Chapter 249: Peerless

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Despite his young age, Liu Jin has seen and enjoyed luxuries most people can only dream of. He has been inside vast mansions, expensive restaurants, and other wealthy establishments. Riches and luxury have long since stopped eliciting any awe in him.

Nevertheless, the sight before him makes him pause.

It is not because he has stumbled upon something outlandish or bizarre. Not at all. Liu Jin is in the middle of a perfectly beautiful garden. The grass is lush and green, the shrubs are cut in the shape of ferocious dragons, and flowers of red, blue, and purple grow all around. A few yards away, the foliage rises in a dense wall of green with only a single arch leading into a passage obscured by shadows.

There is no noise.

Even though a war rages outside, there is no noise. Liu Jin cannot feel anyone’s Qi. Not General He Bin’s or Murong Bang’s. Not even Big Sister Bai’s or Bright Sword’s. Liu Jin looks around the garden and finds the gates he came through are nowhere to be seen. The only way in or out of this garden is through the arch.

“Big Sister Bai?” Liu Jin calls out. Reluctantly, he adds. “Bright Sword!”

There is no answer, not that Liu Jin expected any.

“A different spatial realm,” Liu Jin theorizes. “Is that it?”

“It pleases me that you are familiar with the concept. That shall make things simpler.”

Liu Jin immediately blurs thirty yards away. Multiple Qi snakes hiss around him as his aura flares up. The sky turns dark, and the clouds rumble ominously, but no rain falls.

“Honored Ancestor,” Liu Jin says. “It is good to see you again.”

A deep chuckle echoes all around as dark clouds swirl in front of Liu Jin. Two crimson orbs glow from within those clouds as they take the shape of a dragon’s head. Its mouth curls into a grin that reveals many sharp teeth.

“Do not say words you do not mean, whelp.”

Liu Jin thinks it over and nods.

“Honored Ancestor, it is humbling to see you again,” Liu Jin amends. “However, the circumstances of this meeting confuse me. Are we inside the Storm Dragon Palace?”

“An interesting question.” A low rumbling sound fills Liu Jin’s ears. It is almost like the hum of a storm. “You could say that you are, but it could also be said that you are not. You are inside my body. That should be enough for you to know.”

It is not, but Liu Jin knows arguing with ancient entities is often futile.

“Where are the two people that entered the palace with me?” Liu Jin asks.

“In another part of me,” the Storm Dragon replies. His eyes glint with amusement when Liu Jin glares at him. “I speak the truth, whelp. You chose to enter my domain. Naturally, you are inside it. The same will happen to all who attempt to break into the palace.”

“Honored Ancestor,” Liu Jin says, his tone respectful, if slightly curt. “You are the one who invited me to the palace. Why do this?”

Liu Jin guesses it is amusement. His master once taught him that powerful people always do things for the sake of amusement, and that’s one teaching that has rarely failed to be correct.

“I am the guardian of this family. If my kin begs for help, how can I deny them?”

It is impressive, Liu Jin thinks, how the Storm Dragon can make such nice words sound so clearly sinister and ominous. Truly, that’s a skill one must hone for a thousand years to master.

“The emperor asked for this?” Liu Jin asks.

The Storm Dragon laughs.

“You uncle? No, that man is hiding in his room and pretending the world does not exist,” the Storm Dragon says. “It was your cousin who begged me to do something. However, that’s not who you should concern yourself with.”

The clouds swirl in front of Liu Jin and become like water. A single image is reflected on them. A woman in a luxurious room brushing her long violet hair, a scowl on her pretty face.

Liu Jin can’t breathe.

The hair is different, her skin is fairer than before, and even her face has changed far more than simple aging can explain. Despite that, Liu Jin instantly recognizes her. How could he not? How could he ever forget someone who was at his side for so long back at Eastern Port City?

“Su An.”

His Qi spikes.

For a moment, Liu Jin forgets how powerful the Storm Dragon is, forgets that he is inside his domain, and forgets that the Storm Dragon is his ancestor. The air fills with violent intent, and Liu Jin dares to aim it all at the Storm Dragon.

“Ancestor, if this is trickery of some sort…”

“What? What will you do, whelp?” The Storm asks, cutting him off. “Do not start threats you cannot finish or make oaths you cannot follow through. However, you can rest easy. There is no lie here. The girl is who you believe her to be. Partially, at least. She has been possessed.”

“Possessed?” Liu Jin echoes.

“When beings such as I pass on, we can leave behind a shadow, an echo of our existence that might pass down our power to those we deem worthy,” the Storm Dragon tells him. “However, not all choose to do that. Some will cling to life beyond all reason, even if that would damage their soul irrevocably. The one inhabiting that woman’s body is one such creature. In this incarnation, she goes by the name Su Daji.”

Liu Jin does his best to listen to the Storm Dragon’s explanation, but his mind still has a hard time coming to terms with the situation. Su An was in Eastern Port City when it was attacked. How could she be here now? How could she be possessed?

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Wait.

…It all began when Brother Sou, that’s the oaf with the ax, found a woman with violet hair lost outside the Whispering Depths…

It hits Liu Jin like a lightning bolt. Violet hair. She’s the person the one from the Brotherhood of Thunder stumbled upon in the Whispering Depths! Murong Bang’s army must have tried to sell Su An, but she escaped by fleeing into the Depths. Her hair changed colors by the time the man from the Brotherhood found her, so she must have been possessed by then. That the spirit was inside her instead of wandering the Depths could be why the Brotherhood of Thunder discovered their hidden city soon after.

Still…

“How did this happen?” Liu Jin asks the Storm Dragon.

“That I do not know,” the Storm Dragon answers, unaware of Liu Jin’s thoughts. “I only know that she found the woman that bears your mark a suitable vessel.”

Liu Jin frowns.

“You have said that before, ancestor,” Liu Jin says. “You said she bears my mark, but I never marked Su An.”

“Was it not your Qi that shaped that woman’s body and improved her meridians and dantian? If not for that, she’d have been nothing more than another pebble on the road. What do you call that if not marking someone?” The Storm Dragon asks him. “You probably only meant to create a suitable mate, but if not for that, the spirit would have never found her a suitable vessel.”

Liu Jin does not bother correcting his ancestor. His mind is caught up in the words he just heard.

If not for him, Su An would have never been possessed.

Obviously, Liu Jin couldn’t have possibly known Su An would ever run into the spirit of some powerful ancient being, but it stings all the same. Su An had helped him practice many of the techniques he learned from Old Jiang. Once the benefits to her became obvious, Liu Jin had been happy to keep doing it.

He had not done it for the benefit of some wretched creature!