Lin Feng's eyes burned from lack of sleep as he tightened the last rune on the qi-powered waterwheel. The first light of dawn casting shadows over Qingshui Village's cracked fields. The Tianyu Palace's bells echoed in his memory, but Zhao's bandit threat—"surrender by dawn or burn"—loomed larger. The Jade Pendant pulsed against his chest, its irrigation blueprints guiding his hands since activation. The model had spun for a full minute last night, water flowing steadily, but scaling it to the fields needed more Qi crystals, labor, and time he didn't have. Su Mei's rescue and Li Xiyue's suspicious crystals fueled his resolve, but Elder Chen Lao's villagers watched, doubt in their eyes.
He slotted a fresh crystal from Li Xiyue's crate, the array humming as he smeared blood on the pendant. The water wheel spun, gears turning, water surging into the canal. It ran for two minutes, flooding a test field, the mud turning dark with moisture. Villagers gasped, Chen Lao grinning. "You're onto something, Prince," he says. "We'll help build more."
A horn blared from the hills, dust rising. Twenty Crimson Claw bandits charged, their low-Qi Condensation auras flaring, led by a burly captain with a spiked mace. "Zhao's order—burn Qingshui, kill the cripple!" he roared. Lin Feng's heart pounded against Zhao's escalation, Yun's hand pulling the strings. The palace soldiers drew swords, outnumbered, as villagers grabbed tools, fear turning to defiance.
Lin Feng shouted, "Hold the line!" He sprinted to the waterwheel, adjusting the array to weaponize it—a Qi pulse to repel attackers. The bandits hit like a wave, blades clashing with soldiers' swords. A villager fell, screaming, and Lin Feng's jaw clenched. He activated the array, the pendant was flaring, and a Qi blast erupted, knocking three bandits back. "It works!" Chen Lao yelled, swinging a hoe to crack a thug's skull.
The captain laughed, Qi crackling around his maces. "Your toy won't save you!" He charged Lin Feng, his mace swinging. Lin Feng dodged, tossing a gear to distract, but the mace grazed his arm, blood spraying. Pain seared, but he kept working, the pendant's blueprints flashing—reroute the Qi for a stronger pulse.
A white flash cut through the chaos. Su Mei's sword slashed the captain's mace in half, her icy aura freezing the air. She spun, kicking a bandit into the canal, his body splashing. "Focus on your machine!" she snapped, parrying two blades at once. Her white robes swirled, her sword in a blur, falling three more. Villagers rallied, Chen Lao leading with a pitchfork, driving the bandits back.
Lin Feng smeared blood on the pendant, its runes blazing. The array roared, water flooding the fields, and a Qi shockwave burst out, slamming five bandits to the ground, stunned. The Captain staggered, cursed, and swung at Su Mei. She dodged, her strikes sending him sprawling, bloodied. The remaining bandits fled, their captain limping after, yelling, "Yun will crush you!"
Qingshui stood silent, then erupted in cheers. Chen Lao gripped Lin Feng's shoulder. "You saved us, Prince. The West's yours." Villagers bowed, hope in their eyes, as water flowed steadily into the fields, the mud turning fertile.
Su Mei approached, wiping blood from her blades. "You're improving," she said, her icy gaze softening. "That Qi blast was no accident. But Yun's bandits will return stronger. Watch your back." She paused, her voice low. "You're not fighting alone." Her lips curved slightly, a rare smile, before she vanished into the hills, leaving warmth in Lin Feng's chest.
Li Xiyue's cart rolled in as the sun rose, her dark silks glinting, crates of jade and Qi crystals behind her. "You're alive, prince," she said, smiling sharply. "My trade routes smell of water already. These are for scaling your toys-free, for a cut of the west's profits."
Lin Feng's eyes narrowed. The jasmine scent sharpened his suspicion. "Why the generosity, Lady Li?" Zhao's bandits hit hard. You are in on it?"
Her laugh was sharp. "Business, Prince. A winning bet pays better. But if you're accusing me, maybe I'll take my crystals back." Her eyes glinted, challenge and charm mixed. Lin Feng hesitated, then nodded. "Deal. But no games."
She leaned closer, her breath warm. "No games—just winning." She left her motives a shadow, but the crystals glowed bright, promising more waterwheels.
Elder Mo arrived at midday, his armor creaking, a scroll in his hand. "Zhao's bandits are Yun's test," he said, tossing it. "Your mother's notes-and advanced arrays for defense. Use them, but that merchant's too slick. She's got her own agenda."
Lin Feng unrolled the scroll, finding rune tweaks to weaponize the irrigation—qi pulses against enemies. His mother's words read: "Protect what you build." He worked through the afternoon, directing villagers to build three more waterwheels, the fields flooding with water. By dusk, the arrays ran stable, crops already greening. Qingshui thrived, and Lin Feng's name spread as the prince who brought rain.
But night brought riders—Zhao's messenger, with a new scroll. "Surrender Qingshui, or Yun's elite will burn it at midnight," he sneered, riding off. Lin Feng gripped the pendant, its glow steady. The bandits' last stand was coming, and he'd turn it into his victory.