Chapter 38- The Gaps In Your Mind

It had been a few days since Lin and Tian spoke privately. She didn’t warm up, exactly, but she stopped giving the feeling of being actively hostile. It was progress, and he’d take it. It wasn’t a peaceful world. “Not actively hostile” was better than a lot of things. For example, there was this afternoon.

“OLD BITCH FENG, COME OUT AND GREET YOUR GRANNY!”

Hovering above the Windblown Manor was a swarm of crows arrayed around the obsidian-winged ancestor of their kind, beak and claws ready to rip apart the corpses of gods and dig out any treasures within. It was the size of a warehouse. They made a hell of an entrance, blotting out the sky while he was training with the Snow Grace Crane.

“I’m really looking forward to flying with you, Your Highness. Just not while that’s in the sky.” Tian didn’t have to look to feel the crane’s complete agreement.

Elder Feng didn’t have anything to say to the daoist Tain assumed was standing on the back of the giant crow. Tian saw her soaring from the manor, sword leading the way. The cloud of crows scattered, shifting around the entire sky barge in a bewildering formation. Tian quickly got dizzy if he looked at them.

“Don’t you have anything to say Bitch Feng? How could that be? You love-” There was a crackle of thunder. Tian could see a blur and serpents of lightning coming from the rough area Elder Feng had been, striking down towards the crow.

Sister Liren was the first to join him in the garden, but the others were just moments behind. Everyone had their weapons out, but there was an awkward feeling in the air. Who, exactly, were they supposed to fight? The crows surrounding the barge? They were at least a hundred yards from the sides. Not impossible to hit, just very, very unlikely. And if they did kill some of the crows, so what? The crows weren’t attacking, they were just hiding the fight from the world below.

“Sounds like a female cultivator.” Brother Wang observed.

“Yes. And without the vocal distortions I associate with heretics who have done extensive body modifications.” Sister Su was up on crutches. She planted herself next to Brother Wang like a siege weapon being readied, drawing a little yellow and orange formation flag into her hand.

“That giant crow doesn’t feel evil, exactly, just huge.” Hong idly tapped the but of her spear on the ground, clearly eyeballing the big bird and thinking about where she could stick it for maximum effect.

Sister Lin suddenly looked enlightened. “I know who this is. It’s an envoy from the Seven Stars School. No wonder the crow looks unbothered. Seven Stars are allies of the Ancient Crane Monastery. Our sects have historically been fairly close. It seems the Envoys are merely debating the dao and renewing their acquaintance.”

“Why so quiet, you gloomy old hag!” Elder Feng’s voice crackled through the air. “Did you get cheated on again? At this point, I think you desire unfaithful men!” Bolts of purple lightning struck down at the crow’s back, only to be stopped by a twisting vortex of liquid silver. Then from out of the vortex flew a heavy barrage of needles. Thousands upon thousands of them.

“Sister Su, I see a future path opening before you.” Brother Wang smiled, then looked thoughtful. “We… shouldn’t be hearing this, should we?”

The garden was full of silent agreement.

“You dare!” The still invisible woman on the crow shouted, outraged.

“I do dare. I dare all damn day. This granny woke up daring, dared breakfast, dared lunch, and dares to eat an old crow who’s courting death for dinner!”

“I always wondered about that one.” Tian murmured. “Courting death. Even as metaphors go, it’s kind of dumb, right?”

“What’s wrong with it? It means someone is seeking death. Nothing weird about it.” Hong defended one of her favorite cliches.

“That’s not how people use it, though. It’s not a warning, it’s more like an insult or an exclamation, except worse.”

“It’s not worse, it’s better. It’s full of flavor and character. I bet you have thought of saying it at least once. AT LEAST once!” Hong went on the attack.

“Never.” Tian said, full of righteousness. A memory intruded. He actually might have. No matter. Deny everything and press on.

“You ever get your money back, you old broke bitch?” The voice from the crow sneered, as swimming dragons made of silver needles flew out of the silver vortex. “Or are you still doing ‘favors’ for anyone with two spirit crystals to rub together?”

“Those clouds appear to be unnatural,” Sister Su murmured. “I believe Elder Feng is about done with this debate.”

Thunderheads, black and heavy, gathered with the speed of diving falcons. Lightning sparrows descended on the silver needle dragons, crackling through them, making blue-white lighting arc between them. More and more sparrows descended and swarmed the crow, slipping between the silvery dragons.

“Reminds me of Elder Rui. Brother Zihao, didn’t he do something similar during the battle?” Liren pointed at the lighting sparrows.

“Similar, yes. It must be an Elder level technique. Though his attack involved a lot of chanting and waving a horsetail whisk around, so not quite the same.” Tian nodded.

“Alright, I think you have put on enough of a show for the juniors. They will have gossip fodder for decades.” A man’s resonant voice sounded, and shook the air between the fighting women. It wasn’t enough to smash everything out of the sky, but Tian could see the way the vibrations were disrupting whatever arts the seniors were using.

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There was a pair of feminine snorts, and the arts dispersed. The sky cleared and the dragons vanished with the vortex. Even the surrounding cloud of crows dispersed to who knows where.

“What gossip? Your Madness of Crows barrier has been up this entire time.” Elder Feng said.