Chương 82: Chapter 80 - Capturing an Alchemist

Multicolored flames burst from Ao Wen's feat as she leaped from her seat, unsheathing Wild Fang in a smooth motion as she launched herself toward Mao Ailum. Flaming feat pivoted on thin air like it was solid ground until Ao Wen arrived behind the stunned Alchemy Novice. Wildfang pressed lightly into the alchemist's neck as Ao Wen used her left forearm along the spine of the blade to form one point of a lock while her left hand pressed forward on the back of his head, driving his flesh up against the edge of Wild Fang's blade. "I've killed better and worse men than you," Ao Wen breathed into his ear. "Don't make me add your name to my list of dead traitorous alchemists," she added, her mind flashing back to Alchemist Chu burning at her feet. She didn't have Cong Daiyu's dragon flames to reduce Alchemy Novice Mao to ash, but with Wild Fang in her hands, she didn't need flames to do the work.

"Wen, what's going on?" Feng Xi asked. She could feel Ao Wen's fury hanging in the air like a long-held note, tense, sharp, waiting to be unleashed. Equally, she felt Mao Ailum's fear but strangely it wasn't fear of Ao Wen's blade… that kind of crisis of imminent death sounded far more mournful in her ears. This fear felt like something different, fear of… what exactly? Feng Xi trusted Ao Wen not only with her own life but with her father's life. If Wen said that Alchemy Novice Mao had done something to the elixirs, Feng Xi believed it. Then, this fear she could hear radiating off of Mao Ailum, mixed with sour notes of regret… It should be fear of being discovered!

"The first elixir isn't exactly poison," Ao Wen said, disgust dripping from her voice like spilled plum wine. "But it's not appropriate treatment either. It's the equivalent of battlefield first aid. The sort of thing you use to stabilize a patient before taking them to a real healer. It was an appropriate thing to use to stop the wound from getting worse when it happened but Feng Lieren should have been taken to Red Moon City immediately if Mao Ailum's master wasn't willing to make a move. Father Feng never needed a Master Alchemist, he just needed real treatment."

The faces of everyone present displayed varying degrees of shock and disbelief. Of everyone, Zhang Bai was the fastest to recover, standing and drawing his own blade though he kept the tip pointed at the ground as though he hadn't decided whether he needed to defend Mao Ailum or condemn him. "What about the second elixir?" Zhang Bai asked, looking for time to sort out the situation. "You handed me two."

"That's the one that caused Father Feng's sudden downturn. It's laced with Blood Iron Dust. So far, I've only managed to expel half of what Father Feng ingested," Al Wen said fiercely. "Another two or three days and he'd have been a cripple for life. So tell us Alchemy. Novice. Mao. Ailum," Ao Wen said, enunciating each word. "Why? I can't believe someone who can pass a novice exam is this stupid and incompetent so it must have been deliberate. Tell us why," she insisted, pressing the edge of Wild Fang more firmly against his neck.

Mao Ailum's mind spun furiously. She'd seen it! Seen it all! She knew about the old medicine and about the Blood Iron Dust! How could he deal with this? How could he get out of this mess? How could a little girl who had just awakened and had no alchemy credentials have seen so much? Wait! She had no credentials! "This is outrageous nonsense," he managed to choke out against Ao Wen's blade. "Fairy Ao isn't even an Alchemy Initiate. She's making it up because she's upset. I came here with a pill to save Feng Lieren's life."

"At the cost of my sworn sister's hand in marriage," Ao Wen spat. "Don't try to make yourself out to be anything other than scum," she snarled. "At best, you're the worst kind of opportunist who would force a woman by holding her father's life hostage. You're not a hero here. Don't pretend."

"I demand an impartial inspection of my concoctions," Mao Ailum squeaked out. His master was the only registered member of the Alchemist's Consortium present in Turning Leaf town. He was the only one who could judge the effects of the elixirs. Most importantly, he had secluded himself in a cave in the hills to prevent anyone from interfering with his attempt to become a Master Scholar. With the lightning storm approaching, it would be days before anyone could fetch his master to be a judge! He could delay long enough to speak with Long Ma and then he could figure out a way out of this mess.

"There's no impartial alchemist in Turning Leaf town," Feng Xi said, feeling the triumph surging in Mao Ailum like a rising crescendo. "The only Independent Alchemist in Turning Leaf town is his own master. Even though he's a member of the consortium, he can't stand as a judge over his own disciple."

"We don't need someone else to verify the elixirs," Ye Kexin said quietly, her voice trembling with repressed fury that burned hotter than the core of a bolt of thunder. "We just need to ascertain whether or not daughter Wen is qualified to have done so. In the absence of a more senior alchemist to deliver an exam, I propose that the City Lord himself preside over this matter. He can set a challenge for Wen to prove herself," she said as though it was a perfectly logical thing to allow a City Lord to judge the matters of another profession. While the City Lord was a Master Scholar, he was well known to be a Formation Master, not an Alchemist. Still, who else could they turn to?

Zhang Bai shot a brief glance at Ye Kexin, eyes full of thanks and relief. With her suggestion, he could involve his father and wouldn't need to resolve this unexpected and highly explosive matter personally. Now all he needed to do was secure the alchemist before Ao Wen proved that her flames weren't only mesmerizing, they burned deadly hot! "Fairy Ao," Zhang Bai said gently. "If you release him, you have my word that he won't escape. You can accompany me to the City Lord's manner personally, along with Fairy Feng and Madame Ye."

"I can release him," Ao Wen said, pulling the edge of her saber just enough to release a thin stream of blood from Mao Ailum's neck. "As long as he understands that if he tries to run, or if he has any helpers waiting in the dark to jump out and make trouble for us, he dies on this blade. Understood?"

"Yes, yes, I understand," Mao Ailum said hastily. This woman was insane! Who threatened refined scholars like this?

With a promise extracted, Ao Wen released Mao Ailum and returned Wild Fang to its sheath. Zhang Bai took charge of the accused alchemist, binding his wrists like a common criminal. "Use a wet leather strap," Ao Wen called out as Zhang Bai began to bind Mao Ailum with a simple woven cord. "It's less comfortable but Alchemists always have access to fire unless you can seal their flames. If you take an alchemist prisoner, use a wet leather strap to bind them. They can still burn it away, they just have to boil off the water first but the cloud of steam doing so produces is a good warning sign. The steam burns are also a good deterrent against trying too," she added with a menacing glare at Mao Ailum.

Once the group had their prisoner secured and had made arrangements with the household staff to both tend to Feng Lieren and to send for Ao Wen if his condition worsened at all, they traveled across Turning Leaf Town to the City Lord's manner.

The stately manor of the City Lord stood imposing behind hexagonal ironwood gates, the deep emerald color of the lacquered wood hinting at the wealth contained within its fortified walls. Hexagonal courtyard tiles of grey and green stone spread out in an elegant pattern, one that Ao Wen recognized as having significance to formation masters but the purpose of which she couldn't discern.

Inside, a spacious receiving hall boasted exquisite furnishings of dark zitan wood carved with auspicious cloud motifs and inlaid with gold. Six sets of double doors lead deeper into the manor, granting tempting glimpses of rich furnishings and art treasures worthy of the City Lord's status. At the hall's center, a sunken hexagonal pond hosted jewel-toned carp gliding through crystalline waters, while a jade sculpture of an imposing tortoise stood at the center of the pond, seeming to survey each guest as they entered.

"Is that?" Ao Wen started to ask, staring at the jade sculpture in mild shock.

"It is," a rich and elegant voice said from the main entrance as City Lord Zhang emerged from the main entrance. "I was fortunate enough to receive one of your great-grandfather's final pieces. While I hope our family's guardian need never display its might, my family has known prosperity and safety for many years under its watchful eyes." Turning his gaze to Zhang Bai and the captured Alchemy Novice, the City Lord's gaze hardened, his voice becoming as stiff as fresh parchment. "Zhang Bai, for the second time today you're dragging a captive before me, this time bound like a criminal. An explanation is due," he said, stern eyes glinting with a sharpness that pinned Zhang Bai to the floor where he stood.