4. Hello Old Friend

This city of Chengdu was bustling, even at midnight. A young man walked up to a building that was right in the middle of downtown. He glanced around before standing against a wall next to the door, crossing his arms. He let out a soft, anxious breath as he waited for movement. His eyes scanned the area, as if looking for any sign of threat.

It didn't take long for someone to walk out. The man let out a breath of relief as he saw that it was who he was looking for. He reached out to touch the person's shoulder, only to be grabbed by the arm and flipped over. The boy hit the ground with a shout as pain shot up his shoulder.

"Who are you and what do you want?!" the person cried in alarm, pinning him down and pulling a pocket knife from his pocket. He held the blade to the other's neck, staring into his eyes with a menacing glare. The man felt his heart racing as he stared back into his eyes.

"I'm not here to hurt you," the man said with wide eyes, innocently holding his hands over his head in surrender. "My name is Lei Yongliang! I was sent to bring you and your brother to safety!"

"Sent by who?" the person asked suspiciously, not seeming to be loosening his grip any time soon.

"Your mother."

Silence fell between the two of them after Yongliang's words. The person's face turned red, but he ultimately loosened his grip. He continued to glare at the young man, stepping back with trembling hands. Yongliang stayed in the same position, too afraid to move.

"W-what kind of sick joke is this?! My mother is dead," the person screamed, causing Yongliang to give him a sad smile and slowly get up.

"Let's go inside. I'll explain it to you and your brother," Yongliang said softly, fully standing up and moving over to pick up a backpack that was sitting on the ground.

"I need to get him food," the boy said, staring at him wearily.

"I already have some," the other said with a small smile. The boy hesitated before cautiously making his way inside.

He kept looking back at the other, ready to attack at any given moment. He obviously wasn't ready to trust this intruder, but he wanted to hear what he had to say. And he had food. The boy had to admit that he was, in fact, pretty hungry.

"Xueji Shixiong!" Yongliang said as soon as he saw his old friend, Shen Seiji, rushing over and putting his hands on his back when he saw the familiar figure. Seiji's eyes widened at the voice, turning his head to look at the boy as he felt a flow of spiritual energy pass through his veins.

"Y-yongliang Shidi?" Seiji asked in shock, looking between him and his brother. "What are you doing here?"

"Hello old friend," Yongliang said softly, continuing to transfer energy to him until the color returned to his cheeks.

"You two know each other?!" Sora cried out, watching them in shock. Seiji nodded his head, feeling his energy come back.

"Shidi and I trained together while you were in summer camp a couple years back," Seiji told him. "His mom trained with our mom their whole lives."

"How come I've never heard of him?" Sora asked in confusion, causing Seiji to let out a soft sigh. He finally felt his strength coming back.

"Mom didn't talk about the other people in the cultivation world. She didn't trust anyone," Seiji told him. "She wanted us to practice on our own. She didn't believe in joining clans, which is what Shidi's mother was trying to do. She… Wouldn't let me tell you about them."

Seiji's face darkened, causing Yongliang to sigh and bite his lip at the memory. He figured Seiji didn't want to talk about it, since the memory hurt both of them just thinking about it. Luckily Sora didn't pry. Instead, he watched as Yongliang removed his hands from Seiji's back and proceeded to remove the older's shirt so he could dress his wound properly.

"You said our mother sent you?" Sora asked, sitting down and resting against the wall.

"Mm," Yongliang replied, removing the old bandage and digging through his bag for a medical kit. "She called my mom saying she sensed danger. She asked her to come get you two and to protect you."

"But nobody came to help her?" Sora asked, his gaze darkening more. Yongliang could sense a wave of dark energy emitting from the other, which slightly terrified him.

"We didn't know," Yongliang replied, pouring some water onto Seiji's wound, before soaking up some of the blood with a cloth. He tried not to let them know he felt alarmed. He was supposed to help the brothers. "She has always been one who wanted to fight her own battles. She didn't want help. She just wanted you two to be safe."

"But-" Sora said, causing Seiji to shake his head.

"Xiejie, you and I both know how she is," Seiji said sternly, causing Sora to hold back any other objections. Yongliang noticed how Seiji using Sora's Chinese name seemed to shut the younger boy up.

The two brothers were part Japanese. The only thing they knew about their father was his nationality. He left them while their mother was pregnant with Sora. On top of that, they barely had their mother growing up. She was never home, and would only appear to make sure they were training. And she was really hard on Seiji, practically abusing him since he was young. That's why he was indifferent about what had happened. He raised Sora, and he was unloved by his parents. All he could do was focus on his brother.

"This wound is deep," Yongliang said as he cleansed the wound with medicinal alcohol. "I'm gonna have to give you some stitches."

"Is that safe?" Sora asked, darkly.

"I've been training in the medical field ever since I was ten years old. I know what I'm doing," Yongliang assured him. Before Sora could object, Seiji put his hand up to stop him and nodded his head at Yongliang.

"Do it," Seiji told him.

Yongliang nodded and gave Seiji something to bite down on before taking out a sewing kit. He took out a needle, pouring alcohol on it. Sora watched his movements with a glare. Yongliang could tell that he didn't trust him one bit.

"Is that sterilized?" Sora asked, biting his lip and staring at the needle.

"Yes," Yongliang said.

Yongliang proceeded to do the stitches while Sora shifted uncomfortably. Seiji wanted to comfort him, but he couldn't. He just stayed still, wincing in pain when he felt the needle going in and out of his skin. Once Yongliang finished, he cleaned up the blood and rebandaged Seiji up. He wiped his hands off with a wet cloth before getting up.

"You guys should eat, and then we should leave," Yongliang said softly.

"Where are we going?" Seiji asked, grabbing the sandwich Yongliang was handing him.

"My mom and I have been recruiting young cultivators," Yongliang told him. "There's not a ton, but we're trying to gather you all before the demon clan can. We don't want you guys falling into the clutches of evil, and neither did your mother."

Seiji nodded his head, unwrapping the sandwich and biting into it. Sora, however, left his food untouched, keeping a close eye on his brother. Seiji glanced at him and let out a sigh. He understood his reluctance, but it was starting to get annoying, and even a little rude. Seiji pushed himself up.

"Sora, you need to calm down," Seiji said, crossing his arms. "Yongliang is not going to do anything to us. I trust him with my life. And I think you should too."

"Don't you think it's suspicious, though?" Sora asked. "How he showed up just as everything happened?"

"No, I do not," Seiji said, honestly. "He's here to help, and we're going to follow him."

Sora bit his lip and nodded his head, before looking down and slowly opening his sandwich. Seiji hummed and went back to eating, letting the room go silent. He didn't want to constantly explain why he trusted Yongliang. He just wanted Sora to trust his judgment because he knew in his heart just how good of a kid Yongliang is. And that Yongliang would never betray him, especially because Seiji saved his life when they were younger.