Blue Phoenix

As soon as Hui Yue had spoken, Wan Qiao officially ended the conclave, and all the lords returned to the residences which had been provided for them within the castle. Some were excited; others were exhausted. Some were looking forward to becoming a part of the army while others hoped to be given the simple task of being left at home to look after their country.

The last people left in the library were Hui Yue, Wan Qiao, and Lord Pan. All three had smiles on their faces, and while Hui Yue’s smile seemed to convey a little more exhaustion than the other two’s, he was still very pleased with what had been accomplished.

“I need you to provide something for me,” He said to Wan Qiao as he leaned back on the chair he was seated on resting against the chair with his eyes closed.

“You told me to choose whom I want for the army, but I cannot make a decision unless you give me a list of every lord. I need to know which beast they are if they want to join the army or want to stay within shenyuan, and I need to know about their overall strength.”

“Can you get those to me in a few days?” Hui Yue asked. “Also, I will need someone to fly Li Meilin back to her kingdom soon. I am going to go and have a talk with her about this war.”

“So you truly plan on using this woman as a part of your plan?” Wan Qiao asked. She knew Hui Yue had mentioned it previously, but to actually do it was cruel because it left Li Meilin with no choice. Even if Li Meilin knew that she was stepping into a trap, she had no other option than to do what Hui Yue wanted of her. Following his plan was the only way she stood even the smallest chance of leaving Shenyuan alive. For her to rush home and warn the Siban Empire of the impending war, this would make Hui Yue the happiest. From Li Meilin’s point of view, rushing back was without a doubt the best option as well.

Nodding his head, Hui Yue stood up and another bow towards the two Saints, Hui Yue left the room. He headed to find Li Meilin and speak with her about the war which was brewing. The news which the woman had already guessed but was not sure about.

Looking around, Hui Yue could not find Li Meilin. He started to become confused about where the woman was hiding only to find that no matter how much he looked, he was not capable of finding the woman. Sighing Hui Yue felt a headache coming his way as he imagined various scenarios the woman could be undertaking to return to her kingdom. Perhaps she had already left the city and was on her way back; perhaps she was in town getting information. No matter what, Hui Yue had no idea where the woman was. He started to feel slightly annoyed that she had not just stayed put waiting for him to tell her that war was coming, and then help him find a way for her to return to her home. Hopefully, this was something he could still accomplish without her knowing that Hui Yue intentionally made her return.

Hui Yue was waiting in front of Li Meilin’s room, his body leaning against the wall as his mood was turning more and more foul the longer he waited. Finally, as the last rays of sunshine were vanishing, Li Meilin appeared at her door. Her hair was damp and her skin red. It was clear that she had taken a bath somewhere, but as for what she was doing before that, Hui Yue had no idea.

Looking at each other, Li Meilin was taken aback as she saw the young man waiting for her, and she instantly became alert and slightly defensive. So far, each time Hui Yue had been with her, the young man was dismissive and clearly hostile, yet here he was waiting for her with a grim look on his face. This was something which instantly made Li Meilin feel uncomfortable. She was ready for a showdown between the two humans within Shenyuan.

“What are you doing here?” Li Meilin asked with a hostile air to her voice. Although she previously had been trying to get close to Hui Yue, it had not worked very well. When she learned that the man did not put her in his eyes, she decided to get information other ways.

“I don’t like you,” Hui Yue stated with a bland voice, something which made Li Meilin snort in contempt. She already knew this. “I don’t like you, but you are the only other human within Shenyuan,” Hui Yue continued as his words made Li Meilin both apprehensive but also worried. For Hui Yue to wish to speak with her because she was human meant that something bad was going on.

“Aren’t you going to invite me inside?” Hui Yue asked sourly as he looked around him, watching for guards or other beasts coming his way, “This is not something we should be talking about here outside the room.”

Hearing this suggestion, Li Meilin nodded her head. Although she was slightly apprehensive, she was getting more and more worried. For Hui Yue to treat her the way he was, clearly something was very wrong, something where he had no other option than to come and find her.

Opening the door, Li Meilin gestured for Hui Yue to follow her, and the young man quickly followed as the two of them sat down within the room, neither saying anything. Li Meilin was waiting as Hui Yue looked as though he was in a tough position. He looked like he was considering how to inform the woman next to him about the information he had obtained.

“As you might know, I am half human, half beast,” Hui Yue said, this was the explanation he used for his human shape and his scent of a human which was impossible to hide. “I am living as a human as much as I am as a beast,” He continued. He stressed the fact that he wanted Li Meilin to know that he was as human as much as he was beast, and the reason he was speaking with her was because of his human side.

“Today I overheard something I am quite certain that I should not have,” He began before he paused slightly. The pause causing Li Meilin’s heart to beat erratically and her worry to grow further.

“I walked in on Wan Qiao and Lord Pan. The two of them were speaking about war. It seems that they are planning on waging war with the outside world. I did not hear which one of the kingdoms they will attack but no matter which kingdom they attack, we are all in trouble. I am from Taiyang while you are from Siban. No matter which kingdom they attack, there will be trouble.”

Hearing these words the world seemed to collapse in front of Li Meilin’s eyes. Her entire world spun around for a moment. She quickly sat down, and had a hand supporting her head as she closed her eyes and forced the nauseating feeling down. Her eyes slowly opened once more, and they turned dark with determination.

“What do you plan to do about this?” She asked Hui Yue, but the young man shook his head with a sad expression. “I am going to stay here until I reach the King rank, but I am going to try and speak with Wan Qiao and see if I can convince her to let you leave. However, if I succeed you have to swear that you will tell the Taiyang kingdom about the danger,” Hui Yue said, his eyes serious as he looked at Li Meilin.

The woman was quiet for quite some time as she considered whether or not to listen to the young man, but deep inside she was grateful that he had told her, that he was even willing to find a way for her to exit Shenyuan. If he truly managed to find a way to allow her to leave, then she would definitely do as he requested and tell the Taiyang Kingdom about the danger. Although she could not afford to pay any attention to other kingdoms preparations for war, she could at least warn them for the sake of this young man.

“How will you convince Wan Qiao to allow me to leave this place?” Li Meilin asked curiously as she looked at the young man in front of her. Hui Yue was quiet for some time, gnawing on his lip as though he was contemplating multiple options, and eventually he opened his mouth to say, “I think I am going to tell her about you constantly sneaking around and getting more and more information. That I heard about the war and would suggest that you get moved before you get hold of the news as it will make it harder for them to take over a prepared kingdom.” Hui Yue said with a decisive voice. He slowly nodded his head as if this was the best idea he could come up with, and even Li Meilin nodded in agreement thinking that this was the best, and most likely only way for her to leave Shenyuan.

“I am going to speak with her tomorrow. Don’t pack up or do anything, pretend you heard nothing, and that we did not meet.” Hui Yue said with a nod as he left the room in a hurry, leaving behind Li Meilin who was feeling uncertain.

Li Meilin was an Emperor. She had lived all her life at court and was used to intrigues. Her current feeling told her that she was being played for a fool. However, although she was being fooled, if it ended in her leaving Shenyuan and capable of telling the Siban’s about the danger, then so be it. She had no choice but to walk directly into the trap which was laid out before her.

Sighing deeply, the woman sat down and started to brush her hair. Her eyes were sharp and on alert, and her ears were strained to their limits as she listened to everyone who walked past her room. She had a feeling that Hui Yue might return, but as the night turned into the early morning with sunshine coming in through the windows, the woman finally accepted that he would not be coming back to visit her, to give her more information.

Unlike the previous days, Li Meilin did not step outside her room. She did not go out and try to gather information, instead she sat down at her desk and wrote document after document containing the information she had gathered during her time in Shenyuan.

While Li Meilin was busy writing, Hui Yue went to Wan Qiao’s chambers once more. Knocking on the door, a voice called for him to enter, and the young man stepped inside only to be greeted by a sight he did not expect to see.

“What are you doing?” He asked as he lifted one piece of paper which was laying on the side of her desk letting the ink to dry. Hundreds of such papers were stacked by the side. Her golden hair was disheveled, and her eyes focused fully on the papers in front of her. Hearing the voice, Wan Qiao lifted her head and a sour look appeared on her face.

“What am I doing?” She asked, her voice dangerously low, and Hui Yue instantly took a step back, wondering if he was prone for another slap. “You told me you needed documentation about every single one of the lords, is it not obvious that I am writing down the documents you want from me?” She growled, clearly annoyed, but for now, she stayed seated. The only change visible was a glare from her eyes.

“So why are you here anyways?” She asked as she stood up leaving behind the table filled with documents.