Legend of Fu Yao

As they fooled around, they suddenly felt giddy.

Not just giddiness, but anxiety too. They panicked, breathing with much difficulty. In front of their eyes, waves of white light appeared. They thought it was water, but it wasn’t. They thought that water got in their eyes and they lifted their hands up to rub. Instead, blood started trickling down their eyes and their hands.

Then, they looked up. Somehow, the faces of the rest were all red and bloody. But therein lay the question of was it because of their vision? Or was it because the others were red like this?

The moon was high, and the night was silent. In that crystal clear water with a dark cliff in front of them, the group of people stood in the water, watching on as more and more blood flowed out from each other’s eyes.

It dawned upon them that there was something wrong with the water. They scrambled out of the water, causing a stampede to the shores. Unknowingly, there was someone squatting by the water, pressing his lips together. With a heavy sword in hand, he whacked those who attempted to flee right back in the water.

An exciting Whack-A-Mole indeed. Swift and accurate, not a single one was missed.

Those in the water shrieked, desperately climbing out like no tomorrow. That person swung his sword, running side to side at the speed of light, not letting a single one escape.

Gradually, those who still could struggle lessened.

Eventually, those in the water lessened too as they sunk to the very bottom, only floating up when it was time.

That person looked down and shook his tired wrist to ease the ache. He flung his sword around and nodded with satisfaction. As if lost in thought, he stroked his chin and muttered, “Master said to watch over this water and promised that my skills will definitely improve. Now that I look at it, the effects are great.”

There were more people in groups, scattered around the mountain, searching high and low for the non-existent itch-stopping-herb.

Perhaps, some of them would run into such a situation: The sudden appearance of a couple of men in grey, surrounding them in an exquisite formation. After inserting a blade into their hearts, the men in grey would vanish before the blood touched the ground, repeating this all over again.

There, too, were the careful ones that would gather a large group of people, around 10 or so, in fear of danger or wild beasts. Cheerily, they foraged for the herb, treating this as a soothing night excursion. Admiring the grass in the fog was certainly an experience.

The serenity even evoked the poets in one as he swayed from side to side, reciting his poem. “Bright moonlight in the sky, crotches once I look down. With nothing but small crotch sizes, I am the biggest one!”

The surrounding people immediately burst into laughter, pouncing on him uniformly, eager to open his eyes to whose was the biggest.

Under the fluffy clouds, a group of men in their birthday suits engaged in a playful grapple with one another. At the peak of their excitement, they suddenly felt a certain place go cold.

Just coldness for the sensation of pain had yet to register.

Then, they noticed a youth donned in dark purple, smiling at them. That youth had their manhood neatly arranged in one hand and a dark blade in another.

“How would you compare? How about we cut it off and weigh it! Here, here, let’s all be the judges to who is the biggest, shall we?” that youth asked, with sincerity imbued in every word.

Xuanji, Tiancheng, Day 28, Month 2, and Year 12. The night where the Amethyst Cape Knights sustained great blows.

Then, the Amethyst Cape Knights were met with attack once more. This time round, the consequences were much more dire—the bodies of one leader and 12 vice-leaders were strewn around the camp. Seven to eight hundred Amethyst Cape Knights’ corpses were found in various colors and completely naked at the back of the mountain; a bewildering death indeed. There were also close to 2,000 missing knights—some were those who witnessed the massacre and quickly escaped while others were the lucky ones that fled from the mountains but came back to a pile of dead bodies, escaping in fear of whatever punishment they might face. The majority were, however, those who neither witnessed the massacre nor been to the mountain but came back to find everyone dead and missing. They knew that they would be in deep sh*t if they were to return and might as well run away with the money in the tents.

Even though the benefits were great, and they could carry out any deed they desired, they were often in danger for the hatred they had garnered. Now that the leaders were all dead and they could not even explain what happened, rather than being interrogated and tortured in a dark room, they might as well change their name and hide away as a rich man.

3,000 men in one night.

If the hundred knights that died the other time shook the Xuanji’s Dynasty, this time round, it was crushed to the core. Eldest Princess, who faced these setbacks in succession, was thoroughly enraged, kicking one of the leaders who came to report this situation to death.

She removed the head of the Amethyst Cape Knights and gave the new leader an ultimatum—either offering the enemy’s head or his own head.

She was initially staying in a villa near the headquarters, but after these setbacks, she rushed down to Shang Feng Mansion in the southern borders. Shang Feng was a route mandatory to pass through if one wanted to enter the north. Tens of thousands of knights were placed on Shang Feng as wanted posters were stuck to walls on villages hundred miles along Shang Feng. The knights were determined to stop and kill their enemies at Shang Feng.

But till today, there was no one who had a clear view of the perpetrator. Back then, Magistrate Xian and Li Zheng were both survivors but that Li Zheng, who brought the Amethyst Cape Knights in, in the face of Meng Fuyao’s massacre, was literally frightened to death. The rest tried their best to recall, but all they remembered was that that person had “red eyes, gleaming blade and lots of blood.” Once they gave such vague statement, they experienced the slaps from the Amethyst Cape Knights.

With such useless witnesses, it made it all the harder to search for them; they couldn’t even put together a wanted poster with the information they had. Eldest Princess ordered the various officials to prohibit their civilians from exiting or entering as they wished. When entering the city, there needed to be a recommendation letter, a passport, and a stamp detailing the date of exit or entrance. Those who needed to exit or enter the city every day were required to register with the officials. The wanted criminal, whose face was put together based on the vague witness statement, was pasted on walls along the city gates. The colors on this portrait were bold and exquisite, bearing stark resemblance to Zhong Kui 1 , especially with those bright, blood-red eyes.

Xuanji, Tiancheng, Day 3, Month 3, Year 30. The day of the ‘Aurora Spring’ gatherings.

‘Aurora Spring,’ held every third day of the third month, was one of the most important festivals to the civilians of Xuanji. To them, it symbolized the beginning of spring and the happiness that it brought about. Residents living in a hundred miles from the city would all rush over to Shang Feng and display their most exquisite handiwork, the most intricate tools, and magnificent performances. Xuanji was renowned for its intricate works which the handicrafts being a big contributor to the country’s economy and with this ‘Aurora Spring’ as a platform for competition, the crafter who won this would be known as the king of this industry and never have to worry about money again. And for the ladies who produced the most beautiful embroidery, their value would be appreciated, and families would rush to ask their hand for marriage.

This day, the city gates were flooded with people, with the queue spanning over a few kilometers. The guards were all swamped with checking and granting access to the civilians. Seeing the only increasing queue trend, the guards were frustrated, and they eased up on their security.

An experienced aide led the couple of guards at the city gates. With beads of sweat rolling down his forehead, he hollered, “Hey, queue up! Queue up! Stop pushing and get back! Hey, hey, get back! I’m talking about you!”

In their awfully busy state, they suddenly noticed a willowy lady with half her face covered, making her way over gracefully. Beside her were her in-laws and husband, carrying the stuff they needed to set up a store on his shoulders. That lady was beautiful with dark, almond eyes that captivated those who saw. As those eyes blinked, the young guards felt their hearts thump against their chest.

Even so, the guard dared not slight her and quickly received the documents that the lady handed him. All the required documents were there, but suddenly, he felt that there was something odd about the material of the documents. Just as he was about to bring it up, that lady leaned in and smiled seductively. “Sire…”

The love knot tied to her fan gently brushed against his hand. That silky touch made the guard blank out, forgetting what he wanted to say. That lady winked, and as she took back the documents, her nails gently scratched against his palm. With a teasing expression and playful tone, she asked, “Sir, can we go in and get our stamp?”

“Oh…” The soul of the guard was seduced away as he stared blankly at the lady. He smiled dumbly as she left, completely forgetting about any oddities he had vaguely noticed.

The person in charge of the stamping was the experienced aide—a responsible gentleman. Every piece of document would be thoroughly scrutinized before passing.

That scent of that lady wafted over as she made her way over and handed the documents over. An “mhm?” escaped from the experienced aide’s as he touched the documents. But coincidentally, as if she was run into by someone, the lady slipped and her silk fan landed in front of him.

The aide’s eyes lit up.

Such remarkable embroidery!

A beautiful lady in plain clothes, leaning by the window frame as she admired the moon sorrowfully. The embroidery that was of a palm-size took into account every detail, producing a vivid, lifelike embroidery. It was as though one could feel the flowy dress swaying in the breeze and that serene, sorrowful night seemed to unfold itself in front of his eyes. There was a line of words sewed on beside the scenery. While the aide was not very literate, he could tell that the unique words were nothing ordinary, complementing the beauty in the scene. Even in Xuanji, such a masterpiece was hard to come by…

With such a thing appearing on the ‘Aurora Spring,’ how many people would go crazy over it?

The aide’s heart began to thump as he was reminded of his troubles— his daughter was already 18 years of age. Yet, due to her ugly looks, she remained unmarried. Despite his attempts, he could not find a husband for her. Now, with this, he wouldn’t have to fret over it anymore, would he?

His eyes glued onto the fan. The lady whispered sweetly and laughed, “Ah, it got dirty.” She sent the fan into his hands, and the aide subconsciously tightened his grip around it. With this, he no longer had the time or attention to vocalize his suspicions. With a gentle push from that lady, the guard beside the aide stamped the documents and let them pass.