NOVEL NEXT Chapter 36: Parting
Morning broke reluctantly over the Qinxu Forest, casting long, eerie shadows that twisted through the dense canopy. The air was damp and thick with the scent of moss and decaying leaves. Birds chirped hesitantly, as if aware of the grim discovery about to be made.
Lian Mei stirred first, stretching her arms before reaching for her herb pouch. Her fingers brushed against something cold and lifeless. Confused, she blinked the sleep from her eyes—and froze.
Tian Rong lay still, his face pale and ashen, eyes staring blankly into the treetops. His usually firm grip on his staff was now loose and powerless. Lian Mei's breath hitched.
"Senior Brother!" she gasped, scrambling to his side and shaking him. But there was no response, only the chilling stillness of death. Her trembling hands hovered over his chest, searching for a pulse that wasn't there. He felt cold to the touch signifying that he must have died some hours ack. A strangled cry escaped Lian Mei's lips, startling Xiao Ping awake. His dagger was in his hand before he was fully upright, eyes scanning the surroundings with the sharp instinct of a seasoned fighter.
"What's wrong?" he demanded, rushing toward her. Then he saw Tian Rong's lifeless body sprawled awkwardly on the forest floor. His breath caught in his throat. He also rushed forward to grip the still form of Tian Rong. He shook the body violently, trying to awaken him but it was all in vain. He looked up at the shocked Xiao Ping and then realising that something was missing, looked frantically around, trying to locate Yu Yan.
But before he could speak, Lian Mei's gaze darted around frantically. "Where's Yu Yan?" he asked.
Panic surged through them as they scrambled to check all over the camp and then the camp's perimeter where their search revealed nothing. Just a few paces away, half-hidden behind a cluster of large trees, lay Yu Yan's still body, her brown eyes empty and glassy, staring into nothingness. Her braided hair, usually well kept adorned with silver threads, was all in disarray as if she had moved her head all over in the throes of death.
"No…no, no, no!" Xiao Ping whispered, falling to his knees beside her. He shook her gently, as if willing her to wake up.
Lian Mei clenched her fists, trembling with grief and fury. "This... this wasn't a beast attack," she said through gritted teeth, her sharp mind already piecing together the implications. "There's no blood...no visible wounds... It's like...like their life was drained."
Her eyes narrowed as she turned toward the last two people still alive, Lu Heng and Bai Fu, both standing silently near the edge of the camp. Lu Heng's expression was carefully neutral, while Bai Fu looked pale, eyes wide with something deeper than shock, something like guilt.
Xiao Ping rose slowly, his daggers glinting dangerously in the morning light. "What happened last night?" His voice was low, steady—but laced with deadly intent.
Lu Heng met his gaze coolly. "How am I supposed to know? I woke briefly during the night but saw nothing unusual," he lied smoothly. "Perhaps a lurking forest spirit attacked while we slept. We all know how dangerous the forest is."
Bai Fu flinched at Lu Heng's words, his eyes darting to the lifeless bodies, then back to Lu Heng. He opened his mouth to speak but quickly shut it, fear locking his voice away. His eyes met those of Lu Heng, whom he saw staring intently at him and he quickly looked away.
Lian Mei took a threatening step forward. "You expect us to believe that? Two of the strongest among us killed without a sound? You were sleeping at the edge of the camp Lu Heng, if it was a forest spirit, then it should have gotten you first" Her piercing green eyes burned with suspicion.
Lu Heng's lips curled into a faint, dangerous smile. "Believe what you will, Junior Sister. We're all from the same sect and on the same mission in this dangerous forest. Why would we kill them? Aren't their storage bags still with them over there? If we had killed them then we would have taken their herbs which is the only thing we have to gain. I think we should leave this place instead of pointing accusing fingers. If you waste time pointing fingers, one or all of us may be the next to fall."
Xiao Ping's grip tightened on his daggers, what Lu Heng said made sense but something kept prickling his mind that he was not being truthful, he wanted to charge at Lu Heng but Lian Mei put a warning hand on his arm, silently signaling restraint as it was an offence punishable by death to directly kill a fellow sect member.
"We should move," she said coldly. "Staying here has suddenly become dangerous, although there was no sign of such when we camped here yesterday."
With one last, wary glance at Lu Heng, they gathered their remaining supplies, leaving behind makeshift grave markers for their fallen comrades.
As they trudged deeper into the forest, Bai Fu's steps faltered, weighed down by guilt and dread. Lu Heng's calculating gaze never left him, a constant silent reminder that silence was the only chance at survival for him.
The oppressive atmosphere of Qinxu Forest weighed heavily on Lian Mei and Xiao Ping. Every step felt like walking into the jaws of a waiting predator. The towering trees loomed, their twisted branches forming a menacing canopy that cast shifting shadows across the forest floor. The air reeked of damp earth and something far fouler—death, perhaps.
"We need to go our separate ways from Lu Heng and Bai Fu," Lian Mei hissed, her grip tightening on the herb pouch strapped to her belt. "I don't trust either of them one bit, especially Lu Heng."
Xiao Ping nodded, his twin daggers already in hand. His usual playful demeanor had been stripped away by the grim reality of their fallen comrades' mysterious deaths. No beasts, no visible wounds, only lifeless bodies drained of all vitality.
'I think Bai Fu knows something, but he appears to be deathly afraid of Lu Heng' continued Lian Mei in a whisper.
'I think so too' replied Xiao Ping in the same whispery voice as they thronged through the forest.
'Lu Heng, Bai Fu' called Xiao Ping 'we've decided to go our own way, you go yours. Afterall, we did not start the mission as a group.'
'I don't think that is reasonable' protested Lu Heng as he saw his plans becoming undone. 'The four of us will work better as a team, giving us better chances of survival.'
'What better chances?' shouted Lian Mei. 'where were those better chances when we were six? Didn't Yu Yan and Tian Rong die just like that without a trace? So what better chances are you talking about. I think we are better off on our own.'
'As your senior brother, I insist we continue together. We must look out for each other. I wouldn't want elder Han to hold me responsible for the direct death of any disciple' declared Lu Heng self-righteously.
'No, we have decided to forge our own path alone. This is a sect mission, you do not have any right to tell us what or what not to do' Declared Lian Mei as she held Xiao Ping's hands and the two of them took a left turn and hurriedly walked away, disappearing into the thick forest.
'Let me come with you please' shouted Bai Fu as he made to follow the departing duo who simply ignored him but his outburst earned a cruel and menacing look from Lu Heng.
'Damn! Cursed Lu Heng, watching the duo disappear from his sight. He turned on the quivering Bai Fu and unleashed series of blows on him, causing him to double up in pain.
'So you want to follow them? What did you do? What did you tell them while I wasn't looking?' Lu Heng shouted as he gripped the powerless Bai Fu on the upper hand and asserted pressure. Soon, one could see tendrils of energy flowing from the gripped hand into Lu Heng's body.
'aaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, nothing, I did not tell them anything. Please spare me' screamed Bai Fu, realising that Lu Heng was going to drain and kill him on the spot.
Lu Heng pressed harder and more tendrils of energy escaped Bai Fu's body, leaving an obvious weakness behind. His heart felt like it was pounding harder, as if it had to do more work to make up for the energy leaving his body. Soon he began gasping as his complexion started turning sallow.
'I still have plans for you' snickered Lu Heng with a cruel smile as he let go of Bai Fu's hand and pushed him away. 'I won't kill you just yet'.
Bai Fu lay snivelling pathetically on the forest floor, gasping for breath, his heartbeat trying to stabilise but unable to because of the loss of energy as his complexion gradually turned back to normal. Bai Fu realised that he was living on borrowed time and regretting his decision to ever come on this mission, let alone team up with the devil, Lu Heng.