A Town Behind a Barrier

After the little girl finished crying, Xu Zhiqiu picked up a wooden stick and reached out to her with her free hand. "All right, let's keep going."

"Where are we going?" The little girl no longer had a home. She was all alone now.

"Wherever the wind takes us," Xu Zhiqiu said, the corners of her mouth lifting slightly.

Ming dynasty delicacies, here I come!!

The little girl stared, spellbound by her fairy-like big sister's lovely smile. Coming back to her senses, she reached out her small hand and took Xu Zhiqiu's. The warmth of her palm felt like the warmth of family.

"What should I call you?" the little girl asked.

"My surname is Xu, and my given name is Zhiqiu. What about you?"

"My surname is Gu, and my given name is Weny an," the little girl replied.

"What a lovely name. I'll call you Weny an from now on."

Gu Weny an pressed her lips together. "Mm. Sister Xu, your name is lovely too."

As their figures receded into the distance, their voices gradually faded.

Xu Zhiqiu had originally wanted to sample the food. Instead of finding any delicacies, she had ended up being chased by monsters for ages. There were rather a lot of monsters here, and they were powerful, too-not something a single wooden stick could deal with.

Unable to handle them, Xu Zhiqiu could only flee for her life with Gu Weny an. After an entire day on the run, they finally reached a small town. It was rather quiet, with red lanterns hanging beneath the eaves of every house.

Xu Zhiqiu and Gu Weny an crouched on the outskirts, afraid to enter in case there was danger.

"Do you know what this place is?" Xu Zhiqiu asked Gu Weny an quietly.

Gu Weny an shook her head. "I always lived in the Dark Domain Forest before. I've never been outside it."

"That makes things a little tricky, but it's all right." Xu Zhiqiu picked up a stone beside her and threw it into the town. It passed straight through.

Someone suddenly cried out in pain, yet no one could be seen.

"This is a concealment Barrier. It creates an illusion so people outside can't see the people inside," Gu Weny an explained.

"Why are there so many Barriers here?" Xu Zhiqiu frowned.

"Someone who knows how to create Barriers must live in this town. That's why it has one." Gu Weny an clenched her fists as she spoke. "The people in my village couldn't get out because of a Barrier. That's why those monsters killed them."

"Hm?" Xu Zhiqiu did not understand what she meant.

Gu Weny an stood up and caught Xu Zhiqiu's sleeve. "Sister Xu, let's go inside."

"Oh, all right." Xu Zhiqiu nodded and led Gu Weny an inward. Then she felt as though she had passed through something thin.

Seeing that Xu Zhiqiu could successfully bring her inside, a glimmer flashed in Gu Weny an's eyes. She really was different.

Once they passed through the Barrier, sweet aromas wafted around their noses, and lively calls and the bustle of people swept over them. At the sight of living people and lively streets, Xu Zhiqiu inexplicably felt tears welling up. At last, she had reached somewhere full of life. She had to settle down here.

Just as she was about to pull Gu Weny an over to get steamed buns, Gu Weny an caught her hand instead and pointed at her clothes. "Sister Xu, shall we change our clothes first?"

Several passersby had just been looking them over, especially Xu Zhiqiu beside her.

Xu Zhiqiu looked down at her clothes. True enough, in the eyes of people from this era, these were nothing but underclothes-an affront to decency.

The two headed into a less crowded alley.

In one of the town's houses, a middle-aged man who had been meditating opened his eyes. Someone had entered. He took up his fly whisk, flicked it once, and immediately vanished.

They emerged from the clothing shop.

Xu Zhiqiu had changed into a clean set of gray clothes. She looked at Gu Weny an, whose cheeks still held a little baby fat. "Weny an, how much money do you have left?"

Gu Weny an placed two copper coins in Xu Zhiqiu's hand. "That's all." While fleeing for her life, how could she have spared a thought for bringing money?

Looking at the two copper coins in her palm, Xu Zhiqiu sighed. It seemed they could only buy steamed buns to fill their bellies for now. "Let's go."

"Two steamed buns, please," Xu Zhiqiu said, standing in front of the bun stall with Gu Weny an.

"Coming right up."

After buying two buns, they went to a quiet corner, sat down, and ate the warm buns.

Gu Weny an was a little stunned by how unrestrainedly Xu Zhiqiu ate. It seemed to turn her understanding upside down. As hunger gnawed at her belly, she sat beside Xu Zhiqiu and began wolfing down her bun as well.

Xu Zhiqiu glanced at her without saying anything.

After finishing her bun.

Xu Zhiqiu tilted her head back and gazed at the moonlight. She had thought there would be no monsters here, that things would follow the course of actual history. In the end, she had been overthinking it. Since monsters existed in the island nation's setting, they were bound to exist here too-and they were far stronger than those in the island nation.

A burning pain came from her shoulder, and Xu Zhiqiu began to miss the little village in that little corner of the little island nation. There, she could still use the Jade Blade. Now that she was here, she had somehow gained lightness skills, but what use were those alone? Without being able to use the Jade Blade, how was she any different from an ordinary person? Her fighting power had dropped, and her confidence had weakened with it.

The crucial problem was that she had no money.

She thought to herself, Tomorrow, I need to find work in this town and do my best to earn some money.

"Sister Xu, where did that piece of jade on your wrist come from?" Gu Weny an suddenly asked.

At the question, Xu Zhiqiu raised the jade on her wrist. "This jade is a family heirloom. It's passed down only to daughters, not sons."

"Why not sons?" Gu Weny an asked, propping her cheek on her hand.

Xu Zhiqiu could not answer that either. "Well, I don't know. That's just the rule our ancestors laid down."

"Oh," Gu Weny an replied.

"Sister Xu, where are you from?"

"Somewhere very far away. You wouldn't understand even if I told you. All right, get some rest." Xu Zhiqiu ruffled her hair as she spoke.

"All right," Gu Weny an answered, then leaned back against the wall and closed her eyes.

A smile lingered at the corners of Xu Zhiqiu's mouth. She let go and crossed her arms to sleep more comfortably.

Night fell.

Cool moonlight shone over the silent little town.

"The air is dry-beware of fire!" The night watchman's call rang through the quiet streets.

Xu Zhiqiu slept with her back against the wall. Her head tipped to one side and met empty air, startling her awake. Gu Weny an, who had been leaning beside her, was gone.

Footsteps pattered nearby.

Xu Zhiqiu frowned, her whole body on guard, and reached for the wooden stick beside her. Doubt rose in her heart. Strange. Didn't Gu Weny an say she wasn't familiar with this place? Why would she leave? Was she lying to me?

Although Xu Zhiqiu was puzzled, she still stood up and followed the sound.

The jade on her wrist radiated heat, as though warning her.