As they flew through the forest, Hui gradually began to notice a pure, cold qi seeping through the air. The further they flew, the stronger it became, until thick tendrils of mist began to snake through the forest below, and the air grew clean and damp.

Ahead, scenery like an immortal paradise appeared. A white waterfall, delicate as a skein of silk, descended from a rocky, moss-encrusted cliff and tumbled down into a series of round blue pools, as clear as gems, their stone floors visible from where Hui and the others flew. Flowers bobbed at the pools’ edges, intermingled with a soft, carpet-like moss that itself was spotted with tiny white flowers. Thick mist swirled about, obscuring the scene as if they approached it from within a cloud. The cool, pure qi filled the air. With every breath, Hui absorbed it and breathed it out, his chest refreshed by the icy air.

“Here we are. Cloud Ice Spring,” Ji Taiyu announced, touching down.

Hui leaped off his sword, sending it back into the node with a wave of his hand. The springy moss compressed under his feet. Cold exuded from the spring, sinking around his ankles, so that even though he stood on dry land, it felt as though he’d dipped his feet into water. He strode toward the pools slowly, mesmerized.

A sword appeared in front of him. Hui froze and threw up his hands, startled.

“This Cloud Ice Spring is a holy land, and should be treated with respect. Remove your outer garments before you enter,” Ji Taiyu intoned gravely.

Eh? Did he think I was going to jump in with all my clothes on? I was only going to dip my hand in and test the water… Hui shrugged to himself and backed up, joining Ji Taiyu by a corner, where the other man removed his shoes.

Bao Huli hurried over and helped Ji Taiyu out of his robes, her eyes shining the whole time with unbridled greed. Hui hesitated, still fully dressed, and coughed. “Er, Ji Taiyu, the… the girls, they should…”

“Over here! There’s a second spring around the corner. We can divide by gender,” Song Weilai offered, calling from the far side of a stand of bamboo. Hui could barely make out her waving through the thicket.

“That’s right. Bao Huli, don’t be improper. Go to Song Weilai,” Ji Taiyu instructed.

The group of four followers emerged from the bamboo and nodded at Ji Taiyu and Hui, setting down their baskets as they prepared to enter the water.

Bao Huli glared at Hui. Hui stared back, unimpressed. I don’t want your Master. I really don’t, I swear.

With a harrumph, Bao Huli turned away. Ying Lin bowed and followed after her. Hui watched her go with worry. I don’t want to send her off alone with Bao Huli and Song Weilai… but it wouldn’t be proper to have her enter the pond on this sde with myself, Ji Taiyu, and Song Weilai’s roughs, either.

Zhubi wiggled on Hui’s neck, then extracted himself all at once. He slithered away from the spring, clearly displeased with the cold water.

That’s a good point! Hui knelt. “Zhubi, will you go and keep an eye on Ying Lin? Call me if there’s any danger.”

Zhubi paused, then dipped his head. He gathered himself and leaped into the air, flying across the pond to the bamboo thicket to wrap around a thicker stalk of bamboo. Stretching his pale body, he coiled from bamboo pole to bamboo pole, following after Ying Lin and Bao Huli as they walked over.

Satisfied at last, Hui began to undress. There was nothing valuable in his robes to save, everything hidden in the node. He’d scavenged his clothes from a fallen rogue cultivator, and the ragged, yellowed robes were nothing worth coveting. Hui waved his hand and sent Moonlight Cutter into the node as well, but simply piled his outer robes and shoes together on the side of the pond.

“Come on! Down to your loincloth,” one of the roughs encouraged, striking his bare chest.

Hui glanced at Ji Taiyu, but the man had already enthusiastically stripped to his very underclothes, his inner robes too set aside. He rubbed his forehead. I don’t mind stripping, but I don’t trust Bao Huli or Song Weilai! If I need to, I want to be prepared to attack at a moment’s notice.

Oh well, I guess if either of them make a move, they deserve to be scandalized! Hui decided. He removed his inner robes and folded them neatly, then waded out into the pond.

Icy water swirled up his legs. Instantly, his muscles seized up, tensing instinctively against the freezing cold water. Hui paused as the water reached his thighs, unwilling to take the next step. It’s going to be cold, it’s going to suck… ugh… I don’t want to!

Ji Taiyu thumped him on the back. Surprised, Hui staggered forward, and the freezing water surged upward. He froze on the spot, tensed and displeased. Fuck! Ji Taiyu, you traitor! My mind is already clear, did you have to freeze me physically as well?

“Let’s go sit under the waterfall for a while. It’ll be good for us! Help us clear our qi passages and circulate our qi,” Ji Taiyu said, pumped up.

Are all sword cultivators training maniacs? Even Li Xiang went nuts trying to figure out how to fly before fourth stage! No wonder I have no karma with sword techniques. I’m not suited, not suited at all! Hui grumbled under his breath. Still, he had no reason to refuse, so he nodded and followed Ji Taiyu to the waterfall.

The rough cultivators all found their own spots in the pool or under waterfalls, leaving the main one to Ji Taiyu and Hui. Ji Taiyu sat on the smooth stone directly under the waterfall, while Hui sat slightly to the side, less a glutton for punishment than Ji Taiyu. Icy cold water poured over his head, freezing him to his skull and shocking his bones. It pounded down on his shoulders. The weight of the water threatened to fold Hui in half, despite his cultivation.

Hui struggled against the water, circulating his qi to fight back. His qi bled out even as he circulated it. The icy cold water sapped his qi away. It struck down on him, and his qi flowed out, the same as the heat left his body.

I understand! Now I understand. This spring has a natural qi-repressing effect. No matter what level of cultivation you’re at, having your qi constantly pour out of you while freezing water pounds down on you is a brutal kind of punishment! If I can resist this spring, my ability to hold onto my qi and absorb qi should be much greater. Also, with the bleeding effect on my qi, all the less pure qi is exiting my body, and replaced by this pure cold qi. I was right to follow Ji Taiyu! This is a true opportunity.

No longer annoyed, Hui settled into a lotus pose and focused on circulating his qi. Beside him, Ji Taiyu assumed the same pose. Between the handsome youth and the serious middle-aged master, the scene looked quite studious… except for the excess of bare male flesh.

Some time passed. The roughs lounged in the pool, chatting quietly. Occasionally, they’d shoot covert glances at the two cultivators under the waterfall, but no gazes lingered long.

A near-silent whistle sounded, too quiet to be heard over the roar of the waterfall. The roughs exchanged a glance, then nodded and silently climbed out of the water. They quickly dressed, swallowing a blue-colored pill as they did so. Blinded by the thick qi in the waterfall and deafened by its pounding rush, Hui and Ji Taiyu noticed nothing.

The whistle changed tones. The flowers at the edge of the pond trembled and released a thick pollen. Carried by the mist, it swirled around Hui and Ji Taiyu, further dulling their senses and subtly influencing their minds.

The waterfall has gotten stronger? I’ll fight back harder! Immersed in training, Hui focused on expanding his qi. He willfully neglected his outer senses. Zhubi should notify me if anything happens. It’ll be fine.

--

Song Weilai nodded at the roughs, all of them once more fully dressed. Now, the roughs all exuded low-grade fifth stage cultivations, the kinds that had been forcefully pushed to fifth stage with pills and had little hope for future advancement. Song Weilai gave off the more refined pressure of a high-grade, well-built fifth stage cultivation, the kind usually only found in a righteous clan or sect of some reputation.

She nodded at the roughs. “Are they asleep?”

“They might as well be. The Freezing Blue-White Lily should dull their minds, and the Cloud Ice Spring will seal off their qi. All of us have taken the antidote. Everything is ready,” the tallest of the rough cultivators replied, clasping hands to her.

Song Weilai snorted. “I had a whole excuse planned to lead him to this spring… who knew that he’d come here willingly? It seems the heavens are smiling on me.”

She glanced over her shoulder at the spring she’d led the girls to.

Bao Huli and Ying Lin sat under their own waterfall. Ying Lin sat peacefully, while Bao Huli twitched, fighting to awaken but unable to escape the combined effects of the spring and the pollen. Zhubi drooped from a bamboo stalk, half-awake.

Song Weilai smirked. “I’ve eyed that fox for a long time, and now we can finally capture her! The snake is a bonus. Move quickly. I want to be far from here before any of them know what happened.”

“Yes!” The roughs clasped hands to her and rushed off.