"Come, Brother Feng, it shouldn't be far now," said a deep, rough voice.
"One should never set off in haste, Brother Dai," replied another voice. They belonged to two monks. Their heads were shaved bald, and their flowing, light-colored robes were wrapped around their naked upper bodies.
They ran barefoot, and each had a large, impressive prayer chain woven around his forearm. One of them carried an impressive white wooden staff, the upper end of which was artfully carved.
Brother Feng and Brother Dai were a monk duo from the Green Summit sect. It was known more for its gentleness and deep meditations.
But also for their fighting style and unwavering righteousness. These two had dedicated themselves to the war against the demons and were known among them as Brother Ruthless and Brother Heartless. They could live with their nicknames, as they had no sympathy for the demons. "I can't believe we really took you with us," an annoyed voice rang out.
Brother Feng and Brother Dai crouched down and peered through the dense undergrowth. They saw a motley crew. A young woman in flaming red clothes stomped through the forest next to a serious-looking young man. She did not seem at all happy about his presence. Behind them, another young woman stumbled through the undergrowth.
"Stop bickering now. It was Liu Yan's decision, let's live with it," she didn't sound happy either.
"But A'Xin," grumbled the woman in red.
"Pian'er, get used to Yichen's company, after all, he plans to submit," huffed the lanky woman. Behind them, another man strutted along. He was tall, with a slender but imposing stature. His clothes were elegant and luxurious. A gentle smile played around his lips, as if he were enjoying the banter. "Are those demons, Brother Dai?" whispered Brother Feng. Dai thought about it, then shook his head. "I don't think so, Brother Feng.
Demons don't gather in groups without a leader," he whispered back. The man with the proud gait paused briefly, tilting his head as if listening. Then he continued on, putting an arm around the waist of the lanky girl who kept stumbling over the roots.
"I'll carry you," he offered.
"I'm not a child anymore," the girl hissed back. The shame was written all over her face. The man laughed.
"I'll carry you anyway," he said more quietly and lifted her energetically into his arms. The woman named A'Xin grumbled, but wrapped her arms around his neck and let him carry her without resistance, stepping gently over the uneven forest floor.
"Brother Dai, shouldn't we warn them? They're approaching the Honglou," Brother Feng asked. Brother Dai sighed. The Honglou was an old, abandoned castle teeming with demons. The high concentration of corrupted qi inside made it dangerous and powerful.
"You're right, Brother Feng, we must warn them," he finally said. They approached the troop at dusk. "A fire in this area is dangerous, strangers," said Brother Dai. He raised his hand with the prayer beads to his chest and bowed slightly. Brother Feng found the looks they received eerie. The lively conversation had fallen silent. The young man they had called Yichen was sitting on a rock. He wore the uniform of the soldiers of the Wu Kingdom, but neither sword nor armor. His long hair was loosely tied back, and for a moment Brother Feng thought he saw something glittering flit across his face.
The woman in flaming red, who had been called Pian'er, stood just a step away from him. One moment she had been arguing with him, the next her gaze was fixed skeptically on them. Her clothes were striking, her body graceful, and her long black hair, braided into elaborate plaits, spilled like ink over the scarlet of her dress. Brother Feng looked at the other woman. She was holding a bundle of firewood and looked at him curiously, but also cautiously.
When she caught Brother Feng's gaze, she smiled at him kindly, and Brother Feng calmed down a little. The girl seemed friendly, but not from a good family. Her clothes were simple: a white robe and a light brown hanfu over it. Her hair was tied back in a ponytail without any adornment, and her build was lanky and thin. The smile on Brother Feng's face froze when he saw the man.
His gaze was cold and full of underlying anger. His aura was overwhelming. He wore deep black clothes, delicate jewelry, and his hair was neatly styled, tied into a high ponytail. Braided strands spilled over his shoulders. The man's dark eyes had a dangerous red glint that stood out clearly against his pale skin, and he had full lips. He sat leaning against a tree trunk, his clothes spread out on the forest floor, twirling a thin twig between his long, slender fingers. If Brother Feng had to guess, he would believe this man was of high birth. A nobleman, perhaps even of royal blood.
"What brings the monks of Green Peak so far into demon territory?" Xinxin asked, dropping the wood. She brushed the dust and dirt off her clothes and looked at them questioningly.
"You know the cultists' sects?" Brother Dai asked in surprise. Xinxin nodded.
"It's not hard to recognize the warrior monks. You have a strict dress code and strict rules," she said. Brother Feng squirmed. Of all those present, he had least expected her to speak up. And yet the others remained in the background. Brother Feng gently tugged at Brother Dai's sleeve. He had an uneasy feeling that something was wrong here. Why did it look as if someone of royal blood was traveling with a city soldier, a dancer, and an inconspicuous girl? And why did the gray mouse seem to be the most dangerous of them all? Brother Dai gently brushed his hand away. They were forbidden to have prejudices and form opinions based on vague assumptions.
"We haven't introduced ourselves. My name is Brother Dai, and this is Brother Feng. We have been traveling for many years to secure the border of the Kingdom of Wu from demons. We know this area better than you do. Please believe us, a fire would only attract the demons," Brother Dai explained patiently. The girl's expression changed, her dark eyes capturing the flickering fire and revealing a depth that even a master could only achieve after years of cultivation.
"That's good. We are demon hunters," she said. "Free Xia," she added when Brother Dai opened his mouth to ask about her affiliation.
"To make a name for ourselves, we wanted to hunt the demons in Honglou, but the castle seems to be protected by several spells. We've been wandering through the forest for days now. Would the honorable monks consider giving us a little assistance?" she asked.
"The demons in Honglou are dangerous," Brother Dai warned.
"That's why I think we should seize this opportunity to work together. The brothers are ruthless and heartless, surely on their way to the red castle, and the more fighters we have, the higher our chances of success."
"Are you cultists?" Brother Feng asked, puzzled. Xinxin's eyes darkened briefly. Pian'er looked for a moment as if she wanted to hiss, and Yichen's mouth twitched almost imperceptibly. Only the slender man remained seated, unmoved. Brother Feng couldn't shake the impression that a nobleman was submitting to a servant. Everything about this group seemed so terribly wrong.
"No, I'm a healer," Xinxin replied, just as friendly as before. Brother Dai thought for a moment, then nodded.
"We will support you. After all, one can't be too careful in times like these," he said and sat down. Pian'er had extinguished the fire, and it quickly grew darker. Xinxin sat down next to the man whose name had not been given to them. He immediately spread his arms and his cloak and embraced the inconspicuous girl. He seemed happy, his cold features taking on a soft, warm expression as she snuggled up to him. Even though he was not allowed to make assumptions or judgments, Brother Feng couldn't help wondering whether a rich nobleman's son had eloped with a maid.
"Times like these?" Xinxin echoed, looking at them questioningly. Brother Dai sighed.
"A few months ago, Prince Tian Liu yan is said to have fled the Kingdom of Tian," he said.
"Why would a prince flee his own kingdom?" the man remarked dryly, his gaze resting on Brother Dai.
"The youngest prince was born a curse. A bringer of doom and a cursed one. He left a trail of chaos and devastation in his wake. His escape alone caused a backlash of corrupted qi, which makes the demons aggressive. The karma falls back on the people, starting with the weakest. Crops are ruined, diseases are rampant, and curses are spreading. Just recently, the last major city before the border was struck by disaster. An entire family with a hundred-year-old family tree was wiped out. The city lord was found hanged at the gates, and all the treasure chambers and account books were burned," Brother Dai recounted.
"Doesn't karma simply restore the natural order that is created by the use and manipulation of the curse shackle?" Xinxin asked. "A scholar once told me that the humanization of the curse bond is only a means to an end, to channel karma and corrupt qi and keep it away from oneself. So the backlash of the corrupt qi is only the effect of the natural order, to set everything right again. That the weak people suffer first is entirely the fault of the rich. As long as they surround themselves with prayers, talismans, and the protection of cultists, karma can only fall back on those with less protection. It's similar to diverting water with a dam and artificial waterways," she said sharply.
"I see you had a good teacher," Brother Dai admitted. "Nevertheless, the disaster must be stopped before it destroys the structure of our world and ultimately plunges us all into chaos," he said seriously. Before Xinxin could reply, the man pulled her closer to him, his lips brushing her ear, but what he said did not reach the monks. The fire in the girl's eyes subsided somewhat.
"Let's take turns keeping watch at night. Yichen will start, then one of you, then Pian'er and the other will take the second watch," she suggested. Brother Dai nodded. It was a plausible suggestion.
After the monks had loosened the protective circle around Honglou, they reached the first foothills of the gigantic estate around noon. The main building had ten floors and towered far above the treetops, making it seem almost impossible that it had not been discovered much earlier. The black roofs and blood-red stone gave the castle an eerie appearance. Liu Yan had to cover his ears, so loud was the whistling sound, which he hadn't heard in a long time. Huge staircases with hundreds of steps cascaded down the mountainside. Layer by layer, the castle had been carved into the mountain until it consisted of half the eerie building and hundreds of structures. It was eerily quiet.
Only the sounds of growling and howling, mixed with the sound of tearing flesh, echoed through the air. No bird or other animal strayed here. Pian'er had placed himself protectively in front of Xinxin when Liu Yan stepped forward. Even after centuries, the huge gates with their tarnished golden seals still reliably blocked their way. Liu Yan looked around once more. The two monks stood side by side, their murmured sutras lifting the spell and illusion from the castle. Yichen stood a little apart, nodding almost imperceptibly, and Pian'er also signaled to him that Xinxin was safe with her.
Liu Yan stepped forward, spread his arms, and rose into the air. Brother Dai and Brother Feng exchanged skeptical glances. As Liu Yan enveloped himself in a cloud of black shadows with red mist and the full potential of his power darkened the sky, his aura shattered the prayer beads. They shot in all directions and the monks took a step back in shock. They didn't get far, as Yichen had taken on his serpent form behind them, his massive, 30-meter-long body, the diameter of a house, blocking their path. Pian'er had formed a dome of burning fire lotus above herself and Xinxin so that the corrupted qi, which was now pouring out of the earth in masses, could not harm them.
"By all the gods," Brother Feng exclaimed in horror. "What is that?" Brother Dai looked up. The black, fermenting miasma that rose from the earth and enveloped everything in a veil of dark dust rose and merged with the aura of the man standing high in the sky.
"We must do something," cried Brother Feng. Brother Dai formed a mudra with his hands and the scattered prayer beads shot toward him.
"I will stop him. Flee, Brother Feng, you must inform the sects that the Curse Binding has risen and claims its throne," he cried.
"Oh, I thought there wasn't much up there," said Xinxin, tapping her temple. "But you guys seemed to have a hunch about what was going on. Pretty dumb to bring us here anyway," she remarked dryly.
"We are not allowed to be prejudiced. I had to make sure first that it was really Tian Liu Yan," Brother Dai gasped. "I didn't expect him to have become so powerful already." Xinxin looked at him coldly.
"None of you will leave this castle alive today," she announced. Brother Dai looked at her in shock.
"Why are you doing this?" he asked her, stunned. Xinxin crossed her arms in front of her chest.
"You are a gift from him to the demons who have suffered so long under your indiscriminate killing spree," she said sternly. Brother Dai opened his mouth, but Xinxin waved him off.
"They're just demons, aren't they? You have every right to wipe them out." Her gaze pierced Brother Dai, who was visibly struggling to keep the prayer beads in shape.
"Just leave us alone once and for all. I've had enough of you oh-so-righteous cultists," she said in a hoarse voice.
"Yichen, don't let Brother Feng pass," she ordered.