Unpolished Jade

Prologue

…

The Continent of Ikram is known to its inhabitants as the only continent on the planet. It is being ruled by 3 giant empires… Saldonis, Merkas, and Eatowa.

These three empires have been at odds with one another and have been fighting for resources and manpower for thousands of years. Wars have been wages between kingdoms and empires, but none ended as a winner and would always end in reconciliation and compromise.

A thousand years ago, a powerful demon suddenly appears on the continent. None of them knew where it came from and its purpose in coming to the continent.

But it began to create a path of carnage and destruction.

The demon was named Melfas, and it wreaked havoc throughout the land.

The kingdoms and the empires gathered their powerful soldiers and grouped together to unite and fight against the demon.

Hundreds of thousands of sects come together in this glorious yet dangerous battle to save their land.

But Melfas is no brainless demon brute.

He has enticed a few of the leaders of the sects in the continent which has caused division in the war which almost leads to the annihilation of everyone.

Those rebels who began cultivating the technique of the demon Melfas were then called the Evil Factions or the Evil Sects… while those who fought against Melfas were known as the Honorable Factions or Honorable Sects.

The Evil Sect has caused a lot of casualties as they align themselves with Melfas and his cruel means.

As the tables turned for the worst for the people of the Ikram continent, three warriors rose up to face the impossible challenge.

A sword-wielding hero, who is a blacksmith, created a powerful sword which he named… Demon Slaughterer.

A mysterious female warrior wearing a powerful divine armor called Aegis of Eternia.

The last of the three is a peculiar person because… he is just a mortal man.

Though he is mortal, he is able to command the elements and wield power beyond one's imagination.

In the final battle against the demon Melfas, this mortal man takes out a small pea-sized bead.

When all hope was lost, the man uses the bead to destroy Melfas and his minions.

…

"Mom… What happened then?" asked a little girl of about 5 years of age with her beautiful big round eyes looking inquisitively at the woman sitting beside her bed.

"Well… the bad guy was defeated and the good guys won!" the woman replied while lightly pinching the rosy cheeks of the cute little child.

"Hmm… Why is there no… prince and princess… I like that King of the story more…" the little child pouted.

"Oh really? You want to meet a prince someday?" the mother asked with a teasing tone.

"Yes… I wish to see a prince when I grow up, and then he would marry me and we will live happily ever after!" the little girl giggled while she lay on the bed as her pink cheeks became ruddier.

"Haha… You naughty little girl… Someday… maybe someday, you will meet someone… He may not be a prince, but I hope that he could make your heart flutter like the clouds…" the mother said while looking at the night sky with a hint of melancholy in her eyes.

The little girl suddenly stopped giggling as she looks into her mother's eyes.

"Mom… Do you miss… my father?" she asked while tilting her cute little head to the side a little.

The woman did not say anything and just nodded her head.

However, she restrained herself not to feel too sad as she forced a faint smile on her face.

"Let's sleep now… I will tell you a new story tomorrow… okay?" she coaxed the child to sleep.

The little girl excitedly nodded her head as she threw more requests to her mother.

A giggling sound could be heard as the little girl got tucked into bed.

A few minutes later, the woman walked out of the small room and looks at the dimly lit living room.

She could not help but bit her lips as she recalled the past.

She and her husband belong to a prestigious family.

After they got married, they lived in a luxurious house with a large courtyard. They have house maidens, servants, and guards at their command.

But all of that vanished all of a sudden when she got pregnant.

At that time, a well-known sect held sect recruitment in the town that they are in. Many wanted to join the sect and cultivate immortality, just like in the legends.

That day, she waited excitedly for her husband so that they could share a meal.

But who would have known that she would actually wait in vain as her husband did not come home that day?

The next day, she began searching and found out that her husband has been missing since last night.

According to the people who saw what happened, he was taken by the sect and left the town.

She did not believe it but after looking everywhere, she knew that the piece of news was right.

She felt saddened but knew that she did not have time to cry about this.

She needed to run, she needed to escape.

No matter what, she did not want to end up in the hands of any of the sects which would take her and her daughter because of her husband.

This is because. She is keeping a deeply hidden secret.

While reminiscing about the past, she could not help but subconsciously touches the egg-shaped jade stone on her neck.

"Little Na-na… mommy promises to protect you no matter what. No one will take you away from mommy…" she muttered.

She bit her lips and then walked out of the house.

…

The night sky is very dark and something in the air spells gloom.

The small village of Mok became silent as the night passes. The lamp light from each wooden house slowly turned into embers as the villagers began to slumber.

Unknown to the people of the village, two shadows could be seen lurking in the darkness observing with their keen eyes what is happening in the village.

The movements of the patrol around the villages and the people inside the houses are all captured by their mysterious eyes.

"Are you sure that this is the place? I hope that this is the right one this time…" asked one of the shadows.

"Yes, I'm sure this time. I felt it personally the last time I passed by this village. It was faint but I am sure that this is the right place…" the other one said.

The brightest of the three moons above the sky suddenly peeks out from the clouds and illuminates the forest.

This light showed the figures of the two shadows lurking in the darkness.

One is a tall and lanky man, while the other one is a buff-looking guy. Both of them are wearing black robes making them look like assassins.

"Let's make it looks like a robbery…" the tall and lanky fellow suddenly said.

"Nah… Let's just waste this village just like the last one…" the buff-looking guy said with an evil grin on his face as he licks his lips.

He seems to be expecting some kind of bloody scene in front of him which makes him feel… excited.

"The two of you seem a bit busy planning something…" suddenly a woman's voice interrupted the two.

They quickly turn around and have shocked looks on their faces.

"Who… who are you?" asked the lanky fellow.

The buff-looking one did not say anything and just gathers his Qi in his eyes.

When he saw that the woman standing atop a tree did not have any Qi on her body, a slight smirk appears on his face.

"A mortal warrior…" he suddenly said.

The lanky man showed a slight grin on his face as a realization came to him.

"Hmm… She did not look that bad… In fact, she is actually more beautiful than some of our sisters in the sect… Hehe…" the lanky fellow said while licking his lips.

One could see that he is thinking perverted thoughts in his mind.

"Let's capture her Senior Bung…" he suggested.

"Get her… She's all yours…" the buff-looking man said with a smirk.

The woman did not say anything and just waves her hand in the air as if writing something.

"Hey, what are you doing?" the lanky fellow asked with a mocking tone.

"Hmm… You two are only in the Energy Perception realm at the Spirit Refining stage… and you think that you are already powerful?" she suddenly said in disdain.

The two showed a surprised expressions on their faces.

For a Qi cultivator to know the other's strength one would need to gather their Qi in their eyes to see the Qi emission outside of the body.

The color and thickness would depend on the Qi cultivator's strength.

However, this feat is impossible for mortals.

So, how could a woman who has no Qi emission outside her body see their cultivation?

"You!!!" the buff-looking fellow suddenly pointed at the woman.

But the lanky fellow has already made his move as a sword appears in his hand and a light glow of Qi could be seen covering it.

The buff-looking guy also made his move and draws his sword.

But what he saw next made him dumbfounded as he takes a few steps back.

The lanky fellow did not even reach the woman and his head was already decapitated.

What horrified the man is that the thing that decapitated his companion is a simple common machete. But the thing is that this machete actually could fly.

"Is… is that an artifact?" he muttered with a trembling voice.

"How… how could a mortal like you…" before he could finish his words, he found his world suddenly turning around.

Then he discovered a headless body standing on a tree branch.

The woman disposed of the two Qi cultivators and quickly returned to the village.

"This place is not safe anymore… Must I rush the training of my daughter?" she muttered as she contemplated deeply.

…

The next day…

In the small hut, a mother and her child happily eat their breakfast. The two are in a happy mood.

Though the village looks poor, the life of the two carries no worry.

The woman is Wu Min and her little child's name is Wu Hyuna.

When she first arrives in the village 5 years ago, she is already pregnant.

The villagers did not discriminate against her and accepted her as one of their own.

After she gives birth to Hyuna, Wu Min became one of the core members of the village as she provided the village with much help.

From farming, hunting, and even commerce and business, she has a vast knowledge of it all.

This made the villagers respect and admire her. She became a teacher for the village children and even the adults would sometimes consult her.

The lives of both mother and child are pretty much set in the village.

But for some reason… after that night…, Wu Min could feel a strange gnawing feeling in her heart, about an impending danger.

But she brushes it off as she has been sensing the same kind of feeling every time she would get rid of bandits, thieves, and evil cultivators that would be lurking around the village.

However, she also decided to finally begin teaching her daughter the deeper secrets of her clan.

While thinking deeply, she once again touches the small egg-shaped jade pendant on her neck.

"I hope that there is still time…" she muttered while looking at the happy little girl writing something on a piece of leather skin paper.

On her hand, she looks at the writings and nodded her head in approval. She then began throwing them one by one inside the stove next to her.

She knew that she has to burn these things. No one should be able to see such things… no matter what.