Old Friends

"From this day on... the Red Viper Bandits are no more."

Haoran, Lanfen, and the rest of the Red Viper Bandits stood quietly at the entry cave to the cavern complex they had called home for the past several years, after having unceremoniously dumped Gao Shun's body deep in the mountains.

The bandits looked amongst each other with mixed emotions at Haoran's declaration; although Gao Shun had been tyrannical, there was no doubt that he had brought great fortune and luxury to their once scattered bandit groups.

Of course, he had also killed a lot of them, but *they* were still alive, so...

"Captain Haoran! Please, take control of the Red Viper Bandits and lead us, once more!" a rather grungy looking individual shouted, and he was soon followed by a chorus of many others who called for Haoran to take over operations.

Haoran, however, simply shook his head, crossing his arms as he looked at them sternly.

"No. I've always been one to hold tightly to my freedom, and you all know Lanfen and I only joined because Gao Shun strong armed us into it," he said, quickly suppressing their rowdy yells.

"Take what you will from the base. After that, stay, leave, I couldn't care less. Lanfen and I will be going our own way."

With that, the bandits gave each other a brief look before they stormed into the base, clawing over each other to be the first to grab the many valuables scattered throughout the base.

Lanfen simply scoffed, watching their ungainly scramble with a disdainful frown. Her attention was caught by Haoran, however, who was also moving deeper into the cavern complex, and she hurried to catch up to his side.

"Hey, is there really anything you'd want from here? Let's just leave, already," Lanfen complained, looking up at him irritably.

Haoran just shrugged, continuing onward in silence. They eventually found themselves before Gao Shun's personal chambers, where it seemed no one was bold enough to ransack, just yet.

Pushing open the doors, Haoran scanned the room as the women chained up inside flinched, looking in his direction fearfully. Lanfen just gave him a curious look as he strode forward, raising a hand and circulating his qi.

The captive women quickly covered their heads with their arms, bracing for the pain, but it never came, as Haoran accurately shattered their shackles with some precise qi blasts from his fingers.

The shackles fell to the cavern floor with a loud clatter, causing them to open their eyes in shock, rubbing their wrists and ankles rubbed raw from the restraints as if they couldn't believe they were gone.

"Follow me. I'll escort you outside of the complex, but from there, you're on your own."

The women looked at him in confusion, not knowing whether he was sincere or playing some sort of cruel joke. Lanfen just shook her head and sighed, taking some extra sets of clothes from out of her storage ring and throwing them at the now-freed captives.

"Gao Shun is dead. Hurry up and clothe yourselves, it's unsightly."

Lanfen's words seemed to echo throughout the chamber, a resounding note that rang out over and over as they slowly broke out into tears, hugging each other and crying piteously, as if to release all of their pent up pain, anger, and sadness.

Haoran left the room to wait for them to compose themselves and get dressed, and after a while, Lanfen led them out fully clothed, nodding at him curtly.

Nothing was said as they walked towards the entrance. A few bandits looked at them curiously as they left, but seeing Haoran glare at them with a severe expression was enough for them to hurriedly get out of the way, bowing respectfully.

Eventually, they made it to the cavern's exit, the women looking up to the clear, sunny sky with blank stares. For some of them, it had been years since they had seen the light of the sun, and they couldn't stop the tears from forming in their eyes once more.

It's likely they would have stayed in that state for hours, were it not for Haoran's gruff voice bringing them back to their senses.

"Go. What you do from here on is no longer any of our business."

They looked at each other for a moment, before bowing to him slightly, turning to walk into the forest depths with unsteady footsteps. None of them could bring themselves to say 'thank you' to the man who had been like their captor's right-hand, but perhaps if they ever met again...

Haoran and Lanfen watched the women go, waiting until they were well out of sight.

"... Maybe we should clear the area of demonic beasts," Haoran said with a frown. Lanfen just snorted, crossing her arms in a huff.

"What, have you gone soft, after all this time, or are you just lusting after them?" she said, pouting, to which Haoran laughed heartily.

"Who was it that gave them her clothes without a second thought?"

"... Hmph. I just didn't want you looking at them with lewd eyes."

They gave each other a playful look, before moving in unison into the forest, scouting the area for any dangerous demonic beasts. Although it wasn't nearly enough to make up for what must have been years of torture...

Well, they were both bandits, in the end, and it wasn't as if they were about to suddenly change their ways. Perhaps this would have to do.

"Hey, should we go get revenge on that kid, after this?" Haoran asked Lanfen with a teasing smile. She just rolled her eyes, looking away.

"Ugh, don't joke around, like that."

Wherever their path took them from here... she hoped it didn't cross his, again.

--

It was late afternoon of the next day when Ryker found himself breaking through the treeline of the forest, giving out a low whistle as he laid his eyes on the Eastern Region for the first time.

"Meiling was right, this view's pretty killer."

Compared to the Zhou Empire, which had uniform cities laid out on the plains in an orderly manner, the Eastern Region was filled with rough, rocky terrain, with dramatic ravines and high rising mountains, low hanging clouds shrouding the mysterious peaks.

What looked like towns centered around huge palaces dotted the landscape, which he figured were the 'sects' he'd heard so much about. Each one was a colorful blotch breaking up the greens and browns of the rocky hills, and he stood admiring the scenery for a long while, letting the whispering breeze cool him off as it played across his skin.

"Phew. Well, that was some detour," he said aloud, stretching out his back and preparing to make his way down the steep mountain path. Although he knew he was in for a long ride when he'd heard of the bandits attacking the village, the whole experience was still pretty draining.

He recalled their farewell to him this morning, a mostly cheery affair, with the exception of little Zhao Gui.

--

"Hey, c'mon, kiddo. We'll see each other again, someday," Ryker said, kneeling down to rub the crying boy's head. Zhao Gui just sniffled and nodded, holding back his tears with a scrunched up face as his family gathered around to put their hands on his shoulders reassuringly.

Ryker thought for a moment, before taking something out of his dimensional pocket: the Body Reformation Pill, that he had received from the system. With this, one could reform their mortal body into a perfect state, healing any injuries and making it suitable for cultivation by shaping one's dantian and meridians.

He held it out for Zhao Gui, a big smile on his face as he continued to rub his head.

"Here, take this pill; it'll help you become a strong warrior, in the future. Your dad can help you refine it."

Zhao Gui took the pill Ryker handed to him, looking up with big eyes before hurriedly wiping the tears away and nodding fiercely. Zhao Hui also leaned down at this point, looking at the pill with apprehension.

He didn't know exactly what it was, but pills were expensive; much more expensive than even the entire village could afford.

"Sir Ryker, this is..." he started, but Ryker held his hand up, stopping him before he could say anything else.

"Well, this is all I can do, for now. Maybe the strong will always have the run of things, around here, but I can at least give Lil' Gui a chance at something better."

Zhao Hui looked as if he was about to protest some more, but eventually he just smiled, bowing deeply to Ryker. The rest of his family along with the rest of the villagers followed suit, with the village chief, whose name he had finally learned was Huang Zhuo, coming forward to say a few words.

"Great Hero, we thank you, from the bottom of our hearts. May you find fortune in all that you endeavor."

Huang Zhuo gave Ryker another deep bow, which Ryker returned, bowing to all the villagers that had come to see him off.

"Stay safe, out here. Well, I'm off!"

Waving goodbye, he continued on with his journey east through the forest, the Zhao family and the other villagers cheering and waving him off as he disappeared into the forest depths.

--

Ryker let out a low sigh, before getting on his way, once more.

"Guess I should check those system notifications..."

He had finally received some notifications from the system after his departure this morning, which he thought was strange, considering how many people he had met at the village.

| Relationship with Zhao Gui became: Worshipful |

| Received: Wooden Sword (Fine) x 1 |

| Relationship with Zhao Hui became: Admiration |

| Received: Hunter's Knife x 1 |

| Relationship with He Liqin became: Admiration |

| Received: Sturdy Cooking Pot x 1 |

| Relationship with Zhao Luli became: Worshipful |

| Received: Jade Hairpin (Fine) x 1 |

...

| Relationship with Huang Zhuo became: Admiration |

| Received: Foundation Establishment Pill x 3 |

{Um, since the villagers aren't really that strong, you need a deep relationship with them to get anything,} Bestie explained, her avatar popping up beside him, {And since most of them are mortals, you don't really get any cultivation items...}

Ryker just shrugged his shoulders, putting the holoscreen away with a relaxed smile.

"That's fine. It's not like we helped them to get anything out of it, right?"

At this point, Mini C also materialized his avatar, floating in front of Ryker with crossed arms.

[Perhaps we should refrain from getting too involved, next time,] he suggested, in his usual monotone, [We need to cover *some* ground, at least, if we ever want to find--]

Suddenly, however, he paused in his sentence, turning his head to face the sky intently.

"What's up?" Ryker asked, squinting his eyes to try and see what Mini C was looking at. Mini C's 'analyzing...' circle appeared above his head, briefly, before he let out a low hum, looking back at Ryker with what might count as surprise on his normally impassive face.

[... I believe it's a signal from Caelus.]

--

In a dark room of the Dabang Sect, an incessant beeping was sounding from one of the multitudes of panels lining the wooden walls, their rough metal standing out quite oddly compared to the lacquered wood. There were endless scraps of metal and circuitry strewn all about the polished stone floor, along with vials and beakers of all kinds set atop the many tables scattered throughout the dimly lit room.

Eventually, the beeping stirred the room's only inhabitant, who slowly got up from the sofa he was resting on while rubbing an eye with the heel of his palm.

He was somewhat tall, though he'd only line up to Ryker's chin if he were to stand next to him. His mop of wavy black hair was shaved short on the back and sides while the front fell in bangs to cover his eyes, and a flash of icy blue could be seen from between them if the angle was just right.

A sharp chin and soft, almost effeminate lips were all one could usually see, though, with the rounded tip of a high nose just barely peeking out.

His standard issue disciple's robe billowed out behind him as he made his way towards the beeping machine, a bead of sweat dripping down his face from the heat of the stuffy room. He kept meaning to build a temperature regulation unit, but it somehow always slipped his mind, amongst all of the other tasks that he had to complete...

The young man suddenly froze, however, when he saw which machine the beeping was coming from, exactly. It was a large, red strobe light taking up an entire panel by itself, almost comically big compared to the delicate looking instruments surrounding it.

"So, he finally decides to show up..."

The faint trace of a smile appeared on his lips. There was even more work to be done, now, he supposed.