NOVEL WEB Chapter 14: Lighting the Incense
Chapter 14: Lighting the Incense
The feeling of holding different swords is never the same.
You Su gripped the Black Pine, swinging it with the grace of the wind. This confidence emanating from within was something a wooden sword could never provide. You Su reveled in this self-assurance; he loved the feeling of being grounded and powerful.
As the sunlight shifted, You Su immersed himself in his sword practice, with only his shadow moving from west to east as the day progressed.
Ji Lingruo rubbed her sleepy eyes as she stepped out of her room. The setting sun, blood red in hue, cast a unique shade on her emerald green skirt, making her look like a vivid watercolor painting.
She noticed that her senior brother was unusually diligent today. Despite it being dinner time, he was still practicing his sword forms tirelessly. Initially, she wanted to shout at him to stop and prepare dinner, but seeing You Su’s sweat-soaked robes, she hesitated to disturb him. Just then, her stomach let out an unmistakable growl. Biting her lower lip, she suddenly had an idea.
She decided to show off her culinary skills and let her senior brother taste her cooking. With that thought, she slipped quietly into the kitchen.
You Su had lost track of the time. It wasn’t until the last remnants of the sun disappeared behind the mountain that he snapped out of his trance and realized that it was already night. Remembering that he hadn’t prepared dinner for his junior sister, he quickly sheathed the Black Pine and hurried to the kitchen.
The sky had darkened and the kitchen was lit by the warm glow of an oil lamp. Ji Lingruo’s skin seemed to emanate a faint, ethereal light under the lamp’s glow. Her dress was dotted with stains – whether from water or oil, it was hard to tell. She had rolled up her sleeves and was scooping fried eggs out of a pan. After setting them aside, she let out a long sigh, marveling at her own efforts. Without pause, she fetched water and poured it into the pot, covering it with a lid. With the back of her hand, she wiped the thin layer of sweat from her forehead.
You Su stood silently at the door. Although he couldn’t see, he seemed to perceive everything happening in the kitchen as if he could.
When the water boiled, Ji Lingruo lifted the lid and tossed in a handful of washed vegetables and two bundles of noodles, seasoning them as she went. After a while, she eagerly ladled the clear soup noodles into two bowls, giving You Su the larger portion. She then divided the four fried eggs between the two bowls, two for each. After a moment’s hesitation, she transferred one of her eggs to You Su’s bowl, a faint smile of satisfaction tugging at her lips.
She set the bowls down and was about to call her sword-obsessed senior brother to eat. This was the only dish she was somewhat proficient at, and she had already decided in her mind that You Su must finish every last drop of the soup.
But as she turned around, she was startled to see You Su standing at the door. Ji Lingruo patted her chest, which was beginning to take shape, and complained, “Why didn’t you say anything? Come in and eat.”
You Su smiled faintly as he stepped inside. “My junior sister has grown up and now knows how to take care of her senior brother.”
“Hmph, I just happened to make too much. It’s a pity this broken sect doesn’t have any pigs, or I’d rather feed it to them,” Ji Lingruo retorted, sitting down and rolling her eyes in a charming manner.
You Su also took a seat and took a sip of the soup. He sighed, “Good thing there are no pigs here, otherwise they would starve to death thanks to you.”
“What do you mean by that?” Ji Lingruo glared at him, then stuffed a large mouthful of noodles into her mouth, mumbling, “Is it… that… bad?”
But after just one bite, she nearly gagged. It was quite an achievement to make clear soup noodles taste so awful.
She gulped down a mouthful of tea and grumbled, “I messed up! Don’t eat it anymore!”
But You Su ignored her and began devouring the noodles with gusto.
“Hey, I told you not to eat it. Didn’t you say it was bad?”
“Did I?”
“Didn’t you say the pigs would starve?”
You Su took another sip of the soup and chuckled, “I said the pigs would starve because you didn’t cook enough. Who could be satisfied with such a small amount?” Then he looked at Ji Lingruo’s untouched bowl and asked tentatively, “If you’re not hungry, why don’t you give me yours?”
“No!” Ji Lingruo replied, but seeing You Su’s eager expression, she felt a sweet warmth in her heart and began eating her own noodles. Surprisingly, they didn’t taste so bad anymore.
It wasn’t until both of them couldn’t resist reaching for their teacups at the same time that they shared a knowing smile.
The full moon hung high in the sky, its porcelain-white light spilling across the land. The agreed upon time – the Hour of Yin (3-5 a.m.) the day after tomorrow – was fast approaching.
You Su calculated the date. It was the fifteenth day of the eighth month. In his previous world, this day was the Mid-Autumn Festival, a time for family reunions.
Unfortunately, this continent didn’t have such a festival, but You Su still wanted to imbue this day with a sense of sacred ritual – he would save his junior sister and master’s wife and reunite with them.
Earlier, he had instructed his junior sister not to practice her sword today and to focus on finishing the manuscript of The Legend of the White Snake in her room. He had also lingered outside the room of his master’s wife for a while. The inside was as silent as death, so You Su didn’t disturb her and left quietly.
You Su took out the items Elder Ling had given him and placed them on the table: a lamp, seven wicks, and three dragon sandalwood incense sticks. He closed his eyes, carefully recalling every detail of his interaction with Elder Ling. The more he thought about it, the more resolute he became in his decision.
All he needed to do was recite the sixteen-word incantation, and he could help Elder Ling complete the formation, trapping the evil spirits within the Ten Thousand Ghost Subjugation Formation and making them easy prey for Elder Ling.
It sounded simple enough. With just these few steps, he could rescue his junior sister and master’s wife from their dire predicament.
Yet You Su hesitated. It wasn’t because he was indecisive – it was because he was waiting.
Meanwhile, half a mile away at the foot of the mountain, Elder Ling, dressed in white robes, stroked his thin beard as he observed the changing moon and stars, silently calculating the time. In his hand were four yellow talismans, and before him was an old redwood table with an incense burner filled with sandalwood sticks.
Similar setups were arranged in eleven other locations within a half-mile radius centered around the Mandarin Duck Sword Sect.
Elder Ling had gone to great lengths to set all this up without attracting attention. Fortunately, the Mandarin Duck Sword Sect was located in a remote area, making his task easier. To ensure success, he had even gone so far as to set up a soundproofing formation of the same scale.
But he still hadn’t received any signal from You Su to light the incense, and he was growing anxious. Formations depended on the right timing and conditions. If the Hour of Yin passed, the effectiveness of the formation would be greatly diminished.
Elder Ling began to worry that something had gone wrong on You Su’s end, but he didn’t sense any unusual activity, which meant that You Su most likely hadn’t been discovered.
Could it be that the boy had seen through his plan all along?
The more Elder Ling thought about it, the more uneasy he became. If this young man had seen through his scheme and had been playing along all this time, what kind of terrifying cunning did he possess?
Elder Ling didn’t believe he could fail, but the thought of being deceived filled him with rage. He could not wait any longer and stepped into the half-mile radius.
At the same time, You Su stopped his mental countdown.
There was only half a quarter left before the Hour of Yin would pass. Finally, he lit the seven incense sticks.
“Heaven is round, Earth is square; by the laws of the nine chapters, I command with my brush, ten thousand ghosts…”
You Su recited the incantation with utmost reverence, then extinguished the incense. He picked up the Black Pine and quietly slipped out of the sect.
Under the moonlight, his shadow stretched long behind him. He was going to save them.