~~~

“Put me down already!”

It takes a long time for Feng Hao to make himself heard by Huang Shing. The older disciple runs so fast all of Feng Hao’s words are lost to the roar of the wind, and he’s so strong that Feng Hao can barely move while caught in his grip.

If only he’d been taught how to transmit his thoughts through Qi like older people are capable of!

“Easy, Young Master,” Huang Shing says as he finally stops and puts him down. “I was just making sure you were safe.”

“You left my brother alone!” Feng Hao yells, not caring that Huang Shing is much stronger than him.

“I don’t really care for your brother.”

“He was wounded!” Feng Hao yells, stomping his foot. “What if he lost? What if he died?!”

Huang Shing stares at him blankly for a few seconds.

“I don’t really see the problem.”

Feng Hao’s glare deepens.

“However!” Huang Shing adds. “Your brother won’t die. I am sure of it.”

“How can you possibly know that?”

“Because Elder Dang told us we should do our best to avoid harming members of the Feng Clan. Senior Brother Xi wasn’t a member of the Punishment Force, but it’d be weird if he hadn’t received similar instructions. Although…” Huang Shing trails off and frowns. “Lots of people don’t like Feng Zhi, and if Feng Zhi dies, I might never find out what happened to Yi Jiao.”

Feng Hao has no idea who Yi Jiao is, but he seizes the opportunity all the same.

“Then we should go back!”

“Taking you back there means exposing you to danger. That’s not good,” Huang Shing points out. He looks to the direction they have come from and sighs. “Ah, this sort of thinking is not my strong point. I wish Qjng Jin were here. He’s much smarter than I am.”

Feng Hao blinks.

“Qing Jin? You know Elder Brother Qing?”

Feng Hao supposes most people know of his Elder Brother by now. Still, this Huang Shing speaks of him with familiarity, an oddity considering he is representing his uncle.

“Of course, I do! We took the Selection Exam together! How do you know…” Huang Shing trails off and snaps his fingers. “Right! He’s been tutoring you. They also told us that.”

“They?” Feng Hao frowns as he remembers what Huang Shing just revealed about himself. “You mean the Punishment Force?”

“Elder Dang was very thorough.” Huang Shing shivers a little. “He was angry about what happened in the Sparring Hall, so he wanted to make sure we wouldn’t, to quote him, ‘act like a bunch little babies who still reeked of their mother’s milk.’”

Feng Hao is not sure how to respond to that.

“Anyway! If Elder Brother were here, he would tell you we need to go back for my brother!” Feng Hao says. “We can’t leave him alone there! The thing you saved me from-”

“Stop.” Huang Shing raises his palm to cut him off. “I just made up my mind. We are not going back there no matter what.”

“What? Why?!”

“If I go back, your brother is going to attack me, and I’m going to attack him right back. Instead of your brother fighting Senior Brother Xi, it will be your brother fighting Senior Xi and me.”

Feng Hao stares at him.

“Could you… not attack my brother?”

“Impossible. My dislike runs deep, Young Master.”

“Your reasoning for not going to rescue my brother is… that you really don’t like him?” Feng Hao asks, unable to believe the gall of this disciple.

“And that he doesn’t like me right back, but yes. That is basically it, Young Master. I’d feel bad, but I have come to realize most things boil down to that. If the strongest brothers of the Eternal Flame Clan can be petty and childish, surely it is allowed for this Huang Shing to be the same?”

As he speaks, Feng Hao calculates his odds of escaping.

They are low.

“What are we to do then?”

However, this person doesn’t seem very bright, so he’s bound to let his guard down eventually.

“The temple is the best place for us to go,” Huang Shing answers. “Senior Brother Yong told us he and some other Core Disciples would remain in the Eye in case some of us needed help. If we are lucky, we will find him on the way to the temple.”

“Senior Brother Yong?” The name is familiar to Feng Hao. One of the faces in the welcoming feast for his uncle flashes through his mind. “Is that one of the disciples my uncle took to the Crimson Cloud Tournament?”

Huang Shing nods. “Yes, he spoke to all of us the day before the assembly and assured us he’d do his best to make sure we all returned alive. Of course, that was before Patriarch Feng transported us like that, but if there’s anyone we can rely on right now, it’s him. Also…”

Huang Shing suddenly shoves his whole arm into the ground.

Feng Hao stumbles back as the older disciple grunts and pulls out a wiggling, screeching mass of pink flesh with flecks of green.

“Sneaky thing, aren’t you?” Huang Shing asks, holding his catch like a fisherman. “You thought I wouldn’t notice you following-Ow!”

Huang Shing immediately tosses the creature away and grabs hold of his arm. His wrist has become an angry red, and the veins and nerves there now bulge under his skin. The pink creature screeches and tries to escape underground.

[A Hundred Blooming Lotuses]

Huang Shing’s attack obliterates it.

“What in the eighteen hells was that?” Huang Shing asks, looking at his wounded hand. It is already healing, yet the fact that he was wounded in the first place is cause for concern. “If I hadn’t thrown it away in time…”

Feng Hao recalls how the lizard Spirit Beast was absorbed and shudders.

“It’s after you,” Huang Shing tells him. “You realize that, right?”

Feng Hao blinks. “What?”

“I’ve fought several Spirit Beasts and nearly died more times than I am comfortable with since I was thrown to the Dead Plains, but I have never fought a thing that felt like death before,” Huang Shing says. “Since we met, I’ve already fought two. That thing has been following us since we left Feng Zhi and Senior Brother Xi. Well, following you.”

“It was… following me? Why?”

“I don’t know, Young Master. I will beat them up when they get close but don’t expect me to solve any mysteries. I am bad at those. Just don’t let those things touch you.”

Huang Shing holds up his arm, presenting his wounded flesh.

“I am in the True Realm, and this still isn’t healed. It hurts. Badly,” Huang Shing says. “If that frail thing did this to me, I do not want to imagine what it can do to you, Young Master. When it touched me… it felt foul.”

A foul thing that feels like death.

It feels like the thing his brother was fighting when he escaped from the cave. That presence had been almost overpowering while that of these creatures is so small one can easily miss them, yet the two are almost certainly related somehow.

But why chase after him?

“Let’s go, Young Master. If we remain here for long, we’ll probably run into another one of those.”

Feng Hao gives Huang Shing a dubious glance. The Inner Disciple is not precisely his desired companion. Can he trust this disciple to lead him to where he wants to go? Can he trust his brother to be well?

Huang Shing knows Elder Brother Qing.

Feng Hao sighs. For now, that will have to be enough.

“Let’s go,” he says, then immediately takes a step back when Huang Shing tries to pick him up. “I will not be carried like a sack of rice again! You could not even listen when I wanted you to stop!”

“Oh. Well, Young Master should have used his Qi to tell me he wanted to stop.”

Feng Hao flushes. “I don’t know how to do that!”

“Really?” Huang Shing sounds so surprised Feng Hao’s blush deepens. “It is really easy, Young Master. Even this Huang Shing can do it. You just need…”

Feng Hao really hopes his brother is doing better than him.

~~~

Huang Shing keeps a blistering pace as they travel through the Dead Plains. Feng Hao knows the older disciple is not using his full speed, yet the difference between them is enough that just keeping up is a struggle. Only Feng Hao’s pride stops him from asking Huang Shing to slow down. If he does that, Huang Shing might throw him over his shoulder once more. Feng Hao would rather not suffer that indignity again.

Throughout their journey, Huang Shing is proven right. They are attacked by the weird creatures that feel like death three more times. Each time, Huang Shing dispatches them with ease.

Each time, Feng Hao realizes something is not right with him.

He cannot use fire.

His Qi flows normally through his body. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be able to enhance his physical abilities. However, whenever he tries to create fire, his whole body hurts. Just summoning a few sparks leaves him weak.

Hopefully, it’s just a temporary malady, but if it is not…

Feng Hao shudders. The idea of losing his flames due to a single moment of recklessness is not one he wants to think about. He has trained too much for that.

“Are you okay, Young Master?” Huang Shing asks him, concerned. He must look quite worried for the older disciple to notice. Though strong, Huang Shing does not strike him as particularly perceptive.

“I am fine,” Feng Hao replies. “Just a little tired.”

Even if he did trust Huang Shing enough to tell him the truth, what good would come of it? Huang Shing is not a healer like Elder Brother, nor does he know anything about the Eternal Flame. Telling him would just expose how vulnerable he is.

Huang Shing frowns. “I suppose we can rest. We are already in the Eye and-”

Death fills the air. The earth shakes as multiple creatures burrow across the plains with incredible swiftness.

“Step back, Young Master,” Huang Shing says, pushing Feng Hao behind him. “I’ll take care of them!”

He never gets the chance to. Multiple bolts of light fall from the sky and strike the monsters underground with pinpoint precision. It is almost like watching fireworks. Feng Hao quickly turns around as he feels two people enter his field of awareness.

They are Core Disciples. That much is obvious from the strength of their Qi. Both are already in the Earth Realm. As they get closer, Feng Hao recognizes them as disciples present during the banquet for his uncle. They took part in the Crimson Cloud Tournament. One of them is a tall man with a round face and round body, a rarity among cultivators. The other one is a red-haired girl with a scowl on her face. She looks tiny next to her companion, but Feng Hao is fairly sure she is tall for a woman.

Huang Shing’s face lights up.

“Senior Brother Ye! Senior Sister Shi!” He shouts while waving at them.

“It seems we found you just in time, junior,” Disciple Ye says once they are close enough. “I see the Young Master is with you.”

They smell a bit like death.

“It’s great to see you, seniors!” Huang Shing says, laughing. As if he couldn’t sense the faint taint on them. “Yes, I happened to run into the Young Master and am escorting him to the temple.”

He pats Feng Hao on the shoulder, and the young child can only look at him in confusion. How can he not notice? Is it because he never felt the giant one Feng Zhi fought? Because he has gotten used to the feeling after fighting so many of the small ones? Because the presence of the creatures who tried to attack them just now still lingers in the air?

Or is it because he is with them?

“It is good we ran into each other then. I dread to imagine what would have happened otherwise.”

“Yes! Seniors certainly saved us. Come on, Young Master. Don’t be intimidated! Say your thanks.”

Huang Shing knows his Elder Brother.

Feng Hao takes a chance. He grabs Huang Shing’s wrist and tries to communicate through Qi for the first time.

“They smell of death.”

“Young Master, what are you talking about?” Huang Shing asks aloud. Feng Hao has never so badly wanted to hit someone. “You’re being paranoid.”

“What was that?” the girl asks. “Did the Young Master say something?”

“Think! How did they find us here? They didn’t save us from those things! Those things led them right to us!”

“That’s not…”

“Feel it! You’re stronger than me! You should be able to! It is faint, but it is there!

“That’s just… They could have encountered some other creatures earlier. I bet we have some of their taint too from fighting them.”

“You said you hadn’t run into a single creature like that until you met me! Please!”

“Oh, nothing important, it’s just…” Huang Shing’s smile falls off. “Just… Ah! Young Master needs some sleep! Yes! That’s it! It’s best if we go find some shelter!”

“Rest easy, disciple. You can entrust the Young Master to us,” the male, Disciple Ye, says.

“I…” Huang Shing laughs nervously and pushes Feng Hao further behind him. “That won’t be happening, seniors.”

“That won’t be happening?” The female, Disciple Shi, echoes with her hands on her hips. “Do you think it’s up to an Inner Disciple to say words like that? Stop getting in the way and leave the Young Master with us!”

Lightning strikes.

A huge bolt of lightning crashes down between Huang Shing and the older disciples, forcing them to step back in surprise. Huang Shing’s face flashes with recognition. Feng Hao’s face lights up with joy.

“No,” Liu Jin says. “That will not be happening, seniors.”

~~~