Chapter 12 — The Mutation
劍問蒼天 · Page 5 of 7
As time passed, that red deepened, until at last it was almost vivid enough to drip. And somehow the blue light and black vapor that had been locked in struggle both dimmed, and from their former stance of mutual repulsion there slowly emerged, instead, a tendency to merge.
How long it lasted, he did not know, but at last the uncanny transformation ran its course. Black rod and blue bead lost all their luster and fused one into the other; with a click, they fell from the unconscious Zhang Qingyue's hand and dropped to the ground.
"Xiaofan! Xiaofan! Little junior brother!" A voice called out in anxious succession, echoing at Zhang Qingyue's ear.
His mind was a muddle, his head splitting with pain, and it seemed to take all his strength even to open his eyes. Tian Lingsu's face, anxious and edged with panic, seemed both far and near, slowly growing clear before his eyes. He moved his lips and called softly, "Senior sister."
Tian Lingsu was overjoyed. "Xiaofan, you're awake?"
Zhang Qingyue forced a smile. "I'm all right, senior sister."
Tian Lingsu helped him sit up, and the first thing Zhang Qingyue did was look at his own palm. But the skin of his right palm was whole and unmarked—apart from being somewhat pale, there was nothing strange about it at all. He stared blankly. He clearly remembered that a great flow of blood had poured from that palm—how was it that not a trace remained?
Could it all have been a nightmare?
"Xiaofan." Seeing him sit up and then stare blankly, dazed and abstracted, Tian Lingsu felt a stir of worry and nudged him.
Zhang Qingyue came to himself. He was about to tell her of the strange things that had just happened, but for a moment did not know where to begin, and the matter seemed to him too bizarre—even he was full of doubt. He hesitated, then at last said, "N-nothing, senior sister."
Only then did Tian Lingsu set her mind at ease. When she had come to, the sky was already late, and she found herself lying beneath a great pine, while her junior brother lay senseless in the clearing some distance away. Frightened, she had run to him at once, and thankfully he had woken after a short while.
Now Tian Lingsu looked around and said to Zhang Qingyue, "Junior brother, there's something very strange about this place. We'd best leave as soon as we can. Tomorrow I'll have Mother come and have a look."
Zhang Qingyue nodded and was about to rise when a stab of pain shot through his whole body and his head swam. Had Tian Lingsu not been quick to catch him, he would have fallen again.
Seeing how utterly pale he was, without a trace of color, Tian Lingsu was truly worried. She helped him up carefully, and Zhang Qingyue steadied himself and looked himself over. There were no wounds to be seen, so he said, "Senior sister, it's only a little dizziness. Nothing serious."
Tian Lingsu looked him over once more and saw that it was so. She nodded. "Then let's hurry back. It's already dark, and I'm afraid Father and Mother and all our senior brothers are worried."
Zhang Qingyue said, "Yes."
Tian Lingsu drew a deep breath and searched herself all over, finding nothing unusual, and wondered to herself how she could have fainted for no reason at all. Then she made a gesture, red light flashed, and with a whistle the Amber-red Silk darted out.
Tian Lingsu was just about to take Zhang Qingyue up when a "zhizhi" sounded beside them. They turned to look: the gray-furred monkey had appeared beside them at some point, grinning at them, and in its hand it dragged a black, two-foot-long rod of some unknown material.