I lay in the freezing snow, covered in blood.
I didn’t know how I ended up here, but the cold numbed the pain from my wounds a little.
I struggled to sit up and looked at my injury.
My left arm was completely numb. At some point, the rushing water had broken off the lotus arrow, leaving only the arrowhead lodged in my bone.
The flesh around the wound had been rinsed so clean by the water that I could almost see the bone itself.
I forced myself to look around.
A blanket of white snow covered the ground, and not far away, I saw a wooden cabin with a warm orange light glowing from inside.
I tried to call out for help, but my throat must have been injured—I couldn’t make a sound.
As if my silent plea was heard, a black deer leaped out of the cabin.
It hopped through the snow, standing out starkly against the white, and soon reached my side.
Up close, I could see its wet tongue as it licked my face, slowly bringing life back to my frozen features.
The deer crouched down and gently grabbed the back of my coat with its mouth, carefully dragging me onto its back.
The black deer carried me slowly to the cabin.
It knocked on the door with its antlers, and the door swung open softly.
A faint, pleasant fragrance drifted from inside, filling my nose.
“Did you bring her?”
A clear, gentle voice called out from within. The deer carried me inside.
A slender man in plain clothes sat on a wooden chair. What surprised me was the white veil covering his eyes and the pair of antlers on his head.
“Lay her gently on the bed,” he said.
The black deer obeyed, placing me carefully on the bed, taking care not to touch my wound.
The man stood and came to my side, his hand gently probing my left arm.
“It’s serious,” he murmured.
He pressed his fingers to my throat, and a warm current flowed through me.
“Cough, cough…”
I didn’t know what spell he used, but suddenly I could speak, though my throat still hurt.
“Who… who are you?” I croaked.
A faint, almost imperceptible smile appeared on his lips.
“I am Ling Ze, the Deer God.”
Ling Ze walked to the table, poured a cup of hot tea from a kettle, and brought it to me.
“Please drink. This tea is brewed with spirit spring water from Bailing Mountain. It will warm you and ease your pain.”
I tried to lift my good arm to take the cup, but after being in the snow so long, my arm wouldn’t cooperate.
Noticing this, Ling Ze smiled apologetically.
“Forgive me for the intrusion.”
He supported my back with his large hand, helping me sit at a comfortable angle, and brought the cup to my lips.
“It should be just the right temperature…”
My lips were cracked from the cold. I sipped the tea slowly, feeling warmth return to my body.
“Thank you,” I whispered.
Ling Ze gently helped me lie back down.
“Where am I?”
“You’re at the summit of Bailing Mountain, where the three realms meet.”
“The three realms?”
“Human, demon, and heaven.”
The black deer came over and nuzzled Ling Ze affectionately.
“Your eyes…” I said softly.
Ling Ze touched the white veil over his eyes.
“I can’t see, but it doesn’t matter. I can still hear your heart’s voice. That’s how I knew to save you.”
I stared at him in silence as pain throbbed through my wound again.
He placed his hand on the arrowhead in my shoulder, sending a wave of spiritual energy into the injury.
“I can only ease the pain and keep the wound from getting worse.”
Ling Ze used his power to cut open my clothing, his hands gentle but sure. I shivered.
“Forgive me, miss. I can’t see.”
“It’s… it’s fine.”
“This will hurt.”
With a sharp crack, Ling Ze snapped off the arrowhead.
The pain was brief but intense, leaving a black hole in my left shoulder.
“Now I’ll stop the bleeding.”
The black deer brought over some herbs, which Ling Ze crushed and used his power to form into a pill, placing it in my mouth.
“You’ve asked a lot about me. What’s your name?”
“Mei Chen.”
Ling Ze nodded thoughtfully.
“You’re human, right? How did you get here?”
“I… I fell into that waterfall that flows upward, and ended up here.”
Ling Ze looked surprised.
“You fell into the spirit waterfall? That’s impossible… Humans can’t enter this place.”
“You really are unusual.”
I stared blankly at the ceiling.
A wave of heat surged through me, and I coughed up black blood.
“How did you get so badly hurt?”
“Ling Ze, am I dying?”
He nodded heavily.
“With my pills, you might last a month at most.”
“A month…”
Seeing my weakness, Ling Ze looked pained.
“The lotus arrow struck your vital meridian. Whoever attacked you wanted you dead—the poison went deep. Someone must have used spiritual power to block the poison, so you’re dying slowly instead of instantly.”
I turned away, trying to forget what had just happened.
“You’re the first human I’ve ever met. The only person I’ve spoken to in all my years here.”
Ling Ze dragged his chair to my bedside.
“If you have any unfulfilled wishes, I can help you. It’s the least I can do for our fated meeting.”
I struggled to sit up, grabbing his hand.
“Do you… do you know how to form a contract with a demon?”
Ling Ze’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Could you form a contract with me? I don’t have long left… My only wish is to have a demon of my own.”
Ling Ze laughed heartily.
“That’s your wish?”
I nodded. Ling Ze bit his thumb, letting a drop of blood fall onto my wrist.
A faint red thread appeared, connecting us.
“What’s this?”
Ling Ze touched the thread, but his hand passed right through.
“It’s proof of a contract between human and demon. Once the red thread forms, our fates are tied together.”
I stared at the thread, lost in thought.
“You’ve never formed a contract before?”
“No.”
Ling Ze suddenly touched my face, chuckling softly.
“There’s actually one more step to forming a contract.”
“What… what is it?”
“But in your condition, I’m afraid you wouldn’t survive it.”
“?”
Ling Ze leaned down, his face drawing closer. I was too weak to push him away.
“Dual cultivation.”
My face turned bright red.
“D-dual cultivation?”
He pressed his forehead to mine, and I caught a faint scent of herbs.
“Good, you’re sweating. That means my medicine is working.”
So that’s what he meant—he just wanted to make me sweat.
He pinched my cheek.
“Rest now. The wound will still hurt, but it shouldn’t keep you from sleeping.”
“Thank you, Ling Ze.”
He paused for a moment.
“Mei Chen, I wasn’t joking just now~”
I blinked, puzzled.
“Sleep.”
I closed my eyes and soon drifted off.
Chapter 08
*