The net came down as a dark cloud falls to earth, lead weights slicing through the air. Rope hissing, spray splashing, and then it was all one sound. And for that heartbeat, everything in the world boiled down to water, rope, and angles.
[System Alert: Compound Hazard Closing. Estimated entanglement in 1.4 seconds. [Recommended Countermeasure Order: Fishing Trip Pivot-Through + Prophylactic Noose → Chain-Anchor Reversal.]
"Yes," Lin Xuan breathed.
Understanding hit like electricity — feet grasped in a place no footing should be found, hands knew wet rope as though experienced for decades. Lin Xuan did not jump backwards but stepped into the falling net. Gasps rippled through the crowd. He hooked one heavy edge in each hand, spinning so the pull of the rope went around him and not into him. His pivoting preset the far edge turning around, and that few moments of loose gave his other hand to shift along a twist to knot, fingers pushing twining in the exact push/pull and it unraveled. The mesh that was to keep you real fell as a curtain opening. Lin Xuan stepped into it wetly and at the same time flicked it up over his head unnecessarily. It did not target him: the net targeted Luo Feng.
**The Turn**
The audience burst into a chorus of cheers, surprise, laughs.
And as Luo Feng struggled to break free, the weights dragged him toward… With a muffle that swallowed the scream, he collapsed off into the water. Wei Ping and Shan Mu went to drag him out, then found themselves tripped and snared in the thing as well, flailing up a storm of shouts mixed with kicks. The Old Man Wu cackled.
**Rivers:** "The river robs its own robbers."
There was a little chuckling from some of the observers, soon followed by murmurs. It was, alas, a public humiliation — and on account of that very fact, the wound could only fester in public.
Lin Xuan stepped into shallower water and still held a jade slip in his hand. He looked around, focused — the tilt of your chin, the way you breathe, subtle signals as to who this amused and who was measuring for tomorrow.
[System-Learning Study: Attitudes of the people — 43% in favor, 39% indifferent, 18% against. Main hostile forces: Luo Feng + allied kin Che.]
Good. He preferred his enemies in full view.
**The Accusation Breaks**
Luo Feng breathlessly hauled it from his shoulders, hair stuck to forehead. Whether because of the cold or his own rage, Lin Xuan felt a furious heat rising in his cheeks.
"You—!" Luo Feng sputtered. "You tricked me!"
Lin Xuan tilted his head. "Luo Feng, you schemed against me. That was the only thing you forgot to check if the machine falls on your head without any roof." A titter went down the room. Some of the actual Luo Feng fans even began to snicker before they knew it.
"This proves nothing!" Luo Feng shouted. "That jade—"
"— is a fake," Lin Xuan concluded, flaunting it. "The carving is fresh. No patination, no edgeware. And the crescent line?" He turned it so that the closest villagers could see. "Wrong angle. Those of us who have handled jade more than once could tell. That went for Old Man Wu, he even received an incredible accuracy of catching it." The old man squinted then grunted. "He's right. This is market-stall trash. It left my dating 20 years ago and has not since returned."
There was a shift in the crowd almost as fast as currents flow. The murmur of discussion grew sharper and eyes turned in an accusing glare towards Luo Feng.
**Authority Steps In**
"Stop anymore." A strong voice halted the people from their incessant chattering.
The crowd opened up, then the village head Lin Wenyang came out. His wide shoulders and lined face held enough sway to stop the bickering. "I've heard enough foolishness. This ends now." His eyes passed over the crowd, landing on a rather mess of Luo Feng with all his accomplices. "If you have evidence, produce it. If not, go home." Wenyang snapped like a whip before Luo Feng opened his mouth. "No, oh but the unproven accusations and half-truths. I am sure this day is bad as Stone Creek has some trouble having a good market day without turning it into a riot."
Wei Ping let out a mutter and Wenyang gave him a sharp look for it, which caused the man to fall silent.
**The Watcher Speaks**
Yun Ruo walked out from the edge of the crowd. Her hood was down, black hair blowing in the wind, her eyes darting around — carefully appraising the environment in a moment of silence. "The boy who went into that river faced three dangers — the heavy net, sunken stakes, and an oiled stone —" She said it without any particular effort and her words were clear. "And he adjusted to all of them without pause."
A few of the murmurs translated into actual surprise. Because of Song Luan, Yun Ruo moved to the bank and there was still no trace of her boots on the wet sand. "Such adaptability is rare." She glanced at Wenyang. "Uncommon enough my sect is offering him a trial."
A shiver ran through the villagers. And the vassals who had never heard of Azure Spirit's name were able to tell just how much her voice carried.
Wenyang's brow lifted. "That so?"
Yun Ruo nodded once. "In two days, I am getting out of this place. If Lin Xuan wants to come, give him my token. If not…" She looked at Lin Xuan. "Another will take the opportunity."
She fixed her stare on him, held it a beat too long, and then spun away from him before the crowd flowed around her like water past a rock.
**The Aftermath**
Then the villagers dispersed one by one, talking in low voices while casting furtive glances at Lin Xuan or Luo Feng.
[System Notice: Incoming and Replaced With Sight] – Village Revered.visibility Updated. Support +12%, Hostility +8%. Suspected accomplices: Old Man Wu, Herbalist Shen, Widow He.]
Lin Xuan took the water in his pants, did not look at Luo Feng and passed him. "Try one you can grasp, the next time you lay a trap," he said, almost sotto voce.
The other boy's jaw clenched. Low and biting was his voice. "You think this is over? And oh man you have NO idea what's in store."
"Then keep on counting on it," Lin Xuan took another step.
**The Watching Eyes**
The token felt warm in his hand, and Lin Xuan sat outside of his hut the entire night. He was still connected to the Qi flowing through him, but he could feel the village itself changing too. Every rise drew eyes. Some curious. Some hungry.
Something peeled away from the darkness at the fence. Yun Ruo's voice came soft. "You handled yourself well today."
Lin Xuan looked at her. "Were you testing me?"
"Not directly. Just to see what you'd do when the foot of the table moved." She paused. "You'll have as an unsympathetic a group of your sect around you as if you'd stood up in front of a village mob. But also more rewarding."
The token back into his sleeve he slipped. "Then I'll be ready."
Her lips smiled gently and she disappeared again into the black.
In the Luo family manor, within a closed window, he sat with a towel wrapping around his shoulder; he stared at the floor. Beside him, a burly man with equally sharp eyes across from him — his cousin Luo Chen, irascible Qi Collection cultivator.
Luo Chen said flatly, "You lost face for our family today."
"You… you made me look like an ass!" Luo Feng spat. "In front of her! In front of the whole village!"
Luo Chen's smile was cold. "Then tomorrow, just before he went out the door, we would make sure that he went… to the healer's hut."