Descendants of the Moon

Chapter 77

Descendants of the Moon

"The founding ancestor of my clan was Lu Han," Lu Yang began talking, and Leo listened. "However, his original name was Yueliang Han," Leo felt a certain strumming within, and his intuition was telling him that he was fully expected to simply know what that meant. So, he acted out the best he could.

"... impossible," his words seemed to resonate with Lu Yang, and he knew that, for now at least, he was out of the hot waters. 

"It's the most hidden part of our history," Lu Yang said. "Knowledge that is only ever passed down from one Clan Head to another. My Father told it to me when I turned seventeen and was declared the Heir. I was... shocked, and certain that he was lying. However, he took me to the secret basement, and showed it to me: the Crown of the Moon. According to our records, Yueliang Han was the eighth son of the Emperor, and had never even been crowned a Prince as he was an illegitimate child born of a maid. 

"As such, his name was never put down in proper records, which meant that when the rebels were culling all the Royalty, they missed him and thought that he was simply one of the servants. However, despite never becoming a Prince, the Emperor was rather fond of him, and even passed down a few martial arts and artifacts to him. I used precisely one of those to save my family." 

Leo connected the dots ever so slightly, feeling astonished even though he didn't really grasp the full extent of implications which, based off of Lu Yang's tone, were immense. 

"He stayed low for the first few years, before founding the Lu Clan. One of the cornerstones of our belief was the mandated history--three thousand years ago, humanity waged war against the First Demons, barely managing to win with the help of the Immortal Spirits. Even if the records from the Before Age are unreliable, all found confirmed this one truth. Or, well, what I thought to be truth. Later, it is stated that the Spirits grew weary of humanity and withdrew, though the reasons as to why were never detailed. Now... well, now I know why." 

The look in the old man's eyes was rather strange; a mixture of regret, hope, and pain came together to forge a peculiar glint. Leo stayed silent, the gears of his mind spinning to slowly dot the lines of the story. Even if he was a fool in denial, he could no longer deny fully--the animals around him... were all likely descendants of these Immortal Spirits. That was why he 'saw' Milky and Blackie and Red in that brief flash; it wasn't really them, just the Spirits from which they descended. 

"Everything, it feels, that I ever learned of our history was a lie. But, at the same time, it is also an opportunity."

"An opportunity?"

"To write the actual history down," Lu Yang said. "To unearth the secrets buried under the thousands of years of lies. And, ultimately, to find out exactly what happened all the way back." 

Leo felt a bit of pity toward the man. Ancient histories, however well-preserved, were rarely done so with accuracy in mind, even back on Earth. Scholars oft debated endlessly whether something was a myth or a distorted truth, never quite coming to an agreement. 

The collapse of the Late Bronze Age, for example, was caused by the so-called Sea People... whose identities were never confirmed. One of the most monumental events of the human civilization shrouded in a mystery unsolved. 

Or, perhaps, the idea of the Trojan War. Was it real? Was it fiction? If real, how much of it was 'creative liberties taken'? 

History, always, warped itself around the quilts of the victors--separating the truth from the masked interpretations was never easy, and Leo could only imagine how much more difficult it would have been if the mythical things actually could have happened, as was the case here. Unlike on Earth, when writs here claimed that 'two Kingdoms fought for years with no end, godly figures severing mountains with their fingers', it was entirely possible that it was truth as much as it was possible that it was a lie. 

"That's a tall task," Leo said. 

"... I've spent a lifetime drifting in the fog," Lu Yang said. "Blind, deaf, and mute. I fear, should I not try to leave the maze of my mind, I will go mad. I know that the chances of me ever finding out the truth are slim. All the records from the Before Age that we have are kept in the Vaults of Glory, deep in the Holy Palace of the Divine City. The only people with access to them are Imperial Scholars, Sect Masters of Tier IX and Tier X Sects, and a few hand-selected individuals with grand contributions to the Ashlands. Someone like me... hah. It wouldn't even warrant a snort, let alone a laugh. But I cannot concede just yet. Why do you think did humanity betray the First Demons?" Lu Yang suddenly posed a question Leo could not answer, especially with that expectant look in the old man's eyes.

It seemed that even he, for all his wisdom, had contributed more to Leo's importance than there was one. Of all the people that he met, there was really only one that didn't treat him as a reverent hermit--that 'Elder' woman from Liang's Sect. He wondered, deep down, how did she manage to see through him when nobody else did? Not even those seemingly twice her age.

As for Lu Yang's question... in honesty, it wasn't impossible to answer. The reason was simple: as it was distant history, chances were that Lu Yang would never unearth the truth, and whatever Leo said now might become that truth in the long run. But if so, it would also corrupt the search; the old man would seek evidence that would conform with whatever Leo told him, ignoring whatever defied it. 

"Ancient histories," Leo broke the silence. "Are like little mysteries. Every once in a while, it may be fun to look back at what-could-have-beens, what-ifs, and whether certain stories are truths or not. But they seldom ever unfold concise answers. As for why behind the betrayal," he paused for a moment, smiling faintly. "Would it be any more unique than any other betrayal? Why do people betray each other?"

"Greed," Lu Yang replied. "Anger. Grief." 

"There you go." 

"... is it right?" the old man asked with faint anger in his voice. "Would those meager things be enough to betray their saviors? I would never betray you, no matter what."

"What to us is meager, to them might have been life-altering," Leo said. "It is easy for even just one bad person to incite stray thoughts. They could have instilled the fear that the First Demons might abandon them, or use them, or a myriad of other awful things, and used that as a justification for the betrayal. To them, it wouldn't have even registered as a betrayal, but rather a preemptive strike. Perhaps, that is why the history treats it as such--from their eyes, it was a war for survival, and one they won." 

Lu Yang fell silent, as did Leo. 

To him, it scarcely mattered what the truth was--it had little to do with him. Not nothing, since his friends were descendants of that era, but as there was nothing he could change, he felt it a waste to think too long on it. 

Besides, he was feeling a bit too chirpy to be fully invested in his conversation with Lu Yang. Just before coming back, he'd managed to break through to the Core Formation, forming what the system called 'Primordial Core', whatever that was. He supposed it was above average, at least, which made him rather happy.

What made him even happier that, due to his action, the system evolved--from Level 2 to Level 3. With it, some new forms and functions were unlocked, all of which seemed beyond useful. He was planning on testing some of them out when he came back, not having expected Lu Yang to have left his room, let alone to be willing to share what was likely one of the best-hidden secrets of the entire world. 

"It doesn't matter," Lu Yang said in the end. "For all actions, for all deeds, there is an objective truth. The measurable right and wrong. It would be like killing people just because they might commit a crime. Even if we had a device that could measure that with extreme accuracy, even killing one innocent would undo its purpose. Wouldn't that have been the same for them? Even if almost every First Demon, in some capacity, wanted to do them harm, there were some that didn't. And what of the Immortal Spirits? They are the purest expression of the world's intangible laws. I'd sooner trust their judgment to withdraw from the world and shelter themselves from the humans, than I would anyone else in the world... living or dead."

"I admire your zest," Leo said. "And I won't stop you. But, perhaps, sleep on it a little. Angry hearts often can make us do and say things that we will regret when we calm down." 

"Very well," he said, standing up. "I will start taking care of the garden again, if you don't mind. Again... I apologize for my behavior. And... thank you. For everything." he emphasized the last word strangely, and though Leo didn't really know what he meant, he assumed it was for taking him in and not becoming angry with him. 

Regardless, he merely smiled as the old man went back to the house, finally leaving him alone. However, by now he was a bit exhausted himself, in want of a brief respite, before he tested out all four of the system's new functions. The one that was looking forward to the most was definitely something the system called Simulacrum--it would project a perfected version of him, where that version would perform all the arts that Leo knew to their utmost. It would be as though he'd finally gain a Master of his own, somebody to show him the path so he wouldn't need to stumble blind through the alleys of this unknown machinery all on his own.