Jahangir Alam wasn’t sure what to think as he rode into the tiny farming village atop his loyal steed, Shamal.

A man in a white shenyi, clearly wearing an exorcist’s douli, stood atop one house, forcibly wrangling a young girl.

He tipped back his own douli, printed with the character mie in vibrant green, to get a better look at it.

The girl was clearly trying to resist him. And he could see another woman on her knees at the ground, seeming to beg the man for...well, presumably the girl.

He drew his bow.

He would stick to deterrence. If it proved to be a misunderstanding, there was no harm in apologizing.

Jahangir kicked Shamal’s sides, knocking an arrow into his short bow.

He fired, aiming towards a spot really close to the man’s foot. The arrow hit its target, startling the man, but not truly fazing him.

“Oi!” he called up to the man as he approached. “What exactly is going on here?”

The man glanced down at him and sighed. “Another one?”

The woman on the ground was indeed crying and wailing, though she had calmed her cries to look up at Jahangir.

“First, they sent me a prostitute and now a Uyghur Shaolin monk?” the man scoffed. “Now I think the higher-ups are just trying to get a reaction from me.”

“You’d best let go of that girl, xiongdi. She doesn’t seem to appreciate whatever it is you’re doing there.” Jahangir said.

“You’re wood-stance, right?” the man asked. “Look, just...leave your hero complex out of this until I do my job. I’m here to kill a demon. After that, I’ll let her go.”

“Can’t do that, xiongdi.” Jahangir said. “I’ve sworn an oath to defend all women.”

The monk furrowed his brow. “...why? Just on a practical level, that sounds like an absurdly stupid idea.”

“Even so, I must stick to that oath. Now unhand that girl.” Jahangir said.

“Ta ma de...” the monk muttered. “Fine. Help protect this woman from the Jueyuan that’s on his way here.”

“Please!” the woman on the ground pleaded to Jahangir, tears streaming from her eyes. “You have to save my daughter! Please keep her safe!”

“I will.” Jahangir nodded. That alone, with the conviction in his voice, was enough to make the woman’s sobs subside. “A Jueyuan? I suppose that thing would do far more damage to a woman than you could do.” Jahangir sighed. “Very well. My name is Jahangir Alam, or Fang Zhange.”

“Jin Qilin.” Qilin said.

“Well met, brother Jin.” Jahangir dismounted Shamal and clambered onto the rooftop to join Qilin. “You could at least stop handling her so roughly.”

Jahangir pulled the girl from Qilin’s grasp and patted her on the shoulder.

“Are you alright?” Jahangir asked.

The girl nodded.

“Sorry about all this. But we’ll keep you safe.” Jahangir said.

“Keep your eyes on the forests.” Qilin said. “The wind’s not letting me pick up its scent.”

Jahangir knocked another arrow into his bow and scanned the outskirts of the village from atop their perch. “Are you certain the Jueyuan will come?”

“I am.” Qilin said, rubbing the nape of his neck.

As if on cue, a rush of motion crossed Jahangir’s vision.

He locked his eyes on it as the shadow leapt up onto a roof and fired an arrow at it before it could get its footing. Though, the creature flattened itself against the roof as the arrow passed overhead.

Despite the dim moonlight, Jahangir could see clearly that it was a simian creature, taller than both him and Qilin.

“There!” Jahangir pointed to the Jueyuan.

He loosed arrow after arrow, but the demon moved with such blinding speed that his shots simply missed.

As the Jueyuan closed in from rooftop to rooftop, Qilin threw himself at the creature, tackling it out of the air and slamming it through the wall of the house it had just jumped from.

Qilin was thrown out from the cloud of dust that resulted from the impact, so Jahangir jumped down and landed a round kick to the monkey’s jaw before it could try to escape.

He grabbed the Jueyuan and tried to lock up its limbs, but the demon threw him off. Jahangir rolled to his feet and assumed a fighting stance.

The Jueyuan assumed its own fighting stance.

Jahangir furrowed his brow.

What?

“That thing knows wushu. I don’t know how, but it does.” Qilin said, drawing a dao from his back.

Jahangir roared and rushed at the Jueyuan.

Crushing Fist, first form: Falling Timber.

He flipped into the air and brought his leg down with the same power and appearance as a falling tree.

The demon crossed his arms above its head and caught the kick. A shock wave of force rumbled throughout the ground beneath the both of them.

Jahangir backed off as the demon shook out its arms.

Impossible. No demon, not even another monk, should’ve been able to withstand that attack. At the very least, he should have forced it to parry.

What the hell was going on here?

Jahangir charged again, but slipped under the Jueyuan, popping up behind it. His arms and legs slithered around the demon like vines around a tree.

Crushing Fist, third form: Binding Ivy.

Qilin kicked the demon in the chest before swinging the blade at the creature’s neck. In order to prevent his own arm from getting cut, Jahangir let go of the Jueyuan.

With its newfound freedom, the demon leaned back, causing Qilin’s dao to only put a gash across the monkey’s face.

The wind left Jahangir’s lungs like smoke from a fire as his body broke the Jueyuan’s fall.

He tried to keep the demon in place, but was kicked in the head as it launched off the ground.

“No!” a woman’s scream echoed through the night.

Jahangir leapt to his feet, shaking off his clouded mind. His fears were all but confirmed as he looked up at the rooftop he’d been perched on.

The girl was gone.

Jahangir looked at Qilin, snarling. “You! Because of you, that demon’s made off with another girl!”

“He never would’ve gotten free if you had left his neck open.” Qilin replied, annoyingly apathetic. “Demons can only be killed by decapitation. What made you think that grappling his neck would help?”

“How dare you try to pin this on me, you sick bastard? What’s your plan now? To grab another woman’s daughter and string her up as bait again?” Jahangir demanded.

“Of course not.” Qilin muttered. “I already have all I need.”

“What?”

Qilin tapped his nose. “I can smell its blood. From the gash.”

Jahangir calmed down a bit at that. It didn’t make him any less irritated, but if they had a way to track the demon down, they could rectify this mistake.

“You damn Shaolin!” the girl’s mother screeched. “Get out! Get out of our village! Bring back my daughter or I swear to the heavens I’ll kill you! I’ll kill all of you!”

Though clearly too weak to stand against a trained martial artist and too distraught to stand up straight, Jahangir’s throat clenched at the mother’s words as she screamed at him.

He deserved far more than this for his failure.

_________________________________________________________________

Xu Qin breathed as softly as a butterfly’s wings as the long, lanky silhouette of the Jueyuan met the light of the fires in the cave.

She watched from a hiding place among the rock formations in the cavern.

The Jueyuan had another girl over its shoulder.

As those who had gone mad enough to love the demon greeted the smug creature with kisses, the others kneeled in its presence. Yin Cai’s eyes kept glancing over towards Xu Qin.

Stop looking at me, moron…

Four seconds in. Four seconds holding. Four seconds out.

Xu Qin still had trouble achieving Prefect Breath, but she could get close enough. Her fingers clenched so tight around the stone in her hand that the rock started digging into her flesh.

The Jueyuan set the unconscious girl’s body down and stretched, before looking over his women.

“Heshang…”

Xu Qin’s eyes widened, her perfect breaths stumbling.

How? How was this possible? What was up with this damn monkey? First, it can fight. Now it can speak?

And that was besides the fact that the creature had just called for a monk. For her.

Unwilling to let the older women rat her out, Xu Qin leapt from her hiding spot.

She regained her perfect breaths and closed the distance between her and the Jueyuan.

Drilling Fist, fourth form: Winding River.

The demon attempted to grab her, but she slithered around it and slam the rock in her hand into the Jueyuan’s head.

But before she could land another blow, the demon’s tail wrapped around her wrist and threw her to the ground.

Her heart beat as fast as a rabbit, and she felt the urge to vomit. But getting out of here was a higher priority than anything she wished to do right now.

She tried to stand, but was forced to the ground by the Jueyuan stomping on her chest with one of its filthy paws.

Xu Qin glared up at the creature, the anger in her face threatening to break under the terror.

The Jueyuan’s heaving calmed for a moment and in that second, Xu Qin thought she could see some kind of...empathy in its eyes. As if it were being forced to hold her down.

An act of impulsive defiance made her try to hit the acupuncture points on his leg, but his tail bound her hand before she even crossed half the distance.

The monkey’s paw stepped her other hand on, fully pinning her to the ground.

She struggled and fought, but it was all to no avail.

The Jueyuan snarled and roared, that simple act of intimidation causing Xu Qin’s conviction to evacuate. It gave way to violent floodwaters of disillusionment and horror.

All she could do was...cry.

Xu’s body trembled under its grip, beyond her control. Her nostrils flared and muscles tensed beyond her control. Her heartbeat thrashed in her ears, beyond her control.

“I am called…Shun,” The Jueyuan’s voice scratched against the inside of its throat like a rock being dragged against concrete. “...you exorcists...you killed my father. He was...like me. Then...you come to kill my first wife...then my son...you take...most sacred thing from me...so now...I take from you...most sacred thing.”

Xu Qin’s brow furrowed. “Why?” She hadn’t been thinking when she asked it, but the heat of courage rose in her again with that question. “What do you think violating me will do? You think it’ll make you feel powerful? You think it’ll bring the people you’ve lost back?”

The Jueyuan—or Shun, as it had dubbed itself—blinked.

“All this...At least with the exorcists, it’s just petty revenge.” Xu Qin said. “It won’t make anything better. If anything, it makes you worse than the people who killed your family.”

“How...How you know this?” Shun asked.

“You...you give deals to some of us, right?” Xu Qin asked. “Knowledge for our freedom?”

Shun nodded, loosening his grip on her. “What you have...to teach.”

“The folly of revenge…” Xu Qin let out a trembling, but more confident, breath. “If you spend your whole life trying to repay your enemies...then all your actions are based around your enemies. All your choices are determined by your enemies. Then you don’t really really control your life, do you?”

“I...I am...what...you mean?”

“Just let me go…” Xu Qin said. “And I’ll teach you.”

Shun screamed in pain as a few hot droplets of liquid splattered against Xu Qin’s face.

Her eyes had been squeezed shut, though she hadn’t consciously noticed it.

The Jueyuan’s eyes were as wide as plates, staring at the head of an arrow coming out of his shoulder.

The mad women screamed in horror as Xu Qin heard the creak of a bow being drawn and the whirl of long polearm being flourished.

“Unhand her, fiend!” a voice she’d never heard before demanded.

A rush of adrenaline replaced Xu Qin’s desperation as she took advantage of the opportunity. She grabbed onto the demon’s tail and dragged him off her.

At the entrance of the cave, two exorcist monks stood ready. One was Qilin. One was a man looking like he came from the far west, dressed in a dark green douli.

After a moment to breathe and gather herself again, she joined the other two in preparing to fight the Jueyuan.

But Shun just scrambled to his feet and ran deeper into the cave.

“It must be going after another exit.” Qilin said. “After it!”

“Wait.” Xu Qin said. “Let’s just...get these women back to safety.”

Qilin frowned. “What? What about the bounty?”

“I...I don’t care about that.” Xu Qin muttered.

“Well...I’m killing this thing.” Qilin declared. “If you want to help these women instead, fine. Go with Jaha-”

“No!” Xu Qin snapped. Qilin stopped and stared, which was the iron skull’s equivalent to flinching. “What the hell makes you think you’ll be worth a damn in a one-on-one fight with that thing?”

Qilin grimaced, but turned his back to the dark tunnel the Jueyuan had run to.

“All three of us can take it on together.” Xu Qin said. “You, me, and Jahan-whatever.”

“Just...call me Zhange.” The other monk said. 

“Fine.” Qilin muttered begrudgingly.

“Are you alright?” Zhange asked.

Xu Qin hesitated for a moment, but nodded. “The demon didn’t actually have time to...do anything.”

“I would argue it’s done quite a bit.” Zhange said, stowing his bow away. “But if you’re well enough to help escort these women, we don’t have to speak on it.” the wood stance monk turned to the other women. “Are any of you hurt? Will anyone have an issue descending the hill?”

The women murmured in agreement that they could descend just fine. But Yin Cai spoke up.

“What about them?” She asked, pointing to the older women, who had gone back to blankly staring at the fire as if nothing had happened.

“Those women have been with the Jueyuan so long that they...actually started to love it.” Xu Qin said.

Zhange gulped and looked at the older women, mouth partially open. “I...I don’t know what we do with them. Should we not also take them with us?”

“If we did,” Yin Cai said. “They would not be able to return to their homes. They would not be able to function in society. But up here...they would no doubt starve or die or thirst.”

“Well then, we should take them with us, should we not?” Zhange asked. “I am under oath to protect all women. Mad or not.”

“That’s stupid.” Xu Qin said. “But...we can just let them starve to death.”

“You’re both missing the obvious answer here.” Qilin said. “Kill ‘em.”

Everyone present, save the mad women, looked at Qilin like he was one of them.

“Just...hear me out on this.” Qilin said. “What kind of life would we be giving them by taking them back to their village? The ones who come back after bearing the Jueyuan’s children are almost considered less than human for the damage it does to her family’s reputation. These women would be treated less than dogs. And I agree that letting them starve to death is cruel. So the only option is to grant them a quick death.”

“But-” Zhange started.

“But what, Jahangir?” Qilin asked. “What kinder option is there? It may not seem nice, but it’s the nicest we have to offer.”

Xu Qin hated to agree with Qilin’s method, but...he was right. Compared to the other options, death seemed a kindness.

“You all go one ahead.” Qilin muttered. “I’ll do it.”

Xu Qin looked at Zhange, who seemed still opposed to the idea, yet resigned to the fact that there was no other way.

The two of them led Yin Cai and the other girls out of the cave and started down the path back to the village.

Then she heard screams.

Only her ears could pick up on it.

Xu Qin gulped, but continued on.

_____________________________________________________________________

Qilin only had to swallow a little of bile this time, as he caught up to his allies while they trekked down the hill, back towards the village.

His eyes met with Chang Min, who quickly hid behind one of the other women. He pushed forward in the group and matched pace with Xu Qin and Jahangir.

Neither of them seemed to be anything other than depressed.

Usually it was the wood-stance monks who brightened the mood. But it seemed that would not happen.

Xu Qin, he could understand. To have been so close to being assaulted like that was enough to make anyone shaken.

But what did Jahangir have to be upset about? That a bunch of women he’d never met were suffering? You couldn’t feel sorrow and grief for every person who falls victim to a demon. At least, not as an exorcist. You’d die of despair far too early.

Well, they seemed to at least be vigilant. In their sulking, Xu Qin appeared to be intent on listening, and Jahangir was scanning the trees for any signs of movement.

“You know...more often than not, it’s about power.” Qilin muttered.

“What?” Xu Qin asked. “What are you talking about?”

“Being violated…” Qilin said. “The perpetrators do it to feel powerful. Even if nothing technically happened to you, it’d still be fair to say that the demon managed to-”

“Can we not talk about this in front of...twenty odd victims?” Xu Qin nodded her head back at the women following them, who had been engaged in their own conversations. “I’m fine. And don’t talk about things you know nothing about.”

Qilin opened his mouth to respond, but kept quiet. It wasn’t worth the trouble.

This always happens. Why would it be any different this time?

Qilin shouldered his spade and closed his eyes.

He took a deep breath through his nostrils. Then he stopped in his tracks.

“What?” Jahangir asked.

“I smell smoke…” Qilin said. “A lot of smoke.”

Jahangir narrowed his eyes and looked ahead. “The village! It’s on fire!”

“What?” Xu Qin exclaimed. “How?” Her attention was drawn upwards. Qilin followed her gaze towards the heavens. “Thunder…”

Dark clouds swirled and coalesced into a single entity in the sky, blocking out even the moonlight. Flashes of lightning made the sky seem even darker than before.

Qilin’s eyes widened.

He’d seen this once before.

Qilin took a Perfect Breath on his first try and surged with forward momentum, sprinting towards the village as fast as his legs could carry him. The yelps of surprise from his two allies faded into the distance as wind ripped against his skin.

He leapt out of the forest to find the entire village ablaze, save for one bell tower.

A navy blue figure sat hunched atop the tower’s roof, a single torch wrapped up in its tail. The Jueyuan looked to the sky as well, reaching out towards the heavens.

And the heavens reached back.

Qi flowed throughout the area in uncanny, unsettling ways, yet seemed perfectly attuned to nature. The will of the world, the Tao, was making itself known to this demon.

Most believed that immortality, at least in the fashion granted by the Tao, could only be achieved through careful spiritual cultivation.

But there was another way. A despicable, traitorous path to immortality. A sacrifice to the heavens.

The dark clouds of the thunder storm swept into a cyclone and spiraled towards the Jueyuan.

Sons.

The Jueyuan had forced many women to bear its sons. And they all bore the same name, from the same father.

The sons were the sacrifice.

Qilin rushed through the flames, giving no heed to his own safety as char and soot caked his face.

He could not fail again.

Splitting Fist, ninth form: Iron Echoes.

Qilin leapt into the air and unleashed a kick so powerful that a blade of wind resulted from its force, carving out a chunk of the bell tower.

The top of the tower tipped over with its crumbling center, dropping the Jueyuan away from heaven’s deliverance.

But the clouds kept up, following the Jueyuan as it dropped.

Splitting Fist, second form: Flash of Steel.

Faster than a bolt of lightning, Qilin threw himself into the demon in midair, distancing the creature even further from the clouds.

His muscles burned and twisted from the exertion he’d put on them. But he paid no mind to the distortions of flesh in his legs.

The Jueyuan scrambled to its feet and leapt towards the spiral of clouds.

And Qilin was helpless. His legs crumbled when he tried to launch off them, in so much pain they simply neglected to follow his orders any longer.

“NO!”

The spiral pierced the Jueyuan through the chest.

A shock wave of wind threw Qilin back like a rag doll as immortality suffused the Jueyuan’s spirit.

He was there again. Back at Taoyuan.

Fire consuming the earth, lightning infesting the wind. The shadow appearing in his mind for the first time.

While Qilin’s mind despair, though, his heart raged.

He just had to breathe.

One, two, three, four. One, two, three, four. One, two, three, four.

Inhale, hold, exhale, repeat.

Qilin pushed himself to his feet, his legs once again obeying him.

The storm enveloped the world in an instant.

His shadow was coming home.

__________________________________________________________

Xu Qin covered her face with her robes as she and Jahangir navigated through the clouds of black smoke and the burning buildings that produced it.

Qilin had used his Perfect Step out of nowhere and just left without them.

Where had that fool iron skull run off to?

She got her answer as a war cry and the sound of blows landing.

“This way!” Xu Qin shouted at Jahangir as she followed the noise.

Well, it was less of a duel and more of a brawl.

Qilin made every strike a Splitting Fist technique, causing the ground and air to rupture with power, but destroying his own body in the process. Blood drenched his skin. His arms and legs were bruised and battered.

What the hell was so important to him he would throw his life away like this?

“The air’s strange here…” Jahangir muttered. “Do you feel that, sister?”

Jahangir was right. A burning tingle crept along every inch of Xu Qin’s skin like lightning had just struck.

“It’s the Tao.” Xu Qin said. “He’s channeling the Tao. Wait...no, this is something different.”

In an instant, storm clouds flooded the village like fog, the azure darkness lit only by the still burning houses

“What is this?” Jahangir exclaimed.

The Tao’s presence was stronger than ever. But it was far from the feeling Xu Qin was accustomed to. The sensation was like a million wriggling worms across every inch of her skin.

“Disciple Shun…”

Xu Qin glanced up as the silhouette of a crane swooped over the village. Amongst the ambiguous shapes of the darkness, the crane’s form shifted to that of a woman, clad in a raiment and flowing gowns. Her jet black hair was adorned with elaborate golden flowers. She flipped a fly-whisk in her hand as she landed atop one of the burning houses. Her sleeve billowed as her hand unfurled, presenting a golden lotus flower.

“Hail, sister! Thou art too quick to come to this creature’s aid!”

Xu Qin covered her face and was nearly thrown to the ground as a bolt of lightning flashed, accompanied by a boom of thunder. As the dust cleared, a man in impeccable imperial robes and wearing a well-groomed beard appeared. He held himself with the pride of an imperial officer, bearing a large jade tablet in his left hand.

A cloud of fog swirled to life from the blackness and vanished as quickly as it had appeared. In its wake was an ugly old man, covered in filth and unkempt hair, tied together by a golden band. The man limped forward, supported by a metal crutch, and swung a gourd tied to a rope over his shoulder.

Awe and dread coalesced in Xu Qin, becoming overwhelming confusion. She recognized these three.

The woman was He Xiangu. The man with the tablet was Cao Guojiu. The man on the crutch was Li Tieguai. Three of the famous Eight Immortals. Why were they here? What was happening?

As if appearing from nothing, someone materialized before Xu Qin, carrying a basket of flowers. A man rode into sight atop a deer, carrying a flute around his neck. A hunched over elderly man walked on the air, as if descending an invisible staircase, with a donkey at his side. Another man, larger than all the rest, burst from the ground, his giant gut exposed by his open robes with a fan in his left hand.

There should only be one more.

A fit man, clad in black silk with gold trim, emerged from the flames of a nearby house. A thin double-edged jian sword was strapped to his back while he carried a fly-whisk in his hands. He held his chin high, looking down at the monks and the Jueyuan. Lu Dongbin, leader of the Eight Immortals.

All eight of them...right before Xu Qin’s eyes. Eight living gods. Surely, they’d come to help th-

Qilin screamed, his voice hoarse and nearly dead. Despite his beaten to hell body, he rushed at Dongbin with reckless abandon.

But before he could even get close to the immortal, Qilin’s form froze in time.

Lu Dongbin looked Qilin up and down. “You’re still wriggling about, are you worm?”

Why did the leader of the Eight Immortals recognize Qilin? Xu Qin’s mind was a cyclone of questions.

“I’m not here for you, unfortunately.” Dongbin muttered, maintaining whatever paralysis magic he’d put on the monk. “Jueyuan. In your desperate desire, you have performed a noble sacrifice of your beloved earthly attachments. Tell me, what is it you desire?”

Wind vacated Xu Qin’s lungs. They were...granting the demon’s wish? 

“Great Teacher.” Shun spoke with perfect fluency, like a human. It was just one drop in a tidal wave of strangeness and confusion currently drowning Xu Qin. “I have given to you the souls of the many sons I have sired throughout my years. I wish to reach greater understanding. Greater harmony with nature. I beseech you, grant me the powers of godhood. Generously bestow access to heaven unto me.”

“Hm…” Li Tieguai muttered before snapping. “Sons! Are sons all you have to give us? Sons, who are not only raised by your women alone, but sons which you are capable of creating afterwards?”

“I have nothing more to give, Master Li.” Shun dropped to his knees. “They already forced me to sacrifice what is beloved to me. My wife and my first child. Slain by humans!”

Tieguai growled.

“DIE!”

Xu Qin’s gaze returned to Qilin with a start as he could finally touch the ground. With the speed and fury of Splitting Fist techniques, he attacked Dongbin without hesitation.

She could feel Qilin’s bloodlust and rage in his frantic breathing, in his pained heartbeat.

But Dongbin barely acknowledged him. Each of Qilin’s blows, which would’ve crippled any demon or simply killed any man, was parried with the flick of a finger.

Dongbin made one motion that was so fast Xu Qin couldn’t see it. Whatever had happened, it sent Qilin crashing into a burning house.

“The Jueyuan’s family...I believe that to be a worthy price, do you not, Tieguai?” He Xiangu said, her head alone moving with inhuman grace.

Qilin dug his way out of the debris and stumbled out, trying to push himself to his feet.

“JINGYI!” Qilin roared at Dongbin. “You’re going to remove your lackey’s stain! You clean my soul of your filth! And when you do, you’ll pay for your crimes with your life!”

“Fool.” Dongbin muttered.

Qilin screamed without warning, clutching his head and dropping to his knees. He writhed about on the ground, gasping and crying out in agony.

Xu Qin took a step back, too overwhelmed to even react. She covered her ears, preventing his screams from drowning everything else out.

“You have to admit, Dongbin.” He Xiangu grinned. “His will is strong. If it weren’t for that mark, I’d bet he’d find a way to kill you right now.”

“Then you should reconsider how you choose to gamble, sister.” Dongbin said. “Regardless, your arguments for the Jueyuan have weight. But the creature did not choose that sacrifice and thus, it wasn’t a sacrifice.”

“Then...then what do I get?” Shun asked. “I’ve sacrificed all my sons! I’ve spent thirty years creating them!”

“We can still afford you immortality, demon.” Dongbin said. “But here are the terms. You pride yourself on being above your peers, for your knowledge. The skill you have accumulated is commendable, but it is something intrinsic to you. Give up your knowledge and we will make you a god.”

“M-my knowledge?” Shun asked.

“Alternatively, your soul will go to the underworld. To Diyu.” Dongbin said. “You have not yet been...how do the Christians say it...baptized in the fires of hell yet. It will be good for you. And perhaps you will have something of worth to offer us in your next life.” 

Shun nodded. “Alright. My knowledge. Take my knowledge.”

“As you wish.” Dongbin said.

Without another word, the immortals and the surrounding void vanished as if they were never there.

The storms fled from the sky, leaving only the crackling of flames to fill Xu Qin’s ears. And the Jueyuan remained hovering in the air.

“Thank you, my sons…” the creature muttered, its speech perfectly human.

Qilin struggled to get to his feet. Now that the immortals were gone, he seemed to be...well, back to normal. “I’ll tear out your spine, you bastard!”

“Oh?” The Jueyuan offered a shit-eating, fang filled grin. “You’ll tear out my spine? I’m immortal, you fool. No exorcist can kill me.”

Qilin drew his dao and leapt towards the demon, thrusting the blade at the Jueyuan’s throat. In an instant, the Jueyuan threw him towards the ground, his impact making a small crater in the dirt.

Thankfully, Qilin’s toughened exterior prevented the impact from really damaging him.

“For too long, you exorcists have assumed that your endless quest to slay us demons was infallible. That it was the will of heaven. That you would not be punished for all your barbarism.” The Jueyuan roared. “I show you now, the true will of heaven! You will know your place in it, human! And I will punish you for the lives you’ve taken!”

Qilin gritted his teeth and pushed himself to his feet. “Don’t fuckin’ talk to me about taking lives...after slaughtering your sons…after taking that deal!” Qilin groaned, trying to weakly reassume his fighting stance. “I can still kill him. Help me cut his head off.”

“All you exorcists are responsible for taking the lives of countless demons.” Shun declared as he hovered above the ground. “These are the consequences of your acti-.”

Jahangir wasted no time in drawing, knocking, and loosing an arrow. The trajectory seemed to be bound to miss, so Shun didn’t move, just as the arrow curved and stuck in his throat.

The arrow forced Shun to touch the ground and stagger backwards. He clutched his neck, glaring at the archer.

Xu Qin took up her water stance and met Shun’s glare. “That’s no excuse for your sins.”

She breathed. Four seconds in, four seconds out. Blood rushed through her veins, warming her muscles with energy.

The demon closed the distance between them in but a moment.

Perfect Drilling Fist, fourth form: Winding River.

Despite Shun’s incredible speed, the boost to her bodily functions from Perfect Breathing allowed Xu Qin to snake around him and lock his limbs up, ramming her knee into his ribs before throwing him to Jahangir.

Jahangir clotheslined the unsuspecting demon and wrapped him in a stronger Crushing Fist lock while Xu Qin pounded her fists against sensitive pressure points.

The Jueyuan held her off with his legs, however, and shoved her away. He threw himself back, crushing Jahangir between himself and a wall.

Qilin hailed a flurry of strikes upon the demon, but Shun matched his speed.

“Hey, river brat!” Qilin shouted between blows. “I hope you’re just standing there to come with a plan!”

Xu Qin blinked. He was right. They needed a strategy beyond ‘beat the demon up’. Especially now.

The Jueyuan could move as fast as any Jinshi monk, but was outdone by Perfect Breathing. The Tao’s presence once again kept its users safe from pressure points, but it didn’t protect them from death.

The problem was getting around all of Shun’s new abilities to a point where one of them could actually make a clean strike to the neck. Figuring out just the number of abilities would be too long and too deadly for the three of them to commit to.

Qilin roared as he unsuccessfully attempted to disembowel the Jueyuan. He seemed too angry to be conducive to any strategy for right now.

He seemed to always be this way. Just angry and hateful. No regard for others. Always expecting everyone to keep up with him. 

But then again...he had come back for her. Even though he said he wouldn’t.

It very well could’ve been a coincidence.

Still, he’d helped her in her time of need. Who was she to not at least return the favor?

She at least knew that if she could make an opening, Qilin wouldn’t let it go to waste.

“Jahangir,” Xu Qin grabbed the Uyghur’s attention and tossed him one of her rope darts. “Tie that to an arrow. Can you stick it in the demon’s hand?”

Jahangir nodded. “I can try. But won’t he be strong enough to snap the ropes?”

“We don’t have to worry about that. A moment is all we need.”

Xu Qin uncoiled a rope dart of her own and started running around the two combatants, giving a wide berth to Qilin and Shun’s exchange.

She started throwing her weapon about, wrapping the cord around her body as Jahangir knocked his arrow across from her.

Both fired simultaneously. Jahangir’s arrow pierced Shun’s left hand. Xu Qin’s rope dart flung out and stabbed through his right. Both monks pulled on their ropes, forcing the Jueyuan’s arms out of the way.

But the demon was far faster than she’d expected. Shun leapt up and kicked Qilin in the chest with both legs, sending him staggering. He pulled on both ropes, forcing Xu Qin and Jahangir off balance before they could react.

Xu Qin, being lighter, was pulled into the Jueyuan’s range and struck across the face by the demon.

She landed on her feet and snarled at the creature.

Her gaze shifted slightly as she looked at Qilin, stumbling to pick himself up. He picked his sword up off the ground and met her eyes.

Four seconds in, hold, out.

Perfect Drilling Fist, ninth form: Tsunami.

Xu Qin looked back at the demon and rushed forward, propelled by the enhanced movement of a Perfect Breath. 

Tsunami was an unrelenting wave of attacks that specifically targeted the opponent’s vulnerable spots. It was almost as fast as a metal stance technique.

But that wasn’t the important part. It only mattered that Xu Qin put so much force behind her blows that she could keep knocking Shun off balance. Keep him on the back foot.

Her last blow sent him stumbling just as a flash of light blurred across her vision.

Blood splattered from Qilin’s sword as Shun’s head was divorced from his body.

_______________________________________________________________________

Qilin had to keep himself from falling over after making the last stroke that killed the Jueyuan. His muscles were constantly tense, burning like hot coals.

Though that was to be expected from so many Splitting Fist techniques used at once.

Xu Qin steadied him before he collapsed.

“Thanks…” he muttered. “For...more than just that.”

“Pfft, it was barely any trouble.” She scoffed.

Qilin rolled his eyes as Jahangir approached them.

“I hope you understand the catastrophic consequences of your ruthlessness, xiongdi.” Jahangir glared at him.

“There’s something I should tell the both of you.” Qilin sighed. “The method by which that demon became immortal was by sacrificing twenty of its own sons. I suspect he was planning to get enough to eventually become a god.”

“Demons can do that?” Jahangir asked.

“Humans too.” Qilin said. “Regardless of whether I intervened, this village would’ve suffered losses. I just hope that my ruthlessness killed fewer than that demon’s revenge would’ve.”

“Oh…” Jahangir looked away. “Well...good work, then.”

“You’ve seen this kind of...exchange before, haven’t you? You’ve seen the immortals before.” Xu Qin asked as she helped Qilin take a seat on some fallen debris.

“This destruction...this depravity...it’s only a fraction of what the Eight Immortals are capable of.” Qilin muttered. “If you value your life...go on your own path. Join Jahangir. Do...anything else. You are just a woman. You stand no chance against a god.”

Xu Qin looked at him, then averted her gaze. She sighed, then...chuckled. “You can’t scare me away that easy, Iron Skull. And you’re only a man. You don’t stand any greater chance than I do. But it’s nice to know you care.” He should’ve punched her for that smug grin on her face.

“Well...don’t say I didn’t warn you.” Qilin said. “What about you, Jahangir? You’re also going to insist on following me around?”

“You don’t have to worry about that from me.” Jahangir grinned. “I’ve got my own path to travel on. Besides, somebody has to help rebuild this place. It was...an adventure meeting you though, xiongdi.”

“I’ll see you when I see you, then.” Qilin said. “Xu Qin, go get my things. We’re getting back on the river.”

“Oi, I didn’t agree to be your pack mule.” Xu Qin said.

“You wanna follow? You carry the luggage.” Qilin said. “Plus, I scored the last shot on the demon. If you want your cut, the crows are bringing it to me.”

Xu Qin grumbled as she picked Qilin’s weapons up off the ground. “I’m going to piss in your tea for that.”

Qilin forced himself to his feet and glanced down at the fallen body of the Jueyuan.

Seeing the lifeless body of that monster...it made him proud of his work for the first time in a long, long time.

“You!”

Qilin turned to face Chang Fei, disheveled and burned.

“I told you never to come back here! Never!” Chang Fei snarled. “And look! Look at what you’ve brought upon us! My sons are dead!”

Xu Qin and Jahangir looked at the woman.

Xu Qin intervened. “I don’t know what happened, but if we hadn’t come back, the Jueyuan would be running loose. He was the one who started the fire. He was the one who killed your sons.”

“No!” Chang Fei screamed, pointing at Qilin. He made no response. “That man is a walking curse! Death on legs!” Tears started rolling down her face . “I’ll see you dead, demon! I will avenge my sons!”

Qilin’s face struggled to remain composed. He just looked at her and muttered. “I’ll look forward to it.”

Qilin turned and started walking away as the woman continued to hail obscenities at him from behind.

He gulped down his guilt. It would be far more painful than any of his injuries.