Death

Another silver light flashes before me and the spear that just stabbed the young man's heart zips past me, back to the older man in the blue clothes.

I am shocked. I… I don't know what to think. Am I… am I supposed to be feeling something here? I feel nothing but shock.

As I try to make a sense of my own thoughts, the man flies toward the young man and grabs him by the neck.

"Will you tell me now, young man?" the older man asked. "I can save you."

The blue-clothed man brings out a blue-colored… ball of some sort in front of me. Is that… no. That doesn't look like the marbles that can be found in beasts.

I've seen the young man kill many beasts, and almost all of those marbles are shiny. This one has textures, like powders. I think this is medicine.

I feel like I've seen the young man eat one of these during a battle, but I can't be sure exactly as I wasn't focusing on him at the time.

"Go… die…" the young man forces out some words.

The old man's eyes changes. "I see… so you have no plan of telling me," he says and suddenly snatches me from the young man's hands.

"If you won't tell me where you got this bamboo from, then I will make your soul tell me," the old man says and places his hands on the young man's head.

Where do I come from? Does he want me? Why would he want me? I can understand why he wants the flute, I make fantastic sounds that get other people to fall asleep, but why me, the bamboo?

What use could I possibly have to someone that can fly through the sky like this? I don't understand. Just take the flute and lea—

Suddenly, the young man starts to scream.

The young man screams in voices I have never heard come out of him before. This soul-wrenching scream is perhaps the most horrifying thing I have heard in a very long time. The screams ring so loud that I feel like I can hear them in my soul.

His body is convulsing, while blood pours out through his blown heart. How is he still alive enough to feel such pain?

For the first time in a while, I start feeling angry. This anger of mine is reaching the same level as when those black-clothed people when came down towards the villagers.

I am, once again, helpless as I watch someone in front of me die without me being able to do anything. I don't like this.

I don't like this at all.

Why do I have to get this consciousness, these feelings? Why do I have to have a soul when I am just a bamboo that others get to use, while I sit back and do whatever they want?

The young man is dying and I can't help him at all.

This feeling of helplessness. I hate it. Young man, please get back and beat this guy.

I try shouting out to release my anger, but no voice comes out of me. This is frustrating.

"I see," the old man says. "Transcendent Valley, huh? That's far to the west."

The old man lets go of the young man. Is he going to help him now? I think he got what he wanted already.

As if to give me hope and then tear it all away, the old man spins his spear and with a single slash cuts the young man in half.

I watch in horror as the two halves of the young man fall from the sky to the ground.

He… he's dead. The young man is dead, and I couldn't do anything for him.

The old man brings me up to his face to look at me, and I finally see his face.

I can not find a single emotion of horror or distress in his eyes. In fact, he seems to be happy with what he just did.

Killing people makes you happy?

What life did you live for you to turn out like this? Did you spend your childhood in a broken family? Did you never have friends growing up? Did you never find anyone to love in this world?

How can you kill a man in cold blood and not have a single shred of remorse?

Is this what a cultivation world is like?

"I finally found the location. Now, If I get more of this bamboo, I can make myself weapons of great power," the man says.

It seems he knows where I live at. Does he know about the jungle? How did he even find out exactly?

As I think that, the man has already flown away in some direction. Is he coming towards me? Towards where I grow?

Is he going to come to this bamboo forest and try to find me?

The hatred in my heart only helps to increase my anger toward this person. Very well, come. Come and try to take me.

When you do, I hope the Panda takes his time killing you. When you die, I will enjoy watching you die, like you enjoy watching others.

We fly past rivers, mountains, forests, cities, and many other places before this man slows down as he goes past a mountain and sees a massive city.

As we fly past the city and reach a smaller town next to it, I realize that I know this town. Yes, it's the same town where the young man bought me from.

Why are we stopping? Just come to me already and die.

As I think that, the old man turns his head and finds someone.

My heart sinks to my stomach. The old man who made me a flute, the hard-working old man, he is right there with a bunch more flutes.

The blue-clothed man walks up to him and puts me in front of him as he asks, "Where did you get this bamboo?"