"How could you do this to me...your own blood brother?" Zhong She's voice cracked, the short blade trembling in his left hand while his right clutched the gaping wound in his chest.
"I killed the Eastern Serpents for you. I made enemies of the Western Sovereigns… for you!" He spat a mouthful of blood, splattering across the once-pristine white collar of his azure-green robes, now dyed deep red.
"The oracle warned me I would be betrayed. I thought it would be the damned Dreamcatcher. But no" his eyes burned, pupils dilating as the whites turned a venomous purple, "it was you. The one who saved me a hundred lives… and the one I saved a thousand times."
His voice dropped to a whisper.
"I should never have kept my friends closer."
Yu Yuan stepped back, the shaft of his spear glinting.
"You're dying, brother. Don't make it uglier than it has to be."
Zhong She smiled faintly, lifting the short blade to his lips. With deliberate slowness, he dragged the edge across his tongue, leaving a dark sheen behind.
A faint, sweetly rotten scent curled into the air.
Yu Yuan's brows tightened. "Poison?"
Zhong She lunged without answering. The short blade darted like a viper, grazing Yu Yuan's forearm as he parried.
"One," Zhong She murmured.
Yu Yuan struck back, sweeping low with the spear. Zhong She turned the blade sideways, nicking Yu Yuan's wrist in the exchange.
"Two."
The next clash was a flurry steel ringing on steel. Zhong She slipped inside the spear's arc, slicing along Yu Yuan's bicep before retreating.
"Three."
Yu Yuan's movements were still sharp, but his breathing quickened. He feinted high only to feel the sting of another shallow cut along his ribs.
"Four," Zhong She said, voice low and dangerous. "Shrew's Whisper… kills in seven cuts."
Yu Yuan's step faltered. His spear dipped slightly, the wood shaft trembling in his grip. A wave of numbness crawled up his arm.
Zhong She advanced. "Five"
Yu Yuan roared, forcing a burst of speed. He swept Zhong She back, buying a heartbeat of space. With his free hand, he tore open a small glass capsule and swallowed its contents in one gulp.
"You think I came here without an antidote?" His voice was steady again, though sweat lined his brow.
The next exchange was brutal. Yu Yuan pressed in, each thrust faster, sharper, heavier. Zhong She tried to close the gap, but the spear's reach kept him at bay.
"You've always been quick with your tricks," Yu Yuan said coldly, "but tricks can't beat reach."
A high feint drew Zhong She's guard up. The real strike came low the spear butt slammed into his gut, doubling him over followed by a brutal thrust into the gaping wound in his chest.
Zhong She gasped, blood spilling down his front as his blade slipped from his fingers.
Yu Yuan stepped close, spear still pinning him.
"I'll tell them you fought well. They like heroic stories."
Zhong She's lips curled into a final, bitter smile.
"I hope… you'll have the guts to tell your children… you killed their godfather."
Yu Yuan's eyes flickered, but he showed no emotion.
Zhong She dropped to one knee, vision tunneling. The scent of his own poison still lingered, but it was his body that grew heavy, not Yu Yuan's.
The last thing he saw before the darkness took him was Yu Yuan's spear glinting in the moonlight, unstained by weakness.
Yu Yuan wrenched the spear free from Zhong She's chest then stopped. He drove it back down, the steel tip crunching into his skull, pinning him to the blood-slick stones.
The dying man coughed, his breath wet.
"I..will..be..back.."
Yu Yuan's jaw tightened. He turned without a word and walked toward the gates, leaving the weapon quivering in the corpse.
The courtyard was silent except for the drip of blood and Yu Yuan's fading footsteps.
Beyond the gate, five figures waited in the fog. Their robes were heavy and layered, deep indigo stitched with curling silver script. Tall hoods crowned their heads, and black veils hung down over their faces. The air around them carried the bitter-sweet scent of myrrh and burnt clove.
The tallest stepped forward, a chain-veil hiding his features. His voice was smooth, even.
"It is done?"
Yu Yuan kept walking until he stood before them. "It's done."
A broader figure to the side spoke, his tone blunt. "The body?"
"In the courtyard," Yu Yuan said. "Spear's still in him."
The chain-veiled man inclined his head. "We will see to it."
Yu Yuan turned to leave, mist curling at his boots.
"The spear will be sent to you after the corpse is disposed of," the man said.
Yu Yuan didn't look back. He disappeared into the fog.
The five robed figures moved through the gates without a sound. The moonlight fell across Zhong She's still form, the spear standing upright like a marker over his body. Their shadows stretched long over the stones as they closed in.
One of the robed figures rushed to Zhong She's side and yanked the spear from his chest. Blood splattered across the stones.
He turned the weapon, and the moonlight caught on the spearhead. A faint, eerie glow began to pulse along its edges.
The man froze, his voice sharp beneath the veil.
"It's an divine level artifact."
Another stepped forward, tone low but urgent as he received the spear.
"The Soul-Channeling Samsara Spearhead he's forced the cycle. The fool means for him to return."
A sudden gust tore through the courtyard, snapping their robes. One hood blew back, revealing a contoured human face sharp cheekbones, pale skin etched with black, curling marks that moved faintly as if alive. The eyes beneath were cold and glassy, reflecting no light at all.
The man yanked his hood back into place. "Catch that bastard." His voice calm and eerie.
Without another word, they turned from the corpse and bolted through the gates, their robes whipping behind them as they gave chase into the fog where Yu Yuan had vanished.
The courtyard fell silent again, save for the slow, steady drip of blood from the stones where Zhong She had fallen.