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I ignored his gibe. “Why do you need me?”

“To dispatch a small nuisance guarding the elixir. It would be nothing to a competent fighter such as yourself.” He lifted his hands, smooth and fine-boned. “My skills lie in procurement, not combat.”

I bit the inside of my cheek, my father’s image flashing through my mind—not the powerful warrior from the tales, but worn in both body and spirit. There was not much time left, for what if he died?

“I’ve heard that an immortal’s memories are restored upon their return to the heavens. What of a mortal’s memories?” I asked the Keeper’s apprentice.

“Death erases all mortal memories,” Leiying said gravely. “Once gone, those can never be regained.”

A cold knot of dread formed in my chest. My father had not known my mother as an immortal. If I did not save him in his mortal lifetime, he would forget my mother and their love. He would not know me. He would be a stranger to us.

Temptation warred with caution. “If we are caught, it’s not me alone who will pay the price,” I said, thinking of my mother and Liwei.

“We won’t be. I know the palace like the back of my hand, and I have no desire to rot in a Celestial prison for eternity. They do not look kindly upon thieves.” Tao grimaced. “Disguise yourself and conceal your face, as an added precaution. Guard my back, and I’ll do the rest. The time has never been better. With the recent changes in the army leadership, the palace defenses have been weakened. Fewer guards are on duty; the wards are not as strong as they once were.”

General Wu was undoubtedly a poor replacement for General Jianyun. “Have you told anyone else of your plan?” I asked, wary of discovery.

Tao cocked his head at me. “You’re the first person we’ve approached. We asked you because you want it as much as we do, and you’re competent with that bow, by blood if nothing else.”

I stared at the pair, sensing nothing but an urgency that matched my own. And if we were caught, all of us would suffer the consequences. The thought of stealing from the Celestial Emperor flooded me with trepidation. Yet beneath, coursed a more profound terror, that I might lose my father just when I had found him.

“Very well,” I agreed.

“Tomorrow night. We’ll meet within the grove of camphor trees, just south of the Imperial Treasury.” Tao exchanged a guarded look with his sister. “One more thing. You can’t tell anyone else about our plan, especially Prince Liwei.”

“Why not?”

Tao’s eyes flashed. “What if His Highness tried to stop you? What if he spoke to the Keeper of Mortal Fates about my sister? If you can’t promise us your discretion, we’ll take our chances elsewhere.”

My gut twisted as I nodded tersely. I did not want to lie to Liwei, even as I struggled with how to tell him the truth. Yet this was my best hope to help my father, and I would not fail him.

My worries consumed me throughout the journey back. As I stepped off the cloud, I found Liwei leaning against one of the mother-of-pearl columns that flanked the entrance. Waiting for me, undoubtedly.

His eyes slid over my garments, my fingers itching to smooth my robe, crumpled from those hours spent hunched in wait. A far cry from the embroidered silk dresses I had worn in the Jade Palace.

“I like what you’re wearing,” he said quietly. “It suits you.”

Warmth flared in me at his words. I tapped the silk cord around my wrist, which sprang free, writhing in the air. “It’s useful too. They have been enchanted to tie themselves.”

He caught my wrist, catching the end of the cord to wind it back into place. “This is too delicate; you might need something stronger,” he observed, running a finger across it. The threads glowed with his magic, hardening to gleaming strips of chestnut-brown, which crisscrossed over my wrists. From the pulse of energy thrumming against my skin, this was no ordinary material; more pliant than leather and yet sturdier.

“Thank you.” I held them up to examine them. “What is it?”

“This can withstand even the sharpest blades, though not for long.” As his gaze searched my face, I tensed. “Where have you been? I haven’t seen you all day,” he asked.

“The Mortal Realm. I was at my father’s grave.” My deceit lay in concealment.

His eyes darkened with understanding. “I know how much you grieve for him.”

I hesitated, before asking, “Liwei, what have you heard of the Elixir of Immortality?” I did not want to steal from his father. If there was another way, I would seek it—but if not, I would not falter.

“Its creation is something only my father is privy to. He guards it well, for such a thing might change the fate of the world below.” He paused. “Why do you ask?”

A longing swept through me to confide in him, but I had given my word to Tao. Yet I would tell him what I could, for I wanted no other lies between us.

“My father is alive. I met him in the Mortal Realm,” I said haltingly. Even now it seemed a dream, though all my hopes were entwined with fear.

Liwei stared at me, wide-eyed. “The Black Dragon said he had died. Why do you think he’s your father?”