Nie Tai stepped out of the tub with now cold water. Pieces of Purple Haze Grass had been set into the water beforehand, causing a fragrant scent to scatter around the room. The small bathing room was lit only by candles and the light of the full moon that sat on a blanket of stars. She quickly pulled a large, thick nightgown over her head. Her damp hair cascaded down her back. Grabbing a brush, she worked the knots and the pieces of herbs that had persisted through the bath. She put her hair into a braid and walked out to her dorm room.
Nie Li was sitting on her bed in a thin set of pajamas. He glanced up and said, "We are going out to the marketplace tomorrow. When do you think that the Sacred Family will act?"
Nie Tai sat next to him and answered, "Tomorrow. I overheard Shen Chue plotting before he went over and interrupted your little study session."
"Do you still have that bruise dark?" Nie Li asked, clasping his hands loosely.
"Of course. As well as the pendant." Nie Tai said triumphantly, holding up the silver pendant. The crest of the Sacred Family glittered slightly before dimming from the lack of light. She set the pendant back down and asked, "What of the ruins?"
"The first to get to the Shadow Devil will keep it." he replied. The Shadow Devil was the true treasure in the Ancient Orchid City Ruins; this void assassin has many mysterious abilities. In the previous life, Shen Chue had obtained and sold it for one million demon-spirit coins.
"That was a given. I was speaking of the hardships along the way." said Nie Tai, her tone conversational and comfortable.
"We had better buy armor tomorrow." said Nie Li after thinking for a moment. He stood and prepared to leave.
Nie Tai nodded, but quickly said, "I am thinking of including Chen Linjian in our list of allies. What are your thoughts?"
Her brother paused; one could see the gears quickly turning in his mind as he thought of what he knew of Chen Linjian. In the past life, when Glory City had fallen and the Sacred Family retreated, Chen Linjian came to know of it. The then Five-Star Gold-Rank fell into a bloodthirsty rage and beheaded six Sacred Family members on sight.
"He is a good leader, strong-willed and loyal to an extreme in what he believes." answered her brother slowly. He looked up and decisively said, "He would make a good ally."
Nie Tai nodded and brought an intermediate soul crystal out of her bag. Smiling arrogantly, she said, "I thought you would say that."
Chuckling, Nie Li bid his sister good-night and left her room; left to her thoughts Nie Tai calmly sorted her thoughts and proceeded to fall into a deep and dreamless sleep.
The next day, Nie Li and Nie Tai were walking towards the Secret Treasure Pavilion: an armor shop near the Institute. As they entered the shop, the clerk's face went through a quick transformation. The clerk first appeared excited for customers but became disappointed when seeing the twins.
The twins quickly separated, Nie Li to the left and Nie Tai to the right. Nie Tai looked over the armor for females with a careful eye. Her focus was not on appearance, but rather of the durability and strength of the armor. She came across a blue Bronze-Rank set that was paired with a matching Bronze-Rank sword. She heard her brother call out, "Hey Boss, I'll take this Ragefire armor set and the Wrath of Immolation sword!"
Nie Tai quickly said, "And I'll take the Glacier Rose armor set and the Winter's Wind sword!"
The clerk's face dropped as he spoke to the twins patiently, "The set of Ragefire—consisting of the chest piece, gauntlets, leggings, and boots—costs about five hundred thousand demon-spirit coins. The Ragefire set is made with the scales of the namesake demon beast and is collectively known as one of the pinnacle bronze armors. The set of the Glacier Rose—also consisting of four pieces—costs about 550,000 demon-spirit coins. The Glacier Rose armor set is made with the materials gathered from an Arctic Demonic Rose and the Iced-Talon Falcon. This is also known as one of the pinnacle Bronze-Rank sets."
"Do you think I'm messing with you?" asked Nie Li incredulously. He pulled a large stack of cards out of his bag and said, "Here are 120 cards of ten thousand demon-spirit coins."
The clerk's eyes seemed to pop slightly out of his head when seeing this amount of money. He quickly said, "Of course! I'll wrap this up for the Young Master and Young Mistress. Is there anything else I can get you?"
"I want these two armors; these inscription scrolls; two of the six meter cubic Interspatial Rings..." Nie Li carried on, listing many objects that he had spotted in the store. Nie Tai grabbed her armor, went into the back room, and quickly put it on. It was light and easily fitted under her clothes. She came back out to see the ecstatic clerk.
"Here you are, Young Mistress. I've put half of the inscription scrolls, half of the materials that were asked for, and the Winter's Wind in there for you." he said, beaming. Nie Tai nodded her thanks and went to wait outside for her brother, who was putting on the armor he had bought.
"Let's go repay Xiao Ning'er." said Nie Li, heading towards the Institute. Nie Tai nodded and followed her brother. The two walked through the busy streets and past merchants. She could faintly notice the presence of Shen Chue and his goons; she caught her brother's gaze and tilted her head almost unnoticeably towards a small alcove that was empty. The other twin nodded and they adjusted their path slightly.
They entered the alcove and Shen Chue with his followers quickly shut off the escape routes. Shen Chue arrogantly said, "Ha! We've finally caught you!"
"Hmm, who has caught who?" thought Nie Tai smugly. She feigned a scared look as Nie Li stepped in front of her protectively.
"Wh-what do you guys want?" questioned Nie Li with a terrified persona.
"Good! You two finally know fear! These will teach you for trying to mess with the Sacred Family!" said Shen Chue cruelly. Flicking his sleeve, he ordered his followers, "Go! Beat them up mercilessly!"
The three One-Star Bronze-Ranks followed quickly behind the three Two-Star Bronze-Ranks. Nie Tai leaped away from her brother as the three Two-Star Bronze-Ranks attacked him. She wove in between the attacks of the three One-Star Bronze-Ranks. Taking a deep breathe she shouted loudly using her soul force, "Murder! The Sacred Family is trying to murder me!" Her voice echoed off of the walls and reverberated throughout the nearby buildings. Her brother quickly joined her in shouting this.
Pulling at his hair, Shen Chue yelled, "Shut them up! Quickly!" His goons were quick to respond as they pelted the twins with their fists. The armor of the twins acted as both defense and offense: when one of the goons punched them, they hurt themselves because of the strength of the armor.
The screams of the twins still rang loud and true; as such, a crowd quickly gathered around the commotion. Many recognized the twins and were alarmed; no one would expect that the Sacred Family would dare try to kill someone in broad daylight. The reputation of the Sacred Family quickly fell under the scrupulation of the crowd. They berated the nobles for targeting the twins who couldn't even hope to defend themselves. A few of the students ran to the principal's office in hopes to end the conflict.
Nie Tai smirked secretly as Shen Chue continued to admonish his followers for their inability to take down the twins. She tilted her head slightly as a punch whizzed past; lightly pushing the appendage, she directed the attack to one of the other One-Star Bronze-Ranks who tried to sneak up behind her. Jumping, she dodged a kick from the third of the One-Star Bronze-Ranks; when landing, she spun and hit all three in the face with her braid with a bit of soul force behind it.
Bruises quickly began forming on the faces of her attackers, unseen by Shen Chue who roared viciously, "Kill them! Shut them up!"
His goons couldn't help but show their grievances on their faces: they were unable to harm the twins! Instead of harming the twins, they were being defeated! A strong feminine voice sounded loudly, cutting through the combat, "What is going on here?"
Heyo! Whenever I write, read, or do something, I am almost always listening to music. Question: what's your favorite genre?
Anyway, I hope that you've enjoyed the chapter! Please tell me through a star and or comment!
Have a nice day! :D
YOU ARE READING
Retake *Discontinued*
FanfictionIn their past lives, Nie Li and Nie Tai were the strongest Demon-Spiritists and stood at the pinnacle of the material world; however, their lives were lost during the battle with the Sage Emperor and Empress and their Twelve Deity Ranked Beasts. Now...
