Heifeng Cheng, the capital city, was a sprawling tapestry of power and artifice. Its grand avenues, lined with soaring spirit-towers and opulent mansions, hummed with the qi of countless cultivators. Jianyu, as Niánmei, moved through the city's bustling markets and quiet, exclusive districts, his presence drawing a familiar mix of awe and possessiveness. He was a beacon, a magnet for attention, precisely as he intended. His male persona, Xu Jianyu, remained a silent, almost invisible shadow, observing, learning, ready to act.
He spent his days attending various preliminary gatherings, sensing the political currents, the alliances forming and dissolving like smoke. He saw glimpses of Moonbone envoys, their faces etched with a renewed, desperate hope. He felt the cold, analytical gaze of Chixia Gong disciples, their curiosity a palpable weight. He leaked carefully crafted fragments of information, sowing discord, watching the seeds of mistrust take root.
One quiet afternoon, near a secluded spirit-well tucked away in a forgotten corner of a public garden, Jianyu allowed himself a moment of internal stillness. The well's waters shimmered with a faint, purifying qi, a rare, untainted presence in the city. He closed his eyes, allowing his dual consciousness to settle, to prepare for the upcoming trials.
A sudden, sharp scent cut through the clean air—a mix of wild herbs, old blood, and something subtly predatory. Before he could react, a figure materialized from the shadows of a weeping willow, moving with a fluid, almost boneless grace. She was slender, clad in practical, dark leather, her hair a wild tangle of black strands. Her eyes, however, were what captured him: a startling, unsettling shade of amber, glinting with a feral intelligence.
It was Lu Wuying, the rogue spirit-hunter. He had felt her presence, a faint, wandering qi signature, for days, but she had been elusive, like smoke. Now, she was here, her smile a wide, unsettling grin that showed a flash of unnaturally sharp canines.
"The Saintbreaker," she purred, her voice a low, husky whisper that seemed to slither into his ears. Her gaze raked over Niánmei, then flicked to where Jianyu's qi signature subtly resonated. "Or perhaps… the Saint and her Guardian? Two forms. One breath. You're even prettier than the whispers claim."
Jianyu remained motionless, his serene expression unbroken. "You have been following me," Niánmei's voice was calm, devoid of fear.
"Of course," Wuying chuckled, a dry, rustling sound. She circled him slowly, her amber eyes never leaving his face. "Such a unique bloom. Most cultivators who try to split their spirit end up as screaming husks. But you… you wear two skins so well." She stopped directly in front of him, her face inches from Niánmei's. "I've been seeking a partner. Someone who understands the true art of transformation. Someone who can fuse. Permanently."
Her gaze intensified, a predatory hunger. "I want to fuse spirits with you. We could become a transcendent hybrid. A being beyond flesh and form. Think of the power."
The offer was twisted, horrifying. Jianyu felt a cold revulsion. "I am not interested in becoming a part of you," Niánmei stated, his voice hardening.
Wuying's smile widened, showing more teeth. "A pity. Such wasted potential." Her hand moved with blurring speed, not to strike, but to bite. Her teeth, surprisingly sharp, sank into Niánmei's shoulder. It was not a deep wound, but a precise, almost ritualistic bite, meant to transfer something.
Jianyu instinctively recoiled, his qi flaring, but Wuying was already pulling back, dissolving into the shadows as swiftly as she had appeared. "You're the prettiest corpse I've ever seen," she whispered, her voice fading into the rustle of the leaves. "And you will be mine."
The wound on Niánmei's shoulder stung, not just with physical pain, but with a lingering, unsettling spiritual residue. Jianyu felt a new, alien qi attempting to burrow into his flesh, to map his meridians. He suppressed it, his System working furiously to purge the foreign essence. Lu Wuying was not just a hunter; she was a collector, a devourer of unique spirits. And she had marked him.