The Taoist priest raised aloft his luopan and began circling around the compound inside the enclosure. Chongxi watched on, scowling, “Dammit! He’s looking for directions! He’s the real deal!”

I said nothing, my lips pursed shut as I studied the Taoist priest at work. He beelined around the enclosure with his luopan and stopped in the end in front of three peach trees. He looked up and the winds overhead churned, with two auras, one demonic and dark and the other majestic and divine, roiling together!

Whoosh! Sands and dust kicked up into the air by the winds and no one could keep their eyes open with the winds snapping at us. Chongxi cursed loudly, “Dammit!”

All three of the trees were in their springtime opulence with several buds already blossoming. Someone had been tending to them with meticulous care; the twigs and branches have been adequately pruned. The grass straggling at the foot of the trees were beginning to take a shade of green before the winds howled near and sliced them off like blades from a grass-cutting machine! The crashing winds resulting from the collision of both auras hammered at the growing buds, shredding them in their infancy before anyone could glimpse their beauty when they fully thrived. In the winds, I heard the murmurings of an incantation and I jerked my head around! Then I saw him, the Taoist priest. On one hand, his fingers flexed and weaved as he formed several hand seals and on the other, he swung and waved his sword. Before a swear word could even escape my lips, a bolt of lightning shot from the tip of his weapon!

“Shiyan!” A frantic Chongxi grabbed at my shoulder, his fingers sinking into my shoulder in his panic. “Do something!” But I needed no telling; my fingers were already forming hand seals and my cheap, ordinary sword shot out of my Spirit Gourd. But before I would command my sword to attack, a shrill whistle screeched through the din of the raging winds, lancing through the pair of churning auras smashing against each other and separated them. We looked back and there was Lin Feng behind us, his poise showed that it was he who had dealt the first blow.

The ribbons at the end of his dart fluttered wildly like the frenetic flapping wings of a small bird as the iron missile tore straight at the priest’s sword-hand.

But the priest, with reflexes as quick as a bullet, twisted his wrist and swung his weapon in a sweeping-motion at the incoming projectile!

Crack! A blinding flash emitted from the bolt of lightning came from nowhere and struck at Lin Feng’s dart, reducing it to soot and cinders in an explosion, its cry as it flew died just as abruptly as it disintegrated.

With the deafening crack and explosion, the winds came to a rest as if on a cue and so ended with a short-lived clamor of shock and astonishment from the crowd of onlookers. Then the unbelievable happened. Everyone froze and no one moved. I looked at Edelweiss and Lin Feng behind me. They were staring dubiously at me but they were fine and so were Xiao Yu, Chongxi, and Big Sister. Everyone was okay except for the crowd of onlookers and strangers. They were all motionless as if the flow of Time had been suspended suddenly, their faces all blank and stiff and unable to move.

We stared at each other in the stiff silence until it broke, shattered only from the incessant hum coming from the Taoist priest’s sword and the jittery rustling coming from the trees with us still looking on bewilderedly.

My eyes darted around with alarm, then I noticed something in the sky. No, not something! Someone! Hovering in a sitting position high up in the sky before he disappeared a split-second later! Dammit, that’s Father!

And before I could do anything else, a voice came at us. “You there! You bunch there! Is this your doing?!” I turned and saw the Taoist priest barking at us. His movements were not frozen too. But he was glowering at us, clearly mistaking us as the culprits who had cast a spell to put a stop to everyone.

We looked at each other and shared a nod before we clambered out of the crowd and into the courtyard of the ancient residence. But as soon as we emerged from the group of onlookers clustering outside the walls, the three peach trees shook excitedly as if they had recognized us!

The reaction of the trees, as if they had consciousness of their own, did not go unnoticed; the Taoist priest sneered at us. “So, this really is your doing after all.” He studied each of us with unfriendly eyes and stopped when he saw Big Sister. His eyes grew wide with disbelief although his astonishment quickly deflated. “I see, you’re not ordinary people…” He observed coldly, doing nothing to hide his antagonistic sentiment. “Mr. Taoist Priest,” I greeted him with a smile, saying, “Would you please put away your magic and stuff?”

I have no intention of fighting the priest. Beside his angry countenance, he looked noble and valiant. The priest shook his head grouchily, saying only a one-syllable word, “No.” That left me frowning. Yet before I could say anything else, the Taoist priest bellowed, brandishing his weapon at me, “So you stand in league with demons! That says enough for me. You’d get no mercy from me, on guard!”

This incensed Big Sister who spat bitterly, saying, “Fool!” And Qinglan’s Edge materialized in her hand!

Chongxi ignored the brouhaha between us. Instead, he tugged at Xiao Yu’s hand, leading her with him as they scampered straight to the three peach trees. “Enough meddling!” hissed the Taoist priest. He drew himself back from the stance he was using against Big Sister and switched his attention to Chongxi and ran after him. But Big Sister, hardy willing to let him go, screamed, “Come back here!” She thrust her finger at the priest and the sword flew magically in the air, streaking straight at him as if he had a bull’s eye painted on his back! The Taoist priest sensed the threat behind him and jammed his foot to the ground, pivoting himself around with his one-meter-long sword coming right back in an arc. An invisible force hit the Qinglan’s Edge, deflecting it off-course.

Big Sister flicked her wrist suddenly, drawing a semi-circle in the air and five other copies of Qinglan’s Edge appeared above her! She pointed at the priest again, her fingers forming the Seal of the Sword, and all six of the swords immediately trained their tips at him like serpents poised to attack. Then the air howled. Like bullets, the swords charged at him!

The Taoist priest could not believe what he was seeing, even though he reacted quickly. His hands reached into his sleeves and he took something out and threw it at the six missiles of steel coming at him. A golden flash of light erupted and I saw what it was: a yellow talismanic strip! Large runic scripts appeared in thin air, mirroring the inscription on the paper talisman like a hologram in a deluge of golden rays and all six Qinglan’s Edges crumbled into nothing with a sickening crack that resounded like breaking ice!

The brief stalemate left Big Sister and the priest in awe. “What are you, demon?” He hissed quietly but Big Sister ignored the question, instead, she retorted with a question of her own, “And who are you?” They stood motionless, glaring down at each other from a short distance. Unbeknownst to them, I knew what that talismanic charm was: the signature talismanic charm of the Zhengyi Dao branch of Taoism, the Talisman of the Celestial Master! That was also why Big Sister stopped and glowered suspiciously at the priest. She was wondering if he was related to Celestial Master Zhang, the fabled founder of the Zhengyi Dao!

By then, Chongxi and Xiao Yu had reached the foot of the trees. He yelled to the trees, “Are you nuts? Why didn’t you run when he’s trying to hit you?!” The trees shuddered in unison and young lasses, each from every peach tree, appeared and collapsed to their knees at Chongxi’s ankles. “We wanted to, Master. But we can’t!”

The manifestation of the peach nymphs forced the priest to redirect his attention back to Chongxi. Enraged, he raised his sword and bolted towards him. “DEMONS, MEET YOUR END!” He roared as he lunged. Realizing how things were growing further and further out of hand, Big Sister and I controlled our swords via telekinesis. Our swords took into the air and stabbed into the ground right in front of him with two dangerous thuds, forcing him to stop. That seemed to just further infuriate the priest who turned back and snarled at us. Lin Feng scrambled to Chongxi’s side and pulled Xiao Yu aside to her safety, but not before lashing out his whip. The long thong of the whip coiled around Chongxi’s waist and Lin Feng pulled hard, pulling him away too. All three of them retreated back into the crowd, knocking down a few of the onlookers in the process,

The Taoist priest was surprised by Lin Feng’s mastery of martial arts. “Impressive skills,” he breathed.

Xiao Yu was left in a state of shock following her first true experience of actual battle and magic, and the sudden appearance of the three peach nymphs prostrating themselves humbly before Chongxi and addressing him as their lord did little to help.

I smiled at the priest. “Well, Master Priest. How about some explanations before we go on? This duel is meaningless. Some innocents might even get hurt for nothing.” The Taoist priest returned only a sneer. “What is there to discuss with people like you who fraternize with demons? Look at you, you carry a pure and divine aura yourself, yet you consort with the likes of theirs!” “Enough prattling with this old fool, Little Brother!” Big Sister interjected suddenly, her anger boiling at being called “demon”. “Act first, questions later!” With a swing of her sword, she lunged.

The Taoist priest saw Big Sister advancing and he charged ahead defiantly himself, eager to meet Big Sister in battle!

The air rang again with the clangs of steel gnashing on steel as Big Sister and the priest attacked each other viciously with their weapons. “Stop! Big Sister, you need to stop!” I cried from behind and Big Sister disengaged herself upon hearing me, leaping away from the fight. The priest stayed at where he was and scoffed, his voice venomous with contempt, “Humph! Siblings, both of you. I can’t believe this. What parents could have such abominations like you as children?! Enough talking. On this day let Heaven’s justice be inflicted upon you!”

Despite my best efforts to be patient to this irascible and stubborn Taoist priest, I could hold back no longer. With my anger now bursting like a volcano, I bellowed, “YOU MORON! HAVE YOU NO RESPECT!? YOU DON’T INSULT THE PARENTS OF OTHERS NO MATTER WHAT!? THAT’S THE BLOODY BOTTOMLINE! LOOKS LIKE YOU CAN USE SOME MANNERS YOURSELF!”

The priest was already charging at me and what I said made him raised his weapon, its tip thrust straight at me. But instead of using any magic or even simple techniques of swordsmanship, I ignored the sword still protruding from the ground like a needle on a pincushion and pounced at the priest, delivering a punch directly into his face!