Chapter 29: Ninth Fortress Part 2

The lurker fired again.

This time, at her own head.

An He watched her foe—or colleague?—with silent eyes. Her voice rasped: “Valvien’s Heroic Spirit.”

The lurker’s pupils blew wide. Shock and confusion were her final emotions.

…

An He approached her raven, kneeling to cradle it. Softly, to Gu Xianqing behind her: “You’re a nestsoul too. Do you feel pain and fear facing death?”

“Of course.”

“When you die, do you return to the dust?” An He laid it down gently, scooping yellow sand. “Like any true creature.”

Gu Xianqing paused a beat, tone flat: “You can resummon it. Your mind-sea might be its best grave.”

An He froze.

Heidi was right: losing a nestsoul wrecked her spirit. The pain, faint before, now throbbed viciously at her temples—like the raven’s final cry.

But Heidi was right on the other point too: one death wouldn’t cripple her brain. She could still move freely.

This raven’s end taught An He an invaluable lesson—on this land, life scattered like sand in the wind.

Killing felt shitty, truth be told. Overload wrapped the unease in jelly, lodged uneasily in her chest, surreal.

Yet even the Thorn Lamp, preaching kindness to every member, demanded ruthlessness toward enemies in its handbook.

On this land filled with conflict and strife, life and death were inevitable truths that demanded a direct gaze. All the natives understood this from the moment they were born.

Just like now.

If they hadn’t discovered this enemy, the consequences might have been unbearable.

An He had become one of them here, so she forced herself to process her emotions in the shortest time possible.

Once her mood had calmed, An He followed Gu Xianqing’s suggestion and recalled the dead Raven into her divine sense. It vanished completely.

Just to be safe, An He directed the other Ravens to scout the surroundings. The lurker had come alone; her vehicle was parked in a distant basin.

An He paced over to the lurker’s corpse. “Do you know her?”

Gu Xianqing squatted down without hesitation and began rifling through the body’s possessions. “No idea. What do you take me for? I don’t know everyone.”

The woman carried no items that revealed her identity. The only standout was the gun. Gu Xianqing picked it up and handed it to An He. “Want it?”

An He endured the throbbing pain in her mind. “Yes.”

A glint of approval flashed in Gu Xianqing’s eyes. “Pretty decisive. This your first live kill?”

An He paused for a moment. “Yeah.”

“Get used to it quick. You’ll have to kill more down the line. Otherwise, it’ll be you who’s dead.” Gu Xianqing’s tone was flat, as if killing were no big deal. She encouraged An He with evident satisfaction to get hands-on with more kills in the future.

An He nodded seriously and solemnly.

She didn’t take the gun, just stared at the intricate engravings on it. “Hold onto it for me. I can’t bring this into the fortress.”

“Not turning it in?” Gu Xianqing hooked her index finger around the trigger and spun the gun stylishly in her hand.

“No. I can’t explain to the Thorn Lamp how I got it.” An He had thought it through carefully. Her trip outside the fortress wasn’t exactly aboveboard; she couldn’t afford exposure. “Besides, this is First Fortress standard issue, right?”

“Never seen it. Even if it is, probably newly developed.” Gu Xianqing squinted one eye and boldly sighted down the barrel. “How’re you so sure she’s from the First Fortress?”

“I said the Heroic Spirits Society passphrase. Her reaction was intense.”

“I thought you were just bluffing.”

“You said you don’t do meaningless things.” The words slipped out of An He’s mouth before she caught herself.

Gu Xianqing looked at her with some surprise, then smiled. “My little lamb, looks like you’re learning well.”

Beneath the smile, Gu Xianqing fiercely suppressed a chill rising from her core—An He was learning too fast. Like a sponge soaking up water, she absorbed everyone’s strengths around her without reservation, all to survive. It was even unconscious.

How much faster can she grow? Will she slip out of my control? Gu Xianqing kept smiling, a mix of gratification and involuntary trembling.

An He ignored Gu Xianqing’s boundary-pushing teasing and looked away. “Plus, it’ll be useful for infiltrating the First Fortress later.”

Gu Xianqing raised an eyebrow. “Planning to sneak into the First Fortress?”

“I am.” An He said, “You should know better than me—Ide has the same idea. She’ll assign me a mission eventually.”

The last time An He returned from outside the walls, her brief exchange with Ide had made their intentions crystal clear to each other.

Ide hadn’t said it outright, but she’d ramped up Asta’s training on An He precisely to grasp intel on the First Fortress one day.

They were waiting—for An He to finish training and grow strong, and for the right opportunity.

Gu Xianqing smiled faintly. “I’m not popping into everyone’s dreams every day. How would I know Ide’s thoughts?”

“Aren’t you?” An He tilted her head. “I thought you were.”

“Of course not.” Gu Xianqing adjusted her collar to cover the wound on her neck, saying ambiguously, “This is your exclusive privilege.”

An He gazed darkly at Gu Xianqing’s neck, finally noticing the metallic tang in her throat. She’d apparently swallowed some of Gu Xianqing’s blood without realizing, and combined with the woman’s shameless flirting, it left her feeling oddly unsettled.

An He gave a half-smile. “Your words always sound so unreliable.” Gu Xianqing’s intimacy was as elusive as her moods; An He decisively chose not to buy it.

“Is that so?” Gu Xianqing shrugged indifferently. “That hurts.”

An He wiped the dried blood from her lips, then crouched to pull the Wrist Blade from the corpse. She hovered the blade tip over the body, tapping twice at the wrist and collarbone, then swiftly sliced into the depression at the neck’s hollow.

The blade tip pried out a tiny chip from beneath the flesh. As expected, this woman was from the First Fortress—this was their signature method.

An He rubbed off the blood with her thumb and held it up to examine closely. It differed from the one in her own arm: thinner, smaller, bone-white. If you didn’t look hard, you’d mistake it for a bone fragment.

This meant the First Fortress’s tech had advanced in recent years. Those hoarding the best resources always held the edge, no matter what.

An He asked Gu Xianqing, “Got a reader for this kind of chip?”

“Nope.” Gu Xianqing paused slightly. “Need one? I can try robbing you one. No guarantees on finding it.”

An He peered through the chip at Gu Xianqing, confirming the woman was indeed a thief at heart. “Yeah, I need it.”

An He stood. “You’re plugged into intel. Any idea why the First Fortress sent someone?” Logically, with Lola still in the fortress and recent cargo hijackings, the First Fortress shouldn’t stick its neck out. Better to lie low and regroup.

“No clue.” Gu Xianqing met An He’s skeptical gaze earnestly. “Don’t look at me like that—I really don’t know. They’re guarding against me, set up some mental defense just for that.”

This time, Gu Xianqing didn’t mince words. “Otherwise, why would I go to all this trouble to find you?”

This was the second time she’d said something like that. Last time, talking about taking on the First Fortress, she’d remarked, “But now we’ve got you, right?”

An He concluded with certainty this time: Gu Xianqing had sought her out with clear intent. Their targets aligned—the First Fortress.

So let’s use each other. Team up with ulterior motives. I’ll drink your blood, you’ll gnaw my flesh. Nobility be damned—we walk the night, short-term goals matched. Why not sink together?

“Got it.” An He pocketed the chip and pulled up her hood. “Notify me if you snag a reader.”

“Leaving already?” Gu Xianqing crossed her arms, eyes lingering fondly. “I wanted to play a bit longer.”

“Play more? You mean fight?” An He brushed dust off her coat. “I lost ’cause my skills aren’t there yet. Wait for next time—I’ll slap you back.”

“Big talk comes easy.” Gu Xianqing smirked disdainfully but held back from crushing her confidence, offering sincere advice instead. “Train hard. Time’s short. Real enemies won’t wait for you to grow.”

An He turned decisively, her robes billowing in the night wind. In two hours, dawn would break. Walking back, it’d take her a while.

The First Fortress was stirring. Once back in the fortress, she’d need to warn Ide Suleng somehow.

Gu Xianqing straddled her motorcycle, watching An He’s silhouette fade into the distance once more. The one who’d emerged from the dark slipped back into it.

She looked away, frowning as she brushed dust from her clothes. Damn, An He had gotten her filthy.

The dry dust flew off with a pat. Gu Xianqing tugged open her collar and touched the wound on her neck. Her fingertip traced the jagged bite marks. She pressed hard, a muffled grunt escaping from the pain.

Damn, An He bites hard. A slap was me being nice.

Next time, make her taste being bitten.

Gu Xianqing reconsidered. Nah, boring.

Kids bite when they fight.