Chapter 122
Junior Brother Wakes
Shui'er tapped out first, just a little bit after dinner.
Azariel was next, tired of having spent the entire day drinking.
Lu Yang left sometime around midnight, Leo presumed, though it was still rather difficult for him to track the hours.
All animals were gone by another hour, and he was left alone.
In the distance, he could hear the ghosts wailing, but he didn't have the heart or the energy to stand up and go help. Not for nothing, at least; he needed an eve of respite, a few hours to recalibrate everything—not just about Yue and Liang, but himself, too. He'd never allowed himself to think too much about the day he and Azariel met; any time a thought of it would swim up to the surface, he'd distract himself with one thing or the other, uncertain.
But he knew that, eventually, he'd have to face the demons, the whispers, and the fact that he was now a murderer. Whereas before, with the bedeviled thing that he killed as he saved Xiaoling and the kids, he could at least pretend that it wasn't human; that was no longer possible. And even if he did hold the notion that he'd eventually have to do it from very early on in his stay here, it was different—one was a fantasy, and the other one a reality, after all.
There were a thousand thoughts, all discordant and disruptive, fighting to become the leading anchor, but none prevailed. It was as though his mind was shielding him from itself, speaking a thousand thoughts at once to drown out the needling whispers from within.
He took a sip of the awful booze Lu Yang brought, cringing at both the taste and aftertaste, and loathing it as it became yet another distraction. He didn't quite know what to make of everything, especially himself. In truth, he didn't feel... awful for having done it. There was some guilt, but it was fleeting—and mostly the kind that he warned Yue about, the guilt about the lack of guilt. Though thinking back at the moments did churn his intestines ever so slightly, it, too, would pass within a moment or two.
In some deranged way, he was content. Not in want of more, but not full of regrets for having done those he did. Whether that was a dangerous place to be or not... he didn't know. It wasn't as though he hung out with murderers back on Earth who offered their own wisdom on the matter, and if he so much as brought up that question in this world, he would likely get laughed at. Murder here seemed as common as throwing out a slur was back on Earth—just an hourly thing that few batted their eyes on.
He suddenly heard footsteps and turned toward the longhouse, where he saw the tall and stalwart figure emerge. Since it had been some time since the young man was gone, Leo forgot just how tall he was—six-five at the very least, with a build that would likely make him a prolific model back on Earth. And yet, even someone like him was an inch away from dying not a day earlier.
"Liang?" Leo shot up to his feet and toward the young man, grabbing him gently. "Are you well enough to walk?"
"Yes, thank you, Master," Liang replied as Leo guided him to the most comfortable 'chair' around the flame (which wasn't saying much as it was still just a slightly flattened boulder with some straw and grass on top of it) and helped him sit down.
"Sorry, there's no leftovers. Want me to whip up some dinner? Shouldn't take too long."
"No, no, I'm not hungry," he said. "I just needed some fresh air."
"Ah. How are you feeling?"
"Mostly nauseous," the young man smiled faintly as he spoke. "But considering how I likely was when you first saw me... I'm a tree now."
"Well, you are very tall."
"Ha ha," the two laughed for a moment as Leo wondered whether it was right to ask the one question he was dying to ask. "How is Yue?"
"Guilt-ridden," Leo said. "And bedridden as well. Just exhaustion, nothing else."
"Ah, good. So, I managed to block it whole."
"What happened?" Leo asked.
"Hm, we... we got blindsided a bit and trusted someone we shouldn't have." Liang started, taking a moment to seemingly gather his thoughts before continuing. "Did Yue say anything?"
"No. Just how she couldn't move while you stepped in front of, well, whatever you stepped out in front of."
"We were ambushed," Liang said. "Just before we reached the Sword. It was... strange. It wasn't an ordinary ambush—there were other cultivators, there were Others involved, and even Demonic Beasts. It was as though they banded together against us and would then make it into a free-for-all for spoils after Yue and I were killed. Hey, Master, can... can I ask you something?"
"Anything."
"The reason why we were trying to go as deep as we could," Liang said. "Was because both Yue and I felt a kind of... resonance. As though there was something in the Cradle's depths calling for us. Just before the fight broke out, actually, I caught a fading glimpse of it—but it was strange. I've never seen anything like it before. It was like Qi... but the opposite of it. As though someone took ordinary Qi and twisted it in ways that weren't... natural." For a change, Leo knew the answer—or, at least, part of the answer, and he wasn't going to withhold it.
"It's Primordial Qi," he said, having felt something somewhat similar himself when he went to that lake, the strange kind of resonance, as though a part of him was ripped and discarded, and he was now looking for it. "It's started returning to the world, in small doses. I didn't think it spread even outside the Forest, however."
"Oh," Liang exclaimed softly. "I... I thought it was some kind of ancient spirit..." he added sheepishly, seeming embarrassed. Leo laughed for a moment, taking out a bottle of the rancid alcohol and tossing it over the flames toward him. Liang caught it easily, uncapping it and smelling it, immediately frowning. "Ugh, what is this?"
"Alcohol."
"You... you sure? None of the alcohol I drank before made me want to throw it into the fire..."
"Well, it's cheap alcohol," Leo added. "Absolutely putrid, in and through. But it's all I have."
"... oh well," the tall figure shrugged and took a swig, his expression distorting right after, prompting Leo to laugh yet again. "That's... that's the worst thing that has ever happened to me."
"... do you blame Yue?" Leo suddenly asked, seeming to surprise Liang. Though Leo firmly tried to absolve Yue of the guilt, he didn't know that what he was saying was the actual truth. If it wasn't, and if Liang blamed her, he wanted to get in front of it.
"Blame her?"
"If you do," Leo said. "Please... don't say anything to her. Pass it all onto me and curse me out instead."
"... and here I was," Liang lowered his head and smiled, staring at the flames. "Thinking of imploring you not to fault her, as it was my oversight." He took yet another swing, nearly belching, before continuing. "Yue--I mean, Senior Sister... she's many things, but experienced isn't one. Though I knew it, I only realized the extent of it when we reached the Cradle. That was when I knew that I'd have to be twice as on alert, twice as cautious, twice as paranoid. But... I relaxed, at the worst time at that. She did nothing wrong. Rather, considering that was her first excursion out into the world... she did fantastically."
"You really care for her, huh?" Leo said, taking a swig.
"Hm," he nodded. "Ah, but she is also a bit scary."
"She is?"
"Before she tore the scroll," Liang said. "She, uh... I, I don't think I should say this, but you'll probably find out if you already haven't. She, uh, she used the feather... twice."
"Oh."
"She concentrated it!" he quickly added. "Just at those who attacked us! I... I think... please forgive her, Master! She did it for my sake, so punish me instead!"
Leo fought the urge to roll his eyes, taking a swig himself while staring at the man's bowed head. He lucked out, mightily, he realized—his first two Disciples were genuinely nice kids (being potential killers notwithstanding), and, more than that, they seemed to care greatly for each other, as well as this place. It could have been just as likely that they were conniving, treacherous sorts who'd look to backstab each other as well as him at the first opportunity.
"I'll punish both of you," he said. Liang winced, but Leo merely smiled. "No leaving the forest for the next two months for either of you."
"..." The young man looked up, eyes briefly ensconced with wisdom that he usually hid. Leo had already figured that the goofball that he was for the most part was a bit of a facade—no matter the natural talents, it was evident that those successful in this world were also very much among the smarter ones. He hid that part of him for one reason or another, though Leo did like the foolish act he put on—it was quite funny, in bursts. "Of course. It's a well-deserved punishment."
"Now you're just playing with fire."
"Ah, apologies!" He quickly put on that foolish grin and fixed his hair, prompting Leo to grin. Well, having dull, obedient Disciples might have been too boring, he figured.
"You must have picked up on it by now," Leo said. "But we have three new guests."
"Yeah."
"Two old men? I don't care what you do with them; just don't kill each other," Leo said. "The girl, though, I'd appreciate if you were nice to her."
"Who... is she? Your, khm, your, I mean--"
"--From now on," Leo said. "Consider that she is. For both you and everyone else."
"Oh. Of course, Master."
"... you know," Leo said, leaning back and looking up toward the sky full of shimmering stars. "Not too long ago, it was just me and a whole host of animals. And, for a while, I thought that would be my life for many years to come. Then, one by one, you kids started showing up."
"Do you... hate it?" Liang probed.
"Hate it? Ha ha, of course not," Leo replied. "Rather, it's the opposite. I don't care much for what happens in the outside world. For now, at least. But... in some small ways, I've found my calling. To help whoever came here and to offer a second chance. Want to hear my dream, Liang?"
"Of course, Master."
"You can't laugh."
"I would never."
"... there is a Sect," Leo said, closing his eyes. "All its Disciples transient. If you feel like the world has become too much, and you simply need a place to escape to from everything... it will take you in. And it will provide a sanctuary. A Sect where there are no competitions, no pressure to become stronger... a place where people can live any which way they want." Leo opened his eyes and glanced over at the young man listening intently. "I know that it's incongruous with everything, but... I loathe the thought of you kids out there, fighting for your lives. And I want to create a place for all those who feel the same way I do. It's naive, in more ways than I can count at that, but dreams ought to be. Chances are that I'll spend a lifetime pursuing a dream that can never be fulfilled, but... I can't seem to care, truth be told."
"... it's a lovely dream, Master," Liang said. "And, perhaps, if anyone can make it into reality, it's you."
"You are rather good at flattery."
"I've had some experience."
"I see," they shared a laugh before Leo took another swig, standing up. "Do you hear them?" he suddenly asked, causing Liang to look at him confused for a moment.
"Hear what?"
"... come with me," Leo said, putting away the bottle and heading toward the distant wails. "Perhaps if you can't hear them," he added. "You might see them."