Spring Winds

"Freedom!" Sob, I haven't been able to stop practicing martial arts and cultivating for the last two weeks. I wanted to kiss the ground of freedom after my confinement.

"Don't get too excited." a calm voice called out to me.

"You! If you didn't tell Master about what happened, then I wouldn't have had to suffer so much!" I cried unjustly.

"Oh? And you would've learned your lesson on your own?" Senior Sister retorted. With watering eyes, I looked up at Senior Sister's serene expression. When we had returned, Senior sister spilled about every detail about the mission to Master. And when hearing about how I 'recklessly' charged into the den of the beast, Master became furious at me and punished me severely!

As in locking me up in closed cultivation with Senior Sister! He knows that I hate having to cultivate!

Wu wu, I'm being treated unjustly! (T ^ T)

"No, I wouldn't have had…" I mumbled, admittedly, I was a little, tiny bit careless, but I had it under control! Sort of.. okay, I don't.

Walking up to me, she patted me on the shoulder. "Cheer up."

"Senior Sister…"

"Do you remember what today is?" She gently asked like she was calming down a child.

"No?"

"Summer Selection." Senior Sister answered.

"You, you mean, we get to leave the peak?" I said excitedly. Hurray, not only am I free, we can leave the peak! Senior Sister hadn't delivered such good news since we finished our mission.

Well, we broke the news to the Qiu family.

It went down something like this. After we have cleaned up the mess that we made during our battle with the fox demon, we headed down the mountain back to the Qiu Residence.

Greeted as we entered the residence was Madam Qiu going around and attacking servants, left and right. Anyone who got close to her, she would lash out. This time her target was her son, Second Young Master Qiu, as apparently she chases him all over the residence.

The poor, scholarly boy couldn't combat his mother's supernatural fury, so he had no choice but to run away. Old Master Qiu also joined the fun as he pudgy figure attempted to run after his crazy wife, to pull her off their son. As for their daughter, Qiu Wu Chou, she just quietly stayed in the corner of the main hall and was relatively unharmed.

"Help me! My mother is trying to kill me!" Second Young Master Qiu cried out miserably. His face was red from running, and his clothes tattered from his mother's claw-like nails.

"I'll kill you of what you have done!" Madam Qiu shrieked as she feverishly ran after Second Young Master Qiu. Poor boy, I couldn't help but laugh at such a scene.

Pfft! I can't keep it in! "Senior Sister, it seems we're not quite done yet."

"Eh, we took care of the fox demon, but the spirit of Xia Jiu Ji remains. Or at least, what's left of her spirit." Senior Sister calmy stated before she took out another bell.

"Eh? How long did you have that for?"

"Ever since we took on this mission. Master gave me this bell; he called it the Spirit Calming Bell. Once it rings, it calms down any resentful spirits in the area." She calmly explained.

"What? Why didn't you tell me about it?"

"You never asked." Senior Sister said before calmly ringing the bell. The crazed Madam Qiu suddenly stopped running and stood in place. Senior Sister threw out a talisman at the stagnant Madam Qiu, and the faint wisp of resentful energy left her body and disappeared.

Afterward, Madam Qiu collapsed in place and was caught by some servants before being carried away.

"Thank - thank you, esteemed guests!" Old Master Qiu gasped. "Let's- let's talk inside."

"Em." Senior Sister nodded, and we were escorted back into the main hall, Qiu Wu Chou was no longer sitting in the corner, but was sitting next to her father across from his. Second Young Master Qiu also joined us, albeit a little shaken up.

Taking a swig of tea, he asked, "So, is the demon finally gone?"

"Yes," Senior Sister responded curtly. "But, one question Old Master Qiu."

"Ehm, yes, what is it, esteemed guest?"

"Did you recognize that voice? The voice that was screaming at Second Young Master Qiu."

"W-what? Esteemed Priest, whatever are y-"

"Xia Jiu Ji."

The faces of Old Master Qiu and Second Young Master Qiu drained of color. However, Qiu Wu Chou suddenly became animated.

"Bis Sister Ji? That was Big Sister Ji?" she questioned, voice cracking.

Senior Sister made no effort to answer Qiu Wu Chou's question, but that silence was enough to answer anyways. Qiu Wu Chou's face bang to drain of color, and her face distorted into sadness.

Glancing at the sobbing Qiu Wu Chou, Senior Sister looked straight into Old Master Qiu's eyes. "Old Master Qiu, you told me, you swore, that you have told me everything that you know."

"I - I, you - you! Are you supposed to be helping us people?!? Aren't priests supposed to protect the living from the dead!" Old Master Qiu said accusingly. His fat fingering pointed at us as if we were some beast.

"Yes, but who says we need, to protect you? We already technically finished our main mission, getting rid of the fox demon. Your residence was merely a pit-stop." Senior Sister stood up and turned to leave. "Come on, Junior Sister. We're done here." The Qiu family looked at us in shock and fear.

"W-wait! Aren't you afraid about your reputation! Once I say that you got back on your promises, I swear it will ruin you!" Second Young Master Qiu outbursted.

"Heh, and who would believe you? We can easily tell everyone else in town why your family is plagued with misfortune. And to avoid it rubbing off on them, they should disassociate with you," I shot back. Jeez, these people. "Besides, Madam Qiu should be waking up soon; after all, the Spirit Calming Bell's effects only last so long."

"Wa-wait!" a young girl's voice cried and grabbed onto my robes. Qiu Wu Chou had a death grip on my clothes and attempted to calm her crying. "Please, esteemed guests! Please spare my family!"

"Uhh, Senior Sister?" Looking to her for her instructions. She kept her backs to the Qiu Family, before finally sighing. Turning back, she gave the family this frosty glower I have even seen.

"Alright, there are ways to dissipate the rest of the malicious spirit, but are you willing to take them on?"

"Yes, yes! Anything!" The family cried out.

"Fine, first, you must acknowledge that Xia Jiu Ji was the first wife of your son, Qiu Wu Han. Not only must you make a grave for her, but you must also make a memorial plate for her in your ancestral hall. Second," pulling out a book from her sleeve, she handed it to Qiu Wu Chou, who was still hanging onto my robes. "You must recite these souls calming mantras and scriptures for the next ten years, not a single day missed. Only then will your family finally be rid of this curse."

"Thank you, thank you," Qiu Wu Chou, kowtowed to us in tears. The rest of the family would follow.

"Senior Sister, that was compassionate of you."

"Not all members were wrongdoers," Senior Sister answered.

"Yeah, but if I were in your place, I would've BS the facts and let nature take its course. Can't say I didn't try." I shrugged.

She looked at me and then flicked me in the forehead.

"Ow!"

"That's what you get."

"Huh? For what?" Ouch, she must have put some spiritual energy in that flick, because the pain remained until we returned home.

And that about sums up the whole incident, but for the first mission, I give us a hundred percent, full marks.

"Come on, Master is waiting for us," Senior Sister called out.

"Coming!" As I ran up to her and smacked her on the shoulder. She looked at me, unfazed, but just shook her head.

Master was waiting for us in the front courtyard.

"Come on, you two, we can't be late!" Master waved.

"Why are we even going to the Summer Selection? Does Master want to pick up some more disciples?" I asked Senior Sister.

"No, Master volunteered to watch over the selection, because he wasn't confident he would find disciples in the Spring Admission."

"Ohhhhh, Master must be regretting it now." I mused.

"He is, before we went into isolation, he was complaining about biting more than he can chew." Senior Sister responded.

"And I am," Master interjected, "But that is why I now have two excellent disciples to repla- help me out!"

"Well, I'm up for it. To do something is all I want."

"It would be a good opportunity to see what duties Master takes on."

"Haha, that's the spirit! Are you girls ready?"

"Yes!" And the three of us were whisked away in a cloud of smoke.