Faithful Heart (Flesh of my Flesh...Blood of my Blood 2)

Chapter 3

After Donghua had left Feng Jiu to her mother's tender care, he had made his way to the Ancient Library located in the depth of the Holy Blue Sea. The library was guarded by an Ancient Owl spirit, who kept the most obscures of records in the Realms and could be reached only by swimming to it because the old magical shields that guarded it made it impossible to teleport.

Donghua swam for miles but he did not tire, that brief interaction with Feng Jiu had returned vigour and magic to him. The depths of the Blue Sea held many secrets and this library was the most precious, well kept one. Reaching a set of rocks, Donghua made a series of hand seals and a brilliant portal opened that allowed him access. Stepping into a white stone room, the magic in the portal dried his clothing and hair, he was greeted by Hai Rong the powerful Owl Spirit.

"Hai Rong greets Donghua Dijun." The old owl was a ten-foot creature with the hands of a man, the feet of a bird and the head of an owl, a brown tunic that reached the floor covered him.

"At ease." His Lordship said and Hai Rong straightened. "Hai Rong, I want to know if there are any records surrounding soul bonding in the library."

"Dijun while there have been a few rumoured cases there is only one such incident recorded in the Library. The myth surrounding Huangdi and Fubao, the parents of the Supremely Mysterious and Primordial Emperor, Laozi."

"I want to see it." Dijun said and Hai Rong bowed.

Hai Rong led Dijun down one long winding staircase that took him to the oldest part of the library, the section that had been initially carved millions of years ago by the Eternal Venerable Mother's own hands. The rock was bare here and the there where no elegant white jade shelves filled with records made of jadeite, written in gold but instead the shelves where made of rock and the records where of plain bamboo, albeit magical bamboo that never rotted and enchanted black ink. There in a hidden corner, Donghua found an old and abuse bamboo scroll inside a yellowing silk sleeve that detailed the only ever recorded soul bond in the Universe.

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"After the Celestial Tribe, the Bai Family is the richest and most respected. Qing Qiu is vast and rich, sectioned off into five provinces governed by one of Bai Zhi's offspring, each one producing riches, rare medicinal herbs and the finest magical silk in the Four Realms and Six Directions. The seat of Qing Qiu's capital, where Bai Zhi makes his home, produces clear green jadeite, the stone holds the most intricate of spells. Feng Jiu's father, Bai Yi, is a mystery I can find nothing on where he was during his youth and when he took the throne he was named by the Fox King as Treasurer of Jade Coffers of Qing Qiu. There isn't a Kingdom in the Realm's that doesn't owe the Bai Family gold or Jade and the cunning fox recently bought and additional ten percent of the debt leftover by the war campaign during the uprising in the Water Kingdom."

Dijun hummed at Third Prince words but continued to stare at the game board. He knew all of this, there must be a point that Liang Song was trying to make somewhere but hurrying him on would only result in his meandering more.

"Feng Jiu is the only granddaughter of the Old Fox King and worst yet, she is the only nine-tailed red fox in all the Realms while all her family are seven white tailed foxes. Even thought she hasn't manifested to her full potential yet; sources tell me that her grandfather intends to make her his heir apparent. Marriage to her would demolish your apparent neutral stand amongst the Families and Tribes..."

Donghua continued to pretend to ignore Liang Song and place another white stone on the game board. The little tidbit about Feng Jiu possibly being name Crown Princess of Qing Qiu was unnerving, but he couldn't turn back now, the dice had been cast and he had to transverse this path no matter the consequences.