“What is this place?” I whisper to Kang when we carefully make our way around the pool on a slim ledge, barely wide enough for me to place my feet side by side.
“It’s an underground spring,” he responds. “I spent a lot of time here after Grandmother died. The abbess at the time was willing to take care of me whenever things got … tumultuous in the palace.”
Tumultuous. An interesting word choice.
“When I was smaller, it used to be a lot easier to make it through those rocks.” He chuckles, but there’s a nervous quality about his amusement. Like this place has stirred up something within his depths.
“We have to climb over this boulder and there’s a beach on the other side. We can wait there until the monks give up.” Kang pats the stone in front of him.
I look at the smooth surface, unsure. This is different from climbing onto a roof, where there are clear places I can put my hands and feet.
“Did you know these are sacred waters?” Kang tells me with a grin, as if he senses my nervousness. “When the First Emperor fought in the Battle of Red Rain, it was said the warlord Guan Yong chased him into the caves but did not pursue, because his clan believed these caverns to be haunted. When the First Emperor and his men walked out of the caves, Guan Yong and his followers laid down their swords, because their enemies had faced the spirits hidden in the caves and had come out victorious. His people knew no fish could live in these waters and no insects could thrive here, but the First Emperor drank from the pond and tasted only sweetness. He then triumphed over the southern clans with assistance from Guan Yong.
“Years later, the Ascended Emperor started construction on the capital, but when they wanted to build in this area, the earth collapsed. They found the underground spring and the cave system. When the Ascended Emperor heard that this had happened, he came to visit the site, and he saw a giant carp swimming in these waters. But when the Ascended Emperor’s men jumped into the spring to find it, they could find no sign of the creature. It was said then that this place was blessed by Shénnóng, and Língy? was built to preserve this site.”
“I’ve never heard that story.” I’m enthralled by the idea of standing in a place once visited by the gods. I peer down at the water to see if there is any magic hidden in its depths, but I see only stillness.
“You can try the water for yourself,” he says, teasing. “See if it tastes like the legend says.”
I raise my eyebrow. “I’m guessing you sampled the sacred waters many times as a boy?”
He laughs, putting his hand to his chest in mock affront. “Your words draw blood. Will you shame me in front of the gods?”
“Show me the way, before we are struck down for our disrespect.” I can’t help but chuckle.
Kang quickly scales the side of the boulder without hesitation. He moves unencumbered by his armor, like someone who has worn it all his life.
“There’s not enough room up here for both of us,” he calls out from the top. “I’ll wait for you on the other side.”
I acknowledge him while my hands run over the stone, searching for fingerholds. I find dips and cracks, use my toes to find leverage, then pull myself up, discovering imperfections in the rock to hook on to in the process. I’m slower and more careful than Kang, but it doesn’t take long before I pull myself over the top and onto the ledge above.
It’s even more beautiful up here. On a stretch of pebbled beach down below, Kang looks up at me with a grin. Handsome and tousled and wild.
Until his expression changes.
“Ning…，” he tells me, quiet and fearful. “Beside you…”
“What?” I swallow whatever I was about to say and follow his gaze to my left.
A green-and-yellow snake lifts its head at me, hissing. Its small black eyes are focused on me, a threat.
Moving slowly, I get onto my hands and knees, sliding my foot back until I can find a place to hold my weight.
“I’m not going to harm you,” I tell it, keeping my voice low. “I’m just going to—”
The snake darts forward, snapping at my arm, and I snatch my hand back, out of reach of its fangs. But the movement throws me too far in the other direction, and my foot slips.
I fall backward into emptiness.
The last thing I see is Kang’s shocked face, his hand reaching out for me. Then I break the surface of the blessed waters and sink into their cold depths.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
The water quickly soaks into my sleeves and my skirts, weighing them down. I struggle to take a breath, and the water rushes into my nose and open mouth, choking me. By the time I regain my senses enough to move my arms and kick my legs, I’m already hopelessly tangled in fabric.