Yu Di yanked the knife out of the bun and laid it on the table. “Thank you for the food. I got it from here.”

  Vimala walked away into the back room. She slammed the door on her way in.

  “What’s her problem?” Yu Di asked.

  Ying Fusu picked up the knife and cut off a piece of naan for Yu Di. “I don’t know. I’ve never seen her like this. Vim’s usually so kind and gentle to everyone.”

  The door swung open without slamming this time. Vimala carried over a sour, tangy white drink. She carefully placed it in front of Ying Fusu.

  “Apologies Fusu,” Vimala said. “Here’s your drink with the meal.”

  “Thank you.” Ying Fusu grabbed another bowl from the counter and poured half the drink for Yu Di.

  That earned a few ugly stares from Vimala but she said nothing before returning to the back room.

  Yu Di nodded his thanks before picking it up. He hadn’t had fermented milk since the last time he was here. His servant didn’t know how to make it, but he had a feeling he was just being lazy.

  The sweet and sour taste hit his tongue. The warmth of the milk reminded him of a mother’s embrace. Whoever made this drink put in a lot of love. Yu Di could taste the cinnamon lingering at the back of his throat as he swallowed.

  “You look like you haven’t had a decent meal in days,” Ying Fusu said.

  “Years, really. I missed this city.” Yu Di licked his lips and settled his bowl onto the table.

  Ying Fusu poured the rest of his drink into his bowl. “Here, enjoy. You won’t get a drink this good anywhere in the city. Vim has a magic touch.”

  Vimala came back out carrying a large tray with bowls of oatmeal on it. She went to every other patron and placed a small bowl in front of them. Just as Ying Fusu said, she was nice to every one, making sure to check in with each of them.

  Yu Di took a bite from his bun. It was delicious. It wasn’t as good as Bai Feng’s, but the different spices and the mutton’s soft tender juiciness made Yu Di forget about Vimala’s surliness. If she could cook this well, she must be blessed by some cooking goddess.

  Vimala came back around to Yu Di and placed a small bowl in front of him. It was a beautifully arranged bowl of oatmeal, topped with cinnamon and dates. The smell hit Yu Di harder now that it was so close.

  “Thank you,” Yu Di said.

  Vimala glared at him with those green eyes as if daring him to eat it.

  Yu Di wasn’t sure if he should eat it. What if she poisoned it? But so what? How could he show fear to this woman? He had faced down Demigods. Hell, he had faced down the very Goddess of this city.

  A thought sparked in his old brain. Could Vimala be from the Goddess’ sect?

  Yu Di picked up the bowl and sipped from it. Since he wasn’t given a spoon like the other patrons, he had to resort to drinking it like soup.

  The moment the oatmeal hit his tongue, a deluge of cinnamon kicked in. It was the dates that saved him from the flood, anchoring him to that sweet, sweet flavor. Even if this was poisoned, it wouldn’t be bad for a last meal.

  “How did you make this so flavorful?” Yu Di asked.

  Vimala ignored him and walked into the backroom.

  Yu Di settled for eating his meal in peace. He did have to borrow a spoon from Ying Fusu, but it wasn’t like he was using it. The man had his own personal golden chopsticks and spoon.

  “Auntie, auntie, auntie Vimala!” a child yelled. He was an olive skinned boy wearing a very loose light colored robe. He looked only a few years older than Yu Lin.

  “What is it, Farooq?” Vimala called from inside the back room.

  “We’re hungry.” Farooq held out his hand.

  Vimala came out with a small bag. “You better share that with the others this time Farooq. If I hear from one of the other adults that you ate everything, I’m going to beat you this time. I mean it.”

  Farooq smiled that childish smile that all children have when they know they’ve done something wrong before running away.

  “I didn’t know you had children,” Yu Di said.

  “You’re done eating now.” Vimala yanked the half eaten bowl of oatmeal from Yu Di. She took it over to one of the camels that had its head stuck through the window.

  Yu Di licked his spoon. “Why is she so mean to me?” he asked Ying Fusu in their native language.

  “I don’t know.” Ying Fusu took a sip from his milk drink. “Maybe you did something to her in the past?”

  Yu Di considered it for a moment. “That can’t be it. The last time I was here, it was over twenty years ago. I treated everyone well. Gave gifts to everyone and made sure I was at least tolerated. The only person that I wronged isn’t around. Otherwise, she would have picked me apart with her fingernails.”

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  Yu Di looked over at Vimala, trying to remember who she might have been over twenty years ago. She might be related to the Goddess’ people, but they fought outside of the city. There was no way any of her followers could have followed them.

  Yet those eyes and that face. That wouldn’t be something he would easily forget, even if he never cared for those thoughts.

  “Have you stared enough, creep?” Vimala asked.

  “Oh damn.” A thought struck Yu Di again, this time clearing out the mud stuck in his brain. He knew who this was. He whispered, “You’re the Goddess.”

  Vimala froze. Her hands shook as it held onto the bowl for the camel.

  “That’s why you look and sound so familiar,” Yu Di said. “That has to be it. Your voice has deepened, but I can’t forget that same tone and voice when you threatened to end my existence at the end. The same contempt you have in taking away my food.”

  Ying Fusu leaned in.

  “Let’s not alert the local patrons of your discovery, shall we?” He got up and walked into the back room. He beckoned Yu Di.

  Yu Di followed. The room was large, holding all manner of different food stuff. There was a large stove at the back that still had steam coming off it. There was a large well in the corner. Along with food, there were other items that patrons of a roadside inn might need such as spare clothing, cleansing items, and animal care items. A small cot lay beside the well.

  Vimala eventually followed and closed the door behind her.

  “I’m right, aren’t I?” Yu Di asked. “You’re the Goddess. I can see it now. There’s a small aura around you, but I thought that was normal as every native born Miryanans had the aura. But you glow differently.”

  “Master Ying, please kill him,” Vimala said.

  Yu Di paused and looked between the two. If Ying Fusu took that seriously, he would only have seconds before a deadly Qi technique would slice him in two. Not only that, his bodyguards outside could kill him with a fart. Ying Fusu wouldn’t need to lift a finger.

  Ying Fusu frowned, giving Yu Di the stare of a lifetime as if he was weighing every sin or action he’s ever done. The weight of that gaze made Yu Di shiver as if he was staring at a dragon.

  Yu Di reached into his storage ring for anything he could use against someone in the second realm.

  Nothing.

  Everything useful was locked as he didn’t have enough Qi to activate them.

  Ying Fusu leaned against a rack of spices and folded his arms. “Vim, you know I’m not a murderer.”

  “Then get one of your bodyguards,” Vimala said. “He’s a danger to the city. If we leave him alive, he will burn the entire city. If you love me, you’ll do this for me to save my city.”

  Ying Fusu reached into his chest pocket.

  Yu Di braced himself. He just faced a life threatening situation before he woke up. Another one wouldn’t change anything. He was ready to fight back with his Demigod powers.

  Ying Fusu pulled out a small painted wooden figurine. He looked at it carefully before polishing the face of the figurine. “If there’s one thing you should know by now is that I don’t take well to extortion, Vim. Using my love for you like a weapon is above you.” He showed Yu Di his wooden figurine. “This was a gift from my savior. He was a magnanimous man, one of the best Demigods I’ve ever met. He taught me the value of retreating.”

  Yu Di gave it a passing glance before relaxing himself. It didn’t look like Master Ying was going to kill him after all.

  “That looks nice,” Yu Di said. It looked kind of familiar, but there was a bigger issue he had to deal with. He looked at Vimala.

  The woman hid behind Ying Fusu.

  “He knows who I am, Fusu.” Vimala grasped Ying Fusu’s sleeve. “If he tells the abbot, they’ll send the high priest to kill me. We can’t let him live.”

  “Hmmm, that would be a problem,” Ying Fusu said. He put away the wooden figurine. “Are you going to turn her in?”

  “Why isn’t she using her powers to save this city from the siege?” Yu Di asked. “Why isn’t she wiping me out?”

  Vimala and Ying Fusu didn’t answer.

  “It’s because she can’t. Something happened to your powers.”

  “It was you!” Vimala threw a jar at Yu Di.

  Yu Di caught the jar, the sauce swishing inside. He popped it open and smelled it. A fish sauce? He corked it back and placed it on a shelf.

  Since Ying Fusu wasn’t going to kill him, he had no real fear of this woman. As far as Yu Di could tell, she barely has any of her former powers of a Goddess. If he didn’t know any better, she was in the same condition as he was.

  Yet he’s overcome his curse, at least a part of it. If he wanted to, he could kill her before Ying Fusu could react. It might even give him a chance to find the secret stashed in this city, allowing him to truly ascend to godhood.

  “Whatever you’re thinking, I would advise you to keep it non-homicidal,” Ying Fusu said.

  Yu Di smiled. “I wasn’t thinking of that at all.”

  “I have met so many people in my travels.” Ying Fusu picked up another jar from the shelf, hefting it in his hand. “The one kind of people I can’t stand are liars.”

  Ying Fusu threw the jar at Yu Di.

  This time, the jar flew faster than Yu Di could react, smashing right into his pants. A fragrant yellow liquid exploded along with the jar. If Ying Fusu aimed a little higher, Yu Di would be a eunuch. As it was, the jar’s fragments cut into his thighs.

  “I feel I have been very generous to my fellow countryman,” Ying Fusu said. “Don’t take my generosity for permission to act foolishly toward my woman.”

  Yu Di knelt on the ground, ignoring the broken shards. He bowed his head until it reached the floor.

  “I apologize, Master Ying,” Yu Di said. “I didn’t know my place. But when someone has threatened to kill me twice, I have to respond.”

  Ying Fusu patted Yu Di on the shoulder. “Rise.”

  Yu Di got up. He couldn’t look the man in the eyes. They made him tremble. No one else had ever done that to him. No, there was one, the Demigod Ruler of Celestial Jade Empire. But that man was at the pinnacle of the fourth realm when Yu Di met him as a newly minted Demigod.

  There were monsters out here that didn’t need cultivation to cow others.

  “I understand where you’re coming from,” Ying Fusu said. “But also understand that you’re currently at the mercy of this woman. Give her a little grace.”

  “Yes, of course Master Ying.” Yu Di cupped his head and bowed.

  “Wait, what’s going on? What did you say to him? Are you not going to kill him?” Vimala asked.

  Ying Fusu shook his head.

  “Why not? He’s a danger to us all.”

  Ying Fusu relaxed back against the shelf again, arms folded.

  “Then tell me Vim, why should we kill this man?”

  “Because he’s the one that almost burned the city all those years ago.” Vimala glared at Yu Di. “He’s the Demigod cultivator from your country that attacked me and cursed this city to be without its Goddess. He’s the reason for what’s happening to my city!”

  “So what you’re telling me is this man was the Demigod that attacked you when you were a Goddess all those years ago?”

  Vimala nodded.

  “Are you sure he’s the Demigod who was rumored to have every imaginable artifact and riches within his storage ring that could make any man rich beyond their wildest dreams or grant the power of a Demigod?”

  Vimala nodded furiously.

  Yu Di took a step back. He needed the woman to stop agreeing and marking him for death. In the face of such a rumor, anyone would tear him to pieces for it, let alone a random second realm merchant in the middle of a city under siege.

  Yet, the only real option left to him was to use what little power he had left to defend himself. That was a losing proposition. He’d still die and he wouldn’t be able to spend the last few years of his life with his little daughter.

  Ying Fusu stood up and walked over to Yu Di, slowly.

  “You have one chance, my countryman, to tell me the truth. Is what she says the truth?”