83 The Hermit's Purpose

After saying all this the old man was silent, gazing into the distance. He didn't say anything for a long time, and while the silence continued time marched on. After nearly an hour Yun could hear some noise from Wuying's position on the ground and she called out to him.

"Wuying, it's fine. Come here."

She heard a sigh of relief come from the ground behind the tree before she heard some movement. A few moments later Long Wuying walked into sight and sat down across the table from the old man as well with a slightly puzzled look on his face.

"This is the Wild Wind Hermit, he was once an Elder of the Hunting Hall but has reached the peak of what their resources could achieve. This Yun has been awake for about an hour now, and we've just been conversing."

"I see. If that's the case then I won't worry too much about what happened before."

Wuying looked at the old man as he said this last part, clearly implying he hadn't forgotten the rough treatment during the previous questioning.

"In that case I'd like to know how we ended up here. Last thing I remember was tricking those Fire-Eaters that were chasing me, then closing off my sense of smell before resting beneath the roots of an extremely pungent tree."

"Oh? So they did find you after all, I'm sorry for that Wuying. This Yun found them beneath the meeting tree and tried to sneak off to find you, but the wind shifted at that time and left me upwind of them. They pursued me for quite a while before I doubled back and discovered a cave at the bottom of a cold pond."

"So if you escaped into a cave, how'd you end up here?"

"Not sure myself. Last thing I knew was getting knocked out by some kind of dust, then woke up here to this old man's interrogation."

Wuying shook his head, looking at Yun with some measure of confusion, "So how did we both end up in this place? We're in some kind of bowl-canyon in the middle of the mountains!"

They both looked at the hermit at this last question, both wanting to know how they both wound up here.

"This old man discovered the young one here in one of my tunnels. Of course I had to be sure I wasn't being scouted out by someone, so I apologize for the rough treatment. After locating you I found the Fire-Eaters at the side of the pond and figured you had a partner that was separated, so I just followed those lizards and found his trail. It was pretty simple to hear his heartbeat once I passed near that disgusting tree."

Wuying looked down in slight embarrassment. "It was the only way I could escape their senses in the end. How is it the smell hasn't stuck?"

"You think I wanted to smell that for the rest of the time I had you here? Of course I took you through the pond and the cave to get here specifically to wash that smell off!"

The old man looked quite indignant at this point, it was quite obvious he thought the tree's smell was horridly pungent.

After a few minutes of slightly tense silence, Yun spoke up and asked a question that had been bothering her.

"Hermit, why is it you are here in these mountains? Of all the places you could go to seek out resources, this region is certainly not one of the best. You've even seemingly settled into this hidden valley quite some time ago."

The Wild Wind Hermit looked pensive for quite a while before he opened his ancient jaws to speak.

"This old one spent a long time seeking resources, and even managed to advance a few realms at the time, but eventually I reached the end of my martial road. When I had no more path to tread I began to look back at the things I'd left behind, like that young boy I'd trained or the strange things that happened in my past. Eventually I began to piece some large secrets together, and as a result I settled here, where I could keep tabs on things while staying hidden."

Speaking to here, he looked at the two young cultivators before him and sighed. "I'm afraid I can't tell you just what I discovered, as it's much too soon for the both of you, but if you could tell the young cub I once trained where to find me. . . Perhaps things may resolve for the better in the end."

Yun was deep in thought, deciphering what she could, but she simply didn't have enough experiences to be able to piece together what she was learning here. Wuying, on the other hand, looked absolutely puzzled.

"Hermit, who are you referring to when you say the one you once trained? I'm afraid I'm failing to connect the two things."

Yun and the Hermit both looked at Wuying like he had an extra head growing out of his shoulders before Yun reached over and smacked the back of his head unceremoniously.

"Seriously, Wuying? You can't even piece that together?"

Yun shook her head as the Hermit spoke up again, clarifying his intent.

"This old one speaks of your Elder Lei. Long ago he was my direct disciple, and to my knowledge he swore never to take one himself so as to avoid the pain of what happened back then."

Yun looked up sharply at this moment, staring directly at the Wild Wind Hermit.

"What happened, Hermit? Please tell us."

Yun tried to hide the expression on her face, but it was impossible for the Hermit to not notice that gaze. He sighed to himself at how strangely fate worked.

"I see he took a disciple after all. With how extraordinary your talent is I'm less than surprised. No one could possibly pressure that stubborn child into such a decision, so there must be something special about you. Tell me, what technique did he give you to cultivate? Is it the Forest Guardian Sutra that this old one passed down, or is it something else that he's obtained?"

"This Yun trains in the rare Solar Thunder Sutra, Master Hermit."

The Hermit's eyes widened instantly as he mumbled to himself in surprise yet again.

"The fates truly are strange. . . "