Chapter 2: Concentricity (Cultivating Age)

Yue Changling was not originally named Changling.

On the day she was born, her father Yue Chengfeng led the entire family in desperate flight from their enemies. Her mother gave birth to her in the long pavilion of Gushan, and when Yue Chengfeng returned with his broad knife, he was overcome with joy at the sight of his infant daughter swaddled in cloth. Because she was born in Changting, he named her Changting.

Changting was born delicate and beautiful, cherished by her parents and elder brothers. Yet when she was six years old, she was struck down by a mysterious plot, collapsing in her own courtyard with blood spilling from her lips. Her mother nearly fainted from grief. Yue Chengfeng, seeing that medicine was powerless, sought out an eminent monk of Tianzhu. The monk, ethereal in bearing, restored a trace of color to her face, but declared that her internal organs were gravely damaged. Unless she could cultivate the Shama True Sutra, she could not survive. He was about to leave Middle-earth and feared he could not teach her fully, but Yue Chengfeng, unwilling to abandon hope, begged him to take her as a disciple. Moved by his plea, the monk agreed, renaming her Changling—“to climb mountains and overcome calamity.”

Ten years later, the Central Plains had changed. The Liang Dynasty had fallen, heroes rose from every quarter.

The Yue family, envied for its prominence, was targeted by enemies. The Liang army colluded with Mobei forces, driving the Yue army into dire straits. Just as defeat seemed inevitable, a figure descended from the sky, sword in hand, scattering the enemy and beheading the Marshal of Mobei. The tide turned.

That figure was Yue Chengfeng’s daughter, Yue Changling.

Her father and brothers were stunned. The frail child they thought lost had returned as a master of peerless skill. Yet her appearance was altered—red marks lingered at the corners of her eyes, perhaps from childhood injury or the Sutra’s cultivation. She remembered wearing skirts as a child, enduring whispers, until she adopted men’s clothing and a mask to conceal her eyes, commanding awe wherever she went.

Reunited with his daughter, Yue Chengfeng was ecstatic. With her divine skills, the Yue family grew stronger. She fought alongside her kin, earning renown. After Yue Chengfeng’s death, Changling and her brother Changsheng won half the Central Plains. Their names were known everywhere, though few knew Changling was a woman.

One night, despite strict military orders, someone intruded upon her bath. She turned, prepared to kill, but saw only Wang Xun. Changling frowned, stirred the pool into waves, then swiftly dressed. Wang Xun, terrified, could not speak. Changling looked at his childish face with sorrow.

Her mother had once said: if a woman is seen unclothed, she must either kill the witness or marry him. But Wang Xun was only a boy. She could not kill him, nor could she speak of marriage. She spared him, warning: “What you saw tonight, tell no one—not even your most loyal servant.” Wang Xun nodded, bewildered. She ruffled his hair gently. “Go back early. When I return from war, come find me.” Then she vanished like mist.

Back at camp, war drums thundered. The Mobei army attacked. Generals gathered. Changsheng explained: twenty thousand troops approached Yangmen Pass. Shen Yao offered to scout, but Changsheng refused. Then Fu Liujing entered arrogantly, scoffing at their haste. He revealed the truth: the enemy wore Mobei armor but rode white horses—only the Dongyi Qiang raised such steeds. Their plan was to lure Yue forces into Jiaguguan, poison them, then let Mobei strike.

Changsheng resolved to lead 20,000 cavalry and 5,000 archers himself. Changling worried, but he insisted.

At dawn, Mobei attacked Taixing City. Changling loosed volleys of arrows, slaying generals. After two days, the enemy retreated. News came: Changsheng was poisoned by the Qiang.

Fu Liujing identified the poison—dry grass leaves. Only dry grass from Beiming Peak could cure it. Changling dragged him along to fetch it.

On the cliff, Changling leapt to seize the herb. But a black worm burrowed into her wrist. Fu Liujing paled. “Concentric Gu. Within a cup of tea, it will swell, release venom, and kill.”

Changling raised her sword. “Cut off my arm before it spreads.”

Fu Liujing stopped her. “If you return in pieces, how do I explain to Yue Changsheng?” He slashed her wrist, letting blood flow, then cut his own. The worm followed the blood into him.

Sweating, he explained: “Concentric Gu are paired. The male lets the female feed first. But if it smells another blood, it shifts. If one dies, the other dies too. They live and die together. That is why they are called Concentric Gu.”

Changling stared at him, shaken. Bound by poison and fate, their lives were now entwined.

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