The next day
In those days, houses or even inns would have a trap door leading underground, and the Crimson Fairy was no exception. The men followed Xiyu down the winding spiral metal staircase which she said led to the hidden underground chambers. The four of them were armed with only a torch, but Dongyue knew Xiyu would go nowhere without her ice dagger.
Following that, Xiyu then cast a spell to bring forward a small flame, which she used to light up the torch. The dark surroundings of the underground chambers now appeared brightly before them. A gigantic stone door that was painted gold with mini-statuettes of the ancient beast, the kirin and various symbolic carvings stood in their way.
The travellers understood from Xiyu’s explanation of the mechanics behind the access door that only her blood was able to open the door. She believed that because she was a descendant of Muxue Yan, her blood was worthy enough. Dongyue felt his chest ache slightly upon seeing her bite hard on her finger to yield a few drops of blood, which she smeared on one of the mini-statuettes. This, she confirmed, was what was required to open the door.
Almost instantaneously, a peculiar system jolted to life, confirming her belief. They all heard the sound of water gushing. Dongyue assumed the sound came from the system inside the heavy door. Following that, the eyes of the kirin flashed a deep red. The door was activated and having been unlocked, it would open by itself soon.
“Miss Muxue,” he called out. The two other men remained silent, waiting for his instructions.
“I’m fine. Let’s go on.”
“Did you sneak up on me yesterday?” he asked.
Her answer was natural. “No.”
Who could be the woman in red who was running away after sneaking up on his healing session with Wang Xi’er? He thought to himself.
The doors were now fully unlocked. Xiao Tian firmly pushed open the door. Behind the door, it seemed that another world existed. He was momentarily consumed by the flashy colours of the painted chamber behind the door. Machines he had never seen or known to exist complimented the rooms. He looked about him, realising he was all alone as Muxue Xiyu and the other men had pushed ahead.
Dongyue watched out for traps as they strolled forward cautiously. On a large table in the last room they visited, a number of technical and geographical maps and drawn theories lay strewn.
They sat down at the large table and discussed what was left of their plan and journey.
Xiyu continued to explain where they needed to venture to for the quest, using one of the geographic maps to indicate its physical location. As usual, Dongyue was more than happy to explore the geographical maps by utilising his brilliant knowledge of geography.
She trembled again, realising they were alone since the men had left at his instructions to take some items. Her heart was beating vigorously in her chest again, and she was glad it was not a full moon.
“Miss Muxue Xiyu, do you have an idea who the woman in red is?” he asked her truthfully.
“I don’t want to tell you,” she said confidently.
“Then I’ll only blame it on you that you were present,” he told her sneakily.
“Fine then,” she gritted her teeth. “She's Pei Xinyi, a distant cousin of mine. She wants the secret of youthfulness that the witches of my family have, but if she knew it was cursed upon us, maybe she would count her blessings. But I have no idea why she spied on you. That's my secret, and nothing to do with you, much less Wang Xi'er.”
“I don’t care about the others; only you,” he told her cheesily. "Since she's related to you, I can let it go. I hope she doesn't do it again. It's not a nice feeling to be spied on."
She glared at him, annoyed. “Yeah, whatever.” Xiyu didn’t want to hear any more about his infatuation for her, particularly when it was his wishful, one-sided thinking. She had kissed him, but it was all out of her sensual desire. She didn't know, and didn't expect to know, the feeling of love and being loved. Especially if it might end up in being forsaken again.
“How soon are we to go sailing to your destination?” Dongyue asked. Her answer shocked him.
“Tomorrow morning, before sunrise,” Xiyu said coldly. Despite his surprise that it was so soon, Dongyue nodded to indicate his compliance with her terms. She wore a light green veil over her pastel coloured garments, which made her appear more mysterious. If only the men were not around, he would have loved to pull her veil up and astonish her with a kiss.
But it wasn’t an appropriate time, he thought. The men could be back any time.
“I was healing Wang Xi'er when Pei Xinyi spied around," he revealed suddenly. “What benefit could she have gained by sneaking on me when I was healing? Could she have thought healing would have made her youthful?”
“I can’t answer you on that. You will have to ask her yourself.” She didn't seem bewildered by his healing power at all, like it was expected.
Her words were as icy as before, and he saw no point in pressing her about her cousin when she had stated it so clearly.
On the other hand, she didn’t want to appear close with him, fearful that his companions would notice.
……………………………………………………………
Sunrise will be in a few moments, Dongyue thought, forcing himself out of bed and pulling on his outer garments. Over the night, they had managed to accumulate most of the required items for the trip. They would take Xiyu’s little magical boat over to the lake, where it had to be submerged to enter the magical destination under the water. Xiyu had promised that she would create a bubble to contain the four of them so that they would encounter no hindrances breathing underwater.
“Everyone okay?” he enquired the others, before taking a step further to meet the waiting Xiyu and depart the capital area of the island. Their journey awaited.
Xiyu’s boat was a deep green and appeared sturdy. Dongyue braced himself and stepped up on the boat.
“Do you take passengers?” he teased Xiyu. She threw a dirty look at him and observed the others embark the boat.
She had brought along a small box containing her items. Finally, it was the first time she would be leaving her residence temporarily. Dongyue wondered what had been so important to her to have brought it with her for the journey, but as he was fond of her, he tried to understand that what she took with her was her privacy.
He would help her claim her birthright, but what was it that he would get back from her in return? Dongyue queried himself as he watched her walk about the ship.
“Do you want to go to the deck? I have something to discuss with you,” he told her. With her consent, he whisked her off in the direction of the ship deck. His hand held hers tenderly, but the way he held it just exposed more of his fear and insecurity that she would reject him again when she was done with her quest.
She agreed that talking was one of the best ways to relieve time, but when it was Dongyue she was speaking too, it was such a headache for her.
Just then, a luminous sparkle illuminated the sky, stunning the four of them.