"I believe I see some very valuable books along the right wall," Ling Qi said faintly.
"How valuable?" Meng Dan asked, raising an eyebrow as he considered the shelves already before them with a hungry gleam in his eyes.
"How valuable would you rate a completed genealogy of the Weilu?" Ling Qi asked.
Beside her, Meng Dan stilled. He didn't blink, or adjust his glasses, or even draw another breath for a long moment. Then the moment broke, and the perpetually smiling young man licked his lips nervously. "We should hurry, I think."
"We should," Ling Qi agreed.
"On it," Sixiang chuckled, their physical form dispersed into a cloud of glittering mist, and the chamber groaned as stone settled, solidified, and became more real.
Ling Qi sprang off, following the curve of the left wall. Even with her mobility limited, she could still move quickly, her feet barely touching stone as she scanned the floor for weak points. Behind her, Meng Dan followed, Yinhui clinging to the back of his robe. His movement technique was… interesting. She saw characters and numbers in the shadows and wind around him, flickering with silver, and then he would take a step and simply move, crossing meters of distance in a blur.
He followed after her in a zig zagging path that wove through the weakened parts of the floor, never seeming to do more than take individual small steps. Yet she could feel the wind parting around him as he moved, so it wasn't like her own quick shadow stepping.
It only took a matter of moments to circle the room to where she had seen the books and the oversized tapestry, and all the while her wisps were zooming over the room, noting things that looked of special value.
"Miss Ling," Meng Dan said as she alit beside the shelf. "Do I have your permission to access your divinatory constructs?"
"Is that something you can do?" Ling Qi asked, cocking an eyebrow.
"Naturally," he chuckled. "It is much easier if you do not resist."
"That sounds very suspicious," Yinhui sighed.
It did, Ling Qi agreed, but they were in a hurry. "I will try not to throw off your technique, so go ahead, but why?"
If he tried anything untoward, they were literally sitting beside Cai Renxiang, who she did not doubt would notice.
"It will enable me to catalogue all of this, and calculate the most optimal gathering…" Meng Dan began cheerfully, only to trail off. It took her a moment to realize that he had come into sight of the books and their titles.
For just a second, she saw behind his self assured composure, and saw there the excitement of a child whose parent had just given them free run of a sweet shop.
"Sir Meng?" she said politely. It would be rude to comment.
He shook himself. "Yes, of course. Please allow me a moment, Miss Ling."
Meng Dan brought his hands together in front of his face, traceries of silver light gleaming on his fingernails and from beneath his half closed eyelids. Ling Qi felt an odd sort of tingling through the meridians which powered her Diviner techniques, it felt a bit like when Sixiang would actively peer through her eyes.
The technique was insidious though, if she hadn't been prepared and waiting for it, she felt like she could have easily missed it. That was a dangerous skill, but one that made sense for the Hidden Moon.
Ling Qi reached down to pluck the book which had caught her eye from the shelf. It was a massive thing, as thick as one of Reniang's unabridged legal codes and bound in supple green leather, with it's title inked in shimmering characters that flowed from silver to gold and back. Ling Qi moved to open it and take a peek at the pages inside… only for the cover to resist her. She frowned, and tried to simply flip it open to the middle, but the pages stayed as they were as if she was only holding a stone sculpture of a book.
In her arms, the tremendous tome let out something like a whispery growl, like a cat who had just had its fur rubbed the wrong way.
"Do be careful Miss Ling," Meng Dan said. She was a little startled when he snatched the book right out of her hands, even taking a full step back. Meng Dan on the other hand wasn't looking at her at all, instead running his fingers soothingly up the books spine. "Tome's like this require a tender touch."
Ling Qi stared blankly at him for a second, only to glance down as she felt a tug at her sleeve. Yinhui looked up at Ling Qi, and very slowly shook her head. "Please excuse him, Scholar Ling. He is right though it is best to be careful with old books. They are often very picky."
"I will keep that in mind," Ling Qi huffed. It wasn't like they had time to study or read right now anyway. She turned her eyes to the massive tapestry, noting the powerful flows of qi in the fabric. She brushed her hand along it's side and felt a thrum of awareness.
...She really should have expected this.
***
The chamber's existence, bolstered by Sixiang, lasted for nearly half an hour. Unable to put things into storage while in the space they were forced to physically carry things out. However, even with their abilities limited within the ring, they were able to save most of the materials that had not already fallen into the void. It was thanks to both Ling Qi's speed and Meng Dan's ability to swiftly organize their loads for maximum efficiency that they managed to save most of the materials that had not already fallen into the void.
It still hurt to see so many talismans, books and works of art go. She had earned these damn it all. LIng Qi huffed as she sat the last pile of items down, watching a handful of hairpins and jewels go rolling across the floor. They had knocked over and shoved aside several stacks of Hui Peng's scribbling in moving the contents up here, and the floor was now practically carpeted in loose leaf and sketches.
Well, where it wasn't covered in actual carpets. They had found quite a few of those.
"Good work Miss Ling," Meng Dan's voice called to her from over piles. "Do come over here, you have to see this."
Ling Qi let out a huff, he was still sounding so energetic, even though he'd carried just as much as she had. Beside her Sixiang reformed with a small laugh, jabbing her in the side with their elbow. "C'mon, it's not like you aren't excited by all this loot."
Ling Qi turned up her nose as she wound around the transported shelves. That wasn't the point. While most of what they had brought up weren't particularly potent, they were all clearly cultivator work. Paintings which moved with inner animation, and sculptures which felt almost real to the touch. She had lost count of the number of second and third grade talisman accessories mixed in among items whose power was fully in the sheer quality of their craftsmanship.
"What did you…" Ling Qi began as she rounded a shelf, only to stop and blink. Meng Dan stood before the great tapestry unrolled haphazardly over piles of parchment and paper. The sight took her breath away. Before her eyes the eaves of Xiangmen moved and the stars twinkled amongst its canopy. Among the leaves, along the branches, twining down the trunk were hundreds of names picked out in gold and silver stitching.
Meng Dan stood before it, the book which had taken from her still cradled in his hands, but now, the cover was open, revealing a beautiful watercolor illustration of a wise looking sage, garbed in resplendent robes which were vibrant with flowers and plant life. A crown of stars shone about his head, in the shape of great antlers. She knew without doubt that it was intended to be a depiction of Tsu the Diviner, the artists intent was utterly without doubt.
"It seems that the tapestry is a companion piece," Meng Dan said, staring intently at the cloth. "And look at this."
He reached out, pressing his finger against the the tapestry and before her eyes, the names changed seeming to zoom like startled birds across the tapestry until a whole new set of names became clear. Directly under his thin finger was the name 'Duzhi'.
"A bloodline tracking device, obviously made to reinforce Hui legitimacy, but still," He said, finally looking up as she stepped up to his side. "Meng Duzhi was the third son of Duke Angguo, who took an imperial wife and received the right to settle the western fens from his father. The reasons for the split are unclear, but I've posited that it was a move to remove some bloat from the council of kings and avoid succession crisis... " Meng Dan spoke quickly. "Ah, I know so little of the founding period, only the direct descendants of the patriarch typically have access to our inner archives…"
Ling Qi nodded faintly, listening to him speak, but her eyes were on the tapestry. She felt a little thrill of curiosity. What would happen if she laid a finger on it?
[] It can't hurt to try. The Weilu are ancient after all, surely most everyone had a drop or two of their blood in them. Imagine how useful it would be, to claim some ancient connection.
[] There was no need for it. The character for Ling meant 'Zero' and that is what she had started as. If there were any lineage she would claim, it was her teachers, claimed through her own effort.
