Aoyang: The Reborn Alchemist Seeks Knowledge [Xianxia]

On a distant mountain, a castle of seamless white stone jutted into the skies. Stripes of dull black steel wrapped around the building, their scarcely glinting surfaces etched with endless sigils and formation conduits.

A faint translucent barrier enveloped the structure and obscured the sight of the castle, warding not just intruders but even the warmth of the sun.

The headquarters of the Ying Clan stood silently in a remote corner of the WanLing territory, away from prying eyes. Not a single building could be seen from the vantage atop the mountain.

Within the castle, faint footsteps echoed from a hallway as Ying Shi walked with trepidation. He stopped before a doorway and held the knob firmly, taking a deep but silent breath before walking in.

The faint creak of the door accompanied him as he walked into a dark bedroom, shutting it behind him. The massive room was excessive enough to fit a dozen double beds, yet only a single bed was lined against the furthest wall from the entrance.

Yingtao laid on the bed motionless without breathing, a thick blanket draped over her. Not even her heart stirred, her body utterly still like a corpse.

The room was silent. Too silent. Ying Shi approached quietly, but his footsteps echoed, heavy with dread. Such was the lethality of soulsearching, the slightest backlash leaving their victims in such a state.

His own heart thumped harder and harder as he approached, as if to compensate for her stilled one. Every step he took felt weighted down upon him further and he nearly choked. He wanted so desperately to avert his eyes, but he forced himself to take in the sight.

Yingtao laid completely still on the bed without a single breath; her body seemed to have withered and dehydrated slightly.

The logical part of him knew she was alive.

A Core Shaper had long transcended the need for oxygen or blood flow, the qi within the body perfectly capable of sustaining life. Her soul clung tightly to her body stubbornly, streams of qi pulsing from her dantian and through her meridians. Even after complete failure of the nervous system, the core within her dantian worked tirelessly, unbound by the biological limits of a heart.

But she looked like a corpse.

Ying Shi's breathing grew unsteady. He covered his mouth and choked for air. His stoic demeanour, unshakeable no matter the the adversary slowly crumbled fragment by fragment. His fists clenched and trembled with grief, his eyes reddening as tears threatened to spill out.

"Yingtao..." his voice trembled.

No longer did he sound beyond his years. It was the trembling voice of a frightened and broken child.

Pathetic. Unsightly and undignified.

There were many things he thought of himself at that moment as he cursed his frailty. Because of his father's actions, Yingtao had been reduced to this. It was avoidable too, a peaceful resolution possible thanks to Fei An. But for Yingtao had to take the fall for his father's pride. Even the Ying clan itself had to suffer, having drawn the wrath of the 2nd strongest clan in the sect.

Ying Shi slowly pulled out a hand of hers from beneath the blanket. It was cold to the touch.

"Yingtao..." he said with soulsense. "I've always believed in father's teachings. I respected him and took pride in our conduct, upholding the Ying Clan's honour before the other clans. But after what has befallen you, I cannot help but waver. Dignity... Face... when the price is this high, how could it be justified?"

Yingtao did not answer, perhaps because of his insufficient training in soul arts. He needed to study much harder now without his sister to help tutor him.

...

Ridiculous.

A pathetic attempt to console himself. He knew perfectly well she was in a soul coma, the aspects of her soul fragmented. The clan doctor said Yingtao would slowly recover, but it would take years or even decades for her to wake up once more.

"Yingtao," he continued. "I wish I knew what father was thinking. I..."

He suddenly flinched as the door swung open. A dragonfly with a round bell for its head flew in, shaking noisily.

"Ding ding ding!" a cheerful young voice echoed. "Young master Ying Shi, guests have arrived. As Master Ying Guang always said, make yourself presentable!"

This accursed creature barging in at such a time... He turn away to hide his pathetic face, his teeth gritted at the sound of his father's name.

"I shall prepare then." he said, nodding in silence.

The dragonfly returned the nod before flying off, the door still ajar. Sunlight shone into the dark room from the open door. But it offered no comfort, its presence detestable.

Ying Shi glanced a final time at his sister.

"I'll be back soon. I promise." he said.

Ying Shi left her side and headed into the hallway, shutting the door behind him gently. His footsteps rang loud and clear in the cold, lonely hallway. Not even the peak of the afternoon sun could warm the castle of white stone, the formations keeping out even heat.

The bathroom door revealed itself as he turned the corner. Ying Shi pushed it open and walked to an Everlasting Basin. Even with the stone basin lying flat before him, the perfectly clean water reflected light just as well as a mirror would, and he found himself staring at his reflection.

Ying Shi flinched at the sight. How could he look so unsightly, so distraught and weak? He knew his appearance would be pathetic, but this was far beyond what had imagined.

He scooped out handfuls of pure water and doused his face in it. But the water running down his face only looked like tears, his drenched appearance like a pathetic stray dog left out in the rain.

Ying Shi loathed himself for being weak.

When his father accepted Yingtao's proposal to soulsearch her instead, why did he not have the courage to speak up? Like a coward, he remained frozen in shock.

Ying Guang did the search to honour his sister's bravery. Then... if he had expressed the same determination she did, would he have convinced his father not to harm her? It might have been possible, low as the chances were. He knew of his father's character.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

Then... he clenched his fists. The opportunity was always there. He could have saved his sister. The tears he held back within his reddened eyes finally spilled, the first in many years. He was pathetic. So pathetic.

Who was he to put up this farce of strength? The other disciples viewed him as stoic beyond his years, but he could not even match Yingtao's courage, not even Baiyun, who was a servant younger than he was.

No! He could not drown in his own weakness. Now for not the time for that.

Ying Shi wiped his face clean with a single swipe from a nearby towel. The water beneath had already cleansed itself from his tears, reflecting his distraught face impeccably.

Unacceptable.

Muscle by muscle, he contorted his face, slowly adjusting it into his usual calm demeanour. It was a slow and painful process only made possible by muscle control arts.

Even as he suppressed his tears before, they flowed down his nasals regardless. He blocked the flow of mucus with qi, redirecting it down his gullet. There would be no pathetic snivelling with a wet nose.

His eyes were still red. So he blocked the flow of blood with qi until they turned white once more.

Ying Shi's reflection was now that of his usual self. Stoic and composed, a hidden confidence behind it. It was the face that commanded respect from his peers, that made young masters from other clans willing to accept him as leader. A face that made him look wise beyond his years, as if he had the soul of a grown man.

The pathetic sight of him from moments ago was buried. No one would see it but him. He would make sure of that.

Ying Shi took a deep breath before walking out of the bathroom in silence. But he paused as the glint of a passing mirror caught his eye. They had been placed in the halls sparsely, a simple reminder to the Ying clan that they should always be aware of their appearance.

Something was off about his reaction, he finally realised. The skin around his eyes was abnormally pale, a consequence of him blocking the blood flow. It was an insignificant detail, something almost no one would notice, not even reflected by the basin's water.

BANG!

Ying Shi slammed his fist into the mirror with all his might, breathing heavily as the sound echoed through the hall.

Hundreds of cracks spread through the mirror like spiderwebs. His fist did not feel pain; his tough skin did not even bleed from the shattered glass. But he pushed his fist harder and harder into the mirror.

Crackles echoed as the glass was crushed into smaller and smaller fragments, until finally piercing skin. Blood flowed at last, spilling into the cracked glass and dented wall.

A bloody thousand reflections stared back at him. Ying Shi pulled out his hand and dusted off the fragments.

"Repair." he said softly.

A surge of earth qi burst from his other hand into the mirror; metal was not his only discipline. Cracks began to mend, the intricate labyrinth of spiderwebs fading before his eyes. He wiped off the last of the blood splattered on its surface, the mirror now pristine as if it had never been damaged.

Only the faintest trace of crimson etched itself deep into the glass.

Ying Shi applied a salve over his wounded hand wordlessly as walked. He still had guests to meet.

...

A few minutes of silence allowed him to contemplate as he walked.

Ying Shi already knew who they were as he headed to the castle's front gates, stepping outside the barrier. For a moment, he was allowed to bask under the warmth of the afternoon sun again.

It was unpleasant.

"Ying Shi! Ying Shi!"

Mohei called out to him frantically, rushing over from a mechanical bird chariot. Fei An stepped out next with listless eyes, Sanguang and Qinghe following closely behind her.

Fei An...

Ying Shi suddenly choked up again. Fei An's eyes lacked the redness of tears from before, but a glum aura clung to her, her eyes once full of mischief now tired and lifeless. It was his fault her brother Jingfeng died, and now she would have to confront Yingtao in her current state...

She looked straight into his eyes. The piercing look nearly made him jump, and he quickly averted his gaze.

No. What was he doing, acting so uncharacteristically before the members of his hunting party? Hidden under his closed lips, he gritted his teeth.

"Ying Shi, Ying Shi!" Mohei grabbed his hand and shook it rigorously. "Is Yingtao fine? We haven't heard from her or you since the incident! You need to answer the communication jade properly!"

The communication jades of the hunting party... he had been so stressed, he did not have the will to answer them. He could not let them hear that wavering side of his.

"I apologise for the lack of response, there was a lot on my mind." Ying Shi said. "Now, allow me to escort you into the clan headquarters."

He spoke with little trace of his mental turmoil, his tone perfect this time.

"You still need to answer the jades properly! That's what my grandpa always said!"

Ying Shi didn't bother to grace that with a response. He raised a jade token and opened a gap in the barrier, letting his companions in. The moment they were past the gate and into the castle, Mohei ran past everyone in the hallway, rushing to Yingtao's room before anyone else.

Seeing that Mohei knew the way from past visits, Fei An flew into the air and shot after him, the winds stirring the winds violently.

Ying Shi instinctively wanted to shout at her for flying in a prohibited zone, but his voice died down before he even spoke the first word. He had no right to yell at her after he had caused the death of her brother, and when her misconduct was out of concern for his sister.

A few gasps came from the bedroom door as Mohei and Fei An entered.

"Ying... Yingtao?" Fei An's voice cracked.

Qinghe and Sanguang glanced at each other and nodded, before picking up their pace and rushing to the room as well.

When Ying Shi entered the room with the rest of the disciples, he saw the group gathered around Yingtao with worry. He thought of shutting the door, but decided not to, just this once.

The senses of cultivators were sharp even at Qi Gathering. They might not have noticed her lack of heartbeat, but they could sense something was off by instinct, and it was apparent she was not breathing. Fei An covered her mouth and took a few shaky steps backwards.

"She's... dead?" Sanguang said, somewhat stunned.

Fei An trembled and began to cry once more.

Ying Shi had to resist the urge to slam his fist onto Sanguang's head.

Qinghe walked over to Yingtao silently and held up her hand with a serious expression, examining her pulse, or lack thereof.

"She isn't dead." she shook her head. "Even without heartbeat and breathing, her soul and vitality still remains in her body."

"Her heart isn't beating?!" Mohei turned pale.

Ying Shi couldn't take the sight of Fei An breaking down anymore and walked to her side.

"Fei An, remain calm." he said. "The clan doctor has diagnosed she is merely in the process of recovering. She might remain in a coma for a while, but she'll wake up. Eventually."

The doctor said it would likely take years or even decades for a natural recovery, but he decided to keep that secret. Ying Shi was surprised at the sudden calmness he felt. Perhaps before others, it was easier for him to behave like his usual self.

"In a coma? Will she even remember who we are?" Fei An stared at him with red eyes. "I heard my father tell me the victims of soulsearch backlash can lose all their memories!"

This... Ying Shi was taken aback as Fei An trembled further. All he wanted was to reassure her and calm her down!

"Compose yourself. Shouting won't achieve anything."

But those words only made Fei An furious. Eyes overflowing with tears of grief, she glared at him, marching closer until she was right in his face. Ying Shi nearly took a step backwards.

"You heartless bastard!" she shouted. "How can you be so calm when your sister is in such a state? Is it wrong for me to shed tears for her, to be distraught because of her state? To call you terrible is an understatement!"

The words were terrifyingly loud, echoing several times through the bedroom and out into the hallways. Ying Shi suddenly found his composure fracturing again, his repressed emotions spilling out once more. But somehow, he managed to keep his face straight.

"Fei An! Don't be like that!" Sanguang said.

"Shut up!"

Mohei seemed in a panic as he waved his hands, unsure of what to say.

"Fei An." Qinghe said softly. "If you shout, you will disturb Yingtao's rest."

Only then did Fei An lower her voice, her sobs filling the room.

Ying Shi stared at the ground in silence. He took in a deep breath secretly, unwilling to let them know he was composing himself.

"Fei An, perhaps you are right." he said slowly. "I really am a terrible brother."

He turned away and marched towards the open door.

"Ah!" Mohei said frantically. "Ying Shi, don't be sad! Don't go, Fei An didn't mean what she said!"

Fei An gritted her teeth and suppressed another shout. She meant exactly what she said.

"W-wait!" Mohei spluttered. "Can you at least tell us where your father is? What's he doing when Yingtao is like this?"

Ying Shi paused. Perhaps Mohei was unknowingly acting as an informer for the Inferno Clan, but he no longer cared.

"He administered a few Soul Stabilisation pills to her and told the servants to feed her one daily." he said. "Then, he left without further explanation. I don't know what he's planning, but I'd like to think he's searching for a cure elsewhere."

"What? It's his fault that this happened, and now he's just leaving her to suffer at home?" Mohei cried.

Ying Shi glanced at his companions one last time before leaving. A steely determination crept into his eyes as he marched down the hall.

He would make that facade of his into reality.