Connor watched the line meander slowly forward. “Eric I’m bored.”

“I know Connor but you don’t need to tell me that every 5 minutes.” Eric responded, not bothering to look up from his book.

“Eric, what should I do? I’m bored.” Connor replied.

Eric sighed then looked away from his book. “Well, what am I supposed to do about that Connor? I’m not the one we decided to arrive late, now am I.”

“Hey,” Connor protested,” I didn’t decide to arrive late. My old man did that for me.”

“Tomatoe tomato.” Eric responded.

“Ugh, whatever.” Connor said throwing up his arms in defeat. He then looked at Eric curiously and asked,”What are you reading?”

Eric sighed, again.’I seem to be doing that a lot.’ “I’m reading ‘A History of the Undertaker’s Guild’.”

“Cool, I’ve heard of the Undertaker’s Guild but I don’t know much about them.” Connor responded thoughtfully.

“I figured you wouldn’t know much about them.” Eric answered with his nose turned up and a smug smirk on his face.”Well I guess I’ll be so kind as to educate a lowly country bumpkin like you in the matters of the wide world.”

“Shut up.” Connor answered with a grin.

Eric grinned back and continued,”The Undertaker’s Guild is a cultivation group or guild if you will.” Connor stared at Eric blankly, who himself was chuckling in amusement.”The Undertaker’s Guild as it’s name would imply is a death element focused group. All sorts of dead men join their ranks but surprisingly enough they aren’t actually that violent of a group. They actually provide a very valuable service for the many cities, towns, and villages, they collect the dead and bury them in their necropolises.”

“Why would they do that?” Connor inquired.

“They do that because it helps them create zones with immense levels of death affinity Qi. The ideal place for a dead man to cultivate in.” Eric answered.

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“Wow, that’s really smart.” Connor commented,”But don’t some people want to bury their own family members?”

“That’s a great point, the answer to that is yes they do but most can’t.” Eric responded.

“What do you mean they can’t?” Connor questioned.

“Well you see Connor, it costs money if you want to be buried in or around a city or town, because the body is protected from beasts. Most people can’t pay that and so The Undertaker’s Guild provides that service free of charge, the catch being the guild is free to do what it wants with the corpse.” Eric answered diligently.

“Isn’t that just as bad as getting eaten by a beast?” Connor said with confusion.

“That’s all a matter of perspective, sure the body might be used for necromancy but at least it’s not being used to sustain a beast who will inevitably kill someone or damage property.” Eric replied with a shrug.

“I guess.” Connor said unconvinced.

“Anyway, not only do dead men go to them but also shadow men, stone men, rain men, and to a lesser extent steel men.” Eric stared matter of factly.

“Why do so many different elemental cultivators join them?” Connor asked.

“The answer is quite simple, it’s because of how they build their bases or necropolises if you will. They are vast underground cities made to hold the dead so obviously there will be an abundance of Dark, Earth, and Metal Qi.” Eric told his worst student.

“Ok, that’s understandable but what about the Water Qi, where does that come from?” Connor, worst student, asked.

“That’s simple, swamps and bogs are places that have a naturally higher amount of Death Qi but also Water Qi so that’s why rain men tended to join them as well.” Professor Eric proclaimed.

“Cool, but if they mainly collect corpses and dispose of them then does that mean they aren’t really a combat sect.” Connor asked.

“That’s a very common misconception about them, although they’re most famous for their corpse collection service they also provide other services like any other combat sect. In fact, they’re known to take on extremely deadly and even borderline suicidal missions because it helps advance their members understanding of death.” Eric answered.

“Yikes.” Connor exclaimed.”Why would you want to join an organization that sends out its members on suicide missions?”

“Borderline suicidal missions, get it right. The answer to that is quite simple, they’re the biggest and the best dead man group around. They have the most resources and like they say,’high risk, high reward.’ Most of the people who take part in those missions either make it big afterwards or aren’t alive to care.” Eric diligently responded.

“True.” Connor agreed.”You know Eric, I really hope I have a fire affinity like Mayor Bueacanon. Being a heat man would be so cool.”

“I think you’re more of an earth affinity.” Eric said with a grin.

“Why is that?” Connor answered in confusion.

“Because you’re a blockhead.” Eric answered then started to laugh uncontrollably.

“Damn it, I can’t believe I fell for that one.” Connor responded with a smirk.”That’s a terrible joke Eric, this is why I’m your only friend.”

“Whatever Connor, you’re just jealous of my comedic genius.” Eric responded while making a pose. They both started to laugh.

After awhile they both calmed down then Connor spoke again.”I really hope we can get into the same sect, I’d hate to have to leave you after all the time we’ve spent together.”

“Yeah, me too.” Eric agreed. They both stood in silence as the line continued to meander forward lazily like a snake on a cold day. Their destiny lay ahead not but 5 meters away, their past lay behind growing ever longer and further away. What would come, they did not know, all that was certain is that this would change their lives forever.