The One Who Knew Death

Three months had passed, and the air had changed. The days and nights were cooler, and the leaves had changed into many brilliant colors. Departing from their once congenial spot, the leaves slowly fluttered down to meet the ground like colorful rain, covering the ground with natures lovely blanket.

Although the season had changed, young master Kang's goal was still the same. Every day he spent most of his time keeping Kang Nana company and the other half, he sat knee deep in the library of The Unholy Sect well into the night. He studied the transferring of spirit energy, trapping a non-malicious spirit and everything in between, but it still was not enough.

Roughly closing the book that he was reading, the young master placed it onto the ground and sighed heavily, "this will not do.", he moped. Calling it quits for the night, the young master stood, leaving the pile of books where he sat, and exiting the library, there was no point in putting them back when he would only be back to look through them again tomorrow.

Making his way through the hall of the quiet manor where everyone had retired for the night, Kang Lei thought he would visit his Grandfather before going to bed. Opening the door quietly, the young master stuck his head in the chamber to see that not even Kang Nana was still around, so he quietly stepped in, closing the door behind him and placed himself on a cushion at his Grandfather's bedside.

For a moment, the young master simply watched his Grandfather sleep, clan leader Kang's own slumber spell still in effect. Kang Lei sighed, concern on his face as he saw that the old man's face had sunken in and his frame was indeed smaller. "Grandfather, you are wasting away.", Kang Lei spoke softly. "You cannot leave me, who will I talk to when you are gone?", the young master's eyes began to water. Letting out another sigh, Kang Lei averted his gaze toward his lap, as he began to fiddle with his fingers. "Grandfather, will you keep a secret for me? These past few months I have been searching for things that I should not be, although I know you would not scold me.", the young master smirked. "What if we could live in a world that did not come with death? You lost Grandmother years ago and I often wonder if you enthralled yourself in your work because you were lonely. Mother is gone and Nana has lost her parents to a night hunt, even clan leader Vu's heir has lost his Mother. I find myself forever wondering what it would be like to live in a world where death did not exist, what would that be like? Have you ever wondered?", the young master finally looked up at his Grandfather, but of course there was no response as the old man was still asleep.

Letting out a smirk, Kang Lei forced a smile, "of course, it is nonsense isn't it?"

"Perhaps it is not.", said a familiar voice standing at the door.

"Xing-ge?", said the young master, as he had not heard the disciple enter, "what are you doing creeping around like that?", he scolded.

"I was simply doing my rounds for the night and you and great master are one of them young master. How lucky am I for the two of you to be in the same place?", Kang Yixing responded with a smirk.

"Well you found me.", Kang Lei said as he rolled his eyes, standing and walking right past Kang Yixing.

"Why are you always so short with me?", Kang Yixing chuckled.

"Because you have a tendency to appear when I do not want you to.", said Kang Lei annoyed.

"Is it not normal for an older brother to hover?", Kang Yixing joked, but the young master suddenly stopped turning toward Kang Yixing.

"Just how long were you standing there!?", Kang Lei snapped, tension in his voice.

"Enough to hear that you are troubled.", Kang Yixing responded as his smirk disappeared.

"…", glaring at the older man, Kang Lei said nothing, he had no idea what would come out of Kang Yixing's mouth, but what came next was the last thing he expected to hear.

"Young master, do you wish to learn?"

Softening his expression, the young master's brows rose, "huh?", he responded, disbelieve on his face.

"Follow me.", said Kang Yixing and the two exited the manor, walking in complete silence. When the two were far enough from the manor for any ears to listen, Kang Yixing stopped, turning toward Kang Lei.

"Xing-ge, just what do you mean, do I wish to learn?", Kang Lei spoke with his brows furrowed.

"That conversation you had with great master is still very fresh in my mind young master, so I ask you once more, do you wish to learn?"

"Necromancy is forbidden Xing-ge!", Kang Lei spoke, intensity in his tone.

"But of course, as it has been for a while, yet that has not stopped you from foraging the library these past few months, has it?", said Kang Yixing and the young master knitted his brows closer together. Kang Yixing was even more of a scrupulously sly man than Kang Lei had originally thought he was.

"…" Lowering his head, Kang Lei brought one corner of his mouth tight, not saying anything.

"There are many things that are forbidden little brother, but that does not mean that they should not be learned. If you read the book on forbidden practices written by your Father himself, it only states that necromancy is not to be performed on the bodies of human corpses, because they will not return as themselves.", said Kang Yixing, holding up his two fingers and flinging a sharp line of spiritual energy toward a tree where a bird fell to its death.

"…", not saying anything the young master simply watched with his brows furrowed as Kang Yixing made his way over toward the bird.

Roughly biting his own finger, Kang Yixing kneeled down, drawling a symbol with his own blood around the dead bird and closed his eyes. Forming a few signs with his hands that Kang Lei had never seen before, Kang Yixing then muttered a few words to himself and the bird suddenly moved, before it sprang to life, flying away.

"…", Nonplused, the young master stared with wide eyes.

"Using necromancy on a human is forbidden because the soul that returns will not be like the soul that has left this world. Using necromancy on things that never possessed a soul to begin with is completely harmless, but trivial. Can you imagine the heartaches we would prevent if we learned to summon back the dead as they once were? This was one of the things great master experimented with before he succumbed to his current state.", Kang Yixing explained.

"…" Clenching his fist, the young master remained silent, this conversation they were having was now classified as a sin in itself and would be considered treason if clan leader Kang found out!

"Now I will ask you for the last time, do…you…wish…to…learn?", Kang Yixing continued with a stern face, speaking slow and plain enough for the young master to understand.

"How did you learn?", Kang Lei, finally responded.

"My Father taught me all he knew before he left this world as he was great master's right hand. I can teach you too if you allow me.", said Kang Yixing.

Thinking a minute, the young master could not deny that he had been searching through every book in the library in the hopes of finding anything on necromancy. "Does my Father know that you can use necromancy?", Kang Lei asked.

"Mn, however, I am forbidden to use it.", Kang Yixing nodded.

"Then teach me, but he must not find out that I am learning, or it will be our heads.", Kang Lei warned.

"Then you have yourself a deal young master." Kang Yixing smiled.

During the next few weeks as the temperatures became colder, everyday the young master spent half the day with Kang Nana while she cared for great master and the other half with Kang Yixing as they practiced necromancy far into the woods.

"Xing-ge, has it revived?", the young master asked as he peaked through one eye as he held the position of his hand signs.

"Concentrate young master!", Kang Yixing scolded, closing the eyes of the dead squirrel as he had grown tired of staring at the rodent centered in-between them, those black beady orbs were beginning to make his skin crawl.

"…", hissing under his breath, Kang Lei closed his open eye as he steadied the flow of his spiritual energy into the squirrel.

For almost an hour the two sat that way, and the young master's hands were becoming unsteady. "Dammit!", Kang Lei cursed as he dropped his hands to his lap, breaking the hand sign that he had been holding for a while.

"Why have you stopped, do not quit!", Kang Yixing scolded.

Rolling his eyes, the young master stood, shaking out his legs as they were on the brink of falling asleep. "Xing-ge, I have been doing this for the past few weeks and no progress had been made, this is pointless.", said Kang Lei.

"Do you think that this is something that can be learned quickly young master? I have taught you to communicate with the dead and you learned it well but bringing them back to life is no easy task.", said Kang Yixing glaring up at the impatient young master before him.

"Xing-ge, it has been weeks, maybe I cannot learn it after all.", Kang Lei moped.

"You are a Kang little brother, and the Kang's will not fold because of an obstacle! Sit!", Kang Yixing raised his voice, growing annoyed with the young master's pessimistic attitude.

"Fine!", Kang Lei whined as he plopped himself back down in front of the squirrel. "Xing-ge, could you at least show me once more?"

"No matter how many times I show you the result will be the same, I will revive the animal and you will become frustrated.", Kang Yixing responded.

"Xing-ge!..you!.." Kang Lei raised his voice, but Kang Yixing cut him off.

"Young master, take a look at the squirrel before you."

Hissing under his breath once more, Kang Lei did as he was told, "what am I supposed to be looking at?", Kang Lei responded, annoyance in his tone.

"Young master, your squirrel's eyes are open."

"What does that have to do…", Kang Lei raised his voice, but he suddenly stopped talking, as his eyes widened. Kang Yixing was right, the squirrel's eyes were closed before as Kang Yixing had grown weirded out by the animal's eyes remaining open while he stared at it and now they were in fact open! "Xing-ge!" Kang Lei quickly glanced up excitement and determination on his handsome face.

"Continue!", Kang Yixing yelled.

"Mn!", the young master nodded, closing his eyes and doing his hand signs over again, holding the last one as he muttered to himself. Continuing for the next few hours, Kang Yixing and the young master sat, practicing well into the early morning.

After resting from his early morning training, Kang Lei skipped down the hall, a smile on his face as he was proud of his accomplishments. Making his way toward his Grandfather's room, the young master opened the door to see Kang Nana, wiping down Kang Yu-Huan's face.

"Nana!", said Kang Lei with a smile on his face as he placed himself on a cushion beside his Grandfather's bed.

"Young master.", Kang Nana nodded with a smile, although it was rather sad, and Kang Lei could see that she had been crying.

"Nana, shall we go out today?", said Kang Lei, his smile growing even wider.

"Oh no young master, that is unnecessary, I will start to feel like I owe you.", Kang Nana declined.

"Oh Nana, do you remember what I told you?", the young master's smile turned into a smirk as he raised his brows.

Blushing a little Kang Nana directed her attention back to the great master, "Yes, you said that I should rely on you a little."

"So, won't you?"

"A-Lei, Kang Nana has work that needs to be done, as do you.", said a deep voice entering the room, suddenly startling the two.

"Clan leader!", Kang Nana jumped up off of the cushion and bowed to clan leader Kang and Kang Lei simply stood, giving his Father a nod.

"As you were.", said clan leader and Kang Nana kneeled back down, continuing Kang Yu-Huan's bird bath. Glaring at his Father, Kang Lei left out of the room, that he most certainly was not supposed to be in, and clan leader Kang followed, closing the door behind him.

"Do my words mean nothing to you A-Lei?", said clan leader Kang as his long strides caused him to easily pass his son.

"Grandfather does not look well, I'm worried about him Father.", said Kang Lei, his eyes fixed upon the ground.

"That man sleeps for his own good.", clan leader Kang responded, not interested in talking about his Father.

"What is it that you're afraid of, why not get him help!?", Kang Lei raised his voice.

"Remember your place A-Lei!", clan leader Kang said firmly, warning his son to cease his insolence.

"He will die!", Kang Lei came to a sudden halt as he shouted with tears in his eyes and his fist's clenched at his sides.

"Then so be it!", clan leader Kang spun around, glaring at his son, but he soon softened his expression the moment he saw the tears streaming down his son's face. "There are other things that are of importance, hurry along A-Lei!", clan leader Kang said firmly as he walked away. Roughly wiping his face, the young master grudgingly followed his Father into his office where disciple Kang Yixing was waiting.

"Clan leader Kang.", he cupped his fist, bowing respectfully.

"Kang Yixing.", clan leader Kang responded, making his way over to his desk and sitting down.

"Young master are you alright?", Kang Yixing whispered to Kang Lei who stood at the door, glaring at the floor.

"A-Lei is angry with me, let him be!", clan leader Kang commanded, and Kang Yixing immediately backed off, nodding his silent apology.

"Now, I have brought you here because I have an assignment for you. Clan leader Ba has requested our expertise on a night hunt.", said clan leader Kang.

"A night hunt? Are we really going there just for a night hunt?", said Kang Yixing raising a brow.

"This hunt in particular is one I would go on myself if I had the time.", said clan leader Kang and the two younger ones in the room glanced at each other momentarily before giving clan leader Kang their undivided attention.