Breaking the Precept

—"Stringed instruments? Don't humans usually pluck them with their claws? Like the zither, pipa, or konghou," Ye You asked, somewhat puzzled. "What is this 'bow' thing?"

Jian Xiaolou patiently explained, "Not all stringed instruments are like that..."

—"A-ni, why didn't you bring back the bow too?" Ye You reproached.

—"A-ni has been wronged, Master! A-ni feels unjustly treated!" A-ni pouted. "You only asked for the erhu. A-ni doesn't even know what an erhu looks like! I asked for one at the music shop, the shopkeeper handed it to me, and I knocked him out and fled. How was I supposed to know there was something called a bow?" He pouted again. "Alright, alright, stop looking at me like that. I'll go back and get the bow!"

A-ni stomped his foot and left. Ye You turned his attention back to scratching the erhu.

Jian Xiaolou quickly covered her ears and exclaimed, "Senior, the erhu I mentioned is a gourd, from the Aranya Sacred Vine..."

Heavens, they say music is the hallmark of elegance and scholarly grace in a gentleman.

But after hearing the sound of this erhu, Jian Xiaolou could only associate Ye You with a rugged, unkempt brute.

—"A spiritual tree, the Aranya Sacred Vine, three gourds," Ye You said.

After listening to Jian Xiaolou's bean-like chatter about the origins of the erhu, he finally stopped scratching the strings, flipping through ancient texts instead. "Sounds like something from the Wood Tribe. Why isn't it mentioned in their records... Oh, here it is..."

Jian Xiaolou perked up.

—"Why is it related to the Phoenix Tribe?" Ye You's tone grew impatient. "Wait a moment..."

The bone slip fell silent.

Shortly after, Su He's angry voice broke through, "I thought you, you pathetic dragon, might have grown a conscience! But as expected, you only come to me when you need something!"

—"Spit it out."

—"Shameless!" Su He spat. "First of all, the Spiritual Tree isn't a specific species. It can be any tree. Once it becomes the nesting tree of a high-level phoenix for a certain number of years, it transforms into what you call a Spiritual Tree."

After a pause, Su He continued, "And this is all ancient history. Nowadays, the Demon Tribes are heavily assimilated into human culture. Most of my Phoenix Tribe builds houses like humans do and rarely nests in trees anymore. But it's not unheard of. Some old-timers... ahem, some senior phoenixes can't adapt to houses and still prefer nesting in trees. Take that Golden Feather Phoenix you always love to insult. As far as I know, he prefers his tree over his estate."

Jian Xiaolou asked cautiously, "So does the Aranya Sacred Vine have anything to do with this Golden Feather senior?"

—"You, girl, again with your questions!" Su He's tone turned cold, likely recalling past disputes with her, but he still answered, "The Aranya Vine is the companion plant of the Spiritual Tree. Wherever the tree exists, the vine is there too. It's not directly related to Golden Feather, but yes, he must have it."

—"And it has three gourds?"

—"Indeed. I've seen them. They're all spiritual items, beneficial to his cultivation. They can't be plucked. Without being plucked, the vine doesn't undergo the once-in-a-millennium withering cycle..."

—"Let's go pluck one," Ye You said suddenly.

—"Are you insane?!" Su He shouted, "Do you think those gourds are your private property? The vine belongs to Golden Feather, a phoenix of the Buddha Tribe who has undergone nineteen Nirvanas and lived for over 200,000 years! The most powerful phoenix in the entire tribe! Count your claws, you're a tenth-rank Fire Phoenix, I'm eighth-rank, and together we're just eighteenth-rank. Golden Feather could kill us with one flap of his wings!"

—"The South Lodging Sect is hosting a Dharma assembly. Didn't you say your father knows Golden Feather? You distract him, and I'll do the stealing."

—"Ye You, look me in the eye. Tell me this is a joke!"

"Senior Ye!"

Jian Xiaolou was startled. Ye You spoke so nonchalantly it sounded like a joke, but she knew he was entirely serious. Once this dragon scholar set his mind to something, he became alarmingly persistent. She felt responsible for stirring his curiosity and tried her best to dissuade him.

—"Hmm... If even you're saying so, I won't go," Ye You replied with a hint of grievance.

Jian Xiaolou heaved a sigh of relief.

After a few more questions to Su He, Ye You suddenly interrupted,

—"Xiaolou, my bone slip seems to be out of energy..."

"Out of energy?"

—"Huh? What did you say? I can't hear you..."

His voice grew fainter until it vanished altogether.

"Senior Ye? Senior Ye?! Ye You!!"

Jian Xiaolou called into the six-star bone slip for a while but got no response. It seemed Ye You had deliberately severed the connection.

He was quite the actor.

Clearly, he hadn't given up and was planning to steal the gourd.

Fuming and exasperated, Jian Xiaolou had never encountered someone so utterly immune to persuasion.

"Let's go."

With a sweep of his sleeve, Ye You summoned a roofless celestial chariot in front of Su He and himself, stepping aboard.

Su He was stunned for a moment before grabbing the chariot's rail and staring at him in disbelief. "You're not joking?"

Ye You lowered his head slightly, his golden eyes shimmering in the moonlight, though his expression remained cold. "Are you scared?"

"This isn't about fear. Do you even know what 'acting within your capabilities' means?" Su He sighed. "Not that I'm afraid. As a fellow phoenix and a family friend, if caught, I'd only get scolded and handed over to my father for punishment."

"Then what are you afraid of?"

"I'm not afraid of anything!" Su He looked skyward, waving dismissively. "Fine, fine, go ahead. Why should I stop you if you're so eager to die?"

With a kick of his boots, he joined Ye You on the chariot, sitting beside him.

The celestial chariot was just large enough for two.

After a moment of stillness, Su He tapped the rail impatiently, sneering, "Not to be rude, but you've lived for thousands of years and only managed to become a mere cave master. Look at this shabby ride—utterly embarrassing."

Ye You glanced at him indifferently. "Why are you here?"

Su He huffed. "Phoenix fallen from grace. Making do."

"I meant, why are you here instead of pulling the chariot?"

"What?" Su He blinked, stunned, pointing at himself in disbelief. "Me? Pull the chariot?!"

Ye You frowned slightly. "How else will it move? When A-ni is here, he pulls it. Now that he's not, you, as my servant, naturally take his place."

Su He shot to his feet, his red eyes blazing with fury. "You wretched dragon! Do you even know who I am? I am a tenth-rank Fire Phoenix, ruler of a domain! You dare ask me to pull your chariot? You're just an eighth-rank White Dragon, a cave master unfit for any rank! How dare you?!"

Ye You said nothing, toying with Su He's soul-lock chain.

"Threatening me won't work! Humans have a saying: 'A nobleman may die, but he will not be humiliated!'"

"Oh? Then I suppose you prefer that place of debauchery and indulgence."

"I'll pull it!"

"'A nobleman may die, but he will not be humiliated'?"

"Another human saying: 'A great man knows when to yield!'"