Hua was falling down the great cliff as she felt the wind’s cold and rough resistance scrape against her hair and skin like a harsh god. The ground was getting closer and larger as Hua continued to scream. At this rate, she would fall onto the earth and become nothing but a paste. Suddenly, the rope was tugged and she quickly grabbed onto it. Still panting, and with her grip on the rope being her only bulwark against suffocation, Hua was dangling off of the cliff.
“What do you know of the four beasts?” Xiaojun asked. His voice was soft, yet harsh with years of experience. It was the kind of voice that only speaks when needed to. A voice that is mostly silent, but carries only value when used. Sadly, Hua didn’t understand a single part of the question. “The four beasts? What are you talking about?”
Xiaojun was quick to respond. With his voice echoing from above, he continued his question. “The Beast of Avarice. The Beast of Jealousy. The Beast of Hatred. The Beast of Lust,” Xiaojun iterated. “All four were once tamed by the God of Purity. But when humanity’s sins overcame the gentle god, the being fractured. All that is left are the wild beasts and the Beast of Corruption.” Hua continued to dangle as Xiaojun continued. “You are a monster. Therefore, you must know something I do not.”
The woman maintained her grip, but her hands were becoming numb. “I don’t know anything! I’ve been in the outside world only recently! Please! I don’t know anything!” For a moment, her pleas were met only by silence. Part of her thought that Xiaojun would just let her go and plummet to the ground. But eventually, she was met with a further tug. Finally, she was going back up.
Once she made it back to the height, she threw herself forward onto the dead grass. Hua didn’t know gratitude for feeling earth under her feet could even be possible until now. She held onto her sore fingers as the rope had burned and torn against her once tender skin. Hua watched as these lacerations healed automatically, with Xiaojun looking expectantly. “I finally meet a monster capable of speaking coherently, and they are nothing but a mere damsel who favors the flavor of flesh and the ability to heal. How fruitless.”
“You’re sick!” she lashed at him. “What kind of person does that to any living person?” Xiaojun responded by tugging her along and continuing his journey. “What kind of person attempts to bite onto the neck of someone feeding them?” he said. “But I do not fight to ask stupid questions.” The fox girl scoffed under her breath as she followed the warrior along. “Smartass,” she muttered.
Still, Hua couldn’t help but feel a strength sense of curiosity when it came to this tall and large soldier before her. Not just a curiosity in his character, but a curiosity in his duty. “What in hell’s name is this Beast of Corruption?” Even though her instinctive sense was to just find a chance to transform and run off into the woods, another sense of her wanted to figure what this warrior was truly planning.
Suddenly, Xiaojun stopped. He raised his hand, crouching as he reached for his weapon. “If you believe this is an opportunity to escape, you are mistaken,” he coldly whispered to Hua. “If you try and run, the creatures will grab you.” The fox girl was wide-eyed with confusion as she darted to look for what he was warning about. “Creatures?”
Xiaojun slowly began to point his weapon at a tree. Or was it a tree? As Hua looked on, staring at the thing, she realized the branches were not branches, but arms standing still and dangling for those in its grasp. She realized that the being was not covered in bark, but dark flesh resembling bark which slowly and silently breathed like how human skin would.
“This is a cursed forest,” Xiaojun stated. “Not even your fox blood can protect you when they grab a hold of you.” Hua’s heart began to race as she darted and looked around. Then she caught a glance of human bones on the ground. Using her terrified imagination, she assumed that these trees grabbed a hold of someone and slowly ate every last part of their body before spewing anything inedible back out. Now that she thought about it, there were dozens of bones laying about.
“Perhaps this is a spawn from the Beast of Lust.” Xiaojun kept the girl close as they navigated through the forest, ensuring they don’t step on one of the false roots of the creatures. “Lust?” Hua asked. “Isn’t that something more pertaining to… well… gross sexual stuff?” the girl asked.
“Consumption is a better word.” They stepped over another root, holding their breath as anxiety creeped through the woods. “Lust for women. Lust for food. Lust for power. These trees are the perfect embodiment of consumption.” He carefully helped Hua through a maze of trees, holding onto her shaking body to ensure it wouldn’t even graze the flesh of a creatures around them. “They infect real trees and eat them from inside, changing their form with the dark magic brought from hell. To expand, they use a nearby corpse as a breeding ground for spores and eat it clean of organic matter. Then the cycle begins again.”
Suddenly, Hua’s foot touched against a root. She gasped. It was all silent. “They know you are here. They will try and trap us here.” The trees began to howl and scream from pores all over their strange bodies. Arms, like tentacles, began to fly about as they formed a perimeter before other arms began to reach for them.
Xiaojun sliced anything coming towards them, using his blade to slice the flesh into writhing lumps onto the earth. To make things worse, the ground began to tremble as the roots stirred the dirt below them. Hua nearly fell before Xiaojun grabbed her and began to run. “Falling is not an option. The creatures will feel your vibration and grab you then and there, sink you into the earth and make you one of their own.”
They sprinted through the forest, Xiaojun cutting through anything in their path. As Hua followed, she couldn’t help but notice large monsters crying and screaming as they found themselves in the grips of the cursed forest. These powerful beasts, monsters comparative to ones told to scare children, were nothing but wriggling formations of meat for the forest to consume. As the creatures were dragged into the bodies of the trees, their parts were grinded and crushed like an organic machine crumbling their bodies into minces. Large and small, the cursed forest takes all.
Suddenly, Hua herself was grabbed as a tentacle held onto her ankle. She screamed and struggled but the powerful grip was pulling her in. Xiaojun grunted as he turned and sliced the tentacle off and pushed the remains away. But before they could move on, more tentacles from every angle began to swoop in. The warrior was being buttoned by an endless swarm of branches as the forest hungered for their flesh. “We’re trapped!” Hua cried. She curled into a ball as the warrior was left to fend for the both of them.
A branch grabbed his arm. Just as he cut it away, a branch grabbed his leg. He was being slowly overwhelmed with each and every branch being a separate and new invader into the horde. At this rate, this would be the place where the both of them would die. “Damn!” Xiaojun growled. “I do not have time for this!”
He grabbed one of the tentacles and began to pull it violently. Hua watched in fear. “What are you doing? That grip is strong enough to hold even the largest of beasts!” But to her surprise, she watched as the warrior was successful in overpowering the grip. Xiaojun pulled and ripped the branch straight out of the tree, causing the lump of flesh to cry and scream as the other trees felt the interconnected fear and pain.
“So that is your weakness? That of all things?” he laughed. “Sure you can shrug off the mere cut of a branch, but when one of your branches is being uprooted, you cannot stand the pain? What cowards! At least a soldier can bite his teeth when he watches his comrades die!” Quickly, he went to the nearest tree and began to yank the branches off of it, causing the entire forest to scream. Hua covered her ears as the oscillations hurt her hearing. But Xiaojun was laughing with a rage not originating from this forest. It was a rage meant for something else. But it was a rage that would destroy this cursed forest.
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He made the tree feel pain. He made the forest feel pain. Tentacles began to sparsely attack him as they feared that he would grab them and pull them out as well. “Scared?” he laughed. “How does the spawn of hell feel fear?” Xiaojun demanded. He began to laugh as he pulled out a lump of flint. “Then I will show you something worse than fear. I shall show you true pain.”
Striking the flint, he used the embers to create a torch. Quickly, he placed the torch under the tree, using all of the wood and fuel in his luggage to great a bonfire. The trees began to scream as they recklessly charged their tentacles at the warrior. This time, Xiaojun, with a smile, would grab each offending branch and stick them into the fire. Though his armor sheathed him from the flames, the fire would burn and spread across each branch.
Before long, the entire forest was screeching with inhuman pain as the flame managed to travel along the roots as well. Hua looked around with fear in her eyes. A moment ago, she was absolutely terrified of the creatures around her. Now they were nothing but stationary tepees ready to crumble into ash. At the center of all this destruction was one smiling and laughing man: Xiaojun.
“You hellish bastards! Is this what you wanted to see? Is this the hellfire you demanded? Didn’t you miss the warmth of home?” The trees roared with a cry akin to that of a dying child. “Your cries bring no tears you godless monsters! That is why you will die where you stand!” With a final move, she struck his blade against a tree, causing the lump of flesh to topple over. Hua was petrified at the man’s madness and his strength. It was at this moment when she realized that Xiaojun was nothing but a weapon in the shape of a human.
Xiaojun calmed down as he walked up to Hua and slowly grabbed the rope still around her neck. Since only the trees were catching fire, the dirt pathways in between were safe to traverse. Without a single act of defiance, Hua followed Xiaojun out of the forest. Any idea of escape was thrown out of her head as she realized that there was no running from a creature that could easily catch you.
They exited the forest as they returned to the gloomy plains of the world. The sounds of screaming elapsed and decayed behind them as they moved along. Both Xiaojun and Hua were silent, though for different reasons. Hua was silent since she was still terrified and traumatized. Xiaojun was silent since he didn’t have anything to say. Other than the lighter pack and the smell of burnt flesh, it was as if nothing had happened.
Later that night, they took camp in a forest where the trees around them were real. Even though Hua knew this, part of her still remembered the fleshy beings she had just escaped from. As a fire burned in front of her, she couldn’t help but think about the fire Xiaojun just set in the cursed forest. As the warrior began to cook meat, Hua also couldn’t help but remember the smell of the burning forest. In short, her appetite was ruined.
Xiaojun sat across from her, still holding onto the rope as his unfocused eyes stared into the fire. Only heaven knew what terrifying thoughts invaded his mind. It only stoked Hua’s curiosity even further. This was a man who could fall drunk with destruction, only to return sober with stoicism. The entire fight against the cursed forest, he acted as if he had never been hurt. Even as he held his hand into the fire, he continued this terrifying act of either bravery or plain hatred.
But she could notice it. The slight jolts of injury and pain. Like when he reached for his bag and flinched when something touched his burnt hand. Though the armor continued to cover it, Hua still knew that this warrior was hurt. “Xiaojun. You can drink my blood,” she said. “As you saw before, it can heal you. In fact, I was sure you decided to bring me along solely because of that fact.”
Xiaojun sat back. “I had actually forgotten.” The statement was so casual, in comparison to the horror usually associated with his words. “It is no bother. I can survive without your magic blood.” But Hua was insistent. “You can use a knife to cut into my skin like before,” she instructed. “I can’t do it myself since the pain will stop me from making a good enough gash.”
Hua pulled the skirt of her dress upwards as she looked away and closed her eyes. “Do it now. And make it quick.” With a sigh, the warrior pulled out his knife and cleaned it with warm water. “I will make only a small cut.” Afterwards, he reached over to the young woman and began his incision. With a small stroke, as if using a pen, he etched an opening into her flesh. Hua gave a quick wince, but it wasn’t painful. “Drink it,” she said. “Before it dries.” The warrior did as instructed.
He took a gentle sup from the gash as the girl calmly exhaled. Xiaojun’s burns began to heal, as well as the bruises and lacerations made from the branches. It was as a mere taste of the blood was enough to regenerate his body tenfold. When he was done, he rose up and lightly bandaged the leg. “How did you know of your ability?” he asked.
Hua naturally curled herself as she looked into the fire. “Huli jing foxes have existed for thousands of years, perhaps even before humans. As you know, we’re capable of transforming between human and fox,” she said. “But we’re hunted. For a multitude of different reasons we’ve been hunted. Some kill us because they believe that our teeth can crush the mightiest of metals. Others capture us because they believe we can bear strong warriors after they imbue us with child. But I was captured because our blood can heal.”
Suddenly, Xiaojun rose up as he held onto his guandao. Hua also stood up as she looked around once more. “You were right,” a voice said from the darkness. “You do have some good blood.” Emerging from the darkness was a gang of horse riders. They each wore black cloaks as they held a scimitar into each one of their hands with some of the others holding bows aimed right for the warrior.
The leader of the group removed his hood, revealing a sharp smile. He looked young to be in this line of work. “We noticed the fox girl a long while away. She’s been eating travelers and anyone foolish enough to trust her. We even saw her try and eat you, and yet we saw that she’s become your favorite pet instead.”
Xiaojun scoffed. The idea that someone was stalking him without his knowledge irritated him. “My name’s Chao,” the cloaked man said, “and we’ve been hired to take your pet to Lord Luo. What he wants to do with her is none of my business. But if you plan on getting in between her and the lord, and therefore getting in between me and my money, then I’m sure we have issues.” Chao made his ultimatum clear: “give me the girl or I will give you violence.”
Xiaojun responded with silence. Suddenly, he grabbed a rider from his horse and plunged his head into the fire. The victim began to scream and cry as the fire burned his face and throat with the boot of Xiaojun pressing his head into the embers. The riders, including Chao, could only watch with horror as Xiaojun pulled the man out of the fire only to reveal a charred and mutilated face which continued to scream as embers continued to bury themselves into his flesh.
After tossing the wounded man aside, Xiaojun gave his answer. “No.” Arrows began to fly as the warrior deflected the projectiles from the air. A rider swooped in to cut the man down only for Xiaojun to stab into the man’s chest and throw him another rider, knocking the both of them onto the ground. Turning around, he watched as a man grabbed Hua only for her to transform and bite into his neck, spewing red all over the armor as the horse ran wild. From there a, different soldier grabbed the fox, muzzled her, and restrained her as he rode off.
Xiaojun sighed. She was too far for him to run after her. “See what you did there?” Chao taunted. “You killed a couple of my men only for the same outcome I wanted to happen! Are you—” Xiaojun launched his guandao into the man’s horse, causing the steed to neigh as it ran into the ground. As the body of the horse landed right at his feet, Xiaojun retrieved his weapon and placed his foot on the leader’s body. “I may not have Hua,” he said, “but I have plenty of blood I can have in return.”
The rest of the riders began to sweat uneasily. Even the ones with their bows aimed for him shook with fear as the terrifying grin held their bodies hostage. “W-we were just paid to find a fox! We weren’t paid for this!” Abandoning their boss, the remainder rode off as the grin on Xiaojun’s face disappeared. Chao gave a nervous chuckle as he looked at the warrior. “I’ll be the one making demands,” Xiaojun said. “If you help me, I’ll let you live. If you don’t, I shall make your last moments of life feel like an eternity as I will force all of the machinations of hell to feast on your paralyzed body to the point where your own tears will be your only source of hydration.”