As water splashed, clashing against the river bed, the sound came across as bells, ringing in ringing in the distance.

Shi Liu scowered the Red River riverbed, hunting for more bodies but found nothing but fish, ash and sinew stirring.

At a moment’s rest, he eyed his hands, feeling the soreness of the water, warping them as he stood within for too long.

His shriveled fingertips made him look like uncooked shrimp on an open fire, unwanted and unloved. Why would anyone love me? Shi Liu thought I’m a kinslayer, death should be my only embrace.

Shi San was his brother, a brother who helped him when he fell back in his training regiment. The very man that shielded him from Master Zhu Mo Shi’s anger, yet, his sword was the one that severed his head from his body.

As he searched for the Red River the past two days. The cold dead eyes of Shi San appeared in his mind each time he closed his eyes.

Shi Liu felt as a kin slayer, that he was cursed. “Shi San is nothing more than an obedient dog!” Master Zhu Mo Shi said, voice echoing in his mind. “Do not let his death tarnish your mind. We will use his rotted body as a stepping stone, which will make you a messenger to the true Emperor.”

“You’re distracted.” Zhu Mo Shi said with a grunt.

Shi Liu snapped and opened his eyes, to see his master’s discerning face. He rolled onto his knees and then clasped hands in respect. “Master Zhu Mo Shi!”

Zhu Mo Shi harrumphed, nose raised to the sky whilst the sun beamed down on them as he stood in the shade of a willow tree.

“Shi Liu,” Zhu Mo Shi said calmly. “Do you doubt our path?”

“No Master, I do not doubt our path…”

As silence sat between the two. Shi Liu could feel the change in the air, as Zhu Mo Shi killing aura exhumed his body like mist.

“If you have something on your mind Shi Liu…I advise you to speak it!”

Shi Liu didn’t speak, but held his own, showing his hesitation. The killing aura that exhumed from Master Zhu Mo Shi only dissipated after a few seconds. “If you have doubts, speak them now. I am your Master. I am no fool, what bothers you?”

Shi Liu didn’t have the confidence to speak. He knew his Master was a temperamental man, which got worst after the Emperor’s betrayal.

“Did we have to kill Shi San, Master?” Shi Liu finally asked.

“Is THIS drivel what has taken hold of mind from cultivation? that dog Shi San?”

“Yes, Master. Shi San is...was my brother.”

“Then, I, Zhu Mo Shi am your father if that inept fool was your brother!”

“...Master,” Shi Liu tried to plea.

“SHI LIU!” Zhu Mo Shi snapped, “Have you forgotten the night when Shi Yusheng tried to kill us within the Great Wester Library?”

“I have not forgotten Master!”

“Who was it that saved you?”

“You...Master.”

“Yes. Me. Who was the one who ordered our death?”

“The Emperor...Master.”

“I’m starting to believe you don’t have the will or stomach to do what needs to be done. Shall I help you along the way?”

“I have the will Master!…but…but Shi San was my brother!”

Shi Liu watched as Zhu Mo Shi’s jaw tightened, as he tried to hide his anger. An ominous aura poured from within him and began smothering Shi Liu, it felt as though he was drowning from his Master’s killing aura.

To say, Shi Liu was scared, would be understatement. Zhu Mo Shi was of the Qi Perception Realm, he could hear his heart thumping in his ear. He’s going to kill me!

Sand crunched beneath Zhu Mo Shi’s feet as he approached Shi Liu. The young man closed his eyes and prepared himself to join Shi San.

Zhu Mo Shi clasped his palm on Shi Liu’s shoulder and then squeezed it, tightly. “Shi Liu…You’ve followed me without question ever since the Emperor’s betrayal. I know killing Shi San was hard on you but contrary to what you believe it was hard on me as well. However, this hesitation I see in you, is my fault and I aim to fix that right now. So let me tell you why the Emperor tried to assassinate me.”

Finally. Shi San thought the Master thinks I’m trustworthy!

As Shi Liu looked up at his Master, a remorseful expression flashed across his face, then he closed his eyes and nodded. Once he opened them again, a relief wash over Shi Liu.

“Seven years ago, I found The Emperor chanting a demonic chant whilst he was in seclusion. I ignored it, thinking I misheard him, but after the third time in a few years time, I realised I was sorely mistaken.”

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“A demonic chant Master?”

“Yes, The Emperor had been cultivating using a demonic chant.”

“A demonic chant?” Shi Liu barked.

“Yes.” Zhu Mo Shi nodded. “Of course, I didn’t under what he was saying so I tried my best to word them out and investigate these chants.”

“What did you find Master?”

“Nothing.”

“Nothing...?”

“Until I visited Fuzhou on inspection duty. I heard the devilish chant again, but this time it came from the lips of an Axsumite!”

“an Axsumite?”

“Yes.”

“then...”

“that’s correct...our Emperor has been in contact with them and is moving to remove the Isolationism we’ve lived by since the Axsumite’s failed invasion!”

“But where would he learn such a chant?”

Zhu Mo Shi’s lips curled into a bitter smile and he clasped his hands in anger. “Have you heard what happened to The Emperor when his boat disappeared eight years ago?”

“Of course n…no…Master, He disappeared into Axsum?”

“It’s what Prince Zhenjin believed, when his boat disappeared in the Sapphire Sea we didn’t know where the bodies drifted to, but it seems he ended up in Axsum.”

“…that doesn’t make sense.”

“It doesn’t, but it also explains this.”

Shi Liu watched his master reach for something within one of his sleeves. He pulled a yellow envelope free which had blood splatters on both sides.

Zhu Mo Shi tossed it to Shi Liu who caught it. He eyed his master who nodded at him to open it up. Shi Liu pulled the letter from the envelope, opening it with a confused expression on his face.

Shi Liu tried to read the characters of the letter, but the swirls and slanted strokes were completely alien to him, making his head throb in annoyance. “This is what I found on Shi San’s body, do you understand a word of it?”

“No Master, I don’t understand any of this.”

“Prince Zhenjin confirmed it. It’s Axsumini.”

Shi Liu continued to sit in the lotus position contemplating his master’s words. They were at the back of his mind for the past three years.

It was like a needle pricking his brain, telling him he didn’t know the entire story, and now he had a gist of it…but he needed more.

“Master, you confronted the Emperor regarding his demonic chants didn’t you?”

“Yes…I foolishly did.”

A thought hit Shi Liu’s mind in an instant and everything played out perfectly. He’d always been confused by Shi’s and San’s action to kill him when they saw him with Master Zhu Mo Shi.

If the Master didn’t counter their attacks Shi Jiu and I would’ve been dead. This means the Emperor sent Shi and San to remove Master Zhu Mo Shi…not me nor Shi Jiu.

“It would seem you figured it out Shi Liu.” Master Zhu Mo Shi said calmly. “But I knew you’d figure it out once you knew the full story.”

“Why didn’t you tell me till now?”

“…I needed you and Shi Jiu to follow me. I need men to help us remove the Emperor.”

“Why don’t you just remove him with this evidence?”

“This isn’t enough Shi Liu, we’ve been in hiding for years and the people love the Emperor. He’s in a variable position. Prince Zhenjin will put a stop to that, but that will come in time.”

“Time?”

“Yes…time.”

Zhu Mo Shi pulled a book from his other sleeve, tossing it in front of Shi Liu. His eyes bulged from the surprise, like the first time any child’s mouth melded from the sweet tarty taste of hawthorn candy. The book wasn’t the recipe for hawthorn candy, sadly, but a ‘recipe’ nonetheless. “Master…this is the Swallowing Star Manual…” Shi Liu asked. “Is this real?”

“You doubt me?” Zhu Mo Shi barked.

“No…but this has been long lost sir…ever since the days of the Second Emperor of Huaxia, Tian Shenzen.”

“That’s a lie. It has never been lost. It was only reported to be lost so that no one would come looking for it.”

“It has been within the Black Cauldron library all along?”

“Of course not! The Royal Family has held it closely. Prince Zhenjin made a copy gave it to me. Now, I’m giving it to you.”

“Master…Thank you!” Shi Liu said, slapping his hand into the ground, then bowing deeply

“Don’t thank me yet.” He said cooly.

Shi Liu felt a sudden sting of killing aura resonating from his master, aimed at him. He opened his Soul and Core Dantian, anticipating an attack. He knew he wasn’t powerful enough to fend off his master for too long, but he wouldn’t go down without a fight.

Zhu Mo Shi’s killing aura withered away with a nod. His lips curled into a smile, and then he nodded. “You are what I expect Liu’er…a fighter to the end, unlike Shi San.”

Shi Liu wasn’t sure if to take those words as a compliment or ignominy, but at least he still had his head, unlike the latter.

Zhu Mo Shi took Shi Liu by the shoulder, pulling him up. “Come let’s talk.” He said. “There’s much more to discuss.”

The two walked through the forest until the sun began to set. Zhu Mo Shi flapped his robes to the side, taking a seat in the most comfortable spot afforded to him, he ushered Shi Liu to take his seat gesturing with his right hand, which he did.

“Prince Zhenjin believes we don’t have enough evidence to uproot The Emperor, so as of today we are to retreat and cultivate till when we are needed.”

“We’re Retreating?”

“Tactical retreating. The Emperor is still well-loved and without weight to any accusation he’ll only grow stronger in these times, you understand.”

“What do you mean Master? Aren’t the Axsumite corpses enough”

“It isn’t. We don’t have anything linking the Axsumites to the Emperor. They could be refugees seeking asylum from their god-forsaken lands!”

“What about Shi San’s sword?”

“It’s just a sword, it’s not enough. But Prince Zhenjin has a plan.” Zhu Mo Shi said, looking at Shi Liu.

He didn’t say anything, he let his master’s eyes wash over him. This was a time to be silent, and Zhu Mo Shi knew that roll all too well.

“Another opportunity will arise, there’s no need to fear. That’s why I gave you the Ethereal Star Manual. You must reach the Accentuation Realm. If we’re to fight against the Dingshis, you and Shi Jiu need to be stronger!”

“Yes, Master.”

“Good now tell me what you think happened at the boat, because I don’t know why An Ping would try to kill the Axsumites, he was told to hold them till we arrive!”

Shi Liu took a deep breath, and closed his eyes, then mentally pieced together the wreckage and the possibility of how the battle played out within his mind.

“I believe the Axsumites did come through the Person Passage, that’s why they were able to make it to the Red River. However, the current of the Red River fluctuates between aggressive during the summer and winter periods. Which makes me believe they reached here far earlier than they planned.”

“By How many days?”

“A day, or a day and a half.”

“Anything could happen in a day.” Zhu Mo Shi said. “You believe you retrieved most of the bodies?”

“I’m not sure Master, the current within the Red River isn’t kind, but I’ve counted a total of thirty Axsumite corpses and fifteen from the Red Fox Band.”

“Hmmm…I assumed they’d come with at least sixty during the trip. Twenty for an escort to keep a low profile.”

“I didn’t think of that,” Shi Liu said, rubbing his chin. “But the majority of the bodies we found on the beach were from the Red Fox Mist Band.”

The sun beamed down from above, smothering Zhu Mo Shi and creating a long shadow behind him. Shi Liu knelt in front of him and just waited for him.

“Continue your search for a few more days, more bodies might appear.” Zhu Mo Shi finally said after twenty minutes of silence. “If an Axsumite still survived they’ll return. However, in this period you’re to practice your Internal Arts with The Ethereal Star Manual, for a minimum of five hours per day until I retrieve you. Understood?”

“Am allowed to roam?” Shi Liu asked cautiously. “The Yellow Orchid village is the farthest you can go. This is not a punishment, but seclusion, do you understand?”

“Yes, Master.”

“Good.”