Ave Xia Rem Y

~~~

“You will not be going into the city,” Liu Jin tells his soldiers.

Predictably, no amount of newly-gained discipline is enough to stop the outcry that arises from the company. It has taken them a long time to reach Rainstorm City, and they have fought all manner of Spirit Beasts on the way. The experiences have sharpened them. Many have gone up in cultivation. They are rested, healthy, and ready for action.

They had all been looking forward to drinking and partying in the city.

“Enough.”

Liu Jin lightly raises his Qi, and that’s enough to quiet down the entire company.

“We will not be spending much time here, so there is no need for you to enter the city.”

His words are a half-truth at best. The real reason why Liu Jin does not allow the soldiers to go in is that he is nearly certain that at least one of his men is a spy. By making the soldiers stay outside the city, he’s making it harder for the spy to relay information without giving himself away.

Besides, he does not want his men to lapse into bad habits.

“This decision is not up for debate,” Liu Jin says, narrowing his eyes at the soldiers. “Am I understood?”

The soldiers straighten their backs and salute.

“Yes, sir!”

There are no more protests after that, not a single unhappy grumble. While the soldiers set up a camp outside, Liu Jin enters Rainstorm City in one of the Flame-Wheeled Wagons.

The view behind the city walls is a bleak one. Rainstorm City does not look nearly as destitute as Cloudburst City, but it has undoubtedly seen better days. The houses are dirty and rundown. The people look miserable and walk with hunched backs. Even the sky over their heads looks depressed.

Only when they are around seven blocks away from City Lord Lei Jihai’s house does that change. It’s like stepping into a more colorful world. There are lights and sounds everywhere, and the smell of alcohol and perfume is heavy in the air. Gambling dens and whorehouses are aplenty, and the soldiers go in and out of them without a care.

Even the soldiers guarding City Lord Lei’s house look like they spend the night drinking and gambling.

“Commander Qing!” City Lord Lei Jihai says as he welcomes them into his house with open arms. “It’s a pleasure to welcome you to Rainstorm City.”

Just by looking at him, Liu Jin can tell he’s related to Lei Kong. They have the same dark hair and eyes, and even the shape of their mouth is the same. However, Lei Jihai is noticeably older. There are a few gray streaks in his hair and lines under his eyes. Since he is in the True Realm, he could be anywhere between a decade to a century older than Lei Kong.

It is always hard to tell.

“We are grateful for your hospitality, City Lord,” Liu Jin says as a serving girl wearing far too little fills his cup with wine.

Unlike others, Lei Jihai doesn't receive him in some menacing hall but in a room more suited for a party. There are plush couches, plenty of food, and aromatic incense. There is even a servant playing soft music in the corner.

“You say that, but I see you have not let your soldiers enter the city,” City Lord Lei points out. “Don’t tell me you don’t plan on staying for at least a few days?”

“That is correct, City Lord,” Liu Jin says before taking a sip from his cup. It pleases him that it is not poisoned. Not overtly, at least. There are a few chemicals meant to make one more… pleasure-inclined, but none are strong enough to affect him or those with him. “We are here on a mission, after all.”

“Please! Surely, it wouldn’t be wrong for you to enjoy what my city offers?” City Lord Lei asks him. When the serving girl comes to fill his cup, the City Lord pulls her onto his lap. If this surprises her, the girl gives no sign of it. She just smiles and giggles when the City Lord’s hands wander over her body. “I ask that you reconsider, commander. Your men must be tired after marching all the way here. Think of what you will miss if you don’t sample the city’s delicacies.”

Lu Mei’s soft laughter rings beside Liu Jin.

“I am afraid your words are wasted on him, City Lord,” she says. “This man is far too duty-minded to ever relax.”

“Oh?” There is a glimmer in the City Lord’s eyes that Liu Jin does not like at all. “Or perhaps he feels no need to sample other flowers because he already has such a fair one at his side.”

“That is indeed the case,” Liu Jin says, making Lu Mei preen and the City Lord laugh.

“I knew you were a man after my own heart, commander,” City Lord Lei says. “However, you should know a man cannot possibly eat the same meal every day. How am I supposed to show my appreciation for you if you do not stay? Besides… how am I supposed to spend time with my cousin if you’re so eager to leave?”

The City Lord’s lips stretch into a smile as he glances at the man standing behind Liu Jin.

“Little Kong!” He says. “It has been a while!”

Liu Jin resists the urge to sigh. He knew this would happen. He had told Lei Kong that he could stay outside the city if he wished to, but his servant had declined. By going with him, they would be able to confirm whether word of Lei Kong’s survival had already reached the Lei Clan, something they heavily suspected but did not know for sure.

It was a solid enough argument, but as Lei Kong tenses up behind him and the air becomes full of static, Liu Jin is forced to rethink the wisdom of this choice.

“The whole family grieved for you, Little Kong. Did you know that?” City Lord Lei says while drinking from his cup. “We had a funeral for you. It was lovely.”

“Is that so?” Lei Kong asks in the deadest voice that Liu Jin has ever heard, a wonder considering he has heard actual corpses. “I cannot imagine such a thing.”

The City Lord laughs.

“You always had such a great sense of humor, cousin. Come on!” He gestures at him with his free arm. The other one is firmly wrapped around the serving girl’s waist. “Come closer. Let your old cousin get a good look at you.”

An almost imperceptible look passes between Liu Jin and Lei Kong, followed by an equally imperceptible nod from Liu Jin.

Lei Kong takes a deep breath and walks up to Lei Jihai.

“As you can see, I am alive and well, cousin. Many things have happened since I was separated from General Murong’s army. I’d like to believe they have made me a better person.”

“Separated? Is that what you are calling it?” The City Lord’s smile twists into something ugly. “Oh, Little Kong, there is no need to pretend. We’re family. You can just say you run away like the coward you are.”

“City Lord, that’s my servant you are speaking to,” Liu Jin says. “Even if this is your city, I advise you to be civil.”

“Oh, but this is civil, Commander Qing,” City Lord Lei replies, chuckling softly. “There is nothing more civil than a few jokes between cousins, especially when things are just so very... funny. You see, Little Yu and Little Kong joined General Murong’s army at the same time, yet Little Yu, the shining star of our clan, died while this cripple now stands before me. How is that anything but a joke?”

The serving girl on City Lord Lai’s lap yelps as he abruptly stands up, making her fall to the floor.

“Look at you!” He says, laughing scornfully as he walks up to Lei Kong and points at his arm. “You walk around as though you were a full man, but no matter how much this fake looks like the real thing, you cannot fool me. We all know what happened to you!”

Liu Jin’s eyebrows rise as the City Lord grabs Lei Kong’s restored arm. He can feel Lu Mei fighting the urge to giggle next to him. The City Lord probably meant to shame Lei Kong by snatching away what he assumed to be a prosthetic. Instead, the City Lord’s face morphs with shock as he feels very real flesh and, under it, very real blood and very real Qi.

“Impossible,” he says, his voice almost a whisper. “How can it be real? Your arm… your meridians… they were…”

“They were damaged during a tragic training accident,” Lei Kong says, easily shaking off the City Lord’s grip. “It wouldn’t be wrong to say that Lei Kong, the prodigy of the Lei Clan, died that day.”

The City Lord’s face pales as Lei Kong’s Qi rises and fills the room.

Earth Realm, Level One.

“However, I have been given a new life, cousin. A new direction,” Lei Kong says, glaring at Lei Jihai. “And so, I stand before you as a new man without any ties to the Lei Clan.”

The City Lord backs away, now aware that the man he had so callously insulted is completely beyond him. Though their heights are not dissimilar, Lei Kong seems to loom over his relative.

“Lei Kong,” Liu Jin says, his eyes on the trembling servants. They cannot bear Lei Kong’s power. “Control your aura.”

A man in the True Realm ordering around someone in the Earth Realm. It should be unthinkable, yet Lei Kong immediately quiets down his Qi.

“I apologize, my lord. It seems meeting my family has made me overexcited. Is that not so, cousin?” Lei Kong says, looking at the City Lord with dead eyes.

The City Lord laughs nervously. “Yes, of course. It’s been quite exciting seeing you again, cousin.”

“Perhaps a little too exciting,” Lu Mei says, though the mirth in her voice makes it clear she has been enjoying watching all this. “Maybe you should retire, Lei Kong. If you were to stay here, I don’t believe we would get anything done today.”

“I agree,” Liu Jin says, drinking from his cup. “Unless, of course, the City Lord wishes to spend more time with his cousin. It would be rude of me to meddle in family affairs, after all.”

“Not at all!” City Lord Lei shouts. “Not at all! You are free to go, cousin! See the city! Do what you wish! Go!”

Lei Kong does not reply. He merely bows his head to Liu Jin and departs. The door closes behind him, leaving them in an awkward silence.

Well, the City Lord is left in awkward silence. The silence around Lu Mei and Liu Jin is highly amused.

“Now, I believe you have a bandit problem, City Lord?” Liu Jin asks.

“What? Oh, yes.” The City Lord looks around distractedly, the shock of being humiliated by Lei Kong clearly weighing down on him. When the serving girl that was with him earlier approaches him, his face becomes red with anger.

“What are you standing around for?” He yells at her, slapping her so hard he knocks to the floor. “Don’t you have a job to do? More drinks! More food! I’m entertaining guests here, you stupid girl!”

The girl nearly runs out of the room.

“I apologize for that,” City Lord Lei says, now significantly calmer as he sits down. “Finding good help is so hard these days.”

“City Lord,” Liu Jin says, making sure to meet his eyes. “I would appreciate it if you did not mistreat your servants in front of me.”

“Do not presume to tell me what to do, commander,” the City Lord replies, his nostrils flaring and chest puffed. “I am the City Lord. I am a member of the Lei clan. You are just a Hundred-Man Commander sent here to help me.”

“You are the City Lord. You are a member of the Lei Clan. I am just a Hundred-Man Commander sent here to help you,” Liu Jin says calmly. “That is why I am asking nicely.”

The way Lei Kong tells it, the Lei Clan have greatly benefited from Murong Bang’s rise to power and are some of his biggest supporters. For those reasons, it is not wise to cross them.

“Of course,” Liu Jin adds, still not looking away from the City Lord’s eyes. “If the City Lord wishes, I could ask Lei Kong to come here so you can continue your reunion.”

“No!” the City Lord shouts before catching himself. He looks away and gnashes his teeth. “There is no need for that, commander. I… understand your point of view.”

He lifts his cup and downs it one go, bringing it down hard against the small table next to him.

“Let’s talk about those damned thieves already,” City Lord Lei sneers as he mentions them. “They have been a plague around these parts for years, Commander Qing. You have no idea.”

Liu Jin raises an eyebrow. “And you’re just now doing something about them?”

The City Lord scoffs. “You make it sound ill-advised, but there are always those who are greedy for more and do not want to work for it.”

There is someone who is greedy for more and did not have to work for it right in front of Liu Jin.

While reaching the True Realm marks City Lord Lei as someone of some talent, that he was born into the Lei Clan meant his path to the position of City Lord was not as hard as it would have been for others. Considering how awful the city looks and the lack of character City Lord Lei has shown over the past several minutes, Liu Jin feels confident in saying this man would not be City Lord or even a True Realm cultivator had he not been born in the Lei Clan.

What a pity it is to be born with good fortune and waste it so hollowly.

“Whether there is one fly or three, it matters little, Commander,” the City Lord continues. “It’s not worth going after every annoyance.”

When a different serving girl comes in with drinks, he snatches the bottle from her tray and takes big gulps from it, cleaning his mouth with the back of his hand.

“I thought they’d fade out,” he goes on. “It happens often. Simple organization is beyond most savages. They’ll fight over who gets to keep most of the treasure, who should lead, and so on. Before you know it, they’re killing themselves and saving us the trouble.”

“But that didn’t happen with this group,” Liu Jin says, making the City Lord frown.

“No,” he admits. “It didn’t. There was no in-fighting or backstabbing. While other groups faded, the Brotherhood of Thunder grew stronger, often by absorbing the remnants of defeated bandit groups.”

“In other words, simple organization is not beyond this particular group of savages.”

The City Lord grimaces.

“You could say that…I suppose.” He clears his throat awkwardly. “Right now, the Brotherhood of the Thunder is wreaking havoc across my lands. Rainstorm City is untouched, obviously. They are too cowardly to dare face me directly, but they constantly attack my towns. Worse still, my caravans! My businesses are suffering, Commander Qing!”

“And the people too, I assume.”

“What? Oh yeah, those,” the City Lord says distractedly. “Anyway, I cannot send my men to hunt down these villains. They are busy protecting the city.”

From what Liu Jin has seen, his soldiers are busy drinking, whoring, and gambling.

“However, you are free to move as you please. You can track the Brotherhood of Thunder and eliminate it!”

“That is why General Murong sent me here, City Lord,” Liu Jin says. “What can you tell me of their numbers? Do they have any notable fighters among them? Do you have any idea as to how their leadership is structured?”

“Bah! What do those things matter?!” the City Lord replies, grabbing yet another bottle to drink. “Trash is trash. Once you burn it, it all turns to ashes.”

He does not know, Liu Jin realizes. This man does not know a single thing.

“I see,” Liu Jin says, rising to his feet. Lu Mei follows suit. “Rest easy, City Lord. I will find this Brotherhood of Thunder and deal with it.”

As he and Lu Mei walk away, City Lord Lei calls out to them.

“Oh, there’s one more thing,” he says, making Liu Jin stop. “A message for my cousin. He might claim to no longer have any ties to us, but it would be wise for you to remind him that his old family has not forgotten about him. Our family head is looking forward to the day he lays eyes on him again.”

Liu Jin looks back and meets the City Lord’s eyes. There is anger there. The promise of retribution for his injured pride.

“I will be sure to tell him that, City Lord.”

~~~