At Crossroads: Of Death?

Journey to the North

The sound of chatters filled the forest as the trio walked through it. One could begin with the rustling of leaves due to being trodden underfoot or the col breeze that whistled through the tall trees which stood like Chinese statues, their branches hiding the face of the sun; thus allowing little specks of light to seep into the dark forest, illuminating it. Birds could be heard chirping, filling the environment with their sonorous melody. Monkeys could be seen chattering as they hopped from tree to tree. Two squirrels ran across the grassy ground, squeaking loudly. These were what characterized the forest of trees. This was what could be truly called nature.

They were dressed in yellow robes and wore trousers of the same colour, their feet cladded in shoes which were made of animal hide. Their heads were bald, shaven clean of hair and as smooth as polished stones. Dotted black lines ran vertically across their heads from the forehead to the back head. Around their necks were black prayer beads about the size of pebbles-monks. They were monks from the looks of it (actually one of them was already an Abbot).

"Qi, how do you feel about visiting the Northern Monastery?" the oldest of the monks asked, his face beaming a smile. "Won't it be awesome?" His name was Lung and loved talking alot. He was also a great joker and loved saying he'd love to work in a circus rather than stay in the scraggy Monastery, learning how to attain Nirvana everyday.

Qi hated it when questions were randomly thrown at him. This was something that made he feel irritated! His brown eyes which were sharp stared at Lung, sizing him up. Then his lips opened slightly and grunted, "The Northern Monastery is the same as the Southern or any other one..."

"..."

Lung's mouth twitched. Qi was sure a bad tempered fellow with no regard for jokes. Children like him should appreciate jokes. He was barely 15 of age!

"... why should it be 'awesome'?"

Lung didn't dare keep quiet. It would make him lose face in front Qi; he was a senior monk while the latter was a junior. Why would a junior monk exert such authority?

"Come on! Don't be ridiculous," Lung chipped in. "There are lots of artefacts there, you'd love them."

"Qi," the Abbot finally spoke, his adam's apple bulging up and down like a pendulum. His beady eyes stared at the young monk who lacked enthusiasm for matters like this and easily had misconceptions about things.

The other two monks pricked up their ears, listening attentively. Their Abbot seldom talked and when he eventually did, spoke with vigor.

This Abbot was young as well with a glamour of beauty to his nature and had an air of wisdom around him.

"The Western Monastery is nothing like the other four," the Abbot said.

"Huh?" Qi arched his brow. How is the Western Monastery different from the others? he thought. The Monasteries were orthodox organizations set up to teach people the ways of Buddha in order to attain Nirvana, self liberation from all things in this world.

Lung took this moment to mock him. Sneering he said, "Didn't know that or didn't want to know?"

"Lung, I guess you should let the Abbot continue."

"Whatever."

The Abbot sighed. Children. Even though Lung was a young adult, 18 of age, the Abbot still viewed him as a child. Inasmuch you were still a monk, you are a child irrespective of whether you were a senior monk or junior monk or whatsoever.

He then said in a deep voice, "The Western Monastery broke away from the teachings of Buddha."

Broke away from the teachings of Buddha? This... Lung and Qi had the same thoughts. How would a Monastery which had existed for millennials suddenly break away from the teachings of Buddha? What did they do that made them break away? These questions resounded in their minds.

The Abbot chuckled, "There are things you shouldn't know yet."

Lung and Qi exchanged looks. The Abbot was definitely not going to tell them anything, at least for the time being.

They had reached a rocky, steep hill and begun climbing, grabbing and treading on rocks for support. They avoided the narrow path since it was steep and could send them tumbling down any moment.

A great silence descended on them, threatening to engulf them. Lung was irritated by this. He hated silence but seeing that the others had no intention of talking, he continued in silence often muttering something to himself.

"How long do we have to go? Is the Northern Monastery that far?" Qi asked.

"So long," the Abbot chuckled. Children never cease to amaze me, he thought. Do they think this is a short journey? Just like other Monasteries, the Eastern Monastery was located deep in the forests of Crosslands, making it impossible for it to be discovered by the six kingdoms. To even travel to a city in Crosslands would take days much more traveling to the North. They had to pass through several forests, cities, villages and then the Boundary which separated the six kingdoms from each other. The Boundary which was supposed to be just a boundary had been transformed into a city by merchants. Buildings had been erected everywhere, making it a miniature kingdom.

"Hmmm...How many hours do we have to walk?" Lung chipped in. He felt if he asked a direct question, he would receive a direct answer. He did not want to waste time beating around the bush by asking questions like, "How long does it take to reach the North?"

The Abbot chuckled again, making the two monks wonder if he was doing it in order to mock them. He said, "Hours or days? Well, it takes everyone seven days."

A whole week! Lung and Qi wanted to scream out but suppressed their voices. The journey to the North actually takes seven days. They then sighed in regret. They wouldn't have gone anywhere if the annual competition wasn't coming up. The Abbot was asked to escort them to the Northern Monastery to submit a scroll. They were the ones hosting the annual competition this year! This competition would be held among the five Monasteries-Northern, Southern, Western, Eastern and Middle Monasteries. It was a martial arts competition and the winning Monastery would get to acquire different sets of mystical artefacts from the other losing Monasteries.

This made the duo very thrilled when they discovered they were the one tasked with the scroll submission.

Just then, the atmosphere became serene. It seemed all form of life had been silently stolen. They couldn't even hear the sound of birds. Strange.

"Wait!" the Abbot signaled to them with his right hand. They all stopped. Something was definitely weird about this part of the forest. Or should 'dangerous' replace 'weird'? They watched as leaves dropped from the tall trees. Then there was a loud cry, followed by deep this as a mob of angry-looking people came out of the dark forest, surrounding them.

The people were dressed in black clothing made of hides and had this murderous intent on their faces.

Bandits? Mercenaries? Slave traders? The monks couldn't discern. With those looks, they were sure the people meant harm to them.

"It was nice of you to venture so far here and now it's a nice thing to tell you that this is the end of your journey and days as free people!" a man with heavy beard said. His eyes were red and bloodshot, his face as ugly as a baboon. His height added more to his monstrous looks for he was about seven feet tall! When he spoke, a set of tobacco-stained teeth were revealed and the scars on both sides of his face deepened. On his head which was as bald as an egg, a tattoo was drawn across it-a black net.

"Slave traders," the Abbot muttered, keeping a fighting stance. Lung and Qi imitated his moves. Though they were agitated, they found it surprising to see the Abbot maintain a calm state. It was as if he had been expecting them.

"Attack them!" the man ordered, his voice railing across the forest, echoing as it went.

Thud!

The mob rushed at the trio, their feet stamping the ground ferociously. The ground vibrated, threatening to break at anytime.

Whoosh!

The Abbot moved at supernatural speed, his robe fluttering to the wind. He grabbed the two monks like sacks of feathers and tossed them into the air. Folding the sleeves of his robe, he curved his back and exerted force to his fists. Allowing his chi to surge through his body to his fist, he punched the ground.

Pa!

Chi energies surged into the ground, emitting a faint yellow glow.

Boom!

The mob exploded at the same time, shattering into the smithereens. The chi energies had travelled through the ground into them, causing internal ruptures which imploded them.

Thump!

Blobs of flesh fell to the ground, dyeing it with blood. The crimson liquid flowed like water, streaming across the blobs of flesh.

Pa!

The Abbot leaped into the air and grabbed the two monks who gaped at the horror after being dropped. What martial arts was that? How did the Abbot move so fast to throw them, deliver a deadly attack and catch them in such a short time!

The man with heavy beard was unhurt but nevertheless shocked. He then found himself saying, "C-chi manipulation!" The other party had a chi manipulation user! This was very dangerous for him.

Pa!

Before he could recover from the shock, a palm hit his chest, revealing a glint of yellow light and as fast as the glint appeared, the man felt his blood boiling intensely. It was as if his blood had been heated to the highest degree!

Sizzle!

He gasped in pain as he felt his internal organs melting rapidly. He then collapsed, pores appearing on the surface of his body, spewing out hot blood.

Sizzle!

His body began disinteresting gradually, leaving nothing but a charred patch in the grass.

"Let's go," the Abbot said calmly to the shocked monks.

Lung and Qi nodded immediately. They felt they should leave this part of the forest as soon as possible. Maybe the next ambush they would face would come from evil spirits and not bandits.

They both shrugged at the thought. It sent shivers running down their spines.

"I don't think so," a voice sounded. It was the man who had disintegrated. He was standing and had a sinister smile on his face.

Opening his mouth, he chanted:

"The Sons of Darkness,

Four Hands of Death,

I pray thee, come!"

A cold breeze swept across the forest, sending a chill down the spines of the three monks. Their hairs stood still, threatening to fall of anytime.

The Abbot had read many books and experienced supernatural situations and was no stranger to what the man was doing. Apparently, he was a worshipper of Death and had used that as a trump card of resurrection. The Abbot also knew the incantation. It pertained to the domain of Death and was summoning underworld beings, creatures of darkness. He knew who the Sons of Darkness were and the thought of this made his mind run adrift. The Sons of Darkness were legendary people who had sold their souls to Death, hence obtaining seats in the Underworld and having the powers of death and darkness! This legend had existed for about five thousand years.

Followed by the cold breeze, darkness descended rapidly. Nobody even could see anything in front of them! They could feel the auras of death, their life forces slowly seeping out of their body. The trees and grasses around them slowly withered, falling down one by one. The forest was now a desert! Strange.

The Abbot reacted immediately. He would not easily give up without putting a fight. Raising up his hands, he channeled his chi into the surrounding. A yellow light illuminated the surrounding, making him to regain his vision.

"..."

He was dumbfounded. Lung and Qi were nowhere to be seen. He looked around hoping to see the man, but he too was gone. Strange.

Suddenly, four shadows appeared on the ground. He looked around for the people but couldn't see them except their shadows. Then it dawned on him. These were the Four Sons of Death!

Thump! Thump! Thump!

His heart raced, threatening to explode. Mere looking at the shadows, he felt his body disintegrate bit by bit. Dark tentacles grew out of this body, tearing through his muscles.

"Ah!" he yelled but no sound came out. The darkness absorbed the sound.

His hands dropped to the ground, followed by his eyes. One by one, his organs dropped to the ground, blood spewing out of his body. Then he collapsed to the ground, his body vanishing afterwards.

The Shadows then vanished into thin air, the darkness following them. In a short moment, everywhere returned to normalcy.

The Sons of Darkness had returned to the underworld.

~

An unknown place

Everywhere was dark and devoid of life. It was as if the Underworld had descended into the human world. The only material which was visible in this place was a book. It was glowing, preventing the darkness from shrouding it. There were strange writings on the book, giving out a sense of mystery.

Then it flipped open, revealing a blank page. Then words began appearing on the page, one by one till the page was filled up. It read:

"The prophecy has begun. The Order Harbinger has surfaced in the real world and this will attract several evil forces which will attempt to kill him.

The first of the evil forces are the Sons of Death.

The second would undoubtedly be the Chaos Harbinger.

The third would be Death.

The fourth..."

The book then closed afterwards, shrouding itself in the darkness.

~

Hao city, Capital of Crosslands. The palace of the Elite

A middle aged man on a white throne, rapping his fingers at the arms of the throne. He was dressed in a white robe embroidered with silvery threads, a white, sparkling crown sitting on his head. His white, long hair fluttered to the wind as his brown eyes stared into empty space, oblivious to the enormous white pillars which stood in the gigantic palace, supporting it. White chandeliers hung down from the white ceiling, holding white candles which were lit, feeling everywhere with light and warmth. The white, brick walls were lined with silver candle stands holding lit candles. Insignias were pinned to the four walls of the palace, bearing the emblem of a winged pegasus-the kingdom's emblem.

The gigantic doors opened rather abruptly, disrupting the man's thoughts. A young man in his early 20s walked in briskly. He was dressed in a white leather military outfit. Two white katanas were strapped to his back, crossing each other. At his left side, a white sword was sheathed.

His hair was as brown as walnut and his eyes blue as the sea. His lips were pink and rosy, his face unsmiling. He was full of vigour and had an air of authority. Approaching the throne, he bowed.

"You called me, Elite?"

"Of course I did," the man on the throne, who was obviously the Elite said. "If I didn't you'd be dead, Regent." It was a law for no one to enter the palace without the Elite's permission or the offender would face a death sentence. Everyone in the kingdom was aware of this law.

"Bandits attacked our trade route and killed all hunters...and of course huntlets. They stole a cargo worth thousands of gold coins," the Elite continued, sitting upright. "It is your job to find these idiots, kill them and bring back the cargo. Understood?"

The Regent nodded, "What if I don't find the cargo with them. It's likely they would trade it along the Boundary."

The Elite chuckled, revealing deep wrinkles on his face.

"Then you'd go with a pack of hunters to save you the trouble."

It was a norm among regents to go on missions without an army. This Regent was aware of this. Frowning, he grunted, "I don't hunt in packs."

"Very well then."

~

A tavern, Somewhere in Deathlands

Chatters and clinking of glasses filled the air. Men could be heard and seen laughing merrily, their voices reverberating across the place. Bartenders moved around serving drinks on trays.

At a dark corner, ten men sat around a large, round table. They had these horrible looks, looks that law abiding citizens wouldn't want to have. Like everyone else, they were chatting merrily, smoking tobacco and playing cards.

Just then, a young woman in her early 20s walked into the tavern. She was dressed in a red leather military outfit which clung to her body tightly, making her breasts and perfect curved stand out. Her charming, green eyes searched the tavern while her pink, rosy lips maintained quietness.

Everybody turned to look at this alluring beauty, but quickly resumed their businesses after knowing who she was.

Her eyes rested on the ten men, gazing at them. Then she walked towards the table where they sat and placed her right leg on it.

Crash!

This movement shook the table, causing the bottles to fall to the ground, breaking into fragments and spilling alcohol.

"Hey Feng," one of the men smiled lewdly. "You look so hot today."

But she wasn't smiling. Ignoring the remark, she frowned deeply.

"I'd keep my eyes to myself if I were you, to avoid losing them."

"Well...well... well," another man said. "I would rather think of your white ass underneath that military uniform."

The others burst into an uproar of laughter, making the frown on Feng's face deepen.

"Where is the cargo?" she asked, "I don't see it."

"How about you paying us first!" the first man grinned and drew out a dagger, the blade reflecting his face. "It took us a hard time killing those hunters from Crosslands."

Feng pressed her foot into the table, causing cracks to appear on it.

"I won't ask again."

"Damn you, asshole!" the man grinned. Immediately, all the bandits stood up and drew out their swords.

"Easy love. You are just one Devil among ten bandits. You didn't even come with those shadowcasters," the man sneered.

"She'd make a sweet, warm body," another said. They all laughed.

"Get her! She'll be good in bed!" thr first man commanded. From his tone, it was obvious he was the chief of the bandits.

They all attacked like hungry wolves, obeying the command. Two men were the first to lunge for her.

Whoosh!

In a blur, she thrust both hands forward, slamming her palms into their torso. Then she channeled her chi into their bodies. There bodies then froze, turning white.

Crack!

Their bones cracked, protruding out of their bodies. Blood was spewed across the floor as the men fell to the ground, dead without knowing how they died.

This scene startled the other people in the tavern, causing them to scamper off. Well, not the bandits. They continued attacking and before they could realize what hit them, they ended up like the first men-dying without knowing how.

In a short time, all the bandits were dead except the chief. The chief grinned at Feng. This woman had easily finished off his gang of bandits. Killing her would be a tough nut.

Pa!

The man leaped towards Feng with his dagger, creating a dark hue around himself. The hue seeped into the whole tavern, making it dark. This was a technique worshippers of Death used. It was called the Fist of Darkness.

Feng was not agitated. Calmly, she imagined a ball of light. Raising both hands up, they reflected balls of light which shone, illuminating the tavern. The man was just a meter from her, the tip of his dagger an inch from her forehead.

Whoosh!

She moved so fast, leaving afterimages. Grabbing the blade of the dagger, she infused it with her dark chi. Her dark chi ran across the blade into the man's hands, seeping into his whole body.

Pa!

With great force, she gave him a kick in the face. The impact caused his jaw bones to shatter, making blood spew out of his mouth.

Bam!

He was sent crashing into the wall, burying himself in the hard bricks.

Snap!

His bones ruptured, all at the same time. No bone was spared, making him a bag of flesh.

Feng slowly walked towards the dying man who was stuck in the wall, dark auras escaping from her body.

"I-I sold the cargo for a thousand pieces of gold to a pack of mercenaries," he said weakly, blood drizzling down his mouth.

"Nomads," she repeated, digesting the information.

"Yes. Across the Boundary. A week's ride from here."

"I know."

"The...nomads would be moving...it may erupt into two or more weeks if you delay."

"Oh! I don't," Feng smiled and then delivered a punch to his head, shattering it into smithereens. Blood splattered everywhere, staining the whole place with crimson liquid. She stared at her blood-dripping fist and wiped it with the corpse's shirt. She then wiped blood off her face with her right hand and licked it off her hand.

"I don't go chasing bandits. That's a job for shadowcasters."

Immediately, a puff of red smoke erupted and four men dressed in red ninja outfits appeared. Shadowcasters.

"Find the cargo."

"Yes, Devil!" they bowed and vanished. She smiled wryly, vanishing as well.

~

The Mines, the Boundary

A gigantic building stood atop a tall mountain, overlooking the valley of green grasses and trees. The Mines. This was a place where slave traders sell slaves to the Mine owner in return for hundreds of gold coins.

The Mines had the highest number of slaves in the whole Boundary as well as the six kingdoms. In short, it had the highest number of slaves in the Land continent.

A long line of people were moving towards the mountain, snaking through the narrow path between the green trees. They were bound in fetters and chained methodically to one another to prevent a lousy attempt at escaping. Slaves. They were being transported to the Mines.

About fifty men in black eastern attire walked either at the front of the slaves, the back or sideways. They were armed to the teeth and brutal in flogging the people to move.

At the rear of the line were Lung and Qi, the latter being the last person on the line. Their faces wore fearful looks as if they were surrounded by ghosts. Well, being surrounded by ghosts was better than being sold as a slave to a silver mine. In the case of the former, you would be haunted and at worst killed. But in the latter, you would work in the mountain, digging for the ground like badgers. Death, to them, was better than a lifetime imprisonment and slavery.

"We are doomed!" Qi cursed under his breathe. He had gone to submit a scroll and now he was being submitted to the Mines. This was sure self deprecating!

"Spare your energy for work instead of talk," Lung said, maintaining a calm face.

"The Abbot will find us."

Qi comforted himself but he knew this was impossible. If the Abbot wanted to find them, he would have done so since and not now that they were close to the Mines. There was no way he could save them now.

"He's dead. Probably," Lung sighed. If they could be easily snatched underneath his nose by an unknown darkness, why can't the assailant do the same to his life?

As they neared the mountain, they saw a tunnel at its foot. It was so dark that they couldn't make out anything inside. The group proceeded into the darkness. For what seemed like eternity, they walked to an unknown destination.Then they ascended what seemed like a staircase, tripping as they climbed. But they didn't fall. They quickly felt themselves being caught by an unknown force. How they managed not to fall, no one knew. Finally they came of the tunnel into a large hall.

The hall was filled with cells, making it look like a catacomb. The walls of the hall were covered with slippery moss, growing wildly like stubborn weeds. Several candles lined the walls which had no window, consuming the little oxygen the new 'slaves' would need. This was the main reason most slaves died at the Mines. Poor ventilation.

The occupants of the cells wore no shirts and were more of sacks of dry bones than a body of flesh. They were thin and unhealthy, a sign of malnutrition. Just like the new slaves, they were bound to fetters.

No escape, Qi lampooned as he felt a sweaty, large hand grab his neck. He squinted in pain and was mildly relieved that Lung had another hand grabbing his neck. It was the man with heavy beard.

Pheeew...he heaved a sigh of relief after discovering the man was not trying to strangle him. It was an action of his to get them into moving faster.

A door at the end of the hall, which Qi didn't notice, opened. A tall man dressed in a silver coloured armour emerged, concealing his most of his physique except his height-he was very tall! His fiery eyes peered at try slaves from within the helmet, his right hand rubbing his chest, displaying rings on all fingers. Diamond rings.

"Welcome to the Mines," he spoke in a hoarse voice. "The name's Chan, the owner of this mine."

Why is his talking so hoarse, Qi thought. Is he faking that voice?

"There are three rules. Number one, Don't try to escape."

Chan walked close to Qi who gulped a mouthful of saliva.

"Number two, Obey the first rule! And then three, obey the second rule!"

"..."

All the new slaves had one reaction. They were momentarily at loss. Weren't the three rules the same? Why make it three when they were all the same?

"In summary, there's no escape!" Chan turned to the man with heavy beard. "Are 'these' the special ones?" He pointed at Lung and Qi, stressing the word, 'these'.

"They are, Chan," the man said, letting go of their necks. All this while he had been grabbing them.

Lung and Qi rubbed their necks, feeling them once again. This man sure had a problem.

"They are young monks," the man proceeded.

"You are great, Li!" Chan said. "From mountain to mountain!"

We don't live in a mountain, Qi thought. Monasteries' the name.

"Lock them up till tomorrow!" Chan bellowed and immediately all the the slaves were led to different cells, which were of course occupied by two or three older slaves.

Lung and Qi had to share a cell with a young man who was in his early twenties. He was tall with taut muscles which bulged out at all angles, his auburn hair adding more to his physique. His eyes were brown and had a twinkle of energy, one you could find in an adventurer. Unlike other slaves, he had a golden object around his neck.

"It's called Falun Gong," he answers them when they asked. "Surpresses your chi."

"Who are you and how long have you been here?" Lung asked.

"Except you have a calendar, you'd lose count," the man laughed. "The name's Tao."

"I'm Lung, he's Qi. We are monks."

"It's obvious. You'd fetch a good price with your energy," Tao continued. "You know I was an Abbot in the Eastern Monastery. You look like southerners."

Lung was excited on meeting an eastern Abbot. No wonder they put a Falun Gong around his neck. But Lung's counterpart, Qi wasn't the least bit intrigued. He was thinking of a way to escape.

Looking at the hole in the Falun Gong, he arched his brows.

"Does that have a keyhole?"

"Of course, idiot!" Lung snapped. Qi was slowly getting in his nerves. What's with the weird question? he thought to himself.

Arching his brows, Qi asked again, "Are there rats here?"

Lung and Tao exchanged looks. Qi was asking lousy questions.

"What's with you and your questions?" Tao asked. Well, he didn't need to answer Qi's questions because soon afterwards a rat scurried into their midst, sniffing out something.

Bam!

Qi slammed it with his right palm, killing it. His face lit up with a smile. Pheeew...He sighed inwardly. Now I've got the chance to escape.

"Don't tell me you are going to eat that?" Lung asked as he watched Qi put his right hand into its mouth. What is this lad doing? he thought.

"Eating rats is common here. But I'm shocked why you'd est one in your first day," Tao said.

"No, I'm not that crazy," Qi said calmly. "Well, I'm crazy actually. But not they crazy. We are monks, we don't eat meat..."

"I do," Tao interrupted.

"That's because you are locked up in a mine," Qi mocked. He grunted as he pulled the tooth of the dead rat.

Snap!

The tooth came off, Qi smiling deeply. He heaved a sigh of relief, ignoring Lung's and Tao's looks for explanation.

"A rat's tooth can serve as a key," Qi smiled.

"Smart lad," Tao said. "Now unlock us."

"Not so fast?" Qi said. He'd noticed that the door and walls of the cells were enchanted, making it impossible for anyone to escape even though they were unbound from their shackles. He had a plan to easily tackle this problem.

"Huh?"

Tao peered at the young monk with his brown eyes, wondering what the lad was up to.

"You forgot the door's keyhole is bigger plus it is enchanted, the walls included. Even though I was to unbound us, we would still not escape."

"So what now?" Lung asked. He was surprised Qi was more knowledgeable that he looked.

"I have a plan," Qi said.

"Smart lad," Tao admitted.

And Qi told them the plan-the whole of it.

A while later, seven guards dressed in black attires walked in. Three went towards the trio's cell while the rest went to another.

"It's your working time," one of the guards said, looking at Tao. He took out a bunch of keys from his pocket.

"I thought I worked in the morning," Tao complained.

"Too bad it's still morning to us," the guard slotted the key into the key hole, turning it.

Click!

It opened and he pushed the door ajar, walking into the cell. Grabbing Tao, he hoisted him to his feet and led him out of the cell.

Then it happened in a whim.

Psst!

Qi blew the rat's tooth from his mouth towards the key hole in Tao's Falun Gong. But Tao caught it and yelled, "These monks are trying to kill me!"

"Bring them out!" the guard who had opened the cell bellowed at the other two. They went into the cell and brought the monks out. Seeing that their attentions were distracted, Tao put the tooth into the key hole and began turning it. He wasn't good at opening locks so it took him much time.

"It seems you are too free to play pranks!" the guard bellowed once more. One could mistake him for a cow!

"It wasn't me," Lung protested. "It was him!"

"Hey! Watch your mouth, Mouth. It was you!" Qi snapped.

This was the plan. To distract the guards in order to buy time for Tao to unlock the Falun Gong.

"That's Chang's problem not mine," the guard said.

Click!

They all heard the sound as they watched the Falun Gong drop from Tao's neck.

Clang!

It landed in the ground, bouncing of the hard surface and rolling along it, coming to stop at the guard's feet. Before they knew what was happening, the chains which bound Tao shattered.

The guards were horrified and attacked immediately. This particular monk who had escaped was a tough nut. It had taken the Sons of Death to capture him. If they didn't restrain him now, he would easily stomp all the guards with time.

Whoosh!

Tao's hair fluttered as he moved towards the guards, his cloth flaying to the wind.

Thump! Thump! Thump!

His feet stomped the ground vehemently. It was like a stampede from an angry cattle of bulls. His movements left a heavy impression on the environment.

Pa!

He exerted force to his fist, punching at the guards one after the other. The impact was dense and tremendous, as heavy as a gigantic rock. The tiger fist. This was a martial arts technique which specialized in exerting strength to the fist and hand-held weapons.

Boom!

The guards were all sent crashing into the walls, burying themselves within the bricks. They didn't even recover, dying instantly on the spot.

Tao smiled, "It Will take time to fully recover my powers."

As expected, several guards came running in. It was unknown who had told them, when the person had told them and how he had told them. This brought an enlightenment to their minds. The Mine was sure under tight security. Mystical security would also be put into place, undoubtedly.

"Are you gonna fight or watch?" Tao asked Qi and Lung. He wouldn't want the monks standing like morons while he did the fighting. It was sure unfair.

"First, we are still bound," Lung answered, "and second, we were only taught defense techniques. Only the Abbots are allowed to learn attack techniques."

Tao sighed and tossed them the tooth. Why would a Monastery refuse to train the monks? What was the reason behind that? This was sure mysterious. Then he remembered a prophecy:

When the Order Harbinger is born,

he will become an untamed beast

With his absolute desire to burn,

he will turn people into feast!

The Southern Monastery had long discovered the reincarnation of the Order Harbinger! The monks not being taught any attack technique meant that one of the monks is definitely the incarnate form of this deity! This...Tao's mind turned adrift. The omnipotent and omniscient creator has being reincarnated long time ago. The prophecy has been fulfilled.

Whoosh!

The blades could be heard cutting through the air, shimmering with reflected lights from the candle as the guards swung their arms at Tao, hoping to slash him.

Tao immediately reacted. Moving in a blur, his right hand grabbed the blades of the swords, breaking them one after the other. Still maintaining his speed, he began punching the guards.

Pa! Pa! Pa!

His fists tore through the air, slamming unto each guard. He was so fast that he left afterimages behind him, appearing everywhere at the same time. Soon, all the guards were all sprawled on the ground, dead. The while ground was flooded with their blood.

"Done!" Lung and Qi said.

"Okay, let's move," Tao said and ran towards the secret door they had seen. The others asked why theyhe weren't going through the dark tunnel. He explained that it was dark and unsafe. They knew it had to do with the Sons of Darkness.

The Sons of Darkness were masters of darkness manipulation. They had the ability to use darkness to infiltrate your body, corrupting your chi. This would render your powers useless. This was sure fearsome!

As they approached the door, it flung open, revealing Chang who was walking from the darkness that lay behind the darkness. He was grinning from beneath his helmet and his eyes were blazing red from fury.

Thrusting his hands forward, all the metals all his body crept away into the air, reshaping to form long metal spikes.

"Uh...kids? You said you know defense techniques, now's the right time," Tao said.

Whoosh!

There were sounds of metal cutting the air as the spikes flew towards them.

Whoosh!

With speed ad agility, they leaped towards Chang, spinning to dodge the spikes.

Thud!

They landed and did multiple flips, dodging multiple spikes.

Whoosh!

Two spikes flew towards Lung but Tao did a cartwheel spin and grabbed him, pulling him into the air. They both landed on the wall, Tao kicking off immediately. Propelling himself into the air, he dropped Lung and flee towards Chang with a fist aimed for his jaw.

The latter moved his head sideways, dodging the punch.

Pa!

Tao's fist collided with the air, a glint of blue ripple appearing.

Shink!

A metallic sound came as two spikes stabbed Tao in his torso, elongating to form long blades. He groaned, blood dripping from his torso.

By now the two monks had landed behind Chang and were headed for the door. This was their only chance of escape and they had to take it!

Bang!

The door shut tightly, crumbling inwards.

Opening his right palm, Chang sent Tao crashing into the wall. He then turned to the young monks and folded his hands into fists, the spikes reforming into chains.

"I'm not killing you," he grinned. "Not yet."

Whip!

The chains slashed through the air as they flew towards Lung and Qi, trying to bind them.

Whoosh!

Both of them moved in different directions, their hairs fluttering to the wind. With their speed, they were able to dodge the chains.

Whip!

A chain came for Qi, twirling itself into a loop. He curved his back and dived, flying right through the loop before it closed in on him. Spinning in the air, he easily bypassed other chains and landed on the ground.

Chang's perception was triggered and he quickly retreated the chains, reforming them into a large shield.

Bam!

Something slammed into it, shattering it. The collision caused the whole building to tremble.

Chang turned sharply but could not dodge the fist which was coming his way.

Pa!

The fist buried itself in his torso, tearing through his robe into his muscles and then bursting through his back.

Chang groaned in excruciating pain and stared at his assailant. Tao. He was covered with blood and his eyes were plain white. This blood kept squirming to form little tentacles which would elongate and retreated to their original position. This was a living nightmare! He knew he would soon die and would not be able to beat Tao in this form so he did the last thing on his mind. Attempt to kill the monks!

Boom!

The door was ripped off its hinges, transforming into a fan before flying towards Qi at great speeds.

Seeing this, Lung exerted strength into his legs and leaped towards Qi, pushing him off the path of the fan. It was he who got in the way instead.

Slash!

Lung's body was slashed into two, blood splashing everywhere and innards dropping.

Whoosh!

The fan came towards Qi but Tao retreated his hand from with Chang's torso and moved in a blur towards Qi. Grabbing him, Tao hoisted him out of the way allowing the fan to crash into the wall.

Chang then smiled wryly, pain in his expression.

"I'm not dead, not yet."

"Go!" Tao said in a hoarse voice as his body began cracking, strange liquid squirming out of the cracks. As the liquid dropped on the ground, they it vanished with a sizzle.

Qi obeyed and scurried out of the building into the darkness where the door had once blocked. With heavy heart, he ran through the darkness. Even though he had eventually escaped, his happiness was gone. His one and only friend was dead and now it was unsure Tao would live.

After Qi ran into the darkness, Chang raised up his hands and sent spikes flying towards Tao who leaped towards him, taking in all the spikes. By the time he got to Chang, his body was covered with spikes which began melting.

Pa!

Telling, he punched Chang, exploding him into smithereens. He panted as he looked at the chunks of flesh on the ground. One look at them and he felt like devouring the fleshes. With a smile he said, "I would have died anyway. This would have killed me..." And then he exploded, shattering into smithereens.

Meanwhile, Qi had already ran out of the darkness and was struck in the face by a blinding the light. His eyes adjusted to the surrounding and saw himself standing on the balcony of the building atop the mountain. He gasped and looked down. Far beneath the mountain, there was a river.

Tap! Tap! Tap!

He heard footsteps but didn't wait to see whose. He leaped over the balcony, soaring in the air for seconds as he fell.

Splash!

He landed in the river, sinking to its depths. The water rose and ebbed, forming waves which receded immediately.

"He's escaped," Li said in anger as he stood over the balcony, peering down. He was surrounded by guards. "Summon the Sons of Darkness!"

The guards scurried away, leaving the furious Li. For a moment, he calmed down. Then he shouted, "That monk has escaped!" His voice echoed through the whole mountain but he didn't care. All that mattered was the little monk who had escaped!

Swoosh!

The waters splashed as Qi paved through the shallow path of the river toward the shore, his feet propelling him forward. His whole robe was drenched and trickles of water droplets were streaming down his matted hair which was as black as coal. Reaching the shore, he ran through the forest, his feet carrying him effortlessly. He had been taught many things at the Monastery and among which was strength. Yes, strength. With it he ran tirelessly. He didn't know the forests neither did he know where he was heading, but he didn't care. He had to escape from the Mines. Maybe he would encounter a good samaritan good enough to lead him back the Monastery or any other Monastery (except of course the Western Monastery). He wouldn't want to stumble into a group of monks would had deviated from the teachings of Buddha. That would be bad for him. Very bad.

He ran till he arrived at a crossroad. He was panting heavily and had to contemplate whether to go right or left. At the end, he had to follow the right, running as fast as his legs could carry him. He soon became tired and began throttling and then he dissolved into a walk. He would have lost all his energy if he wasn't a martial artist. He had mastered the chi breathing technique which helped him absorb life energies from living things around him through breathing. His eyes soon caught something nailed to a big tree on his left. It would have been impossible not to notice the big tree even though there was a forest of trees on both sides of the road. He slowed down his pace and then stopped, arching his brows in a traditional manner.

Nailed to the tree was a rectangular piece of would which had been eaten by moths. On the wood was inscribed:

Village of taverns. Tavern village.

Don't they mean the same thing? Qi thought inwardly as he dropped his brows.

"At least I'll get help," he comforted himself after realizing he had no money for drinks. Drinks! Buddha forbid it, what was I thinking? Qi lampooned. As a monk he was not supposed to drink.

By the time he got to the village, it was noon. True to the inscription, there were many taverns built in the village. The buildings were old with vines growing along the walls, their architectures having a semblance to the Chinese. Either there was no way to renovate these archaic structures, or the people didn't care. Who would care about the looks of a building when he could have drinks inside the building?

Babels of voices disrupted the atmosphere, dissolving into a thick bomb of noise. He could see horses and wagons all around and people walking into or out of the taverns.

"Which one now?" he asked himself. Shrugging, he approached a tavern. Two guards were stationed outside the tavern like statues, each wearing a mean face as if Qi offended them. As he got near them, they crossed their spears, forming an "X" shape.

"No monks here," one of them bellowed.

Qi gulped and shrank away, retreating to another tavern. This one had no grumpy guards and Qi was relieved. This was how a tavern should be.

Inside the tavern was as dark as night, surviving only from the light of the candles arranged on the walls. He swallowed hard, conscious that people were watching. Bandits or maybe slave traders. But then the noisy chatters and clinking of mugs did not cease.

He walked towards a table and slumped into a chair. He turned his head, looking around. Then he saw a group of people at a corner. About fifteen or so-all dressed in different colours of silk clothing. He saw a small golden box propped under one of the men's chair. They were bad men, Qi could tell. Bandits or maybe bounty hunters. Slave traders do not run around with boxes hidden safely. They always had one or two slaves with them. Qi looked around for any slave but found none.

Just then, a man in his early 20s walked in. Qi's eyes trailed towards him. White leather military outfit. Probably a fighter, he thought.

Two katanas with white handles were strapped to the man's back and a sword to his left side. Definitely a fighter. The man walked towards the group of fifteen men, his blue eyes staring straight. He stopped a metre from them and said with a calm face, "Hand over that box." He was referring to the box under the chair of one of the men.

"Why should we, lost soul?" the man on the box, questioned. Grabbing the box, he placed it on his laps. He was definitely the chief.

"A bunch of bandits attacked our trade route and stole a cargo," the man on white said. "I was sent by my Elite to retrieve it."

"We are bounty hunters not bandits, Hunter. And we bought this box for a hundred thousand gold coins," the man with the box retorted. "There's no hoe we are going to give it to you."

The man on white grinned, "I won't be saying that if I were you."

"Or what? Hunters from your kingdom are gonna hunt us? Crosslands have a weak army so their stupid hunters or even shadowcasters won't be able to do anything!"

Then the man signaled to the other bounty hunters who drew out their weapons and stood up. The man on white wasn't the least bit intimidated.

Qi wanted to leave but though otherwise. He had to wait till the end of the fight. If the man on white won, he would follow him. At least he would have some security. The man didn't look bad either. What if he didn't look bad and was actually bad? What if he was hiding his bad intentions behind his looks? Forget it, Qi chose to ignore his doubtful thoughts. The man had the guts to approach a gang of bounty hunters which makes him a dare-devil.

"Crosslands also have the best hunter in the six kingdoms," the man on white continued. "And it seems you don't know me."

"Kill that idiot! He's definitely not Regent Dao," the chief ordered.

Five men attacked, thrusting their weapons forward to slash at the man. Sidestepping, he dodged the first attacked as the blade swept past his face.

Whoosh!

The second weapon came slicing through the air towards him. The same thing happened-the man dodged.

Pa!

He leaped like a cat over the other three, landing behind them.

Whoosh!

In a blur, he punched three of them at their backs.

Pa!

The impact sent their hearts crashing out through through their chests, blood splashing into the air.

Before the men even collapsed, he moved towards the other two and punched their chests.

Crack!

Their ribs broke and protruded out, rupturing their skin. They all collapsed to the ground, engulfed by their own blood.

The other nine exchanged looks and then attacked the man. It was a blood bath. Body organs came flying here and there, littering the whole tavern with blood. The man killed them all with the same technique till it was only their chief left.

The chief grinned and then dropped the box, drawing out his sword. He wasn't prepared to lose his treasure not after wasting his money to obtain it. But now all his men were dead and the possibility of not surviving the fight dawned on him. But he wouldn't give up so easily. He would teach this man that he was an experienced bounty hunter.

Both of them locked themselves in a sharp gaze, walking in circles.

By now Qi was so sure the man on white would defeat the chief of the bounty hunters.

Whoosh!

It was the sound of blade cutting through the air. It happened so fast but the man on white was vigilant. He fell down on his kneels and slid underneath the blade towards the chief. Pushing himself into the air with his kneels, he spun and threw a kick at the chief with both feet.

Pa!

The former leaped backwards, his attire fluttering to the wind.

Thud!

He landed on a table next to Qi who gulped. Qi wasn't sure he would be able to fight the bounty hunter. Even if he was able to, he knew no offensive techniques in martial arts. Since he was 3, the Abbots had being teaching him defensive techniques.

Whoosh!

Qi's train of thoughts was disrupted. All he saw was the bounty hunter's head flying off his neck, the corpse collapsing to the floor with a thud.

Surprisingly, the people at the tavern were still there throughout the commotion and they made their presence significant by bursting into an uproar of claps.

The man picked the box from the ground and turned towards Qi, "You coming?"

"Huh?" Qi was stunned. Who would take an unknown boy from the street? Well, this was a tavern.

"Then I guess you are not coming, young monk," the man said and walked out of the tavern. Qi followed, throttling to keep up till they got to a white horse.

"Thought you won't come," the man said, not smiling. Very grumpy.

"I-I don't even know you," Qi protested.

The man opened a leather bag by the side of the horse and took out a wrapped bread from it. He gave it to Qi who accepted and bit into it hungrily, savouring the sweet taste. It was the sweetest food he'd eaten, considering the circumstance.

"What's your name?"

"Qigong. But I'm called Qi. The monks wouldn't want to pronounce it in full."

"You can call me Dao."

"Dao?"

"Yes. I'm a regent of an army of hunters in Crosslands."

"The East!"

Qi knew all the six kingdoms very well as well as their locations on the map. Actually he had gotten this knowledge illegally by stealing his way into the library at the Monastery. Crosslands was located in the East.

What's wrong with this lad? Why is he excited? Dao thought.

"I'm from the Southern Monastery and would love it if you take me to the Eastern Monastery."

"I'm headed to Hao city," Dao said, "and not some Monastery."

"What!"

Qi blurted out. This man was sure mean. For some moments he lost his voice. But then he found it.

"Hao?"

"That's the capital of Crosslands. We need recruits into the army. You are a genuine article.

"I'm not joining any army. Besides I'm only versed in defensive techniques."

"What do you take hunters for? An untrained army of idiots?" Dao hopped on the horse and took the reins. Qi followed suit, hopping behind Dao and wrapping his hands around Dao.

"We are headed to the capital," Dao reminded.

"Okay," Qi gulped. He had been taken away from his parents to the Monastery at the age of 2 (so the Abbots and other senior monks said). He had been taken there against his parents' will so what was the difference following this 'hunter' (he didn't know what that was) to wherever he was going.

Dao pulled the reins and the horse neighed, galloping away from the village and leaving a trail of dust behind. They rode for hours, not taking the road but the forest.

Night was fast approaching so they stopped and came down from the horse.

Qi's buttocks ached and he felt he would need to stand up to relieve it. Then his stomach growled nosily. He was mildly embarrassed when Dao tossed a loaf of rye bread at him. He caught it and devoured it like a hungry wolf he was.

Sigh...Dao brought out the box and inspected it. There were mystical markings on the surface of the box, signs Dao didn't need an interpreter to understand.

"A mystical item lies within the box," Dao said to the curious Qi.

"What item?" Qi asked. He had seen a number of artefacts at the Monastery. There were the Golden men which were statues. These statues had supernatural powers and can only be brought to life by the Master. He had witnessed one of these statues slaughter a whole army of monsters which had attacked the Monastery at night.

"The Elite would know."

"What's Elite? What's hunter?"

Qi couldn't bear it anymore. He had been complaining about not knowing what hunters were and now the word, 'Elite' had been added to the mystery. The terms he knew were related to Buddhism. Terms like Bodhisattva, Arhat and Buddha.

"An elite is the geo-political head of a kingdom just like the spiritual head of the Monastery is the Master."

"Well, the overall leader is called the Grand Master. Each Monastery has a Master but we all have a Grand Master!"

"Are we talking about the Monastery or Crosslands?"

"Crosslands."

"Hunters are lethal fighters in all six kingdoms. Your know their ranks when you join."

By then Dao had made a camp fire. Qi lay down, staring into the sky. Dao looked at him thoughtfully and sighed.

Just then, the atmosphere became unnaturally cold. Qi sat up and looked at Dao who drew out his katanas. They both felt a presence. Their sixth sense was warning them of danger.

Dao's eyes trailed through the forest. It was as if he was looking at something beyond the physical realm.

Puff!

A puff of red smoke appeared and cleared, revealing four people dressed in red ninja outfits. Shadowcasters.

"Deathlands shadowcasters," Dao told Qi. The latter swallowed hard and moved away to a safe distance. He didn't want to be killed by the shadowcasters even if the possibilities were low.

The shadowcasters drew out their katanas and ran towards Dao, their feet making no noise. It was after a while that Qi notice that they were literally running in air! They spun horizontally, stretching their katanas forward. They then moved away from each other, increasing the gap separating them. Qi was shocked how they could control their own direction while spinning.

Dao smiled and immediately a puff of smoke engulfed and cleared to reveal four Daos, the three being clones.

Whoosh!

Each of them swivelled their katanas, their wrists moving like oiled ball bearings, giving more speed to their hands. This movement amplified the speed at which the katanas were been spun, making them blurry fans to the eyes.

Shink!

The spinning shadowcasters' katanas clashed with Dao's and his clones, producing blue ripples.

Dao and his three clones let their chi surge out of their bodies into the katanas. Controlling it, they sent this chi into the shadowcasters.

Bam!

The chi caused internal ruptures in the shadowcasters, causing an implosion which caused their internal organs to burst into smithereens like balloons. The corpses collapsed like empty sacks,dead.

"How did you do that?" Qi was astonished. He watched as the clones vanished.

"Do what?" Dao sheathed his katanas, feigning ignorance to the question.

"How did you explode them like that just like the blood bath at the Tavern village?" Remembering how Dao had taken out those fifteen bounty hunters, Qi's stomach burned, out of fear ajd marvel. This hunter, Dao was definitely a very skilled fighter. Skilled? Powerful is the right word! Something told him that Dao could even take on the Abbots by himself, but that was a probability.

"That is a technique I studied long ago. It is called 'Fist of Flesh and Blood' also known as 'Dead Fist'. With this technique you can displace people's organs as well as rupture them. You can cause your opponent to explode from the inside. Bones and organs will shatter, turning into pulp, ribs will move out of their locations and so forth."

"How?"

Qi wanted to know that technique. With that, he would be a very powerful monk already.

"By transferring you chi into your opponent and using it to control his internal organs. You are a monk, it should be easier for you. I've seen your Abbots do that."

Even the Abbot did that...Qi sighed, remembering the Abbot who had escorted he and Lung. Sighing again, he answered Dao.

"If I knew any offensive technique."

"Then I will train you myself."

Qi arched his brows, "You?"

"I have an army of hunters answering to me."

"How many?"

"Five hundred thousand, excluding huntlets."

"..."

That's too much! Qi was astounded. If a single army was that much, how would the whole military be? What the population of the whole kingdom be? What was a huntlet?

Before he could ask another question, Dao said, "Huntlets are young hunters in training or recruits. You are a huntlet, the lowest rank."