26 The Ghost Slayer Training

-Yunlan / Shen Wei-

The temple Shen Wei had transport them to, was one of the best the team had seen. The entrance of the temple had a majestic stair with stone craved dragons, as you walked up the many steps. Shen helped Zhao with every single one, as he watched him closely to see his expression and just as he imagined, Zhao's face showed a kind of nostalgic he understood well. The main entrance with the typical colors of red, gold, blue, green yellow and wood, was exquisite, very well-kept and the two large dragons facing each other up above in the roof, was breath-taking.

Once crossing the magnificent entrance, there was a sea of red and gold lanterns hanging from hundreds of treads, giving the temple an air of festivity, that Zhao thought was quite accurate, as what he assumed was a very big space was suited for a lovely festival and the corridors at the sides where long and equally decorated with vivid paint.

"This is..." Zhao whisper in awe. He could only see the closer things, but even that little was quite beautiful and somehow familiar. Even if he could only see what was directly in front of him, he had the feeling he knew that place inside out and he could even go as far as imagining it as a whole, not needed to see it fully to understood its beauty.

"Truly magnificent. The monks here had done quite well in keeping this temple almost the same as hundreds of years ago." Da Qing said, with great approval.

"Were you here before?" Guo asked a bit surprised.

"Oh, yes. Of this one Kunlun, my first master, was quite found off and he wanted to keep it as such for his special one. You could said it was a love gift." Zhao side looked at Shen, who was still closely guiding him and he knew he was blushing like mad.

"I gave this to you? Damn, you truly did make me love you way too much, even then..." Zhao whisper to his ear, as a volt of electricity seems to run all over Shen's body, making him slightly shudder. Zhao smiled. "I see you liked that much, then I'm glad..."

"Please Yunlan..." Shen whisper back, not wanting to get embarrassed in front of Zhao's team all over again.

"Ah, it looks so lovely, quite fit for a very special wife, I did well right?" Zhao asked, making Shen sigh.

"Yes, it was quite the gift." As they keep walking, they could see the temple was bigger than they imagine, and the air of old history hidden within those walls was present in every corner. Almost immediately, Zhao felt at home, despite never being there before. First of all it was a love gift and second, it was made for his beloved Shen Wei and the monks were as kind and welcoming as their host.

As soon as they arrived, the monks insisted on preparing them a good meal and warming drinks, because the temple was suited between mountains, it was colder than the city. Zhao was having such a good time that he kind of forgot he was there to train with the Ghost Slayer and when his beloved Professor call for him to go to the training grounds, he begin to feel nervous.

He loved the softer side of Shen Wei with do passion, but his ghost side, which was fiercer, he respected it with equal intensity. His traitor team, eagerly follow them to the many turns and long corridors, until they reached the very center of the temple, which have a huge open space with a stunning painting of two huge beautiful koi fish circling each other, symbolizing the yin and yan in the stone floor.

"Wow! This place is something else…" Lin whisper, admiring the realistic painting.

"True… so beautiful and even the energy feels different in here. It's like this is a place meant to be at peace, a resting place." Zhu added, making Shen a bit nervous, as she had hit the spot right away.

"Of course, it was meant for his lover… which remain me, Kunlun was the god of mountains, right? So… he was in love with the Ghost Slayer?" Lin whisper to Zhu.

"I guess… although no one knows what truly happen to Kunlun after the war. He must had die, because otherwise the Professor would never put his eyes on the shameless pervert we call our Chief…"

"Hey! I may be blind, but I can hear you two just fine, you are such a bunch of traitors, but let me tell you something, I'm more awesome than you give me credit." Zhao retorted and both Zhu and Lin jumped nervously, not worrying for their Chief rage, they were already use to it, but for the Ghost Slayer one.

However, to their immense relief, the Professor was as calm as ever and there was even a hint of a smile if you looked closely. For someone who knew him a bit better, like Da Qing, the Ghost Slayer was actually having fun.

"Yunlan, don't mind them. I'm sure they had a high opinion of you, otherwise they wouldn't had stayed working for you for so long and this is indeed a special place. It was used for cultivation, by humans, ghost and gods alike, which is also perfect for your training. Zhu Hong is right to say the energy of this temple is different, because it is. This place is close to the Kunlun Mountain, in where many deities were born. Now, come here Zhao, you Guardians please, there is a tower behind the training ground, you can watch us from there, it will not be safe to stay too close to us while in training." Shen Wei advised.

"Follow me you bunch of fools, I know this place better than you know your Chief. Ah, such a nostalgic place, with a sad, tragic love story…" Da Qing added as he began to remember the past.

"Stupid fat cat, how is this a tragic story? I'm here right now!" Zhao defend himself, but the cat simply ignore him as he guided the others out of their way. "Shen Wei, I promise, we will have our happy ending this time around." Zhao said, coming closer to him.

"You are already giving me happiness, Yunlan. I have no doubts that no matter what, I will still have you at the end." Shen said, blushing.

"Ah, babe… you are such a lovely wife…" Zhao laughed before giving Shen a light kiss. "You know, we can marry here, just say the word and it will be done…"

"I bet you will love to, but unfortunately, I didn't brought you here to become your wife, its training time, remember?"

"Right, training… so what should I do?" Zhao asked, resigning himself.

"Sit down and take off your shirt." At this Zhao arched an eyebrow and gave Shen a devilish smile.

"I thought it was another kind of training, Your Honor. I don't mind, but we have company…" Zhao couldn't help but tease. However, he swallowed the rest, as he saw Shen Wei's body begin to be engulfed by thick dark smoke until the Ghost Slayer was in front of him. The chill that usually surrounding him, was even more intense than before, making Zhao shudder all over.

"Get down, Guardian, I need to stabilize your energy first. You are missing the true fire of your left shoulder, which unbalance your inner energy, making your third eye sight weaker, as well as the rest of your powers. Should I slash that shirt off you?" The Ghost Slayer ask him, internally enjoying as Zhao didn't waste time in obey him, without saying anything indecent back. It was good to know, he at least respected this side of him. He try to contain his dark energy, so not to freeze Zhao, now shirtless, but as he sat behind him and gently put a hand over his back, Zhao couldn't help but tremble with the cold touch.

"Is it too cold?" The Ghost Slayer asked, trying to lessen the cold as much as he could.

"A bit, yes, but I don't mind..."

"Just bear it for a few minutes. Guo is usually the one who do this, but I doubt you will like him to touch you or share his energy with you."

"No offense, but I don't know the kid yet. My lover will always be better, don't you think?" Zhao dare to ask.

"True… this may be a bit uncomfortable, but it will open a new world for you. Then, we try it…" The Ghost Slayer said and concentrate in channeling Zhao's own unstable energy, while giving him some of his. As he worked on his chi points, he notice something peculiar. Although Zhao's body was without a question fully human, there was something else mixed in each cell of his body. If he were to guess, Kunlun awoke more than just some of his powers, he had a hint of divinity already, enough to take in his dark energy as if it was meant to be mixed with his from the very beginning.

"Zhao Yunlan, close your eyes and tell me what you see…" The Ghost slayer said and even if Zhao found odd for the almighty ghost to ask him to close his eyes, when he was already blind and using his third eye, he did as he was told. As he try harder with his supernatural sight, he almost laughed, when finding that he could see way beyond what he did before.

The world was no longer blurry or shadowed, there were strange things, like mixed colors when he knew were not really there, but otherwise he could see clearly and distinguish even the mountains surrounding the temple.

"How is it?" The Ghost Slayer ask him again.

"Well, your touch make wonders on me. It's even better than normal sight."

"Try summon your fire, about a yard in front of you." The Slayer suggested and Zhao found it easier to summon and even quite precise as it appeared exactly where it was supposed to, however the fire color wasn't exactly the one he expected, it was not white, but blue.

"Good, you can summon ghost fire now. Try again." Zhao concentrate, this time imagining the white fire he used in the underworld and instantly, a huge snake dragon manifest over their heads, making the rest of the team, which were looking from a safe distance gasp in awe.

"Wait, is that really the Chief down there? That's celestial fire and it's almost impossible for a human to summon even a tiny flame and he even give it such a huge form!" Lin said quite taken aback.

"You idiots, didn't you knew you were working under a reincarnated god?" Da Qing asked.

"What? What do you mean a reincarnated god? You can't mean that Chief Zhao is…" Zhu begins.

"Yeah, your pervert Chief is none other than the reincarnation of Kunlun himself and he is beginning to awake with his lover help."

"Ahhh, I'm so dead… how many times I had piss him off? Damn…" Lin said, as he try to recall all those times.

"Don't get all 'oh, he is a former god, what will I do now', because he is still Zhao Yunlan the same shameless pervert you are used to, not the dignified Kunlun anymore." Da Qing said.

"Well, that's good to hear." Zhu added with relief. Back down, Zhao, who was now fully dresses again had learned to summon some thunders as well, was now holding his whip, ready to face his Ghost Slayer in a fight.

"Okay, Guardian Zhao, come at me with all you have and let's see how long can you last." The Ghost Slayer challenge him and as Zhao pitifully try to be on par with him, Shen Wei was internally enjoying himself.

"Ahhh, this can be considering bulling. You are way too good, Your Honor, please don't humiliate me too much." Zhao protested as he try to avoid the Ghost Slayer blade. He had miraculously manage to doge it for a few minutes already, although he knew that Shen Wei was never going to harm him.

"You can do better, Chief Zhao. You were a god once, think bigger. What is it that you lack, that you need to block me?" The Slayer suggested, but it was quite hard to do so when you were too busy trying to keep up with his fierce approaches. He was good with his whip, but not so much against a slayer sword.

Oh come on, Zhao Yunlan, you can't protect this lovely man with this pitiful attempt at fighting…. You need a better weapon… a sword maybe? A sword, can I summon one? Zhao asked himself and not really knowing how he could do such a thing, he give it a try and just in time to block the Slayer blade, which was coming closer to his chest. In mare seconds, Zhao was holding a gold and black short sword, which have a certain gold shine embedded to the slightly curved blade and using it to block the slayer one.

"Very well done, Guardian, you manage to summon a divine sword… now, we can truly train."

"Wait, what? Shen Wei, where you just playing with me before? That's mean, you know?" Zhao cutely accused him, while pouting a bit, not knowing his beloved was actually smiling brightly bellow the cloak.

"Maybe… come, you can even use your fire or anything else that comes to your mind." Shen said and then, the training pick up the pace, as Zhao felt stronger and faster with the passing hours. Despite what he initially thought, he didn't felt tired in the least, so even his stamina had been upgraded, thus, soon he was truly having a fairer duel, for he which he was proud.

Eventually, as the afternoon came, the Ghost Slayer call off the training, quite satisfy with Zhao's progress and new abilities. Then headed with the others to share a banquet the monks prepared in their honor and after a few hours of resting, almost at nightfall, Shen Wei guided Zhao to somewhere else, deep down inside the temple.

"Hum, Shen Wei… where are you taking me? Previously, I have this feeling I know this place like the palm on my hands, but this far down, I have no idea."

"There is a question that have been unanswered for centuries. I plan to answer it now for you." They gone down the stairs until reaching a sealed door.

"This seal… it's kind of similar to the one used in Kunlun's temple." Zhao said, as he could feel deep within himself the strength of the seal.

"Yes, this is a resting place… it can't be less guarded." Shen said opening the door and summoning his own fire to fully illuminate the big space with a kind of long altar in the middle. The sight alone make Zhao shudder and a wave of sadness assaulted him.

"The reason the Ghost Slayer disappeared for centuries is this…" Shen said, signaling the altar. "Because the cursed blade, created by GongGong to crush the gods was used in a mare ghost instead, the curse worked differently in his body. While most of the time the cursed was trigger by emotions, there are some periods of times when it will act on his own, giving me unbearable pain. At those times, my only choice to stay sane is going into deep sleep and this is my resting place…" Shen said and he was kind of surprised as Zhao came and hug him like his life depend of it.

"Xiao Wei… you shouldn't have love me that much. Your sacrifice to me had been just too great…" Zhao said, holding him even tighter.

"I told you before, back when you were still a god. I was born out of your flame, so even if you didn't create me with your own hands, I do belong to you and always will…" Shen whisper, slightly pushing him, so he could see him.

"Your wrong… it's me the one who belongs to you now…" And so this time it was Zhao who kissed Shen senseless, making sure to give his beloved all the care, love and passion he couldn't in the many centuries he watched him from afar, to make it up to him for all the pain and suffering he endured on his own.

His fire shined like a sun inside Shen's pendant, as Zhao keep up the kissing for who knows how long, only separating from his lover when needing to breathe again, by then Shen Wei was hopelessly allowing Zhao whatever he wished, deepening the kiss, rubbing his back, messing up his hair, but once again they were interrupted by someone else, before the first button could be undone.

"Your Honor, pardon my intrusion, but a big horde of demons had cross the seal of Hell and are currently running free in the underworld and they are too many for me to fight alone." Chu said, bowing to Shen.

"Ahhh and it was getting hotter… damn demons." Zhao joked, making Shen blush all over again.

"I knew they were coming. Yunlan, go back to the others, I will join you later in the night."

"No can do, babe. If you are fighting, then I'm going with you."

"No, you will stay. You have make quite the progress, but you are still not ready for stronger demons."

"Shen Wei, even if you go on your own, I will still find my way to you, even if I have to turn upside-down the Guardians library in search for a way to the underworld. So, do you want me to find my way on my own, or will you do me the honor yourself?"

"He is an idiot…" Chu sighed. Those two lovers were really something else.

"Seriously Zhao, you are going to be the death of me…" Shen half smiled.

"But you will still take me right?"

"What else can I do? You may kill yourself trying to make a portal on your own or summon something even worse."

"Now we are talking…" But then, all three of them felt the crossing at the same time.

"Ah, they are coming here…" Chu said.

"That's even better..." Zhao said, as he begin to walk back.

"He feels different, what did you did with him?" Chu asked.

"Long story, let's go after him before he had the chance to get himself killed." Chu laughed.

"Yeah, once an idiot, always an idiot…"

"He is not an idiot, old Chu."

"That's because you blindly love him too much. Damn, I think I'm quite ready to kick some asses. That man irritates me to no end." Shen smiled before going after his still reckless Chief Guardian.

AN: Thanks for reading. I love this one because Zhao finally can see just how much devotion Shen Wei had for him, as well as his own as Kunlun.