Chapter 278

  Moon Lake (IV)

  He wasn't so much a Know-It-All-Wei as he was a Chatterbox-Wei.

  No, seriously, it felt as though as soon as I loosened the doors ever so slightly ajar, he pushed forth a tidal tsunami as though he saw it as an invitation... and hadn't stopped yapping for what feels like hours.

  ... no, scratch that, the fucking sun is setting. It has been hours.

  Oh my God.

  He hasn't stopped once to take a sip of water. Just... how?!

  Reminds me of that kid--oh, wow, I actually forgot his name. Admittedly, it has been like, what? Fifteen years, if not more? Anyway, I was just out of college when one of my professors called me back and said there's this kid that's looking for a tutor. And as I was strapped for cash, bad, I'd let the prof know I was available.

  So, he hooks us up, and within fifteen minutes of meeting the kid, I knew the count of hairs on his head. He just never shut up.

  ... it turned out it was a major coping mechanism of abuse, so maybe not entirely like that kid.

  Anyway, his yapping wasn't... all bad. I learned some things--mostly useless things, admittedly.

  Supposedly, some Fairy Lei and some Phoenix Long (isn't that a weird combo?) broke off their engagement because she was seen showing the nape of her neck to some Prince or another, and now the sect and the empire were thinking of going to war or something.

  There was also the ever-exciting news of his junior sister Liao, who was seen rendezvousing with the most popular senior brother under the pale moonlight by the Swan Lake that was actually a duck lake, as no swans lived there.

  With each passing bit of news, I'd catch the glimpse of his two companions growing redder and redder in the face.

  I am a bit surprised that the stronger one doesn't rein him in, but maybe he's pretending to be weak? Maybe he's one of those classic low-key protags (like me!) that stays in the shadows and seems unassuming until BAM, suddenly he saves the day by being a dashing hero!

  ... or, in my case, one of the kids saves the day, and I'm the dashing hero/heroine adjacent.

  Anyway, I'm not one to speculate, so I focused on listening the best I could.

  "... and that's when the Senior Sister and Junior Brother joined hands and died together! Though Elders claim that it's a lie and that they were captured and brutally tortured until their skin was slipping off their flesh, I just know they're hiding the truth of their forbidden love!"

  Hm? How the hell did we get here?

  "Wow. That's... quite some love."

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  "And then there's the tale of--"

  "--fellow Daoist Wei," I quickly interrupted, fearful it would be yet another tale of savagery dressed up into something nicer, as this kid clearly had his own way of coping with things. "I will be candid with you."

  "Hm?"

  "You talk… way too much," the two behind him gasped invisibly as he stared at me with a confused look.

  "Fellow Daoist...?"

  "Don't get me wrong--I enjoyed your stories quite a lot," I said. "But they are also quite a lot. I will also say that it's most likely just me." His two companions shook their heads rather violently just then. "I am a man of quiet solace. Even wind, if too loud, is too much. I have taught my kids to relay their thoughts to me in four words or less, or simply never speak."

  "Oh," he exclaimed softly, staring at me for a moment as though examining me. "Have you had your guts checked?"

  "... hm?"

  "My grandfather could seldom listen to people, too," he said. "But it turned out he had Qi-Chewing Parasites in his guts! Ever since Alchemist Juang took them out, the man can listen to people talk forever without so much as blinking!"

  "Because he's comatose?"

  "Who can say? The point is that us having him examined saved his life, and it was all because he couldn't listen to people."

  "Oh. Sure. I will have someone examine my guts for Qi-Chewing Parasites."

  "Fantastic! Which also reminds me of--"

  "--I am still susceptible to them, however. For my health's sake, fellow Daoist, perhaps spare me this one time?"

  "Oh, of course! Apologies! I will limit myself."

  "Thank you."

  "Tomorrow, I shall tell you the story of how I once caught a glimpse of the Light Maiden sunbathing! She was pearlescent, her skin akin to a luminous shade of milk, shorn of any and all blemishes as though sculpted by gods to utmost perfection! Her beauty earmarked a storm within me, a storm that I am unable to tide against to this day; that image haunts me, like an Inner Demon, plaguing my dreams as it does my nightmares. I toss and I turn, I yearn and I abstain..."

  ... yeah.

  It was my fault for trying to be a nice Samaritan.

  Good lesson, thus, for the future.

  Never take anyone in, for any reason whatsoever.

  "Wei, we've been found." At some point in his incessant yapping, one of his companions--the weaker one whose name I've already forgotten, to be honest--broke the silence as the other one stood up, alert. Even Wei's casual countenance shifted immediately to that of chill and apathy, causing no small amount of Qi disturbance around us.

  "How?!" he almost growled as he stood up. "Dammit. Cai, cover them. Min, you're with me."

  "We can't fight, Wei! You still haven't recovered! Cai and I can take care of it!"

  "Just listen, goddammit." Wei took a deep breath as I finally realized what they were mumbling about--it was the snippet of raging energy swirling about ten miles from the direction they flew in from. There were about a dozen signatures, but none that seemed stronger than Wei himself. "Cai, if it looks like we're failing, use the mirror and get everyone away."

  "But Wei..."

  Disregarding their melodramatic conversation for a moment, I shifted to the side, where I saw Long Tao slowly stand up and focus toward the source of energy. His face looked like that of a planner, and by now I was familiar enough with him that I already knew what he wanted to do.

  ... the issue was, I really didn't want to expose the kids to these three. It's already cost us dearly in the Silvercrest City, and I feel we'd simply be making the same mistake yet again.

  Although... our little trek in the forest did sort of reveal our shortcomings, and most of that was related to the fact that the kids simply didn't have enough fighting experience.

  Besides, if it was about running away, I still had that chariot stashed away... that I couldn't use since it required so many stones that the sheer number made my head hurt.

  Oh well.

  Seeing Long Tao faintly nodding before sitting down and pretending to meditate, I sighed and stood up, dusting off my robes.

  "Fellow Daoists," I interrupted their little fervent chat as they all turned toward me. "You're our guests. Where I'm from, we take great honor in protecting our guests, even unto death."

  "A-ah, fellow Daoist, that is very kind of you but--"

  "--I'm not offering," I cut him rather sharply. "For once, shut up and listen. My children, you see," I said with a faint smile, feeling them slowly appear behind my back. "Need whetstones. They will be mighty indebted to you for providing them with some. So, please, step back and allow us to exercise our dearly held customs to the best of our abilities."