The Mystery Deepens

Li Yangyi thought about what he witnessed, though he did not comprehend. After all, there was no way for a mere mortal to beat someone who had started cultivating since childhood, lest he started from the womb. 

He sipped on his tea while thinking. There was an eerie quiet, as the restless Li Yinyi fidgeted around in anticipation. They waited for the news (a while now) and Li Yinyi had voiced numerous times her intent to simply break out and walk to the Store of Fates. As her words said, 'There's no point in waiting restlessly in this dilapitated  mansion while adventure awaited.' In all honesty, Li Yangyi would have agreed, was it not that he had been lost in his own ideas.

He still could not understand; How could a mere mortal best him in a bout of strength? The man was around the age of his own father—though he seemed miles stronger. Not that he would ever tell either of them. 

The lights flickered in silence, unbothered by the many ideas in his mind. He sipped his tea while looking at the closed door. 

"I wonder what exactly was it that the man did," he muttered, "Could it be—could I learn it too?" He rested his head on his arms. In his mind, he imagined himself wielding this type of power. Certainly, with such power he did not have to worry about protecting his sister anymore. He did not have to worry about a lot of things.

"Well bro, there's no use thinking about it, isn't there? You just have to go there and ask him," Li Yinyi faced her brother and said. "I'm sure he will understand." She played with her hair and kicked her legs out in boredom.

Li Yangyi stared at the ceiling. He wondered, was it really that easy? Of course not. "This is probably his super secret move, there's no way he'd ever teach a stranger like me." Without his knowledge, the chef had slowly occupied his mind more than he would like to admit.

Li Yinyi shrugged her shoulders. "You won't know if you don't try." In any case, that was her plan for the witch; She was sure, if she asked nicely, the witch would be willing to abide her recquest, right?

...

Zhang Yong saw himself in the all-to familiar field again. Though it had been less than a day, he already started missing this place. The pure Spiritual Energy gathered around him, feeling like the spring breeze after a harsh winter. As he had spent at least 5 hours in this world already, time had passed by considerably and it was currently evening.

He followed the traces of Li Yangyi and soon found himself in front of the village. As he remembered, it was a humble one with less than a few houses, all a little dilapidated. A small wooden fence surrounded it, marking the end or beginning of its territory.

Zhang Yong looked around but saw no old man coming to greet him. Maybe the timing wasn't right? He rubbed his chin and after brief contemplation, decided to enter the village and see for himself first.

The road, as expected, was worn and overgrown. As he made his way inside, he saw almost no people. The village was surprisingly empty. With the way Li Yangyi had been welcomed, he thought it would be a friendly place, but that did not seem to be the case. The only person he saw was an elderly woman passing by him. Zhang Yong wished to greet her, but she simply sneered and walked away—thus, he was left all alone.

"Ah, whatever. I'm just here to meet the chef. The other people are just ordinary villagers, I do not have to mind them," Zhang Yong explained to himself, and walked to the direction he remembered the mans house to be in.

"Hey, you there, who are you?"

While Zhang Yong searched for the house, a high-pitched voice called out to him. He turned around, looking left and right, but could not find the source. Only when he looked down, did he see a small child, barely reaching the height of his waist. The child, a girl, had black hair, with big eyes, giving her an innocent look. she wore simple clothes that were only loose-fitting on her thin body, though it was hard to tell in the dim light.

Zhang Yong knelt down to talk to her. "Was it you that called out to me?" He gave a friendly smile. "Perfect timing. I'm looking for an older gentleman with a scar on his shoulder. He calls himself a chef. Do you perhaps know where he resides?"

The girl blinked twice. She stared at him blankly, her mouth open. After a bout of silence she asked once more, "Who are you?"

"Me?" Zhang Yong pointed at himself. "My name is Zhang Yong. I'm the bearer of justice! Little kid, worry not, I have no bad intentions."

The girl continued to look him in the eye, showing no indications of a reaction. "Then, Mister Justice, how did you get here," she asked him.

Zhang Yong tilted his head, finding the question to be somewhat strange. "How did I get here? By walking, what else?"

The young girl shook her big head. She closed her eyes while doing so, making her look somewhat cute. "My mommy said no one can enter this place without a cause. She said the field is only open for those who wish to enter. The same goes for the village." She paused. "So, who are you?"

Zhang Yong didn't know how to answer that question. He said everything that needed to be said. "I suppose you do not know of the great families or the City of Extended Delight, am I correct?"

The girl shook her head once more.

He rubbed his chin. "Then I don't really know how to answer your question."

"Okay," the girl answered non-chalantly. "Then, uh, are you a bad person or a good person?"

Zhang Yong laughed out loud, he proudly struck his chest out. "Of course I am a good person."

The girl suddenly let out a big grin and stretched her hands out. "Then play with me today!"

"Huh?" Zhang Yong was rather taken aback by the change of expression and could not quite compute a response.

The child tilted her head and her smile disappeared. The blank look re-entered and with a cold voice, she muttered, "You don't want to?"

Zhang Yong forced a smile. "Young girl, it is not that I don't want to. You see, I'm planning to meet the old man, so I don't have any time."

The girl quickly corrected him. "The chef is never lets anyone in at this time of the day. I hear it's because he is grieving or something, so his temper can get bad." She clenched and unclenched her fists. "Come on, let's play hide and seek!" She stepped closer.

Zhang Yong slowly backed away, as he saw this situation turn more and more into a hassle. Was this a trap set by the shop-owner to waste his money? If so it was a truly nefarious scheme. "Well, young girl, I'm sorry, I'd love to stay, but I have business to attend somewhere else."

"You can't."

"What do you mean I can't?"

"Because..." She stared at him. "Anyone that enters this village never leaves," she said, her voice unimaginably low. her beady eyes seemed to reflect no light as she said so, and coupled with her blank look and long hair rolling over her face, she appeared rather ghastly.

Scary!

Zhang Yong almost jumped back in fright. He looked at her again and wondered how a mere child could scare him like that. As he thought about it, he suddenly realized he was in a strange village with no other person in sight. in front of him stood a girl that came out of nowhere. Indeed, the scene was a terrifying one.

The girl slowly dropped her hand, and her grin dropped with it. "So you don't want to play with me?" She started sulking. "So you are a bad person after all."

She leisurely strutted to the confused Zhang Yong and placed her small hands on his belly. She puffed her cheeks and closed her eyes, and with seemingly all her strength, gave him a light push.

Zhang Yong was unsure of what the girls plan was and planend to simply fend her off. As he tried to block her, he realized an inexplicable strength gathered in her thin arms, and though not a lot of force was used, he could do nothing to go against its path.

His eyes shot wide opened and he shouted, "It couldn't be—"

Within seconds, he was flung far and wide, flying for several meters, and landing on the hard ground with his back. Further away, the girl stood with her blank look and her hands in the air as she celebrated her achievement.

Zhang Yong coughed twice with a gaping mouth. A scary thought (scarier than the eerie scene from a few minutes ago) shot through his mind: 'Is it possible that every person in this village possessed this power?'

The girl walked to the Zhang Yong and said, "Hey, if you want to, how about we go play outside?"