《The Successor》9 - The Shan Clan
Advertisement
Two hours later, when Kai Lan rose sleepily for dinner, he found the two individuals who had been offered to him by Fang Ze Ting sitting at his family’s dining table.
He approached the table on little legs and Wu Lan lifted him up onto his booster seat at the table before he eyes fell on the two new comers.
“Hei Hei-Ge and Xia Fei-Jie?”
The two smiled at the affectionate terms.
“Young Master Kai Lan,” Xia Fei greeted, “We come of our own accord to pledge our loyalty to you by our elements”.
“Pledge by your elements?” asked Kai Lan in confusion, looking to his father for an explanation.
“It is an ancient custom, dating back to the times of the Immortal God Emperor,” said Wu Lan, “It is a pledge of loyalty for life from servant to master, that if broken means severing one’s connection to the elements upon which they swore”.
Kai Lan turned back to Hei Hei and Xia Fei, “Why would you give that to me?”
“To earn your trust, and to ensure a bond between us,” said Hei Hei.
“A bond made on such terms is a sacred thing, it may only be made once in a Cultivator’s lifetime,” Xia Fei agreed.
“That still doesn’t explain why you would give such a thing to my son. If anything, it only confuses us more,” Ning Wei stated as she placed the soup down on the table between them.
Xia Fei looked at Kai Lan, “Cultivators all seek a higher power, to obtain, to revel in it, to bow to it and to serve it. That was why everyone so easily bowed to the Immortal God Emperor, because he was the height of everything they stood for. Shan Kai Lan’s birth caused a disturbance in the fabric of the worlds so profound that it drew the elders from all the Nine Clans, the powers behind the Twelve Great Sects, and every cultivator in the Immortal Realm and above to him”.
Advertisement
Hei Hei nodded in agreement, “It was Fang Ze Ting’s good fortune to be so close to the source when it happened. I guarantee that if he had not been in the hospital that day, he would not have known, but fate works in mysterious ways”.
“Hei Hei and I were brought up and trained among the Fang Groups’ subservient families, but our strength and aptitude rivalled that of the direct descendants. Ever since my own cultivation rose above that of Ze Ting’s sons, and then Ze Ting himself, I have been subtlety suppressed. I held no future there, and it was the same for Hei Hei. The Fang Group is quite clear that they revel in power, but only when it is under their control, and we have not owed them anything for some time,” said Xia Fei.
“Xia Fei’s prophetic dream led her to request that they accompany the main family on their expedition here today, Ze Ting agreed on the condition that we follow along with whatever he said,” said Hei Hei, “It was not outside of our expectations to be presented as gifts, but when we saw young master Kai Lan for the first time, we didn’t care”.
“He might have only just forged his golden core, but at his age, it should be indication enough of his potential, let alone the attention he drew when he was born,” said Xia Fei, “We wish to serve him because it is the natural of order of things. He may not be powerful now, but give him a decade, two at most, and he will rival the greatest Cultivators of the next generation, if not surpass them”.
Wu Lan sighed, then turned to Kai Lan, “It is your decision”.
Kai Lan appraised the two for a moment before he carefully climbed down from his chair and moved around the table to stand between them. Hei Hei and Xia Fei pushed out their chairs, then knelt on the ground before Kai Lan.
Advertisement
Kai Lan closed his eyes for a moment, searching for the right words, the right path, then it came to him easily. His eyes fluttered open.
“Do you, Xia Fei, and you, Hei Hei, swear to serve me in any capacity I formally bestow or require? To protect me and my Clan even at the expense of your own lives? To be servant, friend and Clansman for as long as you both shall live?”
“I swear upon my elements,” stated Xia Fei.
“I swear upon my elements,” Hei Hei followed.
Kai Lan pulled power from his golden core and pushed it towards his hands, letting them fill with wisps of energy as he spoke, “Then take my hands and let your allegiance be sealed”.
Both of them reached out and each grasped one of Kai Lan’s chubby little hands. They both sucked in a breath as the energy of Kai Lan’s golden core seemed to embody the pledge they had made. They then gently released Kai Lan, and Kai Lan felt himself grow weak. He stumbled, and Xia Fei moved forward to catch him.
“Kai Lan!” Ning Wei cried in concern, rounding them to her son.
“He’s okay, just weak,” said Xia Fei, “It takes a lot to use spiritual energy the way he just did, let alone in someone who has only just established his Golden Core. He just needs food and rest”.
Ning Wei sighed, picking her son up and depositing him back in his high chair before she served him some soup, “Drink, then back to bed with you”.
Kai Lan looked up at her with tired eyes, “Yes, Ma”.
Later, after Kai Lan had headed off to bed, Hei Hei informed Wu Lan that he would be headed out and wouldn’t be back until early morning.
“Oh?”
“Hei Hei and I have our own accounts separate from the Fang Family. He’s planning on retrieving our belongings. Also, he’ll likely want to use his Spirit Stones to construct a formation around the house,” said Xia Fei.
“A formation?” asked Wu Lan.
“With permission of course, but we figured you wouldn’t protest,” said Xia Fei, “He’ll likely do a cross between a concealing formation and a barrier formation, in order to hide Kai Lan’s aura as best as possible”.
Wu Lan nodded, “Well, if you are training him, it would no doubt be a good idea”.
Advertisement
The First Hunter
The world has changed, and so have the people.December 31st, 2016, the day before New Years. Kim Taehoon was just casually shopping for groceries from the large store. But then, monsters suddenly appeared out of thin air. With his highly trained skills that he has gained from his previous occupation, he starts to hunt the monsters down and manages to win, saving countless people who were also in the mall.But there are more, and they don’t stop coming.Would he be able to survive till the end?Would he be able to beat the countless amount of monsters that only seem to get stronger?And would it just be monsters that he has to worry about?This is the story of Kim Tae-Hoon, one of the first hunters to rise during an era when monsters first started to appear.
8 664Selena's Reign: The Golden Gryphon
AUC1049. The Emperor of Orbe is dead, and of the empire he founded within his lifetime, not a trace remains. Now his son, Zephyrin Aléri, is the political prisoner of his enemies. Will ‘The Golden Gryphon’ live to assume his rightful throne, carrying on his father’s glorious legacy, or is his name fated to vanish forever from history? A historically inspired reincarnation story with fantasy elements. Updates weekly on Saturdays. Please note that this is a first draft and chapters are posted as I write them. Schedule update: I was unable to write this week and so today's chapter will be delayed; expect one or two releases next week to compensate for this omission. Cover credit: courtesy Birmingham Museum of Art, 1919P134. (Samuel Prout, Interior Of A Cathedral)
8 123Skybound
The adventures of Morgan Mackenzie and her sidekick Lulu the Loofah continue! The [Skyclad Sorceress] has made new friends, discovered she has some enemies, and now along with the Worldwalker Dana and the survivors of the Expedition she is working to get out of the Wildlands. Meanwhile, the Deskren have beseiged Fort Expedition, and The General rides with his troops to their relief. He is followed by The Hammer, leading the Children of the First Beast. Certainly an impressive and dangerous force, but will they get to Expedition in time to save the city? If they arrive in time, can they hold the walls until the Tribes arrive? As the northern continent slips deeper into autumn and winter, the Empire in the south prepares for spring and the planting of crops. Their raiding campaign into the north has not gone well, and tensions are rising as food shortages loom, and all is not as it seems in Nouveau Deskra.
8 206Unbind
There is no rhyme or reason to the flow of life. Cora knows this better than anyone, a normal suburban girl living on the edge of a major city. So when she gets ripped out of Earth and dumped into a new world, she will do anything to return. But as she wanders through worlds and becomes part of a system unimaginably greater than herself, she realizes that returning home isn’t as simple as it seems... ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The warning tags are added because there is a high potential of the content warned about occurring in several chapters. They are not meant to be the explicit focus of Unbind, but they will be recurring elements, albeit with scarce frequency. As a warning, there will be a note added before a chapter should it contain mature content. Updates will be posted every Sunday. As a fledgling writer, I appreciate any commentary!
8 183Opal
"Did you miss me?"He glares, an expression so fierce I shrink away."I missed you as much as I would miss a lung, I could hardly even breathe without you." ☾❂ ☾❂ ☾❂ ☾❂ ☾❂ ☾❂ ☾❂ ☾❂ ☾❂ ☾❂ ☾❂ ☾ Opal has been through a lot in her life, many things that left her feeling broken and shattered. The only thing that kept her together was her best friend, Keifer. She knew deep down that Keifer was her mate, and that he would always be there for her, that is until he's taken away.Ever since Keifer was adopted, he knew that he was different from the other lycans. He didn't know how to channel his anger or his pent up frustration, so he did what any teenager does. He rebelled. But, Keifer took his shenanigans too far when he almost killed the person he loves most. He's sent away to a military camp for the troubled, separated from his family and mate for years as he learns to control himself.Keifer's resentment grows.Opal's strength dwindles.Both of them are tested when Opal takes things to the extreme and decides to run away, on the hunt to find her mate and mend her heart, no matter what the cost.
8 237Marvel One-Shots
This will be centered more on Peter Parker and his superfamily! This story will contain angst, fluff, and all that stuff(see what I did there), and moments when I want to cry myself. Leave reviews please and comments for what one-shots you want!
8 225