At midday, Rong Chen Zi accompanied Xingzhi Zhenren in searching for traces of the three-eyed snake, but they returned once again empty-handed. The three-eyed snake seemed to know the movements of their entire group, always managing to slip away with uncanny precision. As for such thankless work — He Bang never participated. She was taking her afternoon nap.

Rong Chen Zi headed toward Zhuang Shaoqin’s room. Passing by a decorative rock garden, a voice from behind the stones was utterly familiar: “Great Priest, would you be willing to take me as your disciple?”

Another voice rang clear and bright — Rong Chen Zi recognized it immediately as Chunyu Lin’s: “That… I practice martial cultivation. What could I possibly teach you?”

“Please, I beg you. I truly don’t want to cower behind all of you, barely keeping my life together. I want to fight alongside you and cut down every last three-eyed snake!” Her voice grew lower and lower, her manner more and more intimate. “I want to truly be of use to you — and even more, I want to avenge my mother. Chunyu Lin, please say yes…”

Rong Chen Zi paused slightly. A man of his perception naturally already understood that the relationship between the two was not simple — but a gentleman does not listen to what he should not hear, nor look at what he should not see. He quickened his pace and moved on without stopping for a single moment.

Zhuang Shaoqin’s room was right next to He Bang’s. Rong Chen Zi glanced up at that firmly shut door, tempted for a moment to say something — but then he reconsidered, deciding it was not his place to pass judgment on others’ affairs. Besides, she was napping now, and for him to barge in would create an improper situation between a man and a woman alone together. In the end he said nothing.

He Bang woke at dinner time. Chunyu Lin was not there. She squinted her eyes and shuffled to the dining table. Rong Chen Zi, Elder Liu, and the others were discussing the matter of the three-eyed snake. Another full day with nothing to show for it, and the group was inevitably somewhat dispirited. Fortunately, the snake egg that Zhuang Shaoqin had been studying had begun to hatch — the shadowy snake form inside had grown larger and larger, almost on the verge of breaking through the shell.

Everyone was focused on the snake egg. Only the great river clam ate with relentless appetite, not giving it the slightest thought.

In the past, the seat next to He Bang had always been Chunyu Lin’s, and she would sit at his side. Today he wasn’t there. She knew everyone at the table, but the only one she was truly familiar with was Rong Chen Zi — and unfortunately, his left side was occupied by Ye Tian and his right by Xingzhi Zhenren. Moreover, Rong Chen Zi clearly had no intention of making room for her to sit beside him.

But this river clam was not one to stand on ceremony. She walked straight up to Xingzhi Zhenren: “Move over — I’m sitting here.”

Xingzhi Zhenren was a man, and moreover a man who had renounced the secular world; it would hardly do for him to quarrel with her over a seat. He had no choice but to give it up. She then plopped herself down between Rong Chen Zi and Zhuang Shaoqin without any fuss. Chunyu Lin had prepared her food long before leaving, and now that the servants saw she had woken from her nap, they brought her dishes out one by one.

Zhuang Shaoqin and Xingzhi Zhenren were in the middle of a conversation. He Bang, meanwhile, was already scanning the dishes on the table. Chunyu Lin had made her turnip dumplings before he left. She picked one up with her chopsticks and popped it into her mouth.

Zhuang Shaoqin poured himself a cup of wine. She didn’t hesitate in the slightest — she just naturally took it from him and had a sip. You could tell at a glance that she was someone accustomed to having everything done for her. In all his years, the only person Zhuang Shaoqin had ever poured wine for was his master, the Purple-Heart Daozhang. This was the first time he’d poured it for anyone else — but seeing that it was this river clam, he said nothing more about it. Drink it, then. He’d just ask for another cup.

Rong Chen Zi and Xingzhi Zhenren were discussing their next course of action, paying no attention to this. “It seems we must wait until the snake eggs fully form, then try various talismans. We’ll also need to test snake-repelling remedies and the effects of water, fire, blades, and spears — we must find a method with greater efficacy.”

At this point He Bang had already finished her first cup. She sat there squinting at the empty wine cup, and when Zhuang Shaoqin poured his own, he also refilled hers.

By the time Rong Chen Zi noticed, Zhuang Shaoqin had already poured her a fourth cup. When she was drunk, a crimson flush spread across her cheeks and her eyes grew heavy and gleaming with moisture. The intoxicating beauty of it made Zhuang Shaoqin wish only that the wine cup were larger — and as for the three-eyed snake, it was temporarily outside the scope of his thoughts. When He Bang reached for her fifth cup, Rong Chen Zi calmly and without drawing attention blocked her hand, took away her cup, and shot Zhuang Shaoqin a pointed look.

Zhuang Shaoqin immediately let out a dry cough and poured himself a cup of wine as if nothing had happened, not daring to cause any more mischief — though his eyes still couldn’t help straying toward that river clam.

Rong Chen Zi poured the wine out of the cup and set a cup of tea in front of He Bang instead. She didn’t take it. Instead, she kept staring at his hand — and the moment he caught the direction of her gaze, Rong Chen Zi had a sense of foreboding. He turned to Elder Liu beside him and said two words: “Switch seats.”

Unfortunately Elder Liu’s reflexes were too slow. Before he had even risen to his feet, the river clam had already grabbed Rong Chen Zi’s hand. She reeked of wine, and her gaze was soft and tangled as silk. “Trying to run, are you?”

All eyes turned their way. Rong Chen Zi had no wish to struggle with her. “Men and women must maintain proper boundaries — you…”

That river clam wasn’t listening to a word of it. “What about me? Oh, right! You still owe me fifty-one liang of flesh!”

Rong Chen Zi was a man of principle and genuinely uncomfortable with the idea of defaulting on a debt. He had no choice but to let her hold his hand. “You’re drunk.”

He Bang leaned back in her chair, her cheeks soft and delicately flushed. “Even drunk, I haven’t added a single extra liang!”

Rong Chen Zi could only lower his eyes. “Very well. This poor Daoist owes you fifty-one liang of flesh.”

The river clam then bowed her head and bit down heavily on his hand. Rong Chen Zi let her gnaw away without so much as a twitch of his brow. But Zhuang Shaoqin and Ye Tian couldn’t bear it — they stepped forward at once and pulled her away. She scratched and flailed. Rong Chen Zi spoke in a low, firm voice: “Release her.”

Ye Tian was frantic with anger. “Senior Brother! She’s drunk!”

Rong Chen Zi’s voice was still as still water. “But her accounting is correct. It will need to be repaid sooner or later.”

His gaze swept over them; Zhuang Shaoqin reluctantly released He Bang. Ye Tian, however, bit her lip and refused to let go no matter what. Her words came pouring out fast and furious as a rainstorm: “You disgusting river clam — I’ve had my eye on you for a long time!! So you’re owed a little flesh — I’ll repay it in my Senior Brother’s place! I’ll repay it on his behalf, all right?!”

He Bang kept her teeth locked on Rong Chen Zi and would not let go. Blood began to seep from the wound, and she greedily lapped at it. “Who wants your flesh? Old and tough as it is!”

Ye Tian heard this, and whatever battle power she had before — eighty percent, let’s say — instantly surged to ten thousand and eighty-six! She drew her sword and was ready to fight the river clam to the death. Zhuang Shaoqin hastily grabbed her. He Bang, drunk as she was, could barely stand — but her mouth was perfectly steady, clamped fast on Rong Chen Zi and refusing to release.

Rong Chen Zi had no choice but to let her lean against him. She bit for quite some time without actually biting off any flesh. She raised her eyes and looked at him. Rong Chen Zi’s expression was composed as ever. “Can’t bite through?”

He stood and raised his right hand, bringing his palm down at a diagonal in one swift, precise motion — the force of it sharp as a blade — and sliced away a sliver of flesh from his arm. He Bang finally released her grip. Rong Chen Zi fed the piece of flesh into her mouth, while Ye Tian quickly took her own silk handkerchief and began bandaging the wound, glaring daggers at He Bang all the while.

He Bang seemed to have lost interest. She carried the piece of flesh back to her room.

Zhuang Shaoqin helped bandage Rong Chen Zi’s wound. He had kept demon spirits before and knew something of their habits. “Don’t take it personally. She’s just in a bad mood, acting out through the wine.”

Ye Tian was seething. “She’s in a bad mood? As far as I can see, she eats heartily, sleeps soundly, and goes through life like a pig day in and day out!!”

Zhuang Shaoqin smiled faintly. “Most demon spirits are like that. They’ve never lived among people. Every one of them looks hundreds or thousands of years old — yet in truth, they understand nothing. Chunyu Lin hasn’t come back… she’s probably hurting quite a bit.”

Rong Chen Zi lowered his gaze to the wound on his arm and said nothing.

Qingxuan and Qingsu stood to one side unable to help. The two of them began to make a bet.

“Do you think she’ll go and bother Master again later?” Qingxuan rubbed his chin. Qingsu was more level-headed: “Even if she went to find Master, Master surely wouldn’t pay her any attention.”

But neither of them guessed correctly. That night, He Bang sat by the lakeside the entire time — she didn’t go anywhere. Everyone in the Liu Mansion knew who she was, but no one was truly close to her, and all feared she might be in one of her drunken rages. No one took the initiative to speak to her. She just sat by the lake and waited until Chunyu Lin came back.

Chunyu Lin had indeed been teaching Liu Qinfang some self-defense techniques. Liu Qinfang was studying with such earnest focus that several times when Chunyu Lin checked the hour, he couldn’t bring himself to tell her it was time to stop. The moment he returned to the Liu Mansion, all the residents fixed him with the look of someone who knew he was in trouble. He quickly went to He Bang’s room. Of course she wasn’t there. He circled around several more times before finally spotting He Bang sitting alone by the lakeside.

It was cold. She had her little feet dangling in the lake, playing in the water.

Chunyu Lin scooped her up in his arms. He knew she would be upset with him — and yet, somewhere in the back of his mind, he had wanted to see how she would react. He wanted to feel that, in her heart, he was not lighter than a goose feather. But seeing her despondence now, he couldn’t help but ache for her: “It’s cold. Don’t sit here.”

He Bang bowed her head and said nothing. Chunyu Lin bent and held her close. “What do you want for dinner? I’ll go make it now.”

He Bang raised her head. Her eyes carried a smile. “Go bring Rong Chen Zi and Xingzhi Zhenren here.”

Rong Chen Zi and Xingzhi Zhenren didn’t know what had happened. The group hurried to the lakeside, only to find the river clam sitting on a large green boulder, feet still playing in the water, her expression utterly carefree and merry — not a trace of the earlier despondence remaining. She bounced on her heels and stepped back behind Chunyu Lin, forming a hand seal, her voice crisp and bright: “A gift for you all.”

The surface of the lake, which had been calm and smooth, suddenly erupted with fist-sized bubbles. None of the onlookers could tell what she was up to, and all of them watched the surface. Yuyang Zhenren’s expression shifted through a range of emotions.

Ye Tian was less patient. She was still nursing her grievances about the river clam biting Rong Chen Zi and calling her flesh old and tough. “If you have something to say, just say it — what’s with all the suspense!”

Rong Chen Zi silenced her and took two steps forward to the lake’s edge.

From within the lake came a sound like an infant’s wail. The water churned more and more violently. He Bang’s right hand slowly rose holding her staff set with blood pearls, and she murmured her incantation softly. Her voice was naturally melodious; intoned low and gentle like this, it was like pearls scattering against jade. A faint blue-green form began to surface through the lake — a snake’s tail — and everyone’s expression changed.

With one piercing shriek, a three-eyed snake emerged from the lake before the assembled group. It was green with ink-black markings, as thick around as an adult’s wrist. Zhuang Shaoqin’s voice held a note of astonishment: “It’s the three-eyed snake that impersonated Liu Qinfang!”

During this period, it had absorbed heaven knows how many souls. Horns had grown upon its brow — it was beginning to look as though it might transform into a serpent-dragon. Yet now it seemed to be in tremendous pain, thrashing and writhing in its death throes. Its voice was identical to Liu Qinfang’s: “How did you know I was here?”

A column of water lifted it out of the lake. The water, ordinarily so gentle, seemed to take on a life of its own — suddenly fierce and savage. The snake still struggled defiantly against its bonds, but the water cut like threads of wire, scoring its serpentine body with trail after trail of bleeding welts.

It had been hiding in the water with great caution at first — after speaking with Liu Qinfang it would always leave immediately. But as time wore on, seeing that the river clam appeared to notice nothing, it had relaxed its guard and had been dwelling in the lake regularly.

He Bang leaned against Chunyu Lin with a haughty air: “You old cunning devil — no matter how crafty you are, you’ll still have to drink the water from my foot-bath!” She hooked a finger, and the water column delivered the three-eyed snake to the bank. Everyone had a thousand and one questions they wanted to ask. He Bang snapped off a branch. “Don’t rush — let me give this little bastard a good thrashing first.”

Her words were fierce, but she only beat it a few times before she ran out of energy. She tossed the branch to the Liu Mansion’s servants. “I’m exhausted. Your turn.”

Rong Chen Zi’s expression was grave. “You knew all along it was hiding in the lake? Why did you never mention it?”

He Bang glanced over at Xingzhi Zhenren with a grin and said nothing. Yuyang Zhenren spoke in anger: “Zhiguan asked you a question — why are you looking at my Senior Brother?”

He Bang still didn’t answer. But Chunyu Lin’s face was cold: “You didn’t even tell me.”

He Bang touched his face. “We caught it in the end, didn’t we? That’s what matters.”

Chunyu Lin removed her hand. Something pained and beyond her understanding moved through his gaze. “You allowed me to spend time with Liu Qinfang — that was also just to lull it into complacency.” He slowly stepped back, his expression sorrowful. “In your eyes, I simply don’t matter.”

He Bang narrowed her eyes and thought for a moment. “You were drawn to Liu Qinfang because the snake has a nature that incites licentiousness — its corrupting energy was too strong and stirred those desires in you. But you held yourself back for so long — even if its scheme had worked and you had happened to sleep with Liu Qinfang, at least we wouldn’t have come out the worse for it. Besides, capturing it alive will make what comes next considerably easier.”

Chunyu Lin slowly shook his head, his gaze desolate. “I was wrong. You genuinely don’t understand anything.” His smile was bleak and wretched. “I hate you, He Pan!”