After a few moments, when his body had absorbed the healing properties of the pills, Yao Yuxuan could pull himself to his feet once more. It wasn't easy—the pain still gnawed at him, a constant reminder of how close he was to the edge—but he stood, swaying slightly as he regained his balance. The world around him was still spinning; his vision blurred at the edges, but he forced himself to focus.
When he glanced in the direction the assassin had been, the figure was no longer there. The emptiness where Snowfall had stood only moments before was unsettling, a void that sent a shiver down his spine. The maestro's heart trembled with anxiety. He was gone, but where? Had he moved directly to the palace? Was Han Yiran already in danger?
He couldn't afford to linger, couldn't let fear paralyze him. Every second counted. He quickly packed his broken zither into its case. Then, he hooked his purple oil-paper umbrella to his belt. Yao Yuxuan summoned his sword with a few whispered words, the blade appearing in his hand like an extension of his will.
The sword was light and familiar, and yet it felt heavy in his grasp. Was it his body's weakness, or the heaviness of his heart that made it so hard to hold? He didn't have time to determine which. Without a moment's hesitation, he stepped onto the blade and launched himself at maximum speed into the night sky, the wind whipping through his hair as he soared toward the palace.
The landscape blurred beneath him, the darkened fields and forests passing by in a rush of shadow and light. He moved as fast as his weakened body would allow, pushing the limits of his strength. The wind roared in his ears, the night sky a vast expanse of darkness punctuated by the cold light of the stars. But Yao Yuxuan had no time to appreciate the beauty of the night, no time to think of anything but Han Yiran.
"Please be safe… sister," he murmured, the words carried away by the wind as he flew, his heart heavy with dread. He could only pray that he would arrive in time, that the pills would hold out long enough for him to make a difference.
He carefully watched his surroundings as he rushed toward the palace. There were no traces of any demonic creatures or ghosts the entire way there. Had they actually been sent back?
"Why..?" Yao Yuxuan breathed anxiously. If destroying the palace and city wasn't what the demons wanted, that would likely mean a treasure, or potentially even a person, would be the goal.
This line of thought only served to make him more nervous. He swallowed deeply, his Adam's apple bobbing ruefully. It took a few minutes before he arrived at the front gate, at which point he gracefully stepped off of his blade and instead began to wield it as a normal sword. His steps became heavy as he stormed into the throne room; he had no idea what to expect, and it was his first time setting foot back inside the palace walls in over ten years. Something about the entire situation developed a domineering sense of foreboding that completely overtook his body and mind.
Within the throne room, the atmosphere was tense. Emperor Han Shan, Crown Prince Han Sheng, and the one Yao Yuxuan had been searching for, his dear younger sister Han Yiran, were all cowering with fear at the foot of the throne. The Snowfall Assassin was leaning against the wall behind them, seemingly bored. He was leisurely inspecting his spear with one of his legs crossed over the other in a show of comfort.
"Gege!" The young woman's terrified voice cried out in relief when Yao Yuxuan entered the room. Han Yiran ran toward her brother clumsily, tears spilling from her dark, round eyes. She grabbed one of his hands desperately out of fear, but all of the remaining color in her face seemed to drain when she felt his freezing skin, and cast a mortified glance at his bloodied fingers. The exposed white bones of his fingertips made her stomach churn, and all her strength in her legs disappeared.
Han Yiran collapsed to the floor and retracted her hands, looking up at Yao Yuxuan as though she had seen a ghost. Han Sheng took a step to move forward and help her up but stopped halfway. The arrogant man cast a sideways glance at the man in white behind them, and instead of going any further, he returned to where he had been kneeling at his father's side. Han Shan didn't even look at Yao Yuxuan when he entered, and if it weren't for the fear that had overtaken his features, Yao Yuxuan was certain his face would be one of disgust - as it usually was when they saw one another.
"…Gege?"
A cold, deep voice sneered. It came from the figure that had been lazing behind the throne. He stepped out of the shadows with a confident and casual gait, his lavender eyes glowing with amusement. Yao Yuxuan instinctively moved and put himself between the assassin and Han Yiran, a deep frown tugging at the corner of his lips.
"You're telling me that this," Snowfall continued, motioning toward Yao Yuxuan with his spear, "is a man?! After all of this time, only now do I find out I haven't been fighting a frail young woman, but a small, sickly man?"
He had been mistaken as a woman several times throughout his life due to his build and effeminate beauty, so it didn't really bother him when the demon said it. After all, there was nothing terrible about being a woman. The women he knew were stronger and kinder than most men he had become acquainted with in his youth.
Yao Yuxuan took a few steps forward, his breathing haggard. As he walked, the tip of his sword dragged against the marble floor and periodically ignited sparks. He was too weak physically to wield a martial weapon even when he was in good health, so he was at even more of a disadvantage in this state – but he had no choice with his guqin having just been destroyed.
"Yes, I'm a man," he stated flatly. "Fortunately for you."
"Oh?" The assassin spat in a condescending tone. "How does that make me lucky?"
Yao Yuxuan smiled sweetly, his soft expression betraying the words that left his lips, "Because it would be really embarrassing for you if the great demon, the Snowfall Assassin, had his ass beaten by some 'frail young woman.'"
Irritation sparked in the demon's shrouded eyes. "Awfully cocky for someone who's about to drop dead. I personally destroyed your barrier, and after exchanging blows with you so many times over the years, I am well aware of what that should have done to your spiritual core."
Snowfall barely had time to finish his sentence before Yao Yuxuan was upon him, lifting his sword in an impressive upward arc. The assassin barely managed to dodge, the thin silver blade slicing through the sleeve of his white robes. The demon burst into near-delirious laughter as he raised Yanmei to parry Yao Yuxuan's haphazard swordsmanship. It only took a few instances of blocking before he could hook the sword out of Yao Yuxuan's hand.
Snowfall grabbed Yao Yuxuan's wrist and pulled him forward, staring down into his face with purple eyes full of hatred and bloodlust. "I will tear you apart, you weak little brat."
When he spat the last word, Snowfall grimaced as he suddenly felt something pierce his abdomen. He released the other man's wrist and shoved him away, throwing Yao Yuxuan to the floor. Cold sweat was running down the maestro's face, moistening his entire back. The wounds he sustained from the barrier backlash had all reopened again; the effects of his healing pills were wearing off already.
Snowfall looked down and found a folding fan made of blessed steel lodged deep into his stomach. When had he pulled that out?! He never had a fan before.
"G-gege!" Han Yiran spoke up, crawling forward to sit beside Yao Yuxuan. Her entire body trembled with fear as she caressed his arm. "You're hurt…"
"You sneaky bitch," Snowfall hissed. The young miss must have given it to him when she grabbed his hand earlier. He sucked in an angered breath and pulled the fan out, the opening in his flesh oozing crimson and staining the thin white fabric of his robes.
Yao Yuxuan watched with blurred vision, waiting for the wound he had inflicted with the fan to start festering. Blessed steel was typically incredibly effective against demons, so when Han Yiran slipped the fan into his pocket earlier, he was relieved. It was a gift he had given her for self-protection on her birthday several years prior.
To his dismay, however, seconds after seconds passed, which quickly turned to a minute… and it remained nothing more than a normal stab wound.
"I'm not a low-level demon, you insignificant wretch. Your stupid metals won't do anything to me!" Snowfall bellowed, clearly enraged. The place where the fan had been seemed to be healing shut already. Despite the anger he expressed, he hesitated to step forward to finish off Yao Yuxuan. Instead, he turned to the Emperor with an irritated and expectant glare. "Tell me where the real Heaven-kissed one is, or I'll destroy the entire city, starting with your two disgusting children. I don't give a damn."
"I already told you that it's him!" Han Shan exclaimed, motioning to the half-conscious Yao Yuxuan.
Snowfall's expression became ugly. He pointed his spear at the emperor threateningly. "I'll admit his spiritual power is impressive, but I'm worried you are hiding something from me. Why is his spiritual core in such an abominable state if he's gifted?"
"He's been sickly since he was a child! H-how should I know what's wrong with him?" Han Shan retorted. "He's just my late wife's bastard child from before I married her!"
"I hate humans. You're all despicable. How am I supposed to trust a single word that leaves your mouths?" Snowfall turned his angry expression to Yao Yuxuan once more. "Is it true? You maintained the barrier alone all this time?"
Yao Yuxuan was struggling to remain present. He could tell he only had a few minutes left of awareness and was almost entirely unable to follow along with their conversation. He understood the question directed at him, but wasn't capable of responding articulately – so all he could muster was an affirmative, "Mn."
Snowfall's gaze moved between the Emperor and Yao Yuxuan several times before settling on the latter. After a moment of silence, his lips flattened into a thin line, and all he said was, "Fine."
The last thing Yao Yuxuan remembered before losing consciousness was being scooped up into the demon's arms and the faint sound of muffled sobbing coming from Han Yiran. Though it was most definitely not an ideal situation, he was able to pass out, comforted knowing that his sister was alive and well.