The Scent of the Orchid in the Forest of Secrets (密林兰香)

Chapter Eighteen

After sitting there for a while, Shu Haolin's attention slowly drifted to the silence—eerie and oppressive silence. It only became apparent as Yu Jielan left, and her entire surroundings fell silent. It was the middle of the day—supposedly, there should've been some sounds of life going on outside of the hut they were staying in, but there were no sounds. She gradually helped herself to her feet and staggered forward to the windowsill, and the sight there almost made her collapse to the floor all over again. There were a couple of bodies littered outside, some of them even carrying clothes or buckets of water, looking like they were merely going through the motions of daily life when they had suddenly dropped dead. She stared, and as she inspected the scene through the window, she even recognized the old lady that had led them to the hut where the Silver Oracle was staying—she had been animated with life yesterday, and now was dead, as if she had merely been a puppet.

It was strange, she realized now. All the corpses laying on the ground were those of elderly men and women, and there wasn't a single young person in sight. It really was as if they were merely—

"Puppets." Yu Jielan's voice drifted in from the door. She didn't look at Shu Haolin, and the tightness of her jaw told Shu Haolin that she was still mad—but at least she was still willing to talk with her and cooperate. "They were animated corpses of old men and women. The liver mortis on a corpse can be easily mistaken for a sign of old age, so it's often popular for demonic cultivators to choose to animate old people's corpses instead of young people. After all, even we were deceived yesterday."

"I see." Shu Haolin said stiffly. She cleared her throat, and silence descended between the two of them again. Yu Jielan was about to leave when Shu Haolin spoke again. "Let's leave in a week."

"Your wound—"

"We need to get back."

And that was how Shu Haolin found herself reluctantly flying on Yu Jielan's sword as they took the fastest route back to the Lianyun Temple. They had almost made it back in a day, but it was growing too dark, so they settled in an inn for the night. Shu Haolin immediately crawled underneath the covers with her back facing away from Yu Jielan. Yu Jielan took her time, checking all the corners and making sure everything was secure before she silently slid into the small bed across from Shu Haolin. She closed her eyes, but after a while, she opened them again, her expression showing no signs of sleepiness at all. She stared at Shu Haolin's back wordlessly, as if her silent stare might communicate something. In the end, she still shut her eyes.

The next morning, when Shu Haolin had woken up, Yu Jielan had long since gotten ready and was sitting at the table, staring out the window. A long package was sitting in front of her, something that Shu Haolin didn't recognize. She slid out of bed and began washing up. She was finishing tying her hair in place when she turned around and found Yu Jielan standing there wordlessly, giving her a fright. Shu Haolin searched for something to say, but Yu Jielan beat her to it by handing out that long, unfamiliar package to her.

"Huh?"

Yu Jielan's entire body, not just her expression, was as stiff as wood. "Open it."

Shu Haolin followed her instructions without thinking, and revealed a long saber, encased in a glittering dark black sheath. The blade was sharp and gleaming, reflecting the light in the inn.

"The swordsmith here is world-renowned for his sabers. He recently retired, but because the Yu Sect used to purchase a lot of weapons from him in the past, we've maintained ties with him, and I bought one of his last sabers for sale. It's inconvenient if you keep having to borrow weapons from the weaponry... so I got you your own," she muttered, the last part passing by so quickly and quietly that it was almost inaudible.

To be honest, Shu Haolin had long since become softhearted and forgiven Yu Jielan, but because the atmosphere between the two of them had been so awkward for a while, she hadn't found a way to break the ice. She swallowed, and cleared her throat. She didn't seem to think it was enough, and cleared her throat for a second time. "Thank you, dashijie," she said clearly. "I like it very much."

Yu Jielan seemed as if she'd been thrown off balance, and she didn't know where to look. "As long as you like it," she said quickly. Shu Haolin felt her heart jump, and she looked away.

"Let's go."

***

The two of them walked up to the entrance of the Lianyun Temple. They glanced around. It seemed that security had gotten even tighter than it had been the day they'd first arrived—there were now double the amount of disciples guarding the front doors, and a protective barrier forced them to stop a couple feet away from the stairs.

"Who's there?"

Yu Jielan lifted her chin, and all of a sudden, she exuded a sort of icy authority and confidence that made the disciples guarding the door want to step back. "I'm Yu Jielan, the heir of the Yu Sect. Please allow us in." She showed them her identity badge. One of the disciples took a look, and bowed towards Yu Jielan.

"My apologies, but I don't recognize you, so I have to send for someone in the Yu Sect to verify your identity."

Yu Jielan raised an eyebrow. "What's with the delay? When the Yu Sect first arrived, there wasn't such fanfare necessary."

The head disciple looked like he had been put in a hard spot. "It's not that I'm trying to make things difficult, but after recent events... the temple leader passed down orders to increase the security around here."

"What happened?" Shu Haolin cut in.

The head disciple hesitated. "I think it'll be better for someone else to tell you," he said quickly, and sent someone off to find a person from the Yu Sect. Shortly after, one of the clan elders of the Yu Sect came running to the entrance, looking flustered.

"You're finally back! You don't know how worried we were for your safety, after we heard about the death of one of the cursed disciples—"

"What?" Yu Jielan interrupted. "Who died?"

The clan elder lowered his voice and glanced around nervously, escorting the two of them inside. "You must've not heard. The day after you disappeared, one of the disciples who had accompanied us on this trip, he died from the same curse that killed all those disciples at the last invasion of the Baiyu Alliance. You guys left without letting anyone know—we thought you'd been captured by the Baiyu Alliance. Where have you been?"

Shu Haolin stayed stonily silent. Yu Jielan's brows were lightly furrowed, and she declined to answer. She walked with long strides in the direction of the Yu Sect's quarters. Shu Haolin cleared her throat. "We have something to announce."