: Ninth Heaven ::
A look of utter disdain clouded over Bai Zhen's face as he glanced, from the corner of his eyes, over at the fallen Lord of Celestial and the crumpled form of Consort Su Jin. Like his father, he no longer cared how the once ruler of all realms would deal with these two accomplices. They had accomplished what they set out to do; with added bonus of exposing their less-than-honorable plotting against his sister to the eyes of the public.
He did not know the Emperor had such tricks up his sleeve; he doubted his father ever foresee how today would play out as well. High God Mo Yuan on the other hand might, seeing how he was content with leaving everything in the Emperor's capable hand. He guessed he should not be surprised, after all the Emperor had a vast resources of knowledge at his disposal.
Bai Zhen shook his head, driving away his idle thoughts. He took a step forward. "Emperor, before you pass on the judgment, I would like to make a request."
He paused for a sign of acknowledgement from the regal god before continued. "My sister's eyes should be returned to us immediately. They were exposed to malicious aura for hundreds of years already. I fear any prolonged exposure would do them serious physical harm. Not to mention she might try to sabotage them in her desperate attempt to get even."
"If you feel it necessary, do as you must," was his only reply.
Bai Zhen bowed to the Emperor and made his way toward the usurper of Bai Qian's eyes. He casted an immobility spell preventing her to crawl away from him. Once he stood looming over her prone body; he bent down and spoke in a low tone so only the two of them could hear it.
"Be glad there are so many eyewitnesses here, else I will make sure you suffer every minute as I gauge the eyes out with my claws."
Then the sound of his sword unsheathed was deafening in the eerily silence of the Hall; followed by wailing screams of terror then whimpering of painful gasps. The immaculate face of the youngest son of the Fox Emperor betrayed nothing as he walked back toward the gathering of his family. He dropped the reclaimed possession into the waiting hand of Zhe Yan.
"I hope the damage is not too severe. I don't feel so generous today." He noted with a careless shrug. "How long before you could the exchange?"
"I will have to cleanse them thoroughly first. The impurity embedded in them is rather strong. It will take some time," the God of Medicine checked the pair of eyes in his hand with practiced ease.
By his own binding words, the Sky Lord was stripped of his title and presented to Emperor Dong Hua to await his final verdict. He did not cope with his fallen from grace that well. He pushed away and took offense at anyone getting too close to him.
"Su Jin, for your crime and your failure to repent, from this moment on you are no longer counted as one of us. Never again you will return to any of immortal realms, not even the lower realms. For five hundred times, you will be reincarnated into mortal and suffer the six bitterness." Emperor Dong Hua proclaimed.
"Emperor, you can't be serious. She jumped down the Zhu Xian Terrace on her own and … and it's the Sky Lord who took her eyes. Why am I the one to carry all the blames? You can't punish me so severely, I'm the last of my family. The Clan of Martyr. Did you forget what they did? What would the others say?" She pleaded and threatened with foolish arrogance.
The Emperor's eyebrow quirked, unamused, at her boastful claim. "Your ancestor will thank me yet for giving you a lesson of humility. You are nothing but a blight on their honor, a disgrace of their valiant effort."
"A martyr? Please..." Bai Feng Jiu scowled. "Seriously, what have you ever done? Did you march to the battlefield and fight against the Ghost combatants? Did you reseal Qing Cang inside the Bell of Eastern Emperor? Or did you sacrifice your soul to prevent the total destruction of all realms?"
"You. Did. Nothing." The young fox said forcefully. "The only thing you ever accomplished is bullying a weak, hapless mortal and earned yourself undying hatred from your own husband."
Su Jin moved her head left and right, frantically tried to pinpoint from where Feng Jiu's voice came. The wet trails of blood trickling down her face made her look alike a vengeful spirit rather than a fair fairy. "You have no right to say that. You have no right!" She hollered in protest.
"Silence."
Bai Feng Jiu jumped at the loud, commanding, crisp voice. It appeared the Emperor's patience was running short. She pursed her lips in annoyance but said no more.
"You will learn well from those years as mortal and better yourself, Su Jin." The Emperor's tone was edgy, a warning of sort. "Or else you will be eternally condemned to be born as labor animals to repay your sins."
"No, you can't do that to me. You just can't." Su Jin repeated. "I'm a fairy; a beautiful, graceful being. How can I be a beast of burden?"
The once Crown Prince's consort was half crazed now, realizing she would be endlessly doomed. How could he be so cruel to her? She was innocent! Did he not see that?
"No, no, no. I will not. I will not." She uttered in absolute denial even as she was being dragged away from his presence.
"What about you? What compensation you deem fit for all these?" The Emperor swept his hand around, casually asking the fallen Lord of Heaven as if the judgment would be passed on someone else but him.
Hao De snorted derisively at the Emperor's shrewd approach. If he insisted on light punishment; it would only cement their belief in his unrepentant attitude. Worse, it would spark another round of glaring dispute with the Fox Clan. Ye Hua could not afford that on top of his own definite offense to the whole Clan. Truthfully, at this moment, he cared not of his once well-kept fame and reputation. Nothing was left to be savaged anyway. Not after being ousted by the Fox Emperor for his attempt to best him with less than ideal underhand-maneuver.
"I chose to be reincarnated as mortal. Same amount of time." He announced at length. "After I have done my time, I will take my leave and spend the rest of my days at the Sea of Innocence." The ex-Sky Lord swallowed the painful truth. He was done for in possible every way. There was no more place of power for him within this realm. As an exiled Lord, he did not have that much choices.
Emperor Dong Hua made a furtive glance at Mo Yuan and got a tentative agreement. The Fox Emperor, on the other hand, was slower and a bit reluctant to give the nod to the silent question.
"So be it," the Emperor echoed his decision. The Sea of Innocence was far enough and quite deserted, save from occasional visitors. The ex-ruler will not be around to sway the next Sky Lord's decision, nor be able to influence his will upon those remaining loyalists. The Emperor reminded himself to station his own spies at that place; once Hao De came back and took his residence there.
The crowd began to dispersed, slowly groups by groups took their leaves, seeing there was nothing more to entertain themselves with. Some remained, locked in heated discussion with their peers, speculating about the future and the implications of today's revelation will bring upon their own Clan.
As usual, Star Lord Shi Ming trailed after his Lord to return to Taichen Palace. When he walked pass Bai Feng Jiu, he stopped to converse with her, briefly. The little fox princess's face lightened up by whatever he conveyed to her in secrecy. She was seen slapping his shoulder in encouragement, much to the bewilderment of those who spied on them discreetly.
"What was that?" Bai Zhen did not hold his curiosity for long.
Feng Jiu gave him an enigmatic smile, then replied. "Shi Ming promised he will write mean fates for both of them ."
"Oh?" Now Zhe Yan and the rest of the family were equally intrigued and hang on her every word.
"He intends for them to be born together, for every incarnation. He even thought of making one of them, or both, crippled or disfigured by birth. Or born with hideous disease. They will be shunned by their own respectable family and strangers alike, so they could only rely on each other. Then he planned to let them torture and betray each other in the worst possible way too." Feng Jiu cackled gleefully. "Splendid, isn't it?"
"Hmm. I never peg him that devious." Zhe Yan said thoughtfully. "It seems he does learn something from his Master after all."
"That's right. I praise his wonderful ingenuity as well." Feng Jiu smiled mischievously. "I bet aunt would be dying to read their stories," then she sighed, "only if she's awake now. Are we going back to Kunlun now?"
"We still have an unfinished business." Bai Zhi said before heading ahead.
"We do?" Feng Jiu blinked owlishly then hurriedly rushed after him.
Crown Prince Ye Hua, now the uncrowned Sky Lord, perked up from his conversation with his parents, seeing the Fox Emperor heading his way. He winced internally at the incoming confrontation. Judging by the stormy expression of the fox ruler; nothing good would come out of it too. The young ruler resigned himself to his inevitable fate.
Emperor Bai Zhi stopped just in front of him and stared hard at the bane of his daughter's existence. The strained silence between them dragged on. Had Ye Hua had the habit of squirming in agitation under such intense intimidation, he would. Sadly, he was too dignified to succumb to such restlessness.
"You are forbidden to enter any lands under Qing Qiu's." The older ruler started with slow burning aggression.
He dictated his one-sided terms and carelessly forced it upon Ye Hua. "You will not contact my daughter or see her under any circumstances, unless by her expressed wish. Which I highly doubt she will. You will not come between her and Mo Yuan as well."
The Fox ruler tilted his head back to look at his family briefly, addressing them and Ye Hua at once the punishment for breaking his stipulation. "Any violation of my words is punishable by death."
"Emperor, surely we could…" Yang Cuo, Ye Hua's father, started. He looked disturbed at the laid down terms.
"I am not done," said the Emperor.
"We are not done." The Fox Empress mirrored her husband. She eyed her spouse momentarily; knowing for what and why he instigated this discussion.
"There's the matter of our grandson," she said drily, "whose existence remains unknown to us until now. That, too, will change. He will come back with us, starting from now."
"That is a little too harsh. Don't you think?" Lian Song, the forever diplomat of the family, spoke up softly. "For better or worse, he's Ye Hua's son as well." Not that it meant anything to the Empress, from the way her eyebrow arched into the hairline.
"Ali is still too young to grasp the change. A sudden, full-time relocation to the fox realm will confuse him greatly." Ye Hua reasoned. "Qian Qian is still unconscious and cannot take care of him. Please allow at least one of his parent to be with him."
"May I suggest an alternative? How about him splitting time between here and there then?" He tried to offer a sound compromise, knowing he could not win against the Emperor if he really wanted to take his son way.
"Ye Hua," Consort Le Xu exclaimed. "You cannot allow that! Ali still has his studies here. He's the future Crown Prince now. How can he skip those lessons just to spend time away? No offense, Emperor, but I doubt the education in your land is on par with our standards." She said quite haughtily.
"High Goddess Bai Qian is such a prime example. Her upbringing is too bizarre. Apparently, she possesses not a single bones of gentle and refined Lady. A quite predictable outcome; considering how she spent her early years living among men; learning how to wage a war rather than womanly roles and duties."
A silence hung heavily in the wake of her criticism against the only High Goddess in all realms. The Fox Empress halted her sons from speaking out of turn. Her smile was still serene when she spoke up, quite nonchalantly.
"My daughter is a High Goddess, she's by all means your better. Were she here, by your own rules, you will have to humble yourself and kowtow to her. I believe the Ninth Heaven also has a rule against speaking so ill of their superior. What is the punishment for that again, hmm?"
If the Fox Empress enjoyed the way the color drain so fast from the Consort's face, she did not showed it. "Now where are we? Ah, the child rearing and upbringing."
She smiled brightly. "If my daughter is such an exemplary case as you said. What about Lady Su Jin then? You raised her from young, did you not? She grew up to be such a bitter and vengeful person who refused to see any reasons. She was so willing to go the greatest length to satisfy her selfish wishes. I wonder where she learned that kind of behaviors from."
The Empress continued her verbal attack blissfully. "And there is your son who is so emotionally stunted that he could not cope with his life positively. Who in their right mind come to the conclusion that the only way to protect his wife is to abandon her and leave her to fight her own battle when she was not even equipped to do so? Or intentionally harmed her to save her so-called life?"
"Do you see it now? You failed them as their mother. Twice." The Empress tutted disapprovingly. "After all that came to pass today, you still have to gall to bring my daughter into question. What does that say about you?"
The Empress's eyes hardened. "My good conscience will not allow me to let such a bad influence on my only grandson. If Prince Ali needed a good female role model in his life; my family will gladly provided it. Each of us have accomplished great many things in our lifetime, anyone can attest to that. Doubtfully the same could be said about yours or you."
Consort Le Xu's face redden so much she could felt the heat spreading down her neck. She opened her mouth then shut it, knowing she could not completely refute the accusations the older woman flung at her. Her own inability to maintain a good head on her shoulders was seriously criticized and shredded into pieces. Hot tears borne of being utterly humiliated dripped down her face unbidden. And she wept in silence.
Seeing the situation was spiraling downward, Ye Hua curved down his rising uneasiness at being called out as an emotionally-inept person and stepped in.
"Emperor, Empress, I wish to offer an apology on my mother's behalf. The stress must have gotten to her, making her behave erratically. I sincerely hope you would not take her words to heart." He bowed low to Qian Qian's parents to appease their anger.
"As for Ali, I have every confidence under your tutelage he would learn great many deals. Your family is renowned for both innate power and strength of characters. But Ali has spent many years studying. It would be a waste not to fulfill them to fullest capacity, especially those lessons taught by the Lord of Luminous Treasures himself."
He continued. "So I humbly beg you, to let him stay at least half a year with me. I believe learning his heritage from both sides will grant him a better opportunity in the long run."
The Fox couple consulted each other with their eyes. They were not completely heartless to tear away the child from one of his constant parent. In the end a compromise was reached. In a month, Ali would come to Qing Qiu and stay with them at his mother's Den, getting to know his other family.
:: Two weeks later, Kunlun Mountain ::
Ali was skipping and dancing his way all the way back to his mother's room. Nai Nai trailed after him at a more sedated pace, she was too tired to keep up with his youthful exuberance.
In his hand held a few branches of Peach Blossom. He was told it was a tradition, for his mother at least, to decorate the room with them. Ali had no problem followed said tradition. The Peach Groove in the back of Kunlun Mountain was fun to play around, even on his own.
Ali let out a happy squeal as he jumped up and tried to make another grab at the flying creatures. Kunlun's people were very funny and welcoming. They brought so many toys for him, including the spell-woven paper butterflies currently fluttering merrily around him.
The young prince also adored the Master of Kunlun, even if they did not talk that much, something he determined to change soon. Ali was unable to pinpoint it, there was something about the older man that make him feel safe and relaxed. Not much different from being with his Father Prince.
The boy chew his lips, rather frustrated. He still cannot decide the proper term to address the man.
:: flashback ::
Ali craned his head looking at the long-winded stone staircase; standing tall at the end of their path was an enigmatic, awe-inspiring, monolithic structure. He tugged at Nai Nai's hand, asking questions, not for the first time since they started this journey. Jia Yun, their appointed guard, followed them at a much greater distance.
"What is that? The giant stone building?" His tone reflected a childlike wonder.
Nai Nai giggled softly. His excitement was quite infectious. She was quite in awe with this place as well, even it was her second time here.
"That's the Kunlun's Grand Hall. They use it to welcome visitors, very much like your Father Prince's Grand Hall."
Ali shook his head. "No, no, it's nothing alike. I mean this is huge!" He insisted; spreading the gap between the palms of his hands to elaborate his point. He looked up at his companion, asking hopefully. "My mother, she's really here?"
"Yes, she is." Nai Nai responded quickly to assure the young boy.
"High God Mo Yuan….," he hesitated, tilting his head to the side. "What should I call him father..err no ..step-father? Or umm, uncle?"
Nai Nai raised her hand to her mouth to hide her amusement. "Just go with what you feel comfortable. It will be fine."
His brows only furrowed deeper. They crossed the threshold and finally arrived at the inner hall. Ali observed the two lines of men clad in white robe with pure fascination. Each of them sat ramrod-straight, proud and quite intimidating to his eyes. Not as frightening as his Grandfather per se but still quite daunting at first glance. Let's just said the princeling was impressed.
"Nai Nai." The boy tugged at his caretaker's hand urgently; eyeing the man occupying the slightly elevated seating platform. "He looks just like Father Prince. Are you sure that's not father in disguised?" He whisper-yelled and failed to see how his hushed exclamation brought humor to those men, his supposed uncle included.
"I am quite sure he is not. They are an identical twin. Of course, they look alike. Did you forget what the Crown Prince told you?" Nai Nai giggled then confided in him fondly. "Now let's greet him properly, shall we?"
Ali bobbed his head up and down and grinned excitedly. He bowed from the waist to show his great respect to one of the oldest god.
"Ali greets uncle, step-father, God of War High God Mo Yuan. Ali thanks you for your hospitality for having me here today." He said in a rush before he forgot his practiced speech.
As soon as he finished, the sound of suppressed mirth reached his ear. The little prince gawked at the man sitting on his left side who still chuckled for good measure.
A sigh ensued, followed by a 'Zi Lan'. The way by which it was worded almost sounded like a chiding.
Did he say something wrong? Ali blinked in confusion with no less self-doubt. He cannot let anyone saying he had less than an impeccable manner. He was representing both his Father Prince and his mother after all. Ali puffed up at that thought. So, naturally, he tried again.
"Ali hope his presence will not trouble High God Mo Yuan, the God of War and Master of Kunlun; uncle turned step-father, too much." And he waited.
Much to his chagrin, most of them now burst out in laughing, except the Master himself and the stern-looking man on his immediate right hand. Though their faces were expertly schooled; Ali's eyes spied a small, curved lips lifting at the corners.
"What a delightful child." Someone wheezed another laugh while he tried to catch a breathing.
"Definitely Seventeenth's son. Though I doubt she was this polite."
"I bet she was a true menace at that age."
Another added, oddly cheerfully. That comment certainly set off another round of laughter.
"That's quite enough, all of you," came the gentle reprimand.
Ali was enraptured by their light-hearted exchanges. Kunlun's people was not as boring as he first suspected. They were rather interesting, and definitely something else? Lately the mood in the Ninth Heaven became quite somber for no reason. Perhaps it was due to his Grandfather and Consort Su Jin's sudden disappearance? Even his grandmother's good-natured smile came far and few in between now, Ali lamented.
At least there would be no more stuffy old guys pushing him to study harder to compensate those months of upcoming vacation he would spend in Qing Qiu with his grandparents. He brightened up at that thought. The little prince quickly flashed them his winning smile. Nai Nai always said that no one could resist his 'megawatt smile'. Whatever that was. He hoped it was enough to win them over.
"Ooh, look at that smile. Come here, boy." They waved at him to come closer.
It seemed the formality had ended, Ali decided before standing up and taking off toward them. Soon he was surrounded and engulfed by disciples of the God of War. His day was already looking up!
:: end of flashback ::
"Nai Nai, I am running ahead," the little prince shouted at his escort.
Ali cannot wait to visit his mother again; even though she was still sleeping all the time. He was content just sitting and playing close to her. High God Zhe Yan assured him she would wake up in no time. Ali hope it would be very sooner than later. He missed her so much.
Note: Special thanks to my edit 'Noitratoxin' for your help as always.
The final arc of this story is finally here ... Again, thanks everyone for your encouragement and patience. Appreciate it a lot.