It issued in a voice like thunder and lightning; its vital force was vast and unyielding.
-Anonymous
To the clatter of hooves, Xing Yan and Qiong Rong soon left the battlefield and its earth-shaking cries behind. Once the smoke around them thinned and they could again make out the sky, clouds, and woods ahead, Xing Yan reined in the white horse and swung down. Seeing her brother dismount, the little girl floated lightly to the ground as well.
Looking back the way they had come, they could faintly hear horses neighing and men clamoring where the smoke met the clouds. Yet it was so far away that, without listening closely, one might have mistaken it for a noisy marketplace.
"Good, the air here is clear. I won't have to worry about the smoke choking me in a moment."
Xing Yan swiftly surveyed their surroundings. Just as he was about to begin, he heard Qiong Rong ask beside him in bewilderment:
"Brother, aren't we going back?"
"No. We'll defeat those bad men first."
"All right! But Qiong Rong can't see those bad men!"
"Heh, that's all right. I'm about to show you a magic trick. But you'll have to help me with something, Qiong Rong."
"All right!"
The little girl immediately thrust out her chest and raised her head, waiting for her brother to give her a task.
"I'm going to play the flute. If any bad men wearing black headscarves come to disturb me, drive them away with your knives!"
"All right!"
The little girl never asked why Xing Yan wanted to play the flute. She simply whirled the pair of gleaming short blades in her hands into two flowers.
"Very good! There's one more thing you must remember, Qiong Rong."
"If one day you can't find me, go to