Xinhua noticed rather quickly how Jinse's mood soured the further they walked. She wished that she didn't have to take him away so soon but it was obvious whatever was on his mind, he really could use Shizhe's help. She hoped that the two really could help each other.
Arriving at the palace, Xinhua guided Jinse and Wuye straight to Shizhe's home. Before stepping up to the door, Xinhua noticed Shizhe was already waiting in the garden, watching the horizon with a distant expression as the sun was starting to sink.
"My Lady," Xinhua called out to her as they stepped through the moon gate.
Shizhe glanced over, her face rather pallid as the exhaustion was really showing. She still managed a smile for Xinhua, even if it was a weary one. "Xinhua, welcome home."
"Glad to be home," Xinhua closed the gap, placing a hand on Shizhe's waist. "I did bring company."
"Thank you," Shizhe looked at Jinse who was incredibly concerned by Shizhe's weary countenance. "Please don't look like that. I'm just tired."
"You expect me to not fret when it's obvious how affected you are," Jinse sighed heavily. He looked at Wuye pleadingly. "Could you-?"
"You don't even need to ask," Wuye stepped forward.
Shizhe stared at Wuye with awe. She had seen him in visions in the past but she never knew when it was that she would meet him. She knew exactly who he was.
"The wind blows in our favor?" Shizhe voiced softly, more a question than a statement.
"Indeed," Wuye smiled warmly as he held out his hand. He expected no less from the Moon's High Priestess to recognize him right away. It came as little surprise that the Moon Goddess granted her knowledge of his arrival. He had to assume that it would be fine if he helped her after all. "If you don't mind, I would like to help you. If I can check your qi to verify what may be wrong."
"Can you really?" Shizhe placed her hand palm up in his. "I mean I don't doubt you can… Just are you really allowed to?"
"I wouldn't be here if I couldn't," Wuye laughed softly as he placed two fingers on her wrist and started focusing.
"I asked Jinse to come here in hopes he might know something about this, about what I see in my nightmares. I didn't expect you to arrive now..." Shizhe closed her eyes.
"He and I go way back," Wuye smirked, briefly glancing over at Jinse who seemed almost as worried as he was over Xueye. Wuye very quickly found similar traces as Xueye but this time it was stronger. The Water God's qi was deeply rooted within her own. It was almost concerning how much so. "He's been messing with your mind, just like he tried and failed with the Young Master. How long?"
"About three weeks now," Shizhe sighed. Her eyes widened with realization. "Wait, so these nightmares, they truly aren't visions from the Moon Goddess?"
"So you can tell us and not succumb to the pain?" Xinhua asked nervously.
"If she does, I will do my best to relieve it," Wuye stated.
"What has he been showing you?" Jinse was hesitant to ask. If it weren't for Wuye's promise he wouldn't ask her to risk it, however he trusted Wuye.
"I…" Shizhe took a deep breath as is bracing herself for the worst of pain. "I've been seeing the capital deep beneath the sea…" She paused, but when the pain didn't come she let out the breath she was holding and laughed. "It really isn't from her!"
"Thank the Heavens," Xinhua sighed in relief.
Wuye couldn't help but smile as he released Shizhe's hand, "Anything more?"
"Yes, for a time I couldn't make out the forms of those floating in the water. However, eventually I saw others. Some I didn't recognize but they could move freely while I felt weighed down and struggled. Recently, I have seen Xueye, lifeless. I couldn't stand it."
"Some moving freely?" Wuye hummed thoughtfully. "Could it be his worshipers?"
"Who are we talking about?" Xinhua finally asked. She had kept quiet until now but clearly they all knew who was behind messing with Shizhe and Xinhua had to know who she was after.
"The Water God," Jinse stated grimly.
"You're joking, right?" Xinhua was stunned. She looked at Shizhe who simply nodded. Xinhua's face scrunched bitterly, "Why Shizhe?"
"Let's take this inside," Shizhe urged them to follow her. She didn't want anything to leak and cause a panic.
They settled in Shizhe's personal library. She wanted to look into the Water God more once she heard what they had to say.
"You two seem to know more about what's happening than I do given I've likely been given false visions," Shizhe sat in her favorite chair as Xinhua lingered nearby but still couldn't help but pace.
"I was hoping for His Highness to join us so I didn't have to repeat myself," Jinse sighed. "Seems he's taking his sweet time looking after Xueye…"
"Please," Xinhua asked with a hint of desperation. "I need to know who is after those I love."
"He may be after you as well," Jinse ran his hand through his hair as he also started pacing.
"It's surprising he targeted the Young Master before Lady Meigui considering she's more likely to have been on your mind, especially if you two are staying together." Wuye shared his concerns with Shizhe. "If he was trying to scare you, why target Xueye first?"
"Shouldn't that be obvious," Jinse huffed.
"Well, I constantly check Xueye's future as well, and of course he's important to Jinse," Shizhe explained.
"I know that much," Wuye shrugged. "If he's been trying to control your mind with fear like I suspect, doesn't Lady Meigui matter more on that front? How could he know of Xueye's relationship if Jinse is even shielded from your visions?"
"Perhaps someone among his worshipers must realize Xueye's importance," Xinhua theorized.
"It can't be…" Jinse's eyes widened. "Surely he doesn't have someone in the Den, right?"
"It's not as if anyone knows," Wuye shrugged. "It could very well be a patron of yours."
"I'll be assuring it's not the case regardless," Jinse stated bitterly.
"Care to explain why we are even in this predicament in the first place?" Xinhua urged.
"Please share," Shizhe requested. "I can inform His Highness later should he join us."
"Very well," Jinse shrugged. "Centuries ago this jerk pointed me in the direction of a valuable book in the possession of the Water God's High Priest at the time."
"You'll never let me live this down, huh? Forgiveness or not," Wuye looked rather dejected.
"Nope," Jinse shoved him playfully. "Anyway, I'm curious about any knowledge. Forbidden knowledge all the more, so I went and stole it."
"It was the Divine Knowledge you mentioned before, wasn't it?" Shizhe recalled.
"Yes," Jinse nodded. "I was foolish enough to read it and it was breaking my mind and poisoning my body shortly after I did. I nearly died if it weren't for your ancestor," Jinse gestured to Xinhua. "Meigui Xinyi saved my life with her moon-touched ability."
"So it does run in the family," Xinhua figured as such given the family tradition of the company going to those in the family born with white hair regardless of the regular order of succession. It was one thing to go off of old texts and another thing to hear it from someone so long lived.
"It does but I couldn't tell you why," Jinse shrugged.
"It was a wish," Wuye explained. "The first of the moon's children from the Meigui Family requested the Goddess smile upon their descendants every so often. She tends to honor a last request from the ones that join her palace as long as it is in her power and the heavenly rules."
"I should have figured to ask you," Jinse shook his head. "In any case, the Water God hunted me after that and, well, Xinyi sacrificed her life so I could live…"
"Since it was the Water God that dealt the fatal blow, he was sealed away for breaking the rule that gods can't kill mortals, but no one maintained the seals." Wuye continued the explanation to give Jinse a moment upon seeing so much pain on his face. "Only two gods knew where he was, so the Moon and I couldn't maintain it as much as we'd both would have preferred to."
"The wind…" Xinhua's eyes widened, finally understanding Shizhe's words in the garden. "You're-!"
"Just Maque, a humble servant of Jinse," Wuye bowed dramatically as though on a stage. He giggled, "No need to bring it up. Many of us were all once regular humans too."
"Of course…" Xinhua pinched her brow. She couldn't believe she was speaking to the Wind God in person so casually. Let alone he was using such a blatantly obvious alias as sparrows often represented the Wind God. She glanced at Jinse, she picked up that he'd been around a long time even before this conversation but she didn't know just what he was. "You've been around so long, protecting our family. If you don't mind me asking, just what are you?"
"I hadn't even mentioned my promise to her, yet you figured that out? You're too smart," Jinse chuckled. He started letting his form slip, his hair turned more golden and fox ears sprouted from his head as many fluffy tails appeared behind him. "I'm a Fox Divine Beast. I exist to protect your family, especially the moon-touched children, per Xinyi's final request."
"Thank you," Xinhua smiled warmly. "Thank you for all you've done for us and thank you for trusting me to know."
Jinse's eyes widened. He wasn't sure what he was expecting her to say but gratitude wasn't very high on the list. He half expected revulsion or fear, or even anger for having kept it a secret. It was nice to hear such gratitude considering most of the time, over the years, he maintained a distance from the family, helping in secret.
"Don't look so shocked," Xinhua giggled. "I always knew something was strange about you but you always protected Xueye so I couldn't care less what you are."
"Too smart," Jinse shook his head and smiled. His form slowly returned to that of a human.
"Have you told Xueye?" Xinhua tilted her head curiously.
"No…" Jinse's expression dimmed. "I…"
"You're afraid he'll reject you? After all you've done for him?" Xinhua hit the nail on the head with her deductions once more.
"Who's the fortune teller here?" Jinse raised a brow.
"She's right," Shizhe giggled. "I don't have to look into the future to know he could never be scared of you."
"My mind says you're right but it doesn't stop the fear in my heart," Jinse shrugged. "It doesn't matter right now. I'm not gonna risk it with what he's going through right now. Please don't tell him."
"It's your secret to tell, not ours," Xinhua smiled.
"What's happening right now?" Shizhe's brow furrowed. "This exhaustion, the meddling with my mind, I can hardly see what's going on with him."
"He had a reaction to the Water God's meddling," Wuye explained. "From what I can tell his ability somehow protected him at the cost of using every lst bit of his good fortune. Before you worry, Jinse replenished it." Wuye said, seeing that concern dieing on her lips the moment he informed her. "A new problem arose however. He carries a fragment of a soul from Vual. Likely his blessing kept it dormant but since there was a moment without that calming aura the fragment awoke. Unfortunately It's not something I can extract since it isn't from Meihua's life cycle. I don't think even the God of the Underworld could."
"He probably has to search for a solution in Vual," Jinse said with a grim expression. He looked at Shizhe. "Unless you are able to shed some light on one. However I'd rather you not push yourself if you are struggling as is."
"I can help with your predicament, Master Diviner, but it's tricky," Wuye sighed. "He's trying to mess with your mind using nightmares as a catalyst. His qi is infecting your own, thus your visions have been irregular. If it persists you will lose the ability entirely. The quickest way to stop it is to seal your mind, just as Jinse has. That will likely result in your connection to the Moon Goddess being sealed as well which could also likely result in the loss of your ability. I'm not an expert on her blessings but I imagine her visions have become yours."
Shizhe chewed on her lower lip. Either way she wouldn't be able to see their future. She could rest or continue to suffer exhaustion for some scraps of visions.
"Have you prayed to her recently?" Wuye asked.
"It's been a while since I've properly prayed to her," Shizhe shook her head.
"You should rest but I hesitate to cut you off without her knowing," Wuye hummed quietly. "I'm afraid of what she'll do to me. I can extract his qi currently within you but it will likely exhaust you further. I doubt you will be able to remain awake after."
"Then we'll have to wait a bit longer," Shizhe nodded. "Let's finish discussing the issues at hand. It gives me time to think about what to do."
"Of course, you know how to reach me anytime should you prefer another night." Wuye smiled.
"You said quickest, there's another?" Xinhua couldn't help but ask.
"I'm guessing, she would have to learn the spell herself so she can choose who lets anyone in," Jinse glanced at Wuye who nodded. "How's that progress looking by the way? I know it hasn't been long."
"It was fine until this whole thing," Shizhe waved her hand.
"Wait, you haven't been training your spirit very long?" Wuye's eyes widened. Her spiritual core seemed more like one that had been trained for years when he was examining her.
"It hasn't been a full lunar cycle yet," Shizhe tilted her head curiously at his reaction.
"I knew she blessed her children greatly but to think you already have a fully formed spiritual core…" Wuye was utterly baffled.
"You can't be serious!" Jinse also was flabbergasted.
"Many in the sects train half their lives to obtain what you have in less than a month. Your potential is admittedly a bit scary." Wuye laughed in disbelief.
"Then teach me," Shizhe looked seriously at Jinse. "You need help with the Water God right? I'm more than happy to assist with that where I can as well."
"Yes, but there's no need to risk yourself so much, His Highness should be more than enough," Jinse shrugged. "The most I'd need from you is help finding him, if possible. I was going to help you learn for Xueye's sake. Should something happen to me I'll feel more comfortable knowing you can help him in my absence."
"Don't talk like that," Shizhe huffed. "If you involve His Highness you involve us whether you like it or not. Right, darling?" Shizhe looked up at Xinhua who already seemed to be turning over the new information like it was one of her cases.
"I was going to help whether you liked it or not," Xinhua shrugged. "He messed with my love and my family, if you can stop him then I'm going to help."
"Feisty, this one," Wuye smirked. He was impressed that even a regular mortal seemed so ready to face a god so quickly after learning of the whole matter.
"Xinhua…" Jinse sighed in defeat, knowing he couldn't change her mind. "Well, you are exceptional at finding people, so I hear."
"I'll start looking into it as soon as I can," Xinhua nodded. "I want to go with Xueye to Vual so unfortunately I may have to wait."
"You should go," Shizhe nodded. "Especially with all that could be after him. It may be best to send you two with more protection. Are you going as well, Jinse?"
"About that…" Jinse looked incredibly conflicted. "I worry about his followers attacking the Fox's Den if I'm away for too long. Especially if one of my people has been swayed by his false promises. In the end, I'm the only one that could end him, in the off chance he were to appear himself."
"I doubt he would," Wuye shrugged. "Though I also wouldn't put it past him to send people to sabotage you in any way they can. If you don't mind, I could go with. Lady Meigui is now quite susceptible to his influence since I took care of the Young Master. If he were to send anyone after them while traveling, well I'm sure Lady Meigui could take care of the mortals and I can take care of anything else."
"Depends on the quantity but sure I could," Xinhua shrugged.
"Are you even allowed to leave Meihua?" Shizhe tilted her head curiously.
"I have on occasion," Wuye smirked. "Besides, should we not find a mortal with a solution I could look into other means while we are there."
"That would be quite the comfort," Jinse let out a sigh of relief. "Just don't get into trouble."
"Awe, you do care," Wuye snickered.
"You act like I haven't told you this countless times," Jinse rolled his eyes. "You have so many damned rules up there, I don't want you breaking them for us. Then how will you help us?"
"I'm well within my means to see this through. His soul will be deeply impacted if this persists and could disrupt the cycle, whether he rejoins the reincarnation cycle or joins the Moon Palace it will cause problems for Death or the Moon. I'm just trying to help them out by fixing this now, since I'm here. Just protecting him enroute will be the tricky part but I'm nothing if not resourceful."
"We should consider more help in case you are ambushed by more than just Xinhua can handle," Shizhe wished she could see farther ahead to know for certain. "Unfortunately we need to be discreet, the last thing we need is for Vual to think we are invading."
"That's easy enough but it's a matter if we can find people we can trust," Xinhua sighed. "Anyone could be a worshiper and we won't know."
"His Highness would only trust the upper court with this anyways," Shizhe hummed thoughtfully. "Riluo or Yuliang would be the most discreet and capable. Riluo usually only handles things behind the scenes here, while Yuliang rarely shows her face so they are the least likely to be recognized by any Vualian dignitaries, not that we've talked to them much in recent years."
"Could we really ask any of them to take a potentially long break from their work?" Xinhua crossed her arms.
"If anything they could use a vacation," Shizhe shrugged with a smirk. "However, I think we can only lend one of them."
"We need to discuss these matters with them tomorrow, His Highness as well," Xinhua mused aloud.
"You can't tell His Highness of this new threat to Xueye," Shizhe stated with a tense expression. She looked from Xinhua to Jinse, "Even if you help him train as you promised me, you can't tell him."
"I promised him I'd let him I'd let him know who was after Xueye in exchange for his good fortune," Jinse was rather surprised she wouldn't want Yushi to know.
"If he knows too soon he won't let Xueye leave for Vual," Shizhe explained. "If I know him, he is likely weighing the potential of going with him now. The Court of Frost knows his face, it's too risky with how up in the air relations have been since the new Queen took the throne. If I can't look into the trip right now to ensure all is well, then he shouldn't go. Especially not since it rains and snows more often up there. His dragon side comes to the surface most during that time and well a possessive dragon is one of the most dangerous things."
"Don't I know it," Jinse sighed at the bitter memory of dealing with a dragon obsessed with Xinyi, who didn't want anything to do with the beast. "I'm sorry I haven't kept my promise to help him just yet. I do intend to make good on that soon. If he can hone that side then he'll not only gain better control but he could even be strong enough to rival a god."
"You're probably right," Wuye chuckled. He didn't have to read Yushi's spirit to know how strong he was, just being in his presence was enough. "Dragons are notorious for that." Wuye couldn't help but think of the Dragon Emperor, while a god now he was once a dragon that killed a god for hunting his kind. Not many knew the story, really only the handful of gods that were there, but there were little secrets in the heavens that Wuye wasn't privy to, even if he ascended long after. "You best use this opportunity to temper that power while we are away. I suspect even with his current strength he won't act against you directly just yet. He'll need far more worshipers and that will leave a trail for you to follow." Wuye gestured to Xinhua with a smile.
"Then my time away won't be a loss," Xinhua smirked. "The more involved the easier it'll be for them to mess up. Hopefully those staying will be able to pick up some rumors in the meantime."
"When I'm done confirming loyalties our information network will be looking into it." Jinse crossed his arms. "You can check with me or Hu Ning once you are back."
"I'll see if our own network picks up any signs as well," Shizhe nodded. "Hopefully after a bit of good rest I can do more than just listen for whispers."
"Just be sure to take your time to recover," Xinhua knelt next to Shizhe and took her hand. "How am I supposed to leave your side if you don't?"
"I will," Shizhe offered a reassuring smile. "Ability or no, there's things I can do, even if it's just silly paperwork."
"Promise me," Xinhua squeezed her hand.
"I promise," Shizhe leaned forward and kissed Xinhua on the cheek.
"Cute," Jinse chuckled.
"Kindly, shut up," Xinhua leered over at him.
"Jealous?" Wuye nudged Jinse with his elbow.
"Don't you start with me," Jinse rolled his eyes as he let out an exasperated breath. "Even if I could muster it, I can't. Then I wouldn't let him leave. It's hard enough as things are. I trust you two to keep him safe more than anyone," Jinse glanced between Xinhua and Wuye. "So it's bearable, even if I would prefer to go myself."
"You have my word, no harm will come to him," Wuye bowed deeply towards Jinse. It surprised everyone, really. Jinse still wasn't used to receiving such respect from him and for the other two it was just so baffling that a god would show respect to a mortal, even if said mortal was a powerful Divine Beast. Wuye couldn't help but chuckle at their reactions, "Is it really so surprising? I was mortal once too, really the only difference between us is lifespan."
"Not all of your kind would share that sentiment," Jinse scoffed.
"No, but it's one I have often thought about and have grown to embrace since I'm stuck here until my job is done," Wuye shrugged. "I quite enjoy just being Maque, so please treat me as you would any friend."
"Very well then," Shizhe couldn't help but smile. The Wind God was a much gentler soul than she expected. "Maque, we'll be relying on your help."
"When everything is arranged, where can I find you?" Xinhua asked.
"I won't be far, but the off chance you can't, you can find me at the Fox's Den, or I will hear a simple prayer in a pinch," Wuye shrugged. He looked at Jinse. "I think it may be best that I take over the guard for the Young Master in the long term. If he can't mess with Xueye's dreams then he'll likely want to know why."
"You've had people guarding him?" Xinhua raised a brow.
"Of course, same for you and Qingkong," Jinse smirked.
"Explains why I felt like I've been followed outside of the palace lately," Xinhua sighed. "Here I thought it was our other problem."
"Dealing with some pests?" Jinse crossed his arms and smirked.
"Always, but that's our problem to deal with," Shizhe sighed. She stood up slowly, trying to avoid the dizzy feeling she'd been getting as of late. Xinhua held out her hand to help steady her if she needed. Though she was fine she took it anyway. "I know you likely will stay up late trying to get things sorted, but try not to be up too late."
"I won't," Xinhua smiled reassuringly. She shouldn't be surprised that Shizhe knew her intentions but she still was. She leaned forward and kissed Shizhe's forehead. "Hopefully you can rest well soon."
"Maque, will you accompany me or should I be making more than one prayer this evening?" Shizhe giggled.
"I'll go wherever you need me for now," Wuye chuckled.
"Come along then," Shizhe motioned for him to follow her out of the library. She brought him just down the hallway to the room she had set up a shrine to the Moon Goddess as well as anything and everything of a mystical nature that she owned. This was the room she tended to do in depth readings of the future. The door to the garden was still open as she was attempting to try for even a scrap of the future not long before they arrived. She had gotten frustrated at her lack of success and had just taken a break in the garden when they found her.
"I thought I sensed a culmination of power nearby," Wuye's fingers lightly brushed along the shelf filled with all sorts of trinkets and artifacts, each rich in qi. "Is this where you look into the future?"
"Almost always during the new moon," Shizhe walked over to the small personal shrine set between shelves a painted scroll of the Moon Goddess hung above it. She pulled out some incense and lit the sticks with the candle she had left lit. "Other times when I'm trying to look further ahead. It helps me focus."
"Hmm, perhaps why your core is already so formed is that it already existed as a result of your meditation in this room," Wuye couldn't help but admire the collection.
"I guess I never thought of using my ability as meditation," Shizhe closed her eyes. "Since my mind is still moving, but my body is usually quite at ease while I'm using it."
"Not all meditation is done with an empty mind," Wuye chuckled. "I personally never could. Focusing on one fun line of thought is how I got through all my training."
"Interesting…" Shizhe placed a hand on her chin. "But how can I have trained my spirit without even knowing?"
"It's often the nature of those blessed by the gods, especially the Moon's children tend to be the strongest in spirit," Wuye stood next to her at the shrine, placing his hands together.
"Are you really going to pray to another?" Shizhe laughed in disbelief.
"Right now it's the easiest way for me to reach out to her." Wuye chuckled. "She probably won't respond to me but I figured I'd help express my concerns over your condition. Surely she won't stand by if we both reach out to her."
"I hope you're right," Shizhe sighed as she put her hands together and closed her eyes. She began her prayer, "May your light shine upon me this night, Gaibian. My dreams have been plagued by an enemy you know well and I seek your guidance…"
"Your voice cannot reach her," A deep voice filled her mind and suddenly she felt as though she was under water once more. "She cannot help you."