Chapter 2: Kaleidoscope
The closer that he reached his goal , the faster it seemed to recede away as if it were but a fickle mirage.
Jing Ke's limbs shook in trepidation as he could feel his cognition fading away once more .
He struggled intensely with his hands braced against the soft floor made of untainted snow , his veins popped and drops of sweat fell down gently letting out a hissing smoke as the internal energy in them caused the ground to sizzle and melt .
Even so he was unable to postpone the inevitable.
His body fell down limp into the vast snow field that stretched all the way till the horizon and beyond, soon no trace of him remained above the ground ; the fierce blizzard that blew through made sure of that.
It was as if the world itself was conspiring to be rid of this unpleasant intruder who had so rudely interrupted the silence that it was so proud of.
As if confirming this assertion , the sickly sun who finally ascended after a long leave of absence showered its first rays over the burial mound of the transgressor.
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He doesn't remember how he got here.
He doesn't remember for how long he has stayed .
After he created a ruckus on his first day beating up of all his fellow inmates , he was seemingly condemned to hell.
Hell it appears has neither the blinding flames of torture nor the fearsome devils who are the tortures.
This place is only a void , empty of anything and everything.
This solitary cell where no light had ever shone in its long life has become his home by now.
The darkness had become his bosom friend and the only source of entertainment he has now is counting the sheep that frolicked among the meadows that were just yonder.
Surely , just on the other side of that horrid darkness is a verdant pasture ; a blissful paradise , it has all the luxuries that you can ever want and the fine delicacies and drink so temptingly arranged on the top of that long table !
His mouth begins to water on its own.
He subconsciously reaches for the wine goblet that is ever so close but he fails for a different hand gets it first .
A very familiar hand that.
When he sees the face that accompanies the hand annoyance bubbling from deep inside him comes to the surface hissing and steaming.
"Give me that ! " He roars but that incorrigible prankster Lei Ji evades him adroitly . The Captain who is naturally already half wasted roars at the sight and the other inebriated members join too even placing bets on whether he will be successful or not.
How embarrassing.
He leaps forward in a soaring movement reminiscent of an eagle , unfortunately he never manages to reach his target.
His chin reverberates after striking against something hard and the foul taste of brackish water invades his lips.
He is left choking all alone in the dark as the elusive eden has escaped his grasp once again.
Another of the now all too familiar headaches arrives and causes him to feel as if his head were being split apart into multiple pieces.
He doesn't know when the bout of pain ends all that he is aware that he is left wheezing and gasping at the end of it just like always.
This time however an entirely unexpected occurrence ends up messing his daily routine.
With an almighty thump , the stone door that acted as a barrier to a long forgotten world he hailed from creaks and groans and is open releasing a strange creature that is impossible to be found here, among the fathoms.
The light.
So fearsome.
So blazing.
So blinding.
He involuntary steps back shrinking into the fetal position in the comfortable shadow which is relieving as his mother's womb was to the infantile him.
He mumbles to himself , desperately trying to wile away the time until the storm passes .
Unfortunately though fate has other things in store .
A familiar silhouette steps forward into the darkness from the world beyond . Even though the man's face is obscured by a radiant halo , the disapproving scowl on the man's face is all too visible.
His body shakes as he tries to desperately head further and further in , towards the haven he has built for himself.
The silhouette outlined by the harsh light looks far more fearsome than usual , due to the structure of the chamber the man's reverberating voice feels more piercing than usual.
"What a disgrace ! Out of all the places that I had thought I never even considered the possibility that you would be wallowing in a dungeon . Get your miserable self up ! We don't have much time ."
He trembles in fear but even so gets on his feet albeit quiveringly .
Ever since that man had appeared he is well aware that he has no choice left .
No choice at all.
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Deep within a thin hollow beside a steep incline that fell rapidly into the mist that swirled and churned akin to a ravenous dragon a middle aged man with striking features was warming his hands on a fluttering flame with some urgency.
Who would think that after all his years of hegemony on the Central Plains he would be reduced to this state being no different from a pitiful beggar trying to desperately escape from the freezing chill?
Most people would surely have laughed at such a preposterous notion and the members of his Three Stars Holy Cult would have laughed the most and for good measure would have sent off the joker with a broken arm or leg .
Of course , the money required to treat the malady would have been gifted as well.
Devils they might have been but Devils with a conscience !
Sadly though the flow of time is irresistible and the beliefs that might have been accepted as dogma earlier might become an object of ridicule later on.
The Three Stars Holy Cult belonged to him no longer and riddled with injuries all over , he was but a hollow mockery of the glorious self of his past.
Being reduced to a miserable wretch who has to grasp at any opportunity to relax his crumbling body from the once magnificent leader who was a veritable overlord in the Wulin would be unacceptable to anyone least of all to him.
In this miserable environment accentuated by the hostile weather his line of thought was far more morbid than usual or perhaps it wasn't just the surroundings that was responsible for such feelings :
The crystalline blue flower glimmering in the light of the fire came in the range of his vision.
From his experience it wasn't hard to tell that the blue flower was continuously exuding a hallucinogenic fragrance that was extremely potent in confusing the heart and soul of all those who were nearby.
In his injured state there was no way that he could block the smell forcefully ,therefore he was forced to endure it .
If not for his immense mental fortitude accumulated after years and years of experience in the turbulent world which have dulled the intensity of his feelings.
He was no longer a impetuous youth and his heart didn't waver easily; still to use such a method as an 'entrance pass' ....
He clicked his teeth in grudging admiration.
Really , the Abandoned Land Of the Gods as the stories told can't be measured by common sense at all.
Even so he hoped that it had far more potent tricks up it's sleeves since such cheap parlour tricks wouldn't even be able to faze that freak who would be here soon in search of him or rather what he carried with him.
He couldn't help but smile ruefully.
The Great Devil Ren Woxing whose name was capable of terrifying disobedient babes in arms was now huddling for warmth in a trivial snowstorm ; his clothes tattered and his body riddled with wounds as he put his faith in an old wives' tale .
What a disgrace.
Ren Woxing moved closer to the fire in order to warm himself better after all compared to useless principles life was far more valuable.
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He didn't remember much of what happened afterward.
He had perhaps been roughly bundled on to a wagon which rapidly sped away from what appeared to be a garrison of some sort.
His hazy mind was too tired to register his surroundings and his turmoiled heart hadn't the freedom to care.
All he could do was shiver intensely in the freezing weather.
The man looks down at him and sighed .
"Here , " he hands a blanket to him which he puts on gladly to gain much needed warmth from the spine chilling cold .
"It's the middle of summer and you're enclosing yourself like an old crone with one foot in the grave ," the man continues nonchalantly uncaring of the fact that his conversation had turned into a lonesome soliloquy , "regardless of how you try to isolate yourself there's no escape from Reality. Someday the bubble would burst and you would find yourself facing a pain far greater than the one you're experiencing now ."
"Hiyaaah !" with a loud cry the man whips the horse intensely and quite naturally it begins to race ahead.
Soon the blurry world is left far behind .
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The sound of the door slamming woke him up from his reverie.
This was the third residence that had refused to offer him any alms and as a result his stomach was unsatisfied still.
As of on cue , his stomach let out an impressive rumble that would have made shy the most boisterous of the thunders that fall on a stormy day .
He pulled the kasaya he wore more tightly around himself so that it hid his face which had already turned as red as a ripe tomato due to embarrassment.
Villages had turned more and more inhospitable recently and even an iota of the generosity that characterised the simple country folk once upon a time couldn't be found anywhere.
But who was he to blame ?
When the villagers had to put tooth and nail in order to barely scrape by in the winter would they have the mind or the means to be charitable especially to monks who knew only to preach and were unable to comprehend their difficulties ?
A bitter smile appeared on his face.
At one time he might have been able to find a convincing argument that could refute such a frame of mind but now he was empty handed , bereft of everything save the robe that he now wore and the flimsy conviction that he held which appeared to be dancing on the edge of a knife.
For the time being he had to find something to eat or he would starve to death.
Regardless of how impressive the ideals are they are naught but the feed for crows when the person himself perishes.
He hugged his kasaya more closely.
Complex emotions were flickering behind those black eyes that reflected the sunlight like obsidian.
Would he be forced to steal in order to survive or would he choose to repose his faith in the illusory Dharma that he had lived by and starve to death ?
What a hard choice.
Never before in his short life had Huimeng faced such a situation .
Between the claws of a tiger and the talons of a raptor there wasn't much difference for a helpless rabbit was there ?
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His glassy eyes stare back at the man whose fists are raised in a fighting stance.
"That didn't work huh ? " the man scowls and his right forearm moves fast swiftly with an overbearing force that causes the air to vibrate in response.
In His inebriated state he merely notes in passing the afterimages that appear and rapidly vanish as they get approach closer and closer to him .
He hardly feels anything even when a tyrannical punch with the face of a raging typhoon implants itself in his face .
Blood spews out of his mouth and he loses his footing only to be carried by the residual impact of the punch all the way till the end of the hall where the firm stone walls stop his ascent .
His body slides down till his eyes are about the same level as the man's knees.
Apart from the gasps that are ejected from his mouth , no other response is forthcoming and clearly the man is disappointed.
He shakes his clenched fist and sighs .
"Get up ! In the state you are in , there is a high chance that the Internal Energy you considered will run berserk and that will be it . Therefore I am going to forcefully open your eyes even if it means that I have to beat you until you're half-dead ."
Although none of the man's words manage to reach beyond his ear a subconscious impulsion prompts him to get up to his feet even if his body already withered does its best to resist.
The man's heart trembles at the sight.
In front of him standing with head drooped and blood trickling from open wounds is not a familiar figure any longer instead with those lifeless eyes it is as if he is facing a corpse.
The man's frown deepens and his determination is more firmer than ever.
"Let's see what you can do ," he mumbles inaudibly and his fist raised in tandem whooshes like a missile as it homes towards it's target.
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"Another cup ! Come on , just one more cup isn't going to hurt anybody is it ? "
He slurs exaggeratedly his intoxicated state obvious to all present.
Hic !
A hiccup later his head was resting securely on the table and he was left snoring away blissfully.
Unfortunately though his blessed rest was interrupted in a rude manner.
His body was shaken vigorously as if it were a trembling leaf hanging from a terrified tree doing its best to weather the storm .
His head struck against something hard and a feeling of profound lightness assaulted his senses , strangely his hands seem quite wet .
When he lifted them to the level of his face for a closer sight the crimson hued liquid that had drenched it begins to drip steadily.
His stomach churned in response and unmindful of the presence of the glaring man whose appearance bore a striking resemblance to a bull it empties its contents in one go.
Bleh !
He swiftly wiped his stained mouth with his arm and finally turned towards the raging bull .
"What were you saying then , Master Bull ?"
The man who had been doing his best to contain his rage till then exploded fiercely.
"I had been asking you to pay up , Dammit ! It is way past closing time and all I wanted was my money . You accursed drunk ! Not only did you drink halfway through my stash without paying a single coin you just had to soil my bar as well ! Well then , let this , " the man scoffed , " Master Bull show you why it is better to let sleeping bulls lie ."
The man crackled his fists and stepped ahead menacingly.
Zhuge Liang nursed his injured eye as gently as he could .
Yeesh .
He hissed in pain as the scabs ached at the slightest of touch .
How painful !
That old Bull should've been a little more gentle , if it wasn't him Zhuge Liang but someone else who was forced to endure such a thumping he would died already even if he had had nine lives in his possession.
Still he got what he came for and that wine wasn't all that bad as well though he did end up losing all of his money which is a loss in whichever way you look at it.
With a huff he pulled out the crumpled piece of paper that had been stuffed rather inelegantly in his robes , luckily it hadn't been soiled by his vomit and was still readable.
Hmmm.
He traced his finger all across it as a storm of ideas raged across in his head.
Finally the paper was returned back to where it came from leaving a smile hanging on his face which was stained with a bright red hue due to having had a little too much to drink.
That shouldn't be a problem though , in the worst case he would just have to lie on the roadside somewhere and if he were lucky a passing watchman would provide him lodgings for the night ; behind bars of course but he would at least have a bed plus he would be out in the morning so it's far more economical than renting a room which he can no longer afford
A gigantic yawn burst through him.
Anyway it was time to go.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone