“I heard they sent him over from the south.”

“He’s actually still alive? Talk about luck.”

“Apparently, he hid in a concealed compartment the whole time and escaped the explosion. His teacher died, though, and he was left crippled. Without treatment, he wouldn’t have lasted much longer.”

“They wasted that much medicine on a useless wreck like him?”

“He still has his hands, doesn’t he? We’re short-staffed everywhere. Even a cripple can be put to use. Why else would they have shipped him off to a place like this?”

“Shh, keep your voice down. He’s looking this way!”

“What are you afraid of? Look, he’s even smiling at us.”

***

Amid the rolling waves of heat, machinery thundered without pause.

Ji Jue grinned foolishly at the two apprentices. Unfortunately, his badly burned face was no longer handsome or approachable. It was hideous and twisted, and crimson blood seeped from the cracks in his scars. The sight made the two apprentices wince. Their whispered conversation came to an abrupt halt.

How fascinating. Being ugly had its advantages too. Now he knew.

Ji Jue looked away, leaned on his crutches, and hobbled forward, doing his best to pick up the pace. 

Hearing the uneven rhythm of the crutches tapping against the floor, the middle-aged man leading the way glanced back and slowed his pace slightly. Looking at Ji Jue’s strained smile, he let out a sigh. “Everyone who ends up here is the same at first. People gossip too much. Once you get to know each other, it’ll get better.”

Ji Jue nodded and put on the smile his role called for. It was a pitiful smile tinged with...