Chapter Twelve: A New Idea

Yi Lian, "Yi Xien, is my hair crooked?"

Lantern almost slapped himself. He ran over to the mirror in front of Yi Lian to check once again.

Lantern, "Your Highness… why are you making me check every time you touch it?"

Yi Lian clutched his fan and turned to him. "I don't know! Just tell me if anything is wrong!"

Yi Xien rubbed at his face. Yi Lian had been acting weird all day and he wasn't quite sure how to deal with it.

Yi Xien, "Okay I will!"

He thought for a moment. "Could you come do sword practice with me before dinner?"

He thought maybe he could distract him until then because Yi Lian wouldn't cultivate or read or meditate or do anything that wasn't stressing at the moment. Yi Xien felt like he was dealing with an over excited puppy and he just needed to take him out for a run around.

After a lot of convincing Yi Lian agreed and grabbed his sword, Winters-Gaze, and followed Yi Xien to the training grounds next to the disciples reading/studying room. This was during the day so Yi Lian was extremely wary and hid his face using his fan as much as he could.

It was hot and Yi Lian's Uncle was doing an extra boring lecture on different demon speeds, so naturally when they spotted Yi Lian, the prince they never saw, and his attendant through the wide open doors and windows, their attention shifted.

Yi Lian unsheathed his sword and started to twirl it through his fingers. "Are we sparing?"

Yi Xien unsheathed his sword and got into a good stance. "If his Highness will go easy on me… I'm not very good."

Yi Lian stopped playing with his sword and stood opposite. "I think you're very good."

Yi Xien smiled and stepped forward.

Swords clashed. As they collided, Yi Xien's sword shook and frosted at the collusion. He retreated and tried again and Yi Lian blocked. This dance of swords, one dazzling in the sun, the other giving off arctic mist, continued in an elegant array of skilled footwork and balanced sword play. The disciples were hooked.

Yi Xian slashed down to his side and Yi Lian dodged once again to the side. This time he saw inside the lecturing room and he froze momentarily as his eyes made contact with Nie Asreal's smirking ones. Yi Xien wasn't expecting this so he stabbed towards his side. Yi Lian had quick reaction speed because right before it was to hit him he blocked it in an instant, earning a group of gasps from inside. He never broke eye contact but when Nie Asreal smiled and nodded, Yi Lian fell into action.

Yi Lian slashed right, left, all at an unbelievable pace. Yi Xien could hardly keep up. He walked backwards to avoid the strikes and when he did try to get a critical hit in Yi Lian let out a small smile.

He put spiritual energy into his foot and hopped into a jump. He looked like a beautiful dove, flying through the air as he twirled and flipped over Yi Xien's entire being.

When he landed he grabbed Yi Xien's arm from behind him and pushed him over the sparing boundary line.

Yi Xien was still in shock when he and Yi Lian bowed. He wanted to congratulate him in some way but he didn't quite know how.

Yi Lian heard a clapping. He looked up to see Nie Asreal slowly clapping, soon others joined him but Yi Lian quickly pulled his fan from his sash and hid himself.

Yi Lian's uncle looked at him with an exhausted expression but then turned to Yi Xien to give the disappointed look.

"How come he gets to be outside and spar but we have to be in here and listen to boring demon lectures."

Nie Asreal glared at the boy in similar clothing. "Shut up brat."

"Brother don't talk to Nie Ezran in this way."

Nie Asreal rolled his eyes and kicked both the boys. "You're both brats. You're just an older brat."

The older brother put his head in his hands.

"If he's outside all day he must be really stupid."

Nie Asreal looked as if he were about to murder. "Don't think I won't kill you just because you're thirteen!"

Nie Ezran tutted. Yi Lian was basically frozen in place. He really didn't go out much and when he did people were very light and calm with him. This was very, very new to him.

In the meantime Yi Jian had found out that him and Nie Asreal now had a common enemy. He would definitely not have his brother lose such face.

Yi Jian, "This child is absolutely shameless! Yi Lian will you come and join the class for a while?"

He didn't want to but it didn't exactly sound like an option. So he bowed to Yi Xien and let him go back to the cottage before entering and sitting at the spare desk next to Nie Asreal. It had been spare because everyone was afraid to sit next to him beside his older brother to his right.

Yi Lian looked steadily at the parchment in front of him and refused to acknowledge anything that was happening around him.

He felt eyes everywhere, like everyone was wondering what he was up to at all times, every movement, everywhere he looked was being judged and witnessed-

A paper flower appeared ahead of him.

Yi Lian thought for a second that his spiritual energy became so imbalanced it had bloomed a parchment flower until he reached out and touched it and one of the petals fell open.

He smiled brightly at this new exciting thing. He tugged on the petal some more and writing appeared.

-Ignore my brother he's a stupid child-

Yi Lian looked to his right to see Nie Asreal with an innocent smile on his face as he listened to his Uncle. Yi Lian tugged on the next petal.

-Do you like my trick? I learnt it after I realised I'd be only learning about fire energies for my entire cultivation life-

Yi Lian nodded to himself. The Nie Sect focused on natures energies specifically and the Sect Leaders bloodline had to take the path to immortality through it, Nie Yang being especially obsessed with fire energies like his ancestors.

Yi Lian opened the last petal.

-You're cute-

Yi Lian tensed and stuffed the flower quickly inside his lapel and started to fan himself. He daren't look at Nie Asreal, or anyone, or that damn desk. He looked everywhere but.

"Yi Lian… are you listening?" His Uncle asked.

Yi Lian turned bright red and froze. No he had forgotten to listen. His breath got faster and he looked in such despair.

"I was talking about the Sect's and their different ways of dealing with Demons at their capitals." He said, glazing over the topic once he had seen Yi Lian's reaction.

"We are on an Island and though we are big quite big, we get considerably less activity then the other Sects. We use the forest as a buffer between the villages, towns, cities and us. In Bai's capital, Gardens River Crossing, they exterminated all caves and exercised all dark energies in the region surrounding them a long time ago so they rarely deal with any disturbances."

Nie Ezran interrupted, "So never take a Bai disciple on a night hunt."

Some of the Yi disciples laughed but Sect Leader Yi gave them one stern look and they fell silent.

Nie Asreal muttered some insult under his breath before he raised his hand.

"Yes Second Young Master Nie."

Nie Asreal asked, "Sect's were formed so long ago and there are smaller Sects but we are part of the main four… Did there used to be different large Sects?'

Sect Leader Yi racked his brain before replying, "It was always the same four or five. There used to always be five great Sects consisting of our current and one other but it was eaten by the Demon Realm's border expansion years and years ago."

Nie Asreal nodded and asked another question, "And what if another Sect rose to power? A newer one?"