FORBIDDEN FOREST AND THE GOLDEN LEAF

The Northern warrior gripped the hilt of liuyedao with both hands, as he silently waited for the gnarling beast in front of him to launch an attack. He stood patiently on a muddy surface while his ferocious gaze toward the beast who wanted to prey on him never faltered. With the current scene, it is not clear yet who is the hunter or who is being hunted. It is a competition between two top predators.

After what seems to be a lifetime, the beast charged at him with a loud roar, showing numerous sharp and shiny layer of teeth. The warrior did not hesitate. He gripped his saber tighter, waited for the crucial moment when he could successfully kill the beast.

The beast was up in the air. Its paws were just a meter away from the man's head. Finally, he saw the chance to strike for once and end the beast's life. He lowered himself, sliding with his knees on the mud. When the beast is directly on top of him, he struck, dissecting the beast's stomach into two showering him with the victim's blood.

His own face is covered with crimson blood, bearing the demeanor of a true hunter. His jaws tightened and untightened while his brows remained knitted. He stared at his prey and smiled viciously.

He approached the still warm carcass and looked at the beast's impressively huge fangs. He took one sharp tooth from the beast and gazed at his bloody reflection on the shiny thing.

"Brother Song, we found it!" Someone called out behind him. The handsome masterly warrior happened to be Song Xianlong, the heir of the North.

"Where is it?" he asked.

"Over there, under the huge boulder."

Song Xianlong followed his comrade. Their journey in the forbidden forest has been quite tough. Some of them had been injured, but fortunately, with the skilled Song Xianlong leading them, there are no casualty. His skills proved to outmatch martial artists from his generation.

Spending three days already inside the mazelike forest, Song Xianlong found out that the place is equally beautiful and dangerous. The trees are much taller than those from other forests where he had already been. Lianas and creepers are found everywhere, making the scene look dreamy and exotic. Silence reigns in every corner of the forest. Making a noise triggers unwanted obstacle along their way. Plenty of wild and murderous animals are lurking around them.

People claimed that the forbidden forest is a place where you can enter but can never leave. Many tried to explore the forest but they never came back. Song Xianlong can't help but think about the countless bones and skulls they came across on their way to the enchanted plant.

Dirty and exhausted, he headed beneath a boulder where the purpose of their expedition stood silently. Nothing seems special with the enchanted plant except that one of its leaf shimmers like gold. The path toward the plant is getting steeper in every chî.

Song Xianlong took the lead, and when he was about to reach out and pluck the golden leaf, a black figure, almost as quick as the wind, passed through in front of him. When he looked at the enchanted plant, the golden leaf is nowhere to be found! The enchanted plant began to wither, as if the golden leaf is the only thing that gives it life. Infuriated, Song Xianlong unsheathed the liuyedao and was ready to catch up with the thief. All of a sudden, the ground grumbled, making the boulder lose its balance.

"Brother Song, watch out!" his comrade warned him, but it was too late. The huge boulder came rolling down toward Song Xianlong's direction. Xianlong knew he can't dodge it on time.

In his surprise, the shadow-like figure returned with not any lesser speed. Xianlong saw him tapped the boulder with his bare palm. Then the boulder crumbled into smaller rocks, flying at different directions. The figure stepped atop Xianlong's head and rose higher into the air before disappearing again.

Even though the mystery man saved him, Xianlong's indignation resurfaced. His face turned red and his brows almost met. Exhausted from his previous fight, he didn't have the strength and energy to run on chase of the man.

"You thief! I'll hunt you down and cut you into thousand pieces with my liuyedao!" the helpless Song Xianlong hollered, only to hear the reverberations of his voice answer him back.

Now he has to come back empty-handed. His father will be disappointed. Even their getting out of the forest is still not yet assured. He cursed internally.

'Just wait, you little thief,' Song Xianlong thought to himself.

Contrary to what he had expected, the journey out of the forbidden forest was much easier than going inside. The black marks they left on the trees they encountered as they went in really helped. It was early in the morning of the following day when Song Xianlong together with other northern warriors had finally gotten out of the forest of entrapment.

Instead of sailing across the Gulf of the North, Song Xianlong, accompanied by fewer comrades, headed south to Taijing City. As a martial artist, it was also Xianlong's to protect the kingdom's safety, so that he is heading toward the peninsular City of Jade where the Assembly is set to hold.

There was a talk of the town in Taijing. A few days ago, there was a great force impact that had shocked the people not only in Taijing but the rest of Middle Kingdom. Xianlong ordered one of his men to ask around more regarding the rumor.

Coincidentally, Xianlong bumped into Old Master Li from Wei province. The good-natured Master invited him over for dinner, and there, Xianlong asked about what he heard from Taijing people.

"It was true. The force came from an extraordinarily barrier, which had been broken. But you probably didn't feel it because you're inside another barrier. The Forbidden Forest has its natural barrier."

"Where was the barrier located?"

"It might have been from somewhere south," the old master offered him a drink.

"Thank you. But did you know it was there before?"

"No. No one does. But I have two guesses. First, the barrier is broken in purpose. The one who broke it might also be the one who created it," the old master said while stroking his white beard.

"I see," Song Xianlong agreed. "What about your second guess?"

The old master smiled. "Someone powerful will be joining us in Jade City."