Chapter 103:
The Demon’s Inner Demons
THE GANG was already assembled and waiting when Lu Xu returned to Lanling Amber. “It went smoothly,” he said, finishing his report with a sigh. “They took Mergen.”
“Mergen, huh?” A-Tai laughed. “Not ‘the big wolf’? You’ve become so familiar—sad he’s gone now, are we?”
Still disconcerted, Lu Xu snapped, “It’s just a name. Focus!”
Ashina Adarvan patted Lu Xu on the shoulder, urging him to relax. “Everyone agreed to Mergen’s plan, including him—he’ll be fine.”
“Let’s wait for Zhao Zilong to report back from the barracks,” Lu Xu replied.
“A jewel? How strange,” Qiu Yongsi mused. He turned to A-Tai. “Does the sacred flame of Zoroastrianism take the form of a jewel?”
“I asked Li Guinian-shixiong about it earlier today,” A-Tai answered. “We don’t know for sure—the sacred flame has been lost too long. We’ll need more proof to be certain.”
After some thought, Ashina Adarvan said, “Even if the jewel’s not the sacred flame, it must be a holy item. Those Göktürks plundered quite a few of our treasures.”
Lu Xu nodded, heaving a long sigh. Mergen’s dreams of his tragic past resurfaced in his memory, along with the words Qiu Yongsi had spoken through the whisper projection technique once he’d escaped to the roof, and Yang Guozhong’s reaction to them. He felt restless and ill at ease. “Let’s just wait for news from the carp yao, then,” he repeated.
While the exorcists huddled together to discuss next steps, A-Tai turned to Ashina Adarvan. “Go grab a copy of the holy scriptures; let’s see how many treasures are lost.”
Some time later, Lu Xu descended the stairs and wandered into the rear courtyard. As he stepped out into the late-spring night, he felt weighed down by complicated emotions. Everything had gone according to plan—yet he still couldn’t help worrying when he saw Mergen fall into their enemies’ hands.
“Ho, little deer.” Qiu Yongsi, his long and lanky figure wrapped in a white robe after his bath, was laying out some talismans he’d just made to dry. He smiled at Lu Xu. “Don’t let your worries keep you up tonight.”
“That’s none of your business,” Lu Xu said coolly. He was about to stalk off when he remembered something. “Who’s Ye Ming?”
“Ye Ming, as in brightness at night.” Qiu Yongsi put a hand over his throat as if choking himself, then craned his neck, miming a roar. “An alternate way to write his name would be Ye for choke and Ming for make a sound. He was a dragon who presided over time.”
“Time?” Lu Xu echoed.
“There’s a place called the Dragon-Quelling Tower, in which jiao, dragons, and great serpents are confined,” Qiu Yongsi explained. “Long ago, a war broke out between primordial deities. All dragons who violated the laws of heaven were locked inside this tower.”
“What about the others?”
“The others were deemed innocent, of course, free to swim in the seas or roam the mountains as they pleased.”
Lu Xu had heard from Hongjun that Qiu Yongsi was on a mission to recapture Xie Yu and seal him in this tower. “Xie Yu alone has caused so much chaos,” he said. “If this tower collapsed, it would be a great calamity.”
“When the time comes, we may have no choice but to let it collapse.” Qiu Yongsi laughed. “It would save me a lot of work.”
Lu Xu looked back at him, baffled.
“There was once a divine dragon in the tower named Ye Ming,” Qiu Yongsi explained. “Thanks to his powers, time flows very slowly in the tower, at a different pace from the outside world. Xie Yu killed Ye Ming when he left, destroying the time barrier—and he took Ye Ming’s corpse with him.”
“Why would asking him about this dragon make him so…”
“Because Ye Ming was his adoptive father,” Qiu Yongsi replied grimly. “His inner demons are born from his murder of Ye Ming.”
“But he was already planning to become a demon from the start.”
“Ah, but demons are plagued by inner demons too—everyone is. You have to face your inner demons head-on sometimes, so that no one can control you,” Qiu Yongsi said. “Now you see there are times when even Xie Yu is afraid.”
Lu Xu considered this in silence as Qiu Yongsi continued, “What would yours stem from, I wonder? Hatred toward Xie Yu, or your feelings toward Mer—”
“I’m done here.” This was the last thing Lu Xu wanted to talk about; he turned to leave the yard. Qiu Yongsi smiled serenely as he stormed off.
Lu Xu stopped and looked back at Qiu Yongsi from underneath the eaves. “Hongjun’s taken quite a liking to you,” he said.
“I like him too,” Qiu Yongsi replied in a teasing tone. “But I like pretty girls more.”
“That’s not what I meant,” said Lu Xu. Then, “Thank you.”
As Lu Xu turned away again, Qiu Yongsi said, “There’s a knot in the wolf’s heart that cannot be untangled.”
“I know,” Lu Xu responded. “The same goes for you.”
Qiu Yongsi merely hummed in agreement.
Lu Xu returned to his room and shut the door firmly behind him.
If Hongjun had been growing weary after wandering the Galaxy so long, he was instantly shocked awake by Li Jinglong’s introduction of Li Bai. He had no idea what time it was on this underground street that was both a black market and an unsleeping city in its own right. I met Li Bai, and I asked him if he had to pee after drinking so much… I handed him a chamber pot, and he took a leak right in front of me…
Hongjun felt the world spin around him, his heart beating so fast he was close to passing out. “Uh…” he stammered. “M-Master Li Bai, please forgive my disrespect. This insignificant plebian failed to recognize your illustrious visage…”
Li Jinglong looked on, speechless.
Li Bai slouched against the wall of the alley, so drunk he’d dozed off on his feet. Hongjun’s eyes shone with admiration, surprise, and irrepressible joy as he studied the snoring Li Bai. It’s really Li Bai, in the flesh!
“Get me a bucket of water,” Li Jinglong said.
Hongjun looked at him, scandalized. “Get it yourself! I have to take care of Taibai-xiong.”
“Fine,” Li Jinglong said. “Then I’ll fetch one and dump it over his head.”
“Absolutely not!” Hongjun cried. “How dare you? I’ll fight you to the death!” When Li Jinglong came back with the promised bucket, he said, aghast, “Wait… You’re really gonna do it?!”
“Well, what do you suggest, then?” Jealousy overcame Li Jinglong; he felt like the bucket wasn’t filled with water, but vinegar.
“We can wait till he wakes up on his own!”
“No way. He used to fall asleep like this all the time, and we’d pour water on him to rouse him. You’ll see; he’ll want more to drink as soon as he wakes up.”
“No, no, no! Don’t—!” As Hongjun yelped in alarm, Li Jinglong upended the entire bucket of water over Li Bai’s head.
Li Bai woke up immediately, calling, “Bring in the wine!”
Li Jinglong gestured at him and shot Hongjun a look that said I told you so. Meanwhile, Hongjun was hastily explaining, “It wasn’t me, Taibai-xiong…”
“Help me up,” Li Bai said, his head clearly throbbing. When Li Jinglong motioned for Hongjun to help, Hongjun was so excited he was practically shaking.
“Take my prized horse and furs worth a thousand gold; have the boy trade them for fine wine—” Li Bai slurred.
“—and together we’ll drown out the sorrows of centuries old.”9 Li Jinglong and Hongjun continued the poem in unison.
Li Bai smiled tiredly. Finally, Li Jinglong finished his introduction: “Taibai-xiong, this is Hongjun.”
“Whatever his name is, I don’t care.” Li Bai waved dismissively. “Do you have money, Xiao-Long? Lend me some.”
“Not before we talk business,” Li Jinglong said. “We’ll discuss money when we get back.”
Resigned, Li Bai allowed himself to be dragged along.
“Where’s Xiangyu?” Li Jinglong asked. “Hongjun says you promised you’d help look for her.”
“Hongjun… Hm.” Li Bai squinted at him and muttered, “You… Are you married?”
Li Jinglong’s heart stuttered before picking up speed again, beating so violently it nearly leapt out of his chest.
Hongjun’s lips twitched. “I am.”
Li Jinglong’s heart slowed somewhat.
Laughing boisterously, Li Bai slapped Hongjun on the back. “My friend’s wife just gave birth to a daughter, so he asked me to help look around for a fitting husband.”
“I don’t like girls,” Hongjun said.
Li Jinglong’s racing heart finally returned to normal, settling comfortably back into his chest.
“Is that so? My friend is also a poet.”
“Oh? Would I know him?” Hongjun asked curiously. Li Jinglong felt nerves come over him again.
“His poems are quite good. He’s called Du Fu.”10
“Never heard of him.”