Cabbagy’s words rang in my head like a bell, and I stumbled back, almost dropping him as understanding dawned. There had been a shard inside the other test subjects, and so there must be one inside of me. If I had three sets of overlapping memories, then they must be contained inside that.

  But…

  “But if my body has been destroyed, how could the shard still be inside me? Wouldn’t it have fallen out of my skull?”

  Cabbagy scoffed.

  “Do I look like a demonic cultivator? How am I supposed to know?”

  “But you know about the ritual!”

  “No,” Cabbagy retorted. “I know that you know about the ritual. From what you’ve told me about your condition and your memories, the only explanation is that some kind of soul splicing took place inside the demonic facility. Since the other shards have shared memories and techniques, it only makes sense that your own shard would contain the memories and techniques to repeat that ritual.”

  I found myself nodding along to his logic.

  “That makes sense,” I said. “So this ritual would place your soul inside of Cabbajoe?”

  “That’s my hypothesis,” Cabbagy said, using a big word to sound smart.

  “Are you ok with this, Cabbajoe?”

  “Yeah, no regrets,” he replied.

  “Really?”

  “What part of no regrets don’t you understand? Damn, Cabbagy, you have my sympathies.”

  “Thank you.”

  “Of course.”

  I glared at the two of them.

  “Don’t talk about me like I’m not here.”

  “Ok.”

  “Sure, kid.”

  I continued to glare at them.

  “I’m still not convinced that there is a shard inside me.”

  “Maybe it’s a part of you?” Cabbajoe said. “So it grows back whenever you grow back?”

  I frowned down at Cabbajoe.

  “How would you know about that?”

  “That doctor dicked around for a good couple of hours,” Cabbajoe explained. “Cabbagy and I had some time to discuss things.”

  “You talked about my secrets in front of her!”

  “Relax, kid. She doesn’t speak Cabbage, remember?”

  I chuckled as relief set through me.

  “You’re right. So, how do I go about this ritual?”

  “Not tonight,” Cabbagy said. “Think this over.”

  “What’s there to think about?”

  After a moment of silence, Cabbajoe coughed.

  “So, he’s always this stupid?”

  “Sort of, yeah,” Cabbagy said. “If he wasn’t unkillable, he would need to be a lot smarter, but, you know, he’s unkillable.”

  “Makes sense.”

  I frowned.

  “What are you two talking about?”

  “Kid, you’re talking about opening up your mind to the memories of your past and the traumatic ritual that turned you into whatever it is you are. Who knows what could go wrong, or what might happen to you?”

  “Exactly! Who knows? So there’s no point worrying.”

  “What if you wake up after the ritual and one of your past lives is in charge? The you that you are now would cease to exist!”

  After a moment of frowning, I understood.

  “Oh,” I said. “That’s actually disconcerting.”

  “Again, you have my sympathies.”

  “Thank you, Cabbajoe. Kid, I want you to think about this for at least a day.”

  I was no longer so gung-ho about the ritual and readily accepted. With that settled, I glanced back at the doctor's house.

  "She tricked me."

  "Are you going to eat her, kid?"

  "Wait, he eats people?"

  "I'm not going to eat her," I said.

  "That's surprising, kid."

  "That's surprising?!" Cabbajoe echoed.

  "She's probably stringy and tastes like medicine," I said after a moment's thought. "And she's not a cultivator."

  "So you're letting her get off scot free?"

  "No, I'll come up with a plan. I might not have many memories, but I don't forget."

  With that, I scooped up Cabbajoe and the three of us headed back to the Vermillion Ibex.

  ###

  Shen Wanjun moved through the tent city that had sprung up in Flint Oak Park. The limestone branches formed an interwoven canopy over the park, and the last of the sunset caught the flint acorns like burning coals. While the soft grass walkways were usually a tranquil space, the park was now a riot of noise, color, and humanity. Sects and clans from all across the Black Tiger Kingdom and beyond had sent representatives to participate in the coming auctions. It was no exaggeration to say that Flint Oak Park was a microcosm of Mountain Root City as a whole: a once ancient place of reflective quiet turned into a simmering volcano.

  This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

  Shen Wanjun had long practised the art of Subtle Reduction, where she could selectively reduce her cultivation to bring her body down to mortal levels. Still, despite this, her beer buzz had long worn off and now she was growing frustrated with tracking down the disciples of the Celebration Flame Sect.

  Fortunately, Shen Wanjun’s unmistakable stone wood armor and the unbridled aura of a 2nd Stage Foundation Establishment cultivator meant that nobody dared to get in her way or avoid her questions.

  By the time it grew properly dark, she found herself at a large tent with fabric of frozen white and pale blue: the Winter’s Heart Sect.

  They had tables set up out front, with steaming dishes bought from inns. Several cultivators, dressed in robes that matched the tents, sat at the tables, eating. They were all bruised and heavily bandaged as though they’d just come out of a fighting tournament.

  They all stopped eating when she approached them.

  “I am Shen Wanjun of the Mountain Root City Guard. I’ve been told that the Celebration Flame Sect disciples are here.”

  The Winter’s Heart Sect disciples looked at each other before one of them answered.

  “They are serving my senior sister; if you enter the tent, you will find them.”

  “Thank you.”

  Serving? What kind of weird sect bullshit was she about to walk into?

  She headed into the tent.

  While it wasn’t the weirdest thing she could have seen, it was definitely up there.

  A young, robust man in the red and gold of the Celebration Flame Sect was on all fours on the ground. He held his back rigid as though he were a bench, and a beautiful young woman of the Winter’s Heart Sect sat on his back as she delicately ate her supper. Her bowl of food was cradled in the hands of a young woman who also wore the robes of the Celebration Flame Sect.

  “Good evening,” said the Winter’s Heart Sect disciple. “My name is Sun Meng. How can I help you?”

  Shen Wanjun bowed.

  “I must speak with one or both of the Celebration Flame Sect disciples,” she said.

  “Can it wait until I have finished my meal?”

  Shen Wanjun gritted her teeth.

  “It cannot.”

  “Very well. He Yan, assist the guard however she needs.”

  “Yes, Mistress Sun,” said He Yan as she presented the bowl to Sun Meng.

  With a face of resignation, He Yan followed Shen Wanjun out of the tent and into the open air. They walked a little bit away from the Winter’s Heart Sect tent to gain some privacy.

  As much as she wanted to drop off the remains and be on her way, Shen Wanjun felt compelled to ask.

  “You understand that while you must obey the laws of Mountain Root City, you are also afforded protections under those same laws?”

  “What are you asking me?

  “Are you being held against your will?”

  He Yan’s eyes widened at the implication.

  “No, it is nothing like that!” she said hurriedly. “My foolish, cowardly, despicable martial brother hired the Winter’s Heart Sect disciples but ran away before they could collect their payment. Ye Bin and I are thus serving the Winter’s Heart Sect for the duration they remain in Mountain Root City as a means of clearing the debt.”

  “I see.”

  “They’re actually being very generous.”

  “Of course. If the situation becomes less generous, please contact the guards. You may ask for me by name.”

  “That won’t be necessary, I assure you.”

  “Hmmm.”

  He Yan squirmed under Shen Wanjun’s stare.

  “How can I help you tonight?” she asked.

  Shen Wanjun straightened.

  “I’m afraid I come as a bearer of bad news. This storage ring contains the remains of your fellow disciple who was killed in a fight earlier today.”

  He Yan blinked, her face pale as the shock set in.

  “Jiang Jian is truly dead then… I already knew, but…”

  Shen Wanjun allowed the young woman some time to deal with her grief, but not too much time.

  “If you have an area where you would like me to place the remains, I shall leave them with you. If you have no place to take them, I can take them to the funeral services attached to the Mountain Root City guards.”

  “I’ll take them,” He Yan said as she idly twisted the ring on her finger. “To think that my senior brother would be the one who… Please, give them to me.”

  Rather than reveal the ghastly remains, Shen Wanjun tapped her storage ring against He Yan’s. A rigorous application of qi allowed her to dominate both spatial treasures and deposit the bones.

  “I am truly sorry for your loss, Miss He Yan.”

  He Yan nodded, her eyes welling up with tears, and turned to leave, but Shen Wanjun stopped her with her aura. It wasn’t excessive, just enough force and pressure to tell the young woman that she wasn’t permitted to leave.

  “I have one more question before I leave.”

  He Yan sniffed.

  “What is it?”

  “Do you know who did this to your senior brother?”

  “Yes,” He Yan said as her eyes burned with righteousness and qi. “And I can tell you where he is staying.”

  ###

  I bumped into Chen Ai as she was coming out of the Vermillion Ibex. She stared at my chest, where I’d stashed the cabbages.

  “You have two of them now?” she asked blankly.

  “Yes.”

  “He he he, your chest looks like hers!”

  “Ignore him,” Cabbagy said. “There’s no way two cabbages could do your chest justice.”

  “Ignore both of them,” I told Chen Ai, before I noticed her expression.

  She looked like she had a lot on her mind, maybe even more than I did.

  “Do you want to get a drink?” I asked her.

  “That’s where I was going.”

  “Don’t want to drink in the inn?”

  “It’s too dour for my mood right now. I’m glad you’re here though, I need to tell you about the City Lord.”

  Oh, right. In all the talk of the ritual, I’d almost forgotten about that.

  “It can wait until we have a drink. Let me drop these two off first, and then we’ll go out. Shall I invite my disciple?”

  “If you can find him,” Chen Ai responded. “He wandered off as we were coming back from the City Lord’s Complex.”

  “Did he say why?”

  She shrugged.

  “Probably.”

  “Alright.”

  Not long after that, Chen Ai and I found an inn with tables that spilled out into the brightly lit street. The air was cool and refreshing, and we took turns pouring each other liquor, drinking in silence, before Chen Ai spoke.

  “The City Lord wants to give you 50000 silver.”

  My drink sprayed out of my mouth.

  “What?!”

  Fortunately, I hadn’t sprayed her in the face.

  “That was my reaction as well,” she said as she refilled my cup.

  “We should celebrate then!” I said earnestly. “Why do you look so dour?”

  “He will only pay if you publicly denounced the expedition to the Howling Blossom Valley and leave the city at once.”

  “Oh…”

  She looked at me with curiosity.

  “Oh? Certain death vs incredible riches isn’t really a difficult decision for most.”

  “I can’t renounce the expedition.”

  She nodded as though she expected that decision, and downed her drink.

  “One moment,” she said.

  Leaving the table, Chen Ai strode back into the inn. I sat, watching as cultivators and citizens strolled along the street. There was that strange, bustling quiet that certain areas in a city get at night, where the pulse remains, but the din of the day has long settled. I found it incredibly relaxing, and only my farmer memories were at all put off by the scene, though even they were slowly adjusting to the sights.

  Chen Ai returned with a large bottle of even harder liquor.

  “Finish what’s in your hand and I’ll top you up.”

  I did as she instructed, and she poured out alcohol so strong it stung my nose. That was interesting, actually, since I didn’t think alcohol would affect me like that with my regeneration…

  “What is this stuff?” I asked as I examined the bottle.

  “This is Drooping Lily Spirits,” said Chen Ai. “The cheapest hard liquor that’s charged with qi of death and decay. They make it in a swamp city down south, but I don’t know the name.”

  “Death and decay?” I asked incredulously. “Why would anyone drink this?”

  “Hello,” said the bottle. “I’m here to have a good time.”

  Chen Ai grinned.

  “This stuff fucks you up like a donkey kick to the back of the head.”

  “It’s what I do,” said the bottle.

  I sipped the drink and felt a burn in my throat that reminded me of the Cleansing Flame Formation.

  “This is horrifying,” I said.

  “Yes,” she said. “Many things are, like why my senior brother is throwing away 50000 silver to pick a flower in an Imperial Forbidden Zone.”

  Oh… when she put it like that…

  Chen Ai drank her entire cup in one go and let out a relaxed sigh.

  “You’re insane,” I said as she poured another cup.

  “That makes two of us. Now, you drink one.”

  “Yeah,” said the bottle. “Drink me.”

  I glanced down at the clear poison in my cup, shrugged, and threw it down my throat. “Damn, this stuff is boiling my soul!”

  “Probably, but you get used to it,” she said as she filled my cup. “Now, I need you to tell me why.”

  “Why?”

  “Why are you so hell bent on getting this flower! I refuse to believe it’s just to appease a woman. Please, senior brother. I will follow you, whatever you decide, but if I’m going to risk death -- by the way, the City Lord promised to send skilled assassins after us if we refused him -- I deserve to know why.”

  I opened my mouth to say that she already knew why, but I stopped. When I thought about it, I had been particularly driven, and it didn’t really make a lot of sense. Maybe it was the horrendous alcohol burning a hole in my stomach, or it was Cabbagy’s talk of rituals and souls, but something shook loose in my mind.

  A memory bloomed, and I recognized the answer to Chen Ai’s question.