Chapter 36: Old Man

He heard these words before, that time he wasn't ready and just blurted something, and got lucky. Now, however, no negligence could be permitted.

"Where did you…"

"I found it, in an abandoned mansion on a mountain. In a chest." He answered the half-lie that he had thought up shortly after his talk with Ying Zheng. Sometimes these late thoughts could actually be useful.

Surprising.

The old man gazed at him sharply. The boy gazed in turn.

"Mountain, right. Abandoned…" Gently he stroked the sabre hilt.

"Ha-ha, Aha-ha-ha-ha!" His face turned to the sky, the air trembled, and Xin instinctively put palms on his ears. Just like he thought, weirdo. The old man threw the sabre into the air and, when it was in the highest point, jumped and disappeared before Xin's eyes. Then something happened and the old man landed with a "bah".

"Ha-ha-ha."

"Din!"

The sabre fell and pierced several centimeters into a stone.

Was that supposed to be impressive? The boy tilted his head. Then tilted it back when the old man suddenly clenched his shoulder.

"Brat, you brat, I will forgive you, but tell me where was this mansion."

The eyes of the old man, equally old, shined like two stars in their brightest before falling to the earth. Xin involuntary almost shined him with Soul Light.

"It was near Azure Lake, near Azure Village." Under an azure sky, he wanted to add but decided against that pun.

"Azure Lake, Azure Village… Far away, but I see, I see, obviously it should have been far away. So they were lying to me…"

Mutterings of the old man interested Xin. He started analyzing them, but sadly, couldn't make out much. What was his relation to the Wei Clan/Family? Was he an enemy, a friend, a lucky survivor? The best would've been to ask directly, but that way he might expose himself.

Or maybe not. Thinking about it more, Xin made several careful words:

"Is this sabre yours?"

"Was, once, long ago. I gifted it for someone, brat."

A friend, then?

"And you stole it. Stealing is bad, haven't your parents taught you that? Well, frankly I don't care. But you stole it from me."

"But you gifted that sabre..."

"Gifted, who gifted. I don't gift, I lend. There's quite a difference. However I See, you were led by fate, so this nasty deed can be overlooked. For now. I surely would have whipped you were I younger. Age truly softens one's heart."

"So be it, you may keep the sabre. But only if you promise me some things. Are you agree?"

"What things?"

Can't you list them first?

"Hum, righteous things, you brat. First, you shall become a competent sabre-wielder. What you were showing just now was terribly embarrassing. Hot red, like a pepper. I will help you there; alone you have no hope in a hundred years."

Xin puffed his cheeks. The old man ignored it.

"Second, second… You will have to remember the name of that sabre."

"Name?"

"Of course, any good sabre has a name. I will tell you its."

"…" Xin stared at the old man. The old man stared back.

"What? Do you think I will tell you about it now? Dream one! First, you have to become a competent sabre-wielder."

"Okay…"

The boy sighed. Sometimes first impressions are correct - he's a weirdo.

"For now, the saber will stay with me. You have already dirtied it with you amateur intents. What you were displaying right now was embarrassing. Shameful! Let me say it again, before drawing a picture you should be able to draw a circle. And an actual attack is like drawing a masterpiece with your eyes closed. You don't deserve to use this sabre until a very long time."

"Then how I should train?"

"That… here."

The old man snapped his finger and the twig Xin was practicing with suddenly flew to his hand.

"Use that instead, I just adjustment it a bit and..." The man's black Qi surrounded the twig, sawdust flew to the sides; soon it was polished and sharpened.

"Like that. Now I should be going, we shall meet tomorrow at the same time. I will find you, just go out into the forest and wander for some time."

With that, the old man vanished in the shadows; the sabre disappeared with him.

"…Okay"

Was that a good or bad encounter? Xin had a hard time deciding. If he won't find that geezer tomorrow it could be said he was successfully robbed.

Contemplating upon the misery of life the boy swung his new "sabre" at the stone lying near.

"Chee!"

The twig suddenly cracked and got broken in two.

"…"

…

…

…

As the boy left with his head lowered a new visitors appeared near the ravine. First as shadows in the sky, and soon a large pack of birds landed on one of the trees.

"From first to thirty, report!"

Rang the cry of a large, red-white pelican with two pairs of wings.

"First Reporting!"

"Second Reporting!"

"Third Reporting!"

One by one answered him birds of different kinds, from a small furry white sparrow being the first and a meter-long bat being the last.

"All in place!" Once again said the sparrow in a high voice, flew and landed on the head of the bat, between its large ears.

"All in place." Nodded the bat, trying to shake him off but to no success.

"Good!" The pelican opened his eyes wide.

"I declare that from now one this place is the sleeping quarters of the First Joined Flying Battalion of Mo Empire!" He pompously stepped down. "Then..."

"Crack!"

Suddenly, the tree they were standing one started sliding down at a sharp angle. The birds chaotically rose up and the next second it crashed down to the ground.

The Glorious First Joined Flying Battalion silently landed on the tree nearby.

"Well, nothing of that happened." The pelican slightly coughed.

"Do you get it?"

Everyone nodded, including the bat and the sparrow.

"Well then, as I have already said…"

Abruptly his body started to tilt. Several seconds later, another "Crash!" reverberate in the forest. The birds started hovering in the midair.

"What is going on, is that a sabotage!? Is that the infamous humans 7 Squad?" The pelican's mouth opened like a hollow.

"I order you, check all trees around." He screamed and his troops abruptly dispelled as if in a panic. Slowly he landed on a little bush and closed his eyes, trembling each time a new crash sounded.

Twenty minutes went by.

"Sir, done!"

High voice of the sparrow made him open his eyes. The little bird was saluting with its right wind.

"So, what the result?"

"Sir, that is… Six."

"What, all trees in sixty meters? What a dedicated trickery..."

"No, sir." The white fluffy sparrow shivered.

"All trees in six kilometers radius are damaged. The trunks are cut through!"