Chapter 30 — The Talisman Painter Who Guards the Village

Instructions From the Border

A messenger falcon landed in the courtyard in front of the main hall of Tông Vân Các at dusk, its wings covered with dust from the distance, carrying a wooden letter tube engraved with Khâm Vân Ti's seal - a sign that the letter had traveled a much longer distance than the usual dispatches traveling back and forth between the sect and Lam Thủy Town.

Diệp Sương, on the way to the library with Âu Bội Nhi, happened to witness a disciple on duty hurriedly carrying a mail tube inside, her face showing an unusually serious look.

"What's going on," Âu Bội Nhi muttered, but the two didn't have time to find out more, because that same evening, an urgent summons was issued, calling all inner sect disciples and some elite outer sect disciples, including Diệp Sương and Cố Thanh Việt, to the main hall.

*

Sect Master Thư Khải Dương personally presided, his face solemn, his hand holding the letter he had just received. "Khâm Vân Ti has just sent an urgent report to a border area northwest of Cửu Vân, where there is a small pass called Tiêu Sa Pass," he announced, his voice echoing throughout the hall. "According to the latest survey, the Linh Mạch flow there has weakened to an alarming level, lower than what was recently recorded in Tùng Lĩnh Village. The land around the area is gradually drying up, the protection talismans and town talismans placed there continue to lose their effectiveness unusually quickly, and the court is worried that this place could become a large-scale outbreak of love affairs if not promptly intervened."

He paused, his gaze scanning the crowd. "The sect needs to send a team of qualified disciples to guard and find a way to stabilize this area for a long time, maybe many months, or even longer. This is not a short-term mission like previous internships."

*

The meeting then turned into a lengthy debate among the elders over whom to send. Diệp Sương sat quietly in the crowd, not expecting her name to be mentioned so soon.

"I nominate disciple Chu Diệp Sương," Tạ Vân Khê spoke first, her voice firm. "She has experience in actual combat with the weakened Linh Mạch from the incident in Tùng Lĩnh Village, and her adaptive spell-casting style is suitable for an area that needs flexible methods rather than rigid suppression."

"I object," a voice said almost immediately — Húc Bá Nguyên, his eyes serious. "Disciple Chu Diệp Sương is still too young, has just been considered for promotion, sending her to a remote border area, lacking support for a long time, is it placing too great a burden on an inexperienced disciple?"

Diệp Sương immediately realized that behind that seemingly reasonable argument there might be another motive hidden—pushing her out of the center of attention, away from those who were gradually recognizing her, to a remote place where any achievements would be much harder to see.

"If she's too young to take on this mission," another elder spoke up, his voice somewhat sarcastic, "then who do you recommend to replace me? I'm afraid that most of the upper sect disciples already have fixed missions, and none of them have had actual combat experience with weakened Linh Mạch like she just demonstrated in Tùng Lĩnh Village."

Húc Bá Nguyên was silent for a moment, not giving any other names right away, just clearing his throat slightly. "I don't object to her participating," he said, his voice softening a bit, "just want to make sure this decision is carefully considered, not because of temporary public pressure."

"This is not a decision based on public opinion," Tạ Vân Khê replied directly, not hiding the sharpness in her voice. "This is a decision based on actual ability, something you just witnessed in the exam the other day."

"I would like to accept this mission," Diệp Sương suddenly stood up, her voice rang out in the middle of the hall, interrupting the ongoing debate.

*

All eyes turned toward her. Sect Master Thư Khải Dương looked at her for a long time, his eyes unreadable. "You understand that this is not an easy task, right?" he asked. "The frontier is remote, needy, and possibly more dangerous than anything you've ever faced."

"I understand," Diệp Sương replied, her voice not shaking at all. "But I grew up in a small village that was also neglected for many years before anyone noticed the unusual signs. I don't want anywhere else to have to wait that long for help." A silence covered the large hall. Húc Bá Nguyên frowned but did not refute further, while Tạ Vân Khê nodded slightly, her eyes clearly revealing a mixture of pride and worry.

"Please come with me," another voice rang out, causing Diệp Sương to turn around in surprise - Cố Thanh Việt had stood up, his eyes determined. "I sense the fluctuations in the Linh Mạch better than most disciples in my class, and I believe my abilities will be useful for this long-term guarding mission."

*

After the meeting, when the two walked out of the large hall under the starry night sky, Diệp Sương turned to look at Thanh Việt, still surprised.

"You don't have to ask to come with me just because of me," he said, although inside he couldn't hide an indescribable joy.

"I'm not going because of you," Thanh Việt replied, then paused, as if reconsidering his own words. "I want to say, I'm going on a mission, because that's really where my abilities can be useful. But..." he paused for a beat, his eyes avoiding looking directly at her. "But if you were there alone, facing people like Húc Bá Nguyên or anyone else who intentionally caused trouble, I wouldn't be able to sit here in peace."

Diệp Sương was silent for a moment, feeling a warmth spreading in her chest, different from the feeling she had with anyone else. "Thank you," she said softly, "for always being there, whether I deserved it or not."

"You are always worthy," Thanh Việt replied immediately, without any hesitation, causing both of them to pause for a moment at the surprising straightforwardness of that very statement.

*

That night, before leaving to prepare her luggage, Diệp Sương stopped by Âu Bội Nhi's place to say goodbye temporarily.

"You've been gone for so long, I'll miss you so much," Âu Bội Nhi said, her eyes red but trying to smile. "Remember to write often, tell everything, don't hide anything, including your story with Thanh Việt."

"There's nothing to tell," Diệp Sương defended, her face getting a little hot, although her heart still echoed Thanh Việt's words last night - "you are always worthy" - a short sentence but enough to keep her awake all night, not because of anxiety, but because of a strange warm feeling that has never had a clear name.

"Just say so," Âu Bội Nhi smiled, hugging her friend tightly. "Take care of your health. I will let you know everything on this mountain, including what happens to Wei Bá Tuân or Húc Bá Nguyên."

The next morning, as Diệp Sương, Cố Thanh Việt, and a small group of selected disciples set off toward the far northwest, Diệp Sương looked back one last time at Vân Tiêu Peak, where white clouds still floated lazily as if nothing had changed. But she knew that behind that familiar peace, the worries remained—the unresolved battlefield, the watchful eyes of conservatives, and a distant land waiting for her with unprecedented challenges.

She tightened the bag on her shoulder and glanced at Cố Thanh Việt walking beside her, his eyes fixed on the road ahead with trustworthy calm. Although many things remained unclear, Diệp Sương felt more ready than ever to face whatever awaited them at Tiêu Sa Pass.

Before completely disappearing behind the first curve of the trail, she stopped for a moment and turned her head to look towards the distant tiled roofs of Tông Vân Các, where Âu Bội Nhi must still be standing on some balcony watching, where Chung Nhã Trúc and Nhiêu Bá Tường would continue their daily work, and where Wei Bá Tuân, Húc Bá Nguyên and other searching eyes would still be there, waiting to see whether she would fail.

"Let's go," Thanh Việt said softly, realizing that he was hesitating. His voice did not urge him, but was only gentle like a word of encouragement. "No matter what's behind, the front is still waiting. We can't just stand at the threshold forever." Diệp Sương nodded, turned her back on Vân Tiêu Peak, took decisive steps to keep up with him, headed straight towards the unfamiliar road leading to a land she had never been to, but her heart had a strange feeling that, even though she did not know what Tiêu Sa Pass would be like, she would not have to face it alone.