A storm yet brews between Shen Qiu and Li Ling but for the day's events both have elected to put matters aside. With the vassal clan gathering taking place over the course of a week and the exhibition matches only being scheduled during dinner and in the evening many smaller contests are organized during the day, both by the sect, the clans themselves and any others lucky enough to receive an invitation to this prestigious event. The second day in particular has the preliminary rounds for the alchemy contest, the poetry competition and the elimination rounds for rogue cultivators wishing for a chance to gain a sponsor.
It is early in the morning just barely after dawn that the three find themselves at the alchemy division. While they would lose face if they hoarded the prizes provided by their own sect by participating that is not the reason for their presence.
"Do you recall which amongst the people here are the most important, Qiu?"
"I think so. Twin braid girl is Ke Ming Gui, the slender guy that's glaring at everything is Cai Yuu and dreads over there is Hu Bao."
"And?"
"Be courteous but firm to the Mo and avoid the Tai at all costs."
"Good. Don't mess up, Qiu. I can't afford to watch you all day and if we're not rising by the end of the gathering we'll be going down. You told me to ask you to help, don't be a disappointment when I do."
Qiu scoffs. Just one mistake, one that was out of her control even, and Ling treats her like a child. Shun resolves herself to keep a close eye on the situation and intervene when necessary but stays quiet for now as Ling continues her instructions.
"Let us begin with the Ke first, their break with the Cai shall make it easier for us. Leave the talking to me unless you're spoken to, Qiu."
Deciding not to roll her eyes at the overly dramatic princess until they are in private Qiu elects to go over what she knows of Ming Gui instead. While it doesn't seem particularly impressive to her, Shun assured her that the woman's cultivation at her age is highly impressive even with her resources. Barring hidden prodigies she is the Ke clan's most potent cultivator within their age bracket. Given that the clan prioritizes alchemy and herbology Ling deemed it unlikely they would hold another genius like that in reserve. Especially since their craft’s requirements leads to frequent clashes with the Xie clan over territory.
Qiu feels conflicted regarding the woman's looks. She certainly looks the part of a noble cultivator, resplendent brown robes with deep red and white accents painting the picture of an autumnal tree heralding the coming of winter. Additionally small green leaves and buds are subtly woven into the tapestries decorating her entire outfit. From what she recalls from Ling's long winded explanation they are supposed to symbolize the hardiest flourishing in even the harshest conditions. She vaguely recalls there being more to the positioning of the various pieces of art on her clothing but zoned out partway through the princess's rant and cannot remember what.
Unlike most she has seen during the meet Ming Gui has a bright smile on her face when they approach, the combination of her guileless expression and twin brown braids giving the impression of a kindly older sister or, less flattering Qiu thinks, a farmer's daughter. She clasps her hands and bows her head when they approach.
"This Ke Ming Gui greets Lady Li of the White Rose."
"This Li Ling greets Ming Gui of the Ke. My congratulations on your victory, it was a fine match."
"Thank you for your praise, Lady Li. Are you here to judge the competition?"
"Nay, Miss Ke. Merely as a spectator. I have heard much of your clan's skill, is there anyone in particular you are rooting for?"
Ming Gui nods and gestures towards a young man with the same shade of lime green eyes.
"My cousin is participating this time, he is one of the most skilled alchemists of this generation within our Ke clan. I have high hopes for him."
"Has he told you what he shall be creating for the preliminaries?"
"A Boreal Aphorism Pill, Lady Li."
Ling gives an approving nod. Creating an ice attuned pill instead of a wood attuned one sends a clear message of where the clan endeavors to put its efforts. The difficulty of the concoction's creation emphasizes it further, more so the cost of the ingredients combined with the implication of each round after the preliminary requiring higher qualities paints quite the picture.
Ling feigns a moment of consideration while she suppresses a grin from showing on her face. It’s clear to her the clan intends to make amends with their sect and judging by the amount of money they are willing to throw at the problem they are in dire need of connections. She supposes the rumors are true then, Cai Yin chose to flee towards their capital to finalize a deal. One that is firmly dead with the young master so gravely injured in the attempt. Their loss is her gain. Her satisfaction nearly shows on her face when she realizes how perfectly things are lining up for her.
“An ambitious choice. As expected, it appears the recent rumors regarding the border skirmishes were false.” Ming Gui’s smile grows a bit more strained at Ling’s comment. ‘That’s right, you need me.’ “If I might offer a piece of advice, Miss Ke.”
“Of course, Lady Li.”
“Perhaps elixirs may be the better choice for the remainder of the competition. It shall be difficult to compete with Miss Hu in matters of pill concoction. Speaking of which.”
The blue haired girl has been sending furtive glances her way the entire time and getting more and more discouraged when Ling does not return them even once. She visibly perks up when the ice princess finally does. Ling nods at her in greeting causing the lanky woman to awkwardly walk towards them.
“Hello- I mean. Greetings, Lady Li, Miss Shen, Miss Dai and.. uhm.” Bao flounders, the bells at the ends of her dreads tingling as casts a panicked glance towards Ling.
“Lady Ke.”
“Ah… yes… My most sincere apologies, Lady Ke.”
“It is of no concern, Lady Hu. Lady Li informed me you are participating in the alchemy contest. Please take it easy on my cousin.”
Bao pushes her glasses up, her eyes gleaming at the subject mentioned. Showing none of the usual clumsiness her eyes flick over several of Ming Gui’s features with near mechanical precision before she looks at the participants and rapidly narrows down which could be related to her. Within the second she is looking at the right person.
“Of course, Lady Ke. I have heard much of the Ke’s diligence towards herbal cultivation. I'm most eager to see how the growth conditions of the ingredients shall affect the potency of the final product.”
Ling decides to intervene before their conversation turns more amicable. There would be no point in the two creating strong ties without her being a part of it after all.
“Might I invite both of you for tea this evening then? I’m sure we’ll have much to discuss. I shall prepare a toast to your success, Lady Hu. Winning should not be a problem with your competences, no?”
"This one shall endeavor to meet Lady Li's expectations. Please excuse me, I must see to my preparations."
Bao bows and leaves like there are wolves nipping at her heels. Gulping at the cold look Ling's eyes hold she nevertheless can't help but feel somewhat happy at the crude dismissal. 'Was she jealous I was talking to Lady Ke?' The thought energizes her while she checks her furnace and verifies the quality of her ingredients.
Ling takes a deep breath to push down her annoyance while turning back towards Ming Gui. Luckily she does not seem to appear offended by Bao's lack of courtesy when departing. If anything her smile seems a bit brighter as she watches the lanky girl scurry about. Ling files the thought away for later, intending to make the most of this opportunity while there is still time.
"Lady Ke, forgive my curiosity but I must ask, has the Ke clan found out anything more about the one that injured Young Master Cai?"
"I'm afraid not," Ming Gui replies with an apologetic head bow. "Rest assured however we shall inform the sect the moment we discover the assailant's identity."
Ling's eyes narrow at the woman's words, qi flooding her head to speed up her thoughts before she replies. While it certainly makes sense that information regarding the Song would remain tightly guarded something feels off to her about Ke Ming Gui's ignorance. She wonders whether it is truly the case, odds are after all she simply does not wish to share the information freely. Yet that does not quite seem to make sense. Her question was intentionally broad to allow the woman to hint at her knowledge in order to set up a private meeting to negotiate or elaborate on it later.
Is she attempting to cut her off then? If their break with the Cai was merely feigned to draw their opposition out to the fore it would make sense she does not wish to associate with Ling. The money they are throwing at the contest however seems far too vast for mere trickery. Had her father not personally informed her of the Song's involvement she may have believed the attack to be fake entirely but she firmly believes such a ruse would be impossible to get past him, not to mention the Cai lost far too much influence due to angering one with such an esteemed backer. No, she cannot imagine that to be the case.
Either she has other reasons to withhold information or she truly does not know. Judging by the sunny smile Ming Gui still holds Ling would bet on it being the second but why? Is it not crucial for a young talent to know who they must avoid or treat with care? A more worrying implication flits through her mind. 'What if the Ke truly do not know.' The thought unsettles her. There are two possibilities. Either none of the Ke were with Cai Yin at the time or…
"I have only recently left secluded cultivation so forgive my knowledge for being spotty. Were there any casualties besides Young Master Cai?"
"Thank you for your concern. Three of our own passed away in the attack. We are grateful for the sect's generous remunerations for their sacrifice."
…They were silenced. Ling's mind begins to race even as Ming Gui bows deeply in gratitude. She sees herself gesture at the woman to raise her head as if she were looking through another's eyes. For the sect to suppress the identity to this extent means the Song is far more dangerous than expected. Given that she has a disciple Ling estimated her at being in the Core Formation realm but now she is reassessing that theory. It is well known that the Infernal Blade herself does not intervene with the affairs of her disciples unless an Immortal takes personal action against them however the Song have a habit of surviving fights far above their level and are prone to seeking vengeance. Until this very moment Ling believed that was what the sect was worried about but now a different idea haunts her. 'She is already beyond what our Grand Elders are certain they can handle.'
Her first thought is to flee with Shun and Qiu at the first opportunity, perhaps warning Bao and maybe Qing along the way. She channels a mote of ice qi through her veins even as she speeds her thoughts up further. Her mind roils like an icy river flowing onto molten rock, shock covering her thoughts like a haze even as burning impulses war with cold calculations. She pushes more and more ice qi into her veins until it threatens to freeze her body. A single misty breath wafts from her mouth before she manages to reign the extreme in and calm herself. Shun stiffens at the sight, her heart pounding louder than ever before. Never has she seen her mistress lose control in public. All she can do is helplessly stand by and pray she manages to compose herself.
With her mind as sped up as it is less than a second passes during her inner turmoil, barely enough time for Ming Gui to straighten from her bow. She considers probing the girl for further information but doubts it would lead to enough new information to justify the continued questioning, better to wait until the evening tea and bring it up naturally. She stays to watch the contest alongside her, occasionally making a comment about one contestant or the other and courteously ignoring Ming Gui’s hushed titters whenever a furnace detonates or an alchemist catches fire. By the time the preliminary ends she has considered the situation enough to calm down fully and refrain from a knee jerk reaction.
Instead her mind turns to contemplation. Despite the Song’s disciple being crippled she only severely injured Cai Yin. The sect made no mention of him being crippled in return nor did Grand Elder Cai make any of the moves that would be associated with his precious grandson’s path coming to an end. Ling speculates that perhaps this Song is far more merciful than the ones before her. So long as the sect does not push her further they may yet be able to avoid annihilation. She can’t help but wonder why the Ke were not brought into this plan. Should they run into the Song during their search and agitate her would that not prove counterproductive? The lack of information grates at her, every answer she receives creating ten more questions. The exact location of the fight, whether there were any bystanders and if so what happened to them not to mention what caused Yin and the Song’s disciple to do battle in the first place. Each point is crucial in deciphering the situation yet wholly out of her reach. She racks her brain for any way to attain them. A plan begins to take shape when she considers who Cai Yin might have spoken to since his return. It is time to find Lai Xueya.
