Chapter 24 · Not Her Altar

The hall doors slam open and I don't even get to turn around before someone yanks me backward by the collar.

"There she is." Elder Fang's voice. Cold and satisfied like he just found a lost sword. "The pure Yin root we've been looking for."

Gu's hand shoots out and grabs my wrist before they can drag me further. His grip's tight enough to bruise but I don't pull away. The elders form a half-circle in front of us—Fang, two others I recognize from council meetings, and one old woman in gray robes who's supposedly been in seclusion for twenty years. They all look at me like I'm a pill they're about to crack open.

"Sect Leader." Elder Fang doesn't even pretend to be respectful anymore. "Step aside. The sect needs her root to stabilize the protective array. You've had your turn."

"She's under contract to me," Gu says. His voice is level but I feel his pulse hammering against my wrist. "You can't touch her."

"Your contract was for dual cultivation." The old woman steps forward. Her eyes are milky but her gaze finds me anyway. "Now that you've stabilized, the root belongs to the sect.