Beginning with the Ubume Bird-Chapter 527 - 23: Everything Has a Price
"Welcome back, gentlemen,"
Zhen Lian bowed to Li Yan,
"Good."
Li Yan responded, and as he was about to step inside, he suddenly stopped and looked at her, "Do you have anything you want to say to me?"
Upon hearing this, Zhen Lian raised her head and said softly, "The Red Lantern Association has gained a new sister." 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞
"And so?"
Zhen Lian carefully glanced at Li Yan, "It’s Miss Dorothy from the Black Rose Theatre. She came by herself this morning asking to join, and paid a membership fee of ten thousand US dollars. Um, it was Liang Hui who brought her here."
She hesitated for a moment before adding, "It was Liang Hui who brought her."
Cha Xiaodao playfully whistled.
Li Yan frowned, "Where is she?"
"She’s in the church. Dorothy is very interested in the deities and tales from the ’Taiyin Secret Tome.’ I lent her the book."
Li Yan nodded and was about to walk away when Zhen Lian quickly added, "In the name of preaching, I did share some of the great deeds of the Blue Emperor with her."
Li Yan listened and couldn’t help but chuckle, "That doesn’t matter at all."
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"Everything in the world lies within the Red Emperor, who is inextricably linked to the ultimate origin of life. The Black Emperor, on the other hand, exists amidst all things, using false logic and knowledge to unseat the old king, turning humans into sacrifices and enslaving them forever."
The ’Taiyin Secret Tome’ in Zhen Lian’s hands was a handwritten English copy by a Portuguese traveler of an ancient Chinese book, adorned with monochrome photographs of bamboo slips written in Qin script. Behind each photo were handwritten English notes by the traveler. Having passed through the hands of several owners, it had been more or less supplemented with translations, even if the text in some photos was difficult to make out. Reading just the English, one could understand about sixty to seventy percent.
Dorothy had been reading with great interest when she suddenly noticed a translated section in the manuscript that made her brow furrow.
This section was written in a relatively large blank space between two photos, and it was unclear which photo the English translation corresponded to. There were four photos, but five sections written here; the extra section stated:
"The Red Emperor once mated with an Indian woman in some unknown way and fathered a deity with partly human bloodline. It, no, he, dressed in blue, carried on the will of the Red Emperor..."
The English handwriting in this passage slightly differed from the surrounding text, and without close examination, it was not easy to notice. Moreover, in less than a hundred words, there were more than four grammatical errors. Some of the ink still seemed fresh, and the color didn’t match the rest of the text. This caught Dorothy’s careful attention.
She flipped through more pages and found several segments that seemed forcibly inserted, each without exception mentioning the so-called "Blue Emperor."
Dorothy caressed the cover, almost ninety percent certain that these parts were fabricated, not original text from the ’Taiyin Secret Tome,’ but added by someone later.
Gang leaders, greedy witches, false scriptures... Are these people really reliable?
Creak~
The somewhat decayed wooden door was suddenly pushed open, and the lost-in-thought Dorothy exclaimed in surprise, quickly looking up.
Li Yan stared at Dorothy’s flushed face and looked around, "Any rats in here, madam?"
Dorothy twirled her hair and forced a smile, "Well, Miss Zhen Lian’s book is quite interesting."
She stood up, walked over to Li Yan, and extended her delicate pale hand, "It’s not easy to finally meet you, Mr. Liang... Hui?"
"I enjoy theater arts in my spare time, and I got the tickets through a friend’s connections. You can call me Li Yan."
Dorothy narrowed her eyes, like a cat that got the bell, "Well then, Mr. Li Yan, what kind of theater do you like? Classicism? Realism? Comedy or tragedy? Can you give an example?"
"’Don Juan.’
Before Dorothy could ask further, Li Yan changed the subject, "Miss Dorothy, you didn’t come to me to discuss religion and theater, did you?"
Dorothy thought for a while before looking up, "Miss Zhen Lian said the Blue Emperor is a wise and generous deity. I am willing to offer all my wealth and dedicate myself to his service, if only you could rid me of... it."
"Shall we sit down and talk about it?
Unexpectedly, Dorothy shook her head, then continued, "But I hope we can be honest with each other. In this steampunk eschatology, I’ve been disappointed too many times. And most of the swindlers who coveted my wealth also ended up killed by it. So, will the Blue Emperor disappoint me?"
Dorothy gazed directly at Li Yan.
"Whether the Blue Emperor will disappoint you or not, I do not know. But I am willing to give it a try."
Li Yan spoke more seriously.
Dorothy exhaled before she walked over to a wardrobe mirror, faced Li Yan, and exposed her back to the mirror.
"What do you see, Mr. Li Yan?"
"A sexy beauty."
Dorothy gave Li Yan a charming smile, then she took off a platinum necklace from around her neck, which was strung with a pitch-black component resembling a miniature Tri-Orb Device.
Clang~
The necklace was tossed onto the table, and under the candlelight, sweat faintly seeped from Dorothy’s forehead, her voice hoarse, "What about now?"
In front of the mirror, Dorothy still radiated dazzling allure, but the slender beauty’s silhouette had disappeared from the mirror, replaced by a mass of black smoke, where mouthparts and tentacles resembling those of an octopus writhed out, entwined with feather pens, parchment scrolls, ink bottles, hourglasses, clocks, and occasionally fragments of various animals, including half a mouse, fish eyes, and human faces.
"A sexy beauty with a terrifying back."
Li Yan squinted his eyes.
"Help, help me..."
Dorothy whispered in agony, her ample chest heaving violently from fear, even a hint of a cry in her tone, "It’s calling me, to look back, I can’t, I mustn’t look back, anyone who gazes directly at it has died; please help me."
Li Yan picked up the Tri-Orb Device necklace from the table and put it on Dorothy, stuffing the Tri-Orb Device into her collar. Instantly, the mirror swelled and cracked, and countless reflections of Dorothy’s back appeared in the shattered mirror.
In just a moment, Dorothy’s complexion turned deathly pale, her pupils dilated, nearly unable to breathe, she clutched Li Yan’s shoulders, her nails digging into his clothes, struggling to catch her breath.
"It really won’t hurt you... nor can it bewitch you. Otherwise, by now you would have either gone mad or become a part of it."
Li Yan helped Dorothy to a table and poured her a pot of black tea. He asked, "You’ve never seen it, have you?"
"I’ve heard others describe it."
"Who?"
"My foster father, my best friend, and many others; they’re all dead."
Dorothy lifted her head, her hair matted with sweat, "Can you help me, sir?"
"I’m not sure. I’m not interested in its origins; familial inheritance, sect, aggrieved spirit, antique curse, whatever it may be. I can try to help you for a fee, that’s before I must ask you one more thing; are you really so eager to drive it away, or kill it?"
"Of course!"
Dorothy widened her eyes, "It is the most terrifying parasite; it has killed everyone close to me. It will kill me as well."
"It won’t if you don’t look back. Nor will it if you carry the Tri-Orb Device with you."
Dorothy shook her head frantically, muttering to herself, "I can’t stand it; it’s splitting my soul. Do you know, every night when I sleep, countless voices argue in my head, Princess Pea clamors for more luxuries and jewels, Jane is a war fanatic, obsessed with her steam-powered suit, Celt makes me dance wildly all night. One morning I woke up dressed in an exposing ballet outfit I’d never seen before, lying on the rooftop with a loaded pistol in my hand; I nearly went insane."
"It also brought you honor, fame, status. You’ve become the greatest dramatic actress of the century’s end, adored by countless people. Have you ever thought, without it, your plays might lose that mesmerizing, bewitching allure?"
..."Sir, how can you be so sure that driving it away will strip my plays of their charm?"
Dorothy was somewhat defiant.
"I’m just suggesting a possibility; the decision is yours to make."
Dorothy was stunned for a long while, opened her mouth several times, but swallowed her words back each time.
"Everything has a price, Miss Dorothy, can you bear that cost?"
Li Yan asked with a smile.
Dorothy’s eyes flickered, she did not respond.
Li Yan patted her shoulder, "Think it over and come find me when you’re ready."
Dorothy bowed her head sadly, just as she was about to leave, Li Yan spoke again, "By the way, I know many people have been pandering to you lately, giving you all sorts of oddities, including a mystic treatise that is anti-steampunk in nature. If you don’t need it, could you give it to me? Consider it a down payment."
Dorothy nodded with a dejected expression, "I will have someone send the book over tomorrow. Goodbye, Mr. Li Yan."
"Give my regards to Jane."
That’s what Li Yan said, sitting on the chair,
