake unpardonable. Throw her into the cauldron to be…hmm, boiled alive."
The cruelty of the punishment made both Gu Mang and Mo Xi blanch.
"Your Majesty! Your Majesty, spare me!" The official wailed hysterically. "I beg Your Majesty, let me redeem myself! I'll catch ARong and those little thieves who trespassed onto the island! Your Majesty—Your Majesty!"
Wuyan ignored her completely. The attendants dragged the official away, her desperate screams piercing the dark forest like claws, tearing the night apart.
It was a long time before they stopped.
Wuyan sighed. "Had this venerable one not been so compassionate for so many hundreds of years, we wouldn't be suffering such incompetence." She looked up and addressed another bat demon kneeling by the pillar. "Shunfeng-er's disciple?"
The bat demon squeaked in terror.
"Did you see how your shifu ended up?"
"I s-s-s-saw, saw it!"
Wuyan smiled thinly. "Do you want to end up like her?"
"N-n-no! I don't! Not at all!"
The bat queen's smile froze on her face. "Where's your gratitude, then? Shouldn't you make yourself scarce and start tracking down the trespassers with the other squads?"
"Yes, yes!" The disciple staggered to her feet and fled in abject terror.
Wuyan closed her eyes and leaned back against the soft cushions to rest. "A-Fang, come," she said with a wave of her hand. Her handmaiden A-Fang hurriedly stepped forward and bowed. "How many Xueling Pills are left in our stores?"
"Your Majesty, Miss Rongrong was sick the past few days, so her blood couldn't be used. Only two pills remain."
"Two pills…" Wuyan sighed. "In that case, I won't take one today. The yin energy in this blood pool is strong enough; I can delay it a short while."
"So that's how it is," Gu Mang said quietly.
Mo Xi turned to look at him.
"I was confused why Wuyan didn't personally track us down. Something so serious happened on her island, yet she only dispatched her subordinates with orders to kill us. Now it makes sense," said Gu Mang.
"Hm?"
"She probably damaged her vital energy with her reckless cultivation method. Now she has to take a Xueling Pill every day to relieve the pain. Without Rongrong, her source of medicine's been cut off, so she's conserving her remaining Xueling Pills until she gets Rongrong back. The next best thing is to stay by the blood pool instead of running about; its yin energy will minimize the damage to her body." Gu Mang prodded Mo Xi with his elbow. "Hey."
"What."
"Do you still have that life crystal showing Yue Chenqing's condition?"
"I do," replied Mo Xi. "What of it?"
"If the queen doesn't plan on personally seeking us out, Murongxiong should have no problem fending off other demons." Gu Mang paused. "We came to rescue Yue Chenqing, not to make trouble; we shouldn't fight if we don't have to. We have two objectives: lift the curse from Yue Chenqing and make it off of this island safely. Well then, why not get closer to the queen and monitor her movements? She's set a barrier over the island to stop us escaping—but every barrier has its weak point. I'm thinking if we study her, we can figure out where the barrier is weakest and escape when the time is right. Just keep an eye on Yue Chenqing's crystal to make sure he's okay."
Mo Xi thought it over and agreed. "But how are you going to get close to her?"
"About that—to be honest, sometimes the Liao Kingdom's spells are much more useful than Chonghua's." With a snap of his fingers, a tiny flame appeared at Gu Mang's fingertips. He tossed this flame toward the sky, where it instantly scattered into countless colorful butterflies that covered them both.
"You're casting a Liao Kingdom black magic spell on me?!" Mo Xi's voice was low but severe.
He was almost inaudible, but Gu Mang wasn't taking any risks. Reaching up, he gently tapped Mo Xi's lips. "Little beauty, why are you fussing? Listen to Gege and hush."
Mo Xi was rendered entirely speechless.
"Things like spells—if they're not hurting anyone, does it matter if they're from the Liao Kingdom or Chonghua? If they work, they work. Where did all these strict rules come from?"
More and more colorful butterflies gleaming with spiritual light amassed until the two of them were enveloped in a dazzling brilliance. Fortunately Gu Mang had set down a concealment spell beforehand, or they would have been instantly discovered by the fire bat patrols. The light glinting from the butterfly wings brightened to a blinding white before gradually winking out. Gu Mang chuckled. "Look at me now."
Standing before Mo Xi was a pointy-eared fire bat handmaiden with a scarlet mark on her brow, her face bright and pretty. Her slender, shining, blue eyes peered at him over a charmingly sloped nose, and her lips seemed to curve mischievously even when she wasn't smiling. This bat demon had her own distinct beauty, but upon closer examination, each of her features were unmistakably Gu Mang's.
Mo Xi was flabbergasted.
"Illusion Butterfly Transformation Technique. My own invention," Gu Mang said, producing a little mirror from his qiankun pouch. "Take a look at yourself."
Mo Xi grabbed his wrist and growled, "You changed my face into a servant girl's too?!"
Gu Mang only smiled and held up the bronze mirror. Mo Xi had no desire to see such a terrifying reflection; he shoved the mirror back down. Gu Mang held it up again, and Mo Xi again pushed it away. Finally, Gu Mang relented. "All right, I know your temper, so I transformed you into a guard. There's nothing for you to get mad over."
He held up the mirror once more.
Mo Xi shot a glance at his reflection and saw his features had indeed changed. He had gained a pair of pointy bat ears, and his skin had paled to a bone-white with lips as red as if he'd drunk blood. He glanced downward; his black clothes trimmed in gold had likewise transformed, turning into robes identical to those of the Bat Island guards.
Gu Mang patted his shoulder. "Let's go."
Low-level bat demons surrounded the blood pool pavilion, so the pair hid in the trees to await their opportunity. When a servant girl and a guard at last approached, they sprang out and struck them unconscious. Gu Mang dragged the two bat demons into a secluded corner and collected their waist tokens. "Put this on just to be safe." Gu Mang and Mo Xi each took a waist token. After concealing their human scents, they slipped into a group of bat demons as they passed by. Yet it wasn't long before a burly female bat demon noticed the newcomers and began to berate them. "Hold it! What's up with the two of you? Don't you have work to do?"
This female bat demon had a deeply wrinkled face and carried a whip. She thrust her chin toward Gu Mang and Mo Xi as she rebuked them with a hand on her hip. "Her Majesty is displeased tonight; don't you think you should wise up? Or do you want to be sucked dry and turned into leather?!"
With a twitch of her hand and a shake of her flabby white arm, her whip cracked toward them like a swift snake. As the long whip was about to strike Gu Mang's face, Mo Xi's hand shot out, catching the lash head-on.
Silence fell over the group. The rough whip had cut Mo Xi's palm open; blood seeped between his fingers.
"What are you doing?!" the bat shouted. "You dare defy me?!"
Mo Xi looked up. "You said it yourself: Her Majesty's mood is foul tonight. If she sees a servant girl with her face ruined for no reason and finds it inauspicious, I'm afraid we'll all be made into leather."
Among demons, the fire bat tribe was not known to be particularly intelligent. Faced with this explanation, the female demon stared blankly and came up with no retort. At last she snorted. "Fine, I'll let you off this time, but see if I don't get you the next…"
Gu Mang answered with a smile. "Jiejie is right. I understand; I'll never do it again."
This bat was quite slow-witted. She smugly snorted again and pulled back the leather whip, fastening it at her waist.
"Jiejie, actually, we're not idle," Gu Mang wheedled. "It's just that our companions were too fast. We were a step behind, and all the work was snatched away. Jiejie, if you're willing, give me something to do. I'd like to take some of your burden."
The bat demon looked him up and down. "Little lass, you have a silver tongue in that pretty mouth." She thought it over and waved her hand. "All right, go make up a plate of sweet melon and fresh fruit. Bring it to the inner courtyard." After giving her orders to Gu Mang, she turned to glare at Mo Xi. "And as for you. It's not your break time. Can't you keep it in your pants for one second? Stop trying to hook up with every female demon you see! Go patrol!"
Mo Xi had experienced his fair share of struggles; this wasn't the first time someone had ordered him around. But no one had ever ordered him around while daring to pelt him with words like "stop trying to hook up" and "keep it in your pants." His face was almost green as he glared back at the bat demon.
"What are you glaring for? You're a puny little guard; you dare defy your superiors?"
"Jiejie, don't blame him," Gu Mang hastily cut in. "He was born with a face that begs to be punched. He looks like he's giving you attitude, but in reality, he thinks Jiejie's words are very wise."
"Is that so?" the bat demon asked skeptically.
Expression chilly, Mo Xi fell silent for a few moments, then stiffly spat, "Yes."
The bat demon was still suspicious. Gu Mang shot Mo Xi a significant look; he obviously wanted him to explain himself more fully. Mo Xi could do nothing but grit his teeth and say: "Madam, your advice is invaluable. In the future, I will certainly…avoid immorality. Thank you for your wisdom."
With the bat demon successfully diverted, Mo Xi and Gu Mang split up to tackle separate tasks. The inner courtyard of the pavilion was the queen's private quarters; male guards were forbidden entry. Mo Xi went to patrol a different area of the blood pool, while Gu Mang descended those steps made of human bone and carried a plate of fruit into the heart of the pavilion alone.
As Gu Mang turned a corner, a line of servant girls emerged. The demon at the front glanced at him. "Delivering fruit?"
"Yes."
"Bring it to the agate pool. Her Majesty is there now."
Of course Gu Mang had no idea where the agate pool was, but the bat demon subconsciously tilted her chin as she spoke. Gu Mang was clever; he snapped up that tiny little detail and smiled. "Right away."
Fruit platter in hand, he sought out Wuyan. He soon found that this so-called agate pool was a heated bath filled with boiling blood. The human blood inside was millennia old, prevented from drying out or rotting by some unknown method unique to the fire bat tribe. Steam slowly unfurled from its surface like a hot spring.
Queen Wuyan sat at the edge of the pool. She had already undressed; a scarlet bathrobe was draped carelessly over her shoulders, revealing snowy white arms and a good half of her ample bosom. Her jade-pale legs were like rippling milk, astonishingly tender as she dipped her toes into that thick blood and splashed up droplets like shining red beans.
Wuyan's personal servant girl, A-Fang, was arranging her mistress's hair in preparation for her bath when she spotted Gu Mang out of the corner of her eye. "Your Majesty, the fruit is here," she said. "Would you like to bathe first, or enjoy some refreshments?"
"So many horrid things have happened today. I've had my fill on anger alone," Wuyan said bitterly. "What's the point in eating?"
A-Fang shot Gu Mang a look, indicating that he should set down the plate of fruit and withdraw.
Gu Mang obeyed, depositing the platter and retreating to the side of the room with eyes lowered. He had no interest in watching women bathe. Besides, although Wuyan maintained herself well, he couldn't miss the fine wrinkles at her waist and neck. Even if she was a demoness, it didn't feel right to see such intimate details. But what choice did he have? Any one of Wuyan's movements might reveal the clues he needed. He watched her carefully, doing his best to avoid lingering on certain areas.
Wuyan shrugged off the red bathrobe that concealed her figure and slipped into the blood pool, completely naked. Closing her eyes, she sighed quietly in relief before stretching her arms and leaning against the side of the pool. She let her attendants scoop up the warm, flowing blood with small bamboo cups and pour it over her back.
What Gu Mang saw next left him astounded.