The True Nature of This World

"Damnit, just where did he go?!" Great Elder Wan flew through the air with a deep frown plastered across his face. He tried to remain calm, but the anxiety in his heart couldn't be hidden from his gaze.

He couldn't understand how Yaan managed to travel so far!

He left behind a tracking spell on Yaan's sword, but Yaan actually dropped this sword into the river and disappeared to who knows where. The Elder was following the river downstream slowly, carefully scanning the water with a spell that utilised his eyes as he searched for any signs of Yaan's presence. He didn't want to pass him by unnoticed and leave him to drown in these dangerous waters.

The more time he spent searching, the stranger Great Elder Wan's mood became.

Now that Yaan was in danger, he came to realise that he had developed some degree of affection towards him. No, perhaps he had subconsciously realised this some time ago, but he was now forced to accept this fact. Great Elder Wan didn't feel good about this development at all, though. Originally, he only intended to use Yaan as a tool to further his own strength. He justified this deceit by telling himself that Yaan was a demon, an evil creature that shouldn't be thought of in the same way as humans.

The problem with this way of thinking, was that Great Elder Wan was not a follower of the demonic way. He was unable to act like a true demon, completely detaching himself from morality and doing despicable things for his own benefit. After carefully raising Yaan and spending so long with him over these years, he naturally developed a real relationship with the boy and even felt joy with each step of Yaan's progress. Watching as his disciple grew from a scared mortal child into a diligent cultivator was honestly fulfilling for the old man who had always lacked any sort of family throughout his long life.

To discard this relationship in order to further his own power, that would truly be something that only a demon would do. As such, Great Elder Wan felt a conflict forming within his heart, causing his mind to fill with uncertainty and confusion. If he did not resolve this inner turmoil, then his cultivation could stagnate or even deteriorate…

The pain in his heart was only eased somewhat when he finally discovered Yaan. After searching through the entire night, he spotted Yaan's small figure lying in a bush, hidden from view and emitting an aura so weak that it made his heart lurch. It was obvious that he was badly injured and thoroughly exhausted, to the extent that he would probably die without external assistance.

The old man waved his hand and pulled a bottle of medicine from his spatial ring, a ring with a separate micro-dimension contained within. Such rings were not exactly common within the sect owing to the relatively high value, but neither were they rare. Any decent Elder or high ranking core disciple would be able to afford such a ring.

He carefully tipped the bottle, pouring three drops of faintly glowing blue liquid into Yaan's mouth. The sweet fluid slipped down Yaan's throat and the medicinal energy immediately showed its effect, beginning to heal the worst of Yaan's wounds.

His exhaustion was still present though, that could only be recovered with sufficient rest.

Great Elder Wan sighed slightly in relief. That look of confusion appeared on his face once more, before vanishing without a trace as he forcefully cleared his mind.

He stepped onto a sword and held tightly onto Yaan in front, then flew back towards the sect with haste. Now that he had rescued Yaan, it was imperative that he return to the sect to deal with the current escalating disaster.

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Yaan awoke later that evening. He actually felt strangely refreshed, and after examining his condition, he found that his injuries had all fully recovered.

After bringing him back to the core sect, Great Elder Wan left in a hurry, only having time to drop Yaan off at his home and leaving him with a spare robe to replace his current tattered clothing. As such, Yaan was alone when he awoke.

Seeing the spare robe draped over his chair, Yaan was able to roughly guess the series of events that had unfolded following his loss of conciseness. Anyway, he knew that the only person who would bother rescuing him was his teacher, so this wasn't much of a mystery.

"Teacher really is considerate…" Yaan mumbled.

Within the stone ring, Rui frowned slightly. She noticed some changes in Great Elder Wan's feelings towards Yaan, but this didn't mean that she was happy about Yaan's growing trust in him. In her opinion, Yaan's teacher was the biggest threat to his life. His change of heart wasn't enough that he would change his plans as of yet, meaning that he most likely still intended to refine Yaan into a demonic puppet.

"Yaan, remember that nobody acts without some goal in mind in this world. Do not become too attached to this sect, it's impossible for you to hide your true identity forever."

Yaan sighed at her reminder, saying nothing. He stood up and changed into the fresh red robe, then exited his home calmly.

"Disciple Yaan!"

He was greeted by a man in a lighter red robe. Yaan glanced at his attire and recognised it as the core sect servant clothing.

"Great Elder Wan ordered that I stay here and inform you of the current situation once you woke up. The sect is in a bit of a panic right now, so we had best leave for the meeting hall as we talk."

Yaan raised an eyebrow in curiosity, he did not yet know what was going on. He nodded and agreed to follow the servant to the meeting hall, where many people were apparently gathered.

The servant explained about how the Thunder Sword School was also experiencing a beast tide, and that many disciples and inner sect Elders had lost their lives pitifully in the most recent turn of events. Yaan thought back to his series of unlucky encounters, now realising that it was no coincidence that he had been attacked by a Rank 2 gorilla, then soon after by a herd of Rank 1 and 2 demonic bulls.

After they arrived at the meeting hall, the servant bowed deeply and departed. Almost immediately after Yaan turned away, he heard a familiar voice calling out to him.

"Y-Yaan!" Elia exclaimed, drawing the attention of Findi who stood by her side. After nodding to Findi, Yaan made his way across to the clearly agitated young girl, intending to ask her about the state of their group. Based on Elia's current expression, a bad premonition was arising within his heart…

He didn't even need to say anything before the girl burst into tears.

"Yaan, Boln, he, he, he died! He was killed by a Rank 3 vine snake, we barely made it out ourselves!"

Yaan's eyes widened in shock. Boln, the most powerful True Yuan Qi realm Qi master in the sect, had actually…died? Someone so powerful and renowned had died, just like that? This, how could this be?

He realised now that Kaila was sat nearby on the floor, slumped back against a tree. She stared blankly into space, it was clear that this had taken a big mental toll on her.

Elia was crying, Kaila was broken and Findi also looked pained. As the central pillar of their group, Boln's death devastated them all.

Yaan thought back to the first time he met Boln. The young man was full of smiles, approaching him with a friendly attitude and making Yaan feel slightly more welcome in this unfamiliar place. Whilst he wouldn't exactly call Boln a close friend, he was one of the few people that Yaan actually liked in this place.

"Why…again…?!" Yaan's face twitched in pain and anger. He tried to stay calm, but the sadness he felt from Boln's death was unexpectedly strong.

He tried his best to keep his distance, to remain emotionally detached from everyone, but Boln was the one person he had grown most fond of other than his teacher. Why was it that the people close to him kept dying? Was he cursed? Was this his fault somehow?

"Yaan, you're misunderstanding here…this is the true nature of this world. You are not unlucky for witnessing all this death, that is simply the way of the world. This beast tide is a level above what I had originally predicted, it's possible that this entire sect will be demolished, no matter a single person that you knew."

Rui's words were like splash of cold water, instantly waking him up from his dazed stupor. The pain in his heart was still strong as Boln's cheery face flashed through his mind, and whilst it was still difficult to believe…

Yaan was no ordinary child, this was not his first encounter with death and suffering. Compared to witnessing his family being senselessly slaughtered before his very eyes, he definitely wouldn't become distraught and disillusioned with the world again over just this.

Still though, the light in his eyes darkened by a barely noticeable amount. His expression became less emotional and more detached, showing his resilience and the loss of his naivety.

As Rui said, life and death was the true nature of the world. To take your life and safety for granted was foolish, nothing was guaranteed and everything could change in heartbeat.

"How are the Elders fairing against the beasts?" Yaan changed the topic, not wanting to dwell on it any longer.

"They're pushing back, slowly whittling their numbers down. Though, the losses are already enormous…apparently 13 core sect disciples lost their lives." Findi sighed and shook his head regretfully.

This beast tide took such a sudden turn, shocking the young disciples out of their delusions of pride, honour and glory.

What good was glory if you were dead? Many people realised that things were now far too dangerous. They decided that they absolutely wouldn't return to the frontlines of the Northern wilderness.

"They're saying that we should stay within the core sect for now, until the Elders return and announce further plans." Findi finished.

"I see." Yaan nodded. "Then…I'm going to go cultivate."

"Wh- Yaan, how can you cultivate right now?!" Elia cried out, stunned as she saw Yaan turning away and leaving.

"What about Boln? He actually died, yet you…" She trailed off, realising that she had raised her voice and said something unnecessary.

Yaan stopped, turned around, then stared Elia dead in the eyes. She shivered slightly, instinctively taking a step back as for a brief instant, she felt like she was not staring into a boy's eyes, but into the abyss itself…

For the first time since leaving Lightstone village, Yaan spoke honestly and seriously to his childhood friend.

"Boln is dead, but we are alive. If we don't work to become stronger, then we will also die."

Elia was frozen in place, dazedly mulling over his words.

Kaila finally looked up and stared at Yaan deeply. She stood up slowly, then actually bowed to him. When she raised her head, she chuckled sadly on seeing his startled expression.

"Little Yaan…thank you. You're right, we can't just sit around feeling sorry for ourselves. We need to survive. I need to survive, or else, Boln's child will fall with me. For Boln, his legacy and his unborn child, I must live on."

Elia, Yaan and Findi all stared at Kaila, once again feeling shocked to the core.

Kaila was pregnant? If she knew she was pregnant, then why the hell was she out fighting wild beasts everyday?!

"I only found out recently, I was scared and didn't even tell Boln…haha, to think I was actually afraid of something like this. It seems so stupid now…"