He Lei

"Okay...this is definitely the weirdest day so far. Not even that one time I did drugs can match up to this." Brent looked around at the never-ending forest. "Seriously. I only blinked! Am I not allowed to blink?"

He took one step and fell. Growling at the floor, he finally saw his hands that were much smaller than he remembered. After practicing to walk for a few minutes, he chanced upon a small lake where he got to see his reflection.

"I'm a kid again? Are you joking me?? What kind of f-" Profanities filled the empty area as Brent let out his momentary rage. "All right Brent. Calm your sh*t and just maybe you can find out what's going on. Priorities first; location and civilization but mostly the second one as it'll help me with my whereabouts. What direction is the latter though?" He groaned. "Screw it. I'll walk straight." A few pairs of eyes made direct eye contact with him on the path he intended to take. Conveniently, a couple of gray wolves live nearby. "Nope. Not walking straight. Not walking straight!"

He turned to run in the opposite direction, but because his sense of balance has been disrupted, he tripped again. Cursing his body, he picked up the rock that was nearby and got up quickly. With him being considered a genius, it didn't take long for him to learn how to move again, but it was too late. A wolf had already leaped at him.

Bam! A rock that Brent picked up hit the wolf in the eye and dropped him or her to the floor.

"You're looking at the international dart master! Eat shi-Oh shi*!"

He bent backward to dodge the claw that would've severed his head, however, a miscalculation caused him to drop to the ground. Rolling to the right to evade incoming strikes, he gathered up some dirt and more rocks. He breathed and waited. While his reflexes were still in good condition, his movement speed was limited to his young body or so he believed.

"Come at me you ugly, furry sons of a bi*tch!"

As if the two wolves understood what he said, they immediately pounced at him. With precise aim, he threw dirt at their eyes and rolled away. Due to them being busy with their problems, he tried to throw rocks at the eyes again to disable them. Key word being tried.

Out of nowhere, the third wolf that was now bleeding from one of his eyes slashed at his back. Feeling the pain, a burning rage clouded his thoughts and he punched the wolf. To his surprise, his fist knocked it back a few inches along with a forming bruise on its face and a broken tooth.

Gazing at his non-damaged knuckles, Brent had a malicious smile on his face. "Ohohohohoho, you're fuc*ed buddy."

He dashed to the sole wolf with remarkable swiftness and struck the wolf on the head, forcing it to make contact with the earth face first. Brent contemplated something before he raised his leg and stomped. Noticing how his feet carried the strength of his arms, he continued stomping the head of the wolf until there was nothing but a bloody mix of brains and other fluids. By the time he was done, the other two wolves who cleaned their eyes found out what happened to their comrade and made the wise decision to leave.

"Tch. Smart little things aren't they. Whatever. I gotta leave too."

If wolves like that existed in the forest then surely other animals lived here. Most likely, they might be attracted to the blood of the wolf corpse and come to this spot. Taking off his sandals and ripping the part of the pants that had blood on them, he put them next to the corpse and ran away. All of this was accidentally witnessed by a certain individual.

When Brent believed he was far away from where he was, he climbed a true and relaxed a little bit. There was absolutely no way he was letting his guard down again. On the plus side, his back injury was not present. Well, he wasn't sure if it was gone or not but as it stopped hurting, he assumed that it healed. Even then, the wolf didn't get too deep which was shocking in and of itself.

"That was a very impressive display." Brent opened his eyes and readied his rock at the sudden voice.

Observing the new person in front of him, he saw the weird and yet oddly familiar clothing that the effeminate man was wearing. There was a sword attached to his waist and a seemingly permanent smile to his face. It gave him Aizen vibes except for the fact that his instincts told him that this person was good.

"Who are you?"

"I am the 3rd Generation Disciple of the Mount Hua Sect, Yoo Jeong-Mok. Who are you?"

"I don't know." He was furiously thinking inside. 'The name was familiar. Everything about him is familiar but where...no way. No way! Volcanic Age! This dude is Joo Seo-Cheon's Master! He looks healthy so is this after the Spirit Water Fruit event? Where am I in the timeline? Wait a minute. Why is he here? Is the story different now? Oh crap! Am I in the first timeline or second timeline?!'

"Oh." He had a sad expression. "That is unfortunate. Would you like a name?"

'Perfect. Saves me the time to come up with a name.' "Sure."

"How about He Lei? It means Harmonius Thunder. It's simple, profound, and powerful."

"I like it. Thank you."

He nodded. "How would you like to come to my sect under my instruction?"

'Here it is. The magical question.' "I would love to be your student."

His smile became one notch brighter. "Wonderful. Come. Let's go home. I have one other disciple that is currently being trained by me at the moment. He is your eldest brother."

"I see." 'This whole brother thing is weird.' "Anything else that I should know about?"

He pondered over it. "Yes...your manners. Your education is lacking and it could cause problems."

"Okay." 'I have bad manners? How?? What did I do? Just because I'm not sucking up to every person in the world doesn't make me impolite.'

During the trip to the sect, he finally got used to his current age and was running to catch up to his new master who slowed down to watch him. Yoo Jeong-Mok was more and more amazed at the level of stamina his new disciple possessed. It was a two hour run at the pace they were going and his youngest student wasn't even out of breath. Gradually speeding up, he sought out his student's limits and was once again blown away by the fact that He Lei kept up without any effort.

Once they got to the sect and entered it, He Lei gazed at everything with awe. It really was a beautiful place. Following his master, he went to a location that he remembered in the manhwa; the rock climbing training. That in itself half-confirmed that he was in the second timeline. To get a complete confirmation, he needed to meet his eldest brother.

"Seo-Cheon. Take a break. Come here to meet someone."

"Coming master."

Running towards us was a young man who looked ready to pass out from exhaustion. His fingers were bleeding too.

"Go ahead, He Lei." He nudged him. "Introduce yourself."

"Okay." He did as he was told and walked up to his new family? "Good morning eldest brother. I am He Lei. I am a new disciple under master here and I am glad to meet you." I turned to see Yoo Jeong-Mok nodding in approval. 'I did my best. Now let's see who you are.'

From facial expressions alone, it told him everything He Lei wanted to know. At first, it was disbelief, then confusion, followed by awkward, and lastly resigned. Joo Seo-Cheon clasped his fists to introduce himself back.

"I am Joo Seo-Cheon. Hello junior brother. You can just call me big bro."

"Sure. Uhhh, is there anything else I should do Master? Do I start training now? Rock climbing seems fun."

"Can you read and write?" he asked.

'I definitely can't. It's probably all in Chinese or something. Wait. What language is Volcanic Age? Is it Chinese or did I assume it's Chinese? Am I racist?' "Nope." 'It's Korean. It has to be. Joo Seo-Cheon sounds Korean but...cultivation, respect, and all that nonsense is typical cultivation stuff. I'm so confused.'

Yoo Jeong-Mok sighed at my answer.

'Hey man. If I don't have the same capability of learning that I did in my past life, we're both going to have a rough time.'

"Then we do that first."

My "big bro" was totally out of his element during my talk with the master. It was funny to see squirm and be uncomfortable with how I speak.

Following the next two weeks, He Lei caught up in the material he was supposed to be educated in and surpassed all expectations put on him by his master. By the end of his great study session, he could probably call himself a scholar. However, even if he was taught manners, he didn't care about it. He talked the way he wanted to.

This, however, gave Yoo Jeong-Mok a daily headache. He was grateful that his newest pupil was antisocial as him speaking to others would've caused He Lei problems everywhere he went. Even then, he still managed to land himself in trouble. Apparently, he broke the hand of some big shot and he was summoned to Headquarters with his master and his eldest brother.

Joo Seo-Cheon, for the life of him, couldn't make head or tail of

his junior brother. The graceless way he spoke, his foreign features, his intellect, and his strength doesn't add up. Someone like him didn't exist before and now he did. It stressed him to a great extent due to the drastic changes that have already started to form. For now, he was inwardly praying to whatever being out there to let this day settle peacefully.

If there is one thing he grasped about his junior brother is that people outside of his social circle are not considered humans to him. The only people he properly spoke to were himself and master but no one else. He Lei doesn't go out of his way to make friends either, so it worries him as to how many enemies his junior brother will make casually. Yes, Joo Seo-Cheon was concerned about him. They might've been together for a few days, but He Lei grew on him. It was nice having someone else be in his life; someone he can call a brother; a friend. Even his informal, blunt method of talking was refreshing to hear.

Now, he had to witness what probably is one of the most shocking spectacles in all his life and the beginning of his junior brother's rise.

"Do you know what you have done?" questioned the blank-faced old lady.

"No, I don't Elder Long Name that I can't remember. What have I done?" Her expression cracked for a second and the elders noticed it.

"Mind your tongue b-"

"Can you please hurry on with this? I don't have time for you and your lectures. Today was going to be the day I start learning the Plum Blossom Qi Art and you're delaying it. I know that I have work on my manners and whatnot but cultivation appears fun and I want to try it. Yes, I'll reflect on my behavior and yes, I will listen to my master and blah blah blah..."

"You!"

"Now now Shim Ok-Ryeon. The boy is young. Let him be," stated Hak-Song.

"Yeah. What he said." She glared at him. "Thank you Elder Hak-Song." He Lei showed his gratitude by giving him the proper respect that elders in the cultivation world deserved. In return, he gained a smile and nod." 'One ally get!' "I understand why Elder Long Name is glaring at me since I "disrespected" her," he said with hand quotations. "But why is he glaring at me? I don't recall meeting him."

Zo Mu-Yang smacked his table in rage. "You broke my grandson's hand you filthy low-life."

He Lei rolled his eyes. "That's why we're here? Since your stupid grandson can't respect someone's space and got beat up, his relative has to stand up for him because he is useless. What's going to be next? Your ancestor comes back from the afterlife to scold me for your idiot of a grandson?"

Yoo Jeong-Mok rubbed his forehead. His disciple said too much and this is going to be much bigger than it was supposed to be.

"How dare you!" he growled.

He Lei didn't back down and shot back his scowl. "How dare I? Are you inhaling poison every morning? Your grandson attacked me first and I retaliated in self-defense. If it wasn't for the fact that my master taught me that killing is not allowed between disciples, your grandson would've met his parents by now."

"Insolent!"

"I'm not done! In the forest where I lived for the majority of my life, it was kill or be killed. That's how I grew up. Your grandson and nearly every pupil I have come across constantly insulted me behind my back and challenged me no matter where I went. I didn't have a single moment of peace. My master always to told me to hold back during spars and fights as I have great innate strength, but my definition of holding back is different from the rest of you. Holding back for me means that I don't kill you. Whatever else happens to you is merely unfortunate."

Zo Mu-Yang argued, "That doesn't excuse your excessive violence!"

"On the contrary. It does. See, when I encounter beasts, they come after me since they want to survive. Some of the intelligent ones run away and get to keep their lives. This is where I'm confused because those animals provoke and attack me for survival and yet, your grandson attacked me for pride? Honor? Worth? I don't know." He Lei shook his head. "All I"m saying is that the beasts had an excuse to attack me and it was a lack of intelligence to not detect a superior creature. What's your grandson's excuse, Elder Zo Mu-Yang? What's the excuse of most of the fourth generation pupils who tried to fight me when I had no desire to combat any of them? They have food, water, and shelter. What else could they want?"

Ui Ji-Kyol studied the young boy in front. To say that he has courage would be an underestimation. There was simply no fear in his eyes or respect. It was admirable. Plus, the way he put words together to turn the argument against the other elders...this boy was very intelligent.

"It must be so embarrassing to have your trained grandson be defeated by a non-trained, non-educated nobody." He Lei smiled provocatively. "That must be why many elders are here. You all want to exercise your authority on me to make an example out of me. I see it now. It's just what I expected from the Just Faction. Corruption at its finest."

Another elder, Hak-Song, who stood up for him opened his mouth. "Young man. That is going too far."

"Am I though? The Unjust Faction openly kills and does crime while all you Just Faction members use connections, authority, and laws to do the very same. You could all label me as a traitor with no evidence to back it up and kill me. I wouldn't be able to resist as I am "righteously" evil. Am I wrong?"

"This..."

"Another great example is in this very room. Elder Slickback over there is willing to get me in trouble because his grandson got hurt. Isn't that an abuse of authority?"

"Enough boy!"

"Now he's trying to silence me so that I don't get the truth out. Another case of corruption from the Just Faction." He Lei shook his head in fake disappointment.

'Remind me to not get on your bad side Junior Brother. Sheesh.' Joo Seo-Cheon wiped the sweat that formed on his forehead. Why he was more nervous than He Lei was something he can't explain. Even their master had sweat forming on his neck.

"That's enough," interrupted the Plum Blossom Sword Master. "He Lei. You may go back with your master. This case is over and you are declared innocent. Please be more gentle with your fellow disciples next time. They are not as tough as you. I look forward to your progress in the future."

For the second time since He Lei walked into the room, he paid his respects by clasping his hands. "Yes Elder. Thank you for the pardon on this questionable case." The Great Palm felt his blood boil. "This pupil gives his most sincere gratitude."

Both Shim Ok-Ryeon and Zo-Mu Yang gritted their teeth as the burning rage warmed their bodies. The other elder, Young-Jin, who stayed silent the whole time laughed in his head and tried his best to hold back the growing smile that was forming on his face. Something told him that this disciple would make the future much more interesting.

'He pays his respects for him but not me?'

'Disrespectful brat!'

"Thank you elders for the audience. This disciple will take his students and leave." Yoo Jeong-Mok bowed and left with He Lei in tow.

Before He Lei exited the room, he turned and blew a raspberry at the two elders he taunted previously. A loud shout that followed by the door closing was heard by the small group of three as they sped up so that they don't get called back.

After they went to their home, Joo Seo-Cheon laughed his heart out and Yoo Jeong-Mok joined him.

"Little Lei. While that was funny, what you did was highly dangerous and risky. I know I can't stop you as you like to be free, but please let me know you will do something beforehand so that master doesn't risk a heart attack. I healed from a disease recently and I don't want to die this early."

"Got it master. I promise to tell you when I plan on causing havoc." Joo Seo-Cheon laughed harder as Yoo Jeong-Mok sighed once more. He seems to be doing that a lot these days.