It was as if someone was calling her.
A whisper drifted across her mind, deep, commanding, and dangerous.
"You promised you'd come to me, Yuwen Yueshuang."
Her breath suddenly became labored.
That voice, low and distant, made her chest tighten. She didn't know who it belonged to, but her body reacted before her thoughts could form. Her heart skipped, her pulse quickened.
The candle beside her bed flickered back to life on its own, the flames trembling wildly.
Yueyao's fingers clenched around the sheet as a faint headache throbbed at her temple.
"What kind of fate have I stepped into?" she whispered wondering what was pulling her.
Outside, thunder rolled in the distance, and the crimson moon began to fade behind dark clouds, as if hiding the secret it had resurrected
The door opened again, this time, not with the same frantic rush, but with measured urgency. The faint sound of robes brushing against the floor followed, mingling with hurried murmurs.
"Move aside, let me through," Duke Yuwen's voice came first, steady but strained. Behind him came the physician, carrying his case of jade vials and spirit stones, followed by several elders of the clan. Two young men entered last, both tall, both with the same silver-threaded robes as the duke's household, though their gazes couldn't have been more different.
The younger one, Yuwen Lin, had soft eyes and an expression that trembled between worry and relief. The older one, Yuwen Jian, was calm, composed, but there was a sharpness in his stare, as if he could see through her soul.
Madam Yuwen rushed to her daughter's side again, "She's awake," she said, her voice still trembling trying to reassure herself, "She's really awake."
The physician immediately knelt by the bedside and took Yueyao's wrist in his hand. His fingers pressed lightly against her pulse, his brows furrowing almost at once. "Strange…" he muttered under his breath. " Her pulse is steady, yet her heartbeat… sounds as if there are two."
Duke Yuwen's frown deepened, " What do you mean? Speak up something I can understand!"
The healer hesitated, choosing his words carefully. "It's as though there's another rhythm beneath hers. Not an echo, something living, faint, but not her own."
The elders exchanged uneasy glances. One of them, an old man with silver hair tied high, spoke in a low tone. "Could it be… the awakening of blood? I have seen this once, long ago, when an ancient soul stirs."
" Elder Han," Duke Yuwen said sharply, "do not speak nonsense before my daughter."
But Yueyao's heart clenched at those words, an ancient soul. Her hand trembled slightly under the blanket.
She was another soul. An ancient soul since a hundred years have passed by.
Yuwen Lin stepped forward, his voice gentle. "Sister, how do you feel? You were asleep for five days. We thought…" His words faltered. " We thought you'd never wake up."
Yueyao turned toward him, studying the familiar face that didn't belong to her past, and yet, something about him made her chest tighten. A strange warmth, and an ache she couldn't name. "I feel… fine," she said quietly. "Just a little tired."
Yuwen Jian's eyes narrowed up squinting at her, "You're pale. And your aura feels… different." His tone wasn't harsh, but it carried suspicion. "Are you sure you remember everything that happened before you collapsed?"
Yueyao met his gaze unapologetically, "I remember enough," she said evenly, though her mind was a blur of images, a storm, a beast's roar, a circle of light, and her own blood staining the earth.
The physician cleared his throat, breaking the tension, "She must not be agitated," he said firmly. "Her condition may appear stable, but her spirit is still fragile. Even the smallest shock could undo her recovery."
Madam Yuwen nodded quickly. " Then we'll keep her in the east wing until she regains her strength. No visitors would be allowed without my permission."
Duke Yuwen turned to the healer. " Can she move?"
"Not yet," the healer responded, " But if she wakes again at dawn with the same steady pulse, then perhaps in three days, she may walk the courtyard."
Yuwen Lin smiled faintly, relief softening his features. "That's good news. I'll have the servants bring fresh flowers and incense, she always liked the scent of osmanthus."
Yueyao blinked amused. She didn't, but the real Yueshuang must have. She forced a small nod, unsure how to respond to that sweet gesture.
Then, for a moment, her gaze met Yuwen Jian's again, and something flickered between them. His expression shifted, unreadable, as if something deep inside him stirred. His hand brushed his chest subtly, and for the briefest second, Yueyao's own heart skipped in unison.
A faint whisper echoed in her mind, low and chilling, the same one from before.
"Blood calls to blood… you cannot run from it."