บท 11: The fucking damn assistant
A horrible smell drifted through the air.
The northern part of the Endless Forest near Abun that was supposed to be very busy now with the hunt for the assistant was tranquil.
And he saw a group that completely ignored him in search of a 'beast.'
Zhu Tai was confused about thinking about these three things that seem to be interconnected.
"Huh?" Following the scent, which he could only describe as death, he soon found a trail of destruction in the trees as if something big or someone was thrown around too hard.
After walking slowly down the trail at some point, he realized that there was also blood on the broken branches and ground.
Arriving in an open area after the trail of destroyed trees, he saw a rock on the other side.
"Hey, you, what happened here?" On the stone was a person lying with his back to Zhu Tai. He appeared to be a man by his clothes, but Zhu Tai could not see his upper body as if he were hanging over the other part of the stone.
"Look at me yo-" When the man did not answer, Zhu Tai approached and pulled back the man by the belt. But what fell from the stone was not a man but half of one.
"What the fuck!?" Everyone would be alarmed to see a person torn in half with their insides still dripping on the floor. Or at least it was meant to be. But the 'beast' who did that found humans torn in half a beautiful view.
"What happened here? Who could do this? It must not be human. It can not be. That 'beast'?" Zhu Tai had seen a lot of things on that trip with Elder Xiong, but this bloody scene still made him very impressed. He couldn't imagine who would do that kind of thing, but then he remembered the 'beast' that the pretty girl talked about in the group that ignored him a few minutes ago.
"So they are ignoring me to kill this beast that is doing so much damage? Should I help them and forget about the competition?" Zhu Tai wanted Elder Xiong to be here as it should have been if he wasn't so lazy.
"Oh, Master... What kind of mess have you gotten me into?" Zhu Tai sighed, lost in thought.
So he left the half body on the ground and kept walking through the woods. Zhu Tai wanted to rediscover that group with the pretty girl to ask them about the situation, not giving more importance to the competition.
After walking for half an hour, Zhu Tai turned back instinctively with fear growing within his core.
"Crack" "Creak" "Whoosh"
Zhu Tai heard the sounds of trees breaking, and then a half-mutilated body came out of the bushes and flew past him, creating a trail of broken trees and branches like the one he had seen a while ago.
"Shit! Shit! Shit!" These were not words of Zhu Tai since he was already too scared to speak or even move. "Run! Run!! Runnn you fool!!! The beast is coming!" Nero shouted as he ran from the trail left by the mutilated body toward Zhu Tai.
"Don't kill him so fast! This is the first Qi Refinement fourth layer Cultivator that we see in this shitty place. You should at least find out something about him before you rip his head off the body as you have done so much with others." Sarah warned Nero that killing anyone who passes in front of him without thinking would only create problems on some occasions.
"You're lucky that I'm so good at improvisation," Nero answered Sarah mentally.
Zhu Tai had a lot of confidence in himself because he went through many difficult battles and even fought wild beasts in the mountains surrounding this valley. But he always trusted to fight close to Elder Xiong, who took him as an assistant on this trip and was always protecting his life if something went out of his control.
Now in this forest that he thought was harmless roamed, a terrible murderous beast that left victims' bodies everywhere was very close, and he cannot help but imagine situations where he would end up very badly.
As his mind rushed free in strange thoughts, Zhu Tai snapped out of his trance, feeling a hand pat his shoulder. He looked to the side and saw the smiling face of the most beautiful and strange man he had ever seen. "Why the hell does he have white hair?" Zhu Tai would think so if he was not so afraid.
"We have to get out of here, brother. Now!" Nero spoke warmly, and when Zhu Tai was about to open his mouth, Nero lightly squeezed his shoulder and continued.
"We have to run away from the 'beast' while he was devouring the others. I'm sorry for them, but I can't go back, and it wouldn't even help if I had the courage to go." Nero bowed his head slightly as he spoke of the others, and Zhu Tai didn't miss a sadness in his eyes.
"The small details are the most important in acting. Make notes Sarah and one day you could be as good as me." Nero spoke in his mind to Sarah while acting as the sad boy in front of Zhu Tai.
"You DON'T have to be so affectionate with him!!!" Sarah emphasized the denial as she didn't care to contain her jealousy.
"Alright, let's get out of here fast, and you tell me what happened." Zhu Tai understood that that stranger could only escape the beast thanks to his friends who turned into food and distraction. But he was not going to judge anything because he would do the same. Zhu Tai thought that the most important thing for someone was their own life, and he did not consider himself a coward for thinking like this and would not think so of others either.
Zhu Tai ran in another direction with all the speed he could without even thinking that the stranger behind him could not follow at that speed.
"Ah!" When Zhu Tai remembered that the stranger appeared to be younger than him and should not have a larger Cultivation, than he was late, and he had already run about three miles.
"Glad you're there." Zhu Tai only had to go back half a mile before finding the stranger leaning against a tree and breathing hard. He should have done his best to keep up the pace but still not enough to catch up.
"!" Nero raised his hand and opened his mouth but only made breathless sounds as if he was still breathless to speak normally. Of course, Nero slowed his running speed to look weaker. It was never good to show the letters and draw unwanted attention. That was not only Sarah's thinking, but Nero thought so too.
"Calm down, and you did well. I forgot my strength and ended up using a little more speed than I should have. Save the air now to run because we have to get to the city first of all." Zhu Tai had a lot of questions for that stranger, but he didn't want to risk even one second in this damn forest without his Master.
Nero nodded and followed Zhu Tai who was now running a little slower in the direction that seemed to lead the city of Abun.
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"A simple life should not be so bad." A middle-aged man thought while sitting on a branch on top of a very tall tree.
"Should I go into the forest to see how things are?" Xiong Zhelan, who was resting at the top of the tree, didn't think he would change his mind about choosing Dai Zhi and Xun Lan as apprentices.
"What could happen in this part of the forest? Even though it is in the division of the world, it is a very poor region far from the lands of southern non-humans." Xiong Zhelan was sure that nothing interesting would happen in the forest. But if someone showed a hidden talent, his assistant would tell him.
And nothing would happen to this assistant because Xiong Zhelan was confident in Zhu Tai's strength. "He is not so talented at his age, but against these young cultivators, he can handle very well. Xiong Zhelan thought as he chewed a green leaf.
"It is not as if the forest would be full of hidden dangers as non-humans approaching very close to the borders of countries." Contemplated Xiong Zhelan.
"Ufahh!!! Glad we ran away from the beast. Phew!"
"Yes, the 'beast' is a danger to be avoided... Wait! What beast???" Xiong Zhelan was so deep in thought, which he thought the sentence he heard was from his mind, but soon realized that this female voice was not his and knew nothing about that beast.
Xiong Zhelan jumped from the tree and fell in front of the Xun Siblings, who seemed to be having trouble breathing because they were panting with their hands resting on the tree trunk.
"What beast are you talking about, and why did you leave the forest so early?" Xiong Zhelan waited a half minute before asking the Xun Siblings who were staring at him with wide eyes.
"The beast... is terrible and monstrous...Killed Nero's grandfather and is now loose around, killing everything in front of him. Or her. Not sure what it looks like because I was lucky enough to get away in time." Xun Lan said confusing things because her mind was so creative and exaggerated.
"Nero? Who is Nero? Who is killing who?" Xiong Zhelan realized that this girl was talking nonsense even she didn't understand what she was saying.
"Can you tell me what happened?" Xiong Zhelan turned to ask you Xun Feng, who seemed in a better state of mind looking at his sister with a poker face.
"A fucking rabbit! We're running from a rabbit. Strike me until I pass out, please!" Xun Fang spoke as he put both hands on his head like someone losing his mind.
Xiong Zhelan was now more confused than ever. "Are these kids crazy? Did they eat the famous 'red berries' that one should not be eaten?" And one more person started talking about fairy tales and stories to make children sleep.
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Nero could already see the tops of the larger houses among the shrinking trees as he and Zhu Tai approached the square in the southern part of Abun.
Nero already knew very well what the city of Abun was like because he had sucked a lot of blood full of memories not only with facts but also images, sounds, tastes, among others, as if living the life of the victims.
"It's very different from the earth..." But even knowing what the city was like was a new experience to get out of the woods and see that bunch of people looking like ordinary citizens of the Medieval Age on the Earth.
Through the streets were women in vintage linen dress carrying platters of fruit or things like a bucket of water. Men wearing linen and leather clothes with rustic boots carried heavy things like planks or tools while giving flirting glances to women gossiping in the streets.
The houses were of good quality wood with stone parts, and the streets were made of small stones with poorly detailed sidewalks. It would be a typical small country town in the medieval age of the Earth.
"My master is there! Let's talk to him about the 'beast,' and you can tell us your story." Zhu Tai saw Xiong Zhelan coming out of the woods and heading downtown in the square with the Xun Siblings and couldn't wait to run and report everything to his master.
Leaving his thoughts of the simple life of the people of Abun, Nero followed the now excited Zhu Tai toward the young woman he had already met in the woods with the little fox.
"How the hell is his hair white?" Nero can't help but listen to that stupid question from passers-by who saw him.
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