Gregjoy felt a tingling sensation. With a snap, he flung open his eyes.

The young man discovered himself lying down on a hard surface when a pair of Innocent, big, blue eyes greeted him with their presence. All Gregjoy could see was the face of a girl, her beautiful face looking just as surprised as his. The girl’s long, brown hair spiraled down and touched his skin, tingling. It was soft, softer than his own hair, almost like the cherry blossom that bloomed in the spring.

A slight blush spread across her face. She moved back, probably embarrassed.

Gregjoy coughed dryly and gazed around trying to perceive his surroundings. He laid on the hard wooden floor of a wagon and felt the wagon move slowly, occasionally bumping. Where is the wagon heading, he doesn’t know, and how he ended up inside, well, he doesn’t know that either. Everything was covered in a dim veil.

Did he faint after being teleporterted? Only that can explain his current cirqumstances.

He turned to the girl, scratched his head in a clumsy manner, asking. “How did I get here?”

“We found you unconscious at the side of the road.” She replied after a while. “It looked quite scary, you had blood all over your robe but strangely no would at all. Both I and grandpa were quite shocked.”

A stream of memories appeared in his mind. How elder Wang was killed by the Firecloud sect elder Li Bao and how GRegjoy himself was told what he feared the most. The death of his master who was slain during the attack from those that coveted his sect’s, the Eternal Sword Sect’s, treasures and legacy techniques of the sword. His friends had fallen victims to the onslaught as well, he believed.

"Revenge, I will definately take revenge!"

Gregjoy clutched the cross and then tucked it inside his robe. This would be the token of the oath he took, always reminding him of the mission he had sworn to complete. He would definitely succeed.

“Hey, does that cross mean a lot to you?” The girl asked, seeing him look at it as it was a dear possession.

He smiled sadly. "Yes."

"By the way, I’m Gregjoy. Thank you for saving me."

“Haha, that’s a weird name. I’ve never heard something like it before. My name is Mei Ling, call me Mei, and the grandpa who is driving the wagon outside is Mei Tingzhe , but I usually just call him Grandpa.”

Time passed as the two continued to talk. Gregjoy discovered that he wasn’t inside his own country anymore, He was inside a neighboring one. The kingdom of Peng, said Mei Ling. It was the country next to his. Ling and her Grandpa were headed to the capital of the country to try out for the Sun and Moon Academy, a top-tier academy in the country. It was ranked by the top ten inside the whole kingdom.

As night came, the three; Gregjoy, Mei Ling, and her grandpa, put camp. They had set camp in the outer region of the forest, a couple of hundred meters from the road. If they were too close to the road then they might attract unnecessary attention. Although the robbers on the roads of the kingdom were few if taken into perspective to how large the country was, it was still the safest option.

“Why don’t you come with us?” Mei Ling asked Gregjoy. “I noticed the sword by your waist, are you a cultivator too? Then you should come with me to the academy.”

The two had just gotten seated after Mei Ling’s Grandpa gave them each a piece of roasted meat he had cooked over the campfire when Mei ling’s question appeared. He was a bit taken back. Surprised.

“I’m indeed a cultivator, but I haven’t decided where to go yet. I’m roaming a bit by myself.”

“But you saw what happened when you were out by yourself Maybe something similar would happen again, and this time, no one would come to save you. You would become food to the magical beasts!

“Eh, well…” Gregjoy began, not really sure how to respond.

This Mei Ling! Her mouth was so small, yet it was so deadly! She was around his age yet she was this deadly? What she said was like saying that he's too weak to survive alone, which is, just to clarify, true. But, it still hurt. And to add to that, he didn’t even have anything to say as a counter!

“Haha, Mei Ling, don’t trouble the young man.” Mei intervened, saving Gregjoy. Then he laughed and asked. “Or have you taken a liking to him, is that why you pester him so much?”

“Grandpa!” Mei Ling’s face reddened. “What are you saying?!”

“Ahaha, I’m just joking.” Mei laughed wryly. “But I agree, he should come with us. At least to the capital since we can’t just leave him here. To do that would shame the proud name of our Mei Family! What do you think, young man, would you want to come with us to the capital?”

Gregjoy smiled and cupped his hand. “Thank you, Senior. I would love to.”

He waved it off and handed him another piece of the roasted animal. The old man seemed to be in a good mood, a smile covering his old, wrinkled face as he spoke. “It’s nothing. Haha, Here, eat another piece. You young men must eat to become strong! I remember eating at least twice as much as in your age! And call me Grandpa Tingzhe."

They sat around the campfire until it was night. As Gregjoy looked up to the stars, he was mostly filled with pain, and couldn't stop thinking back to the days where his master taught him to write, to handle the sword, and even the excruciating strength training. He, however, was also thankful. Thankful for everything his master had done for him, how he picked Gregjoy up from the slums and gave him a home and a family.

Gregjoy brought up his hand to his face and looked at it. His hand was slender and lean. There only a couple of calluses from handling the sword every day. Right. The sword. He needs to practice. Master told him to practice every day. Rain, thunder, snow - it doesn’t matter. Even if the world is collapsing, he was told practice.

He crawled up to his feet, and only after shooting a glance at Mei Ling and her Grandfather who were still sleeping did he walk out from the camp and head further into the forest.

The young man found a quiet grove and grabbed the sword from his waist. He had other possessions than his sword, hidden inside his space ring, an item with the ability to create a spatial pouch and store things of the users choice, but for this, he only needed the sword and nothing else. Other things would cloud his martial mind and take him away from the practice. Therefore, he tried to calm down before starting. Of course, this was easier said than done since his mind was a mess.

“Calm down, Gregjoy. Focus on the sword. Master would have wanted that.” He told himself while grabbing the crimson stained cross from beneath his robe chest area. Just as he was about to store the something inside of him had told him to not. When he thought about it, what was so special with this cross? His master said to him that it contained all his secrets. Did it contain a spatial pouch? Or maybe was it in fact a legendary treasure?

Gregjoy put back the sword to his waist and sat down cross-legged, inspecting the item carefully.

The thin spiderweb-like lines coursing through, adding to the pointy, blade-like edges, and unique form, made it seem... seemingly alive. And the more he looked at it, the more he felt so. Those blood-red lines felt like they were carrying blood, transporting it around. Almost like a heart.

Names are backwards. Mei Ling: Mei (Last name) Ling (First Name)