She…she was my everything and…and I killed her. My own technique…my own blade ended her life. -The Demon of Tragedy speaking of the Princess of Ren before burying himself alive.

For a moment, I wondered if the moon reaver was still alive and messing with my head. My heart pounded. My legs tried to move, but it was as if reality had slowed all around me. All I could do was watch as Lin turned.

I knew he couldn't see the threads of misfortune. They rose in a pack, spreading outward to reach him.

The woman cackled. "Whoops! What rotten luck. Guess you'll have to fend off the-"

A corrosive arrow filled with void qi cut off her gloating. She collapsed to the ground in the same breath that the voidlight threads struck at Lin. I vaguely remember hearing my voice calling his name, but my focus was entirely on him.

The viper-like technique wrapped around him. His wood qi flared green beneath his skin, trying to protect him against the whims of fortune that were quickly turning against him. I didn't dare look away.

Visions from Flash Forward flashed before my thoughts one after the next, all in the blink of an eye. Lin could be pulled into a void tear, or his plants could suddenly turn sharp and skewer him. There was even one instance where a shard of stone flew in from nowhere and struck him in the throat, killing him instantly.

I blinked them away. In each one, there was nothing I could do to affect the outcome. If Lin died here…

My feet were at the threshold of the warning line. Lin was moving. He took a steady stance, reached out, and traced the threads of qi with his hand.

I blinked again, this time in complete shock. Lin was tracing the lines of qi as if he could see them clearly, which was ironic since the man had never seen anything clearly before in his life. I slowed my pace, walking forward to observe him more closely.

Where his hand touched the threads of misfortune, they began to fade, as if he were drawing that energy into himself. But…that was impossible. Lin was a wood artist, not a moon or void artist. He couldn't just absorb qi that was incompatible with his own. To do so would corrupt his core and ruin his cultivation. He wasn't that stupid…

…right?

Blue-silver light fused into the green veins of qi on his hands, creeping up and under his sleeves. By the time I stepped next to him, the threads of misfortune were gone. He looked up, startled at my presence.

"What did you just do?" I asked, completely dumbstruck by what I'd just seen.

"A technique that Miss Ishida helped me come up with," he said. I narrowed my eyes. He hadn't actually answered my question. "Even an uprooted tree may thrive so long as its base needs are met. So long as there is qi, any qi, I will adapt."

I looked him over. He didn't look any worse for having absorbed the voidlight. In fact, his cheeks were slightly rosier than they'd been a few moments ago. If he was going to qi deviate, he'd have already started to show symptoms.

"You worry too much," he scolded. "If anything, be more worried about the burn on my shoulder. It's starting to sting."

I rolled my eyes before shoving him out of the circle. He winced as I hit his shoulder but didn't say anything. The oni stared at us both, his brows furrowed as he tried to comprehend the battle's outcome.

"But… how did you…"

"Did you really think that I'd let my own technique hurt me and mine?" I asked incredulously. "Honestly, the Shattered Moon Sect must have low standards for entry."

The oni's face darkened, and he lunged. However, the battle's favor had shifted. Two on one, he didn't stand a chance. Lin kicked a foot out from under him, and he went down. A moment later, we both stood over him, each with a foot on his chest.

"Now, here's what you're going to do," I began. "First, you're going to take the bodies of your comrades before they stink up the park. Then, you're going to tell your superiors that this armillary is under new management." I pressed my foot harder on his chest, causing him to grimace. "The only reason you live is because you are to deliver this message. If I find you back here again, you will have outlived your usefulness."

Lin and I released the oni. He scrambled to his feet, glaring daggers at the two of us.

"You filthy spirit," he growled. "Enjoy your victory while you can. When the Master of our branch gets out of seclusion, he will string you up for the crows to feast upon!"

He fled without another word. I looked around. Three corpses still lay in the park.

"He didn't even follow my instructions." I sighed before dropping a bit of void qi on each corpse. They began to disintegrate.

Lin grabbed my elbow. "You're bleeding."

I glanced at the wound. The moon reaver had caught a glancing blow with its forelimb, but it wasn't too bad. I'd seen far worse injuries from reavers in my time. With a shrug, I called on my inner moonlight.

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The injury shimmered with blue-silver light before disappearing. Even the ripped and stained fabric knitted itself back together. Now, it was time for Lin to be surprised as he stared at the injury.

"What?" I asked cheekily. "Never seen a man alter reality before?"

I beamed at him in pride. At Silver, I finally had enough qi in my system to safely use some of the smallest of the techniques which I'd been known for as an Ascendent. The ability to alter reality itself around my person was like wrapping myself in a warm blanket after years spent in the cold.

Replacing the reality where I was injured with another where I escaped cleanly was simple, if costly. At Silver, I wouldn't be able to use it often, but it was worth it for the look of awe on Lin's face. He looked at me like he was witnessing a master performer.

I added a few embellishments to the hem and collar of my clothes…just to show off a little more.

"So, that was the Shattered Moon Sect, eh?" I said, changing the subject. Lin jerked slightly, pulling himself back to the subject at hand. He picked up the grocery bag and we began walking back to Half-Moon Harbor, once more.

"Bullies, if you ask me," he agreed. "They're choking the district with their hold on the rice supply and their ridiculous protection fees."

"Not to mention they're insane," I muttered. "To use a moon reaver. I thought I'd purged the world of those disgusting, vile things millennia ago."

"So, it wasn't one of your 'divine champions?'"

I exhaled sharply. "I may be responsible for erasing entire nations, but even I wouldn't work with moon reavers."

"They seem to think you did."

"They seem to think a lot of things!" I protested. "Like how the Darkened Moon and the Void Herald were a romantic item? Ridiculous! Not to mention that they believe their 'master' would approve of their actions!" I glanced at the people we passed on the street, quickly editing my next words to keep my secrets safe. "I have the blood of the Demon of Misfortune, yet they think they are the ones who are upholding his wishes? I've met monkeys who put more thought into their creed than this supposed Demonic Sect. Even their name is an affront to m-…to the Lunar Prince."

The two of us were silent for a long moment. Seething anger boiled in my veins. This pitiful sect was full of children who thought they knew it all. They were besmirching my good name and trying to destroy my people all in one fell swoop. I would never forgive them. When I was powerful once again, I'd show them exactly how much they'd angered the Demon of Misfortune, and they would not like it when I did.

"We cannot let them break this city," I said finally. "Starting with the fourteenth district. How many factions are in the district who could stand up to them?"

Lin shook his head. "Not many. Fewer still who would dare to do so."

I knew of a few.

The biggest force of warriors was probably the Chikara Oni clan. The Chikara were an old clan of Oni who had lived in the Black City for centuries and boasted a powerful fire bloodline. They claimed to be a clan of birthed yokai rather than those who'd been created by the normal dark rituals. While this meant that they were certainly more friendly to humans like Lin and Xinya, it didn't do much to improve their overall temperament. I'd heard a fair few stories from the local merchants about Chikara gangs cornering innocents in back alleys. People had gone missing and were never seen again. Even more people were injured or harassed so badly that they didn't dare to speak openly about the Chikara's transgressions.

I took the stories with a grain of salt. After all, nobody had a worse reputation than I did. I'd rather develop my own opinion of them before believing the rumors.

"I hear Chikara's leader is a Silver," Lin mused as we began to climb the stairs to Half-Moon Harbor. "We might be able to get an audience with him, since we are the same rank."

It was just as likely to break out in a fight. On the whole, Oni weren't known for their patience, something that had been true all the way back to the Oni Prince himself.

"The Blushing Rose Sect may also be willing to help," Lin added.

I nodded in agreement. Blushing Rose was a special brand of sect with a very special breed of cultivators at their disposal. They protected the red lantern region within the fourteenth district. If there was ever a sect that deserved the protection fees they charged, it was Blushing Rose. Patrolling brothel streets was dangerous business, given the number of yokai who were drawn to such places. For the safety of customers and courtesans alike, they risked their lives.

Lately, though, the rumors of the district said that Blushing Rose had turned away several Shattered Moon aspirants on the grounds of mistreating those under their protection. I was willing to believe them, since the Shattered Moon Sect clearly didn't have the district's interests at heart. What were a couple of courtesans to such a lofty demonic sect?

It gave me one more reason to hate them. My oldest sister was sold to a brothel by the very same cultivator who kidnapped her off the street to be his bride. For nearly five years, Chouko and I had acted as guards in a red light district just to stay close to Aya as she wasted away and died. I'd seen all too clearly the horrible things that go on when no one was there to watch them. Blushing Rose did good work, and I had nothing but respect for them.

But, getting them to act…that would be the challenge. Blushing Rose ran its affairs like the businesses they protected. Getting an audience with their leader, Iza Kirana, would be easy. For them to act, though, they would need to divert their already thin forces to fighting the Shattered Moon Sect. There was every chance they would not be willing to take the risk.

Finally, the last force in the district was one shrouded in mystery. They were called the Forgotten, and all that either Lin or I had been able to gather was that they were a group of shades who operated the streets by the river, just beneath the cliffs of Half-Moon Manor. Their leader was unknown, and their members weren't particularly keen on sharing anything about themselves.

I sighed and sat Lin down at a table in Half-Moon Harbor and began tending his burned shoulder. It was a daunting task that was set before us, but as with our previous endeavors in Saikan, the key to fending off our enemies and making a better place started with making allies.

"Tomorrow, let's take Xinya and see if the three of us can't get an audience with the Chikara Clan Leader," I suggested.

"Why with Xinya?"

"Because maybe she'll learn something," I answered. "Assuming she can keep her mouth shut."

"And you're betting on that because…?"

I scowled at Lin. "She's smart. When she wants to be, she's a perfectly well-behaved child."

Lin snorted with laughter. "Right, and I'm the Sword Saint."

"You'd be prettier in his robes," I answered, shoving him playfully over.

"Hey, hey! I'm injured!" he complained, but despite the complaints, he was still smiling brightly.

"Fine, fine, I guess I'll open for you, since you're so injured," I teased. "We might as well serve some customers, before they complain that we're closed two days in a row."

Lin's eyes twinkled, and I just rolled my eyes.

Tomorrow, we would talk to the Chikara, but today? I could only think about how much Lin had recovered. Hanako's spirit still weighed on us all, but I'd missed his smile and his laughter.

The way he laughed and joked…it reminded me a lot of Jinshi.

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