Chapter 36

ZHEN

Zhen stood at the window of Xian's bedchamber. In the horizon, ominous storm clouds had gathered, completely blotting out

the sun. A foreboding rumble of thunder reverberated like a knell within his chest.

No! Qing's voice rang out in his mind. I'm not going anywhere without you! I'm not leaving you!

What if those were the last words she ever spoke to him?

He should've tried harder to find her earlier. Or maybe he shouldn't have sent her and Hei Xing the message through the trees—if

he hadn't, she wouldn't have come to the palace and fallen into Fahai's clutches.

He had never felt so scared, so helpless. Even when he was shackled and caged in the wagon on the journey to Wuyue... at least he had, in some way, brought that fate upon himself. Qing had done nothing wrong except to heed Zhen's foolish call for help.

"Zhen?" Xian's voice broke into his thoughts.

He turned as Xian entered the room. The other boy had changed into an apricot-yellow robe—a different shade from the golden

yellow he usually wore. Apricot yellow had to be the designated color of the crown prince.

Xian took Zhen's hand; the signet ring gleamed on his thumb as he interlocked his fingers with Zhen's. "How are you holding

up?"

"I'm terrified," Zhen whispered. "I can't imagine what Qing's going through right now."

Xian gave his hand a comforting squeeze. "She's a snake spirit too, isn't she? Which is why Fahai thinks she also has powers

that can be extracted?"

Zhen shook his head. "She became a snake spirit only because I healed her using the power of the pearl. She didn't actually

consume the pearl, so Fahai won't be able to draw out any of the pearl's essence from her."

"In that case, Fahai must be using her to lure us there." Xian's tone was grim.

Zhen's eyes flashed up to Xian's. "I don't care if Fahai is setting a trap—there's no way I'm abandoning Qing. Even if it

costs my life, I'm going to save her."

"I know," Xian replied. "That's why I want you to have this."

He pressed the jade amulet on its chain into Zhen's palm.

Zhen blinked. "But your mother gave this to you."

"Fahai wants the pearl, which makes you his prime target," Xian replied. "This has protected me so far, and now I want it to protect you."

Xian looped the chain around Zhen's neck and fastened the clasp.

"I will tear down every stone of the pagoda if that's what it takes to bring Qing back safely." Xian's eyes were filled with

the fortitude that made Zhen understand why Xian's father had chosen him to be the future king. "And I will stay by your side"—he

leaned in and pressed a quick kiss to Zhen's lips—"As you did for me."

Hoofbeats echoed in counterpoint to the rumbling thunder as Xian led the palace guard down the road along the lake to Leifeng

Pagoda; Zhen rode on his right, Feng on his left. Streaks of lightning veined the impenetrable clouds, like silver fire lighting

the belly of a massive gray dragon. The skies unleashed a downpour as they approached the southern shore, and they were all

drenched by the time they slowed to a halt in front of the pagoda's flame-scorched base.

As they dismounted, Zhen shielded his eyes and gazed up at the series of wide eaves and brackets like armor and scales on

the pagoda's eight-sided body.

Xian strode to the front entrance, and Zhen and Feng followed. The archway was etched with lotus flowers and flying lions,

and on a pillar next to the door hung a banner with a string of characters written in black ink.

"He's here." Xian read the message on the banner. "He wants Zhen and me only to go up to the top of the tower. He's watching us—if anyone else tries to enter the pagoda, he'll throw Qing from the top."

Zhen felt his blood draining from his face. "We cannot underestimate a man who thinks he has nothing left to lose."

Feng frowned. "That doesn't mean the two of you should just walk right into his trap."

"He has the upper hand for now," Xian told Feng. He drew his sword. "Do not breach the pagoda until I give the command."

Zhen took out his white fan, and he and Xian entered the pagoda. Its outer walls were constructed with brick, which had protected

the wooden interior structures from being ravaged by fire. Built around the massive central pillar that supported the roof

was a spiral stone staircase leading to the upper floors.

Xian ascended the curving steps first, and Zhen stayed close behind. As they drew nearer to the top, they heard Qing's voice,

although the sound of rain lashing against the exterior of the pagoda almost drowned it out. She was talking to someone, but

Zhen couldn't hear the other person's voice.

Zhen and Xian exchanged looks; on Xian's signal, they burst through the doorway.

Unlike the other floors, which were sectioned into rooms, the highest level was an undivided space. The wind that gusted through

the arches of the four balconies at each compass point was cuttingly cold, but that wasn't what made Zhen's hair stand on

end.

The thick metal steeple stood on a raised platform in the center; one end was anchored to the floor and the other rose right through the hexagonal roof, ending in the spire. Qing, dressed in a plain rú qún , was bound to the steeple with rope. A hooded figure stood by her side.

Qing's eyes widened when she saw Zhen and Xian.

"It's him!" she yelled. "Watch out—"

The hooded figure turned.

Zhen stopped in his tracks.

"Hei Xing?" he blurted out. "How—how did you get out of the palace prison?"

"Where's Fahai?" Xian demanded. "Have you been working with him all this time?"

Hei Xing let out a raspy laugh. "I suppose you could say that."

He pulled his hood lower, obscuring his face for a moment, and when he pushed the hood back again, Fahai's face stared back

at them.

Fahai and Hei Xing—they were one and the same.

"Hei Xing existed first," the man continued. "But Fahai was the person he was forced to become after he was betrayed."

Zhen's heart thudded. Escaping from the palace prison would've been easy for a powerful spirit creature like Hei Xing, and

with his hundreds of years of cultivation, using illusion to alter his appearance would hardly be a difficult feat. And he

had managed to deflect any suspicion by coming to the palace to tell them about Qing's capture when he was the one who had

taken her captive.

"Prince Xian, it seems you and I have something in common." Fahai's mouth twisted as his gaze cut toward Zhen. "We were both deceived by the same malicious, backstabbing snake."

The vehemence in Fahai's eyes sent a shiver up Zhen's spine.

"What did I ever do to you, Hei Xing?" he asked. "Why do you hate me so much?"

"You still don't know?" Fahai's face contorted with rage. "I saved your life when you were caught in that trap, you worthless

creature. And in return, when you found the pearl—the pearl you knew I was searching for to finish my thousand years of cultivation and ascend to the heavens—you took it for yourself! I should've

let you die in that trap!"

"I just wanted to be a spirit creature like you," Zhen whispered. "I looked up to you as a mentor, and I was enchanted by

all your adventures. I wished for us to be the same—"

"We are not the same!" Fahai roared. "Did you think that once upon a time, I was merely an ordinary reptile like you? No! I was a chief

sentry in the celestial realm—but I incurred the wrath of the gods, and I was banished to the earth, where I had to accumulate

a thousand years of cultivation before I could return to my place. I was forbidden to set foot on the sacred Kunlun Mountains,

gateway to the heavens, which meant I could not seek a spirit pearl of my own. Alone on my sojourn in this wretched world,

I took the form of a tortoise, wisest and oldest of all creatures."

Before Zhen could say anything, Xian spoke.

"You're wrong, Fahai." Xian stepped forward, eyes glinting. "You and I have nothing in common. You betrayed us . My father and I trusted you, and you deceived us for years! All this time, what you were doing in your laboratory in the basement of this pagoda was never for my mother's healing, was it?"

"I delved into forbidden magic tomes and learned that, through a long, arduous process involving dark sorcery, a cultivation

pool could be turned contrary to its natural purpose," Fahai replied. "And I discovered that one existed in the underground

chamber of Leifeng Pagoda. I became a human, assumed the identity of genteel scholar Fahai, and insinuated myself into your

father's court as a trusted adviser. When I offered to secretly seek a cure for your mother, he was more than willing to give

me full access to the pagoda, where I had the time and privacy to prepare the cultivation pool."

"Did you even go and consult the oracle on Mount Emei or was that another one of your lies?" Xian demanded.

"I did," Fahai said. "The cultivation pool was finally ready, and I asked the oracle where I could find the treacherous white

snake that had taken the spirit pearl. The oracle's reply was that the white snake was in Changle—and not I but the prince

of Wuyue would be the one to find the cursed creature. I told your father that the oracle had directed us to Changle to find

the cure, knowing full well you would insist on being sent there. I needed the connection you forged with the white snake

seven years ago to lead me straight to him. And everything happened just as the oracle predicted."

Xian's eyes narrowed. "No wonder you were so eager to leave Changle earlier than the rest of us. You needed time to plan the

ambush as Hei Xing."

Realization dawned on Zhen. "But your ambush wasn't meant to rescue me."

"Of course not," Fahai retorted. "If everyone believed you'd escaped on the way back to Wuyue, the last place they'd search

for you would be Leifeng Pagoda. I would have enough time to extract the remaining power of the pearl without anyone knowing.

But you, Xian, found a way to ruin my plans."

Fahai hadn't expected Xian to cuff himself to Zhen to stop him from getting away. Now Zhen understood why Fahai—as Hei Xing—had

been genuinely taken aback when Zhen refused to let him cut off Xian's hand. They had both unknowingly thwarted Fahai's attempt

to capture Zhen and secretly bring him back to the pagoda.

"After the fire in the underground chamber, I had my doubts about your alleged death," Fahai continued. "I strongly suspected

that the two of you had somehow escaped and fled—which was confirmed when I received the message through the trees that you

and Zhen were now working together." He glowered at Xian. "I thought that learning his true nature as a cursed white snake

responsible for prolonging your mother's illness would make you hate him more, not send you running straight into his arms."

Xian moved in front of Zhen, blocking him from Fahai. He raised his hand with the signet ring. "I will never let you lay a

finger on him again."

Fahai's expression flickered at the sight of the signet ring.

"Congratulations, Crown Prince," he replied, his tone heavy with scorn. "Your father chose well. Allow me to give you the elevated position you deserve."

With a sweep of Fahai's hand, a length of rope lying on the floor flew up like a snake. One end coiled into a noose and looped

around Xian's neck; before Zhen could react, the rope hoisted Xian into the air.

"Xian!" Zhen snapped open his white paper fan and threw it upward. It flew in a graceful arc, neatly sliced the rope connected

to Xian's neck, and returned to Zhen's hand.

But to Zhen's horror, Xian remained suspended in midair, as if an invisible hand around his throat were still choking him.

Fahai let out a bark of laughter. "Not a very nice feeling to be tricked, is it?"

A brilliant flash of lightning struck, almost immediately followed by a crack of thunder. Zhen spun toward the steeple to

which Qing was bound.

"That was extremely close," Fahai said, a gleam in his eye. "The next one might hit the steeple. People believe that a lightning

strike to the spire of a pagoda can destroy demons... or, in this case, a snake spirit. Who will you choose, Zhen? The

prince who has given you his heart or your sister who refused to leave your side?"

Xian struggled, unable to speak. His legs kicked in vain, and both hands scrabbled at the unseen noose around his neck. Another

bolt of lightning cracked like a celestial whip, lighting up the sky as brightly as midday, and a deafening boom of thunder

shook the pagoda to its foundations.

Zhen's stomach clenched. Fahai was forcing him to make an impossible choice: Save Xian or save Qing. There was no way he could rescue them both; he was no match for Fahai's seven hundred years of cultivation.

Zhen swallowed hard and made his choice.

"Take me instead," he told Fahai. "You said the pearl's power cannot be forcibly seized, which was why you had to use the

cultivation pool—you knew I would never surrender it to you voluntarily." He took a deep breath. "Let both Xian and Qing go.

Once they're safely out of here, I will willingly give you whatever remains of the pearl's power within me. You told me there

should be at least three hundred years' worth of cultivation left. You will finally have accumulated a thousand years of cultivation,

and you can go back to the heavens where you belong."

"No, Zhen!" Qing shouted. "Don't give it to him!"

Fahai arched an eyebrow.

"After all these years, you still have the ability to surprise me." He let out a sardonic laugh. "Master Sun was right: If

you wait by the river long enough, the bodies of your enemies will float by."

Zhen's heart was pounding. The next bolt of lightning could kill Qing, and Xian was already suffocating. He could only hope

that Fahai's greed would win out over his spite. "Do we have an agreement?"

With a flick of Fahai's wrist, the bonds tying Qing to the steeple fell away. Another wave, and the invisible grip around Xian's neck abruptly loosened. Xian collapsed to the floor, wheezing and gulping for breath.

Zhen rushed to his side. "Are you all right?"

"Zhen!" Qing skidded to a halt next to them. "What's going to happen to you when you give him the pearl's power?"

Zhen's silence was the resounding answer.

Xian raised his head, his breathing still ragged. "Zhen, don't do this. Please."

Qing caught Zhen's hand. "There has to be another way—"

Fahai interrupted. "I kept my end of the bargain. Now it's time for you to keep yours. Send them away if you don't want them

to witness what happens next."

Zhen took Qing's hand and put it in Xian's.

"Take care of her for me," he told Xian. "Whatever happens, don't turn back."

Neither Xian nor Qing moved. Zhen mustered all his resolve and pushed them away.

"Get out of here," he said. "Both of you. Go!"

The helplessness in Xian's eyes was heartrending.

"I love you," he whispered.

Zhen's breath caught in his throat. He wanted nothing more than to throw his arms around the other boy, hold him one last

time, and tell him he loved him too. But he couldn't. It would break him. It would break them both.

As Xian pulled a sobbing Qing toward the doorway, Zhen turned back to Fahai. He clenched his hands so tightly by his sides that his fingernails dug crescents into his palms. As if he were desperately holding on to something that, perhaps, was never his to have. Not in this life.

"The equilibrium always finds itself, Little White One." Fahai held up his left hand, kindling a swirling orb of black light.

"It's time to take back what's mine."

Zhen could sense the dangerous, volatile aura of the orb. It would consume his spirit powers and bestow them on Fahai, and

Zhen would die. Fahai drew back his palm, and Zhen shut his eyes as the rotating black orb hurtled toward his heart—

Something exploded inside his chest, and the sheer force lifted him off his feet. He expected to float upward, finally weightless,

separated from the part of him that was earthbound, but instead, he found himself flying backward—

His back slammed into a hard surface, and he crashed downward and hit the floor. His eyes sprang open, and he gazed up at

the wooden beams and interlocking brackets that supported the pagoda's roof. Was he dead? Or still in his human body?

He raised his head. Across from him, Fahai stood ramrod straight, as if he had been petrified by some terrible, immense force.

His eyes were wide and uncomprehending, and his left hand was still extended, his fingers curled like talons around the empty

hollow of his palm.

Zhen looked down at his own chest—the amulet that Xian had given him glowed with blinding brilliance, like heavenly jade fire.

Fahai let out a guttural croak, clutching his throat as he staggered backward. His face began to protrude in a grotesque, rectangular shape. His eyes grew beady, narrow set, and his nose melted into its cavity, changing into two flat nostrils—

"Zhen!" Xian reappeared at his side. "Are you all right?"

Zhen couldn't contain his horror as he stared at Fahai. "What's happening to him?"

Fahai opened his mouth and let out a horrible, bloodcurdling shriek as his teeth vanished and his jaw became beak-like. His

neck elongated, stretching like rubber. His skin turned brown and wrinkled, and his back began to hunch, swelling with a concave

hump... like a shell.

Before Zhen or Xian could react, Fahai spun around and stumbled toward the balcony that overlooked the lake. As he vaulted

over the balustrade, his transformation continued in midair: His arms and legs became thick stumps, his fingers and toes sprang

into claws—

Then he fell, disappearing from view. Seconds later, a loud splash rose from the lake, and a flock of ducks took flight with

a screech of panic.

Zhen rushed to the balcony. Below, the water had closed over Fahai, swallowing him into its depths. The rise and fall of ripples

spreading across the surface was all that remained. The palace guards clustered by the edge of the lake, seeming confused.

"Zhen!"

Qing rushed forward and let out a small, choked noise as she hugged him so hard that Zhen was sure his bones would break.

Zhen held her tightly. "Are you all right? Did he hurt you?"

"I'm fine." She sniffed. "How did you ward off Fahai's curse?"

Zhen looked down at the amulet that hung against his chest. The jade had cracked in half. "It must have broken when it repelled the spell."

Understanding crossed Xian's face. "My mother once told me that if a piece of jade worn for many years suddenly breaks, it

means the jade has shielded its wearer from a terrible evil."

Zhen was sure this wouldn't be the last they saw of Fahai. But he could worry later. For now, all of them were safe. That

was all that mattered. All he could ask for.

Xian reached out and pulled Zhen into a fervent embrace. "For a moment I thought you... you were gone."

Zhen buried his face in Xian's neck and breathed in his familiar scent. Something in his chest seemed to unbolt, releasing

like a dragon-claw lock that could be opened only by one key in the world.

"I'm not going anywhere," he whispered back.

When the three of them walked out of the pagoda, Feng rushed up to Xian, looking anxious and relieved. Then he turned to Qing

and, unexpectedly, hugged her.

Qing blushed bright red. Xian and Zhen exchanged grins.

They rode back to the palace. This was Xian's first time returning from victory as the crown prince, but when they arrived

at the outer court, instead of a hero's welcome, they were met with distressed faces.

One of the physicians came up to Xian and fell to his knees.

"Your Highness," he wept. "Your mother... she has died."