Chapter 8 — The Six-Winged Golden Silkworm

In one of the VIP suites of Caesars Palace, one of the grandest hotels in Las Vegas—a room whose gilded splendor defied description—Liao Yanqiao stared at the enormous pile of money heaped on the oversized bed and hopped about in excitement. "Three hundred million! Three hundred million US dollars! What do these little Japanese devils need to carry so much cash around for? Is this girl really worth that much?" Yet amid his delight ran a thread of doubt. "It seems I'll only know for certain once Master wakes her up!" Zhou Xuan wore a grave expression, two fingers pressed to the pulse at the wrist of the unconscious girl, shaking his head again and again.

Liao Yanqiao burst out laughing at the sight. "Haha! Master, when did you learn to diagnose illnesses? Didn't you say the puppet art resides in the brain? So why are you checking her wrist? What's with all this posturing?"

"Heh heh!" Zhou Xuan gave an awkward laugh. "What kind of way is that to speak to your master? Begging for a beating, are you? Do you think I'm taking her pulse? I'm checking whether she's suffered any other injuries."

"You're obviously just showing off! And you call it taking her pulse? Posturing!" Liao Yanqiao muttered, then asked, "Master! Is she curable or not? Such a beauty—it'd be a shame if she died!"

"It's very tricky! I'm not certain either. Her brain has fallen under the puppet worm's control, seizing her consciousness. We must lure the puppet worm out, then nurse her back slowly. Otherwise, given enough time, the puppet worm will lose control and eat her brains hollow—and then even a Great Golden Immortal coming down from heaven would be useless." Zhou Xuan laid out his analysis.

"Then what do we do? Is there any way to lure out the puppet worm?" Liao Yanqiao asked. "For that, I need your help!"

"Me? How can I help?"

"Though there are many kinds of puppet worms, most of them love blood. Just let out a little of yours, and I'll cast a spell to send the scent of blood into her brain, luring the worm out. After that, I'll nourish her slowly with Wood-Element spiritual energy."

"My blood again! Why is it always mine?"

"What, would you have your master use his instead? How about you be the master? You're a bloodkin—losing ten or twenty catties doesn't matter a bit, you'll recover in no time. Your master is another matter entirely." Zhou Xuan looked utterly shameless. He thought to himself: "Your blood contains the sacred blood of the Nine Li. It's the finest tonic those worms could ever have. If not yours, whose?"

"Fine, for the sake of a beauty, I'll make this sacrifice." Liao Yanqiao spoke with righteous solemnity. Zhou Xuan wasted no words. He gathered his qi into a blade and opened a small cut on Liao Yanqiao's wrist. "The moment you see something strange come out, move her away at once. And be sure—also, stick this ward talisman on her body, so that once the puppet worm is out it can't get back in. You must time it right: the instant it comes out, slap the talisman on." Zhou Xuan instructed.

He dipped his fingertip in a bit of blood and drew a symbol on his palm, then placed it by the girl's ear. He circulated his power to urge it on, and a faint thread of blood-light, flecked with tiny pale-gold specks, bored into the girl's ear. In no time at all, a rustling, shuffling sound came from within the ear, and a golden silkworm-like insect emerged, an inch or so long and as thick as a chopstick, crawling out slowly. Stranger still, the silkworm-shaped golden worm bore a pair of wings on its back—wings thinner than a cicada's, shimmering with golden light and beating ceaselessly. The moment it emerged, the golden worm transformed into a streak of gold and flew straight at Zhou Xuan's palm.

Zhou Xuan at once shot Liao Yanqiao a look. The golden worm suddenly sensed, by pure instinct, that something was wrong, and came to an abrupt halt just an inch from Zhou Xuan's palm, about to turn back. But it was too late. The scheme had been deliberate against an unsuspecting victim, and Liao Yanqiao's speed was not slow either. With a thud, the golden worm was repelled by the red light of the ward talisman and dropped into a jade vial in Zhou Xuan's hand.

Zhou Xuan's face was full of astonishment; he could not help crying out, "Six-Winged Golden Silkworm! Six-Winged Golden Silkworm! It really is a Six-Winged Golden Silkworm! What bastard could take such a treasure and refine it into a puppet worm? What a waste of treasure! A squanderer of family fortune!"

Seeing Zhou Xuan so beside himself, Liao Yanqiao could not help asking, "What on earth is this Six-Winged Golden Silkworm? Why are you so happy?" Zhou Xuan said, "Off with you! Go stick a few Wood-Spirit Talismans by the girl's side. I'd say she should wake in a few hours. This Six-Winged Golden Silkworm is the finest spiritual creature between heaven and earth, but as a puppet worm it's utterly unsuitable. Once the business is done, I'll explain it all to you!" Zhou Xuan was thoroughly smug.

"Master, it's all done."

"Mm! Not bad! Those Wood-Spirit Talismans are drawn quite properly, and the spirit-gathering formation is laid out passably well too!" Zhou Xuan was in excellent spirits, and praised Liao Yanqiao—a rare thing. "It seems you really have been studying hard lately!"

Liao Yanqiao was caught between laughter and tears. "Master! When that beauty wakes up in a bit, whatever you do, don't say that in front of her, or I'll lose all face!" "Oh!?" Zhou Xuan's eyes rolled half a circle. "Very well then. Master has a little favor to ask of you shortly—you mustn't refuse!"

Liao Yanqiao hastily nodded in agreement without delay, patted his chest, and declared, "Master's business is my business. Just give the word, and I'd go through fire and water without a second thought. By the way, you said that thing is called the Six-Winged Golden Silkworm—what exactly is it? It clearly has only one pair of wings!"