A Tear Frozen in Time

Torn

For eight days Guotin had put up with every manner of insult and embarrassment Mo Yuan could throw at him and it was only for the Empress's sake and the fact that he was in Qing Qiu that he'd held his tongue and kept his anger under control.  Only seeing her bruised lips and knowing exactly how she got them, had the entire weeks pent up anger explode as he threw Mo Yuan back with every ounce of rage in his body.

Barely keeping to his feet, Mo Yuans smirk grew as a fist flew directly at his face.  He could hear her screaming, in fact he imagined the entire world could hear her.  He could also hear her mother trying to pull her back while his Disciples stormed towards his chamber with their swords drawn.

"Think carefully Guotin.  You are on my turf." Mo Yuan warned him once and once only before ducking as another fist flew at him and this time, he met it with one of his own.

Screaming at her mother to release her, she almost made it out of her tight grip only to stumble when Die Feng thrust her aside to enter the chamber.

"Die Feng.  You can't!  I am in a marriage trial with him." she screamed as his robe was snatched at.  Die Feng might have been below both men in rank and perhaps a lightweight when it came to their power and knowledge, but he was no fledgling and nor did he care if he was overstepping the mark.

His eyes were only on his Shifu who was too weak to be fighting.  He had yet to take himself into seclusion to regather his cultivation, so regardless of the smile on his face, he knew he was no match for the Demon Lord, especially an enraged one.  But he did hear her and for a brief moment he paused to consider her words.  That she was in a marriage trial with him was one thing, but to be the Demon Overlord was another, and suddenly his eyes flashed dangerously down at her.

"I don't know what game you're playing at, but there's no place for it here." he snapped at her before literally ripping his gown from her hand and storming straight into Mo Yuans chamber while giving the order for the rest to remain outside.  Guotin was not armed, he was also only one man, it would have been highly inappropriate for them all to enter, so watching from the door, all eyes then moved to Mo Yuan who was not only taking a few punches, but he was barely managing to give them back and this was the sole reason why Die Feng chose to intervene.

Literally throwing himself between the both of them, Die Feng forcefully pushed Mo Yuan aside before elbowing Guotin right between the eyes.  The Demon Overlord was no lightweight and had fought more wars over the years than the boy had lived,but even he was rendered senseless when the hit literally sent him sprawling having been unprepared for it.

And before they knew it, the fight was over as Guotin was quickly forced back onto his feet by Zi Lan and Chang Shan having been ordered to escort him off the mountain while Mo Yuan was then forced into the infirmary where Cheng Bao and Liang saw to his wounds.  Neither men said a word as Die Feng completely took over while Bai Qian and the Empress left Kunlun Mountain with Guotin barely standing between them.

His anger was all but depleted and his the exhaustion heavily weighing him down as the two women struggled to keep him upright but she could see by the way he was staring at her, that they would have to talk again and this time, he would not allow her to lead it, nor embarrass him again.  His patience with her, Mo Yuan and even her father was thinned to breaking point and no sooner were they back in the den, then he was storming towards his chamber with both women barely keeping up with him.

He rarely angered over anything, it was how he maintained control over everything and everyone around him.  Anger merely forced mistakes, mistakes created unnecessary anguish and his people did not need a ruler who lost his temper and put them at risk because of it.  But for the first time in a very long time, he had lost control.  But then again, Mo Yuan was one of the few people in his world that could set off his anger just looking at him only it seemed that this woman whose large doe like eyes and angelic face, was fast becoming another, and to his horror, he realized it might be an entirely different reason.