Lan Xiaohui regards Lady Yue with a hint of curiosity. It is clear that Lady Yue has witnessed something at the center of the forest that is out of the ordinary.

My owner straightens up slightly, and folds one hand on top of the other, on the table. “Is there anything specific you have in mind, Lady Yue?” she asks. “There is a lot to talk about.”

Lady Yue smiles, her finger still tapping away at the table. “Why don’t you begin by telling me what happened.” Though it is phrased like a query, the words the older woman speaks are nothing short of a command.

Lan Xiaohui, at this, purses her lips thoughtfully and shrugs. It is not a lie — my owner really doesn’t know what happened, at least not first-hand. She is only aware of the events as I described them to her.

“When I arrived, there was a formation that was functioning normally, I thought,” Lan Xiaohui says. “It was a powerful suppression field, but I am not exactly certain what it was suppressing. Well…”

“Well?” Lady Yue echoes.

“Well, it was probably a snake?” Lan Xiaohui’s statement sounds more like a question, as she is not certain herself. She is aware of the snake that is now within my sea of consciousness, but it’s not like she saw the snake with her own eyes, or felt its presence. At least, she doesn’t think she felt the snake’s presence.

Lady Yue nods. “Interesting,” she says. “There was a lot of shed snake skin at the location, but there was no sign of the creature.”

I wonder if it would be a smart idea to tell Lady Yue about the snake in my sea of consciousness. Perhaps she could help me exorcise the parasite. I immediately decide that this is a foolish idea. I don’t want Lady Yue to know that I am a sentient treasure — there is currently no advantage to doing so, only disadvantages. There is also no telling how Lady Yue would react to this knowledge — that I am in possession of a likely very valuable undying corpse of a self-proclaimed demon snake god.

“I tried to cultivate there, as the Qi was very rich, but I found it very difficult to breathe in the Qi within the suppression field,” Lan Xiaohui explains. “Then, all of a sudden, the formation collapsed, and the willow trees began to rampage, attacking everything in sight. The corpses of the dead demonic beasts came back to life, and if it weren’t for them distracting the willow trees, I surely would’ve died. I barely escaped with my life.”

That last part is news to me. The corpses came back to life? Is that even possible? Were they really dead?

Perhaps, it occurs to me, it is the snake’s fault. It is undying, and it was the source of power for that formation, and almost the entirety of that forest. Could it be, that closer to the snake, its influence could puppet corpses, or somehow keep them not-entirely-dead?

More questions rise to the front of my consciousness. If the snake had such an inconvenient power, then what was the purpose of the tree? It wasn’t a demon-suppressing willow like the other trees, therefore it surely had another function.

“You did not see what became of it after?” Lady Yue asks.

Lan Xiaohui shakes her head.

Lady Yue nods. “I see. Let’s leave it at that. It is probably for the best if you don’t tell anyone that you were there when the formation collapsed.”

“Did something else happen?” Lan Xiaohui asks.

Lady Yue nods. “Do you know what this is?” she asks, producing two crystals from her internal storage ring, though to call them crystals would be a bit of a stretch.

The objects in question certainly have a glassy structure, but they resemble fist-sized beads more than finely faceted gems. The crystal is a blue-green color and is shrouded in a very rich Qi that appears like a swirling green mist above the surface of the crystal.

Lan Xiaohui shakes her head at the presented object. “I don’t know what that is, Lady Yue.”

“These are Wood Crystal Essences,” Lady Yue explains and offers them to Lan Xiaohui. “When things in this world reach a certain material grade, they can develop these Essences — they are extremely useful to cultivators and it would not be strange if, on this continent, you never came across one.”

Lan Xiaohui accepts the offered crystals and stares at them. “They are this rare?”

Lady Yue nods. “Those are of fairly low grade and quality, but, yes, they are very rare. However, even despite their grade, if you consume them, you should have no trouble forming your Gold Core,” Lady Yue says. “One is for you, the other is for Wu Yulan.”

“Thank you, Lady Yue,” Lan Xiaohui says.

“I only managed to obtain these two and another one for me, but I could immediately tell that something was wrong,” Lady Yue explains. “A large hole appeared in the center of the forest, and before I could investigate it, or rip more essences from the remaining willows, the sect elders showed up, and I had to retreat.”

“The sect elders came to investigate?” Lan Xiaohui asks.

Lady Yue nods. “Yes, which makes it quite intriguing, doesn’t it? Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to learn what secrets they were hiding in that place, but it doesn’t look to me like this matter will simply end there,” Lady Yue explains. “Whatever you did in that formation could very well have ruinous consequences for the sect. I am still very curious about it; I felt a very powerful, dark aura from that place.”

“Yu Shun once bragged to me that the power of the Seven Killing Swords sect is their sacrificial demonic art,” Lan Xiaohui says. “I even suspect that the reason Yu Shun broke my cultivation and left me to die was because of this. Perhaps these matters are related?”

“Demon arts?” Lady Yue asks, her lips quirking into a frown. “Little lily, I shouldn’t have to say this, but whether you are a righteous or a demonic cultivator, that is your choice. But you should never practice the demon arts. They are not worth it. There is such a thing as heavenly debt, and one day, Heaven will come to collect the blood price for the power you gained unjustly.”

Lan Xiaohui nods.

“Well, there is no use speculating what the sect was doing at the center of that forest, or if it was somehow related to their method of crossing the boundary. For now, we simply have to wait and see. As long as you don’t let anyone know you were there, you should be fine.”

Lan Xiaohui nods. “Thank you for the warning, Lady Yue.”

With those words, Lady Yue stands up. “That is all I wanted to talk about,” she says. “I look forward to seeing you at the Martial Meeting. I don’t have to remind you what the benefits are if you perform well?”

Lan Xiaohui shakes her head. “No, Lady Yue. This one is well aware of the benefits.”

“Good,” Lady Yue says and nods. “I will let you prepare then. Enjoy the festival, and good luck at the tournament.”

“Thank you, Lady Yue,” Lan Xiaohui says and bows her head politely to the departing woman.