What It Means To Protect

“Miss Cheong, I am sorry to ask it of you, but see that nobody comes near the room.”

I asked it of Cheong Yo. Only four of us were to know of this work: myself, Yeo-seol, Song-ran and Cheong Yo. The fewer people who knew Yeo-seol’s secret, the better.

“There is nobody who would come to our house at this hour in any case,” Cheong Yo said, “but this girl will stand watch all the same and not let so much as an ant in.”

Cheong Yo looked at Song-ran, uneasy.

“Sister Cheong Yo, don’t worry. It isn’t so dangerous a thing.”

“Right. I understand.”

Song-ran soothed her and shut the door. Yeo-seol, caught in the Soul-Seizing Divine Eye, slept so soundly that a man might have carried her off on his back without her knowing it. I had already heard from Song-ran how she meant to move Mae Yu-yeon’s soul, so I watched in silence as she went about it.

“With the Soul-Seizing Divine Eye I shall lift the cocoon in which Mae Yu-yeon’s soul lies sleeping and carry it into my own consciousness. If Mae Yu-yeon should resist in the course of it, Master Scholar Cheon has only to hold her off with spirit energy.”

Against whatever might come of it, I was to follow her Soul-Seizing Divine Eye down into Yeo-seol’s consciousness.

“Shall we begin?”

I took hold of Yeo-seol’s pulse, and Song-ran laid the centers of both palms over her eyes.

“I am going in.”

As Song-ran went down into Yeo-seol’s consciousness, I poured spirit energy into Yeo-seol’s body and looked into Song-ran’s eyes at the same moment. The instant I did, I felt myself being sucked down into a bog.

Stepping into a still, silent place like a boundless open sea, I saw a woman making her way toward a white cocoon.

That will be Miss Song.

I went slowly over to the cocoon myself. Song-ran had been right. The thing really did look like a cocoon, and something lay tangled and wound about it.

That must be Yeo-seol’s consciousness.

Song-ran picked away the white strands wound about the cocoon, slowly, one by one, and each time she did, Yeo-seol’s body flinched. The strands came away at last, and as she gathered the cocoon up in her arms, Mae Yu-yeon’s soul must have sensed something, for it gave off a tremendous surge of spirit energy all at once.

“Ngh!”

Song-ran’s body thrashed like a fish just hauled out of the water. To shield her I spread my spirit energy wide and wrapped it round the cocoon, and where my spirit energy met the spirit energy pouring out of it, tens of thousands of blue sparks rose and flashed.

“I shall move it now.”

Holding the cocoon, all blue flame now, Song-ran set off to find her way out of Yeo-seol’s consciousness. We walked a little way across that place like a boundless sea, and in an instant the scene changed to a garden full of flowers.

This will be the inside of Song-ran’s consciousness.

Song-ran set the cocoon down in the flower bed. Then a strange thing happened. All at once the cocoon grew huge, swelling until it crushed the bed beneath it, and Song-ran murmured.

“Is the difference as great as this!”

“What do you mean?”

With my spirit energy wrapped round a cocoon grown that large, the strain on my body naturally mounted.

“Yeo-seol’s consciousness is so very large that Mae Yu-yeon’s soul was small in proportion to it. Mine is smaller than Yeo-seol’s, and so Mae Yu-yeon’s soul has grown to match.”

“Then what are we to do?”

Song-ran looked at me with despair in her eyes and shook her head.

“I think it has failed.”

“Failed, you say…”

Song-ran smiled, and there was something forlorn in her face.

“I shall not be able to bear Mae Yu-yeon’s soul, and I shall die. Master Scholar Cheon, you made me a promise, did you not? I ask you to look after my Sister. In return I shall die together with Mae Yu-yeon’s soul.”

“Ah!”

I had nothing else to say, and only stared blankly at Song-ran. It was then that somebody came bursting into her consciousness.

“Sister Cheong Yo!”

Song-ran was appalled at the sight of the person who had appeared inside her consciousness. Cheong Yo had come into Song-ran’s world of consciousness.

When an ominous energy came flowing out of the room, Cheong Yo grew uneasy and opened the door to look, and there she started in shock, for fresh blood was running from the mouths of Scholar Cheon and Song-ran. Song-ran’s in particular was pouring from mouth and nose. Feeling that something was badly wrong, she took hold of Song-ran’s hands where they covered Yeo-seol’s eyes and tried to pull them away, and was dragged into Song-ran’s consciousness instead.

The sight of Cheong Yo’s world of consciousness startled Cheon Tae-san. A broad grassland stretched away with music running through it.

The moment she came into it, the whole situation came to Cheong Yo of its own accord. Consciousnesses joined one to another had that virtue, and a thing was understood without anyone explaining it.

“Move that cocoon into my consciousness.”

Cheong Yo said it to Cheon Tae-san.

“Sister Cheong Yo, no. It’s dangerous.”

Even holding the Soul-Seizing Divine Eye she could not control Mae Yu-yeon’s soul, and her Sister’s world of consciousness was no place for it, not when her Sister knew nothing of any of it.

“My consciousness is broad, so it can take that cocoon.”

“Are you resolved to it?”

At Cheon Tae-san’s question Cheong Yo gave a forlorn smile.

“For Ran’s sake there is nothing I would not do.”

Cheon Tae-san nodded. She wore the look of a woman who, if he did not move the cocoon and Song-ran died of it, would spend the rest of her life resenting him.

He made to gather the cocoon up, but its underside had already settled into Song-ran’s flower bed and put down roots.

Madness.

Mae Yu-yeon’s soul was struggling in its own way to live, and the roots were the proof of it. Across the garden bed the flowers in full bloom withered and died, one after another. Knowing that this meant Song-ran was dying, Cheon Tae-san grew desperate.

I will cut it apart.

He said to Song-ran.

“Miss Song, I mean to cut this cocoon open. Is there a sword to be had?”

“There is none.”

Song-ran shook her head, her eyes dark. Her world of consciousness was flower beds from end to end, and there was not one thing in it fit to cut a cocoon with.

Desperate, Cheon Tae-san went into Cheong Yo’s world of consciousness. Qins and their strings lay strewn about the grassland. He took up the largest qin among them and came back to Song-ran’s consciousness.

Song-ran looked at him with astonished eyes.

Cheon Tae-san snapped the seven strings from the qin.

— Ta-tang-ta-tang!

Then he caught the seven strings up in one hand and drew his spirit energy into them. The strings stood up stiff and straight, and sword qi gathered along them. With that he split the great cocoon open. Mercifully, it was not hard.

— Krrrrick! Shraaaak!

The cocoon split, and the sound of tearing silk rang out. Rough as the work was, Cheon Tae-san had cut away the soul of Mae Yu-yeon that was filling Song-ran’s consciousness. When the cocoon was half split the huge thing shrank until it was small enough to hold in two hands. But just then the severed half put out something like a feeler and turned toward the rooted half, as though it meant to go back to it.

Feeling that Song-ran would be in danger if the cocoon joined itself together again, Cheon Tae-san and Cheong Yo looked at each other. Then Cheong Yo snatched up the half that had been cut away and ran off with it into her own world of consciousness.

“Sister Cheong Yo! No!”

She could not let her Sister, who knew nothing, carry off a thing as dangerous as that. But Cheong Yo knew Song-ran would die if the cocoon joined again, and nothing would have stopped her. In the end she vanished with that half of a cocoon in her arms.

“Sister Cheong Yo, you fool…”

With half the cocoon carried away into Cheong Yo’s own world of consciousness, Song-ran’s consciousness swiftly steadied again.

Cheong Yo, Song-ran and I could not believe we were back in the world, and we looked one another over, studying each other as though searching for something.

“Are you all right?”

I asked Song-ran.

Blood had run from her mouth and nose, and the front of her robe was soaked and dyed red with it. The front of my own robe was wet and reddish with my blood too.

Song-ran wiped the blood off her face after a fashion and looked at Cheong Yo.

“Sister Cheong Yo, why would you do a reckless thing like that? Had you made up your mind to die?”

There were several feelings mixed together in her eyes and in her voice, resentment and scolding and worry all at once, and it left an ache in my chest.

“If it keeps you alive, what wouldn’t I do? I could do worse things than that.”

Song-ran sighed as she watched Cheong Yo answer so evenly.

“Nothing hurting anywhere?”

“Nothing. And Ran?”

“Nothing here either.”

I spoke.

“We split the cocoon of Mae Yu-yeon’s soul in two and took half each, so might it not have been destroyed?”

Song-ran thought about what I said for a moment, then shook her head.

“I do not think so. Had it been destroyed, the roots left in my consciousness should have gone as well, and they are still there.”

She held the Soul-Seizing Divine Eye, and so she could feel Mae Yu-yeon’s presence.

Song-ran said.

“Even so, Yeo-seol lives, and I live, and my Sister lives, so for the present we may call it a success. Mae Yu-yeon’s soul will not be able to put out its full strength as it did before. It has been scattered across three people’s consciousnesses.”

“That is a mercy.”

I told Song-ran as much, and meant it.

“And thank you. Had it not been for Miss Song and Miss Cheong, it would have gone very badly indeed.”

“We have been in Master Scholar Cheon’s debt all this while. We have only now paid a little of it back.”

“I would have the two of you watch your own condition closely and keep an eye upon it. If anything happens I shall help you with everything I have, so call for me the moment there is trouble.”

“We shall.”

I left them with a few more words of caution, took Yeo-seol on my back, and went home. With her asleep and her whole weight laid against me, the heaviness in me lifted a good deal.

I told Namgung Cheol-ung, Namgung Hwa-jun and Namgung Pyo of the Demonic Cult’s stirrings and held out a letter.

The day before, after I came home and laid Yeo-seol down in her room, I had written a letter that ran to some length. It was addressed to Namgung Hak.

“The three of you set out for the Namgung Clan with Eun-bi at daybreak tomorrow. And when you arrive, give this letter to the clan head.”

I had given them warning of it some days before, so they nodded.

“We three have come a long way in this time, thanks to the Master. We thank you.”

The three of them rose and made me a bow. I made to stop them, then let them be, knowing they meant it.

“When you get back to the Namgung Clan the clan head will treat the three of you well. You already carry a higher martial standing than the direct line. Go, and fare well.”

“We hope the Master too will finish his business safely and come back to us.”

“Right. And take this with you.”

I handed out three bank notes for a hundred taels of gold apiece.

“This is…”

“Take it and put it away. Once you are at the Namgung Clan and your standing changes, there will be a great many places for money to go. Change where a man stands and the view changes. And when the view changes, so does the use he has for money. That is the way of the world.”

The three of them hesitated, and I went on.

“And did you not stake your lives fighting for me at the Hohyeon Estate? It is an awkward thing to call payment, but surely a master may give his disciples money for the road. I came by a gold mine this time and had a great deal of money from the sect leader. This is a part of it, so do not make a burden of it.”

At that they finally tucked the notes away inside their robes. Then, all at once, tears began dropping onto the floor where Namgung Cheol-ung lay bowed. He was the biggest of them in body and the most tender-hearted.

“It seems Namgung Cheol-ung has not been given enough money after all.”

I made as if to reach into my robe, and Namgung Cheol-ung started in alarm and stopped his crying. Namgung Hwa-jun and Namgung Pyo snorted a laugh at the sight.

Namgung Cheol-ung’s feeling for me ran deeper than the others’, because I had absorbed his internal force with the Flying Dantian.

“This kindness we shall remember without fail. We hope you keep in good health until we meet again.”

We had played at master and disciples half in jest and half for the fun of it, but in this one moment it felt as though they were treating me as a master in earnest.

I called Eun-bi aside and gave her a note for a hundred taels of silver. Given her station, a great sum could turn out to be a disaster instead, and that was why the note was silver.

“You’ve worked hard all this while, waiting on me and Yeo-seol. This is your wages for the trouble. I’m grateful to you.”

Eun-bi had readied her heart for it too, but when the parting came her chest must have ached, for she wept. Yeo-seol never woke from her sleep, so she had to go without even saying goodbye.

“Yeo-seol and I will finish our business and go to the Namgung Clan ourselves, so don’t grieve over it too much. Have you said goodbye to Miss Cheong and Miss Song?”

“Yes. I went and took my leave of them this morning.”

Eun-bi made a light bow and rose.

“Scholar Cheon. I shall see you at the Namgung Clan.”

I watched them go out of the Dark Heaven Sect, then went into the room where Yeo-seol lay asleep. I was watching her sleep when somebody called from beyond the door.

“Scholar Divine Sword!”

In Jiangxi I passed by the name of the Scholar Divine Sword. The name made my face burn, and though I told them not to call me by it, out of some wish to tease me they only used it the more.

“What is it?”

A warrior of the Dark Heaven Asura Corps whose face I knew stood there.

“The Supreme summons you.”

He had never called for me so early in the morning before, so I asked the reason.

“People have come from the Dang Sect of Sichuan.”

I had thought the Dang Sect of Sichuan would pay a visit sooner or later, if only to recover their poison men, so I was not much put out. It simply happened to be today.

“Very well. I shall come at once.”

I took Yeo-seol on my back, left her in Cheong Yo and Song-ran’s keeping, and set out for the Dark Heaven Sect.