* * *

Beneath the golden sun, a sea of soldiers stood in formation. The great plains were filled with the subtle tremor of war. Wherever one saw, one would see the walled cities, the fleeting populace, and the black soothe of fire. King Agamenas stood proudly atop his carriage, carried by two powerful brute-type beasts whose eyes shone with deep malice and guarded strength.

“Today, the Kingdom of Agaman will extend itself to the confines of the continent! Riches from far away places will be our everyday currency, women of untold beauty the servants of our heroes! The knowledge of old foreign Saints our own knowledge! Now, march my men! To conquest!”

The troops rallied and emitted a powerful war cry, and soon started advancing through the land.

Up in the air a solitary figure gazed at them with shining eyes.

“How nice. It has been many, many years since I’ve taken interest in the lives of mortals.”

With a thought, he disappeared and reappeared below, besides King Agamenas in his carriage. His guards, the beasts, nobody seemed to notice this ordinarily dressed sloppy youth standing besides their king.

Yang Yin then willed it, and King Agamenas was able to feel his presence. As he discovered the youth besides him, incredibly cold sweat washed his body. Terrified, he thought in an instant

“My men didn’t notice this man. Even Garogas.” Garogas was his most loyal subject, a peak Xiantian lifeform; an extraordinary Immortal practitioner, powerful enough to have cemented the place in the throne for Agamenas’ father, Agamenon, and then for him.

Then, subconsciously, he moved, expecting the cold blade on his neck that would deliver him swift death. He knew his defensive movement was superfluous. But the slash never came. As he managed to turn his head, he saw the sloppily dressed youth looking at him with shining, curious eyes.

“Handsome as a devil!” Thought Agamenas. “He must be a legendary Daoist of Myriad Manifestations. A Wanxiang Adept, for no one to notice him even now. But what does he want?”

“This humble Agamenas greets you, Exalted Daoist.”

Yang Yin gazed at him attentively. He was aware of every minute change in the man in front of him. He could even see around him the perturbations in the machine of fate his appearance had caused. He slightly smiled.

“Good.” he approved. Then ignored him, and looked front, in the direction the carriage was advancing. The winds of war filled his ancient body with a deep remembrance. For a little second, he felt again as the youth he once was, many, many trillions of years ago, charging afoot in a war he didn’t understand, just to kill and survive while being bathed by the savagery of death and the loneliness of oblivion. Inside him, his exalted heart got a titanic firm grip on his most profound emotions, but he permitted himself to tremble a little.

“Good! Good! That’s how it is meant to be! To charge in front of your men! You chose to wage war, so you lead them with your own body, subjecting yourself to the same fire, the same arrows!”

Agamenas didn’t know why, but he felt deep joy hearing these words. It was as if he was a child again, hearing the sincere praise of a stern but loving grandfather. It was true. While not the most intelligent, cunning or gifted of all his father’s sons, he had sincerity of mind and courage. He stuttered a little; curiosity had already occupied most of his mind, but he didn’t know if he should ask anything.

“Don’t mind me, I’ll sit here enjoying the view. Do your thing.”

Agamenas saw how the sloppy daoist moved a bit clumsily, wishing his sleeve and producing a soft chair that seemed specially unremarkable, then sat down and muttered to himself

“The Bodhisattva Chair of Enlightenment, the most comfortable sitting treasure in the Eternal Chaoslands. That’s what that old bastard Allthings told me when he sold me this garbage. My buttocks hurt. Ah, forget it, I’ll change it some time.”

Then he completely ignored Agamenas, who noted that even then apparently only he was capable of noticing him, let alone seeing him.

The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

“The Eternal Chaoslands? Is that some distant continent? I’ll ask Garogas later.”

* * *

The campaign progressed rapidly. As this was a tiny minor world in a budding backwater chaosworld, great factions and dynasties had not emerged, and the power structure was weak and chaotic. Agamenas’ troops encountered only little tribes and occasionally middle sized cities. Apparently, Agamenas himself was a peak Houtian expert, well versed in archery. Yang Yin had repeatedly seen him break a decisive battle with a succession of arrows capable of breaking a horse in two a kilometer away. And while his sword arts were not as polished as his archery, his valiant stance and the fact he was one of the first to charge in battle made Yang Yin see him with more appreciative eyes.

Many times, by the same fact he charged with the vanguard, his life was constantly threatened by the unrelenting barrage of arrows, fire and explosives. Those moments Garogas, the Xiantian lifeform, appeared like a ghost and deflected the peril.

Some times, they didn’t even need to engage in battle, as strategic supremacy was able to cow the little tribes, cities and little regions into accepting their absorption into Agaman Kingdom.

Many times in those months Agamenas tried to find the mysterious expert and kowtow in front of him, requesting to be his disciple, but by some subtle irony he discovered that when that thought formed in his mind with some seriousness, the mysterious sloppy youth seemed to disappear, only to appear days later, when he had finally desisted from this endeavour. He doubted from telling anyone of his existence, as it was obvious he did not want to be disturbed. Endless frustration washed over him:

“Ah! I thought a pie had finally fallen from the sky into my hands, but no! That strange senior is a mute! Worse than a ghost!”

One day, fed up with the endless enticement and corroded by curiosity, frustration and irritation, he decided to tell Garogas.

They were in the patio of some castle stronghold in one of the cities they had conquered in the plains of Everwood, drinking some mead when he finally snapped.

“Garogas. Don’t you feel someone is always watching us?”

Garogas was instantly alarmed. In a second he raised his awareness at the maximum, trying to discover something nearby. He discovered nothing; even his acute senses told him that day was a specially safe and tranquil night. He inquisitively looked at Agamenas.

“Who may it be, my King?”

Agamenas looked around him. He knew with certainty that strange senior was aware of every single one of his movements. Then he remembered his slightly mocking eyes and his amused smile when he was putting his neck on the line at the forefront of his troops.

“A senior. I think it’s an exalted Wanxiang adept.”

Garogas stood stupefied a moment, then roared with laughter.

“Ahaha! Good King, you surely are weary of our battles! Rest properly a couple of days, then we can start the return to the kingdom to finish the matters of consolidating our newly acquired territories. I reckon Emperor Agamenon will be greatly glad seeing your military accomplishments.”

Agamenas looked offended as he stared at him.

“No, I’m telling the truth. I’ve seen him. For some reason he only lets me see him. He looks like a youth, and dresses quite badly. And he, you know? Is bald. His head shines like a sun.” as he talked, he felt how the accumulated frustration was suddenly being released. He felt giggly. “Ha! I thank he decided so only I can see him because the glare of his head might drive blind all of my troops!”

Garogas and him started to laugh uproariously. Suddenly, he felt a chilling sensation behind him. A cold fury that seeped inside his bones, so profound it revealed places in his body he never felt possible. In a matter of seconds all his clothes were soaked in cold sweat.

“My king-” Garogas tried to help, but as he was moving, the chill hit him too, and he himself was drenched in cold sweat. Both managed to turn as a voice behind them said,

“So, my bald head shines like a sun, huh?” the sloppily dressed youth appeared walking from the darkness of the entrance to the patio. “I might as well listen to you and drive blind all your troops this moment”

Then he raised a single finger. A sensation of profound despair and deadly crisis filled both of them. Garogas, moving as fast as his physique let him, dived into a groveling kowtow.

“Sorry! Senior! For having offended you! My king Agamenas is too young and hot blooded, as he is only twenty this year. And I can vouch he doesn’t even know a female in intimacy!”

Agamenas felt blood rush to his face, but then the sloppily dressed youth started to laugh, and the oppressing atmosphere disappeared as fast as it had appeared.

“Hahaha. I know”

Agamenas confused, ashamed and hurtfully asked.

“You know? How long have you been tailing me, senior?”

“Oh, well, even since we met in your carriage a couple of months ago.” Then he waved his hand, dismissing everything that had happened. “Well, well. All good. So, won’t you invite this elder to some of your mead, wouldn’t you?”

Agamenas and Garogas swiftly made way and accommodated a spot at the head of the table for the youth, then carefully filled him a goblet with sweet mead as he seated.

“Well, at least my Bodhisattva Chair of Enlightenment is more comfortable than these mortal seats.” he muttered as he put away the rustic chair he was seated in and produced his soft little red seat.

“So, Agamenas. Do you want to be the emperor of this whole world?”

* * *