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A flurry of arrows zipped through the room, embedding themselves in the floorboards with deadly thuds. Xu Feng and Xu Jing scrambled for cover, diving to the floor as another volley whistled overhead. Black-clad assassins, their faces obscured by masks, hung precariously from the window, loosing a hail of arrows.

"Gui Li!" Xu Feng called out, his voice edged with urgency as he scanned the room.

She rolled onto her back, her gaze darting between the assassins. A flicker of surprise crossed her features at the sight of the dragon tattoos emblazoned on their forearms. With a swift movement, she propelled herself toward the window.

"Gui Li!" Xu Feng lurched to his feet, but a barrage of arrows forced him to duck again. He gritted his teeth, dodging another volley with a deft spin. Xu Jing, groaning in pain, finally managed to pull himself up. All three converged on the window, their pursuers taking notice and beating a hasty retreat, not before hurling a smoke bomb into the room.

The acrid fumes caused Gui Li to cough, her hand flying to cover her nose. Xu Feng and Xu Jing mirrored her actions, their eyes watering as they attempted to clear the thick smoke and glimpse the fleeing figures. Only the fading echoes of footsteps remained in the choking haze.

Xu Feng, his face grim, grabbed Gui Li's arm to prevent her from giving chase. "Where do you think you're going?"

Xu Jing stumbled back, hacking from the smoke. But it was Gui Li who reacted with a fiery outburst, yanking her arm free. "You were followed! You almost got us killed!" She glared at him, rubbing her wrist where his grip had left a mark. Xu Jing remained silent, though a flicker of anger ignited in his eyes.

"I wasn't followed," Xu Feng insisted.

"Then how did they find us? How did they know people from Wei were here?" Her voice trembled with frustration.

He took a deep breath, his jaw clenched. He didn't have an answer that wouldn't incriminate him - the truth being he'd drugged their food to escape to the palace alone. But the bigger mystery gnawed at him. How had they been discovered here?

"Did you notice anything strange about them?" he pressed.

Xu Jing scoffed. "Just accept that your cover's blown. Whatever you did in the palace, His Highness will find out-"

"Jing, be quiet!" Xu Feng snapped, silencing him with a glare. "If you don't have anything constructive to add, then-"

She started towards the door, but Xu Feng caught her wrist again. "You know something, don't you?" he pressed, his gaze intent.

Gui Li hesitated, a flicker of uncertainty crossing her features. Finally, she met his gaze, a hint of fear dancing in her eyes. "Fine. I'll talk."

Xu Feng released Gui Li's hand with a curt nod, the worry etched on his face deepening. Xu Jing, however, remained a storm cloud of suspicion.

"I saw a dragon tattoo," Gui Li announced, her voice sharp with realization. "On their forearms, a black dragon." A flicker of recognition passed through Xu Feng's eyes, a cold dread settling in his gut. He'd seen that same symbol adorning Zhao Yun's arm. Were these assassins connected to him? Or was there a more sinister web at play?

"You know who sent them, Xu Feng?" Xu Jing roared, his voice laced with betrayal. He lunged for his brother, hands clenched into fists. The raw fury in his eyes threatened to erupt into violence. Xu Feng remained silent, his gaze dropping to a detail he'd previously missed.

Wedged against the tip of the arrow protruding from the wall was a sliver of paper, stark white against the dark wood. He gently pried Xu Jing's hands from his shoulders and approached the embedded projectile. With a deliberate calmness that belied the turmoil within, he extracted the arrow, the paper fragment clinging stubbornly to the metal tip.

Unfurling the paper carefully, he revealed a short message scrawled in bold, crimson ink. The calligraphy was sharp and forceful, each character a jagged peak against the stark white background. The message itself was simple, yet chilling:

"Leave Ming before it's too late for your heads."

Clamping her arm over her nose, Su Ruo fought back a wave of nausea as the poisonous gas saturated the air. Xiao Zhan pounded on the door, his other arm shielding his face. "Look for a hidden switch! We won't last more than twenty minutes at most."

Su Ruo squeezed her eyes shut, her head swimming. Meanwhile, Xiao Fan, one hand pressed against his wound, used the other to cover his nose. The acrid stench of the gas intensified with each passing moment. With a groan, he pushed himself upright, his vision blurring as Zhan continued to cough and search the room frantically.

Xiao Fan's feet scraped across the rough floorboards as he ran his hands along the stone walls, searching for any sign of a hidden mechanism. "Stay strong," Su Ruo croaked, forcing herself to her feet and joining the desperate search. Xiao Fan leaned heavily against the wall, his breath hitching in his throat as Su Ruo and Zhan continued their frantic exploration. The poisonous gas thickened with each passing minute, a suffocating shroud tightening around them.

A memory flickered in Xiao Fan's mind, the last conversation he shared with Zhao Yun replaying in his head. He let out a defeated sigh, his arms crossing as despair threatened to consume him. The setting sun cast long shadows across the bustling capital below, a stark contrast to the chaos unfolding within the inn.

He remembered Zhao Yun's grim expression as he pressed a folded paper, a smoke bomb, and a signal flare into his hand. Confusion clouded Xiao Fan's mind, thicker than the poisonous gas filling the room. "What are these for?" he had rasped.

Zhao Yun, his back turned towards the bustling crowd, replied in a hushed voice, "You'll understand when the time comes. The attack on Ming and the Apothecary Village... it's more than it seems." A lump formed in Xiao Fan's throat as he reached out and gripped Zhao Yun's collar.

"And how do you know about that? How can you be sure? You're keeping secrets, aren't you?"

Zhao Yun gently pried Xiao Fan's fingers from his tunic. "The paper holds a mechanism that might help you escape. It will require some deduction skills. I have faith you and Su Ruo can figure it out."

Xiao Fan pursed his lips, his gaze searching for any hint of deception in Zhao Yun's eyes. Ignoring his question, Zhao Yun offered a faint smile. "You must reach Ming before the cherry blossoms fall. I'll handle the rest."

Uncertainty gnawed at Xiao Fan. Curiosity and suspicion warred within him, preventing him from offering a nod. "Why should I trust you?" he finally blurted out.

Zhao Yun's words struck a chord, piercing through his growing distrust like a shard of ice. "Don't you want to prove yourself to your father?" He stumbled back, his brow furrowed in confusion.

"T-take this," Xiao Fan stammered, his voice raspy. With trembling fingers, he pulled the crumpled paper from his tunic. Su Ruo whirled around, surprise etched on her face. Xiao Zhan, momentarily stopping his frantic search, turned towards them with a questioning cough.

Su Ruo snatched the paper and quickly unfolded it, her hand instinctively covering her nose. "It's a geometric lock, a mechanism commonly used by sects. Where did you get this, Xiao Fan?" she pressed, her voice laced with urgency.

Taking a shaky breath, Xiao Fan managed to force out two words, "Lu Zhao Yun."

"Xiao Zhan?" Su Ruo called out, finally stopping his search and approaching them with a wary expression.

The flickering torchlight cast long, dancing shadows on the damp stone walls of the ancient tomb. Su Ruo crouched before the ornately carved stone door, the weight of the unknown pressing down on her. In her hand, the parchment from Zhao Yun revealed a series of concentric rings, each etched with symbols that resembled constellations.

Su Ruo, her eyes narrowed, replied, "this appears to be a Jiulong Xuanji Lock, a celestial mechanism used by astronomers of prestigious sects to guard their secrets. The constellations... they must be the key.

A gasp escaped her lips as she recognized the intricate pattern of Ursa Major, the Great Bear, etched on the outermost ring. Blurry memories of her childhood lessons with someone flooded back to her.

Su Ruo, turning to Xiao Fan sighed, "Xiao Fan, do you remember anything about constellations? The sects no longer teach us about them?"

Xiao Fan, his brow furrowed in concentration, traced the symbols with his finger. A flicker of recognition sparked in his eyes.

"Maybe! Master Xiao showed me an old scroll once, filled with constellations he called the 'Guardians of the Four Seasons.' There was Draco for the north..."

He pointed to a symbol that resembled a sinuous serpent coiled around the edge of the lock.

"...and Leo for the south, a mighty lion."

He gestured to another symbol depicting a majestic feline.

"Clever! We need to find the constellations that correspond to the other cardinal directions - the east and the west. If my memory serves me right, the east is guarded by the White Tiger, Baihu..."

Her voice trailed off as she scanned the remaining symbols. There, etched on the inner ring, was a majestic creature with stripes resembling a tiger. Relief washed over her.

"And the west... the west is protected by Xuanwu, the Black Tortoise."

But the final symbol remained elusive. It depicted a creature unlike any she had ever seen - a serpentine turtle with a coiled tail.

Tapping her chin, Su Ruo added, "This one... it doesn't match any of the Four Guardians. Perhaps it's a different constellation altogether, a clue specific to this tomb."

"Maybe it represents the tomb itself, a guardian spirit protecting its secrets."

An idea sparked in Su Ruo's mind. She carefully traced the symbol of the serpentine turtle, then turned the corresponding ring on the lock a quarter turn clockwise. A satisfying click echoed through the tomb, followed by a faint grinding sound. The stone door trembled, then with a groan, began to inch open, revealing a dark passage beyond.

Su Ruo, a triumphant smile lighting up her face rejoiced. "We did it, Xiao Fan! The constellations were the key! Let's be cautious, but this passage must lead deeper into the tomb."

The door to Xiao Zhan's opened as well. He trailed behind them, the large room before them.

The heavy stone door groaned open, revealing an entrance shrouded in oppressive darkness. Su Ruo held the flickering torch high, its meagre light struggling to pierce the inky depths. Xiao Fan and Xiao Zhan, their breaths misting in the cold air, followed close behind, weapons drawn and senses on high alert.

Stepping cautiously into the chamber, their boots crunched on a layer of dust that had settled undisturbed for centuries. Walls of smooth, polished black stone stretched away in either direction.

As their eyes adjusted, details emerged from the gloom. Rows upon rows of ornately carved wooden shelves lined the walls, each one crammed with hundreds of rectangular tablets. Unlike traditional tombs filled with treasure or elaborate murals, this chamber held only an ocean of knowledge - an archive of countless nameless stories.

The tablets were fashioned from a dark, aged wood, their surfaces etched with delicate script in a language long forgotten.

In the center of the chamber, a complex mechanism dominated the space. Gears of polished bronze interlocked with intricate wooden cogs, some still spinning with a faint, protesting whine. Carved jade dragons snaked along the framework, their emerald eyes gleaming with an eerie luminescence in the flickering torchlight.

Su Ruo, her pulse quickening with a mix of excitement and trepidation stepped forward. "This must be the key to deciphering the tablets," she murmured, tracing the intricate carvings with a reverent finger. "Perhaps the constellations hold the answer once again."

Xiao Fan and Xiao Zhan exchanged a wary glance. The silence of the tomb pressed down on them, broken only by the soft drip of water somewhere in the distance and the rhythmic tick of the ancient mechanism.

"Wait!" Xiao Fan's voice cracked with alarm, but it was too late. The moment Xiao Zhan's fingertips brushed the surface of the tablet, the cavern trembled. A low rumble echoed through the chamber, the dust motes swirling in a chaotic dance. Su Ruo stumbled back, her heart pounding against her ribs as the tremor intensified.

My eyes widened in shock, my fingers stuck to the strings of the guqin lying before me. Feng Liu's eyes moved up from the edge of the sword towards Zhao Yun's hands until he saw the look in his eyes clearly. The guards standing by quickly moved over, their armor and swords clashing as they hurried towards the pavilion, blades pointed at Zhao Yun.

Zhao Yun's gaze swept over the approaching guards, a calculating glint in his eyes. Feng Liu sat composed, arms crossed. A strange smile played on Zhao Yun's lips, a flicker of something hidden beneath its surface. I swallowed hard, a knot of unease tightening in my gut. Those fleeting expressions - the smirk, the scoff, the smile - were rarities on his face. Each one usually masked a deeper motive, and this time, I couldn't decipher it.

"You can leave us," Feng Liu ordered. The hesitant guards exchanged puzzled looks, unsure whether to lower their weapons. Feng Liu pressed his lips together, his voice hardening as he singled out a guard near Zhao Yun. "I said, leave us!" The guards retreated reluctantly, leaving me alone with the guqin.

"Sorry about that," Zhao Yun let out a scoff, his eyes regaining their usual sternness. "I should apologize. I suppose I startled you." Feng Liu boomed with laughter, crossing his arms. "Nevermind. How was the performance, Rong'Er?" I cleared my throat, unable to meet his gaze. Turning to Zhao Yun, I mumbled,

"Beginner's shiver, I guess. How about we practice more another day?"

My voice came out choked, my lips pressed shut as I awaited his answer. "That'd be great. I have to leave now." Feng Liu bowed his hands in farewell. Zhao Yun mirrored the gesture, then turned to depart.

I hurried after him, bowing to Feng Liu one last time. "I'll take my leave as well, Your Highness." Despite the disappointment of our short session, he offered a strained smile and a nod. I quickened my pace to catch up with Shifu, reaching him just as we passed beneath a canopy of wilting peach blossoms.

The once vibrant petals littered the damp ground, and I stumbled back on a hidden stone, a gasp escaping my lips. Zhao Yun paused briefly, his gaze drifting upwards towards the sky. "Shifu," I called out.

He lowered his head, his eyes falling on the Juan sword in my hand. "I see you still have yours." I gave a small nod, my fingers tightening around the hilt. Jing Yi and Zhen Lan had been disarmed upon leaving the hall, another reminder of my perceived insignificance. To them, I wasn't a threat.

"A'Ying-"

"She's alright. She's with Mo Yan downtown." I choked back a sob, desperation lacing my voice. "What did she say? What did you tell her?" Zhao Yun spun around, his gaze locking onto mine for a tense moment. "You don't need to know-"

"Why not? Am I that useless? Why is no one telling me about the plan-"

"Yourong!" His sharp rebuke sent a tremor through me. A single tear escaped my eye as I squeezed my eyelids shut. A foreign energy, a prickling sensation unlike anything I'd ever felt, surged through my veins. It wasn't the familiar ache from exertion or the sting of missed notes on the guqin.

This was a predator, a serpent of fire coiling around my organs, constricting and stealing my breath. The vibrant pinks and reds of the peach blossoms leached away, replaced by a sickly gray pallor that mirrored my own draining complexion.

In a horrifying display of stolen control, my body lunged forward, the sword flashing in a deadly arc aimed for his chest.

Reacting with lightning reflexes honed by years of training, Zhao Yun threw himself down. My blade sang through the empty air a hair's breadth above his chest.

The familiar warmth of my connection to Shifu, the bond forged through years of training, was severed. In its place, a cold, alien hunger burned in my eyes.

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